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.)
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A statement issued April 5, 2022 by the information bureau of Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) denies Russian reports that 10 of this organization's operatives have been arrested in Russia, stating that these claims are lies meant to justify Russia's military involvement in Syria.
The following report is now a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
According to Pakistani media reports, three female students of a religious madrassa in the Pakistani town of Dera Ismail Khan beheaded their female teacher because a 13-year-old female relative of theirs had dreamt that Muhammad, founder of Islam, had told the relative that the teacher had committed blasphemy and ordered that she be beheaded.
U.S.-Based Pro-ISIS Preacher Ahmad Musa Jibril Endorses Fundraising Campaign For Pro-ISIS Group
On April 4, 2022, the Instagram account of a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) organization based in Birmingham, UK, published a video showing Michigan-based pro-ISIS preacher Ahmad Musa Jibril endorsing its fundraising campaign, whose declared purpose is to provide meals during the month of Ramadan for people in Yemen, Syria, and Afghanistan.
The following report is now a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
On April 5, 2022, Al-Sahab, the media arm of Al-Qaeda, released a nine-minute video with English subtitles featuring the group's top leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri, in which he commented on a recent event in India — reported by some outlets to have taken place on February 9, 2022 — thereby confirming that he is alive, despite widespread rumors about his death.
On April 6, 2022, a pro-ISIS Telegram channel published a post lashing out at Al-Qaeda leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri for dedicating his most recent video to a talk about an Indian woman who was harassed by a Hindu mob instead of discussing major developments regarding the persecution of Al-Qaeda's affiliate in Syria, rifts within the ranks of Al-Qaeda in Yemen, and Al-Qaeda's relationship with the "new version" of the Taliban.
On April 4, 2022, a pro-Al-Qaeda media outlet released the third issue of its Wolves Of Manhattan magazine, which includes an article celebrating the war in Ukraine and providing instructions on how Muslims could exploit that war to carry out attacks against the "Crusaders."
The following report is now a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
On April 2, 2022, a new pro-Al-Qaeda jihadi group published a special Ramadan edition of its English-language magazine.
On March 16, 2022, the Taliban published Issue 194 of their official Arabic-language Al-Somood monthly magazine.
ISIS Claims Attack In Mali Killing 100 Fighters Affiliated With The Movement For Salvation Of Azawad
On April 4, 2022, the Islamic State (ISIS) Sahel Province claimed responsibility for an attack in southern Mali that killed at least 100 fighters affiliated with the Movement for the Salvation of Azawad (MSA).
London-Based Al-Araby Al-Jadeed Describes Daily Lives Of ISIS Members In Northern Sinai
On April 3, 2022, the London-based daily Al-Araby Al-Jadeed published eyewitness accounts and photos of the daily lives of ISIS members in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula.
On April 4, 2022, a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) media group released a video celebrating the ISIS attack in Hadera, Israel and reiterating the widely repeated ISIS vow to liberate Palestine.
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ISIS East Asia Releases Video Declaring Allegiance To New Caliph
On April 3, 2022, the Islamic State (ISIS) in East Asia released a video in which the group declared its allegiance to the new ISIS caliph, Abu Al-Hassan Al-Hashimi Al-Qurashi.
ISIS's Central Africa Province Releases Video Documenting Fighters' Pledge To New Caliph
On April 1, 2022, the Islamic State (ISIS) in Central Africa Province (ISCAP) released an eight-minute video documenting its fighters' pledge to the group's new caliph.
On April 4, 2022, the Islamic State in the Sahel, which is based in Mali, released a pictorial report documenting an attack.
In the past few days, the Islamic State in West Africa (ISWAP) released several statements, videos, and pictorial reports claiming responsibility for attacks on Nigerian army forces in the states of Borno and Yobe, using various tactics, including a "martyrdom" operation.
On March 31, 2022, several pro-Islamic State (ISIS) media outlets launched a coordinated media campaign aimed at inciting terrorist attacks against Israel.
On March 31, 2022, the Islamic State (ISIS) released Issue 332 of its weekly newspaper Al-Naba', which included an editorial stressing that the nature of the conflict between Muslims and Jews is "purely religious."
In the last week of March 2022, several news websites reported that ISIS cells clashed with Syrian security forces at the Al-Hol detention camp in northeastern Syria.
Pro-Al-Qaeda Wolves of Manhattan Magazine Provides Information Security Tips For Telegram Users
On April 4, 2022, a Pro Al-Qaeda media outlet released the third issue of its Wolves of Manhattan magazine.
On April 4, 2022, several sources reported on the release of three jihadi operatives from Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) prisons in Idlib.
On April 3, 2022, the Yemen-based Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) released two statements in each of which it claims responsibility for an attack against Houthis on March 29.
On March 30, 2022, an anti-Islamic State (ISIS) channel on the Al-Qaeda-operated Rocket.Chat server lashed out at ISIS's A'maq Agency for implying that the perpetrator of the March 22 attack in Beersheba, Israel, Muhammad Abu Al-Qi'an, was a member of ISIS.
On April 1, 2022, a Saudi jihadi announced on his Telegram channel that a Kuwaiti jihadi cleric was returning to Kuwait after nine years in Syria, following allegations by Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) and "Turkish intelligence" that he is a member of the Islamic State (ISIS).
Reports Of Rocket Fire At U.S. Base in Northeast Syria
In the early morning hours of April 7, 2022, Telegram channels that support the Iran-backed Shi'ite militias reported that a barrage of rockets was fired at "the American occupation base in Deir Al-Zour, Syria," and expressed joy at the attack.
Iran-Backed Group Claims Two Attacks Against U.S. Forces In Iraq In One Day
On April 5, 2022, an Iran-backed Shi'ite group claimed responsibility for two attacks, both perpetrated on the morning of that day, on American logistics support convoys in Iraq.
On April 3, 2022, a Telegram channel that supports Iran-backed militias in Iraq, published three posts in Arabic and Turkish highlighting a statement made by the spokesman of Ahrar Sinjar ("Free Men of Sinjar"), claiming responsibility for the launch of six Grad missiles on Turkish outposts at Camp Zlikan, in Mosul governorate, Iraq.
On April 3, 2022, an Iran-backed Shi'ite militia in Iraq announced on its Telegram channel that it is beginning a series of "focused attacks against the artery of the American presence in Iraq."
In early April 2022, Syrian opposition websites reported that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has recently established a new subordinate militia to operate east of Homs in eastern Syria.
On March 31, 2022, a Syrian opposition website reported that on March 29 an official delegation of the Houthi Ansar Allah movement from Damascus reached the city of Deir Al-Zour to open an office in the city and to learn from the knowledge and experience accumulated by the Iran-backed militias during the war they have been waging against ISIS in Syria and Iraq in recent years.
The latest issue of an Arabic-language monthly magazine published by the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (the Afghan Taliban), was released on March 17, 2022.
On March 16, 2022, the Afghan Taliban's Arabic-language magazine included an article about the life of Sirajuddin Haqqani, who is on the FBI's Most Wanted list, and who currently holds the position of Interior Minister in the Taliban government in Afghanistan.
Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which is a branch of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (the Afghan Taliban jihadi organization that seized power in August 2021) – has launched Ramadan Operations in the Pakistani tribal region starting on April 2, the first day of the fasting month of Ramadan in Afghanistan.
This report will review details of attacks claimed by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (the Movement of Pakistani Taliban, TTP) during the week ending April 3, 2022. Some of the attacks were part of the TTP's Ramadan offensive codenamed "Al-Badr" launched against Pakistani security forces on April 2, the first day of the fasting month of Ramadan.
A key commander of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (the Movement of the Pakistani Taliban, TTP) has been killed in Afghanistan's southern Kandahar province, according to Afghan and Pakistani media sources.
Amid reports of internal divisions, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (the Taliban organization) held a televised meeting of the Taliban government cabinet in Kandahar, not in Kabul where the government is based.
