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.
The following report is now a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
On July 10, 2020, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan issued a directive to open Istanbul's Hagia Sophia for Islamic prayers, overturning the 1934 decree designating the former Byzantine cathedral as a museum, after it had served as a mosque from the time of the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 1453.
An American convert who regularly promotes the merits of jihad and hijra (migration to Islamic lands) on Twitter, tweeted a poll asking his followers on the platform whether destroying the Lincoln Memorial with explosives or a sledgehammer would be "more satisfying."
The following report is now a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
In an article on the Lebanese website elnashra.com, Hassan Hardan, a Lebanese journalist affiliated with Hizbullah, calls for popular and armed resistance to American forces and those who collaborate with them in Iraq and in Syria, in response to the economic war which he claims the U.S. is waging against Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq.
On July 22, 2020, the Islamic State (ISIS) released a statement claiming that its fighters have killed or wounded soldiers and security officers in a clash with a joint U.S.–Somali patrol unit in Somalia.
On July 19, 2020, a Telegram channel affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) reported that an Iraqi Shi'ite armed group has claimed responsibility of the recent rocket attack on the U.S. embassy in Baghdad, which took place a "few minutes after" a visit from Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Jawad Zarif to Baghdad's Green Zone.
EXCLUSIVE: Shi'ite Faction Attacks 'U.S. Logistics Convoy' In Iraq For The Second Time This Week
On July 22, 2020 a Telegram channel affiliated with Iran-backed Shi'ite factions in Iraq claimed that an IED attack was carried out on a "U.S. logistics convoy" in Iraq.
On July 17, 2020 a Syrian opposition Facebook page published a report claiming that Iran and its allied Shi'ite militias are digging tunnels and trenches in a city in Syria.
ISIS Launches Large-Scale Attack On Egyptian Army Base In Sinai
On July 21, 2020, reports emerged of a large-scale attack on a military base in a village in Sinai.
On July 23, 2020 the Islamic state (ISIS) released a new issue of its weekly newspaper which included an editorial condemning the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) for launching a campaign to track down and arrest ISIS fighters.
On July 19, 2020, a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) outlet which is operated by an ISIS supporter released a video accusing Al-Qaeda, the Taliban, and Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) of deviating from the path of jihad and collaborating with the "crusaders."
On July 13, 2020, a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) outlet released a six-minute video in which it highlighted ISIS's achievements in the past years, including the establishment of its Caliphate in Mosul, Iraq and paying a tribute to its former leaders.
Islamic State (ISIS) supporters have recently been creating and sharing videos edited from footage captured on the online video game Grand Theft Auto V (GTA-V) and other video games.
Pro-Al-Qaeda Syrian Cleric Deems HTS An 'Apostate Group' Whose Members May Be Killed
On July 15, 2020, a Syrian pro-Al-Qaeda cleric published a 102-page work of "research" providing detailed justification for his ruling deeming the Syrian jihadi group an apostate faction which must be fought against.
On July 19, 2020 a media outlet of the Syrian jihadi group Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) published an interview with the spokesman of the group's military wing.
Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) Video Shows Graduating Fighters Undergoing Intensive Military Training
On July 22, 2020 the news agency of Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) released a video showing a graduating class of fighters undergoing intensive military training using multiple types of weapons and live ammunition.
Ansar Al-Islam Publishes Photos Of Attacks On Syrian Army
On July 16, 2020, Kurdish group Ansar Al-Islam, based in Syria, claimed responsibility for attacks on Syrian regime positions.
Turkistan Islamic Party (TIP) Releases New Video
On July 20, 2020, the media arm of the Syria-based and Al-Qaeda-affiliated jihadi group Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP) released a five-minute Uyghur-language video on Telegram.
On July 19, 2020 the media arm of the Al-Qaeda affiliate Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP) released a video commemorating a veteran Syrian commander who had joined TIP in 2015 and was killed in 2019.
Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) Congratulates Turkey For Restoring Hagia Sophia As A Mosque
Pakistani Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) joined other jihadi groups in congratulating Turkey for restoring the Hagia Sophia as a mosque.
A Telegram channel belonging a pro-Al-Qaeda Saudi fighter who is based in Syria, shared a screenshot showing the Snapchat account of another Saudi fighter.
On July 12, 2020, multiple pro-Islamic State (ISIS) accounts targeted a Scottish news website and flooded a story on COVID-19 with pro-ISIS content and threats.
On July 20, 2020, a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) Telegram channel which has been raising funds for women in the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)-run camps in Syria, shared a post claiming that Uyghur and Indonesian women are the most oppressed groups in the camps, and urged Muslims to donate to a fundraising campaign.
