Britannia Radio

MEMRI Daily: January 17, 2013   MEMRI | MEMRI TV | JIHAD AND TERRORISM THREAT MONITOR | SOUTH ASIA STUDIES PROJECT

The following reports are offerings from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). Subscription information is available athttp://subscriptions.memri.org/content/en/member_registr_jttm.htm. MEMRI offers an additional option for jihad and terrorism news – the Global Jihad News (GJN) website. Access is by annual subscription, available for $360 at the MEMRI E-Store.  Jihadis, Islamists Call For Demonstration Outside French Embassy In Cairo JTTM Report From December: Amid Reports Of Having Left AQIM, Mokhtar Belmokhtar Announces New Group, Threatens Against Military Intervention In Azawad Following French Air Strikes in Mali, Senior Jordanian Salafi Warns That 'The Rules Of The Game Have Changed,' Threatens To Attack French Army With Booby-Trapped Cars Threats Against France Following Intervention In Mali Fatwa Signed By 39 Mauritanian Clerics, Preachers Forbids Muslims From Aiding French Forces In Northern Mali Al-Shabab Al-Mujahideen: We Decided To Execute The French Hostage On Twitter, Al-Shabab Announces Death Of French Soldier Captured During Rescue Raid, Says It Will Announce Fate Of Denis Allex Within Hours Special Dispatch No. 5141 Jihadis, Islamists Call For Demonstration Outside French Embassy In Cairo The following report is a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). Several Islamist and jihadi groups have called for a demonstration outside the French embassy in Cairo, in protest over France's campaign against jihadis in Mali. The demonstration is slated to be held January 18, following Friday prayers. The groups, which include the General Islamic Movement (Al-tayyar al-islami al-'am), a coalition of Islamist groups; the Hazem Abu Isma'il Ultras; and the Salafi-jihadi movement, have issued their calls via their Facebook pages, among other venues. Click here to read the full report.   Special Dispatch No. 5140 JTTM Report From December: Amid Reports Of Having Left AQIM, Mokhtar Belmokhtar Announces New Group, Threatens Against Military Intervention In Azawad The following report is a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). On December 5, 2012, the Mauritanian news website Saharamedias.net reported that prominent Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) commander Mokhtar Belmokhtar had established a new group of fidayeen (martyrdom seekers) called Al-Muwaqi'un Bi-Dimaa', with the purpose of deterring any possible Western and African military intervention in Azawad. Belmokhtar announced the new group in a video message posted online the same day. In the message, he threated France and the African countries that the mujahideen would take retaliatory actions on their own soil if they intervened in Azawad. The video address is interesting for several reasons and, in fact, marks a rather unusual move by Belmokhtar, who has traditionally maintained a low-profile in terms of public appearances. Indeed, Belmokhtar says at the beginning of his message that he did not wish to make such an address, but opted to do so after being pressured by some brothers, and in order to show his gratitude to those who stood beside him in "tough times and crises." The latter comment is possibly related to recent mixed media reports, first emerging in October, about Belmokhtar refusing to step down from his position as leader of the Al-Mulathameen Brigade and even declaring a "war" against AQIM, following the latter's decision to discharge him. Other reports said that Belmokhtar had quit AQIM all together, and was attempting to join forces with the Al-Tawhid Wal-Jihad Movement in West Africa (MOJWA). Click here to read the full report.   Following French Air Strikes in Mali, Senior Jordanian Salafi Warns That 'The Rules Of The Game Have Changed,' Threatens To Attack French Army With Booby-Trapped Cars On January 14, 2013, a news agency (arabic.upi.com) reported that, following French air strikes against Islamist strongholds in Mali, Jordan's Salafi stream was threatening to open a new jihad front against the French army, and to attack it with booby-trapped cars. Click here to read the full report. To view this report, you must be a paying member of the Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor Project (JTTM).  For membership information, send an email to jttmsubs@memri.org with "Membership" in the subject line.  Threats Against France Following Intervention In Mali Following the deployment of French troops to Mali and the beginning of French air strikes in an effort to stop the spread of jihadi forces in the country, spokesmen of jihadi groups operating in Azawad (northern Mali) and North Africa threatened to attack France and its citizens. Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) denounced France's intervention in a video that was published by the Mauritanian news agency Sahara Media (saharamedias.net). In the video, the spokeman of AQIM's "Sahara Emirate," 'Abdallah Al-Shinqiti, calls the French move "a Crusader intervention aimed at nipping the Malian Islamic project in the bud," and warns the French: "The matter is still in your hands. You must cease your evil acts against us and rein in your fools, otherwise you will be digging your sons' graves with your own hands and sending them to hell." Al-Shinqiti urges the Muslims in Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria and elsewhere to come to the aid of the Malians. Click here to read the full report.   To view this report, you must be a paying member of the Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor Project (JTTM).  For membership information, send an email to jttmsubs@memri.org with "Membership" in the subject line.  Fatwa Signed By 39 Mauritanian Clerics, Preachers Forbids Muslims From Aiding French Forces In Northern Mali Sheikh Muhammad Mahmoud Ould Ahmad Youra, among the prominent sheikhs to sign the fatwa On January 16, 2013, the Syrian website ahrarpress.com reported that 39 Mauritanian Muslim clerics and preachers had issued a fatwa forbidding Muslims from taking part in the French war against northern Mali or aiding the French therein, and demanded that Muslims oppose negotiations with the "invading countries" and support the Muslims in Azawad. Click here to read the full report.   To view this report, you must be a paying member of the Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor Project (JTTM).  For membership information, send an email to jttmsubs@memri.org with "Membership" in the subject line.  Al-Shabab Al-Mujahideen: We Decided To Execute The French Hostage On January 16, 2013, the Somali Al-Qaeda affiliate Al-Shabab Al-Mujahideen published a statement, in English, regarding the French hostage Denis Allex. The group announced in the statement that it had decided to execute Allex, following the failed French operation to rescue him. The statement gives a comprehensive report on the group's version of the events concerning Allex's capture, the negotiations with French intelligence toward his release, the January 12 operation to rescue him, and the "verdict" it issued to execute him. Click here to read the full report.   To view this report, you must be a paying member of the Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor Project (JTTM).  For membership information, send an email to jttmsubs@memri.org with "Membership" in the subject line.  On Twitter, Al-Shabab Announces Death Of French Soldier Captured During Rescue Raid, Says It Will Announce Fate Of Denis Allex Within Hours On January 14, 2013, the Somali Al-Qaeda affiliate group Al-Shabab Al-Mujahideen published a statement in which it said that the French commando who was injured and subsequently captured by the group during last week's failed rescue operation had died from his wounds in hospital. Al-Shabab published several images of the dead soldier on its Twitter account. In one such photo, Al-Shabab mocked the cross worn by the soldier, saying that it had failed to protect him against the mujahideen's sword. The announcement also said that Al-Shabab had reached a unanimous verdict on the fate of Denis Allex, the French captive whom the former raid was meant to free, adding that details of the verdict would be published in the coming hours. Following is the full text of the statement in its original English, which Al-Shabab posted on its Twitter account: "Bulo-Marer (14/01/2013) - The French rescue operation in Bulo-Marer, Lower Shabelle region, not only failed to secure the release of Dennis Alex but also resulted in the death of several of the French forces and injured many more." Click here to read the full report. To view this report, you must be a paying member of the Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor Project (JTTM).  For membership information, send an email to jttmsubs@memri.org with "Membership" in the subject line.