Jihadology – Page 4

Gone Fishin'

Posted on August 27, 2013 by Aaron Y. Zelin

I will have intermittent Internet access over the next week. Updates might come late or delayed in general. Sorry for any inconvenience and your patience.

Special Occasional Report from Jihadology: "Socio-political Background and Intellectual Undergirding of the Ikhwani Breakaway Factions: 1954-1981"

Posted on August 19, 2013 by Aaron Y. Zelin

By Aaron Y. Zelin

Introduction

Over the past few days, we have seen a major crackdown against the Muslim Brothers second-tier leadership and grassroots supporters. While many are focused on if the ‘Algerian scenario’ is starting to play out in Egypt, I think it’s important to look back at what happened the last time there was a large-scale suppression of the Brothers. This occurred following the rise of Gamal ‘Abd al-Nasir in 1954. In response, over the next decade and a half some elements within the Ikhwan broke away from the movement since they believed accommodation with the regime was illegitimate and the only solution was to overthrow the military rule.
Will we see a similar scenario play out in the coming decade or so? It is difficult to know and somewhat pointless to try and predict. That being said, it is important to understand this past history so one might be cognizant of history repeating itself. The contexts are obviously different in terms of the place Islamism – let alone jihadism – has within Egypt and the broader Middle East.
Below you will find two separate things I have previously written.[1] One is a chapter from my master’s thesis written in the fall of 2009 on Sayyid Qutb, his upbringing, and intellectual thought and the second is a paper I presented at the 2011 Middle East Studies Association annual conference on the 30 year anniversary of the assassination of former Egyptian president Anwar al-Sadat. The paper explores the post-Qutb sprouting of underground jihadi movements within Egypt in the 1970s. It also looks at the natural conclusion of the radicalization of these individuals and ideas through the thought of Muhammad ‘Abd al-Salam Farag, the leader of the group responsible for Sadat’s assassination.
Hopefully these two works will shed some historical light on relevant aspects of the recent crackdown and the potential future trajectory of elements currently in the Ikhwan.
Click here to read the entire report (80 pages).

[1] Since these are two different documents the formatting is slightly different in terms of how I transliterate the Arabic words. A bibliography for both documents is combined at the end.

Done Backdating and a Return to Regular Updates

Posted on July 19, 2013 by Aaron Y. Zelin

Well, there were definitely a lot more updates on average during the two weeks I was off than normal, but I’m done backdating everything. Since there were so many things I posted, here’s a list below of everything so you can find them easily. I’ll have this post at the top of Jihadology through the weekend, though I’ll be doing new updates when they get released. There will also be a new Hizballah Cavalcade with some major scoop that hasn’t been reported on yet within the next day.
July 3:
Kavkaz Center presents a new video message from the Caucasus Emirate’s Dokku Umarov: “Overturning the Moratorium on Operations in Russia in Light of the Olympic Games in Sochi”
New video message from Himam News Agency: “Report on Cleaning in the City of Binnish – Idlib”
July 4:
Manba’ al-Jihād presents a new video message from the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan: “The Champions of Truth”
New series of tweets from Abū Sa’d al ‘Āmilī: “Support of the Jihādī Forums and the Head of It Shamūkh Forum”
Mirkaz al-Maqrīzī al-Dirāsāt al-Tārīkhīyyah presents a new article from Hānī al-Sibā’ī: “Statement #2: Oh Egyptian Army Officers and Its Soldiers: No Excuses For Supporting ‘al-Sīsī’ the Enemy of Islām”
al-Andalus Media presents a new article from al-Qā’idah in the Islamic Maghrib’s The Muslim Africa Blog’s Abū Ismā’īl al-Maghribī: “Another Great Achievement in the History of the Emirate of Believers, the Order to Close the Qur’ān Schools”
New article from Dr. Iyād Qunaybī: “Why Is This Happening in Egypt?”
al-Malāḥim Media presents a new video message from al-Qā’idah in the Arabian Peninsula: “Convoy of the Martyrs #2″
July 5:
New article from Majlis Shūrā al-Mujāhidīn Fī Aknāf Bayt al-Maqdis’ Abū Bilāl al-Shāmī: “Our Need to Review Ourselves and Vigilance in the Face of their Schemes”
New statement from Anṣār al-Sharī’ah in Arḍ al-Kinānah: “The Launch of Anṣār al-Sharī’ah in Arḍ al-Kinānah”
New statement from the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan: “Regarding Baseless Accusations by Karzai Concerning the Political Office of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan”
al-Andalus Media presents a new article from al-Qā’idah in the Islamic Maghrib’s Shaykh Abū ‘Abd al-Ilah Aḥmad al-Jījilī: “The Fatal Disease of the Ummah: Cancer of the Military and Typhoid of the Secularists”
New article from Dr. Iyād Qunaybī: “Do We Call For the Abandonment of the Ikhwān?”
al-Andalus Media presents a new article from al-Qā’idah in the Islamic Maghrib’s The Muslim Africa Blog’s Abū Dardā’ al-Ṣaḥrāwī: “Coup Against Islām: So Where Are the Muslims?”
New statement from Salafīyyah Jihādīyyah in the Sinai: “Concerning the Criminal Members of the Military Against the Protesters in al ‘Arīsh”
al-Andalus Media presents a new article from al-Qā’idah in the Islamic Maghrib’s The Muslim Africa Blog’s Abū Ismā’īl al-Maghribī: “Latest Fashion in the Emirate of the Believers”
July 6:
New statement from Jamā’at Anṣār Bayt al-Maqdis: “Firing Two Grad Rockets at the Occupied

Backdating

Posted on July 17, 2013 by Aaron Y. Zelin

Over the next few days I will be updating my website and backdating jihadi releases from the past two weeks when I was on vacation. I say this ahead of time specifically for those signed up to get email alerts from Jihadology so that you know you will likely be getting a lot of emails. Apologies ahead of time if it feels like spam. If it’s too much you can unsubscribe and resubscribe again in a few days. Thanks again for your patience and continued support.

Jihadology presents "Going On A Riḥlah: Getting My Ibn Baṭūṭah On"

Posted on July 3, 2013 by Aaron Y. Zelin

By the time you’ll be reading this message I’ll already be on vacation, but have scheduled posts ahead of time over the past 36 hours. Jihadology.net will be taking a break until July 15. It is possible there could be a small update here or there, but I wouldn’t necessarily count on it. Thanks again for your continued readership and support.

Expanding the Scope of Jihadology: Intro to the Hizballah Cavalcade

Posted on May 10, 2013 by Aaron Y. Zelin

Three years ago, in May 2010, Jihadology.net was established to provide easy access to primary source materials from Sunni global jihadi groups affiliated or sympathetic to al-Qaeda’s worldview. I never would have imagined how large this site would become and want to thank everyone for that support and I hope it has been a useful resource. That being said, one of the largest conflicts embroiling the greater Middle East is the current civil war in Syria. As a consequence of the sectarianization of the war, non-state Shia jihadi groups aligned with the Iranian regime and Hizballah have joined the fight on the side of the Assad regime. It is important to note, that while both AQ-sympathetic and Iranian/Hizballah-sympathetic are ‘jihadi’ in nature, this site is not conflating these two separate movements and strands of thought. Due to the dearth of information on Shia jihadi organizations, Jihadology hopes to fill the same type of gap it did when covering the study of AQ-type groups. For more on this new project (which will take a slightly different approach to what I have done as it relates to Sunni global jihadis), see the introduction to it below from Phillip Smyth.
—
What is Hizballah Cavalcade?
The new and improved Hizballah Cavalcade has now moved to its new home and will present new information here at Jihadology. Beginning as a humble Twitter hashtag (#HizballahCavalcade) by Phillip Smyth, Hizballah Cavalcade initially sought to post photos of Lebanese Hizballah members killed in Syria and their funerals.
Hizballah Cavalcade will now also focus on (but is not limited to) organizations such as: Lebanon’s Hizballah and Harakat Amal (Amal Movement); Iraq’s Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq’s (League of the Righteous), Kata’ib Hizballah (Hizballah Brigades), and Liwa’a al-Yum al-Mawud (Promised Day Brigades); and Syria’s new Liwa’a Abu Fadhl al-Abbas (The Abu Fadl al-Abbas Brigade).
By utilizing data found on sympathetic Facebook pages, YouTube accounts, and on forums, the new Hizballah Cavalcade will attempt to display available photos of all funerals and martyrdom posters belonging to Shia groups which are fighting in Syria. In addition, funeral, combat, and even music videos belonging to these groups pertaining to the fighting in Syria will also be posted.
About the Author:
Phillip Smyth is currently a researcher focusing on Hizballah for University of Maryland’s Institute for Advanced Computer Studies’ Lab for Computational Cultural Dynamics.

Posts Backdated From My Time On Vacation

Posted on January 6, 2013 by Aaron Y. Zelin

Jihadology presents Jihadi Studies Bibliography v. 1.0

Posted on January 2, 2013 by Aaron Y. Zelin

NOTE: While there are many great sources in other languages, especially Arabic, French, and German, among others, this website has always been tailored to an English speaking audience so one could access primary and to a lesser extent secondary sources (see the Articles of the Week and End of the Years Series). As such, the following preliminary bibliography only has English language secondary sources. I hope it is a good starting point and is useful for anyone interested. I hope everyone had a happy new year. Regular updates will once again commence today.
—

Click the following link for a safe PDF copy: Jihadi Studies Bibliography v.1.0