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July 20, 2018 Special Announcements No. 639

Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM) Weekend Summary

July 20, 2018
Special Announcements No. 639

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: On Telegram, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) Fatwa Justifies Killing Of Civilians In Martyrdom Attacks

The following report is now a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.

On June 28, 2018, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan ("Movement of the Pakistani Taliban," TTP) released a video on Telegram in which a fatwa ("Islamic decree") was issued in response to a question on civilian casualties in suicide attacks by the mujahideen.

 

EXCLUSIVE: ISIS Social Media Presence – Part III: Technical Support And Guidance On Social Media For ISIS Supporters Disseminating ISIS Content

By: R. Green

In light of social media companies' attempts to thwart Islamic State (ISIS) supporters' use of their platforms, and in light of how important its supporters social media presence is to ISIS, ISIS supporters on Telegram post and share a great many tutorials, how-to guides, and a great deal of information on how to use the platforms and circumvent these obstacles.

 

EXCLUSIVE: Jihadi Leader Fazlur Rehman Khalil Joins Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf Party

According to an announcement made on the Facebook wall of Pakistani politician Asad Umar on July 17, 2018, Maulana Fazlur Rehman Khalil has extended support to the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) party of Imran Khan for the July 25 parliamentary elections.

 

EXCLUSIVE: Jihadi Sheikh Abu Khadija Al-Urduni Urges Mujahideen To Destroy ISIS, Fight Rebel Factions That Reconciled With Syrian Regime

On July 11, 2018, the Bayan Foundation For Media Production published on Telegram an article written by a Jordanian jihadi sheikh in which he calls on the mujahideen to wage war on the Islamic State (ISIS) by following a tactic that would ensure the total destruction of the group.

 

ISIS Claims Killing Of Two U.S. Soldiers In An Ambush In Afghanistan

On July 13, 2018, the Islamic State (ISIS) news agency A'maq reported that the day before, ISIS had killed two American soldiers in an ambush in Achin District in Nangarhar, Afghanistan. An Afghan soldier was killed in the attack as well. ISIS released the statement on its affiliated Telegram channels.

 

Islamic State Issues Clarification About Attribution Of Materials

On July 15, 2018, the Islamic State (ISIS) released a statement in Arabic announcing that only materials released by its official Media Diwan are to be attributed to it and considered representative of the organization and its leadership.

 

ISIS Claims Killing Of 80 People Including Top Intelligence Official In Attack On Election Rally In Pakistan

On July 13, 2018, the Islamic State (ISIS) released a statement claiming that one of its fighters had detonated his suicide vest at an election rally in the city of Mastung in Baluchistan, Pakistan, and killed 80 people including Mir Siraj Khan, the "intelligence director in Baluchistan."

 

In ISIS Weekly Al-Naba', ISIS Claims Responsibility For Attack In Saudi Arabia

In Issue 139 of the Islamic State (ISIS) weekly Al-Naba', released online on July 12, 2018, ISIS claimed responsibility for the July 8 attack against a prison checkpoint in the city of Buraidah, Saudi Arabia.

 

Video Shows Fighters In ISIS's New Hauran Province Swearing Allegiance To Al-Baghdadi

On July 15, 2018, an Islamic State (ISIS)-affiliated media outlet released a six-minute video showing a group of Jaysh Khalid bin Al-Walid (JKBW) fighters renewing their bay'a ("pledge of allegiance") to ISIS caliph Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi.

 

ISIS Khorasan Video Features Martyrdom Will Of Attackers, Including Young Boy; Threatens More Attacks In Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan

On 13 July 2018, the Islamic State (ISIS) Khorasan Province released a video titled "Knights Of Martyrdom," featuring statements from mujahideen who carried out inghimasi ("deep penetration") operations in Afghanistan and Pakistan in recent months, some of whom appear to be young.

 

ISIS Attack On Kabul Government Ministry Kills And Injures More Than 60, Including French Nationals

On July 15, 2018, the Islamic State (ISIS) announced that one of its fighters had carried out a suicide attack on the Ministry of Rural Development in Kabul, resulting in the deaths and injury of more than 60 people.

 

Follow-Up Regarding Australian 'Brothers Behind Bars' – Renewal Of Activities And Appeal To Establish Similar Groups In The U.S., UK, And Canada – In Addition To Fundraising Via Crowdfunding

"Brothers Behind Bars" (BBB) is an Australian group committed to aiding Muslim prisoners accused of terrorist activity and their families.

 

Reports: Al-Qaeda In The Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) Fighting Intensely Against ISIS In Bayda, Yemen

In the several days before July 18, 2018, multiple news outlets reported that the Yemen-based jihadi group Al-Qaeda In The Arabian Peninsula has been fighting intensely against the Islamic State (ISIS) in the Qaifa governate in Al-Bayda province of Yemen.

 

Al-Shabab Attacks Presidential Palace In Mogadishu

On the afternoon of July 14, 2018, Al-Shabab Al-Mujahideen's Shahada News Agency reported that clashes were ongoing at "heavily fortified government headquarters" in the Somali capital of Mogadishu, including at the presidential palace and the nearby SYL Hotel, where government ministers, officials, and intelligence officers were staying.

 

Jihadi Group Jamaatud Dawa Fields 265 Candidates In Pakistan's Elections

For the July 25 elections for the National Assembly (NA) of Pakistan, religious parties and militant groups through their proxy political parties are in the fray. Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) is the major religious organization and a political party.

 

Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) Issues Fatwa Against Islamic Scholars Standing In Pakistan's Elections

Umer Media, the broadcasting arm of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP, or the Pakistani Taliban), has released a fatwa addressing whether one should vote for Islamic scholars standing in the July 25 parliamentary elections in Pakistan. A fatwa is an Islamic legal opinion usually issued as an answer to a question posed by anyone.

 

Speech Competition Held At Schools In Pakistani Kashmir To Honor Slain Kashmiri Jihadi Burhan Wani

On July 8, 2018, a speech competition was organized for the students of private schools in Pakistani Kashmir on the second anniversary of the death of Burhan Wani, a jihadi commander who was killed in Jammu & Kashmir by Indian security forces two years ago.

 

Muttahida Jihad Council Urges Pakistan To 'Land Military In [Indian-] Occupied Kashmir Or Aid The Mujahideen'

On July 14, 2018, the Urdu daily Roznama Siasat reported that the Muttahida Jihad Council (MJC), a network of Pakistan-based anti-India jihadi groups, has urged Pakistan to "land military in [Indian-]occupied Kashmir or aid the mujahideen" fighting for the independence of Kashmir from India.

 

Article In Islamist Magazine Kalimat Al-Haqq Recommends Use Of Private Blogs Rather Than Telegram To Avoid Shutdowns, Archive Deleted Material

In Issue 12 of the online Islamist magazine Kalimat Al-Haqq, which was released on July 4, 2018, writer 'Abd Al-Ghani Mazuz recommended launching a private blog to avoid service downtime and having content deleted on Telegram and Facebook.

 

Pro-ISIS Tech Group Urges Jihadis Not To Use Encrypted Messaging App 'Amn Al-Mujahid Following Discovery Of Vulnerabilities In PGP

On July 11, 2018, a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) tech group issued a warning on its Telegram channel asking jihadis to stop using a jihadi-made encrypted messaging app released in 2013, due to recently discovered vulnerabilities in the encrypted email protocol PGP, which is used in the app.

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