All Blog Posts from Internet Terror Monitor

A posting on the military Internet forum M3ark promised that “a major weapons of mass destruction work” would soon be published on jihadi Internet forums. The message was entitled “Soon, a Big Surprise In the Military Preparation Field, In Response to the Call of the War Minister, Abu Hamza al Muhajir” in reference to the head of al Qaeda in Iraq and the Islamic State of Iraq’s so-called “war minister.”

The message said two men, named Al Baraa al Masri and Abu Safia, would soon produce the work, accompanied by a guide on explosives technology.

Al Baraa al Masri and Abu Safia are active members of several Arabic Internet forums. They provide weapons and explosives information to jihadi hopefuls. Al Baraa al Masri, who was labeled “al Qaeda’s explosives engineer” by fellow members of the forums, is thought to have been the instructor who was featured in a 35-hour video series entitled “Defeating the Cross” - a tutorial video series on the making of explosives that emerged on the web in 2007.

A militant Islamist Internet forum member going by the name “Deeb Mohammed” posted an “urgent request” on a number of websites yesterday. He appealed to fellow forum members to provide him with all material available on planes hijacking. “Please provide me with everything you got on the hijacking of planes, books, videos, trainings…etc.,” he said.

Members of militant Islamist Internet forums immediately responded to the call made by al Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden in his last audio statement Saturday to distribute certain jihadi literature among youths throughout the Muslim world.

There were dozens of postings containing download links for all the book titles specified by Bin Laden in his tape.

Bin Laden had specifically mentioned a certain website to download the books from.

The website is run by a Jordanian jihadi scholar, called Abu Mohammed al Maqdisi, who was the mentor of slain al Qaeda leader in Iraq Abu Musab al Zarqawi.

A new hosting site set up by the supporters of militant Islamist groups to help with the distribution of jihadi propaganda materials has been advertised on several militant Islamist Internet forums today.

Saraya al Quds, the military wing of the militant Palestinian group Islamic Jihad, released an Internet video in which it claimed ambushing an Israeli convoy in eastern Khan Younis. A spokesperson for the group appeared in the video sporting a missile launcher which he said was seized during the attack and claimed that his comrades had targeted the Israeli vehicle with a single RPG rocket.
He also claimed that a group’s sniper had hit one of the Israeli soldiers who ran off as his men opened fire on them and said the soldiers took refuge in a nearby house to try and give medical assistance to the wounded soldier. A separate video showed traces of blood on the wall and the floor of the house where the troops supposedly sought refuge

A militant Islamist Internet forum announced in a statement posted online today that a group of its members were now taking part in military operations against Israeli forces in Gaza. The statement gave details about some of the battles fought by the forum’s members mainly in al Zaitoun and al Toffah areas. It also said one member who uses the name “Abul Baraa al Maqdissi” has been wounded in the fighting.

The Global Islamic Media Front (GIMF) launched a new illustrated Internet security course online. The course shows supporters of militants groups who frequent jihadi websites how to setup Internet protection for their computers using a variety of software, including some developed by supporters of militant groups themselves, such as “Muj Secrets II.”

Al Yaqeen Media Center released the third issue of its online magazine: Jihadi Issues. The 26-page magazine focused on the current global economic crisis and what the magazine claimed that through the Sept. 11 attacks, al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden managed to cripple the American economy. The author analysed the turn of events since 2001 and claimed the terrorist attacks were a well calculated and comprehensive plan whose objectives extended beyond attacking America at home to destroying the entire American empire.
The magazine also included religious articles, the transcript of an interview with al Qaeda’s leader in Iraq that had been recently released recently and an article on Russia’s attempt to create a new world economic order free from U.S. dominance.

The election of Democratic Nominee Barack Obama as the 44th president of the United States triggered mixed reactions amongst members of militant Islamist Internet forums.

Some saw Obama’s victory as a triumph for al Qaeda’s leader Osama bin Laden, with one member even claiming al Qaeda played a role in the elections. ”America has elected Obama because al Qaeda decided so, the same way they elected Bush in 2004, also because al Qaeda had decided so,” said “Al Hakim” in a posting on al Hesbah forum.

Others expressed scepticism about Obama being able to bring about the change he proclaimed. “Don’t get too excited. Obama is nothing but the ‘black gloves’ that the Americans will use to strike against Muslims,” said one member who goes by the name “Nasr al Islam.”

One member who uses the name “The Supporters of God” predicted that Obama’s victory will make it possible for militant groups to declare a truce with the U.S. “Now that Obama has won the vote, I think it’s time to declare a truce with the Romans in the United States after they’ve lost their war on Islam. God willing, the leaders of the victorious bloc shall now order the renewal of the truce.”

Al Qaeda organization has not issued any official statements so far to comment on the elections. Senior al Qaeda leader Abu Yahya al Libi had referred to “the defeat of Bush and his party” in a video recorded in early October. In 2004, Bin Laden issued a video addressed to the American people days before the elections and said it doesn’t make a difference who they elect.

There are however expectations and wishes amongst supporters that the terror organization would issue a statement soon. “Saqr Baz” said bin Laden should now issue a statement. “Abu Anas al-Shami” said he believes “Bin Laden or Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman (the blind sheikh who is jailed in the U.S.) will come out to renew their call for a truce provided the Americans withdraw from Muslim lands, thus paving the way for the establishment of the Caliphate.”

Obama’s victory is also dominating the discussions in “Ansar al Mujahideen” room on Paltalk. Here, participants seemed a bit disappointed. They feel Obama is a smarter guy than McCain, and therefore wished if the latter had emerged victorious in the race to the White House for the interest of militant groups. They also feel that Obama isn’t left with that many options, as they believe an American withdrawal from Afghanistan and Iraq is inevitable.

The imminent execution of the Bali attack bombers at the beginning of November was discussed on several militant Islamist forums today. Many members asked fellow members to pray for God to save them, while one member went as far as suggesting a plan to kidnap Indonesian nationals anywhere in the world, and trade them for the three convicted men. “We call upon any of you who has the capability to take Indonesians hostages in any country around the world, and request the release of the three brothers in exchange for the hostages,” said the posting.