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Syrian Oppositionist: Recruit Arabs, Muslims Living In Russia Against Putin Jihadi Extremists Gaining Foothold In Central Russia Influential Iraqi Sunni Cleric Reported Killed Or Wounded In Baghdad Bombing; In 2004 Interview Translated By MEMRI, He Told Of Divine Spiders Sent By Allah To Assist Muslims In Battle Of Falluja: From The MEMRI TV Archives UAE Cleric Fallah Bin Ismail Al-Mandakar Denies That Angels Descended To Aid Anti-Bashar Rebels In Syria Special Dispatch No. 4899 Syrian Oppositionist: Recruit Arabs, Muslims Living In Russia Against Putin In an article published on the Syrian oppositionist website sooryoon.net on July 26, 2012, Syrian oppositionist Osama Al-Mallouhi wrote that, in order to assist the revolution in Syria, opposition members must stop pandering to the Russian regime. Instead, they should encourage opposition within Russia itself that would pressure the regime to change its position on Syria. To this end, Al-Mallouhi called to recruit and activate Russia's Arab and Muslim diasporas (including Syrians), and also to expose the corruption of Putin and his associates in order to strengthen the internal opposition in Russia. The following are excerpts from the article: "Put Pressure On Russia From Within" "As long as there is no measured political initiative, no vigorous action, and no concentrated pressing effort, those who monopolize the Syrian opposition, its political activity, and its donations and aid money will continue to monopolize [the opposition] without doing what is required of them... Yes, there is something you must do in addition to the things that you [are already doing] and regard as your utmost efforts. It is not an 'utmost effort' when you visit Russia time after time and submissively pander to its regime, which, in its essence, is a collaborator with the murderous Syrian regime." To read the full report, click here. Special Dispatch No. 4898 Jihadi Extremists Gaining Foothold In Central Russia Note to media and government: For a full copy of this report, 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. On July 19, 2012, Russia's Tatarstan Republic, a Muslim-majority region located in the oil-rich center of the country, was shocked by two deadly attacks on the republic's leading clerics. The republic's mufti, Ildus Faizov, was hospitalized with moderate injuries after his car was blown up on a street in the capital, Kazan. One hour earlier, Faizov's powerful former deputy, Valiulla Yakupov, was shot dead outside his home in a different part of the city. These clerics' pro-Kremlin and anti-Islamist stance gave rise to suspicion that they were targeted by fundamental Islamists displeased by their cooperation with Moscow and their denunciation of Islamist activity. This suspicion was strengthened by the fact that, on the day of the attacks, Tatarstan militants issued a video in which they reiterated their allegiance to Dokka Umarov, leader of the "Caucasus Emirate," and announced that their jihad activities would expand to the entire Volga and Ural regions. Moreover, on August 4, they issued another video in which they claimed responsibility for the attacks. On July 31, five men (one Uzbek and four Tatars) were arrested in connection with the attacks on the two clerics. It should be mentioned that, while the North Caucasus has known frequent Islamist attacks for years, and Tatarstan has seen some evidence of extremist activity, these attacks were the first major terrorist-style operations to be carried out in this generally peaceful republic. The attacks sparked concern in Russia about the possible spread of Islamic terrorism to the central regions of the country. To read the full report, click here. 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. Special Dispatch No. 4900 Influential Iraqi Sunni Cleric Reported Killed Or Wounded In Baghdad Bombing; In 2004 Interview Translated By MEMRI, He Told Of Divine Spiders Sent By Allah To Assist Muslims In Battle Of Falluja: From The MEMRI TV Archives On August 19, 2012, the office of Sheikh Mahdi Al-Sumide'i, who heads the Sunni religious ruling authority in Iraq, denied that he had been killed the previous day in a car bombing of his convoy in western Baghdad the previous day, but that several of his security personnel had been killed. He is reported to be critically wounded. In an August 2004 interview on Syrian TV, Al-Sumide'i told of the divine spiders sent by Allah to assist the Muslims in the battle of Falluja. To view this clip on MEMRI TV, click here. Sheikh Mahdi Al-Sumide'i: "They [the Americans] attacked Falluja and tried to cause great damage to its residents. They destroyed mosques and homes, killed women, children, and youths, and spread corruption in Falluja. Nevertheless, we believe that Allah protects the believers, and indeed, Allah stood beside Falluja, and I'd like to mention some miracles Allah performed in Falluja. It is possible that the media does not know about them." To read the full report, click here. MEMRI TV Clip No. 3531 UAE Cleric Fallah Bin Ismail Al-Mandakar Denies That Angels Descended To Aid Anti-Bashar Rebels In Syria Following are excerpts from a lecture given by UAE cleric Fallah bin Ismail Al-Mandakar, which was posted on the Internet on August 3, 2012. Fallah bin Ismail Al-Mandakar: "People said they saw angels descending in Damascus, Syria. They actually saw them!" To view this clip on MEMRI TV, click here.