EXCLUSIVE – Gaza Jihadi ‘Encouraged’ by Islamic State Achievements

A Gaza-based jihadi said he was encouraged by the Islamic State’s recent victories in Iraq and Syria.

Abu Baker Almuhajer said that the successful counteroffensive in Raqqa and the reported recapture of Palmyra prove that the reports on IS’ demise have been greatly exaggerated.

“Those who said that the attacks of the Crusader coalition instigated a leadership crisis spoke too soon,” he said. “The news peddled by the Western media is mainly the wishful thinking of decision-makers in the infidel countries.”

Unlike the Arab tyrants and the Crusaders, he said, “IS fighters don’t engage in jihad to enjoy the perks of government but to impose Allah’s rule on earth. We seek victory or martyrdom, not luxurious living in ritzy palaces.”

IS commanders have successfully sustained the first blow, and are now preparing to strike back, he claimed.

“What we see in Mosul – how the organization took back districts that were taken away from it by the Shi’ite nonbelievers – and the reopening of Palmyra, and the successful counteroffensive around Homs and Turkey’s weeks-long failure to take Elbab – all of these prove that the brothers adopted the military tactics of the enemies of Islam that have in some places quashed the advances of the enemies and in others defeated them completely.”

“What we see in Syria, Iraq, Sinai and Africa is a Crusade against Islam, in which Muslim nonbelievers are complicit,” he said. “We may be suffering setbacks here and there, but our advance will never be stopped entirely. According to our organization’s strategy, every lost territory will be made up for elsewhere, anywhere in the world. It’s important for the morale of the mujahideen, it sends a message to young Muslims around the world, that the State survives under such enormous duress, but mainly it divides the enemies of Islam, coercing them to fight on numerous fronts all at once.”

He said that the organization’s greatest achievement was to start a debate in the coalition states about the efficacy of the campaign.

“The infidel leaders are divided on the efficacy of the war against us,” he said. “They see that the war drags on and that we grow stronger in Syria and Iraq. There was a temporary setback, complemented by a swift recovery. At the same time, we try to strike in the hearts of the infidel capitals. The fact that some of these were foiled doesn’t mean we failed. Eventually we will be able to carry out an attack that would convince the Muslims that Allah avenged the death of His followers in Iraq, Syria, Egypt and everywhere else.”

Asked whether Arab intelligence agencies keep the organization alive, Almujaher responded angrily that “it’s propaganda that the enemies of Islam disseminate. It is well-known which media outlets do it – those who serve the interests of the Crusaders and infidels and seek to undermine the caliphate and cut off the flow of mujahideen towards it. Our achievements are the sole result of faith in Allah and the development of commanders who can conduct battles on several fronts at once.”