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.
Syed Salahuddin, the chairman of the Muttahida Jihad Council (MJC), said that "Indian atrocities in the occupied Kashmir and the criminal silence of the international community are forcing Kashmiris to become fidayeen [i.e., suicide bombers]."
On February 28, 2019, Al-Malahem, the media arm of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), released a video featuring Khaled Batarfi, the group's senior commander, condemning the UAE and the grand imam of Al-Azhar for hosting the Pope and accusing them of conspiring against Islam and Muslims.
EXCLUSIVE: Jihadi Military Contractor Malhama Tactical Opens Course For English-Speakers
On January 31, 2019, on its Telegram channel, Malhama Tactical, a group of military trainers affiliated with HTS, announced the opening of a ten-day infantry course in Idlib, Syria, available "only for English-speaking brothers."
On March 4, 2019, a previously unknown pro-Islamic State (ISIS) hacking entity announced that it had, in support of ISIS, defaced several websites.
Platform: Twitter
On February 28, 2019, Al-Zallaqah, the media arm of the Mali-based Al-Qaeda-affiliate Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (GSIM), released a 20-minute video interview with Amadou Koufa, a high-ranking GSIM member and the leader of the group in the Macina region.
Al-Shabab Al-Mujahideen Claims Raid On Mogadishu Hotel
On March 3, 2019, Al-Shabab Al-Mujahideen issued a statement in Arabic on Telegram about the February 28, 2019 attack on the Mecca hotel in Mogadishu, claiming responsibility for it and justifying the attack by describing the hotel as a "governmental hotel" and "a den of intelligence."
SUPPORT OUR WORK
On March 1, 2019, an unknown assailant perpetrated a suicide bombing at the Fusion restaurant in Idlib, which was known to have been frequented by members of Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS).
An online radio station that promotes known Salafi-jihadi clerics and top Al-Qaeda figures, including Al-Qaeda leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri and Al-Qaeda figure Abdallah Azzam, was just launched.
On March 6, 2019, the Islamic State (ISIS) released a statement claiming the group had killed and wounded seven U.S. and Afghan soldiers in a series of IED attacks in Nangarhar province, Afghanistan.
Pro-ISIS Media Outlet Publishes Eulogy For British Fighter
On March 4, 2019, a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) media outlet, published a eulogy in Arabic for a British fighter named Abu Al-Bara' Al-Baritani, whose real name is not provided.
Al-Muhajireen Foundation Warns ISIS Members To Beware Of Informants Near The Syrian-Turkish Border
On February 27, 2019, a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) media outlet released a notice on its Telegram channel warning ISIS fighters on the Syrian-Turkish border to beware of ostensibly innocuous strangers who offer their assistance to transport them across the Syrian border.
On March 1, 2019, the Islamic State (ISIS) released the latest issue of its weekly Al-Naba', which included an article calling for ISIS fighters to brace for a lengthy fight against China and urging Muslims in China to declare jihad against the Chinese government.
On March 2, 2019, a pro-ISIS telegram channel released a five-page article, titled "Mobile Bomb," urging ISIS supporters to engage in jihad by all means possible.
Pro-ISIS Poster Includes Threats Of Attacks In London
On March 6, 2019, a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) media outlet distributed on Telegram a poster in English that includes threats of attacks in London, apparently reacting to the explosive packages found at Heathrow and London City Airports and the Waterloo train station on March 5, 2019.
Pro-ISIS Media Group On Telegram Publishes Poster Threatening France
On March 5, 2019, a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) media group published a poster showing France's Eiffel Tower and threatening to bring terror to France.
On March 5, 2019, pro-Islamic State (ISIS) Telegram channels published posters expressing support for ISIS fighters in the town of Baghouz, Syria, the last area held by ISIS and threatening to attack the U.S., the "apostates" and the "atheists." ISIS uses the latter two terms to refer to anti-ISIS Sunni militias and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
ISIS Executes Alleged Spy For Tunisian Security Services
On February 28, 2019, the Islamic State (ISIS) weekly newsletter Al-Naba' reported that an ISIS cell in Tunisia had executed a spy working for the government's security forces.
ISIS Supporters Increasingly Discuss Malware, IP Loggers, Take Measures To Defend Against Them
There appears to have been a recent increase in discussion about operations security procedures among Islamic State (ISIS) supporters, including chatter about the dangers of malware and IP loggers. ISIS supporters and pro-ISIS groups have taken steps to mitigate these risks.
Syria-Based Saudi Preacher Announces Theology Course To Be Held On WhatsApp
A well-known Saudi preacher who is currently based in Syria announced on his Telegram channel a new course in Islamic theology for beginning Muslim clerics starting March 9, which will be conducted via WhatsApp.
After the Indian airstrike in the Pakistani town of Balakot in the early morning of February 26, 2019, the Pakistan-based jihadi group Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) dismissed the strike as inconsequential in a report in the March 1, 2019 issue of its weekly newspaper Haftroza Al-Qalam. India claimed to have struck at the hideouts of Jaish-e-Muhammad in Balakot.
After India's February 26, 2019 airstrike on a terror camp of the Pakistani jihadi group Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) in the town of Balakot, an editorial in JeM's weekly newspaper Haftroza Al-Qalam read: "From this open aggression by the Indian government and the joy being expressed in India over this, it becomes clear that India neither desires peace nor wants to hear about peace."
The latest issue of Pakistani jihadi group Jaish-e-Muhammad's (JeM) Urdu-language weekly magazine Haftroza Al-Qalam gives a schedule for upcoming events in three major Pakistani cities. The issue was published on March 1, 2019, days after India's February 26 airstrike on a JeM hideout in the Pakistani town of Balakot.
On March 1, 2019, Zabihullah Mujahid, one of the two key spokesmen of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (the Taliban organization), released a statement saying that the talks between the U.S. and the Taliban are aimed only at the withdrawal of foreign troops, not about an interim government and elections, nor about American forces staying in the country for four or five more years.
