Gaza Salafists pledge allegiance to ISIS
Al-Qaeda's decision to cut ties with the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) continues to polarize the global jihadist network, with Gaza's Salafists siding with the latter.
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — It seems Ayman al-Zawahri’s statement on Jan. 22 disavowing Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi’s Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) had very little impact on the Salafist jihadist organizations operating in the Gaza Strip. The most prominent among those organizations, the Mujahedeen Shura Council in the Environs of Jerusalem, quickly issued a statement on Feb. 2, asserting that they were “committed to helping ISIS and bolstering its ranks.” The statement added that the infighting taking place in Syria was due to “an unfair view toward ISIS and its emir, the Prince of Believers Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.”
Video and poster
Not long after, a video spread on social networking sites and local news agencies showing purported Salafist jihadists affiliated with al-Qaeda, meeting in the Gaza Strip on Feb. 11, to offer support and pledge allegiance to ISIS.
In the video, dozens of armed black-clad men were seen carrying various types of weapons, their bodies arrayed with explosive belts as they stood in front of a backdrop of palm trees, with an al-Qaeda flag by their side. The video started with a written phrase that read, “Jerusalem champions the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham,” with no further evidence indicating the location of where the clip was shot.
