In This Issue
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
VOLUME VIII, ISSUE 5 u FEBRUARY 4, 2010 IN THIS ISSUE: BRIEFS...................................................................................................................................1 TAKING AL-QAEDA’s jIHAD TO FACEBOOK By Murad Batal al-Shishani..................................................................................................3 TURKISH JIHADIS RESPOND TO ANKARA’s antI-AL-QAEDA OPERATIONS A By Brian Glyn Williams and Bilun Erim................................................................................4 Anti-al-Qaeda Raids, Turkey PAKISTan’s MILITARY EXAMINES ITS OPTIONS IN NORTH WAZIRISTAN By Lieutenant General Talat Masood..................................................................................6 Terrorism Monitor is a publication of The Jamestown Foundation. A GUIDE TO MILITANT GROUPS IN KASHMIR The Terrorism Monitor is By Arif Jamal.........................................................................................................................8 designed to be read by policy- makers and other specialists yet be accessible to the general public. The opinions expressed within are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily MAURITANIA’S IMPRISONED ISLAMISTS DEBATE JIHAD WITH reflect those of The Jamestown RELIGIOUS SCHOLARS ON PUBLIC TELEVISION Foundation. Buoyed by the successful transition of power after recent elections and the reconciliation of the government and opposition, Mauritania is now taking the Unauthorized reproduction or redistribution of this or any unprecedented step of broadcasting a televised debate on the meaning and merits Jamestown publication is strictly of jihad from inside a Nouakchott prison. On one side was a panel of officials prohibited by law. and scholars, on the other was a divided group of some of Mauritania’s most dangerous convicts, including the leader of al-Qaeda in Mauritania, Khadim Ould Saman (al-Jazeera, January 19). In the last few years, Mauritania has battled a low-level but often shockingly violent insurgency led by al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) (see Terrorism Monitor, August 20, 2009; July 30, 2009; February 23, 2005; Terrorism Focus, October 1, 2008; January 9, 2008). The two-day event (January 18-19) was attended by 67 Salafist prisoners, most For comments or questions about of whom still await trial. The panel of scholars was led by Shaykh Muhammad our publications, please send an Hassan Ould Daou and the Minister of Islamic Affairs, Ahmed Ould Nini, who email to [email protected], or announced, “We are here today to discuss ways and means to get out of a crisis contact us at: that threatens civil peace in a nation known for its spirit of tolerance, magnanimity 1111 16th St. NW, Suite #320 and openness” (AFP, January 2). One member of the panel explained, “The Washington, DC • 20036 Tel: (202) 483-8888 objective is to encourage [the prisoners] to repent and to support a fatwa that Fax: (202) 483-8337 condemns fundamentalism and religious violence – a fatwa which imams will Copyright ©2009 TO SUBSCRIBE TO THE TERRORISM MONITOR, VISIT http://www.jamestown.org TerrorismMonitor Volume VIII u Issue 5 u February 4, 2010 later disseminate in mosques” (Jeune Afrique, January closely by the public, are supported by Mauritania’s 29). One of the central questions examined in the newly legitimate Islamist party, Tawassoul. dialogue was the legitimacy of attacks against Muslims and non-Muslims. SOMALIA’S RAS KAMBONI GROUP JOINS AL- SHABAAB’S GLOBAL JIHAD Ould Saman, who wore an “Al-Qaeda” T-shirt to one of the sessions, maintains that attacks on the Islamic Somalia’s Hizb al-Islam movement appears to have Republic of Mauritania are a religious duty due to the lost a significant portion of its fighting strength to its government’s failure to uphold Shari’a. During the Islamist rival, al-Shabaab. A senior Shabaab leader, debate, Ould Saman insisted the scholars and clerics Shaykh Fu’ad Muhammad Khalaf, used a February 1 had no choice but to follow his example: news conference in Baidoa to announce that the Ras Kamboni Brigade had left Hizb al-Islam to join the Indeed, we are right to face infidels everywhere mujahideen of al-Shabaab (al-Qimmah, February 1). in Muslim lands until they leave every part of A declaration signed by the leaders of both movements Muslim countries and until we liberate them. We outlined the groups’ shared objectives, which include have the right to fight a handful of people who the establishment of an Islamic government, support rule Muslim countries until we remove them by for Muslims in the Horn of Africa who are living under fighting them by the sword and until we enforce the rule of “enemy Christians”, and a determination the rule of Shari’a. It is the right of Muslims to to “combine the jihad of the Horn of Africa with the be ruled by the Shari’a… You [the clerics] have international jihad.” Ras Kamboni will now operate no knowledge and are wrong to describe us as under the name al-Shabaab (Shabelle Media Network, ignorant and religious extremists (al-Jazeera, February 1). January 19; January 23). Mu’askar (Camp) Ras Kamboni was one of four Islamist Ould Saman, however, appears to represent a minority militias that gathered together under the Hizb al-Islam view among the prisoners, 47 of whom signed a document umbrella in January, 2009 to oppose the government calling for dialogue with Mauritanian religious scholars. of Shaykh Sharif Shaykh Ahmad. Ras Kamboni has The document praised the outreach work of the previously cooperated with al-Shabaab, most notably in scholars, saying they have explained certain concepts the expulsion of the Transitional Federal Government “which they previously did not understand” (Agence (TFG) from the southern port of Kismayo in 2006. The Nouakchott d’Information, January 11). Still, about movement is based in south Somalia and is currently 20 irreconcilables continue to support Ould Saman’s led by Shaykh Hassan Abdullah Hirsi al-Turki, a hardline views, even with the possibility of an amnesty controversial Islamist warlord and political figure who is dangling before them. This group, which includes some well known for his shifting loyalties. Al-Turki provided of Mauritania’s best-known terrorists, is aware that reinforcements to al-Shabaab when the movement took AQIM has demanded their release in exchange for three heavy losses in the summer of 2008. The warlord was Spanish hostages. Many of the Salafist detainees have defeated in fighting by al-Shabaab in southern Somalia complained of torture and mistreatment while in prison, last fall, but unlike other Hizb al-Islam leaders he was though human rights groups report an improvement in unable to flee into ethnic-Somali north Kenya as he is this area under the new regime. wanted there for his alleged involvement in the 1998 Nairobi embassy bombing (Shabelle Media Network, Ould Saman escaped from the same prison in 2006 February 2). and is alleged to have used his freedom to murder four French tourists in December 2007 and to organize an The Ras Kamboni militia has joined al-Shabaab just attack on the Israeli embassy (now closed) in February as the movement made a declaration of allegiance 2008. He was re-arrested in April, 2008 (Agence to Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda. Shaykh Fu’ad Nouakchott d’Information, April 30, 2008). After his Muhammad Khalaf announced that the unification arrest, Ould Saman was charged with using Mauritania agreement was just the first step in dismantling the as a base for “terrorist acts against a foreign country Hizb al-Islam Islamist coalition, saying, “We intend to [Israel] and belonging to a terrorist organization” (AFP, invite other groups in Hizb al-Islam and make our war August 26, 2009). The talks, which are being followed a global jihad” (Garowe Online, February 2). 2 TerrorismMonitor Volume VIII u Issue 5 u February 4, 2010 Hizb al-Islam commander Shaykh Ahmad Madobe the five young American Muslims arrested in Pakistan said al-Turki was already “long suspended from Ras last December were recruited online via YouTube and Kamboni” and was an ailing man who was “not Facebook after the suspects used these sites to reach capable of carrying out any duties” (Shabelle Media out to groups such as Lashkar-e-Taiba and Lashkar-e- Network, February 2). Backed by a number of Ras Jhangyi (Dawn [Karachi], December 16). A high-ranking Kamboni commanders, the leader of Hizb al-Islam, Department of Homeland Security official claimed that Shaykh Hassan Dahir Aweys, questioned the reality and “Online recruiting has exponentially increased, with significance of the Baidoa agreement; “Shaykh Turki Facebook, YouTube and the increasing sophistication of has joined al-Shabaab, but that does not mean Ras people online” (Washington Post, December 13). Kamboni has indeed joined our brothers in al-Shabaab” (Garowe Online, February 2). The author has searched Facebook using keywords such as “jihad,” “al-Qaeda,” “al-Zarqawi,” “Bin Laden,” etc. and found a number of pro-al-Qaeda groups (“groups” on Facebook are applications created by users with common interests, fan-bases, advocates Taking al-Qaeda’s Jihad to of a cause, etc). The author found that the number of Facebook members in these groups, which use names such as “Zarqawi,” “al-Jihad al-Rayyan,” “al-Qaeda,” “Yusuf By Murad Batal al-Shishani al-Batar battalion,” etc. range from 50 to 150; however, groups using the name “Osama bin Laden,” (there is Web forums associated with jihad and al-Qaeda more than one) tend to have more members, sometimes sympathizers have become a major source of information in excess of 400. about militant Islamist groups, as well as a platform for the dissemination of the audio, visual and textual Compared to the number of participants in jihadi web literature of the Salafi-Jihadis. According to the U.S. forums, these numbers are comparatively low; but the State Department, only 15 sites were run by groups author noticed that the creators of most Salafist groups described by the United States as “terrorist” groups in on Facebook adopt symbolic usernames such as Ziad 1998, but the number of these sites increased to more Jarrah (one of the 9/11 hijackers who was on United than 4,000 by 2005.