UPDATE 1/25/14 11:44 PM: Here is an English translation of the below Arabic audio message and transcription:
Click the following link for a safe PDF copy: Abū Bakr al-Ḥussaynī al-Baghdādī — “God Knows and You Do Not Know” (En)
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UPDATE 1/20/14 9:24 PM: Here is an Arabic transcription of the below audio message:
Click the following link for a safe PDF copy: Abū Bakr al-Ḥussaynī al-Baghdādī — “God Knows and You Do Not Know” (Ar)
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Abū Bakr al-Ḥussaynī al-Baghdādī- “God Knows and You Do Not Know”
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Category: Abū Bakr al-Ḥussaynī al-Baghdādī
New article from Dr. Iyād Qunaybī: "Regarding the Call of Dr. Yūsuf al-Aḥmad to the Two Shaykhs al-Baghdādī and al-Ḥamawi"
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al-Irāq and al-Shām Forum presents a new Nashīd from al-Maqdisī: "They Closed Ranks and They Acknowledged al-Baghdādī"
al-Maqdisī — “They Closed Ranks and They Acknowledged al-Baghdādī”
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To inquire about a translation for this nashīd for a fee email: [email protected]
Musings of an Iraqi Brasenostril on Jihad: Bay’ah to Baghdadi: Foreign Support for Sheikh Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and the Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham
NOTE: An archive of the Musings of an Iraqi Brasenostril on Jihad column can now be found here.
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Bay’ah to Baghdadi: Foreign Support for Sheikh Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and the Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham
By Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi
Click here for a PDF version of this post
Over the past couple of months, jihadi media outlets have circulated numerous photos and statements indicating support from various places abroad for Sheikh Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and the Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS) as the group has expanded its influence in Syria and has experienced a resurgence in Iraq. Below is a selection of those gestures of support, and the analytical implications.
Saudi Arabia
The gestures of support from Saudi Arabia primarily take the form of anonymous individuals holding placards declaring admiration for ISIS. Note that the photos below are not in chronological order. The ideological inclinations of the placard-holders are made clear by calling Saudi Arabia ‘Bilad al-Haramain’ (‘Land of the Two Sanctuaries’- referencing Mecca and Medina).
This photo, taken near the Kaaba in late July, celebrates the successful prison breaks orchestrated by ISIS at Abu Ghraib and Taji in Baghdad that resulted in the release of hundreds of detainees, including muhajireen who had been imprisoned since 2006/7. The placard reads: ‘Greetings from Bilad al-Haramain to the lions of the two rivers [Tigris and Euphrates] for the liberation of Taji and Abu Ghraib prison; for the Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham’.
This photo comes from an unspecified location in Saudi Arabia. The placard reads: ‘We bless/congratulate Abu Bakr [al-Baghdadi] for the liberation of Abu Ghraib and Taji prison. The sons of Bilad al-Haramain.’
Again with unspecified location in Saudi Arabia, and the handwriting is not entirely clear, but the first few lines can be discerned as follows: ‘From Bilad al-Haramain, I pledge allegiance to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi…and my greetings to Abu Mohammed al-Adnani [ISIS’ main spokesman].’
Perhaps one of the more bizarre demonstrations of support for ISIS from Saudi Arabia, a cake baked with the ISIS flag for the icing. The dedicatory placard reads: “All thanks to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and the heroes of the Islamic State. Your brothers…the free men of Bilad al-Haramain.”
An earlier image of an ISIS cake from Saudi Arabia had appeared with an accompanying explanation that it was baked to celebrate the fact that a Saudi family’s son was heading off to Syria to fight jihad. However, that image and the Facebook page that featured it have since been deleted.
A photo released on a jihadi forum as part of the same set as the ISIS cake above. A young Saudi girl holds a placard with ISIS insignia. The first and relevant part of the placard reads: ‘How excellent you are, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and your heroic soldiers! Verily you have caused pain to the Safavids.’ In this context, the term ‘Safavids’ is a derogatory reference to the Shi’a.
Two Saudi children hold placards celebrating the ISIS jailbreaks in Baghdad. The placard on the left reads: ‘We congratulate the Ummah of Mohammed for the liberation of some 600 prisoners from the prisons of the Rafidites [Shi’a]. Thanks to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Bilad al-Haramain.’ The placard on the right says: ‘Our amir Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi…send us some of your soldiers to free our prisoners. Bilad al-Haramain.’
Testimony on the ground from northern Syria in particular suggests to me that one factor behind ISIS’ success in expansion is that the group has much more financial clout at its disposal than most other rebel factions, such that first-hand observers seem puzzled. Cross-border coordination with mujahideen in Iraq and limited oil revenues from control of some oil fields in Syria can partly explain the depth of ISIS’ financial resources. Yet I would also suggest that by conveying these gestures of support from Saudi individuals to ISIS, jihadi circles are implying that ISIS is receiving significant funding from private Saudi citizens who support ISIS.
Somalia
Somalia, home to the official al-Qa’ida affiliate Harakat Shabaab al-Mujahideen (HSM), has also seen gestures of support for ISIS and Sheikh Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. The images below have been released through the end of July and into August by the pro-ISIS media channel ash-Sham, which is based in Raqqa, Syria. There have of course been rumors and anecdotes of Somali fighters in Syria. Somalia itself has also seen small demonstrations in support of the uprising in Syria.
The ash-Sham channel’s logo is to be observed in the right-hand corner. The placard held by the HSM fighter reads: ‘And if I were in ash-Sham, I could only be a soldier in the Islamic State.’
A child supporter of HSM stands besides a large ISIS/HSM banner, holding a placard that reads: ‘Greetings to the amir in the state of free men: Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, demolishing the walls.” Note that ‘demolishing the walls’ is in reference to the successful ISIS jailbreaks in Baghdad last month.
Two HSM fighters show their support for ISIS. The mujahid on the left displays the same placard as in the first photo from this series. The mujahid on the right holds a placard that says, ‘An Eid gift to the lions of Tawhid in the Islamic State.’ The building behind the two HSM fighters has the Somali word ‘Xuuriye’ inscribed on it, meaning ‘freedom’ and borrowed from Arabic (in Somali writing, ‘x’ replaces Arabic ḥ in loanwords).
Niqab-wearing supporters of HSM demonstrate their support for ISIS. The placard on the right reads, ‘Remaining [steadfast] in Iraq and ash-Sham.’ It should be noted that this slogan is a recurring theme in ISIS discourse, originating from Sheikh Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi’s speech in June, in which he rejected Sheikh Aymenn al-Ẓawahiri’s insistence on separation between Islamic State of Iraq and Jabhat al-Nusra. Since then, ‘bāqīya’ has even become the name of a pro-ISIS media outlet: Bāqīya Media, dedicated to putting out material on ISIS in Bilād ash-Sham.
A Somali child holds the same placard as in the first photo in this series.
HSM fighters hold the ISIS banner with the inscription ‘Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham’ on it.
Somali women in niqabs display ISIS banners. Note the one on the left with the inscription ‘Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham.’
Somali children hold the ISIS banner.
Somali women hold placards in support of ISIS. The writing on the discernible placard on the far left is the same as the third one in this series.
Given HSM’s status as an al-Qa’ida affiliate, it is noteworthy that its members and fan-base have shown support for ISIS and Sheikh Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, while not indicating any similar appreciation for Sheikh Abu Mohammed al-Jowlani and Jabhat al-Nusra.
This would seem to suggest that ISIS’ reputation is far greater than that of the latter two in many jihadist hotspots around the Muslim world- something that has no doubt been abetted by ISIS’ quick expansion across northern and eastern Syria in particular, along with ISIS’ leading role in recent rebel offensives like the capture of Mannagh airbase.
Despite Sheikh Ẓawahiri’s indication of the need to dissolve ISIS, not only are al-Qa’ida affiliates elsewhere acknowledging ISIS and Sheikh Baghdadi as the leader of the jihad in Bilad ash-Sham, but also official jihadi forums like Shamūkh Islām no longer appear to be deleting posts put out in ISIS’ name.
That said, al-Furqān media- the official outlet of what was Islamic State of Iraq- still avoids overt reference to the name ‘Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham’ in its current video releases, even as it is becomes clear that ISIS’ jihad in Syria is being promoted (e.g. the interview with the martyred French convert and another with an elderly mujahid for the group).
In any event, it is clear that ISIS is more or less accepted in jihadi circles now as a reality on the ground, and Sheikh Ẓawahiri is unlikely to issue another directive calling for the
Minbar at-Tawḥīd wa-l-Jihād presents a new article from Abū Hamām Bakr Bin 'Abd al- 'Azīz al-'Atharī: "Extend Our Hands in Bay'at to al-Baghdādī"
Click the following link for a safe PDF copy: Abū Hamām Bakr Bin ‘Abd al- ‘Azīz al-‘Atharī — “Extend Our Hands in Bay’at to al-Baghdādī”
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To inquire about a translation for this article for a fee email: [email protected]
Minbar at-Tawḥīd wa-l-Jihād presents a new release from Abū Muḥammad al-Maqdisī: “Answer of the Question in the Questions of the Calamity #2”
NOTE: Click here for the first part in this series.
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Click the following link for a safe PDF copy: Abū Muḥammad al-Maqdisī — “Answer of the Question in the Questions of the Calamity #2”
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To inquire about a translation for this release for a fee email: [email protected]
New audio-visual message from the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Shām's Abū Bakr al-Ḥussaynī al-Baghdādī: "Remaining in Iraq and al-Shām"
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To inquire about a translation for this audio-visual message for a fee email: [email protected]
New article from Shaykh Ḥussayn bin Maḥmūd: "The Fitnah Episode"
لعل رؤوس كثيرين من أنصار الجهاد دارت مع تلك الحلقة التي انتهت من حيث بدأت : تزكية الأمير الظواهري للأمير البغدادي ، ثم إعلان البغدادي ضم جبهتي الشام والعراق في “دولة العراق والشام” ، ثم إعلان الأمير الجولاني الإعتذار عن هذا الضم ، ثم مبايعة جبهة النصرة للأمير الظواهري !!
هذه الحلقة رُسمت في أيام معدودات ، وفي كلمات خاطفة ، لكنها أظهرت خللاً كبيراً في الفكر الذي يتبناه بعض أنصار المجاهدين هنا وهناك ، ثم أظهرت خللاً لا يقل عنه عند بعض العلماء والدعاة وطلبة العلم وخواص المناصرين لأهل الجهاد !!
لا بد من إعادة النظر في تأثير هذه الحلقة على كثير من الشباب الذين لم يعهدوا مثل هذه الإشكالات في العمل الإسلامي : فصُدم البعض ، وأخذ البعض موقفاً ، وتعصّب البعض ، وحصل تنافر وتشاحن وتشويش ، فتغيّرت الألفاظ ، وتباعدت القلوب ، ووقف البعض بعيداً يراقب الحال دون تدخّل في أمل أن تنجلي الغمة ، وهي كذلك ..
قد يكون الأمر كبيراً عند البعض ، وقد يكون عند البعض أصغر مما نتصوّر ، فهو عند المتفائلين : سوء تنسيق بين بعض القيادات ، وعند المتشائمين : أموراً ذكروها في كتاباتهم ومقالاتهم وتصريحاتهم .. سنحاول مناقشة بعض المفاهيم التي نعتقد أن بها غبش عند البعض ، وهي المشار إليها في العنوان بالفتنة ، لأنها كذلك ، فمنها :
أولاً : معنى قول الله تعالى {وَالَّذِينَ جَاهَدُوا فِينَا لَنَهْدِيَنَّهُمْ سُبُلَنَا …} (العنكبوت : 69) ، هذه الآية يظلمها البعض ، فالهداية هنا لا تعني العصمة بأي حال من الأحوال ، فالمجاهدون بشر ، وقادتهم بشر ، وهم يُخطؤون وليسوا بمعصومين ، وإنما معنى الآية أنهم أقرب إلى الهداية العامة من كثير من المسلمين لأنهم في موطن إخلاص وعمل جليل وفي عبادة مستمرة ، وقد فسّر بعض العلماء هذه الآية بأنها في أهل القتال ، وقال البعض بأنها في من يجاهد بأي نوع من أنواع الجهاد . فمن جاهد نفسه أو الشيطان أو العدو الداخلي أو الخارجي ولم يكن خاملاً متكاسلاً متقاعساً يدخل في هذه الآية عند بعض علماء التفسير ، وظاهر الآية أنها في أهل القتال لأن العلماء قالوا بأن كلمة الجهاد إذا أطلقت فإنها تعني القتال في سبيل الله ما لم يصرفها صارف عن ذلك ..
الشاهد أن الهداية هنا لا تعني العصمة ، فلا ينبغي أن نلطم بهذه الآية وجه كل من يناقش قراراً أو عملاً للمجاهدين بزعم أنهم هم المهتدون ، ومخالفوهم ضالون ، فخالد بن الوليد – رضي الله عنه – قتل بني جذيمة وتبرأ النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم من صنيعه ، ونزل الرماة من جبل أحدٍ وكانوا من الصحابة المجاهدين وتسببوا في هزيمة المسلمين ، والأمثلة كثيرة .. قد يكون رأي بعض المجاهدين أهدى من بعض ، وقد يكون رأي بعض القاعدين أصوب من رأي بعض المجاهدين ، فالأمر نسبي وليس على إطلاقه ..
ثانياً : سوء الظن بالمسلمين .. وهذا أمر عظيم أنزل الله فيه قرآناً يُتلى ، قال تعالى {يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اجْتَنِبُوا كَثِيرًا مِنَ الظَّنِّ إِنَّ بَعْضَ الظَّنِّ إِثْمٌ …} (الحجرات : 12) ، وقال تعالى {وَإِنَّ الظَّنَّ لاَ يُغْنِي مِنَ الْحَقِّ شَيْئًا ..} (النجم : 28) ولعلنا لا نجد كلمة الظن معرّفة في القرآن إلا في موضع ذم !! نحن نسأل هؤلاء : ما هو الأصل في المسلمين ؟ ولماذا سوء الظن ؟ وأين حمل كلام المسلم على أحسن محمل ؟ وماذا يفيد سوء الظن غير الخصومة والضغينة !!
ثالثاً : بالرجوع إلى كتاب الله تعالى نجد أن الله تعالى ذكر نهياً عظيماً قبل آية الظن في سورة الحجرات فقال سبحانه {يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لاَ يَسْخَرْ قَومٌ مِنْ قَوْمٍ عَسَى أَنْ يَكُونُوا خَيْرًا مِنْهُمْ وَلاَ نِسَاءٌ مِنْ نِسَاءٍ عَسَى أَنْ يَكُنَّ خَيْرًا مِنْهُنَّ وَلاَ تَلْمِزُوا أَنْفُسَكُمْ وَلاَ تَنَابَزُوا بِالأَلْقَابِ بِئْسَ الاسْمُ الْفُسُوقُ بَعْدَ الإِيمَانِ وَمَنْ لَمْ يَتُبْ فَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الظَّالِمُونَ} (الحجرات : 11) ، وقد رأينا كيف أن سوء الظن أدى إلى اللمز والتنابز والسخرية بين الإخوة !! ورأينا الطعن واللعن والبذاءة والفحش في القول !! فأين آداب الإسلام ؟ وهل نحن أنصار قضية إسلامية أم قضية سوقيّة !! وأين نحن من قول نبينا صلى الله عليه وسلم “ليس المؤمن بالطعّان ولا اللعّان ولا الفاحش ولا البذيء” (الترمذي ، وصححه الألباني) ، وهل يعتقد أحد بأن سبيل النصر هو انتفاء صفة الإيمان !!
رابعاً : عمِل البعض على تفريق المجاهدين وتمزيقهم من حيث لا يشعر ، فقد تعصّب البعض لرأي فلان ، وتعصّب آخرون لرأي فلان ، وأصبحت عندنا فرقتان ورأيان بعد أن كنا جبهة واحدة على قلب رجل واحد ، والله تعالى قد بيّن بياناً واضحاً جليّاً ليس فيه أي مجال لتأويل فقال سبحانه {وَأَطِيعُوا اللهَ وَرَسُولَهُ وَلاَ تَنَازَعُوا فَتَفْشَلُوا وَتَذْهَبَ رِيحُكُمْ وَاصْبِرُوا إِنَّ اللهَ مَعَ الصَّابِرِينَ} (الأنفال : 46) ، هذه حقيقة لا تقبل الجدال ، فالتنازع مآله الفشل وذهاب الريح ، وهو مناقض لطاعة الله ورسوله المذكورة في أوّل الآية ، فالواجب الصبر وتحمّل بعض الأمور في سبيل اجتماع الكلمة حتى تتحقق معيّة الله ويحصل النصر بفضله ، فمن تدبّر الآية جيداً علم هذا يقيناً .. كلنا يحفظ هذه الآية : {إِنَّ اللهَ يُحِبُّ الَّذِينَ يُقَاتِلُونَ فِي سَبِيلِهِ صَفًّا كَأَنَّهُمْ بُنْيَانٌ مَرْصُوصٌ} (الصفّ : 4) ، والسؤال هنا : إذا كان الله تعالى يحب هذا ، فهل يحب نقيضه !! وهل ننتصر بما لا يحبه الله تعالى !!
خامساً : هل يسعنا مخالفة رأي قادتنا !! هذه معضلة عند البعض ، ويتحرّج منها البعض ، فلا بد من بيان الأمر ووضوحه .. هناك فرق بين مخالفة رأي القادة ومخالفة أمرهم في غير معصية .. لا ينبغي للإنسان أن يلغي عقله أو يرهنه لغيره ، فالصحابة كانوا يراجعون النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم في بعض قراراته ويناقشونه ، ولم ينههم النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم بل كان يطلب مشورتهم وهو أغنى الناس عن ذلك ، فغيره من باب أولى .. قادة الجهاد ليسوا طغاة ، الطاغية هو من يرفض أن يخالف الناسُ رأيَه ، ولذلك تجد سجناء الرأي بالآلاف في البلاد الدكتاتورية ..
إذا أمر قادة الجهاد أمراً فعلى الجنود السمع والطاعة في غير معصية ، قد يكون الجندي غير محب للرأي أو غير مقتنع به ، ولكن عليه أن يسمع ويطيع ، ولا إثم عليه إن لم يعجبه الرأي ، ولكن قد يأثم إذا شغب على القادة وأبدى إعتراضه على الرأي في بعض المواقف التي لا تحتمل ذلك : كأن يعلن ذلك في معركة أو في موقف يحصل فيه انشقاق في صفوف المسلمين أو وهن ، عندها يكون السكوت هو الواجب ..
قد لا يعجبني أن يعلن البغدادي “دولة العراق والشام” ، أو لا يعجبني اعتذار الجولاني عن الإنضمام إلى هذه الدولة ، وأرى أن رأيي هو الصواب ، وهذا حقي الطبيعي والشرعي أحتفظ به كرأي
Check out my new 'Policy Alert' for the Washington Institute: "Al-Qaeda Announces an Islamic State in Syria"
Early Tuesday morning, Sheikh Abu Bakr al-Husseini al-Qurashi al-Baghdadi — the leader of the Islamic State of Iraq, an al-Qaeda branch — released an audio message announcing the extension of its “Islamic State” into al-Sham (the Levant), effectively bringing Syrian jihadist rebel group Jabhat al-Nusra (JN) into the fold. This comes on the heels of “al-Qaeda Central” leader Ayman al-Zawahiri releasing a video message two days ago calling for unification of the jihad in Syria. This is no coincidence — rather, it highlights the continued relevance of al-Qaeda’s central command. Although Baghdadi’s announcement confirms what many already surmised and what the United States noted in its December designation of JN as a terrorist group, his words offer several important takeaways.
Baghdadi’s audio message explains that al-Qaeda did not announce the connection to JN previously for two reasons: security concerns, and a desire for Syrians to get to know JN on their own terms and not be clouded by media “misrepresentations” ahead of time due to the stigma of association with al-Qaeda. This is in line with an overarching tactic al-Qaeda has used in various locales in the post-Arab uprising environment. In Yemen, for example, al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula’s late sharia official Abu Zubayr Adil bin Abdullah al-Abab explained in April 2011 why the group was rebranding itself as “Ansar al-Sharia in Yemen”: “[It] is what we use to introduce ourselves in areas where we work to tell people about our work and goals.” Similarly, Tunisia and Libya have witnessed the establishment of Ansar al-Sharia groups that act locally but, at least at the leadership level, believe in al-Qaeda’s global ideology.
More important, Baghdadi’s message illustrates that al-Qaeda Central in Pakistan is still relevant to the global jihad that it originally called for in 1998. Although JN was not officially announced until late January 2012, evidence suggests that it was originally established in summer 2011. Abu Lokman, a senior JN commander in Aleppo, explained to the BBC in January 2013 that he originally joined the group in its infancy six months prior to its first public video release. This would place JN’s founding at the end of July 2011 — a timeframe corroborated in interviews with other JN fighters who have spoken with Western and Arab media outlets.
Abu Lokman’s date also coincides with Zawahiri’s first video related to the Syrian uprising, released on July 27, 2011. In it, he supported the “Muslims in Bilad al-Sham, the land of ribat, jihad, glory, Arabism, and nobility.” In the context of his latest announcement on Syria, this suggests that al-Qaeda Central had knowledge of — and perhaps even ordered — JN’s establishment two years ago.
Click here to read the rest.
al-Furqān Media presents a new audio message from the Islamic State of Iraq’s Shaykh Abū Bakr al-Ḥussaynī al-Qurayshī al-Baghdādī: “Announcement of the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Shām"
UPDATE 10/28/13 8:00 AM: Here is an English translation of the below Arabic audio message:
Click the following link for a safe PDF copy: Shaykh Abū Bakr al-Ḥussaynī al-Qurayshī al-Baghdādī — “Announcement of the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Shām” (En)
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Shaykh Abū Bakr al-Ḥussaynī al-Qurayshī al-Baghdādī — “Announcement of the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Shām”
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