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	Special Announcement|234|May 4, 2013 Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM) Weekend Summary MEMRI | MEMRI TV | JIHAD AND TERRORISM THREAT MONITOR | SOUTH ASIA STUDIES PROJECT
	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 tojttmsubs@memri.org with "Membership" in the subject line.) Note to media and government: For a full copy of these reports, send an email with the title of the report in the subject line to media@memri.org. Please include your name, title, and organization in your email. EXCLUSIVE: In Unofficial Letter, Ansar Al-Islam Urges Al-Qaeda Leader Al-Zawahiri To Respond To ISI's Attacks And Announce Decision To Change Its Media Approach Towards the Group The Twitter account of Abdallah bin Muhammad According to senior jihadi writer Abdallah bin Muhammad, the Iraq-based jihadi group Ansar Al-Islam sent a letter to Al-Qaeda leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri urging him to intervene to resolve its dispute with Al-Qaeda affiliate the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), whom it accuses of targeting its leaders and harassing its members. The unofficial letter, dated February 17, 2013, was included in a series of tweets in which bin Muhammad argued that the current leadership of the ISI has been infiltrated by intelligence agencies. Bin Muhammad mentioned this letter to point to ISI's operations, which he deems suspicious and benefiting only the Iraqi government. In the letter, the group, which presented itself as a veteran jihadi group in Iraq whose aim is to empower Islam, addressed Zawahiri as the emir of Al-Qaeda, whose branch in Iraq is the ISI. Al-Qaeda's Main Media Center Urges Jihadi Forums To Sever Ties With Members Openly Criticizing Mujahideen, ISI On May 3, 2013, Al-Fajr, Al-Qaeda's leading media company, which distributes videos and communiqués from the group and its franchises, issued a statement warning against senior members of jihadi forums who have harshly criticized the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), whom they accuse of being infiltrated by enemy agents. Though it did not mention any names, the statement seems to be a response to recent critiques of the ISI, most of which have been posted on Twitter by 'Abdallah bin Mohammad and Assad Al-Jihad2, who are prominent writers in jihadi forums. While calling on forum members to adhere to the guidance offered by jihadi scholars and leaders, the statement urged jihadi forums and media foundations to sever ties with those spreading rumors against the mujahideen in general and the ISI in particular. Furthermore, Al-Fajr stressed that "all members of jihadi forums represent no one but themselves." In Taliban Video, Defecting Afghan Soldiers Explain Their Jihadi Motives For Launching Attacks On Australians, Americans, Italians, Britons In Afghanistan Ghazi Muhammad Qasim (one of the defectors, left) being interviewed The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (the Taliban's shadow government in the country) has released a Pashtu-language video of interviews of defecting Afghan soldiers who carried out attacks on NATO troops in recent months. There are seven defectors from the Afghan National Army (ANA) interviewed on the hour-long Taliban video, which has been released by the Culture Commission of the Islamic Emirate through its own official website as well as jihad internet forums. The video, titled "Afghani Ghazyan" (Afghan Victors), also briefly interviews two unnamed Taliban officials who provided shelter to the defectors. Inciting other Afghan securitymen to turn their guns towards NATO troops, the militant commanders pledge to shelter and protect the insider attackers and give them full respect. Ghazi Hikmatullah: "The Infidels Have Invaded Our Faith, Homeland And Honor… To Force These Cruel People Out [Of Afghanistan], Jihad Is Mandatory For Each Muslim" Ghazi Hikmatullah Ghazi Hikmatullah, one of the seven defectors who hails from Maqur district of Afghanistan's Ghazni province, says in the interview that he killed and wounded several Australian troops at a base in Chora district of Uruzgan province and fled the scene by jumping over the mud walls of the base. Asked why he carried out the insider attack, Ghazi Hikmatullah, who carries a bounty of $5,000 on his head, says: "The infidels have invaded our faith, homeland, and honor, and are disrespecting our holy places daily and making fun of it. To force these cruel people out [of Afghanistan], jihad is mandatory for each Muslim. I urge the national army troops to fulfill the promises they had made to me and wage jihad in Allah's way." Al-Qaeda Official Ustad Farooq Offers Six Steps For Eliminating American Influence From Pakistan, Says Pakistan Has Been Turned Into An 'American Colony' In a new address to the Pakistani people, Al-Qaeda's top Pakistani official Ustad Ahmad Farooq calls for eliminating all American influences from Pakistan and accuses the Pakistani military and intelligence of turning their attention away from India to the people of Pakistan. Accusing the secular ruling class of Pakistan of comprehensive failure in leading the country, Ustad Farooq, who is head of Al-Qaeda's Media and Dawah Department for Pakistan, argues that only Islamic scholars are capable of providing leadership to the country and of ensuring sharia rule in Pakistan. In the lecture, Ustad Farooq offers six steps for the enforcement of Islamic sharia rule in Pakistan: masses must organize around godly scholars; influential people should strengthen Islamic scholars; people should approach Islamic jurists rather than courts and police; organizations of youth who love Islam should be formed; fearless Islamic scholars should come together; and Islamic scholars should take a firm stand to eliminate American influences from Pakistan. Following are excerpts from the lecture: "Employees Of The CIA And FBI Roam About The Country With Impunity; The Entire Country From The Tribal Areas … To Karachi Has Been Turned Into A War Zone" "National sovereignty and independence is being violated every single day by drone attacks. Lawlessness has become widespread, and law-enforcement agencies are themselves supervising theft, banditry, vice, and the drug trade. Intelligence agencies of the country are busy spying on the citizens of this country, kidnapping them, and throwing their disfigured bodies into deserted places. The leadership of the army and air force is proudly proclaiming that it has turned its attention away from the Indian threat and made fighting its own people [i.e. the Taliban] its highest priority. The country has been turned into an American colony and employees of the CIA and FBI roam about the country with impunity. The entire country from the tribal areas, Malakand, and Swat to Karachi has been turned into a war zone." In New Taliban Video, TTP Commanders Threaten Revenge Against Pakistani Army, Vow To Establish Sharia Rule In Pakistan Several commanders of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) appear in a new video, warning of attacks against Pakistani security forces and vowing to establish Islamic sharia rule in Pakistan. The release date of the 49-minute video is unclear. The video, titled "Ghazwat-ul-Hind 6," was released by the Umar Media of the TTP on a jihadi Internet forum. Several TTP commanders from the Swat and Malakand region of Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province are shown, addressing militants and launching attacks against Pakistani security forces in Bajaur Agency, a tribal region along the Afghan border. In the video, a commentator blames the West for using liberal Pakistani girl Malala Yousafzai for the purposes of Jews and Pakistani apostates, and describes American prisons as "Jewish" prisons for incarcerating Dr. Aafia Siddiqui, a female Pakistani scientist jailed for attacking U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan. Report On Belgian Father In Syria Searching For Son Who To Wage Jihad There After Joining Sharia4Belgium: 'Why Would A Boy Raised In The West By Christian Parents Come Here To Die?' Dimitri and Jejoen Bontinck The Belgian media has been reporting recently on the problem of young people leaving Belgium to join the jihad in various war zones, including the story of Dimitri Bontinck, from Antwerp, who went to Syria to search for his 16-year-old son Jejoen who had joined the jihad against the regime forces there. According to a Belgian newspaper, the father was forced to depart for Turkey after his efforts yielded nothing. However, according to his Facebook page, he has now returned to Syria and is continuing the search. Wael 'Issam, a correspondent for the London-based Saudi daily Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, met with the elder Bontinck and accompanied him during his visit to Syria. The following is a summary of his report, published April 30, 2013 in the newspaper: "A Young Belgian Disappeared Without A Trace Until Two Months Ago... [Until] His Father Saw Him In A video Fighting With A Jihadi Group" The report began: "From well-known dancer to Salafi fighter in the ranks of an Islamist jihad brigade... a young Belgian, not yet 18, disappeared without a trace two months ago – [until] suddenly his father saw him in a video fighting with a jihadi group comprising mostly Belgians, in the city of Khan Tuman in a rural region west of Aleppo." AQIM Announces Launch Of 'Muslim Africa Blog' On May 1, 2013, Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) announced the launch of the "Muslim Africa Blog." The blog, it said, was to serve as a pulpit for all African Muslims to return to their Islamic identity, which the unbelieving colonizers have worked hard to keep them away from. The blog, AQIM said, will be a platform from which all African Muslims will be called upon to collaborate and help one another support the ummah, especially those parts which fall inside Africa. Tunisian News Reports Offer Information On Recently Released Names Of Suspects Behind Killing Of Tunisian Opposition Leader Shukri Belaid Top (left to right): Al-Qadqadi, Al-Marrakeshi, Al-Ruwaisi Bottom (left to right): 'Abd Al-Lawi, and Saleh. Source: assarih.tn Some two weeks ago, the Tunisian Interior Ministry released the photos of five suspects allegedly involved in the killing of opposition leader Shukri Belaid, who was gunned down on his way to work on February 6, 2013. The Interior Ministry, which has faced mounting criticism for the slow pace of the investigation, asked for the public's assistance in providing any information about the suspects, who, as of this writing, remain at large. Back in March, four different men were detained on suspicion of involvement in the case. Recent media reports from various Tunisian news websites shed light on a possible connection between the recent suspects and those who were detained in March. The recent list of five suspects includes: Kamal Al-Qadqadi (34), Ahmad Al-Ruwaisi (46), Salman Al-Marrakeshi (30), Marwan Saleh (33), and 'Izz Al-Din 'Abd Al-Lawi (38). Following is a review of recent reports from various online Tunisian news websites on the matter: On April 17, 2013, the Tunisian online news website assarih.tn reported that the Tunisian Interior Ministry's decision to release the recent suspects' names and photos came in response to the mounting public pressure and criticism against it. According to the report, it left the Interior Ministry no option but to release the names. The report further questioned whether such a list could be used to put an end to the case "without finding the direct murderer, and the entity that is standing behind him." Please remember the environment before printing.