THE WAR FOR SUPREMACY OF THE JIHADIST MOVEMENT Intra-movement rivalry in jihadist media, 2011-2016 Master Thesis, 28-07-2017 MA History of Society, Global History and International Relations Supervisor: Prof. Dr. D. Douwes Second reader: Dr. G. Oonk Erasmus School of History, Culture and Communication Erasmus University Rotterdam Jasmin Seijbel Student number: 385331 [email protected] Abstract Syria today is torn by a major civil war and does not yet have the prospect of peaceful solution. The Syrian civil war is an offshoot of the Arab Spring, the widespread protests which began in Tunisia in 2010 and spread across the region. The civil war in Syria proved to be the right circumstances for several jihadist movements, and they have been able to establish themselves in the country. This research focuses on intra-movement rivalry and framing between ISIS, al-Qaeda and Jabhat al-Nusra during the ongoing civil war in Syria. The main research question is: What discourse have al-Qaeda, ISIS and Jabhat al-Nusra adopted in their media expressions in order to legitimize jihadist differentiation and the use of violence, both symbolic and real, against their jihadist competitors? The main conclusion is that jihadist use a defectional discourse in order to legitimize jihadist differentiation and the use of violence against their jihadist competitors. ISIS, al-Qaeda and Jabhat al-Nusra have adopted and developed a radical discourse, which I have called the defectional discourse. They make use of the notion of takfir to legitimize violence, claiming the ‘other’ is not a pious Muslim. This defectional discourse interacts with a political and religious salafist discourse, drawing on early Islamic history and early Islamic religious texts. Key Words: intra-movement rivalry, Syria, civil war, Iraq, framing, sectarianism, ISIS, Jabhat al- Nusra, al-Qaeda, jihadism, salafism, discourse 1 Table of content Abstract .................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 1 1. Introduction and methodology .................................................................................................... 4 1.1 Introduction of the topic ............................................................................................................................................................................ 4 1.2 Methodology and approach ..................................................................................................................................................................... 5 1.2.1 Research question & sub-questions ................................................................................................................................................... 5 1.2.2 Sources ........................................................................................................................................................................................................ 6 1.2.3 Media analyses ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 7 1.2.4 Methodology .............................................................................................................................................................................................. 7 1.2.5 Relevance of the research .................................................................................................................................................................... 9 1.2.6 Transliteration ........................................................................................................................................................................................ 10 1.3 Theoretical concepts ................................................................................................................................................................................ 10 1.4 Religious concepts .................................................................................................................................................................................... 15 1.5 Online jihadi media .................................................................................................................................................................................. 16 2. The Roots of militant Islam ............................................................................................................. 19 2.1 Historiography ........................................................................................................................................................................................... 19 2.1.1 Islamic modernism ............................................................................................................................................................................... 20 2.1.2 The Islamic tradition of Salafiyya and Wahhabism .................................................................................................................. 23 2.1.3 Jihadist thinking ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 26 2.2 The ties that bind al-Qaeda, ISIS and Jabhat al-Nusra ............................................................................................................... 28 2.2.1 The establishment of al-Qaeda ........................................................................................................................................................ 28 2.2.2 The roots of ISIS ................................................................................................................................................................................... 29 2.2.3 Jabhat al-Nusra joins the stage ........................................................................................................................................................ 31 2.2.4 Ideological differences, ISIS differentiation from al-Qaeda ..................................................................................................... 33 3. Syrian civil war............................................................................................................................. 35 3.1 Arab Uprisings and the civil war in Syria .......................................................................................................................................... 35 3.2 Role of jihadists in the protest and violence .................................................................................................................................... 37 3.3 Mapping the situation in Syria ............................................................................................................................................................. 39 3.4 Regional context of the civil war.......................................................................................................................................................... 40 3.5 Sectarianism and the Syrian civil war ................................................................................................................................................ 42 4. Framing and Othering ................................................................................................................ 44 4.1 The media methods of ISIS, al-Qaeda, and Jabhat al-Nusra..................................................................................................... 44 2 4.2 Shaping identities ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 47 4.3 Othering enemies and the use of invectives .................................................................................................................................... 51 4.4 Case study: al-Urduni .............................................................................................................................................................................. 56 4.5 Ideological differences ............................................................................................................................................................................. 60 4.6 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................................................................... 61 5. Justifying violence and rebel infighting ...................................................................................... 62 5.1 Friendly period ........................................................................................................................................................................................... 62 5.2. Rebel infighting during the Syrian civil war ..................................................................................................................................... 64 5.3 The establishment of the Caliphate ................................................................................................................................................... 67 5.4 Jabhat al-Nusra cuts ties with al-Qaeda ..........................................................................................................................................