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: Mapping The Social Media Presence Of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ)
By: R. Green*
Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) is an Islamist terror group backed by Iran and active in the Palestinian Territories, mainly in Gaza. PIJ relies on multiple social media platforms operated by Western internet companies such as Facebook, Instagram and Telegram to propagate its messages to followers throughout the world. It openly seeks the destruction of Israel, and is responsible for numerous terror attacks including bus bombings and indiscriminate rocket attacks on towns and communities in Israel.
In 1997, PIJ was designated by the U.S. government as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO), and was likewise designated a terrorist group by the EU and by the governments of the UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. In January 2014 PIJ Secretary General Ziyad Al-Nakhalah was likewise designated by the U.S. as a global terrorist under E.O. 13224.
The U.S. State Department repeatedly pointed out that “PIJ receives financial assistance and training primarily from Iran.” Appearing on an Iranian TV channel Al-‘Alam, the spokesman for PIJ’s armed wing praised Iran’s role in supporting it, saying: “Since the day of its establishment, the Islamic Republic [of Iran] has been supporting the Palestinian fighters financially, militarily, in raining, and in all aspects.”
EXCLUSIVE: Pakistani Military Tests Shaheen II Ballistic Missile On Anniversary Of Battle Of Badr
On May 23, 2019, Pakistan tested a medium-range surface-to-surface ballistic missile, the Shaheen II, according to an Urdu-language daily. May 23, 2019, corresponded with the 17th of Ramadan, which is the anniversary of the Battle of Badr, the first major battle involving a Muslim army.
Weeks after the UN Security Council listed Maulana Masood Azhar, leader of banned jihadi organization Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM), as a global terrorist, JeM continues its jihadi activities in Pakistani towns as it had been doing before.
In Pakistan, at least 26 muftis (i.e., those who are qualified in shari'a to issue decrees and legal opinions,) have issued fatwas declaring the hoarding of the U.S. dollar to be forbidden by shari'a amid the growing economic crisis in Pakistan, according to a report in an Urdu daily.
EXCLUSIVE: Pro-ISIS Group Castigates Those Sowing Discord In ISIS Community On Telegram
On May 22, 2019, a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) media group posted a statement on its Telegram channel warning about the spread of discord among groups of ISIS supporters on social media, specifically Telegram, adding that this harms the cause of the Islamic State.
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On May 28, 2019, the Popular Resistance Brigades of the Syrian Revolution published a statement on a new Telegram channel officially announcing its establishment and goal of giving civilians in the rebel-controlled Idlib area the chance to defend their land from the Assad regime and its allies without having to join one of the rebel factions operating in the region.
On May 30, 2019, the Islamic State (ISIS) in Central Africa claimed an attack on three military bases housing Congolese soldiers and UN forces in the city of Beni in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), inflicting dozens of casualties.
An editorial in Issue 183 of the Islamic State's (ISIS) weekly newspaper, released May 23, 2019, downplayed the heightened tension between the U.S. and Iran and stressed the group's commitment to continue waging jihad against both countries, their allies, and their proxies.
ISIS Weekly Magazine Article Praises And Encourages Arson Attacks In Syria And Iraq
Issue 183 of the official Islamic State (ISIS) weekly Al-Naba' magazine features an article discussing ISIS fighters' recent tactic of setting fire to "apostate" farmlands and crops in Syria and Iraq. The article, titled "Bare Your Arms and Begin Harvesting [i.e., killing and destroying] – May Allah Bless Your Harvest," begins by saying that "it seems that this is promising to be a boiling hot summer, one in which the rafidite [pejorative term for Iraqi forces] and apostate enclaves will be set on fire. [This,] in addition to the burning of their hearts, since they burned Muslims, their homes, and their lands over the past years."
Pro-ISIS Group Releases Poster Praising Recent ISIS Arson Attacks On Farmlands In Iraq And Syria
On May 27, 2019, a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) Telegram channel released a poster in Arabic and English in response to an article in Issue 183 of the official ISIS weekly Al-Naba'. The article lauds recent ISIS arson attacks on fields and crops in Iraq and Syria belonging to the group's enemies and encourages more similar attacks.
On May 24, 2019, a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) media group, published a poster depicting U.S. President Donald Trump and Pope Francis burning in a fire with an ISIS fighter in front of them holding a grenade.
On May 25, 2019, a coalition of several Al-Qaeda-affiliated factions in Syria released a 15-minute video clip detailing its recent raids in several regions.
Al-Qaeda Leader In Syria Rejects Political Settlement, Urges Jihad Against The Regime
On May 27, 2019, Al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate Hurras Al-Din released via its official outlet a statement reiterating the group’s opposition to political solutions for the Syrian conflict and urging continued jihad against the Assad regime and its allies.
Syria-based jihadi groups Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) and Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP) as well as several prominent jihadi clerics and figures have released statements on Telegram eulogizing HTS religious official...
Ansar Ghazwatul Hind And Supporters Eulogize Kashmiri Commander Zakir Musa On Social Media
On May 25, 2019 the media outlet of Kashmiri jihadi group Ansar Ghazwatul Hind (AGH), released a statement in English eulogizing its leader, Zakir Musa (25), who had been killed in clashes with the Indian military one day earlier.
On May 27, 2019, a pro-Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) Telegram channel shared a poster calling for funds to "fortify" rebel-controlled areas in Syria.
On May 29, 2019, the Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP), an Uyghur jihadi group operating in Syria, released a video titled "Victory Comes Only From Allah [Quran 8:10] No. 6," showing the group's shelling of Syrian army positions.
Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesman of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (the Taliban organization), issued a statement rejecting claims by Russian and Afghan government officials that there are 5,000 Islamic State (ISIS) members in northern Afghanistan.
Officials of the Qatar-based Political Office of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (the Taliban organization) have rejected a request for talks with an Indian delegation, according to a pro-Taliban Pakistani daily. The Urdu daily Roznama Ummat reported that the request was made through the U.S., possibly through U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation at the Department of State Zalmay Khalilzad, who visited New Delhi in early May.
