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 February 7, 2018, the Islamic State (ISIS) released a video showing, for the first time, women taking an active part in fighting on the battlefront. The video, Part Seven of ISIS Al-Hayat Media's "Inside The Caliphate" series, shows several women carrying rifles, fighting in trenches, and travelling in a vehicle with their male cohorts and advancing together with them.
Note to media and government: For a full copy of this video, send an email with the title of the report in the subject line to media@memri.org.
On February 22, 2018, a media group affiliated with the Islamic State (ISIS) published an article written by imprisoned Mauritanian jihadi Saleck Ould Cheikh Mohamedou aka Abu Qaswara Al-Shinqiti, who welcomed his designation as a terrorist by the U.S. Department of State and considered it an "honor."
On February 18, 2018, the two armed rebel factions in northern Syria, Ahrar al-Sham Islamic Movement and Nour Al-Din Al-Zenki, announced their merger under a new umbrella organization, Jabhat Tahrir Suriyya, or the Front for the Liberation of Syria. Both these factions were once part of Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), also known as the Organization for the Liberation of Al-Sham, but following numerous disputes split off from it. In recent months, there has been great tension between the sides, i.e. Ahrar al-Sham and Al-Zenki on the one hand and HTS on the other, which included clashes and heavy exchanges of fire.
An American Islamic State (ISIS) supporter on Facebook appears to reside in Florida.
Speaking in the town of Chichawatni in Pakistan's Punjab province, radical Islamic cleric Mufti Khabibur Rehman Qazi delivered a Friday sermon urging worshippers to discuss and recite Allah's name and learn qital ("armed fighting in the path of Allah"), or jihad.
Platform: Facebook
Additional Information: The Facebook profile lists a phone number with a North American country code.
A Cleveland, Ohio man created a Facebook account on February 20, 2018.
Pro-ISIS Posters Distributed On Telegram: Threats To Mecca, Paris, And Capitol Hill
For jihadi groups, posters are an important way to spread ideology, recruit members, and communicate with supporters.
Al-Shabab Claims It Killed US Soldier
On February 20, 2018, Somali Al-Qaeda affiliate Al-Shabab Al-Mujahideen's news agency Al-Shahadah reported that its men killed an American soldier in a firefight between them and a joint US-Somali-AMISOM force in the outskirts of the town of Bulogudud, some 30 KM north of the city of Kismayo in southern Somalia.
On February 20, 2018, the Syrian branch of the Kurdish jihadi group Ansar Al-Islam released a video focusing on the group's artillery operations in Syria.
An editorial in Issue 120 of the Islamic State (ISIS) weekly Al-Naba', which was released online on February 22, 2018, praised the recent terror attack against a church in Dagestan while calling upon the group's sympathizers to carry out further attacks against Christians.
ISIS Claims Terror Attack On Church In Dagestan Was Carried Out By A Soldier Of The Islamic State
On February 18, 2018 the Islamic State (ISIS) published a communique claiming responsibility for the terror attack that occurred earlier in the day against a church in the town of Kizlyar, in the Russian Federation's Republic of Dagestan.
Al-Qaraar, the media branch of the Islamic State (ISIS) fighters in Kashmir, has posted a 6-page document titled "Why We Should Leave The Militant Groups In Kashmir," which argues against fighting for any "nationalist" cause, and advocates waging jihad for Allah's sake only.
ISIS Video Shows Drone Footage Of Multiple Martyrdom Operations Against PKK Forces
On February 22, 2018, the Islamic State (ISIS) in Al-Barakah province released a video documenting multiple martyrdom operations that were carried out against PKK forces and filmed by drones.
ISIS Surrenders To Opposition Factions In Southern Rural Area Of Idlib
On February 13, 2018, Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and the "Defeat the Invaders Operations Room," which is part of the Free Syrian Army, announced that, following fierce battles in the vicinity of the town of Al-Khwein in the rural area of southern Idlib, they had succeeded in defeating ISIS and wiping out its presence in the region.
On February 20, 2018, Al-Sahab, the media arm of Al-Qaeda, released a video featuring the group's leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri calling on the mujahideen in Syria to unite their ranks and demand that shari'a be the sole law of the land.
On February 16, 2008 the a media agency identified with the Group For The Support Of Islam And Muslims (GSIM), Al-Qaeda's affiliate in the Sahel, released an approximately 13-minute-long video by the group's chief Qadi Abu 'Abd Al-Rahman Al-Sanhaji titled "About the Elections."
Photos On Twitter Show Afghan Taliban Training In Snow Conditions
A Twitter account associated with the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (the Taliban organization) has published the following photos from the Taliban's winter training.
Qari Muhammad Yousuf Ahmadi, one of the key spokesmen of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (the Taliban organization), has criticized the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) for its report blaming the Islamic Emirate for 42 percent of civilian casualties in 2017.
ISIS Supporters Release A New Magazine In French: 'Médiaction'
On February 20, 2018, French-speaking Islamic State (ISIS) supporters released a new magazine called Médiaction.
A large Facebook page that has over 343,600 "likes" promotes jihadi and Islamist ideology.
An organization which has been soliciting funds via cryptocurrency in recent months to support the jihad and mujahideen in Syria has recently opened a website.
Jihadi Group Jaish-e-Muhammad Organizes Six-Day Tour Of Lahore District
A six-day tour for radical Islamic clerics associated with the Pakistani jihadi organization Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) was held at various places in the Lahore district of Pakistan's Punjab province by the JeM's charity arm Al-Rehmat Trust.
In Bahawalpur Mosque, Jaish-e-Muhammad Organizes 15-Day Course On Jihad And Islam
At the Usman-o-Ali Mosque in the Pakistani city of Bahawalpur, a 15-day course called daura-e-asasiya ("groundwork tour") was organized by Al-Rehmat Trust, the charity arm of Pakistani jihadi group Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM).
