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.
On July 8, 2016, Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) released an audio recording of Yahya Abu Al-Hummam (aka Jamal Ukasha), the commander of its Sahara branch, in which he denounces France's occupation of Mali and the aid it receives from local armies. He also threatens France and the U.S., stating that the mujahideen will not sit still in face of "cross worshipper'" attacks on Muslims, while noting that "fighting has now arrived," and that it will continue until these countries pull their armies out of all Muslim lands.
On July 13, 2016, Al-Waa'd Media Production, a media company associated with the Islamic State (ISIS), published a 7-minute video titled "In Your Own Homes." The video, which was also posted to the Al-Khilafa Telegram channel, includes threats of attacks on central Western cities.
On July 7, 2016, Al-Masra, a weekly newspaper affiliated with Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), published an image taken from a video documenting the killing of Alton Sterling, a black man from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, by two police officers.
On July 4, 2016, a Facebook user updated his profile picture to a photo of himself holding an ISIS flag. On his Facebook account, he states that he is 33 and a resident of Massachusetts, that he is from Boston, and that he attended Umass (University of Massachusetts) Lowell.
On July 9, 2016, the information office of the Islamic State (ISIS) in Al-Raqqa province, Syria, published a 10 minute video titled "The Story of Recruitment." The video, which was also posted to the Al-Khilafa Telegram channel, targets young Syrians in ISIS-controlled areas, and encourages them to join the ranks of the organization. It is possible that the timing of this video is related to the heavy losses that ISIS has recently been suffering and its urgent need to recruit new volunteers. The video is a dramatization that "simulates reality" and follows a young man named Muhammad from the city of Al-Raqqa, who decides to join the Islamic State.
On July 13, 2016, Ansar Al-Sharia Correspondent and Al-Malahem, the media arms for Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), released a video presenting members of the group's Special Operations Brigade demonstrating their skills in conducting various military exercises inside a training camp named for Hamza Al-Zinjbari aka Jalal Bal'idi aka Hamza Al-Marqashi - a senior commander who was killed in February 2016.
EXCLUSIVE: TIP In Syria Urges Xinjiang Muslims To Join The Jihad In New Video
On July 11, 2016, the Syrian contingent of the Al-Qaeda-affiliated Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP) released a new video urging Uyghur Muslims in China's Xinjiang region to join the ranks of the mujahideen in Syria.
On July 11, 2016, Al-Sahab, the media arm of Al-Qaeda, released an audio recording featuring the group's leader, Ayman Al-Zawahiri, in which he praises Nasser Al-Wuhaishi, the late leader of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), who was killed in June 2016, for his loyalty to Al-Qaeda and to Osama bin Laden, whom he accompanied for years in Afghanistan, as well as to the Islamic Emirate of the Taliban.
On July 12, 2016, Al-Shabab Al-Mujahideen, Al-Qaeda's Somalia branch, released an audio recording of its leader Abu Ubaida, aka Ahmad Omar, titled "Shari'a or Martyrdom." The recording features Abu Ubaida praising Al-Shabab's jihad against their enemies, and calls upon them to intensify their attacks against the Somali government and the "invading Crusaders," a reference to the Ethiopian, Kenyan, and other Western-backed African troops, in Somalia.
On the night of July 13, 2016, the ISIS-affiliated news agency A'maq issued a statement confirming the death of senior ISIS military commander Sheikh 'Omar Al-Shishani. The statement, which was also posted on the Al-Khilafa Telegram channel, read: "Military source to Amaq Agency: Shaykh Umar ash-Shishani [sic] martyred in Shirqat as he participated in clashes to repel the campaign against the city of Mosul."
In Video, British ISIS Prisoner John Cantlie Reports From Bombed Areas Of Mosul
On July 12, 2016, the Islamic State (ISIS) news agency Amaq released a three-minute video featuring British ISIS prisoner John Cantlie. In the video, which is titled "John Cantlie Speaking about the U.S. Bombing Mosul University and Popular Areas in the City," Cantlie shows the aftermath of airstrikes on Mosul University, the Yabisat district of Mosul, and the Nasraf Rafadin square, which he stresses is the absolute center of Mosul.
JTTM subscribers click here to view this clip on MEMRI TV
Hamza Bin Laden Vows Further Attacks Against The U.S.
On July 9, 2016, Al-Qaeda's Al-Sahab production company released a 21-minute audio message titled "We are all Osama". It was delivered by Hamza bin Laden, the son of Osama bin Laden, who addressed the American people and threatened further attacks on U.S. soil. Hamza bin Laden boasted that his father was actually victorious in his war against the U.S. given its growing strength since his death.
On July 6, 2016, Ansar Al-Sharia News, an official Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) Twitter account, released a statement claiming responsibility for the bombing of Al-Solban military base in Aden, Yemen, in retaliation for the killing of civilians in Lahj and Abyan.
On Facebook, Australian ISIS Fighter Comments On Australian News Stories, Shares Updates From Syria
An Australian Islamic State (ISIS) fighter is frequently active on Facebook, posting reactions to news events in both Australia and ISIS-controlled territories. In addition to closely monitoring the headlines, he followed and communicated with two radical Western clerics - Abu Haleema from the U.K., and Abu Ousayd al-Islami from Australia. He does not reveal many personal details about himself, however, according to his entries, he is 32 and married.
A Jabhat Al-Nusra fighter originally from Sydney, Australia, claiming to be based in Aleppo, Syria, recently returned to posting on his Facebook page after a brief two-month hiatus. In recent posts he has railed against Russian troops in Syria, and has shared a photo of his neighbor's destroyed house.
Pro-ISIS Hacking Group On Telegram Releases Kill List Featuring U.S. State Department Employees
On July 13, 2016 the pro-ISIS hacking group United Cyber Caliphate (UCC) released a "kill list" featuring the names of 22 U.S. State Department employees. The employees on the list are almost all exclusively stationed in the U.S.' however, one allegedly works in Kabul. The United Cyber Caliphate also posted a message mocking and threatening the FBI.
Pro-ISIS Telegram Channel Threatens Christians In Tripoli, Lebanon
On July 12, 2016, the administrators of a pro-Islamic State Telegram channel called "News of Muslim Lebanon" posted a threat to attack Christians in Lebanon, especially in the northern city of Tripoli. The threat follows a recent series of attacks in the village of Al-Qaa' and the opening of radical Salafi cleric Ahmad Al-Asir's trial.
Reports: ISIS Starts Circulating Its New 'Gold Dinar' Currency
According to recent news reports, the Islamic State (ISIS) has officially begun circulating its new currency, the "gold dinar," and has ordered merchants to use it exclusively when purchasing oil from ISIS-controlled territory.
ISIS Takes Responsibility For Downing Russian Attack Helicopter East Of Palmyra
On July 8, 2016, the Islamic State's (ISIS) Homs province published an official communiqué announcing that organization members managed to down a Russian attack helicopter east of Tadmur (Palmyra) and kill its crewmembers. According to the communiqué, the incident occurred at a time that ISIS fighters were conducting an attack in the region and took over three Syrian army checkpoints.
On July 10, 2016 French speaking Islamic State (ISIS) media supporters distributed images on Telegram threatening the Euro 2016 finals which are due to take place under high security later today in the Stade de France near Paris.
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