Islamist Websites Monitor No. 118

The "Ansar Al-Islam in the Muslim Sahara" Group Declares Jihad Against the North African Regimes and Promises to Take Back Muslim Spain

On June 28, 2007, Islamist websites posted a communiqué (dated late April) announcing the establishment of "Ansar Al-Islam in the Muslim Sahara, Land of the Veiled Ones." In the communiqué, the group declares jihad on the North African regimes and the Polisario Front, with special attention dedicated to Morocco. They also promised to win back Al-Andalus (Muslim Spain), and offered words of encouragement to Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. Included in the post is a link to an (undated) video, the end of which features an audio recording of Ansar Al-Islam's spokesman, who reiterates much the same messages as in the communiqué. The video also shows stills and clips of North African leaders meeting with Bush and Chirac.

The following are excerpts from the communiqué: "…The tyrannical government headed by Muhammad VI [of Morocco] has persisted in its tyranny in the arrest of our brothers, the preachers and sheikhs who cleave to Allah's religion, accusing them of terrorism, and in so doing [Muhammad VI] supports the tyrant of the age, America, and carries the Zionist-Crusader banner in order to please it and its lackeys…

"And what was our brothers' sin so that they should be imprisoned? Their sin was that they called to fight Allah's enemies the Jews and the Crusaders and to establish Allah's religion…

"Our forefathers waged jihad in the Muslim Sahara, and in other Islamic lands, solely so that Allah's word would be supreme and in order to fortify truth and to do away with falsehood, and not in order to be ruled by a band of traitors who work to spread error and corruption and who lead the Muslim youth astray, taking them away from Allah's religion. We bring our Muslim nation good tidings of victory…as Allah has graced the youth of this world with understanding of the issue, and that there is no god but Allah and Muhammad is Allah's Messenger… [and the youth are] abandoning their error and the appeals of the Polisario Front…

"We, Ansar Al-Islam in the Muslim Sahara, the Land of the Veiled Ones, officially declare our jihad against this government of [foreign] agents, with Muhammad VI at its head, and against all of the governments of [foreign] agents in the land of the Islamic Maghreb. We call on the Muslim youth in the land of the Islamic Maghreb, and on the Chinguettians [i.e. Mauritanians] in particular, to make ready and make preparations, and to know that their mission is to break these borders [between the nations of the Maghreb], which, if they have not already divided the Muslims, have dispersed them and weakened their might. This is what the Crusaders aimed for throughout the ages, and traitors from our lands took part in this and plundered the umma's resources.

"We say to our brothers in the Al-Qaeda Organization in the Islamic Maghreb: stay fast on your course, and you will not be harmed by those who forsook you or opposed you. Our cause is one cause, and we have the responsibility of unifying this umma, Allah willing, and establishing Allah's religion on his earth…

"We warn the soldiers of the tyrant and call on them to repent before it is too late; among our prime targets are those who serve in the army or in what is called in dialect 'the makhzen' [i.e. the government]… and in the 'royal guards' and the police… and we call on all Muslims to stay away from government buildings and troop concentrations or police stations, as they are a target for us. We ask Allah to help us avoid [spilling] the blood of Muslims…

"Our raids will not encompass just the Muslim Sahara, but will go beyond it… Al-Andalus [i.e. Muslim Spain] is before our eyes, and with Allah's help we will take back the land of Islam and what was plundered from our forefathers, no matter how long ago this takes…

"Ansar Al-Islam in the Muslim Sahara, the Land of the Veiled Ones…

"8 Rabi'a Al-Thani, 1428H [April 26, 2007]"

Islamist Websites Monitor No. 119

Video: Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb Ambushes Two Police Vehicles

On July 3, 2007, Islamist websites posted a video showing an attack on two police vehicles carried out by Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. The attack, whose date is not given, took place near the town of Takhokht in Tizi Ouzou province in Algeria. The video presents footage shot during the terrorists' reconnaissance of the area, and then shows the preparation of the explosives, followed by the ambush itself. It ends with a March 4, 2007 message by Abu Mus'ab 'Abd Al-Wadoud, commander of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, in which he calls on collaborators with the Algerian government to repent.

An edited version of the film, with graphic content removed, can be view at:

http://switch3.castup.net/cunet/gm.asp?ClipMediaID=988566&ak=null.

Below are images from the video:

Islamist Websites Monitor No. 120

Abu Omar Al-Baghdadi Threatens Iran With "Fierce War"

On July 8, 2007, the ISI media company Al-Furqan posted a 50-minute audio message by Abu Omar Al-Baghdadi, Emir of the ISI. The following are some of the main points:

Addressing the Kurds in Iraq, he accuses them of apostasy and hypocrisy, and demands that they stop their collaboration with the Iraqi government. Next, he issues a two-month ultimatum to Shi'ites in general, and to Iran in particular, to stop meddling in the ISI's affairs. Failure to comply with this demand, he warns, will cause the ISI to declare "a fierce war" on Iran - a war for which the mujahideen have been preparing over the past four years.

Al-Baghdadi also issued a two-month ultimatum to the Arab states, and especially to the Gulf states, demanding that they sever all trade relations and economic ties with the Shi'ites. After the deadline, he explains, any transaction with Shi'ites will expose the parties involved to attacks by the mujahideen. In addition, Al-Baghdadi calls upon the Sunnis in Iran to establish a shura council of their own, and to prepare to demand their rights.

Islamist Websites Monitor No.121

Ayman Al-Zawahiri Threatens to Renew Terror Attacks in Britain, Calls On Jihad Fighters Worldwide To Adhere to Jihad and Islam

On July 10, 2007, Al-Qaeda's media organization Al-Sahab distributed 21-minute video cassettes of an audio-recording of bin Laden deputy Ayman Al-Zawahiri's speech "Evil Britain and Its Indian Slaves" against the backdrop of a photo of him.

The following are excerpts from the speech:

"We are Getting Ready With a Thoroughly Prepared Response [to the British]"

Al-Zawahiri opened his speech by stating that the knighting of Salman Rushdie, "who cursed the Prophet Muhammad," is a manifestation by the British of "Crusaders' hatred, which they are unable to conceal" behind the guise of protecting freedom. He said that "by this [move], Blair conveyed a clear message to the Muslims, just before leaving his post, discredited and defeated... [Blair's] message runs as follows: 'If you [Muslims] think that you have beaten us and that you are driving us out of Iraq and Afghanistan, then we curse your prophet.'" Al-Zawahiri then threatened: "Your message has been heard, and we are getting ready with a thoroughly prepared response." He further adds: "To Blair's successor I will say: 'Your predecessor's policy has brought you catastrophe and defeat, not only in Afghanistan and Iraq but even in the center of London; if you still have not learned your lesson, we will do it to you again, until we are satisfied that you have fully understood [the message].'"

Jihad's Awakening is On Its Way to Liberating All Occupied Islamic Lands, From the Conquest of Andalusia to the Invasion of Iraq

Al-Zawahiri called upon the Muslims of Pakistan either to wage jihad in Afghanistan or to support it financially, "since the Afghan Emirate's victory spells hope for a real change in the entire region, and will deliver a fatal blow to the plans of the Crusaders and their helpers in South Asia."

Al-Zawahiri described the attack on the Spanish forces in southern Lebanon as "a blessed deed," and called upon Lebanon's Muslims to oppose the current situation and to spare no effort to help remove the blockade imposed on them - for, he said, "Lebanon is an Islamic land, which forces hostile to Islam wish to separate from the [rest of] the Islamic nation."

To jihad fighters and Muslims in Lebanon, Al-Zawahiri announced: "Jihad's awakening, that has occurred throughout the Islamic lands... is about to knock on the gates of Jerusalem and free all Islamic lands that have been occupied, from the conquering of Andalusia to the invasion of Iraq."

He also threatened all those who are collaborating with the Americans, Zionists, and Arab states, claiming that "[the collaborators] are digging their graves with their own hands: The Americans and the Jews will not protect them, since they [themselves] are looking for someone who will protect them."

Al-Zawahiri also called upon the Hamas leadership to voice a protest against all "agreements of concession" [renouncing] Palestine, from the 1947 partition resolution to the Mecca agreement, while appealing to all jihad fighters in Palestine to join forces "so that Allah's word will reign supreme... and the Caliphate will be established."

Finally, Al-Zawahiri warned the Islamic nation: "The Americans and the Jews are not on Mars, but in the heart of our land, with their weapons... What we see today in Afghanistan, Iraq, Palestine, or Somalia may tomorrow befall any [Muslim] city or country... It is only adherence to Allah's word, return to Islam, and embarking upon jihad that can save us." [1]

Islamist Websites Monitor No.122

Message by Abd Al-Wadoud: "Why We Oppose a Friendship Treaty with France"

On July 10, 2007, Islamist websites posted a message by Abu Mus'ab Abd Al-Wadoud, Emir of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, titled "Why We Oppose a Friendship Treaty with France." The message is a response to French President Nicolas Sarkozy 's initiative to form a Mediterranean Union, which 'Abd Al-Wadoud regards as an attempt to revive Jacques Chirac's unsuccessful plan to form a Friendship Treaty between France and Algeria. Abd Al-Wadoud states that Sarkozy's initiative is just another disguise for the French "colonialist project" in Algeria and in the rest of North Africa, saying: "How can [we] allow France... to ignore this painful [chapter in its history], and to call for friendship between the oppressor and the oppressed... before justice is established, oppression is [ended], and [the Algerians] receive their full rights?" Finally, Al-Wadoud states that talks with France can begin only when three conditions are met: when France stops influencing Algeria in any way, when it withdraws its troops from Afghanistan and Lebanon, and when it acknowledges its crimes against the Algerian people.

Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb Claims Responsibility for Bombing in Al-Akhdhariyya, Algeria

In a communiqué posted July 11, 2007 on Islamic websites, Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb claimed responsibility for a bombing carried out that day in an Algerian military camp in Al-Akhdhariyya. The communiqué stated that the bombing had been perpetrated by Suhaib Abu Malih, who had detonated a truck loaded with over a ton of explosives within the camp, killing at least 70 soldiers and wounding dozens. The communiqué ends with the following appeal to Muslim youths: "Suhaib [Abu Malih] has shown you the path to redemption... Rush towards death, and it will grant you [everlasting] life, free you of humiliation, and restore the Caliphate."

Al-Zawahiri Urges Pakistanis to Wage Jihad Against Their Government

In a July 11, 2007 audio message, Al-Zawahiri criticizes "the criminal aggression carried out by Musharraf, his army and his security apparatuses [against the radicals in the Red Mosque]," warning that such crimes "can be purged [only] by repentance or by blood." Addressing the Pakistani ulama, Al-Zawahiri warns them not to remain silent about the Red Mosque events, and in particular about what was done to Maulana Abd Al-Aziz Ghazi, who was paraded in public dressed in the women's clothes he had put on while attempting to escape from the mosque. Al-Zawahiri says that, if the ulama remain silent, they will receive the same treatment at the hands of the Pakistani government: "This is how much Musharraf values [the ulama], and this is the type of treatment that awaits you in the prisons of his hounds... Musharraf has dragged your honor through the mud... [and] if you do not avenge your honor he will wipe you out." Al-Zawahiri warns the Muslims that if Musharraf is not stopped now, "he will stamp out Islam in Pakistan." The solution, he says, is not to negotiate or bargain with the Pakistani regime, but to wage jihad against it. Al-Zawahiri concludes his message by urging the Pakistanis to support the jihad in Afghanistan.

Islamist Websites Monitor No. 123

Announcement of Establishment of Al-Qaeda in Lebanon Under Aegis of Iraqi Jihad Groups

On July 8, 2007, Islamic websites posted a communiqué from the Ansar Al-Jihad group in Iraq. In the communiqué, the group announced the establishment of the Al-Qaeda Organization in Lebanon, which will operate under the guidance of, and with the assistance of, the jihad groups in Iraq, and which aims to establish an Islamic caliphate on Lebanese soil:

"In light of the Christian government in Lebanon's continued harming of the Sunnis throughout [Lebanon]… the Ansar Al-Jihad organization in Iraq has decided to establish the Qaedat Al-Jihad in Lebanon Organization, in order to renew the implementation of Allah's religion and the establishment of an Islamic caliphate, and to make the Koran the government's constitution and a way of life. The organization will comprise four main brigades: the media brigade, the military brigade, the preaching brigade, and the training brigade.

"The organization has already been founded, and it may require a considerable amount of time in order to [start] operating, but with the help of Allah, the land of Lebanon will be the land of an Islamic caliphate after the organization begins to operate. The organization will operate after the pattern of the jihad fighters in Iraq, with direct assistance and guidance from the major commands among the Iraqi jihad organizations."