According to media reports, British jihadists in Syria have threatened to wage attacks in the United Kingdom (UK) and U.S. Rayat Al-Tawheed, a British jihadist faction in Syria, recently posted images on a series of social media sites, including Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr, in which armed jihadists are depicted at various Western locations. Through the postings, extremists have allegedly warned of atrocities on London’s public transportation and financial centers, in addition to the White House in the U.S. The pictures feature texts in the English language that seem more directed at inspiring others to join their radical cause rather than indicating fighters will return home from Syria to carry out attacks.
UK officials report that there are several hundred Britons fighting alongside rebels in Syria. This has raised significant concern in the UK that fighters will carry out attacks once they return home. British counter-terrorism officials are taking the threats of attacks “very seriously.” However, in this particular case, it appears that Rayat Al-Tawheed released these images for inspirational purposes aimed at ideologically aligned individuals living in the West. Rayat Al-Tawheed is allegedly led by two male Islamists from London. Two brothers from North London, Akram and Mohamed Sebah, were killed last month while fighting in Syria, and were likely members of this group. Additionally Rayat Al-Tawheed boasts about receiving financial support from individuals based in the UK, in the form of British pounds.
Key Points
- It appears that the majority of the pictures are designed to inspire individual jihad. Most of the images feature a lone gunman armed with some type of firearm, indicating small arms are a preferred tactic for attacks. Additionally, the pictures include iconic targets such as a red London Routemaster bus and the White House. This highlights how jihadists in Syria may be attempting to inspire Western jihadists to conduct attacks wherever they live.
- This form of propaganda is similar to several messages released by al Qaeda and affiliated groups in the English-language. For example, al Qaeda’s American-born Adam Gadahn released a statement in 2011 titled, “Do Not Rely on Others, Take the Task Upon Yourself.” He says, “The enemies interests are spread all over the place and are easily accessible,” and encourages jihadists in the West to obtain guns to carry out these attacks, claiming they are easy to obtain. The theme of individual jihad is also the main focus of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula’s (AQAP) English-language Inspire magazine. Additionally, in most of the 11 issues of the propaganda tool, AQAP demonstrates how to use an AK-47 rifle as well as a handgun. The most recent editions of the publication contain many images of small arms.
MSA's Research and Intelligence Analysis (RIA) Group has been monitoring this situation closely and has identified the following implications:
- The warnings appear to be the first threats of terror strikes in the West to emerge from Syria.
- In response to an article featured in Daily Mail regarding the new images, Rayat Al-Tawheed stated on its Facebook and Tumblr accounts, “The Media are at it again, when will they realize that we don’t wanna come back?” The statement signals that the images were released mainly to inspire individuals to conduct attacks in their home countries, the UK in particular. In recent years, as Western countries have been targeting terrorists overseas, there has been more of a focus by al Qaeda-linked groups to reach out to English-language speakers to radicalize individuals and inspire attacks.
- The pictures released by Rayat Al-Tawheed are easily accessible online as their social media sites are public. Online propaganda tools are an effective method of recruitment and motivation, fueling the homegrown threat.
- Individuals are able to train online, rather than risk suspicious travel abroad.
- These types of publications, such as Inspire, have been successful in launching terrorist operations in the West.
- For example, the Boston Marathon bombings in April 2013 could be accredited to two issues of Inspire as the Tsarnaev brothers allegedly utilized bomb-making instructions from the magazine.
MSA Security's Research and Intelligence Analysis Group provides real-time intelligence on events and worldwide threats as they evolve.
