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.
Syrian Islamist Opposition Groups Celebrate Reaching The Mediterranean Sea
In the past several days, Syrian opposition groups began posting images and videos celebrating their "liberation" of the Mediterranean Sea. The groups, which are led by factions of the Islamic Front and Jabhat Al-Nusra (JN), began a coordinated offensive, which they named Al-Anfal, two weeks ago for the purpose of gaining control of several areas in the Syrian coastal governorate of Latakia. Opposition groups are reporting the capture of the Armenian northwestern town of Kasab, as well as the Turkish border crossing of the same name. The images and videos of rebels swimming in the open Mediterranean waters were probably taken at the Al-Samraa' Beach near the town of Kasab.
ISIS Uses Quadcopter To Take Photos Of Military Parade In Fallujah
On March 20, 2014 The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria’s (ISIS) branch in Anbar province in Iraq held a military parade in Fallujah. The parade showcased dozens of vehicles riding through the city, many with heavy machine guns. ISIS fighters riding the vehicles brandished their weapons and shouted slogans. ISIS operatives used a DJI FC40 Phantom quadcopter to take photos of its military parade in Fallujah. The following photos of the parade were posted on Twitter accounts associated with ISIS.
According to a report in a leading Urdu-language Pakistani daily, various groups of Pakistani Taliban have begun reaching Syria with the help of professional international human smugglers to aid the Islamists fighting against the Bashar Al-Assad regime.
A headline in the Urdu daily Roznama Ummat of March 22, 2014, read: "Pakistani Taliban groups began moving towards Syria – information about 4,000 having reached; Saudi officials also wanted it…" The report added: "Among them are also the Taliban belonging to Punjab [popularly known as Punjabi Taliban]."
According to reports in a leading Indian daily, several Indian jihadis have joined jihadi organizations in Syria and are now training there. The daily also traces the history of Indian jihadis coming into contact with foreign jihadi organizations.
"Singapore's Intelligence Services Determined … [Indian-Born Haja Fakkurudeen Usman] Ali Had Left Singapore For Syria On January 22, 2014, Travelling Through Turkey"
The report in, noted that police and intelligence services in India have launched "a transnational investigation into revelations that at least two Chennai college students are now training with jihadi groups in Syria."
ISIS Suicide Bomber In Syria: We Have Brought TNT, Explosives Belts, And Rockets Upon You Dogs
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A message recorded by an ISIS member who recently blew himself up in Syria was posted on the Internet on March 19, 2014. Abu Hessa the Kuwaiti is filmed entering the explosives-laden truck and saying: “We have brought bombings upon you, oh accursed ones. We have brought TNT, explosives belts, rockets, and PKC machine guns upon you, and we will never stop, you dogs!”
Following are excerpts:
Click here to view this clip on MEMRI TV
Abu Hessa the Kuwaiti: "Muslims are suffering humiliation and are being killed, and their blood is shed in all countries of the world. A Jewish dog slaps a Muslim woman at the Al-Aqsa Mosque. By God, where are you, oh Muslims? Where is your Islam?"
Former Syrian Shot-Put Champion Throws Bombs For The FSA
Syria's shot-put champion Abu Al-Kazem now puts his skills to a different use: Today, as the commander of a Free Syrian Army brigade in Deir Al-Zour, he throws large and heavy bombs, which others find difficult to throw, according to a report on the Lebanese Al-Jadid TV channel.
Following are excerpts from the report, which aired on March 23, 2014:
Click here to view this clip on MEMRI TV
Reporter: "Nickname: Abu Al-Kazem. Occupation: Dynamite-thrower in the FSA. Military title: Commander of the Umm Al-Qura Brigade in Deir Al-Zour."
Ansar Bait Al-Maqdis Acknowledges Death Of Six Members, Including Two Returnees From Syria
On March 24, 2014, the Sinai based Ansar Bait Al-Maqdis published a statement announcing that six of its members died in a gunfight with Egyptian security forces five days earlier. Egyptian forces had stormed an Ansar Bait Al-Maqdis cell's hideout in the Qalyubiyah governorate.
In a recent wide-ranging interview, Taliban official Shahidullah Shahid answered a range of questions regarding the current peace negotiations with the Pakistani government, which are being carried out between a government-appointed committee and a committee of mainstream religious leaders and clerics appointed by Tehreek-e-Taliban Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
The interview was granted to the U.S. magazine Newsweek, but the TTP notes that it was not published in full. A jihadi website recently published the full version of the interview, which is given below as translated from its Urdu version. It appears that the interview was conducted before March 1 when the TTP announced a month-long ceasefire, which has since been violated many times by jihadi factions of the Taliban.
In the interview, TTP spokesman Shahidullah Shahid explains the Taliban's position regarding the peace negotiations, justifies recent jihadi groups' attacks on polio vaccination teams in the Pakistani tribal areas, vows to attack former Pakistan Army chief General Pervez Musharraf, doesn't rule out attacks on women such as Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's daughter Maryam Nawaz, and argues that the Pakistan Army is the TTP's primary target.
The following is the text of the interview:
"[Former Swat Taliban Spokesman] Muslim Khan (And His Two Aides) Were Invited To Islamabad For Talks, And They Are Still In The Captivity Of [Pakistani Intelligence] Agencies"
Question: "The [Pakistani] government has said that peace talks would be held under the parameters of the constitution. What is your stand in this regard?"
On March 18, 2014, Nicholas Teasuant, a student from Stockton, California and member of the National Guard, was arrested by federal authorities near the Canadian border on charges of attempting to travel to Syria to fight alongside The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
Images Of Canadian Man Killed In Syria Posted On Twitter
On March 21, 2014, images of Abu Muslim Al-Timmini, a Canadian Muslim convert, who was previously identified by various media reports as Andre Poulin of Timmins, Ontario, were posted on Twitter. The news about Al-Timmini's death surfaced in January after jihadi sources said he was killed during the August 2013 battle over the Menagh Air Base in Aleppo Governorate.
Report: Pro-Al-Qaeda Women Target Various Websites To Attract Sympathizers
On March 19, 2014, the Saudi daily Al-Hayat reported that women sympathizing with Al-Qaeda have been engaging in an online coordinated effort in the past several months aimed at spreading Al-Qaeda's ideology and attracting young Muslim sympathizers.
Discussion On Jihadi Forum On Percholrate Material Used For Manufacturing Rocket Propellants
On March 14, 2014 A member of the Mu'askar Al-Shumukh (Shumukh's military camp) that is a subgroup of the jihadist forum Al-Shumukh turned to his fellow members requesting them to supply him a picture of a sack or packet of perchlorate material that is used to manufacture explosives. The member who goes by the name Fares Al-Tawhid W'Al-Jihad (Knight of God's Oneness and Jihad) explained that he wants to know what was written on the packet or sack.
