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.
On June 2, 2014, a Shumoukh Al-Islam member named 'Asim Al-Somali offered his assistance for any "lone-wolves" looking to execute attacks in the U.S. and the West. Al-Somali also posted an image of a pressure cooker bomb, referring to it as the "fingerprint" of lone wolves in the "unbelieving West."
The Facebook Page Of American Jabhat Al-Nusra Suicide Bomber Abu Hurayra Al-Amriki
On May 25, 2014, Jabhat Al-Nusra (JN) carried out a series of suicide bombings near Idlib. One of the suicide bombers killed in the operation was American jihadi Abu Huraya Al-Amriki.
On June 3, 2014, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) released the first edition of its English-language bulletin, called "The Islamic State Report [ISR] – An Insight Into The Islamic State." The 7-page PDF-format bulletin comes only two days after ISIS released the first edition of yet another English-language bulletin named "The Islamic State News (ISN)." Both bulletins were posted on the Twitter account of Al-I'tisam, an ISIS subsidiary media company.
Prominent French Jihadi Abou Shaheed Killed In Syria Infighting
On May 30, 2014, jihadi sources reported the death of Abou Shaheed Al-Faransi ("The Frenchmen"), a member of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and a prominent figure in the French-speaking jihadi community. Abou Shaheed was allegedly killed while fighting Al Qaeda's Syrian branch, Jabhat Al Nusra (JN). Fierce fighting has been reported for the control of the oil-rich Deir Al-Zor region in eastern Syria between ISIS and a coalition of Islamist groups, including JN.
Photo of the body of Abou Shaheed released by jihadi media sources on May 30, 2014.
Belgian Fighters Appear In ISIS Propaganda Video
Belgian fighter Brian De Mulder
On June 4,2014, the Al-Hayat Media Center, a media group affiliated with the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), released a short video featuring ISIS' Belgian foreign fighters. The video shows the fighters distributing ice cream to children in an undisclosed Syrian city center. This video is the latest part of an intensified ISIS propaganda effort targeted at Western jihadis and is designed to rebut charges of excessive cruelty.
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Photos Of German Hostages Held By Abu Sayyaf Surface On Twitter
A Twitter user nicknamed "Abumuhajir" posted on his account a photo of two German nationals who were kidnapped by the Abu Sayyaf jihad group in the Philippines. The photo shows Dr. Stefan Viktor Okonek (72) and Henrite Dielen (42), who were abducted in late April 2014, crouching over a German flag, surrounded by a group of masked armed men with the Abu Sayyaf banner hanging behind them. Abumuhajir provided no further details about the hostages' situation or the conditions for their release.
AQAP Security Apparatus Works To Thwart U.S. Drone Attacks, Catch Spies
Abu Suleiman Al-Muhajir during the interview
In a video titled "Spy Harvest," Al-Qaeda in the Arabia Peninsula (AQAP) describes the activity of its security apparatus to thwart targeted assassination attempts by U.S. drones. The video, released June 1, 2014 by the AQAP-affiliated media company Al-Malahim, includes a 15-minute interview with a masked individual identified as "Abu Suleiman Al-Muhajir, a representative of the AQAP security apparatus."
ISIS Supporters Call For Preemptive Attacks On Drone Bases In Jordan
In an op-ed he published on May 30, 2014 in the Jordanian daily Al-Ray Al-Yawm, the daily's editor, 'Abd Al-Bari 'Atwan, suggested that the U.S. should dispatch drones to Jordan to launch attacks against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). The article evoked a reaction from ISIS supporters on Twitter.
ISIS Releases English Language Bulletin
On June 1, 2014, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) released the first edition of its English-language bulletin, a 7-page PDF file in magazine format called Islamic State News – ISN. Each page provides a report from the Islamic state's "provinces" featuring a recent day's event where ISIS was involved. The report is accompanied by several photos and a headline that reflect and justify ISIS's perspective.
Destruction of the burial compound and suspected "idolatry" site
On May 28, 2014 the ISIS media company Al-Furqan released a 15-minute-long YouTube video documenting ISIS religious enforcement activities and efforts to imposed sharia in the Al-Raqqa and Aleppo governorates in the towns of Manbij and Al-Bab, and in Aleppo itself. The video titled "The Best Nation" shows foreign fighters patrolling the cities' streets, preaching, raiding the homes of drug dealers, magicians and sorcerers. The video documents destruction of religious monuments suspected of serving as centers of "idolatry".
On May 28, 2014, Al-Qaeda released a letter via its media company, Al-Sahab, written by Al-Qaeda figure Abu 'Omar Al-Naji. The letter, which was dated 13 Jumada Al-Akhira 1435 (April 13, 2014) is a response to a previously released letter by a number of senior Al-Qaeda figures harshly criticizing Al-Qaeda leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri and swearing fealty to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and its leader, Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi.
A copy of the pamphlet sent to journalists
Leading Pakistani Taliban commander Hafiz Gul Bahadur, who has generally been known to be a recipient of patronage of the Pakistani military for over a decade, has warned local tribesmen to leave North Waziristan tribal district before June 10, saying that a war is inevitable with the Pakistani army, according to a report in the Urdu-language Roznama Jang newspaper.
Gul Bahadur sent a pamphlet to local journalists in which he accused the Pakistani army of an "unannounced" violation of an existing peace accord, and therefore urged the local tribesmen to move to safer areas, according to the report.
The pamphlet has been issued at a time the Pakistani air force has been bombing various areas in the jihadi stronghold of North Waziristan, a tribal district along the Afghan border. The pamphlet was issued by the Gul Bahadur-led Shura Mujahideen of North Waziristan.
Mullah Mohammad Omar has been in hiding since 2001
Following are excerpts from a Pakistani media report examining the recent split in Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistani (TTP) and how Mullah Mohammad Omar, the leader of the Afghan Taliban, who is also accepted by the Pakistani Taliban, failed to prevent the TTP's break-up:
"Mullah Omar Was Quoted... As Asking The People To Recite... [Specific Koranic Verses] 100 times A Day So That The Hostilities Between The Two Warring [Pakistani] Taliban Groups Of The Mehsud Tribe Could Come To An End"
"The Mehsud tribe's decision to discard the TTP umbrella and renounce Mullah Fazlullah as their leader has come as a rude shock for the emir of the Afghan Taliban Mullah Mohammad Omar. The head of Afghan Taliban had been making frantic efforts to put an end to the TTP infighting and secure the support of the Pakistani Taliban for the annual spring offensive against the foreign troops in Afghanistan. A spring offensive is launched every year by the Afghan Taliban with the backing of the Pakistani Taliban after the winter season is over. The authority of Mullah Omar, who has been in hiding ever since the fall of the Taliban regime in 2001, extends beyond the Pak-Afghan border as the Pakistani Taliban also recognize him as their supreme leader or the Emir-ul- Momineen, just like the Afghan Taliban do.
"In fact, due to harsh winter weather conditions, the Afghan Taliban slow down their military activities and resume them as the spring approaches and the weather conditions improve. The Afghan Taliban unleashed a wave of attacks across Afghanistan on May 12, 2014 to mark the start of their spring offensive by storming a government building in the east, a police checkpoint in the south, the NATO base at Bagram and the international airport in Kabul, killing 18-plus people. This year's spring offensive comes at a crucial time as the Afghan Taliban have stepped up terrorist attacks to sow insecurity and weaken the government as the international forces prepare to withdraw from the country by the end of 2014."
In a statement, Mullah Mohammad Omar, the leader of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (the Taliban shadow government in the country), has thanked Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani for his mediation in securing the release of five mujahideen leaders from the U.S. detention center in Guantanamo Bay. The militants were among those who were taken prisoner by the U.S. when it invaded Afghanistan following the 9/11 attacks.
The five militant leaders were released by the United States in exchange for the freedom of U.S. soldier Private Bowe Bergdahl, who had been in the Taliban captivity since 2009. The five include: Mullah Muhammad Fazal Akhund, Mullah Noorulla Noori, Mullah Khairulla Khairkhwa, Mullah Abdul Haq Waseeq, and Moulavi Muhammad Nabi. Under the terms of the release deal, the five will live in Qatar with their families.
