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.)
Note to media and government: For a full copy of these reports, send an email with the title of the report in the subject line to media@memri.org. Please include your name, title, and organization in your email.
Photo of the six school massacre suicide bombers that was sent to journalists
The following is the translation of the Urdu-language statement issued by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which claimed responsibility for the December 16 terror attack on an army public school in Peshawar in which at least 132 children and a dozen others were killed.
On December 13, 2014, the Islamic State (ISIS) released a video showing the beheading of a Syrian soldier in Deir Al-Zour. A masked ISIS fighter threatens that all Syrian soldiers captured by ISIS will face a similar fate. The man also threatens President Obama with beheading. The video also shows several kids playing with the severed head while threatening Syrian soldiers with death.
The video is 4:21 in duration, and was released on Jihadi Media Platform forum (alplatformmedia.com).
The video shows a Syrian soldier being dragged on the ground. ISIS men are heard in the background calling him an "apostate," and a "pig." The soldier is later seen sitting on a bench with his hands tied behind his back. The solider pleads for mercy, but to no effect.
The actual beheading of the soldier is not shown in the video.
On December 17, 2014, the Salah Al-Din province of the Islamic State (ISIS) released a new video featuring a message from one of its Chechen fighters, 'Abd Al-Halim Al-Shishani. In the video, which is 14 minutes long, Al-Shishani called upon Muslims living in the West, especially Chechens, to carry out attacks in their own countries in retaliation for the international coalition strikes against ISIS.
Speaking in Arabic, Al-Shishani sent a message to president Obama warning that hundreds of Chechens will raid the streets of Western countries.
Following are excerpts from his message:
Interviewer: "A message to Obama and the Crusader coalition, what do you say [to them]?"
Al-Shishani: "I say to them, by Allah, in spite of the heavy bombardment, in spite of the international coalition... By Allah, all this will only strengthen our faith, our certainty and our steadfastness. This is what we say to them. By Allah, we consider this battle against us [to be a recurrence of] the battle of the Ahzab from the days of our Prophet and the honorable Companions. We understand well that if we only stand fast in this battle, if we stand fast against this coalition, as our Prophet said: 'After it we will raid them and they will not raid us.' We will raid you and you will not raid us, in a matter of days, God willing. This Crusader campaign will be destroyed, God willing. God willing, either you will come and send ground forces, or we will come to you from all sides, from where you will not expect, from where you fear. We will come to you, God willing, in your lands, with thousands of young Chechens, who yearn for martyrdom for the sake of Allah. They are looking for ways to reach us [ISIS], but we say to them: Be patient for a little while where you are, for you will carry out [attacks] in the midst of the enemies of Allah, you will raid them in their own countries..."
The Twitter Account Of Syed Choudhury - British Teen Arrested On Terrorism Charges
On December 4, 2014, 19-year-old Syed Choudhury from the Welsh capital of Cardiff, was arrested on charges of supporting a proscribed organization and assisting in the preparation of terrorist acts, according to South Wales police.
Choudhury's Twitter account was opened on January 31, 2014 and has 322 tweets. He has 106 followers and follows 58 account, most of them jihadi related and featuring ISIS profile and cover photos. He also follows sheikhs such as Ahmad Jibril, Anjem Choudary, and Omar Bakri Muhammad, who are considered influential for jihadi sympathizers in the west.
Choudhury's tweets include several videos and images from these sheikhs, as well as other links discussing Islamic matters and attacking Muslims who cooperate with the West.
ISIS Threatens To Spread To Tunisia, Calls Upon Tunisians To Join It
In a seven-minute video released on December 18, 2014 by Al-I'tisam, the media company of the Islamic State (ISIS), three mujahideen of Tunisian origin call on their compatriots to boycott the elections in Tunisia, to take the path of jihad and to rise up against the Tunisian authorities. They add that they plan to return to the country as part of an ISIS force and topple the current regime, and urge the Tunisians - especially the mujahideen fighting in the mountains, who are still loyal to Al-Qaeda - to pledge loyalty to the Islamic State and its leader.
A screenshot of the forum's homepage
A jihadi internet forum calling itself Shababul Hind (the Youth of India) Forum and owing allegiance to the Islamic State (ISIS) led by Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi has been launched, offering jihad-related content in Urdu, Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam, Bangla, English and Arabic.
The forum, shababulhind.com, was registered in Panama on October 11, according to domain registration details obtained from Whois.ws. The hosting for the forum is provided by namecheaphosting.com.
Since launching on October 11, the forum has initiated a campaign urging Muslims to express bai'yah (oath of fealty) to IS leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi. The forum has republished jihadi content related to the IS, as well as jihadi content translated into the Hindi, Urdu, Gujarati and Tamil languages of India by Isabah Media, a jihadi media production house focused on radicalizing youth from India.
On December 5, 2014, the Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP), a jihad organization of Uyghur Muslims from East Turkestan (Xinjiang) in western China, released a series of images showing Uyghur fighters, including women and children, in Syria. The images featured many TIP fighters, shown during military training and fighting, but also conducting day to day activities. The images also feature young boys receiving military training, as well as young girls attending what looks like an Islamic school. A woman wearing the niqab and holding various weapons is seen as well.
Indian Jihadi Twitter Account Tweets Support For Pro-ISIS Account, Anti-India And Pro-Jihad Content
On December 12, mass-tweeting pro-Islamic State (IS) account on Twitter, was exposed as belonging to an Indian Muslim youth based in Bangalore. The exposure came after a landmark report on cyber terrorism published by MEMRI.
However, soon after the exposure, a jihadi account on Twitter launched a #SupportShamiWitness hashtag. The account, also tweeted praise for ShamiWitness, which has now been suspended by Twitter: "I think it is fair to say #Shami was an ummah on twitter. May Allah protect him. even the cnn is on his case!!!!"
Among others, the #SupportShamiWitness tweet was retweeted, which means the "youth of India" and is operated by a jihadi internet forum of the same name. The account expresses allegiance to the Islamic State led by Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi. As of December 13, this jihadi account on Twitter is followed by 474 people and follows 125 others. It is possible that the account is being operated by Indian Muslims based in Iraq or Syria.
Urdu Website: New Anti-Taliban, Anti-ISIS Jihadi Organization Emerges In Pakistan
A pamphlet distributed in Bannu region
According to an Urdu-language website, a new jihadi organization, which is opposed to the Taliban as well as the Islamic State (ISIS), has emerged in northwest Pakistan.
In the last week of November, the group calling itself "Saiful Islam Group" pasted posters on walls and distributed pamphlets in the region of Bannu town.
According to the Urdu website, the posters and pamphlets called ISIS and the Taliban terrorists and agents of India and Israel. The pamphlets also carried the seal used by Prophet Muhammad (see the top right in the above image).
Right-wing Hindus converting Muslims to Hinduism in Agra
On December 8, right-wing Hindu organization Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), which is allied with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), converted 57 Muslim families in the city of Agra to Hinduism. The mass conversion ceremony, part of a series initiated by RSS, was jointly organized by two organizations - Dharma Jagran Samanvay Vibhag (DJSV) and Bajrang Dal, both allies of the RSS. According to an Indian media report, these Hindu organizations claimed that they brought more than 200 Muslims "back to Hinduism" at Madhunagar slum area of Agra, the city of Taj Mahal. An RSS official was quoted as saying that 5,000 more Muslims and Christians would be "brought back into the Hindu fold" in the town of Aligarh district on Christmas, December 25.
The Indian constitution permits conversions, but several states have enacted laws against forced conversions. The attempts by RSS-affiliated Hindu groups to convert Muslims and Christians to Hinduism has caused controversy in India.
Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, the chief of Jamaatud Dawa
On December 4 and 5, Pakistani jihadi charity organization Jamaatud Dawa - which along with Falah-i-Insaniat Foundation (FIF) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) forms a group of jihadi organizations led by Hafiz Muhammad Saeed - organized a mass public rally in Lahore at which calls were issued for jihad against India, America, and Israel. The rally was facilitated by the government of Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, which ran special train services to bring in people.
Professor Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, the founder of LeT, assumed a new role as the Emir of Jamaatud Dawa (JuD) after the LeT was outlawed. Saeed is wanted for numerous terror attacks, including for his role in the 11/26 terror attacks on Mumbai in 2008. On December 5, the second day of the Lahore rally, Hafiz Saeed addressed the rally and he justified the global jihad waged by various organizations, and called for establishing a global Islamic military. The rally was also addressed by speakers from Gaza.
