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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On October 19, 2022, the official media outlet of Jaish Al-Adl ("Army of Justice"), a Sunni Salafi jihadi group that operates mainly in southeastern Iran, where there is a substantial concentration of Sunni Baluchis and a porous border with Pakistan, released a video expressing support for the ongoing protests in Iran against the Shi'ite regime and calling for armed resistance.
EXCLUSIVE: Hamas Officially Reveals Existence Of Cyber Unit After Eight Years Of Activity
On October 13, 2022, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the Hamas military wing, held a memorial ceremony in the Gaza Strip for Hamas commander Jum'ah 'Abdallah Muhammad A-Tahlah aka Abu Mujahid who was killed in May 2021 during Operation Guardian of the Walls, which Hamas refers to as the Sword of Jerusalem campaign. It was at the ceremony, which was held in the presence of senior members of the organization, when for the first time Izz ad-Din al-Qassam referred officially to the existence of its cyber unit. Al-Tahlah was one of the founders and commanders of the unit.
The following report is now a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
On October 16, 2022 a Russian-language Telegram channel covering news from Chechnya shared photos showing the former emir of Syria-based Ajnad Al-Kavkas, Abdul Hakim Al-Shishani (a.k.a. Rustam Azhiev) attending a meeting in Ukraine. The news of his arrival from Syria, along with a group of jihadi fighters, first surfaced on pro-jihadi Twitter accounts on October 10.
On October 14, 2022 a Russian language pro-jihadi Telegram channel that in its bio section claims to provide "a window on Syria through the eyes of a photographer," shared a post soliciting donations from supporters.
On October 20, 2022, the website of the Syrian opposition organization, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), reported that the Iran-backed Afghan militia Fatemiyoun Brigade is exploiting the deteriorating living conditions across regime-controlled areas to recruit Syrians, noting the increasing influence of the militia and allied local formations.
ISIS Claims Killing Four 'Spies' For Pakistani Intelligence In Two Attacks In Baluchistan
On October 13-14, 2022, the Islamic State (ISIS) Pakistan province carried out two attacks against alleged "spies" collaborating with the Pakistani intelligence services in Balochistan province.
ISIS Mozambique Province Publishes Images Of Attack Against Christian Village
On October 17, 2022, the ISIS Mozambique Province published a series of 13 photos from an October 8 attack on the Christian village in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado province. The photos show the operatives entering the village, burning houses, and beheading a local man.
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On October 13, 2022, the ISIS released issue 360 of its weekly newsletter, Al-Naba'. The issue's feature article, titled "The Mother of All Obligations," aimed to impress upon Muslims that waging jihad is the only remedy for the ummah's current woes.
Issue Nine of "Khurasan Ghag [Voice of Khurasan]," the Pashtu-language magazine published by the media arm of the Islamic State's Khurasan Province (ISIS-K) included a rare article targeting cricket, a sport that is immensely popular in Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, and other South Asian countries. It referred to cricket as a tool of the West's ideological war against the Islamic Ummah, aimed at diverting Muslim youths from jihad.
Syrian Opposition Outlets: Under The Cover Of A Dust Storm, ISIS Intensifies Its Attacks In Raqqa
On October 17, 2022, Syrian opposition media outlets reported that the ISIS fighters carried out attacks on the Syrian military forces and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in Raqqa province under the cover of a dust storm, noting that such attacks were not officially claimed by the group yet.
On October 19, 2022, a user of the ISIS-operated Rocket Chat server published a post promoting his newly-created Telegram channel where he posts English-language pro-ISIS content.
On October 14, a channel on the Element platform affiliated with East Asia Knights (EAK), an unofficial media outlet of the Islamic State East Asia Province (ISEAP), which operates in the Philippines and other parts of Southeast Asia,, shared a poster and a statement in Filipino claiming that "the Islamic State in East Asia" was alive and well despite not receiving support, and urging its operatives to remain steadfast and continue fighting tyranny.
On October 17 and 19, 2022, Yemen-based Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) published two posters as part of AQAP's "Martyrs of the Epic Battles" series, eulogizing slain AQAP operatives.
Al-Qaeda Affiliate In Sahel Claims Two Attacks On Burkinabe Army
On October 13, 2022, the media arm of Al-Qaeda's affiliate in the Sahel, the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (GSIM), together with an affiliated media group issued a statement claiming responsibility for two attacks on Burkinabe forces in north-central Burkina Faso.
On October 14, 2022, a jihadi Telegram channel which describes itself as focused on advocating "proper Sunni Salafi faith and jihadi thought" published the inaugural issue of a jihadi magazine that has the same name. The Arabic language magazine is authored by several pro-Al-Qaeda ideologues and Syria-based jihadi clerics who "champion the truth."
Pro-Al-Qaeda Group Recruits Web Designers Through WhatsApp
On October 17, 2022, an anti-ISIS channel on the Al-Qaeda-operated Rocket.Chat platform published a poster announcing that the organization is seeking a professional designer.
Between October 13-16, 2022, Al-Qaeda's affiliate in Somalia, Harakat Al-Shabab Al-Mujahideen (Al-Shabab), claimed 12 attacks on different military and police targets, including assisting three government and police officials, attempting to assassinate another government official, and executing six "spies affiliated with the American intelligence."
On October 12, 2022, " a website linked to the Al-Qaeda's affiliate in Somalia Harakat Al-Shabab Al-Mujahideen (Al-Shabab), reported that the group spokesman held a press conference in which he discussed the recent fighting in Yasoomman and Beero-Yabaal areas, on the outskirts of the town of Bulobarde in the Hiran region.
In recent weeks, Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), which has hitherto operated in the Idlib area of northwestern Syria, launched an offensive against rival Syrian rebel factions, with the goal of extending its influence northward to parts of the Aleppo Governorate controlled by the Turkey-backed Syrian National Army (SNA). HTS has support from some groups within the SNA, turning the current conflict into more of an internal struggle among SNA factions than one that pits HTS against the SNA.
On October 19, 2022, a Syrian jihadi cleric cited a recent tweet by the U.S. Embassy in Syria in arguing that internationally-designated terrorist groups, such as Al-Qaeda and Ha'yat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), should maintain a low profile to avoid attracting undue negative attention to the Syrian revolution.
On October 17, 2022, a hacker group linked to Iran-backed militias in Iraq shared a post on its Telegram channel claiming responsibility for a cyber-attack that targeted the website of the Ukrainian Ministry of Infrastructure.
On October 18, 2022, a Syrian opposition website reported that ISIS seized "quality weapons" in ambush attacks on the Lebanese Hizbullah and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) operatives in the Deir Al-Zour desert.
