The Afghan Taliban have claimed credit for a suicide assault on a base in Kandahar province that hosts Coalition and Afghan forces. The suicide assault today in the southern province is the second such attack in Afghanistan in four days.

Today's suicide assault targeted a base in the district of Zhari, long considered to be the cradle of the Taliban movement in Afghanistan. Zhari, which has been described as "the heart of darkness" due to Taliban rule, was one of several districts that the International Security Assistance Force focused on during the limited surge of US forces from 2010 to 2011.

The attack began when a Taliban suicide bomber, identified by the Taliban as "Izzatullah," rammed a truck laden with explosives into the perimeter of the base. Then a heavily armed Taliban squad dressed in ISAF uniforms breached the base and engaged ISAF and Afghan forces.

The Taliban claimed the attack in a statement on Voice of Jihad, saying that five fighters were involved in the follow-on assault. The Taliban identified the fighters as "Zarraar, Zarqawi Helmandi, Abdullah Kunduzi, Anas Daikondi and Habib Ghaznawi" and said they were "armed with heavy/light weapons and explosives vests."

Afghan officials claimed that up to nine fighters attacked the base. Security forces gunned down the Taliban fighters during the ensuing firefight. ISAF has confirmed that one Coalition soldier was killed during the suicide attack.

"An International Security Assistance Force service member died following a coordinated suicide vehicle-borne improvised explosive device attack by enemy forces in southern Afghanistan today," ISAF said in a statement that was obtained by The Long War Journal. US forces are known to operate in Kandahar.

"Operational reports state there was moderate damage to the outer perimeter of the base; however, the base is currently secured and all enemy forces were killed as a result of the attack," ISAF said.

Today's suicide assault is the second complex suicide operation in Zhari in the past four months that resulted in the death of Coalition forces. On Oct. 6, 2013, in a coordinated attack that included at least one suicide bomber and IEDS, the Taliban killed four US soldiers who were part of a combined US and Afghan patrol. [See Threat Matrix report, 4 US soldiers killed in Taliban suicide attack.]

The Taliban also launched a complex suicide assault in the capital of Kabul just three days ago. In that attack, a suicide bomber detonated outside a restaurant frequented by foreigners. Following the blast, two heavily armed Taliban fighters entered the restaurant and gunned down 21 people, including the IMF's representative to Afghanistan, three UN workers, two Americans, two Brits, two Canadians, and a Danish citizen. [See LWJ report, Taliban suicide assault team targets foreigners in Kabul.]

After the attack, the Taliban angrily rejected the Obama administration's call for the group to "put down their arms and begin peace talks." Instead the group said it would continue to target ISAF forces and Afghan "nationals who are the enemies of our land and religion and are working for the aims of the occupation."

In statement released on Voice of Jihad last summer, the Afghan Taliban lauded suicide attacks, al Qaeda's signature tactic, against Western and Afghan targets as "heroic operations of the Mujahideen."

The suicide assault, or coordinated attack using multiple suicide bombers and an assault team, is a tactic that is frequently used in Afghanistan by the Taliban and their allies, including the Haqqani Network, the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan, al Qaeda, and the Lashkar-e-Taiba. Suicide assaults are also commonly executed by al Qaeda and jihadist groups in Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Pakistan, Somalia, and Nigeria.

Sources:

9 bombers, US soldier killed in Kandahar ISAF base attack, Pajhwok Afghan News
NATO soldier killed in militants attack on ISAF base in Kandahar, Khaama Press
Taliban Suicide Bombers Target US-Afghan Base in Kandahar, TOLONews
Martyrdom attack hits US-nato base in Zhiri, Voice of Jihad

The Pakistani Air Force launched airstrikes today that targeted "militant hideouts" in North Waziristan, after the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan launched two suicide attacks over the past several days in Rawalpindi and Bannu that killed 31 soldiers and Frontier Corps troops, as well as five civilians. Adnan Rasheed, a jihadist who leads the Ansar al Aseer, is said to have been targeted during the strikes.

Pakistani strike aircraft and attack helicopters targeted multiple villages in the Mir Ali and Datta Khel areas of the Taliban-controlled tribal agency today, according to Dawn. The areas are under the control of Hafiz Gul Bahadar, a senior Taliban leader in North Waziristan who has sheltered leaders and fighters from the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan, al Qaeda, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, and a number of other Pakistani jihadist groups.

One of the targets of the airstrikes is said to be Adnan Rasheed, the emir of the Ansar al Aseer Khorasan ("Helpers of the Prisoners"), a group that includes members from the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan and the Taliban and was founded to free jihadists from Pakistani prisons. Rasheed is said to have survived the airstrikes and was seen in the Mir Ali bazaar.

The Ansar al Aseer has been involved in a series of prison breaks in Pakistan, and may have executed the Jan. 10 assassination of Karachi police chief Chaudhry Aslam Khan. Rasheed, who was freed in a prison break, has created a "death squad" that has vowed to kill former President Pervez Musharraf.

Although Pakistani military officials said today's airstrikes targeted only "militant hideouts," local tribal leaders claimed that villages were indiscriminately targeted. At least 27 people were killed, but it is unclear if they are civilians, Taliban fighters, or a combination of the two. Such reports in Pakistan are difficult to confirm as the tribal areas are under Taliban control and the Pakistani government denies reporters access to the region.

The Pakistani military has indiscriminately used force during military operations in the past. Civilians in Swat and Bajaur have accused the military of conducting scorched earth tactics during operations, and soldiers in Swat were caught on video killing suspected Taliban fighters. In December 2013, the Taliban, Ansar al Aseer, and tribesmen claimed that the military launched indiscriminate attacks on villages in Mir Ali, and released photographs documenting the damage.

Today's airstrikes appear to be punitive attacks in response to yesterday's suicide attack in Rawalpindi and Sunday's suicide bombing in Bannu. In the Rawalpindi attack, a suicide bomber killed 13 people, including eight soldiers, in a bombing near Army General Headquarters. In the Bannu attack, 23 soldiers and Frontier Corps troops were killed in a suicide attack on a military convoy.

For years, the Pakistani military has promised the West that it would launch an offensive in North Waziristan to clear the tribal agency of the Taliban and al Qaeda, but it has failed to do so. Groups such as the Haqqani Network and Hafiz Gul Bahadar's Taliban faction operate in the open in North Waziristan, and are considered "good Taliban" by Pakistan's military and intelligence establishment as they do not openly support jihad against the state. But the Haqqanis and Bahadar fight in Afghanistan, and shelter and support al Qaeda, the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan, and a host of terror groups that attack the Pakistani state and promote international jihad.

Turkish counterterrorism forces reportedly arrested Ibrahim Sen, a former Guantanamo detainee, during raids against suspected al Qaeda members in six different provinces on Jan. 14.

Press reports identify Sen as a senior al Qaeda member and even al Qaeda's "deputy leader" in the Middle East. The latter description is most likely an exaggeration, but according to multiple sources Sen was allegedly involved in an al Qaeda facilitation network.

According to Hürriyet, Sen and the other detained suspects have been accused of sending jihadists "to fight in Syria," facilitating the travel of al Qaeda members coming from Afghanistan and Pakistan, "collecting money to help al Qaeda," and "providing and distributing aid and weapons to be used in attacks in Syria, Pakistan and Afghanistan."

This is the third time that Sen has been detained because of his suspected ties to al Qaeda and affiliated terrorist groups.

Sen was originally detained after fleeing Afghanistan for Pakistan in December 2001. He was transferred to American custody and then, beginning on Feb. 15, 2002, held in the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

According to a leaked Joint Task Force Guantanamo (JTF-GTMO) threat assessment authored several months later, on Sept. 27, 2002, US officials held Sen because his "travel profile matched that of a terrorist recruit."

The leaked file shows, however, that US military and intelligence officials failed to collect any additional evidence tying Sen to terrorism. JTF-GTMO concluded that Sen was "not affiliated with al Qaeda" and was not a Taliban leader. Military officials also found that he had no valuable intelligence to share and did "not pose a future threat to the US or US interests." They recommended that Sen "be considered for release or transfer to the control of another government."

On Nov. 18, 2003, Sen was transferred back Turkish custody.

Just over four years later, in January 2008, Sen was arrested by Turkish authorities and accused of leading an al Qaeda cell.

A report on Guantanamo recidivism released by the Department of Defense notes that Sen was indicted in June 2008 and accused of being the "leader of al Qaeda cells in Van," Turkey. "In addition," the DoD file reads, "Sen also recruited and trained new members, provided illegal weapons to the group, and facilitated the movement of jihadists."

According to Today's Zaman, Sen was sentenced to several years in prison stemming from the 2008 charges, but the case was still under appeal when he was arrested earlier this month.

Pakistani security officials claimed that 33 Uzbek fighters and three German jihadists were among the 40 people killed in yesterday's airstrikes in the Mir Ali and Datta Khel areas of North Waziristan. The report is unconfirmed, but if true, the Uzbeks and Germans are likely members of the al Qaeda-linked Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan or the splinter Islamic Jihad Union.

"Important commanders were also among those killed in the onslaught," Dawn reported. "These include Wali Mohammad and Asmat Shaheen. Maulvi Farhad Uzbek and Shaheen Betini were also among those killed."

Two of those names are derivations of Asmatullah Shaheen Bhittani, the emir of the "supreme shura" of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan who served as the temporary leader of the group after Baitullah Mehsud was killed in a US drone strike last year. There are no reports that Asmatullah was killed in yesterday's airstrikes.

Additionally, an unconfirmed report at Daily Times claimed that Adnan Rasheed, the leader of the Ansar al Aseer, was also killed yesterday. But Pakistani Taliban members denied the reports. Rasheed is reported to have been spotted at the Mir Ali bazaar after his home was leveled [see LWJ report, Pakistan launches airstrikes in North Waziristan after Taliban suicide attacks].

The Pakistani Air Force launched the punitive airstrikes in North Waziristan against "militant hideouts" after the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan carried out two suicide attacks over the past several days in Rawalpindi and Bannu that killed 31 soldiers and Frontier Corps troops, as well as five civilians.

On multiple occasions over the past several years, the Pakistani military has promised the West that it would launch an offensive in North Waziristan to clear the tribal agency of the Taliban and al Qaeda, but it has failed to do so. Groups such as the Haqqani Network and Hafiz Gul Bahadar's Taliban faction operate in the open in North Waziristan, and are considered "good Taliban" by Pakistan's military and intelligence establishment as they do not openly support jihad against the state. Many Pakistani officials view these two groups, and a number of others, as "strategic depth," or proxies to be used against India, the US, and Afghanistan.

But the Haqqanis and Bahadar wage war in Afghanistan, and shelter and support al Qaeda, the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan, and a host of terror groups that attack the Pakistani state and promote international jihad.

Israeli authorities today announced the arrest of three global jihadists who were allegedly preparing to carry out terror attacks after being recruited by an al-Qaeda-linked operative in the Gaza Strip. The three terrorists were identified as Iyad Mahmoud Khalil Abu Sara, Rubin Abu Nagma, and Ala Yasin Mohammed Anam.

The arrested Palestinians from the West Bank and Jerusalem area were recruited online and planned to carry out kidnappings and bombings at the International Convention Centre in Jerusalem as well as the US Embassy in Tel Aviv, among other attacks. Israeli authorities kept their counterparts in the "US and elsewhere" updated on their investigation, Israeli security sources said.

According to the Shin Bet, the three had been recruited separately by a Gaza-based operative called Oreib al Sham. "Senior Shin Bet sources said they believed Al-Sham received his orders directly from the head of al-Qaeda's central structure, Ayman Al-Zawahri," the Jerusalem Post reported. The unconfirmed claim "is based on statements made by the suspects during questioning," Haaretz noted. According to Haaretz, al Sham told the recruits that he worked for Zawahiri.

Abu Sara admitted to planning a shooting attack on a bus traveling between Jerusalem and Ma'ale Adumim. According to the Shin Bet, the plot would have seen terrorists fire at the wheels of a bus, causing it to overturn, and then opening fire on the passengers and emergency responders. Abu Sara also reportedly agreed to assist in a double suicide bombing operation against the US Embassy in Tel Aviv and the International Convention Centre in Jerusalem.

Using fake Russian passports and traveling under the guise of tourists, foreign jihadists were supposed to enter Israel, where they would have been assisted by Abu Sara in carrying out the bombings, the security agency said. According to the Shin Bet, Abu Sara had agreed to go to Syria for military training, but had not yet done so. He had already received files from Gaza detailing how to manufacture explosives, however.

Rubin Abu Nagma had been planning to kidnap a soldier from a Jerusalem bus stop in addition to detonating explosives at a housing complex in the area of Abu Tor, the Shin Bet statement said. Ala Yasin Mohammed Anam purportedly sought to establish a Salafi jihadist terror cell in the West Bank.

News of the recent arrests comes about two months after Israel security forces killed three Salafi jihadists near Hebron. The jihadists were "only a small part" of the Salafi jihadist structure in the West Bank, and "what was hidden was greater," the Gaza-based Mujahideen Shura Council in the Environs of Jerusalem said in a statement praising the three jihadists. A Shin Bet official said those recently arrested were not linked to those killed in November, Ynet News reported.

Shin Bet officials believe that the spread of al Qaeda-linked activity in the West Bank is in its infancy and can be stopped, Reuters reported.

The State Department today designated Ziyad al Nakhalah (Abu Tariq), the Deputy Secretary General of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT). PIJ has been designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization since October 1997.

Nakhalah "has repeatedly taken credit for attacks against Israel," the State Department said. In addition, he has "cultivated strong relations with the Government of Iran, the world's primary State Sponsor of Terrorism." Nakhalah was one of a number of officials in Palestinian Islamic Jihad to admit that Iran had provided Palestinian terror groups, including PIJ, with Fajr-3 and Fajr-5 missiles that were used during Operation Pillar of Defense in November 2012.

According to the State Department, Nakhalah in 2012 "emphasized the importance of [PIJ's] expanding and improving relations" with Hamas. Indeed, in October 2012, the two Palestinian terror groups announced they were conducting joint operations against Israel. In a recent email exchange with Reuters from Damascus, Nakhalah boasted that "the relation with Hamas is at its best level now."

In its designation, the State Department noted that PIJ has conducted "numerous attacks, including large-scale suicide bombings against Israeli civilian and military targets," some of which have killed Americans.

The designation, which stated that PIJ "receives financial assistance and training primarily from Iran," identified a December 2013 bus bombing as a PIJ operation. On Jan. 2, Israeli authorities announced the arrest of 14 individuals, at least four of whom were PIJ operatives, in connection with the December attack.

Ramadan Shallah, the current PIJ Secretary-General, has been listed as a SDGT since November 1995. Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif earlier this month met with Shallah and other PIJ officials, including the newly designated Nakhalah, in Beirut.

The emir of al Qaeda, Ayman al Zawahiri, has released a new audio message addressing the infighting between jihadist groups in Syria. Zawahiri does not mention any specific groups or individuals by name, but much of his message is clearly aimed at the Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham (ISIS), a branch of al Qaeda that has been the main source of the internecine conflict.

Zawahiri addresses all of the jihadist factions fighting against Bashar al Assad's regime, saying they are the best "hope" for establishing an Islamic state in the heart of the Levant, as well as "liberating Jerusalem," according to a translation obtained by The Long War Journal.

Al Qaeda respects and admires "all of you," Zawahiri says, addressing all of the factions as "brothers." According to Zawahiri, al Qaeda's leaders believe that the jihadists' "brotherhood in Islam" is stronger than any temporary "organizational bonds."

Zawahiri implores the jihadists to "let go" of their "partisan fanaticism" if it cuts against the "unity of your ranks." The infighting distracts them from fighting their true enemies, including Shiite forces, Russia, and China, all of whom are supposedly colluding with the "Crusader campaign."

Abu Bakr al Baghdadi and other ISIS leaders have claimed to represent the only true Islamic state inside Syria and have tried to make other jihadist groups abide by its rules. However, other jihadist groups, including al Qaeda's other official branch inside Syria, the Al Nusrah Front, as well as al Qaeda-linked groups such as Ahrar al Sham, have rejected ISIS' claims of superiority.

Although Zawahiri does not address ISIS directly, at least three parts of the audio message seem to be targeted at the unruly group.

First, Zawahiri says that al Qaeda does not accept "any violation" or "any assault" against the "sanctity of any Muslim or jihadist." Al Qaeda also does "not accept" the accusations of "infidelity or apostasy" that have been levied against some jihadist groups, because they are all "sacrificing their lives and properties" for the sake of jihad.

ISIS has repeatedly accused other jihadist organizations of being apostates or infidels, especially when they do not accept the group's unilateral decisions.

Second, Zawahiri urges al Qaeda's "dear brothers" to name "anyone they want" as the new ruler of Syria, as long as he has the proper religious credentials. "We will accept the person they choose" to run the new Islamic government, Zawahiri says.

Zawahiri's remarks in this regard are identical to those made by the head of the Al Nusrah Front, Abu Muhammad al Julani, during an interview that aired on Al Jazeera last month. Julani said that Zawahiri and al Qaeda's central leadership have "given us a large margin to decide on our own" how things go inside Syria. Zawahiri "always tells us to meet with the other factions," Julani said. "We will not impose a ruler on the people," Julani added, as al Qaeda only seeks "the implementation of sharia and any ruler should be committed to the rules of the sharia and qualified for that."

Interestingly, there have been allegations that Abu Bakr al Baghdadi has required jihadists who pledge allegiance to him and ISIS to also acknowledge Baghdadi as the new "caliph" or Islamic ruler.

Earlier this month, a senior jihadist ideologue known as Abu Muhammad al Maqdisi, who is imprisoned in Jordan, issued a statement criticizing this requirement. Maqdisi denounced ISIS' fatwas, which "obligate Muslims to make a grand pledge of allegiance to Baghdadi as a caliph." Maqdisi also explained that such fatwas lead to the shedding of Muslim blood and incite jihadists to "to disobey the authorities' orders, particularly the orders of Sheikh Dr. Ayman al Zawahiri."

In a letter written in May 2013, Zawahiri canceled Baghdadi's attempt to subsume control of the Al Nusrah Front. In the months since, however, Baghdadi has not relinquished his attempted power grab. Zawahiri's message is aimed at unifying the jihadists' ranks inside Syria such that they pursue common goals, and Baghdadi's delusions of grandeur clearly interfere with this objective.

Third, and finally, Zawahiri urges the Syrian jihadists "to establish a sharia arbitration committee" capable of ruling "among different factions on all the accusations leveled by any group against its" jihadist brethren. This committee should also have "a mechanism to enforce" its decisions.

ISIS has frequently refused to settle its differences in a common sharia court. Instead, the group has sought to impose its decrees on others. On multiple occasions, Zawahiri and other al Qaeda-linked ideologues have attempted to get ISIS to acquiesce to rulings made by sharia court staffed with representatives from each of the groups. This would require ISIS to relinquish its exclusionary claim on power, which it has thus far been unwilling to do.

In sum, the long-awaited message from Zawahiri shows that al Qaeda is still attempting to settle the disputes between ISIS and other jihadist organizations.

The US killed four al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula fighters last night, in the third drone strike in Yemen so far this year.

The remotely piloted Predators or the more deadly Reapers fired several missiles at a vehicle transporting AQAP fighters in Wadi Abida in the central province of Marib on Thursday night, a Yemeni official told Xinhua. The official said the strike was executed "in coordination with the Yemeni interior ministry."

Yemen's Interior Ministry confirmed that it "foiled an attempt by al Qaeda militants to seize some government institutions in Marib province," Xinhua reported.

Four people were killed and seven more were wounded in the strike. The Associated Press reported that "three suspected al Qaeda militants" were killed.

AQAP is known to operate in Marib province, and the US has targeted AQAP in Wadi Abida three times in the past. Two of the strikes took place in 2013 and the other in 2012. A few years earlier, in March 2008, Wadi Abida was identified as the base of an al Qaeda group known as the Yemen Soldiers Brigade. The group claimed credit for mortar attacks against the US Embassy, the Italian Embassy, and a Western housing complex in Sana'a in 2008.

Background on US strikes in Yemen

Last night's strike is the third by the US in Yemen since the New Year. The previous two strikes, on Jan. 8 and Jan. 15, targeted AQAP's network in the eastern province of Hadramout.

Thursday night's strike is the sixth in Yemen since Dec. 6, when AQAP penetrated security in a major attack at Yemen's Ministry of Defense in Sana'a. The suicide assault resulted in the deaths of 52 people, including foreign doctors and nurses, and 11 AQAP fighters. AQAP claimed that the assault targeted the US-run "operation rooms" for the drone program in Yemen.

The pace of the drone strikes in Yemen decreased last year from the previous year (26 in 2013 versus 41 in 2012). The reduction in the number of strikes coincided with a speech by President Barack Obama at the National Defense University in May 2013. The strikes are being reduced as the US government is facing increasing international criticism for conducting the attacks in both Yemen and Pakistan.

The number of strikes might have been much lower in 2013 were it not for an al Qaeda plot emanating from Yemen that was uncovered by US officials in late July. The plot led the US to close down more than 20 embassies and diplomatic facilities across Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. The plot involved AQAP emir Nasir al Wuhayshi, who now also serves as al Qaeda's general manager.

Between July 27, after the plot was disclosed, and Aug. 10, the US launched nine strikes in Yemen; no drone strikes were reported for seven weeks prior to July 27. The burst in attacks was intended to disrupt the plot and take out AQAP's top leadership cadre and senior operatives. The US killed Kaid al Dhahab, AQAP's emir for Al Baydah province, during that time period.

For more information on the US airstrikes in Yemen, see LWJ report, Charting the data for US airstrikes in Yemen, 2002 - 2014.

A series of attacks today, starting with a car bombing that targeted the Cairo Security Directorate, killed at least six people and injured many more. According to Egyptian authorities, the attack at the security directorate left at least four people dead and dozens more injured. The bombing came only a few hours after the Sinai-based jihadist group Ansar Jerusalem (Ansar Bayt al Maqdis) had issued an audio warning.

In the message, an Ansar Jerusalem official identified as Abu Osama al Masri urged Egyptian security personnel to repent and save themselves. "If you can escape with your weapon then do that. Otherwise, you know that soldiers are dealt with as one bloc. We will target you as we target your leaders," al Masri said.

Witnesses told Reuters that gunfire was heard following the explosion. Some Egyptian media reports, however, suggested that the gunfire occurred prior as security forces attempted to stop the car from reaching the security directorate. According to McClatchy, "the attackers struck at 6:40 a.m. when officers were changing shifts, creating a security gap."

After the bombing, which also damaged the nearby Islamic Museum, security forces shut down all roads surrounding the Interior Ministry in Cairo, state-run MENA reported.

The bombing at the security directorate was followed by three other attacks today. A couple of hours after the security directorate bombing, a "crude explosive device" was thrown at security vehicles in nearby Giza, Reuters stated; at least one person was killed and nine others injured. A third explosion was later reported, near a police station in the Haram area of Giza, according to the New York Times. And in the afternoon, a fourth explosion that reportedly killed at least one person took place near a movie theater in the capital.

Interior Minister Mohammed Ibrahim said the bomber of the Cairo Security Directorate belonged to a jihadist organization and that the bombing would increase the resolve of authorities to continue their efforts to eliminate terrorism, al Masry al Youm reported. Meanwhile, Egyptians who gathered at the site of the main explosion chanted anti-Muslim Brotherhood slogans, including "The people want the execution of the Brotherhood."

Yesterday, unidentified gunmen killed five Egyptian policemen and wounded two others in a shooting attack in Beni Suef. That attack, as well as today's bombing in Cairo, has thus far gone unclaimed.

Today's attack in Cairo comes exactly one month after an Ansar Jerusalem suicide car bombing attack outside the Daqahliya security directorate in Mansoura killed over a dozen people and injured over 130 more. The Mansoura attack came roughly a day after Ansar Jerusalem called on members of the security forces to repent and leave their positions. Ansar Jerusalem concluded its message by warning that those in the security forces who did not leave would have no one to blame but themselves. "[W]e are the most resolute and determined to carry out the command of Allah and His Messenger to do jihad against you and fight you until all the religion is for Allah," the group declared.

In its claim of responsibility for the Mansoura attack, Ansar Jerusalem said it would continue to fight and reiterated its warning for Egyptian Muslims to stay away from buildings associated with the security forces. The group, which has issued such warnings since at least September, stated in an Oct. 21 communique that police and military headquarters "are legitimate targets for the mujahideen."

Since July 3, there have been more than 275 reported attacks in the Sinai Peninsula, most of which were carried out against Egyptian security forces and assets, according to data maintained by The Long War Journal. A good number of these attacks, including the Nov. 20 car bombing that killed 11 Egyptian security personnel, have been claimed by Ansar Jerusalem.

Attacks by Sinai-based jihadists, Ansar Jerusalem specifically, have also taken place in the Egyptian mainland. On Sept. 5, the jihadist group used a suicide car bomber in an assassination attempt in Nasr City on Egypt's interior minister, Mohammed Ibrahim. A month later, an Ansar Jerusalem suicide bomber unleashed a blast at the South Sinai Security Directorate in el Tor, which killed three security personnel and injured more than 45. On Oct. 19, the Sinai-based jihadist group targeted a military intelligence building in the city of Ismailia in another car bombing. And on Nov. 19, the group claimed responsibility for the shooting attack on Lieutenant Colonel Mohammed Mabrouk, a senior national security officer, in Cairo.

The al Furqan Brigades, which are not believed to be based in the Sinai, have also claimed responsibility for a number of shootings and rocket attacks in the Egyptian mainland since Morsi's overthrow. In contrast to Ansar Jerusalem, the group has yet to claim responsibility for any large car or suicide bombings.

Ansar Jerusalem, which was founded by Egyptians, is the dominant jihadist group operating in the Sinai Peninsula today. The group, whose fighters are often seen with the al Qaeda flag, has claimed credit for a number of attacks against Israel and Egypt over the past two years.

In September 2013, Ansar Jerusalem, which releases material through the jihadist forums of Al Fajr Media Center, al Qaeda's exclusive media distribution outlet, declared that "it is obligatory to repulse them [the Egyptian army] and fight them until the command of Allah is fulfilled." Recent reports in the Egyptian media have suggested that Ansar Jerusalem may have links to Muhammad Jamal and the Muhammad Jamal Network [MJN], which were added to the US government's list of designated terrorists and the UN's sanctions list in October 2013.

Jamal, whose fighters have been linked to the Sept. 11, 2012 Benghazi terror attack, is said to have established "several terrorist training camps in Egypt and Libya" with funding from al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.

In late November, in response to a Long War Journal query on whether the State Department believes there is a connection between the Muhammad Jamal Network (MJN) and Ansar Bayt al Maqdis, a State Department spokesman said: "We have no comment on the inter-relationships between MJN and the other Sinai groups."

In a statement released to jihadist forums this evening, Sinai-based Ansar Jerusalem (Ansar Bayt al Maqdis) claimed responsibility for four attacks today in the Cairo area, including a car bombing outside the Cairo Security Directorate. The attacks, the first by the group outside North Sinai since Dec. 24, left six people dead and over 70 wounded.

The first attack came only a few hours after Ansar Jerusalem had issued an audio warning. In the message, an Ansar Jerusalem official identified as Abu Osama al Masri urged Egyptian security personnel to repent and save themselves. "If you can escape with your weapon then do that. Otherwise, you know that soldiers are dealt with as one bloc. We will target you as we target your leaders," al Masri said.

The explosion at the security directorate was caused by a remotely detonated car bomb, the group claimed in the statement, which was translated by the SITE Intelligence Group. The second attack targeted security forces who had been "ordered to suppress one of the demonstrations." The third attack, which was carried out with four hand grenades, targeted a security patrol near the Talabiya police station. The group's final attack, the statement said, targeted "the criminal apostate Garir Mustafa while he was on his way with a security force to suppress a demonstration on Haram Street."

After mentioning the four attacks, Ansar Jerusalem again warned that Egyptians should stay away from police and military headquarters. "We face difficulties while attacking without inflicting harm in the ranks of the Muslims," the group said. The communique concluded by warning: "This is the first of the rain ... watch over your sons."

Following the formal announcement, Ansar Jerusalem issued a number of disclaimers related to the manner in which its messages are released. First, the group reiterated that it is not on any social media networks, a matter explored in depth by The Long War Journal. Second, the group announced that it does not use email "with any official or non-official parties." Finally, the group reiterated that its official material is released only through the jihadist forums of Al Fajr Media Center, al Qaeda's exclusive media distribution outlet.

For more information on Ansar Jerusalem and today's attacks, see LWJ report, Bombings in Cairo kill at least 6, injure dozens more.

In a statement released to jihadist forums on Jan. 25, the Sinai-based jihadist group Ansar Jerusalem (Ansar Bayt al Maqdis) said its fighters fired a surface-to-air missile (SAM) at an Egyptian helicopter operating in North Sinai. Hours before Ansar Jerusalem released its statement, Egypt's army spokesman had confirmed on his official Facebook page that an army helicopter operating in North Sinai had crashed around noon.

In the statement, Ansar Jerusalem also claimed responsibility for a number of other attacks over the past couple of days in the Sinai, including the targeting of a security forces camp with mortars, the targeting of troops near an airport, and a sniper attack on a soldier. Notably, the group also appeared to slightly back off its original claims of responsibility for a couple of the smaller attacks in the Cairo area on Jan. 24.

According to the Ansar Jerusalem, Ajnad Misr, a group that appears to have announced itself on Jan. 23, was operating in the same area at the time as Ansar Jerusalem fighters and there was "confusion" over who exactly was responsible. In the statement, Ajnad Misr was described as "our brothers" by Ansar Jerusalem. At a minimum, the statement suggests that Ansar Jerusalem knows of Ajnad Misr, and possibly even has ties to it.

With regard to the helicopter incident, Egypt's army spokesman today confirmed the deaths of five soldiers, but did not confirm that the crash had resulted from a SAM attack. Army chief Abdel Fattah el Sisi attended the funeral of those killed, photos released by the army spokesman showed.

In the immediate aftermath of the crash, conflicting reports emerged as to its cause. Although the army said the cause had yet to be determined, security sources told Masrawy that the crash was the result of a "technical malfunction." However, local residents said the helicopter had crashed after being "gunned down," Ma'an News Agency reported. "They said they saw gunmen in a pickup truck hit the helicopter with a missile," the report stated. According to Daily News Egypt, the helicopter had been hit by an RPG. A Sinai-based journalist similarly tweeted that locals stated that the "helicopter was fired by something and went into fire in the sky."

Today, security sources acknowledged that the cause of the crash was a missile, Reuters reported.

The presence of SAMs in the arsenal of Sinai-based jihadists has long been speculated. If the crash was indeed caused by an SAM, it would be the first such attack. The use of antiaircraft guns by Sinai jihadists has been reported since at least September 2012.

In August 2013, Israeli authorities closed Eilat's airport for a few hours due to a security assessment. Egyptian officials said that a warning from them regarding plots by jihadists in the Sinai was shared with Israeli officials and led to the airport closure. More recently, in October, a Dutch charter airline announced it was canceling its flights to Sharm el Sheikh over fears that Sinai-based militants would try to bring down a passenger plane with antiaircraft weaponry.

In addition to yesterday's alleged SAM attack, at least three soldiers were killed and 11 injured when a bus traveling in the Sinai was ambushed today by unidentified gunmen, the army spokesman said in a statement. Security sources told Reuters that the targeted bus was transporting soldiers "on their way back from holiday when gunmen opened fire with automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenades." According to Ma'an News Agency, military sources believe Ansar Jerusalem was responsible for the attack.

Several smaller-scale attacks have also been reported in North Sinai over the past three days. According to data maintained by The Long War Journal, the number of reported attacks in North Sinai over the past three days (Jan. 24-Jan. 26) rivals the total seen between Jan. 1 and Jan. 23.

Since July 3, there have been more than 280 reported attacks in the Sinai Peninsula, most of which were carried out against Egyptian security forces and assets, according to data maintained by The Long War Journal. A good number of those attacks, including the Nov. 20 car bombing that killed 11 Egyptian security personnel, have been claimed by Ansar Jerusalem.

Armed MQ-9 Reaper drone. Image from The Telegraph.

A US missile strike today reportedly killed Sahal Iskudhuq, a senior Shabaab commander who served as a high-ranking member of the Amniyat, Shabaab's intelligence unit. The strike took place after security forces raided Shabaab camps in the northern, semiautonomous region of Puntland.

A pro-Shabaab radio station in Barawe confirmed that an airstrike took place in the village of Hawai in Lower Shabelle, RBC Radio reported. Iskudhuq is said to have been killed in the missile attack. Shabaab has not confirmed his death.

US officials speaking on condition of anonymity told the Associated Press that they had carried out a strike against a Shabaab leader today, but would not identify the target as US intelligence was still "assessing the effectiveness of the strike."

As a member of Amniyat, Iskudhuq would have been sufficiently high-profile to warrant US attention. According to a September 2013 report released by the UN monitoring Group, the Amniyat is described as Shabaab's "secret service" and is "structured along the lines of a clandestine organization within the organization with the intention of surviving any kind of dissolution of Shabaab." The UN report credits the Amniyat with serving Shabaab emir Ahmed Abdi Godane's interests and allowing Godane to maintain his grip on power and settle internal disputes.

Foreign fighters often train members of Amniyat, but rarely participate in the group's operations as "its operatives are required to blend in with the Somali public," according to Sabahi. The intelligence unit's operatives take orders directly from Godane. As a result, they receive special privileges not offered to other Shabaab members, including a larger share of the group's budget, mobile phones, and money for bribes.

Although it formally joined al Qaeda in early 2012, Shabaab has been closely tied to the global jihadist group for many years. Top al Qaeda operatives, including several who were indicted for their roles in the 1998 bombings at the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, have served in senior leadership positions in Shabaab.

US has targeted top Shabaab and al Qaeda leaders in Somalia before

The US has targeted top Shabaab leaders in drone and conventional airstrikes, as well as special operations raids in the past.

The last confirmed US drone strike in Somalia took place on Oct. 29, 2013. The remotely operated US drones killed Anta Anta, who is also known as Ibrahim Ali Abdi, and two lower-level commanders. Anta Anta was a master bombmaker and suicide operations coordinator for the terror group.

The US also launched a special operations raid that same month. On Oct. 7, 2013 in Barawe, a known stronghold of Shabaab, US Navy SEALs targeted Shabaab's external operations chief Abdulkadir Mohamed Abdulkadir, who is also known as Ikrima. The Shabaab leader, who was not killed or captured during the raid, was in close contact with al Qaeda's general command in Pakistan and is said to have directed attacks in Kenya. [See Threat Matrix report, Target of SEAL raid in Somalia tied to top al Qaeda leaders].

The US has launched several operations over the years that targeted or killed top Shabaab and al Qaeda leaders in Somalia. Bilal al Berjawi, a British national of Lebanese descent, was killed in an airstrike in January 2012. Al Berjawi was the senior deputy of Fazul Abdullah Mohammed, the leader of al Qaeda East Africa who also served as a top commander in Shabaab. Fazul was killed by Somali troops at a checkpoint outside Mogadishu in June 2011.

The US also killed Aden Hashi Ayro and Sheikh Muhyadin Omar in an airstrike in the spring of 2008. Before his death, Ayro was the leader of Shabaab.

Fazul and Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan, who also commanded al Qaeda East Africa, were also targeted, along with Abu Tala al Sudani, in US airstrikes in 2007 and 2008 during the Ethiopian invasion and occupation of southern Somalia. And Hassan Turki, another senior Shabaab leader who is closely tied to al Qaeda, was targeted in a US strike in 2008.

Nabhan was also the target of a US special forces raid in the Somali town of Barawe in 2009. US commandos killed Nabhan and another terrorist during the raid.

Security forces target Shabaab camps in Puntland

The loss of Iskudhuq in Lower Shabelle is more bad news for Shabaab, following a setback to the group yesterday in northern Somalia. Puntland forces attacked a Shabaab base in Galgala area near the Golis mountain range of northeastern Somalia, southwest of the commercial port city of Bosasso. According to acting Security Minister Colonol Khalif Isse Mudan, three Shabaab fighters were confirmed killed and seven were severely wounded.

Puntland forces also recovered significant arms and materiel from Shabaab bases, and among the items presented to the media were heavy ammunition, explosive devices, medical drugs, and solar equipment.

Despite a military offensive led by the African Union and backed by the US that began in 2011, Shabaab still controls vast areas of southern and central Somalia. During the offensive, Shabaab was driven from major cities and towns such as Mogadishu, Kismayo, and Baidoa, but towns such as Bulobarde and Barawe remain under the terror group's control. The group has weathered the Ethiopian invasion, which began in December 2006 and ousted its predecessor, the Islamic Courts Union. More than six years later, Shabaab remains a capable force in southern Somalia and an integral part of al Qaeda's global network.

Shabaab has also shown itself to be more than capable of attacking major cities outside of its control. Just this weekend, the group killed at least five Somali government soldiers in a daytime attack in Mogadishu.

On Jan. 18, the Gaza-based Mujahideen Shura Council in the Environs of Jerusalem (MSC) released the third episode in a series entitled "Journey of Martyrdom." The approximately 24-minute video focuses on Saudi national Adi Saleh Abdullah al Fudhayli al Hadhli (a.k.a. Abu Hudhayfa al Hudhali), who was a member of the MSC cell responsible for carrying out a cross-border attack that killed an Israeli civilian on June 18, 2012.

The first episode in the series was released in early February 2013 and focused on MSC fighter Khalid Salah Abdul Hadi Jadullah (a.k.a. Abu Salah al Masri). Jadullah, who was portrayed as an al Qaeda martyr, was also a member of the MSC cell responsible for the June 18, 2012 attack. The series' second episode focused on Hithem Ziad Ibrahim Masshal, a well-known jihadist in the Gaza Strip who was killed in an airstrike by the Israeli Air Force on April 30.

The new video traces Hadhli's "jihadi biography from Saudi Arabia to Sudan and then Egypt, Gaza, and Libya, fighting in the revolution against Mu'ammar Gaddafi before returning to Egypt," noted the SITE Intelligence Group, which translated the video. According to the biography, Hadhli was born in 1990 and resided in Jeddah. While in high school, Hadhli decided that he "wanted to support his religion and protect the sanctities of his wounded Ummah," a narrator stated.

Before even turning 17, Hadhli traveled to Sudan "in an attempt to reach the mujahideen of Somalia and participate in their jihad." This attempt failed, as he was detained and sent back to Saudi Arabia, the narrator claimed. However, in the middle of 2008, Hadhli decided to go to Egypt in the hopes of fulfilling "his dream of doing jihad on the soil of occupied Palestine." According to the narrator, Hadhli managed to enter the Gaza Strip "after several attempts with dangers, difficulties, and tribulations from all sides."

Upon reaching Gaza, Hadhli engaged in "training" and "preparation," and was forced to stop communicating with his family, who were purportedly interrogated by authorities in Saudi Arabia in an effort to determine his whereabouts. According to the narrator, upon the outbreak of the Libyan civil war in 2011, Hadhli traveled to the North African state.

"There, he joined his brothers in the brigade of the lovers of martyrdom and he was known among them with the name Abdul Rahman al Saudi," the narrator said. In Libya, Hadhli reportedly used his experience to teach other "mujahideen" how to use weapons. After Muammar Gaddafi was overthrown, Hadhli decided to leave Libya in order "to join a new jihadi field so he can have a chance in it to smell the fragrance of martyrdom in the cause of Allah."

Hadhli supposedly was thinking of traveling to Yemen, but unidentified circumstances kept him in Egypt. Eventually, he returned to Gaza where he stayed with the MSC. While in Gaza, Hadhli "was insistent upon his brothers in requesting a martyrdom-seeking operation," according to the narrator.

Near the end of the new video, a clip from Hadhli's will is aired. "There is no solution except by jihad, and nothing can break iron except iron," he declares. He further called on the "mujahideen" to be rewarded and for Muslim businessmen to "support the mujahideen with money, because it is the nerve of jihad. Jihad is in a dire need for your monies."

The MSC video concluded with a short clip from Nasir al Wuhayshi, the emir of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and al Qaeda's general manager.

Mujahideen Shura Council in the Environs of Jerusalem

The Mujahideen Shura Council in the Environs of Jerusalem (MSC) is a consolidation of a number of Salafi jihadist groups operating in the Gaza Strip including, but not limited to: Tawhid and Jihad Group in Jerusalem, and Ansar al Sunnah. Sheikh Anas Abdul Rahman, one of the group's leaders, has said that the group aims to "fight the Jews for the return of Islam's rule, not only in Palestine, but throughout the world."

The MSC has taken responsibility for a number of rocket attacks against Israel, as well as the June 18, 2012 attack that killed one Israeli civilian. The group said the attack was "a gift to our brothers in Qaedat al Jihad and Sheikh Zawahiri" and retaliation for the death of Osama bin Laden. In early February 2013, the MSC released a martyrdom video branding one of the terrorists killed in the June 2012 attack as an al Qaeda "martyr."

On Oct. 22, 2012, the MSC released a 32-minute-long video detailing some of its rocket attacks against Israel and threatening to "fight you [Israel] as long as we hold ... weapons in our hands." In November 2012, the group carried out joint rocket attacks with the Army of Islam. Following the institution of a ceasefire that ended Israel's Operation Pillar of Defense, the MSC said that it was not truly a party to the ceasefire.

Although the MSC's media unit, the Ibn Taymiyyah Media Center, has called for attacks against Egyptian security forces and released three videos denouncing the destruction caused by Egyptian operations in the Sinai, the MSC has not yet claimed responsibility for any attacks in Egypt. In fact, it explicitly denied any connection to the Aug. 5, 2012 attack on an Egyptian military outpost in Rafah that killed 16 Egyptian soldiers. In late August 2013, the ITMC released a series of posters in Hebrew and Arabic threatening attacks against the southern Israeli city of Eilat.

The release of the posters came about two weeks after the MSC claimed responsibility for the Aug. 13 rocket attack on Eilat. That attack, the Salafi jihadist group said, was in response to the Aug. 9 killing of four members of the Sinai-based jihadist group Ansar Jerusalem (Ansar Bayt al Maqdis).

Over the past two years, the Israeli Air Force has targeted a number of MSC members. On Oct. 7, 2012, the IDF targeted Tala'at Halil Muhammad Jarbi, a "global jihad operative," and Abdullah Muhammad Hassan Maqawai, a member of the MSC. Maqawai, likely a former member of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, died of his wounds. On Oct. 13, 2012, Israel killed Abu al Walid al Maqdisi, the former emir of the Tawhid and Jihad Group in Jerusalem, and Ashraf al Sabah, the former emir of Ansar al Sunnah, in an airstrike. The two men were said to be leaders of the MSC. Numerous jihadist groups and media units as well as al Qaeda emir Ayman al Zawahiri issued statements following the death of the two jihadists.

More recently, in April this year, the IAF targeted and killed Hithem Ziad Ibrahim Masshal, a well-known jihadist in the Gaza Strip, who was said to be a member of the MSC. On May 7, Masshal was eulogized by a senior member of the MSC who claimed that he never visited Masshal "without finding his room full with materials for manufacturing and preparing rockets, and the materials of jihad." On Aug. 7, 2013, the MSC released a video to jihadist forums praising Masshal for having "always rolled up his sleeves and used up his time in training the mujahideen to fight and shoot in the Cause of Allah."

Since its formation, the group has released a couple of eulogies for slain al Qaeda leaders. For example, in September 2012 the group released a eulogy to jihadist forums for Abu Yahya al Libi, a longtime al Qaeda leader from Libya, who was killed in a US drone strike in Mir Ali in Pakistan's Taliban-controlled tribal agency of North Waziristan on June 4, 2012. More recently, in mid-July last year, the group released a statement of condolence to al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) after it confirmed the death of its deputy leader, Said al Shihri (a.k.a. Abu Sufyan al-Azdi).

Dr. Abdallah Muhammad al Muhaysini, as pictured on his Twitter feed. Muhaysini spearheaded a reconciliation initiative to end the jihadist infighting in Syria. The proposal mirrored a message from Ayman al Zawahiri that was released hours earlier.

On Jan. 23, Dr. Abdallah Muhammad al Muhaysini, a popular Saudi cleric who has relocated to Syria, announced a new reconciliation plan to end the jihadist infighting in Syria. Over the days that followed, Muhaysini's plan, called the "Initiative of the Ummah," garnered widespread support from jihadist groups.

Among the groups that supported the plan were the Al Nusrah Front, which is one of two official al Qaeda branches inside Syria, and the Islamic Front, a coalition of rebel groups that includes the al Qaeda-linked Ahrar al Sham.

The Al Nusrah Front was, in fact, quick to support the initiative, issuing a statement the following day from the emir of the group, Abu Muhammad al Julani. The initiative is "in our hands, and we call upon it, bless it, and support it," Julani said, according to a translation of his Jan. 24 statement by the SITE Intelligence Group.

The Islamic Front also endorsed Muhaysini's plan. The Saudi cleric even Tweeted the Islamic Front's message supporting the initiative.

But not all groups agreed to the proposition.

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham (ISIS), which is the source of much of the infighting, eventually rejected the initiative. The group appears to have left some wiggle room in the process.

ISIS finally issued a statement on the proposal today, Jan. 27. In its rejection, ISIS complained that Muhaysini's initiative did not draw a firm line between the jihadist rebels seeking to impose sharia and other rebel groups. ISIS also called for a clear policy with respect to jihadist groups that receive support from foreign nations throughout the region. (Several Gulf States reportedly support factions within the Islamic Front.)

It appears, according to The Long War Journal's review of the statement, that ISIS is at least willing to consider resolving its differences with the other groups in a common sharia court -- the key element of Muhaysini's proposal -- if these issues are addressed. ISIS says it will continue to fight anyone who fights it, but the group prefers to focus on Bashar al Assad's forces, as ISIS emir Abu Bakr al Baghdadi set forth in his last message addressing this issue.

ISIS has previously rejected other efforts towards reconciliation.

Muhaysini cited al Qaeda emir Ayman al Zawahiri in his initiative

Muhaysini released his reconciliation initiative just hours after al Qaeda emir Ayman al Zawahiri issued own his message concerning the infighting on Jan. 23. Although Zawahiri did not address any specific groups by name, his words were clearly aimed at ISIS, which has disobeyed Zawahiri's orders.

Zawahiri called on all of the Syrian jihadist groups to submit to a common "sharia arbitration committee" capable of ruling "among different factions on all the accusations leveled by any group against its" jihadist brethren. This committee should also have "a mechanism to enforce" its decisions, according to Zawahiri.

On his official Facebook page, Muhaysini posted a link to Zawahiri's message shortly after it was released. Muhaysini praised Zawahiri's message in that post, as well as subsequent ones.

Muhaysini also then referred to Zawahiri's message in the video announcing his new initiative. The video, which was posted to You Tube, contains English subtitles.

"In the morning, the Mujahid Sheikh Doctor [Ayman al Zawahiri] gave a speech in which he called to the same cause to which we have been intending to call," Muhaysini said. The Saudi cleric says he interpreted Zawahiri's words as "good tidings."

Muhaysini claimed in the video that the disputing parties were not that far off from reconciling their differences. "Today, I have met with all conflicting parties and I heard them to find their views close to each other in [one] way or another," Muhaysini says. "They all agree to resort to Shariah to solve the conflict." (Again, the rejection by ISIS at least conceivably leaves the door open for such a sharia court.)

Muhaysini set forth the details of his plan point by point. He first called for an "immediate cease of fire" throughout all of Syria. The Saudi cleric then called for the "establishment of a legitimate court formed of independent judges agreed upon by all parties." All of the parties that sign the initiative "shall guarantee" the "implementation of the decision by the Syrian court."

Thus, Muhaysini's proposal mirrored Zawahiri's message. Other influential jihadists, including senior al Qaeda operative Abu Khalid al Suri, who is a founding member of Ahrar al Sham, have in the past called for ISIS to submit to common sharia law.

Muhaysini went on to name the groups that he thinks abstained from the infighting. And if candidates from these groups are not picked to staff the sharia court, then others can be selected because Syria is "full of qualified personnel either as scholars or students among the migrants and supporters."

The cleric said he hoped that by today, Jan. 27, ISIS and other affiliated groups would declare their intentions one way or the other with respect to the initiative. Muhaysini also called on the Al Nusrah Front to clarify its stance or "support it verbally," which Al Nusrah's emir did shortly thereafter.

And now ISIS has issued a statement rejecting the proposal, just before Muhaysini's deadline was set to expire.

It is not surprising that Muhaysini's latest initiative was consistent with what much of al Qaeda's network seeks inside Syria. In the past, Muhaysini has praised Osama bin Laden and Mullah Omar, saying that they are proper role models for the Syrian jihadists. His efforts have also been praised by a senior al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) official. [See LWJ report, Popular Saudi Cleric endorses Islamic Front, calls for cooperation with al Qaeda.]

At the end of his video, Muhaysini warned that if the jihadists do not resolve their differences the infighting will lead to "great troubles" in Syria. Ayman al Zawahiri, the Al Nusrah Front, and other al Qaeda-linked factions want such a resolution. ISIS continues to hold out.

In two statements released to jihadist forums today, the Sinai-based jihadist group Ansar Jerusalem (Ansar Bayt al Maqdis) claimed responsibility for an overnight gas pipeline attack in the Sinai as well as the assassination of an aide to Egypt's Interior Minister in Cairo.

General Mohamed Saeed, who worked in the country's Interior Ministry, was killed outside his home early today by gunmen on a motorcycle, Reuters reported. In its statement claiming the assassination, Ansar Jerusalem called Saeed an "apostate criminal." The attack was reminiscent of the group's November killing of Lieutenant Colonel Mohammed Mabrouk, a senior national security officer, in Cairo.

In its latest communique, the group further warned that a similar fate may be forthcoming for army chief Abdel Fattah el Sisi and Interior Minister Mohammed Ibrahim, as well as their aides. In September, Ansar Jerusalem carried out a suicide car bombing in the Cairo area that was an attempt to assassinate Ibrahim. In an October video about the attempted assassination, the jihadist group warned the "leaders of the war against Islam," specifically Abdel Fattah el Sisi, Sedki Sobhi, and Mohammed Ibrahim: "We brought you slaughter, so feel your necks."

Despite Ansar Jerusalem's claim for the assassination of Mohammed Saeed, Egypt's army spokesman alleged today that elements of the Muslim Brotherhood were responsible. Ansar Jerusalem did not comment on a separate attack today near a church in the Cairo area that killed one policeman and injured two others.

Along with claiming the Cairo assassination, Ansar Jerusalem took credit for an overnight gas pipeline attack in the Sinai. Similar to its claim for a Nov. 17 pipeline attack, the group's statement today said that it was targeting economic interests tied to the army and that such attacks would continue.

Since July 3, there have been more than 280 reported attacks in the Sinai Peninsula, most of which were carried out against Egyptian security forces and assets, according to data maintained by The Long War Journal. A good number of these attacks, including the Nov. 20 car bombing that killed 11 Egyptian security personnel, have been claimed by Ansar Jerusalem. This past weekend, Ansar Jerusalem released video of its fighters using a surface-to-air missile to take down an Egyptian helicopter operating in North Sinai. Five Egyptian soldiers were killed in the attack, which has yet to be officially acknowledged by the army, despite the video.

In addition to yesterday's attack, gas pipelines appear to have been attacked only three other times since July 3: on July 7, Dec. 31, and Jan. 17. On July 23, Egyptian media outlets reported that a gas pipeline was attacked, but Egypt's Petroleum Ministry denied the allegations.

Since February 2011, a Sinai gas pipeline that supplied Israel and Jordan with gas has been attacked more than a dozen times. In February 2012, al Qaeda emir Ayman al Zawahiri lauded "the heroes who blew up the gas pipeline to Israel," in a message released to jihadist forums.

Approximately five months later, Ansar Jerusalem released a video in which it took responsibility for 13 of the attacks. In the video, Ansar Jerusalem showed its fighters preparing and planting explosive devices along the gas pipeline, while audio from Zawahiri's February speech played.

Attacks by Sinai-based jihadists, Ansar Jerusalem specifically, have also taken place in the Egyptian mainland. On Sept. 5, the jihadist group used a suicide car bomber in an assassination attempt in Nasr City on Egypt's interior minister, Mohammed Ibrahim. A month later, an Ansar Jerusalem suicide bomber unleashed a blast at the South Sinai Security Directorate in el Tor, which killed three security personnel and injured more than 45. On Oct. 19, the Sinai-based jihadist group targeted a military intelligence building in the city of Ismailia in another car bombing. And on Nov. 19, the group claimed responsibility for the shooting attack on Lieutenant Colonel Mohammed Mabrouk, a senior national security officer, in Cairo. In late December, an Ansar Jerusalem suicide car bombing attack outside the Daqahliya security directorate in Mansoura killed over a dozen people and injured over 130 more. Most recently, Ansar Jerusalem took credit for a series of bombings in Cairo, including a car bombing at the Cairo Security Directorate, on Jan. 24, 2014, that left at least six people dead.

The al Furqan Brigades, which are not believed to be based in the Sinai, have also claimed responsibility for a number of shootings and rocket attacks in the Egyptian mainland since Morsi's overthrow. In contrast to Ansar Jerusalem, the group has yet to claim responsibility for any large car or suicide bombings.

A top official in Ahrar al Sham and the Islamic Front, Hassan Abboud, has sharply criticized the Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham (ISIS) and its emir, Abu Bakr al Baghdadi, in a written statement and audio message released on social media pages.

Ahrar al Sham and the Islamic Front have been engaged in an ongoing and heated dispute with ISIS.

In his written statement, Abboud poses three questions for Baghdadi. The first question chides Baghdadi for rejecting a reconciliation initiative put forward by Sheikh Abdallah Muhammad al Muhaysini. Abboud asks Baghdadi if it is appropriate to reject such an initiative by imposing conditions that are not found in the book of Allah.

Second, Abboud asks Baghdadi if he agrees with the ISIS sharia officials who have "branded Ahrar al Sham and the Islamic Front as infidels." ISIS' habit of labeling other jihadist groups as infidels was criticized in a recent audio message from Ayman al Zawahiri. The al Qaeda emir did not name any specific groups in his message, but he clearly took aim at ISIS.

Sheikh Muhaysini's reconciliation plan, named the "Initiative of the Ummah," was released just hours after Zawahiri's message. And Muhaysini specifically cited Zawahiri's message both in his social media posts and in a video announcing his new proposal.

Third, and finally, Abboud introduces a clever argument that is intended to throw Baghdadi's accusations of apostasy back in his face. In rejecting Muhaysini's initiative, ISIS demanded that the jihadists set forth a clear policy for working with foreign states throughout the region. Multiple factions within the Islamic Front, including Ahrar al Sham, reportedly receive support from Gulf States, either officially or unofficially.

Abboud asks Baghdadi if he agrees with ISIS sharia officials who would brand all of the Taliban "as apostates," and especially Taliban emir Mullah Omar, simply because Omar has said that he desires "good relations with the rest of the world's countries." It is not clear if ISIS officials have made this specific accusation, or if this is simply the logical conclusion of the sharia arguments ISIS has made.

Abboud cites a Tunisian sharia official within ISIS who has apparently argued that if the emir of a group "commits apostasy," then everyone who has "pledged allegiance to [the emir] also becomes an apostate." By this logic, Abboud writes, then al Qaeda emir Ayman al Zawahiri would be "an infidel." Al Qaeda's emirs long ago swore fealty to the Taliban head when it comes to the jihad in Afghanistan.

And if Zawahiri is an infidel, Abboud continues, then so is Baghdadi because ISIS has said that Baghdadi "pledged allegiance" to Zawahiri. It "follows" that all of ISIS must be an "infidel" organization because Baghdadi is its emir.

Abboud argues that if Baghdadi persists in this line of argument, then the ISIS emir would have to "disavow" his previous claims of allegiance and "revert to Islam all over again."

At the heart of the conflict between Baghdadi and the other jihadist leaders is ISIS' exclusionary claims with respect to implementing sharia law within Syria. ISIS and its sharia officials have refused to recognize the legitimacy of officials from other organizations.

Abboud's barbs at Baghdadi are, therefore, a clever way of turning the stances taken by ISIS against the group. According to Abboud's logic, either Baghdadi has made an unreasonable demand in rejecting Muhaysini's proposal, or he must disavow all of the senior jihadists above him, including respected figures such as Mullah Omar and Ayman al Zawahiri.

Abboud's mention of the Taliban is not the first time that Mullah Omar's organization has entered the discussion of how the Syrian rebels should organize themselves.

After Sheikh Muhaysini reviewed and approved the Islamic Front's charter, which was released late last year, the Saudi commented that the jihadists in Syria should view Osama bin Laden and Mullah Omar as their role models. Muhaysini said that bin Laden and Omar were the "vanguards" of the jihad because of the success they had in marrying their organizations in the face of global opposition.

Muhaysini's comparison may be an apt description of the alliances forming inside Syria today. The Al Nusrah Front is openly loyal to Ayman al Zawahiri while working closely with "local" jihadist groups inside Syria, including Ahrar al Sham and the Islamic Front. Moreover, Ayman al Zawahiri's main representative in Syria is a founding member of, and senior leader in, Ahrar al Sham.

However, Abu Bakr al Baghdadi sees himself as the rightful ruler and does not want to share power with anyone.

Two al Qaeda operatives who were associated with a top terrorist leader were among seven jihadists killed in a US airstrike along the Afghan-Pakistan border in December 2013. The al Qaeda operatives were traveling with members of the Afghan and Pakistani Taliban.

The airstrike, which took place on Dec. 13, 2013 in the Lal Pur district of the eastern province of Nangarhar, targeted a boat that was transporting al Qaeda and Taliban operatives on the Kabul River, according to a report in Dunya Online, an Urdu-language newspaper in Pakistan. A translation of the article was obtained by The Long War Journal.

Also killed in the airstrike were three members of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan, and two members of the Afghan Taliban.

"They had held a joint meeting in Nangarhar and they were on their way to Kunar through the Kabul River when the drone attack killed them," Dunya Online reported.

The two al Qaeda leaders were described as "close companions of Ilyas Kashmiri," the renowned Pakistani jihadist who was killed in a US drone strike in South Waziristan in June 2011. Kashmiri rose through the ranks of Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami, or HUJI, led Brigade 313, and ultimately served as the leader of al Qaeda's Lashkar al Zil, or Shadow Army, and as a member of al Qaeda's military shura at the time of his death.

Two US intelligence officials who track al Qaeda in the region told The Long War Journal that two al Qaeda operatives were indeed among those killed in the December 2013 airstrike in Nangarhar. The identities of the al Qaeda and Taliban operatives were not disclosed.

The al Qaeda operatives were commanders in the Lashkar al Zil, al Qaeda's paramilitary unit that fields forces in both Afghanistan and Pakistan and also embeds military trainers within Taliban units in both countries. These trainers provide instruction for battling security forces in local insurgencies, as well as knowledge, expertise, funding, and resources to conduct local and international attacks. [For more information on this unit, see LWJ report, Al Qaeda's paramilitary 'Shadow Army,' from February 2009.]

The Shadow Army receives support from a host of Taliban groups in the region, including the Afghan Taliban, the Mullah Nazir Group, Hafiz Gul Bahadar's Taliban faction, and the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan, as well as a plethora of Pakistani terror groups such as the Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami, Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, Jaish-e-Mohammed, Lashkar-e-Taiban, and Lashkar-e-Jhangvi. The commanders of some of these groups, such as Ilyas Kashmiri (HUJI) and Badr Mansoor (HuM), and Farman Shinwari, have risen to key leadership positions within al Qaeda's Shadow Army.

The US has targeted and killed several of the Shadow Army's top leaders in drone strikes in Pakistan. Among those killed were Abu Laith al Libi, Abdullah Said al Libi, and Ilyas Kashmiri, the former emirs of the Shadow Army.

Al Qaeda and other jihadist groups, including many based in Pakistan, are known to operate in Nangarhar province. ISAF has reported on 32 raids against al Qaeda's network in Nangarhar since 2007, according to a study of ISAF's press releases conducted by The Long War Journal. The last reported raid took place on June 14, 2013.

In late June of 2013, ISAF stopped reporting on its raids against al Qaeda, after completing its transition of security responsibilities to the Afghan National Security Forces. ISAF's halt in reporting on its raids against al Qaeda has shut off information on the targeting of al Qaeda's network in Afghanistan.

A suicide assault team likely from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham, al Qaeda's branch inside Iraq, killed at least 18 people after attempting to storm the Transportation Ministry today.

A heavily armed team of six suicide bombers "took a number of hostages .. and killed nine of them inside the building, which was used to receive visiting delegations," Reuters reported. "It was not immediately known where the other eight victims died."

Iraqi security forces responded and killed the suicide assault team in a firefight. At least one policeman was killed while battling the insurgents, the National Iraqi News Agency reported, and 50 people are said to have been wounded during the assault.

While no group has claimed credit for today's attack, the ISIS is currently the only group in Iraq staging suicide assaults of this magnitude in the Iraqi capital. Ansar al Islam (or Ansar al Sunnah), another al Qaeda linked group that operates in Iraq, occasionally deploys suicide bombers against Iraqi security forces and civilian targets, but has yet to claim what the ISIS calls a "storming operation."

The suicide assault, or coordinated attack using multiple suicide bombers and an assault team, is a tactic that is frequently used in Iraq by the ISIS. Suicide assaults are also commonly executed by al Qaeda and its branches and allied jihadist groups in Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen, Pakistan, Somalia, Egypt, and Nigeria.

Today's suicide assault in Baghdad is the latest in a series of brazen attacks by the ISIS that has enabled the group to overtly seize control of areas of Anbar province in western Iraq. The situation in Anbar began to spiral out of the Iraqi government's control after the ISIS executed a complex suicide operation that decapitated the leadership of the 7th Iraqi Army Division in the town of Rutbah in December 2013. The ISIS laid a trap that killed the commanding general and 17 members of his staff and security detail. The 7th Iraqi Army Division is primarily responsible for security in Anbar.

After the attack, the ISIS took advantage of the political dispute between Sunnis and the Shia-dominated government of Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki. As soon as Maliki ordered the Army to withdraw from cities in Anbar, the ISIS moved forces into the cities. The ISIS remains in control of the city of Fallujah and parts of Ramadi, the provincial capital of Anbar, after storming the cities at the beginning of January. The ISIS controls Fallujah in conjunction with sympathetic Sunni tribes as well as tribes that oppose Maliki. Several towns in Anbar, including Karmah, Saqlawiyah, and Khaladiyah are also controlled by the ISIS. The Iraqi government is hesitant to launch a military operation against the ISIS and is instead encouraging the Sunni tribes to battle the al Qaeda group.

Across the border, in Syria, the ISIS controls territory along the Euphrates River Valley all the way to the provincial capital of Raqqah. Despite an ongoing dispute which has often broken out into open warfare with the Al Nusrah Front and allied Islamists groups such as the Islamic Front, the ISIS remains a formidable forces on both sides of the border.

A senior al Qaeda operative based in Iran and known as Yasin al Suri (a.k.a. Ezedin Abdel Aziz Khalil) is "more active than ever" and facilitating al Qaeda's global operations, Al Jazeera reports.

Al Suri's role as al Qaeda's point man inside Iran was first exposed by the US Treasury and State Departments in 2011. In December of that year, the US government began offering a $10 million reward for information leading to al Suri's capture.

After the US government's revelations, the Iranian government detained al Suri. This led al Qaeda to replace him with another seasoned terrorist, Muhsin al Fadhli, who took over as leader of the Iran-based network.

But now, according to US government officials who spoke with Al Jazeera, al Suri is back in the game and even facilitating al Qaeda's operations inside Syria.

"As head al Qaeda facilitator in Iran, al Suri is responsible for overseeing al Qaeda efforts to transfer experienced operatives and leaders from Pakistan to Syria, organizing and maintaining routes by which new recruits can travel to Syria via Turkey and assisting in the movement of al Qaeda external operatives to the West," an unnamed State Department official told Al Jazeera.

A US Treasury Department official confirmed the revelation, according to Al Jazeera. "He's an al Qaeda operative, Al Nusrah is an al Qaeda affiliate, and we know he's moving money and extremists into Syria for al Qaeda elements there, so I think you can draw that conclusion," the Treasury official said.

Al Suri operates under an agreement that was struck between the Iranian regime and al Qaeda years ago. He first began working inside Iran in 2005.

It is not clear why the Iranian government would allow al Suri to act as a facilitator for al Qaeda's operations inside Syria. Al Qaeda and Iran are on opposite sides of the Syrian war.

Iran is backing Bashar al Assad's regime, a longtime ally of the mullahs, in the bloody sectarian conflict. Al Qaeda's two official branches, including the Al Nusrah Front, as well as al Qaeda's allies, are on the other side, battling Iranian operatives, Assad's forces and proxies. The emir of Al Nusrah, Abu Muhammad al Julani, has verbally attacked Iran and Shiites in general. Other senior al Qaeda jihadists have called for attacks against Shiite-led governments in response to the Syrian conflict. And an al Qaeda-linked group has claimed responsibility for an attack against the Iranian embassy in Lebanon.

The Iranian regime, however, has mastered duplicity and may have unknown reasons for keeping tabs on al Qaeda's operations. Al Qaeda has also been willing to work with Iran on multiple occasions since the early 1990s, despite the two sides' fundamentally different theologies and sometime vehement disagreements.

Al Qaeda's Iran-based network a "core pipeline"

The US government has repeatedly exposed al Qaeda's Iran-based network in a series of terrorist designations and other official filings. And in May 2013, the State Department noted that this network was tied to al Qaeda's operations inside Syria.

In July 2011, the US Treasury Department designated several members of the network, saying it was headed by al Suri and operates "under an agreement between al Qaeda and the Iranian government."

Several months later, in December 2011, the State and Treasury Departments announced a $10 million reward for information concerning al Suri's whereabouts. "Al Suri's network has served as a financial conduit, collecting funds from donors throughout the Gulf and moving those funds via Iran to al Qaeda's leadership in Afghanistan and Iraq," the Treasury Department's Assistant Director of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Eytan Fisch, said at the time. "Al Suri's network also serves as the core pipeline for al Qaeda to funnel operatives and facilitators from the Middle East to Afghanistan and Pakistan," Fisch added.

In February 2012, the Treasury Department designated the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) as a terrorist sponsoring entity for, among other things, supporting al Qaeda and al Qaeda in Iraq's operations.

After Yasin al Suri was replaced, at least temporarily, as the head of al Qaeda's network in Iran, the Treasury Department revealed that his replacement was a Kuwaiti named Muhsin al Fadhli. In an October 2012 terrorist designation, Treasury also said that al Fadhli's deputy is Adel Radi Saker al Wahabi al Harbi, a Saudi who is on the kingdom's most-wanted list.

In its Country Reports on Terrorism 2012, the State Department said: "Iran allowed AQ facilitators Muhsin al Fadhli and Adel Radi Saqr al Wahabi al Harbi to operate a core facilitation pipeline through Iran, enabling AQ to move funds and fighters to South Asia and to Syria."

The Iran-based network moves al Qaeda "external operatives to the West"

The State Department official quoted by Al Jazeera says that al Suri's network assists "in the movement of al Qaeda external operatives to the West." The Long War Journal has documented two cases in recent years in which a terrorist plot in the West has been tied to al Suri's Iran-based operations.

Some of the al Qaeda terrorists selected to take part in a 2010 plot against European cities used al Suri's facilitation network to transit to and from northern Pakistan. The plot, which would have involved Mumbai-style attacks, was thwarted, and afterward leaders of the cell were harbored inside Iran for a time.

In April 2013, Canadian authorities arrested two terrorist suspects who were allegedly plotting to derail a train running from the US into Canada. Royal Canadian Mounted Police Assistant Commissioner James Malizia said that the pair received "support from al Qaeda elements located in Iran" in the form of "direction and guidance." The al Qaeda operatives who supported the operation are reportedly based in the Iranian city of Zahedan, which is one of the main hubs for al Suri and his operatives.

Egyptian officials have alleged that still another plot, targeting the US Embassy in Cairo and other Western interests, involved al Qaeda's Iran-based network. The putative May 2013 plot was tied to a terrorist known as Dawood al Assadi, which is one of the aliases used by Muhsin al Fadhli. Egyptian officials also said that members of the terrorist cell responsible for the plot were in contact with Muhammad Jamal al Kashef, a longtime subordinate to al Qaeda emir Ayman al Zawahiri, as well as with other members of Jamal's network.

Al Qaeda's Iran-based network continues to operate despite the war in Syria.

And now, according to Al Jazeera's sources in the US government, the head of that network is operational once again.

The Al Nusrah Front for the People of the Levant, an al Qaeda branch in Syria, claimed credit for another suicide attack that targeted Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Yesterday's suicide attack took place in Hermel, a city near the border with Syria in the Hezbollah-dominated Bekaa Valley. The suicide bomber detonated a Jeep Grand Cherokee at a gas station in the city, the Daily Star reported. Three people were killed and at least 23 more were wounded in the blast.

The Al Nusrah Front claimed credit for the attack in a statement that was released through its Twitter account, according to the SITE Intelligence Group. The al Qaeda group said that it executed the suicide attack in an effort to get Hezbollah to stop fighting on the side of President Bashar al Assad in the Syrian civil war.

"With the continuation of the crimes by the Party of Iran [Hezbollah] against our vulnerable people in our beloved al-Sham [Syria], and its insistence on sending more of its mercenaries to kill the Syrian people, it did not leave us a choice but to work to stop its massacres and reciprocate on its own ground in order to force it to revise its calculations," the statement said.

Yesterday's bombing in Hermel is the second in the city this year. On Jan. 16, a Nusrah Front suicide bomber killed five people in an attack near a government building during rush hour.

Al Qaeda groups operating in Lebanon have now executed four major suicide attacks and car bombings in Lebanon that targeted Iran and Hezbollah since mid-November 2013. The al Qaeda groups have advocated attacking Iranian and Hezbollah interests in Lebanon due to the former's involvement in the Syrian civil war.

On Nov. 19, 2013, the Abdullah Azzam Brigades took responsibility for the suicide attack outside of the Iranian embassy in Beirut that killed 23 people, including Iran's cultural attache. Just over a month later, Majid bin Muhammad al Majid, a Saudi jihadist who led the group, was captured and then died in custody shortly afterward. The Abdullah Azzam Brigades was established by one of Abu Musab al Zarqawi's lieutenants.

And on Jan. 14, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham claimed credit for the Jan. 2 car bombing in Beirut that killed four people and wounded more than 70. The attack, which may have been executed by a suicide bomber, took place outside of Hezbollah's political office in the neighborhood of Haret Hreik.

The ISIS described that attack as occurring "[a]t a time when the security efforts of the Islamic State were able to break the boundaries and penetrate the security system of the Rafidah [Shi'ite] Party of Satan [Hezbollah] in Lebanon, and to crush its strongholds in the heart of its home in what is called the security zone in the southern suburbs of Beirut on Thursday, 30 Safar 1435H [2 January 2014], in a first small payment from the heavy account that is awaiting those wicked criminals...", according to a statement that was obtained and translated by SITE.