NEWSLETTER
-LessMore Text+More
Print Share Article

April 9, 2013

From the Snake Pit

For those who follow who’s who in the snake pit of Islamist groups, below is the latest and greatest from the bowels of the earth. For those who don’t know, rest assured that those who profess to know, most likely don’t.

Islamic groups or tribes are allies/enemies of convenience to one another. The impulse to differentiate here between bad guys and good guys is an exercise in futility. They ALL believe in Islamic supremacy, all are barbaric, all want a worldwide caliphate governed by sharia law, and all want to see non-Muslims dead or subjugated. 

And while experts will no doubt have a field day analyzing, debating, and dissecting the differences, to the experts and the US government we say: Stifle that instinct to try and outsmart everyone and their brother by aligning the U.S. with one Islamic group or another. They'd all turn against their family members in a heartbeat if it suited their purposes.

Don’t arm them, don’t feed them, and make clear to them that messing with the US or its friends will bring the wrath of the most powerful country on earth down on them, without mercy (or political-correctness).

Now that's a message that even the most primitive of barbarians can understand.

The Long War Journal  |  April 9, 2013

Social Media Jihad: Cheerleading al Qaeda's new 'Islamic State'

By Thomas Joscelyn

Islamic groups new banner.jpg

Jihadist groups are cheering on the announcement by al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) emir Abu Bakr al Baghdadi that his organization and the Al Nusrah Front in Syria will now operate under the same name, the "Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant." The Al Nusrah Front is a creation of al Qaeda's affiliate in Iraq and has been under al Baghdadi's command from the beginning.

The banner above, for instance, was posted on Ansar al Sharia Tunisia's main Facebook page and is intended to be used as a background on computer desktops. The text immediately above the banner in the Facebook post reads: "Victory for the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, background for desktop." The first two lines of text in the banner read:

O lions of god in all the earth ** Call out: Allah Akbar, for victory and conquest is ours

Rejoice, for the glorious caliphate is near ** Our sharia [law] will reign over every corner [or inch of land]

This banner, dedicated to the "Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant," is not the only relevant posting on Ansar al Sharia Tunisia's sites.

In a separate Facebook posting hours earlier, which appears between posts dedicated to the group's dawa (or proselytizing and missionary work), the al Qaeda-linked group embedded al Baghdadi's audio message. The only image that appears during al Baghdadi's speech is the black banner first adopted by al Qaeda in Iraq and now by numerous al Qaeda-affiliated and associated groups, including Ansar al Sharia Tunisia. Similar postings dedicated to the "Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant" have been published on Ansar al Sharia Tunisia's Facebook news page.

***Thanks to Steve Miller and Tony Badran, my colleagues at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, for their assistance.

Original article here.


Comments:

[Comment Rules]
We welcome your comments, but please comply with our Comment Rules. You must be registered and logged in to leave a comment. Comments will display your Username and location.

Log In »

Not a member? Register here!


Close