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September 30, 2017 JTTM Weekly No. 293

Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM) Weekend Summary

September 30, 2017
JTTM Weekly No. 293

The following are some of this week's reports from the MEMRI Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM) Project, which translates and analyzes content from sources monitored around the clock, among them the most important jihadi websites and blogs. (To view these reports in full, you must be a paying member of the JTTM; for membership information, send an email to jttmsubs@memri.org with "Membership" in the subject line.)

Note to media and government: For a full copy of these reports, send an email with the title of the report in the subject line to media@memri.org. Please include your name, title, and organization in your email.

 

EXCLUSIVE: ISIS In Libya Threatens U.S., Italy, France; Encourages Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi

A 17-minute video released September 24, 2017 by the Islamic State (ISIS) in Libya's Al-Barqa (Cyrenaica) Province documents the organization's activities in the desert regions of eastern Libya, focusing on raids and suicide attacks on checkpoints and other military facilities of the Eastern Libya government forces. The video, titled "But They Never Lost Assurance Due to What Afflicted Them" (Quran 3:146), was distributed by the ISIS-affiliated media outlet Nasher News.

 

EXCLUSIVE: Video Footage Of Melbourne Train Station, Sydney Subway Station With Threat, Australian Mall Posted On Pro-ISIS Telegram Channel

On September 28, 2017, a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) Telegram channel circulated three videos featuring locations in Australia as potential targets for terror attacks. The first video shows the Flinders St. train station in Melbourne, captioned "Security Detail Flinders St. Train station" and nearly three minutes long. The second video's caption reads: "Security detail Sydney Town Hall Subway."

 

EXCLUSIVE: Article In Islamic State (ISIS) Weekly 'Al-Naba' Discusses Methods of Camouflage, Distraction and Deception To Thwart Enemy's Intelligence-Gathering Efforts

Issue 98 of the Islamic State (ISIS) weekly Al-Naba, published on September 22, 2017, includes an article titled "How Do We Fight under the Watchful Eye of the Crusader Planes? – Part II: Camouflage." It is a follow-up to the first article in this series, which dealt with the need to reassess ISIS's combat methods in order to meet the challenge posed by enemy air capabilities.

 

EXCLUSIVE: Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) Commander: 'We Are Not Terrorists'; 'To Save Our Mothers And Sisters... We Took Up Sticks, Axes, And Knives'

ARSA Commander Abdus Shakoor (Dhaka Tribune).

 

EXCLUSIVE: Egyptian ISIS Fighter In Raqqah On Facebook: ISIS Leader Al-Baghdadi Ordered Us To Fight To The Death

An Egyptian Islamic State (ISIS) fighter recently disclosed on his Facebook account that ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi sent his men in Raqqah a letter in which he urged them to fight to the death.

 

EXCLUSIVE: British Extremist Brags On Facebook That Legal Charges Against Him Were Dropped

On September 26, 2017, a British man called Mikel Islam posted a Facebook Live video in which he updated his friends about his recent appearance in court. He gleefully delivered the news that his court case had been "dashed out" and that the charges against him had been dropped. He posts graphics featuring quotes by many extremist figures and clerics, a number of whom are pro-Islamic State (ISIS). On his Facebook and Instagram accounts, Islam has shared graphics of Anjem Choudary, Ahmad Musa Jibril, Anwar Al-'Awlaki, Junaid Thorne, and Suleiman Anwar.

 

EXCLUSIVE: Egyptian ISIS Operative Recruits Fighters, Instructs ISIS Supporters On Facebook And Other Social Media

An Egyptian Islamic State (ISIS) operative uses Facebook and other social networks to recruit for ISIS and provide religious and practical guidance to would-be terrorists.

 

Uptick In Violent Rhetoric, Threats Against Buddhists Marks New Stage In Jihadi Narrative On Myanmar Muslims

In December 2016, MEMRI published a report reviewing rhetoric about the Rohingya Muslims put forth by the Islamic State (ISIS) and its supporters. The jihadi focus on the plight of the Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar peaked in late 2016, when clashes between Rohingya militants and Myanmar government forces followed an October 9 terror attack on a police station that was thought to have been carried out by Rohingya militants. Recent waves of violence in Myanmar have again begun dominating the social media accounts of many ISIS supporters. Last year's outcry on social media was milder than the recent threats directed at Buddhists in Myanmar. In late 2016, extremists sympathetic to the Rohingya often posted links to charity sites collecting funds for those afflicted, or chided the governance of Myanmar leader. Aung San Suu Kyi. Videos showing particularly graphic abuse of Rohingya also went viral online. The current discourse regarding this humanitarian situation is markedly more violent. Users on Facebook, for example, have suggested various ways of executing Myanmar Buddhists in retaliation for the violence. Contrasting the current rhetoric with past commentary presents a fuller perspective of how this narrative has developed.

 

ISIS Video Features English-Speaking Fighter Rejoicing Over Destruction Caused By Hurricanes Harvey, Irma

On September 22, 2017, the media office of the Islamic State (ISIS) in Al-Barakah province released a video titled "And We Have Set A Time For Their Destruction" featuring an English-speaking fighter rejoicing over the destruction caused by the hurricanes that struck different parts of the U.S.

 

ISIS In Khurasan Says It Timed Deep Strike Operation Against Kabul Airport To Coincide With U.S. Defense Sec'y James Mattis Visit, Releases Photo Of Fighters

On September 27, 2017, the Islamic State (ISIS) in Khurasan Province released a statement claiming it had timed a deep strike operation targeting Kabul International Airport in Afghanistan to coincide with the visit to Afghanistan of U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis.

 

ISIS Weekly Al-Naba' Says Group Was Behind Paris Charles De Gaulle Bomb Threat, Claims ISIS 'Security Squadron' Planted Bombs At Previously-Chosen Locations In The Airport

Issue 98 of the Islamic State (ISIS) weekly Al-Naba', which was released on September 22, 2017, claimed that the group was behind the security scare several days earlier at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, when passengers onboard a British Airways flight were deplaned amid security concerns.

 

ISIS Affiliate Khaled Bin Al-Walid Army Burns Many Musical Instruments, Satellite Receivers

On September 25, 2017, the Hisba Office (religious police) of the Khaled Bin Al-Walid Army, a Syria-based group affiliated with the Islamic State (ISIS), released a pictorial report showing many musical instruments and dozens of satellite receivers being destroyed and set on fire in the town of Nafa'a in the suburbs of Daraa, Syria.

 

ISIS In Sinai Showcases Work Of Its Security Apparatus

On September 26, 2017, the Islamic State (ISIS) Sinai province released a series of photographs documenting the work of its security apparatus.

 

ISIS Video Features Beheading, Shooting Of Dozens Of Sunni Men Accused Of Espionage

On September 25, 2017, the media office of the Islamic State (ISIS) North Baghdad Province released a video documenting the execution of dozens of Sunni men accused of spying for the Iraqi government or of being members of the Sunni militias fighting against ISIS. In the video, titled "Apostates' Hellfire Part Two," which was posted on multiple pro-ISIS Twitter accounts and Telegram channels, ISIS urged Sunnis to join its ranks and threatened to kill those who are fighting against it.

 

Al-Qaeda Calls Upon The Muslim Brotherhood To Unite In Jihad

On September 26, 2017, Al-Qaeda's media company Al-Sahab released its Issue 17 bulletin titled "Shaykh Mehdi Akif in Allah's Protection," calling for Al-Qaeda to unite ranks with the Muslim Brotherhood and bridge the gap between their viewpoints, while upholding the principles of jihad, rejecting peaceful solutions, and abandoning the attempt to establish Islamic rule through democratic elections.

 

ISIS Releases Photo Of Uyghur Fighter Killed In Iraq

On September 21, 2017, the Islamic State (ISIS) in Al-Furat province released a photo of an Uyghur fighter who had been killed in Iraq.

 

ISIS Claims Uighur Member Carried Out Suicide Attack Against Syrian Military In Deir Al-Zour

On September 23, 2017, the Islamic State (ISIS) Al-Khair province issued a communiqué in which it claimed an attack on Syrian forces near Huweija Sakr, during which an Uighur member.

 

Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP) Releases New Nashid Glorifying Martyrdom

On September 25, 2017, Turkestan Islamic Party released a new nashid (piece of vocal music) with the title "Wishing to be a Martyr". The nashid (which is 5:41 minutes long) is in Uighur with subtitles in Arabic and English. It includes images of Uighur fighters and uniformed children with rifles. The nashid was released on the party's Voice of Islam Telegram channel.

 

Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP) Releases New Uyghur-Language Video

On September 28, 2017, the Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP) released a video in Uyghur titled "The Joy of Eid in the Land of Glory 2." The video is 20:40 minutes in duration.

 

Advertisements For Pakistan-Based Al-Rehmat Trust – NGO Associated With Jihadi Organization Jaish-e-Muhammad

Given below are images of some advertisements run by Al-Rehmat Trust, a Pakistan-based non-governmental organization that operates publicly in Pakistan. Al-Rehmat Trust is associated with the Pakistani jihadi organization Jaish-e-Muhammad founded by terror mastermind Maulana Masood Azhar.

 

Afghan Taliban Issue Belated Statement On 9/11 Anniversary: 'America And Her Invading Allies Should Leave The Land Of The Afghans'

On September 20, 2017, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (the Afghan Taliban's shadow government) released a statement marking the 16th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. It is not clear why the Islamic Emirate failed to issue this annual statement on its website until nine days after the anniversary. Following is the text of the statement in the original English, lightly edited for standardization and clarity.

 

Indian Urdu-Language Daily To Serialize Historical Novel On Saladdin, 12th Century Sultan Who Conquered Jerusalem

The Roznama Urdu Times, a leading Urdu-language newspaper published in Mumbai, India announced in a note on its front page that it would serialize "Dastan Iman Faroshon Ki," an Urdu-language historical novel on the role of Saladdin Yusuf ibn Ayub, the sultan who conquered Jerusalem at the Battle of Hattin in 1187.

 

Pakistan-Based Jihadi Terror Group Jaish-e-Muhammad: 'Our Jihad Is Not Limited To Kashmir And Afghanistan'; '[We] Will Unfurl The Flag Of Islam Over The Whole World'

The Pakistan-based jihadi organization Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) has declared that the jihad it wages is not limited to Kashmir and Afghanistan, according to the Urdu-language weekly Haftroza Al-Qalam.

 

Pakistan-Based Jihadi Weekly Calls Upon Jihadi Fighters To Encircle Myanmar Government

A jihadi weekly published in Pakistan has called upon jihadi fighters to take action against the government of Myanmar to save the Rohingya Muslim refugees.

 

Top Al-Qaeda Forum Appeals To Its Members To Re-Energize It, Notes That Its Role Is To Repost Content Already Found On Twitter, Telegram, And Facebook

On September 27, 2017, the public Telegram channel of the top Al-Qaeda forum Al-Fida issued an appeal for people to re-energize the forum by reposting content on it. It added that the forum's main role today is to share content that for the most part is already found on Twitter, Telegram, and Facebook.

 

Pro-ISIS Ashhad Media Telegram Group Posts Call For Facebook Hackers

On September 22, 2017, the pro-Islamic State (ISIS) Ashhad Media organization posted on one of its Telegram groups a call for Facebook hackers as part of the group's operations on social media.

 

The Opening (And Rapid Suspension) Of An ISIS News Agency Account On Decentralized Encrypted Chat App

On September 25, 2017, the Islamic State (ISIS)-affiliated Nasher News Telegram channel posted a link to the new account of the ISIS news agency A'maq on the Riot.im platform.

 

An Example Of Coordinating Efforts To Target Facebook Pages By Recently-Established Pro-ISIS Telegram Group

The pro-Islamic State (ISIS) Ashhad Media organization recently opened a Telegram group through which ISIS supporters can organize "raids" against Facebook pages belonging to ISIS's opponents.

 

ISIS Supporter On Telegram Posts Link To New Pro-ISIS WhatsApp Group

On September 25, 2017, a link to a new pro-Islamic State (ISIS) WhatsApp group was posted to the known pro-ISIS Telegram group.

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