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.)
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By: Matt Schierer*
The following report is now a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
One harrowing consequence of the Islamic State's (ISIS) territorial expansion in Africa is the indiscriminate slaughter, displacement, and harassment of the continent's Christians. Indeed, in countries such as Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Mozambique, Cameroon, and Mali, Christians are suffering from unprecedented levels of persecution, often with little or no global attention.
The following report is now a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
On June 26, 2024, on his Telegram channel, Houthi armed forces spokesman Brig.-Gen. Yahya Sare'e revealed that the missile recently launched by the Houthis at "the Israeli ship" the MSC SARAH V in the Arabian Sea was a locally-made precision, hypersonic, long-range missile.
The following report is now a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
On June 26, 2024, Houthi Minister of Transportation Abd Al-Wahab Al-Durrah discussed the safety of underwater internet cables in a meeting with Acting Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Houthi-run Maritimes Affairs Authority Zaid Al-Washli.
The following report is now a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
On June 25, 2024, the London-based Saudi daily Al-Sharq Al-Awsat published a report citing four unnamed sources, stating that Tehran is considering several options proposed by the militias it backs in Iraq on ways to support Lebanese Hizbullah in the event of a border war with Israel.
The following report is now a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
On June 24, 2024, an Istanbul-based network which supports the Syrian opposition, published an article about the Syrian regime's drug production and trafficking methods.
In a startling expose, an Afghan media outlet has published photographs and extensive details about new settlements being built by the Afghan Taliban rulers for militant commanders of Al-Qaeda and Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and their families.
On July 1, 2024, the Islamic State's Central Africa Province (ISCAP) released nine photos on a Telegram account affiliated with the group, showing the aftermath of an attack carried out by its operatives against the Christian village of Masala and its military base in the Beni region in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
On July 1, 2024, the Islamic State's (ISIS) media arm, A'maq News Agency, released a poster tallying attacks carried out by ISIS operatives around the world during the first half of 2024.
The Islamic State Syria Province continued its attacks in the country in June 2024, operating mostly in the eastern governorates of Syria, and primarily targeting operatives of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
The Islamic State Syria Province continued its attacks in the country in June 2024, operating mostly in the eastern governorates of Syria, and primarily targeting operatives of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
Leader Of Yemen's Houthi Ansar Allah: USS Roosevelt Is A Target "Starting Now"
On June 22, 2024, U.S. Central Command stated that the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier would be replacing the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower in its area of responsibility, in the Red Sea.
On June 27, 2024, during his weekly speech, Abd Al-Malik Badr Al-Din Al-Houthi, the leader of Yemen's Iran-backed Ansar Allah movement (the Houthis), revealed that the Houthis have recently introduced a new Unmanned Surface Vehicle (USV) into operational use.
During the third week of June 2024, Yemen's Iran-backed Ansar Allah movement (the Houthis) claimed responsibility for 10 missile, drone, and Unmanned Surface Vehicle (USV) attacks against various targets in the Red Sea, the Arabian Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, the Indian Ocean and on Israeli territory.
Yemen's Houthi Ansar Allah Movement is preparing to shift into a new phase of conflict with Israel, the U.S., and their allies, a Lebanese daily reported.
On June 30, 2024, against the backdrop of the growing tension between Israel and Hizbullah and the media speculation about the possibility of significant escalation on the Lebanese front, the Iraqi Resistance Coordination Committee (IRCC) which comprises several Iran-backed militias in Iraq, announced on its Telegram channel that following "The Zionist-American threats to declare total war on Lebanon and its courageous resistance," it has come to the decision that "if the Zionists carry out their threat, there will be an escalation in the frequency and quality of the operations against them, and the interests of the criminal American enemy in Iraq and the entire region will be legitimate targets for the members of the resistance."
In the week of June 24-30, 2024, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group formed in 2003 of Iran-backed militias in Iraq, issued six claims of responsibility for six different attacks in Israel's southernmost city of Eilat; in Haifa in the north, and along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea.
Leader of Iran-Backed Asa'ib Ahl Al-Haq Discusses Gaza, Ukraine With Russian Ambassador To Iraq
On June 30, 2024, the media office of Qais Al-Khazali, the Secretary-General of Iran-backed Asa'ib Ahl Al-Haq Movement, issued a press release highlighting a same-day meeting between Al-Khazali and the Russian Ambassador to Iraq, Albrus Kotrashev.
Islamic State (ISIS) Weekly Editorial Outlines Differences Between Fear And Caution In Waging Jihad
On June 27, 2024, the Islamic State (ISIS) published issue 449 of its weekly newsletter, Al-Naba'. The issue featured an editorial titled, "Between Fear And Caution," which attempted to boost jihadis' morale by portraying the fear of fighting the "enemies" as a divine test which must be passed, and claiming that caution is a double-edged sword that one should carry but not use overly much.
On June 28, 2024, Al-Azaim Media Foundation, which is linked to the Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP), released a poster encouraging lone wolves living in the West to commit arson.
The latest issue of Khurasan Ghag, the Pashtu-language magazine of the Islamic State Khurasan Province (ISKP), includes several articles criticizing the Afghan Taliban for allegedly collaborating with American intelligence at a meeting in Dubai, and asserting that the liberation of Jerusalem will not be possible until the Shi'ite and apostate governments of Iran, Jordan, and Syria are removed.
Articles in the latest issue of the "Voice of Khurasan," an English-language monthly magazine published by Al-Azaim Media Foundation, a media outlet linked to the Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP), which defines itself as a supporting entity for the Islamic State (ISIS), argue that Allah punishes those who deviate from the right path, urge Muslims to wage jihad, and advise jihadi fighters to use social media but secure their personal data online.
On June 26, 2024, a Telegram channel published posts from prominent Islamic State (ISIS) supporters declaring their renewed oath of allegiance to ISIS leader Abu Hafs Al-Hashemi Al-Qurashi, who was announced as the organization's fifth caliph in August 2023.
On June 25, 2024, the Shahada News Agency, the official media outlet of Al-Qaeda's affiliate in Somalia, Harakat Al-Shabab Al-Mujahideen (Al-Shabab), reported that Al-Shabab's "Central Juba Islamic Province" distributed food supplies to more than 1,000 poor families in the city of Jilib and 94 villages surrounding it.
On June 30, 2024, Shahada News Agency, the media arm of Al-Qaeda's affiliate in Somalia, Harakat Al-Shabab Al-Mujahideen (Al-Shabab), claimed in a short statement published that the group had carried out a suicide bombing targeting a military base in Somalia's Hiran province.
Over the past two weeks, a prominent Al-Qaeda supporter highlighted media and intelligence reports that operatives from Al-Qaeda's affiliate in the African Sahel, Jama'at Nusrat Al-Islam Wal-Muslimeen (the Group for Support of Islam and Muslims – GSIM), have crossed via Benin into western Nigeria and perpetrated attacks there.
On July 1, 2024, an anti-Islamic State (ISIS) channel on the Al-Qaeda-operated Rocket.Chat server, published a post arguing that Al-Azaim Foundation for Media Production, a media outlet linked to the Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) which had often described itself as a supporting entity for the Islamic State (ISIS), acts independently of the official ISIS Media Bureau, and ignores the organization's central directives.
On July 2, 2024, an anti-Islamic State (ISIS) channel on the Al-Qaeda-operated Rocket.Chat server, published a post claiming that "pious brothers" from Somalia had confirmed to them that 'Abd Al-Qader Mu'min, the head of ISIS' Somalia province is the current ISIS caliph known as Abu Hafs Al-Hashemi Al-Qurashi, in charge of the organization's affiliates worldwide.
Al-Qaeda Affiliate GSIM Claims Killing 40 Soldiers In Attack In Southwestern Niger
On June 29, 2024, the Al-Zallaqa Media Foundation, the media arm of Al-Qaeda's affiliate in the African Sahel, Jama'at Nusrat Al-Islam Wal-Muslimeen (the Group for Support of Islam and Muslims – GSIM), published a statement claiming responsibility for a June 25 assault on Niger army forces.
On June 25 and July 2, 2024, two Arab political commentators reported that hundreds of armed operatives from Iraqi resistance factions that belong to the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) had recently entered Lebanon from Syria.
Syria-Based Jihadi Group From Caucasus Documents Leaders Visiting Fighters At The Front
On June 24, 2024, Jaysh Al-Muhajireen Wal-Ansar (JMA), a group of mujahideen from the Caucasus affiliated with Syrian jihadi group Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), released images of its leadership visiting fighting positions at the front on the previous day.
On June 28, 2024, the General Command of Syrian jihadi group Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), which controls the rebel-held Idlib area through various bodies affiliated with it, issued an order announcing the establishment of a Higher Commission for the Bureau of Grievances.
On June 30, 2024, riots targeting Syrian refugees broke out in the Kayseri province of central Turkey after a Syrian refugee was reported to have sexually harassed a 7-year-old girl related to him. Angry residents overturned cars and set shops on fire, calling on Syrians to leave.
On June 21, 2024, a pro-Afghan Taliban account on X posted a short video threatening the government of President Emomali Rahmon over his crackdown against the hijab (Islamic veil) and other non-Tajik lifestyles in Tajikistan.
In a June 25, 2024 statement, Hizb-ut-Tahrir Afghanistan criticized the granting of mining contracts to private companies from China, Russia, the UK, and U.S., saying that according to shari'a, the natural resources of an Islamic country like Afghanistan belong only to the Ummah.
