Islamist Video: Interview with an Al-Qaeda Commander in Afghanistan
On April 28, 2007, Islamist websites posted a 43-minute video featuring an interview with Sheikh Abu Laith Al-Libi, who is introduced in the film as "one of the leaders of Al-Qaeda in Khorasan, [Afghanistan]." The film was produced by Al-Qaeda's media company Al-Sahab and is accompanied by English subtitles. The following are the main points of the interview.
Abu Laith states that the long-term goal of jihad is to establish Islam throughout the world, while its short-term goal is to rescue the Muslims from the oppression to which they are subject. About the jihad in Afghanistan, he says that after five years of fighting, the mujahideen are close to victory, while the enemy is fleeing – all thanks to the jihad fighters' "perseverance, steadfastness, sacrifice, and daring." Moving on to the topic of Iraq, he states that the Sunni jihad fighters in that country are not waging a sectarian war but merely reacting to the "Shi'ite crimes" and defending the Sunnis.
Abu Laith also addresses the claim that the jihad fighters have no real stake in the Palestinian problem, and that their occasional mention of this issue is nothing but propaganda aimed at gaining the sympathy of the Islamic nation. He denies this accusation, saying: "All our preparations and all our jihad around the world are preparation and training for the fight against the Jews in the Al-Aqsa mosque."
Abu Laith calls on the clerics to "come to the fronts of jihad and lead their brothers and pupils." He adds that global jihad has completed its first phase and has entered the second phase of establishing an Islamic state and setting out the framework of its basic principles.
Finally, Abu Laith calls on the Muslims, and especially on the jihad fighters throughout the world, to unite their ranks, and then addresses the Muslim youth, saying: "Jihad is your way and the jihad commanders are your commanders... Do everything they instruct you to do... [Waging] jihad and fighting the infidels are the greatest privileges in this era."
SUPPORT OUR WORK
The video can be viewed at: http://switch3.castup.net/cunet/gm.asp?ClipMediaID=807019&ak=null
Below is an image from the video:
ISI Denies Reports of Abu Hamza's Death
On May 1, 2007, Islamist websites posted a communiqué by the ISI, which was founded by Al-Qaeda in Iraq, denying reports that its commander Abu Hamza Al-Muhajir has been killed.
The communiqué, issued by the "ISI Information Ministry," states that these reports stem from the Iraqi government's wish to cover up its defeat at the hands of the jihad fighters.
The following are excerpts from the message:
"It seems that the Shi'ite Al-Maliki government must [now] resort to spreading lies in the media... in order to cover up its failure to stop the blows of the jihad fighters... This government has announced that the apparatuses of apostates and collaborators have wounded the jihad fighter Sheikh Abu Hamza Al-Muhajir and killed his aide [in a location] north of Baghdad... [But the fact is that] Sheikh Abu Hamza Al-Muhajir is still wandering [free] in the Islamic State of Iraq, and fighting the enemies of Allah under the banner of Commander of the Believers Abu Omar Al-Baghdadi and [as a soldier in] the army of the Islamic State...
"These false reports by the [Iraqi] government – which have been denied even by its American masters – reflect its bankruptcy and frustration...
"Know that the army of the Islamic State [of Iraq] is not [based on] one man but on many men – some who have already departed from this world and others who are still awaiting [death]..."
