The Islamic State’s jihadist rivals in Syria have rejected its claim to have established a Caliphate. Leading ideologues in the Al Nusrah Front, al Qaeda’s official branch in Syria, have rejected the Islamic State’s announcement as well.
Lahcen Ikassrien, an ex-Guantanamo detainee, was arrested earlier this month in Spain. Leaked State Department cables and a threat assessment authored by Joint Task Force Guantanamo link Ikassrien to an al Qaeda cell run by one of Osama bin Laden’s most trusted operatives in pre-9/11 Europe.
Ansar al Islam, a jihadist group founded in September 2001, has released a set of propaganda photos showing its claimed operations in Iraq. The photos purport to show the organization’s control over a highway between Tikrit and Kirkuk, captured spoils, and its willingness to grant amnesty to members of Iraq’s security forces.
Ansar al Islam, a jihadist group founded in northern Iraq in September 2001, has claimed a number of attacks against the Iraqi government since the rebel offensive began earlier this month.
Ahmed Abu Khattalah is the first suspect in the Sept. 11, 2012 terrorist attack in Benghazi to be held by the US. Most of his accomplices remain free.
The jihadist ideologue known as Abu Muhammad al Maqdisi has been released from a Jordanian prison. Officials in the Al Nusrah Front, al Qaeda’s official branch in Syria, and other jihadists are celebrating Maqdisi’s release.
Little is publicly known about the Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham’s war minister. But he was appointed in April 2010 and the war ministry he leads has been in charge of planning the group’s operations in the past.
Abu Iyad al Tunisi, the head of Ansar al Sharia Tunisia, has released a statement calling for jihadists in the Levant to reconcile based on recent events in Iraq.
Mohammad Fazl, one of the five Taliban leaders exchanged for Bowe Bergdahl, played a key role in al Qaeda’s military preparations leading up to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
Two court decisions provide insights into the career of Khairullah Khairkhwa, who is one of the five senior Taliban leaders recently transferred to Qatar in exchange for Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl.
In addition to a statement from Mullah Omar, the Taliban has posted pictures of the Taliban commanders released from Guantanamo. The pictures show the jihadist leaders being greeted by their supporters and families in Qatar.
The Taliban has released a statement on the prisoner exchange that freed Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl. The Taliban says that its five “prominent” leaders have been freed in exchange for an American soldier, and that it did not participate in direct negotiations with the US to complete the swap.
The five Taliban commanders exchanged for Sgt. Bergdahl were all deemed “high” risks to the US and its allies by Joint Task Force Guantanamo. All of them were closely allied with al Qaeda prior to their detention. Two of them have been wanted for war crimes by the UN.
US officials have identified the first American suicide bomber in Syria as Moner Mohammad Abusalha, who reportedly grew up in Florida. Abusalha went by the alias “Abu Hurayra al Amriki” and joined the Al Nusrah Front, al Qaeda’s official branch in Syria.
In March, a group of nine al Qaeda jihadists wrote a letter supporting the Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham (ISIS), a group that has been disowned by al Qaeda’s general command. Al Qaeda has now published a response written by a little-known ideologue named Abu ‘Amer al Naji.
The Al Nusrah Front is promoting a new statement purportedly written by Abu Muhammad al Maqdisi, who denounces the Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham (ISIS). Despite being jailed in Jordan, Maqdisi claims to have taken part in the efforts to end the jihadist infighting in Syria. Maqdisi also says he informed al Qaeda head Ayman al Zawahiri of his role.
A top sharia official in the Al Nusrah Front, al Qaeda’s official branch in Syria, says that a suicide bomber who recently took part in a coordinated assault was known as Abu Hurayra al Amriki, or Abu Hurayra “the American.” The bomber’s identity has not been confirmed by US officials.
Ansar Jerusalem says that, contrary to claims made by Egyptian security officials, Shadi el Menai has not been killed and is not the group’s leader. Ansar Jerusalem says the Egyptian government does not even know who the real leader of the group is.
In a newly released three-page statement, Ayman al Zawahiri again says that the Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham (ISIS) owed its allegiance to al Qaeda’s senior leadership before disobeying orders. Any pledges of allegiance collected by the ISIS since then “are null pledges, because they arose from a direct violation of my command as his direct emir,” he states.
There are reports that Shadi el Menai, a leader in near Ansar Jerusalem, has been killed in the northern Sinai. His death has not been confirmed. Indeed, little is known about el Menai’s precise role in Ansar Jerusalem.
The UN cites Boko Haram’s relationship with al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) as a reason for adding the Nigerian group to the al Qaeda sanctions list. Previous designations and formal announcements by the US also recognized Boko Haram’s ties to AQIM. Documents found in Osama bin Laden’s compound reportedly showed contacts between the group and al Qaeda’s senior leadership.
The Al Nusrah Front, al Qaeda’s official branch in Syria, has rejected a charter signed by a number of other leading insurgency groups. Al Nusrah argues that the charter is not rooted in proper Islamic principles, among other supposed flaws.
Testimony to the House Committee of Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee on Terrorism, Nonproliferation and Trade on al Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan and the enduring threat to the US and her allies.
The Al Nusrah Front, al Qaeda’s official branch in Syria, is using Twitter to raise funds for a new Islamic institute.
One of the two newly-designated jihadists, Abd Al Rahman Muhammad Zafir Al Dubaysi Al Juhni, has a lengthy al Qaeda pedigree and sat on al Qaeda’s elite Shura council in Pakistan before relocating to Syria. Treasury says Al Juhni is now part of an al Qaeda group in Syria that is planning attacks against Western targets.
The spokesman for the Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham (ISIS) has rejected an overture by the head of al Qaeda, Ayman al Zawahiri.
The Al Nusrah Front has issued a statement saying it will comply with Ayman al Zawahiri’s orders with respect to the ongoing dispute with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham (ISIS).
Ayman al Zawahiri offers an olive branch to the head of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham (ISIS), which has been disowned by al Qaeda. But he also details the history of ISIS and its predecessor in Iraq, saying the leadership of this group was a part of al Qaeda.
Prior to 9/11, Abu Qatada inspired numerous al Qaeda operatives. Now imprisoned in Jordan, he is providing ideological guidance to jihadists in Syria and North Africa.
Ansar al Sharia Tunisia regularly promotes Abu Qatada’s advice and guidance on its Twitter feed.