Chechen commander killed in northern Syria
The well-known Chechen jihadist commander was reportedly killed in the northern Hama countryside. Several prominent jihadists in Syria have already eulogized him, including his former group.
The well-known Chechen jihadist commander was reportedly killed in the northern Hama countryside. Several prominent jihadists in Syria have already eulogized him, including his former group.
Jaish al Muhajireen wal Ansar, which is mainly comprised of foreign fighters, has officially merged with the Al Nusrah Front, al Qaeda’s official branch in Syria. Al Nusrah gains several hundred jihadists out of the deal, which was likely intended to bolster al Qaeda’s hand in the Aleppo province.
Salahuddin Shishani, the former emir of the Jaish al Muhajireen wal Ansar who now leads a group of jihadists from the Caucasus in Syria, swore allegiance to the new leader of the Islamic Caucasus Emirate, giving a small boost to a group that has been plagued by defections.
The Long War Journal has identified 117 training camps run by jihadist groups in Iraq and Syria. Almost half are operated by the Islamic State, while the other half are administered by the Al Nusrah Front, al Qaeda’s official branch in Syria, and its allies. Some facilities are no longer operational, while other camps likely exist, but are not publicized by the jihadists.
The State Department has added Aliaskhab Kebekov (also known as Ali Abu Muhammad al Dagestani), who heads the Islamic Caucasus Emirate, to the US government’s list of specially designated global terrorists. State notes that Kebekov has proclaimed his organization’s “structural subordination” to al Qaeda.
Veteran Chechen IS Militant Reported Killed In Kobane
New camps belonging to the Islamic State, the Al Nusrah Front, the Chechen Jaish al Muhajireen wal Ansar, the Syrian Harakat Fajr al Sham al Islamiya, the Uzbek group Imam Bukhari Jamaat, and Jaish al Islam have been identified.
Ansar al Islam, an al Qaeda-affiliated group that operates in Iraq and Syria, has been cooperating with the Al Nusrah Front and the Chechen-led Jaish al Muhajireen wal Ansar in the fighting for two Shiite villages in northern Aleppo.
More than 30 training camps have been established by the Islamic State, al Qaeda, and allied jihadist groups in both Iraq and Syria since 2012.
Islamic State military leader Omar al Shishani and ’emir of suicide bombers’ Tariq Bin Al Tahar Bin Al Falih Al ‘Awni Al Harzi were among five members of the group added to the terrorism list today.
The US added the Chechen-led Jaish al Muhajireen wal Ansar and the Moroccan-led Harakat Sham al Islam, as well as Murad Margoshvilli, the leader of the Junud al Sham, to the list of Specially Designated Global terrorists. The Margoshvilli and the two terror groups are closely tied to al Qaeda in Syria.
The Imam Bukhari Jamaat, which fights alongside the Al Nusrah Front and Jaish al Muhajireen wal Ansar, touted its training camp, which is thought to be located near Aleppo.
Muhammad al Shishani is said to have been killed while fighting alongside the Jaish al Muhajireen wal Ansar and the Al Nusrah Front against Syrian forces.