memri
July 20, 2019 Special Announcements No. 788

Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM) Weekend Summary

July 20, 2019
Special Announcements No. 788

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: Article In ISIS Weekly Cautions Supporters In West Against FBI Sting Operations, Encourages Lone Wolf Attacks

On June 28, 2019, the weekly Islamic State (ISIS) Al-Naba' magazine featured the seventh installment in a series of articles titled Take Caution: Snares along the Path of Jihad.

 

EXCLUSIVE: German Jihadi Fighters Solicit Funds For Battles Near Hama

On July 9, 2019, German-speaking fighters in Syria, most likely members of Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), posted a three-minute fundraising video on their Telegram channel.

 

EXCLUSIVE: Jihadi Media Outlet Re-Posts Message From British ISIS Fighter

On July 15, 2019, a pro-jihadi group dedicated to preaching on social media active since 2014 reposted an audio message from a British ISIS fighter sent from inside the besieged city of Raqqa.

 

EXCLUSIVE: ISIS-Linked Media Outlet Al-Muhajireen Foundation Eulogizes Bangladeshi Programmer, Fighter Who Lived In Australia And Was Killed In Syria

On July 15, 2019, a media outlet associated with the Islamic State (ISIS) posted a eulogy for a Bangladeshi ISIS programmer and fighter who used to live in Australia before joining the Islamic State along with his wife.

 

EXCLUSIVE: In Video, Female Relatives Of ISIS Fighters Describe Themselves as 'Time Bombs,' Call On ISIS Leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, Fighters To Restore Caliphate, Liberate Them From Al-Hawl Refugee Camp

On July 12, 2019, a group of female relatives of Islamic State (ISIS) fighters living in the Al-Hawl refugee camp in Syria released a video in which they described themselves as "time bombs," threatened to carry out attacks, and called on ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi and ISIS fighters in Iraq and Syria to liberate them and restore the Caliphate.
 

EXCLUSIVE: Video Shows ISIS Fighters In Tunisia Renewing Allegiance To Group's Leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, Threatening To Target Tourists

On July 16, 2019, the Islamic State (ISIS) released a video featuring armed fighters in Tunisia renewing their pledge of allegiance to ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi and threatening to target tourists in Tunisia.

 

EXCLUSIVE: Head of Malhama Tactical Military Contractor Discusses New Recon Project Involving Drones, Says: We Will Continue Fight Assad, Defend Islam

Bilal Abdul Kareem from On The Ground News interviewed Abu Salman Al-Belarusi, the head of Malhama Tactical, a private contractor in Syria that trains the Al-Qaeda-affiliated Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) and other groups. Al-Belarusi said that Bashar Al-Assad's forces target Malhama Tactical because it opposes the Russian presence in Syria, because it will fight to the end, and because they see the "big changes" that it has brought about.

Bilal Abdul Kareem: "We are at an undisclosed location with Abu Salman, he is the head of Malhama Tactical, which has pulled off quite a few attacks."

 

EXCLUSIVE: Government Of Sindh Province, Pakistan, To Act Against 10,000 NGOs Over Their Suspected Role In Funding Terror Groups

The government of Pakistan's Sindh province has decided to cancel the registration of 4,693 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) over their suspected role in funding terror organizations in the country, according to an Urdu daily.

 

ISIS's Khorasan Province Claims Katyusha Rocket Attack On U.S. Base In Afghanistan's Nangarhar, Releases Photos

On July 16, 2019, the Islamic State's (ISIS) Khorasan Province released a statement claiming responsibility for a Katyusha rocket attack on a U.S. military base in Achin district in southern Nangarhar Province on July 14.

 

Children Raise ISIS Flag In Syrian Refugee Camp

On July 16, 2019, several pro-ISIS Telegram channels and prominent ISIS media operatives circulated images and a short video clip showing children in a refugee camp controlled by the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The children raise an apparently handmade ISIS flag on a lamppost in the middle of the camp.

 

ISIS Perpetrates Two Attacks Against Shi'ite Civilians In Baghdad Resulting In 90 Dead Or Injured

The Islamic State (ISIS)-affiliated Nasher and A'maq news agencies reported on July 15, 2019, that earlier that day the organization had perpetrated two separate attacks against the Shi'ites in western Baghdad, resulting in about 90 dead or injured.

 

ISIS Publishes Photo Series Featuring Attacks On Nigerian Military Bases In Borno State

On July 14, 2019, the Islamic State (ISIS) Central Africa Province published photographs on its official Telegram channel depicting various aspects of its recent attacks on Nigerian military bases in Borno State, Nigeria.

 

ISIS Claims Responsibility For Suicide Attack On Wedding In Afghanistan, Releases Photo Of Bomber

On July 12, 2019, the Islamic State's (ISIS) Khorasan Province released a statement claiming responsibility for a suicide attack at a wedding in Afghanistan on the same day, saying the bomber, who was identified as Khaled Al-Ansarim, had targeted "belligerent" tribes and a pro-government "militia" in the country's Nagarhar province.

 

ISIS Claims Responsibility For Attack Against 'Belligerent Christians' In Qamishli, Syria

On July 11, 2019, the Islamic State's (ISIS) Al-Barakah Province released a statement claiming that its fighters blew up a car parked near a church in the city of Qamishli, Syria.

 

Pro-ISIS Media Outlet Announces Courses In Physical Fitness And Explosives Manufacture

On July 11, 2019, a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) media outlet published on Telegram two posters announcing the start of courses in physical fitness and beginners' explosives manufacture for those interested in becoming fighters.

 

ISIS Reports Death Of An Operative In A Coalition Air Assault; Claims Several Enemies Were Killed And Wounded

On July 16, 2019, the official Islamic State (ISIS) A'maq and Nashir news agencies reported that a skirmish had broken out on the morning of that day between an ISIS fighter and forces from the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), when they conducted an air assault in an attempt to arrest him.

 

Al-Qaeda Bulletin Encourages Group's Fighters In Syria To Strengthen Their Military Capabilities

On July 10, 2019, the official Al-Qaeda media outlet Global Islamic Media Foundation (GIMF) released an English translation of Issue 30 its Al-Nafir bulletin, titled "Oh Lions of Sham [Syria] – Be Determined and Resolute."

 

Al-Qaeda In The Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) Denies Al-Jazeera Report Regarding Ties With Bahraini Government

On July 14, 2019, the Qatari Al-Jazeera TV channel aired a documentary on the What is Hidden is Greater program, called Those Who Play with Fire, which allegedly exposes ties between Al-Qaeda and the government of Bahrain.

 

Al-Qaeda In Syria Documents Large-Scale Raid In Latakia Mountains And Sniper Attacks

On July 9, 2019, the Incite the Believers operations room, a confederation of Al-Qaeda-affiliated jihadi groups operating in Syria, launched a large-scale raid on forces of the Assad regime in the Turkmen Mountains north of Latakia.

 

Al-Qaeda-Affiliated Group In Syria Releases Video Documenting Recent Raids On Syrian Regime Positions

On July 15, 2019, the Incite the Believers operations room, a coalition of several Al-Qaeda-affiliated factions in Syria, released a 13-minute video documenting recent raids against the Syrian regime in northern Hama province.

 

Al-Qaeda Supporter Eulogizes Dissenting Cleric Killed In U.S. Airstrike In Syria

On July 13, 2019, an Al-Qaeda supporter eulogized a religious judge for Al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate, Hurras Al-Din, who was killed on June 30 in a U.S. airstrike south of Aleppo.

 

Al-Shabab Claims Responsibility For Kismayo Hotel Massacre; Threatens Attacks On Government-Frequented Hotels

On July 13, 2019, Shahada, the news agency of the Somalia-based jihadi group Harakat Al-Shabab Al-Mujahideen (HSM), reported that its fighters perpetrated Friday's massive attack at the Asasey Hotel in Kismayo city, in the province of Juba in southern Somalia, killing 40 and wounding more than 60 others.

 

Al-Shabab Warns Somali Tribal Leaders To 'Repent' Or Forfeit Their Lives

On July 15, 2019, Al-Kataib Media, the official outlet of the Somalia-based Harakat Al-Shabab Al-Mujahideen jihadi group, published a statement on Al-Qaeda's Global Islamic Media Front (GIMF) Telegram channel in the English and Somali languages titled, "A Call to Repentance to the So-Called Apostate Somali Tribal Elders."

 

Jihadi Facebook, Telegram, And Instagram Accounts Document Lectures Of Jihadi Figures Ahmad Musa Jibril And Anwar Al-'Awlaki, Promote Jihadi Fundraising Campaigns Including Those Using Bitcoin

Platforms: Telegram, Instagram, Facebook

 

Jihadi Social Media – Account Review (JSM-AR): American Facebook User References Lincoln, Nebraska; Reveals Links To Convicted Terrorist; Praises Deadly U.S. Synagogue Attack, Sri Lanka Attack

Platform: Facebook

 

Syria-Based Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) Jurist Declares Bitcoin Permissible For Almsgiving

On July 13, 2019, a Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham jurist posted a video on his Telegram channel declaring Bitcoin "permissible" according to shari'a, and permitting the giving of zakat ("almsgiving") using this digital currency.

 

Pro-ISIS Electronic Horizons Foundation (EHF) Warns Against Using Unsecure Online Payment Services, Says It Will Publish Future Articles On 'Reliable' Cryptocurrencies

On July 11, 2019, pro-Islamic State (ISIS) tech group Electronic Horizons Foundation (EHF) posted an article providing information about several online payment platforms and services and their security implications and warning of the security threats and challenges facing supporters of the mujahideen who send and receive money via the internet.

 

Burqa-Clad Taliban Commander Arrested In Takhar Province, Afghanistan

Afghan security forces arrested a burqa-clad Taliban commander in Afghanistan's Takhar province, according to an Afghan website.

 

Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP) Video Commemorates Death Of Native Syrian Fighter

On July 15, 2019, the media center of the Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP), a Uyghur jihadi group active in Syria, released the second video in its Our Martyred Heroes series.

 

Pakistani Police Arrest Regional Head Of Canada-Based NGO For Financing Al-Qaeda In Pakistan

In Peshawar, Pakistan, the counter-terrorism department of the Pakistani police arrested Ali Nawaz, the regional head of the Canadian organization Human Concern International (HCI), for sending money to Al-Qaeda, according to a report in a Pakistani daily.

 

Pakistani Police File Blasphemy Case Against Publisher And Authors For Introducing Reformative Change In School Textbook

Police in Pakistan's Punjab province have registered a case against two authors and their publisher for editing a point regarding Khatm-e-Nabuwwat, i.e., the belief among Sunni Muslims that Muhammad was the last prophet, in a ninth-grade textbook on Mutala-e-Pakistan ("Pakistan Studies"), according to an Urdu daily.

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