"Kill Them Wherever You Find Them". The Islamic State spokesman's new audio

On 4 January 2024, the Al-Furqan Media Centre, the official media of the Islamic State (IS) Central Leadership, published a speech by IS spokesman Abu Hudhaifa al-Ansari entitled 'Kill them wherever you find them'.

The last audio of al-Furqan was published in August 2023, in which the Islamic State announced the death of its previous leaders and spokesmen, and announced its choice of successors (read here).

The IS spokesman immediately focuses on the central and most important topic and is immediately loquacious and aggressive in his judgement and condemnation of the Jews:

“The crimes of murder and the horrible crimes with which the Jews have afflicted the Muslims in Gaza show the behaviour of the Jews in all times, since they are the sect most hostile to the Muslims [...] The Jews of Palestine and the Jews of the world do not differ from each other, because they are part of one body: all Jews are infidels. Therefore the difference claimed by the nationalists is false [...] Muslims must know the truth about the Jews [...] The battle is not as the empty political books and corrupt nationalist authorities claim. This is a religious battle and not a national one; it is not for the sake of land, soil and borders! But the battle draws justice from the Book and Moral, despising the law of nations and the laws of barbarians. So the Muslims must defeat the Jews, for it is the Jews who do not believe in Almighty God, having defeated the prophets, and show enmity against the Muslims. What else, after all the crimes and other misdeeds committed? And the war [...] will not end with the condition of one or two states, as the nationalists believe and hope, for it is a war of religion and doctrine, it will continue until we kill the Antichrist”.

Then the Islamic State spokesman moves on to talk about the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians:

“With the escalation of the Jewish-Crusader war and the danger engulfing the Palestinian nation, the issue admits neither flattery nor ambiguity. When we feel the pain of Muslims, we must not deceive them, but preach the truth in which we believe. [...] The principle of the religion of Islam, as we have said, states that we fight to exalt the monotheism of Almighty God and His Word, which, however, is absent in the recent Gaza battle. [...] Palestine and Jerusalem gained honour through [...] heaven and the revelation that God Almighty brought”.

Abu Hudhaifa then addresses the Palestinian fighters directly, telling them of the need to adhere to the purity of beliefs and methods from the perspective of Islam and to stay away from secular ideologies such as patriotism and nationalism, and emphasises that the war with Israel is first and foremost a war of religion. He speaks of the inadmissibility of mixing Islam with secular ideologies such as democracy, and patriotism, and emphasises that Islam is the only solution, not one of the solutions, and it is now more important than ever for the Muslim people of Palestine to return to pure Islamic principles and methods during the brutal war against Israel, rejecting secular ideologies.:

“O warrior of Palestine, the defeat of the Jews alone means neither the right path nor the truth of the plan, for the communist and nationalist warriors were defeated by the Jews. What battle imposed the word of Almighty God and the law? Is this purpose reflected in the plans? Is it reflected in the plans of your leaders today? After experiencing them for seventeen years, you see that for an hour they did not impose the law of Islam, but forbade it, with a law contrary to it; it is considered fighting for borders and the homeland. But know, O fighter, that God Almighty has commanded you to fight only for Himself. Such a battle is not fought until it is under the shadow of the divine law of Islam rather than under the shadow of the law of nations and the agreement of the United Nations when you raise your flag trying to impose your authority. Listen, then, O warrior, for I warn you with all honesty, while you are always in danger of being killed. Now the way must be right for you and the Jews must be fought according to the law of heaven, not the law of earth, in the shadow of the law of Almighty God, not in the shadow of the law of men. But to liberate the land is not to shake off the yoke of a secular administration to establish another democratic administration, nor is it to shake off the yoke of an administration governed by Jewish laws to establish another administration governed by Palestinian laws. For the laws that govern Palestine and the small state of the Jews are imposed by men. [...] The land that is not governed by the law of Islam, is not liberated even if all the Jews and invaders leave, but is held captive by the laws of the infidels and the laws of barbarian nations”.

The Islamic State spokesman claims that the war for Gaza lacks the most important thing, namely a war for the return of Islam and the establishment of Sharia law. According to the statements of the leaders of the local factions, especially Hamas, all their goals are the liberation of the homeland, patriotism and the strengthening of their power, which are according to the IS spokesman false ideals.

He also goes on to argue that the mere fact of waging war with Israel does not mean that the party waging it has the right and true convictions (referring to Hamas).

The spokesperson went on to say that Hamas has ruled Gaza for 17 years, but during this time neither an Islamic government nor a Shari'a legal system has been established, on the contrary, Hamas has prevented the Islamisation of Gaza in every way possible, Abu Hudhaifa argues that Hamas is not a party worthy of leading Gaza or in whose ranks the Muslims of Gaza should fight.

Abu Hudhaifa then directly addresses those who are fighting in Gaza, referring to the brigades and in particular the al-Qassam brigades, saying: “Listen, fighter, I am your faithful advisor. The time has come to fight the Jews as Allah has commanded and for what Allah has established, for Islamic rule and the Sharia system, not for the creation of land, for patriotism and Hamas rule, to rule according to the laws established by Allah and not for the laws invented by men”.

The IS spokesman then calls Abbas (the head of the Palestinian Authority) the “guardian of the United States” and Hamas the “guardian of Iran”.

The IS spokesman then goes on to speak critically and condemningly of Iran and its militias in Lebanon, Yemen, Syria and Iraq, and their support for the Palestinian cause (he refers to them using the term Rafidites):

"The alliance contracted with the Rafidites was a mistake made by the Muslim Brotherhood since the tribulation days of Khomeini's pagan revolution, with Palestinian factions settling in the Persian bosom and announcing the so-called Axis of Resistance. The problems came to a head in recent years, as the factions of Palestine allowed the Rafidites of Persia to run the scene in Palestine and show themselves to be the liberators and defenders of Palestine, so that the armies belonging to the factions of Palestine did not cease to thank the armies of Persia [. ..] But the new war brought to Gaza revealed the truth about the false society, showing that Persia had created it to serve its purposes and that the Palestinian factions fought for Persia, and Persia and its party avoided the fury of war, while Gaza itself suffered the blood of its free women. And the history of the Rafids shows how great the hostility and betrayal towards the Muslims [...] history is full of crimes committed against Muslims in Mesopotamia and Syria and the Arabian Peninsula. Still, the Rafids also have a black history especially towards the Palestinians, since the crimes committed by the Rafid militias against the Palestinians living in Mesopotamia are known and written [. ...] Since their history towards Muslims and Palestinians is considered in this way, the Rafids will now be no better or less evil. But in the past, the Rafids waged war against the religion of Islam and against Muslims in the same way as they do now. The plans they have undertaken to increase their power, the conspiracies and purposes with which they wish to harm Muslims, are no less dangerous and hateful than the conspiracies of the Jews and the Crusaders. [...] the Rafidites dream of that greater empire embracing the metropolises and seats of the Muslims from Beirut to Tehran and beyond, for they are bound to Arabia and the Arabian Gulf, moved by hatred and ambition for years, they came to renew the past glory of the Persian empire, therefore [...] they see no other way to reach the land of the Muslims and carry out the deceptive plans that only fools now conceal. Does a sane man seek help from them?”.

The Islamic State spokesman then goes on to speak about the Arab rulers: “The Gaza war has once again revealed the truth about the Arab tyrants who ruled the countries of the Muslims in Egypt, Syria, Turkey, and the Arab Gulf States, [...] since we say and affirm that the battle against the Jews must be fought today, it must be fought with allies rather than with Jews [...] we see the people of Gaza as much oppressed by American weapons and guns as by the connivance of the apostate Arab administrations. So it is necessary to fight them all, because they are so united and united against the Muslims, that the Muslims must unite and fight them [...] so defeat them and that will pave the way for the final battle against the Jews”.

Then the IS spokesman concludes his speech with an important and ominous warning and demands:

"O lions of the religion of Islam, persecute the Jewish and Christian prisoners and their allies on the roads and paths of America, Europe and the world! Destroy the houses above them! Kill and injure them in every way possible! Notice today that the hand of the State of Islam is striking at the homes of infidels, taking revenge on Muslims in Palestine, Iraq, Syria and the rest of the Muslim lands. Trample them down with vehicles, for the honest man will not miss how by shedding the blood of the hearts of the Jews, he heals the hearts of the believers. Attack them all, kill them in the worst ways, strike the feasts with bloody slaughter, do not distinguish between a non-believing citizen and a non-believing soldier, for all are non-believers for the same belief. The armies of the Jews and the Crusaders, who ravage the land of the Muslims, make no distinction between the citizen and the soldier, they shoot mercilessly, and they kill mercilessly. Let them know that their crimes committed in Palestine, Iraq, Syria and other Muslim countries will be punished in their headquarters in Washington, Paris, London, Rome and other cities of the infidels.

O angry lions, because your nation is wounded and oppressed and bleeding from wounds, the last of which seems to be in Palestine, hasten and strive [...] strike the easy, civil and religious targets, such as temples and synagogues, before you strike the difficult ones, military and others, so you will make your breasts healthier and better show the signs of battle, for our war is a religious war, and we fight them wherever they are.

Finally, I also urge you to help the oppressed Muslims of Gaza wherever you are on all the earth”.

Abu Hudhaifa concludes his speech by addressing the IS militants imprisoned in the jails, praising their patience and praising all IS militants who are engaged in military operations, asking them for perseverance, because only then “will it be possible to take control of Mecca, Medina and al-Aqsa”.

Finally, he announced the start of the new military campaign “Kill Them Wherever You Find Them”, which began in all IS provinces on 3 January and has already seen more than 100 attacks being conducted.

Daniele Garofalo is a researcher and analyst on Jihadist terrorism and an expert in monitoring Jihadist media channels.

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