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In a TV interview, Jabhat Al-Nusra Commander Abu Muhammad Al-Joulani said: "We all hope that one day, the Muslim Brotherhood will realize that their plan of action is wrong... They should take up their arms and wage Jihad for the sake of Allah." His statements were made in the second part of an interview with Al-Jazeera TV, which aired on June 3, 2015.
Following are excerpts:
Abu Muhammad Al-Joulani: The [Iranians] are using the spread of the Shia as a springboard for the revival of their empire. If they wanted to enter the region under a Persian banner, they would be incapable of doing so – not logically, not realistically, not militarily, not politically, or anything. That is why they are entering the region in the name of the spread of the Shia.
[…]
What is the Jews' pretext for their presence in Palestine today? They say that they were in Palestine 3,500 years ago, and that they returned to it 3,500 years later. Is the pretext of the Iranians the same as the pretext of the Jews? The Jews say that this is their land, the Promised Land, and so on, and the Iranians say: "This is our empire. You usurped it from us."
Interviewer: What was the strategy of Sheik Osama Bin Laden?
Abu Muhammad Al-Joulani: He wanted to fight the Americans on their own turf, and that way to drag them into Afghanistan – because we were unable to send armies to [the U.S.]. Sheik Osama's goal in fighting the Americans was not to put an end to the American presence…
Interviewer: When Osama Bin Laden planned the events of 9/11, his goal was to drag the Americans into Afghanistan?
Abu Muhammad Al-Joulani: Yes. There were several goals, one of which was to drag them into a ground war. When the Americans came and at the same time entered Iraq, Al-Qaeda appeared there, and that was a surprise to them. All the studies...
Interviewer: Did you participate in the war in Iraq?
Abu Muhammad Al-Joulani: Yes. In all the studies carried out by the Americans from 1991 to 2003, they did not take into consideration the presence of Al-Qaeda in Iraq.
[…]
Interviewer: Do you wish to drag the Iranians and their army into Syria and Iraq?
Abu Muhammad Al-Joulani: That's not what we are striving to do. We will make do with chopping off Iran's hands and arms in the region. If more than this is necessary, we will transfer the battle… Iran is sitting on a volcano that is about to erupt. It has eight million Kurds, who have been marginalized, as well as the marginalized Ahwazi Arabs. In Baluchistan, there are [Sunni] tribes, which are divided between Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran. To some extent, these tribes are not under Iranian control. They also have some four million Turks, most of whom are Sunni.
Interviewer: You are talking about 20 million Sunnis?
Abu Muhammad Al-Joulani: Yes. Even more than that.
Interviewer: In recent days, revolutions have broken out in Ahwaz, in Kurdistan, and in other areas within Iran.
Abu Muhammad Al-Joulani: Yes, and if they receive proper support… Iran is very concerned about its national security. Tranquility and domestic security enable it to expand abroad. If there is instability in the areas that you mentioned, Iran will automatically fall back to its domestic affairs.
[…]
All the political solutions are bound to fail. Even the Muslim Brotherhood, who submitted to the will of the West and accommodated it, even beyond what the West demanded of them… Morsi fought the mujahideen in the Sinai, accepted the Camp David accords, entered the U.N., and did not rule according to Islamic law. He agreed to establish a parliament and to hold elections, and he accepted everything that the U.S. wanted. What was the price? It was not Al-Sisi who turned against Morsi. The Americans were the ones who turned against Morsi, using Al-Sisi as their tool. That is not the right way. We all hope that one day, the Muslim Brotherhood will realize that their plan of action is wrong. They must return to their roots and bear arms. Jihad is our path. They should take up their arms, and wage Jihad for the sake of Allah.
Interviewer: Do you believe that the Muslim Brotherhood should take a different path, and stop saying that peaceful means are stronger than bullets?
Abu Muhammad Al-Joulani: Of course. Their peaceful methods have only hastened their end. The peoples must liberate themselves by means of armed force. Peaceful methods and demonstrations are a language that the rulers do not understand.
[…]
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