JABALIYA, Gaza Strip — Fahd al-Habbash sat in front of a laptop with Jabhat al-Nusra’s black banner behind him and recorded his will. The video was posted on YouTube by a Salafist group in Gaza, the Shura Council of Mujahideen, after Habbash died in Syria during a fight with regime forces.

Habbash started his video — which included photos of him participating in the fighting and photos of him after his death — by saying, “Jihad for the sake of God and for the support of [Islam] is not restricted to a certain class of Muslims. Every Muslim who is not from 'the people of excuses' has a religious duty to come to the support of [Islam] and help vulnerable Muslims everywhere. … [The decline of religion and the humiliation of Muslims], which we have been suffering for years, are due to [Muslims] leaving jihad and the absence of governance in accordance with Sharia. That led to the hardening of these tyrants around the necks of Muslims around the globe.”

“My message to my parents: If you hear news of my death or my departure from this transient world, rejoice and know that this is what I wanted,” he continued.