On February 5, 2012, Al-Qaeda's media company, Al-Fajr, distributed the second issue of its e-magazine for women, Al-Shamikha, through a number of jihadi websites, roughly a year after the first issue appeared.[1] The magazine, which is produced by the media company Al-Shamikha Media Foundation, targets a female audience of all ages, namely the wives, mothers, and daughters of mujahedeen, with the color pink featured prominently. Most of its content is penned by women, who use epithets rather than their real names.
The articles in the magazine focus, among other issues, on glorifying jihad and the mujahedeen; the role of the mujahidat (female mujahedeen) in supporting the mujahedeen and spreading the ideology of jihad and martyrdom; debunking media claims that the mujahedeen kill innocent people, including other Muslims whom they accuse of heresy (takfir); and emphasizing that a steadfast commitment to Islamic principles will ultimately bring about victory for Islam, with worldwide implementation of shari'a.
Following is an overview of the main issues addressed in the second issue, as well as excerpts from an article on marriage to a mujahid, from another containing advice on disseminating the ideology of jihad and martyrdom among the Muslims, from a Chechen mujahid's letter to his mother, and from another mujahid's last testament, addressed to his daughter, the last item being archival. ...
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