JIHADI MEDIA FOUNDATIONS ON FACEBOOK AND TWITTER

By: Mansour Al-Hadj

Inquiry & Analysis #1004 | August 5, 2013

Middle East Media Research Institute

www.memri.org | www.memritv.org

All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. 2013 by The Middle East Media Research Institute. Published in 2013 in the United States of America by The Middle East Media Research Institute, P.O. Box 27837, Washington, D.C., 20038-7837 www.memri.org

Introduction
Media foundations connected to jihadi groups and jihad-supporting organizations, which once released their productions videos, statements, and more over jihadi forums, have turned to social media websites, mainly Facebook and Twitter, because of these forums' inability to provide reliable means for communication, interaction, and publication due to constant and often lengthy disruption of their online presence. This report will discuss official and unofficial jihadi media foundations' presence on Facebook and Twitter, and will identify the foundations' accounts and provide background information regarding their affiliation and activities. Part II of this series, to be published in the near future, will focus on the Facebook and Twitter accounts of jihad-supporting clerics, preachers, and scholars who support jihad as well as prominent writers in jihadi forums. Part III will profile Facebook and Twitter accounts related to jihadi groups.

Categories Of Jihadi Media Foundations

The jihadi media foundations with Facebook and Twitter accounts can be divided into two main categories: official and unofficial. The official accounts represent the groups with which they are affiliated, while the unofficial ones, which might be linked to one or more groups, do not. However, whether official or unofficial, the media foundations are run by members of militant jihadi groups, members of non-militant pro-jihad groups, or by independent supporters of jihad who believe in the importance of the mission of jihad.

Media Foundations Connected To Militant Jihadi Groups

As mentioned, media foundations connected to militant jihadi groups have increased their presence on social media websites, especially after the jihadi forums began experiencing lengthy and repeated disruptions. Official and unofficial Facebook and Twitter accounts of media foundations related to Al-Qaeda-affiliate groups and others, such as Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and the Syria-based Jabhat Al-Nusra ( JN), have been actively using these social media sites for communication, interaction, and publication of their productions. Normally, jihadi groups announce the launch of their media wings' official accounts on social media websites; for example, AQIM and Ansar Al-Islam released official statements when they began using Twitter.[1] Al-Andalus, the media wing of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), and the media office of the Iraq-based Ansar Al-Islam, also recently launched Twitter accounts, issuing statements that they did so. There are dozens of Facebook accounts that are unofficially connected to jihadi media foundations, including for Al-Furqan, the media wing of the Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham (ISIS), and for Al-Malahem, the media wing of AQAP, for which there is also at least one unofficial Twitter account. Both Twitter and Facebook are full of unofficial accounts bearing the names of jihadi media foundations. However, even though they are unofficial, they can still be linked to one or more groups. In fact, some accounts clearly state that they are unofficial, in order to avoid suspension by the social media as officially linked to designated terrorist organizations for example, the Facebook page bearing the name of ISIS's media foundation Al-Furqan doesn't state that it is an official account despite its connection with the group. There are also a number of unofficial Facebook and Twitter accounts in the name of the AQAP media wing Al-Malahem, and some are linked to the group.

Media Foundations Of Non-Militant Pro-Jihad Groups

Also active on Facebook and Twitter are media foundations of groups known as non-militant pro-jihad groups, whose names often include the terms "Salafi-jihadi" or "Ansar Al-Sharia" (i.e. "Supporters of Sharia"). These media foundations produce and pubJihadi Media Foundations On Facebook And Twitter

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lish their own productions as well as content previously released by militant jihadi groups on their own social media accounts. Active accounts belonging to media foundations of non-militant pro-jihad groups include Al-Bayan, connected to Ansar Al-Sharia in Egypt; Al-Raya, connected to Ansar Al-Sharia in Libya; and Al-Hijratayn, connected to the Salafi-jihadi movement in Sudan. The official Facebook account of Al-Bayariq, the media foundation of Ansar Al-Sharia in Tunisia, has been suspended.

Independent Media Foundations

These media foundations are created and run by individuals who support jihad and believe in the importance of the role these foundations play, but who are not associated with any particular group. The main goal of these foundations is to republish jihadi content, thus making it available to a much wider audience. Independent media foundations are often created by members of jihadi forums who are skilled in media production as well as in social media. These members often post articles with instructions and tips for spreading jihadi content. Recently, a number of online jihadis launched a Twitter account called Al-Battar to post jihadi content from all groups. In their announcement, which was posted on Al-Fida', a leading jihadi forum, they described the account as a "jihadi media squad." Active independent media foundations that have accounts on Facebook and Twitter include the Gaza-based Ibn Taymiyya Center, Al-Ma'ali, Fursan Al-Balagh, Isnad Media, and Nukhbat Al-I'lam Al-Jihadi ( Jihadi Media Elites).

Media Foundations Use Different Tactics For Facebook and Twitter

Because Facebook and Twitter have different tools and characteristics, the media foundations use them differently. While they use Twitter for communication and interaction, and for releasing new productions when trusted forums are offline, they mostly treat Facebook as a venue for storing previously published content Jihadi groups appear to be approaching Facebook more cautiously. Although there are many jihadi media foundations with a Facebook presence, one main issue preventing Al-Qaeda-linked groups from opening official accounts is Facebook's suspension policy it actively suspends prominent official and unofficial accounts that violate its terms and conditions. Last year, Facebook suspended the official account of Jabhat Al-Nusra, the AQAP-linked Madad agency, and dozens of jihadi pages. Twitter, on the other hand, has suspended accounts belonging to Al-Shabab[2] and Jabhat Al-Nusra, but only once, and it has allowed them to remain when they relaunch.[3]

Ofcial And Unofcial Facebook And Twitter Accounts Connected To Jihadi Media Foundations Official and Unofficial Facebook Accounts Connected To Militant Jihadi Groups

Jihadi Media Foundations On Facebook And Twitter

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This unofficial Twitter account for Al-Sahab, Al-Qaeda's media wing, was created June 28, 2013. It is dedicated to publishing all Al-Sahab-produced content. Among the latest tweets posted by this account are the most recent video by American Al-Qaeda operative Adam Gadahn and others.

Al-Furqan Foundation's Facebook account, an unofficial page of the media foundation of the Islamic State in Iraq and Al-Sham (ISIS), was created May 28, 2013. Content posted on this page include statements, images, and videos of recent developments on jihadi fronts, namely Iraq and Syria. In a recent post, the account's administrator encouraged online jihadis to comment, share, and "like" the page so that it would not be suspended.

Riyah is the official media company of the Gaza-based jihadi group Ma'sadat Al-Mujahideen, which is known for its undocumented claims of responsibility for rocket attacks against Israel as well as for forest fires in both Israel and the U.S.[4] On July 20, 2012, Riyah announced the launch of an official page on the social networking site Google+; the account is no longer accessible due to suspension.[5]

Jihadi Media Foundations On Facebook And Twitter

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@Almalahem_media is an unofficial account for Al-Malahem, the media wing of AQAP, and was created November 16, 2012. Most of the tweets posted on this account, which has over 700 followers, are links to releases of productions previously released by Al-Malahem. @Almalahem_media follows two accounts @ansar_alshari3, another unofficial AQAP account, and @Andalus_Media, the official handle of AQIM.

@TUBE_Q is another unofficial account bearing the name of AQAP's media foundation Al-Malahem. This account, which was created April 14, 2013 and is followed by more than 750, exclusively publishes AQAP content. All the accounts followed by @TUBE_Q are either media foundations or official accounts of jihadi groups such as @bentaymia, @alfaroqmedia, @fursanalbalaagh, @JbhatALnusra, and @Andalus_Media.

The Al-Andalus media foundation, launched March 28, 2013,[6] is AQIM's official media wing. With over 7,500 followers, this account, which is AQIM's Twitter handle, has been responsible for announcing upcoming productions and releasing new ones before they are posted on jihadi forums. @Andalus_Media follows 10 Twitter accounts, among them @HSMPRESS1 (Al-Shabab), @JbhatALnusra, and @AnsarShariaa_tn (Ansar Al-Sharia in Tunisia). This account was the first to be recognized as an official account on Twitter by Al-Fajr, AlQaeda's most trusted media foundation.

Jihadi Media Foundations On Facebook And Twitter

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@JbhatALnusra is the official account of this Syria-based jihadi group, whose media wing is called Al-Manara Al-Bayda'. Its first tweet dates back to June 7, 2012. In its first tweets, the group stated that its official accounts on social media sites are secondary sources, and that the jihadi forums Shumoukh Al-Islam and Ansar Al-Mujahedin Arabic Forum (AMAF) are the primary venues for its statements and productions. It also said that Al-Manara Al-Baida'a media foundation is the only representative of Jabhat Al-Nusra.

Al-I'tisam foundation is another media wing officially affiliated with ISIS. Recently, Al-I'tisam obtained a membership in the leading jihadi forum Shumoukh Al-Islam.[7] So far, all the materials released by this foundation have carried the logo of Al-Furqan, which is the main media wing of ISIS. AlI'tisam's Twitter account @e3tsemo, which has more than 3,000 followers, was created July 9, 2013.

Media Foundations Of Non-Militant Pro-Jihad Groups

Al-Bayam Media Foundation is the media wing of the Egyptian Salafi-jihadi group Ansar Al-Sharia. Its official Facebook page, created March 3, 2013, is filled with articles by senior members of the group as well as with other jihadi productions. Its official Twitter page, @Ansarshare3a, was launched on June 12, 2012. The vast majority of its tweets are article written by senior leaders in the group.

Jihadi Media Foundations On Facebook And Twitter

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This is the official Facebook account of Al-Rayah Foundation for Media Productions, which is the media wing of Ansar Al-Sharia in Libya. After dissolving their armed brigade last year, this group has adapted a peaceful Da'wa-based approach.[8] According to its Facebook page, this account was created on January 20, 2013. Al-Rayah uses this account to publish announcements for Ansar Al-Sharia activities, reports about them, and images, videos and posters about these events.

Al-Hijratayn Foundation for Media Production is associated with the Salafi Jihadi movement in Sudan, a number of whose leaders and members were detained while being trained in a camp in preparation for waging jihad abroad.[9] Earlier this year, Al-Hijratayn produced a video documenting the escape from a maximum-security prison in Sudan of the group that assassinated U.S. diplomat John Michael Granville. On June 23, 2013, Al-Hijratayn announced that the leading jihadi forum Shumoukh Al-Islam would be the exclusive source of its productions. Content posted on Al-Hijratayn's Facebook page includes productions of its own as well as of other jihadi media foundations. The same is true for its Twitter account, @hijratain_media, which was created January 28, 2013 and has over 600 followers. The number of posted tweets, 21 thus far, indicates that this account has not been active.

Al-Farouq is a media production foundation associated with the Salafi-jihadi movement in Egypt. Its publications include articles, speeches, and interviews of prominent leaders in the movement. Its Twitter account, @alfaroqmedia, launched February 18, 2012, includes dozens of Facebook links to publications produced by Al-Farouq; however, all the accounts to which they link have all been suspended. The only Twitter account which @alfaroqmedia follows is @Ghonim, the official handle of well-known Egyptian activist Wael Ghonim who contributed to igniting the revolution in Egypt.

Jihadi Media Foundations On Facebook And Twitter

Independent Media Foundations

Ibn Taymiyya Media Center (ITMC) is an independent production foundation based in Gaza. It publishes content for the Salafijihadi group Jama'at Al-Tawhid Wal-Jihad of Gaza. This account, created April 23, 2013, has published all ITMC statements, videos, and announcements. @bentaymia is the official ITMC Twitter account. Established in December 2011, this foundation has been very active in covering issues related to Salafi-jihadi groups in Gaza.[10] Since joining Twitter on August 26, 2012, @bentaymia has been publishing its statements and video productions, some of which criticize Hamas' treatment of Salafi-jihadi figures.[11]

@Al-nukhba is the official account of Nukhbat Al-I'lam Al-Jihadi (Elites of Jihadi Media), a media foundation created by online jihadis to redistribute content previously published in the forums. Since its creation on March 31, 2011, this jihadi account, which has nearly 5,000 followers, has been actively disseminating jihadi content from nearly all Al-Qaeda affiliate groups and radical clerics. The most recent tweets by the group include links to the most recent issue of the AQAP English-language magazine Inspire, last week's audio statement by Al-Qaeda's emir, and a speech by AQAP's military commander. The group's Facebook page, which has over 2,300 likes, includes photos from different jihadi fronts, videos from various media foundations, and posts encouraging jihad. According to the page's "About" section, this account was created on March 30, 2013.

Jihadi Media Foundations On Facebook And Twitter

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@fursanalbalaagh is the official Twitter handle of the jihadi media foundation Fursan Al-Balagh. Al-Balagh, established April 18, 2012,[12] launched its Twitter account January 1, 2013.[13] Since then, @fursanalbalaagh has posted 182 tweets, most of which include links to jihadi productions. Last February, Al-Balagh invited experienced online jihadis to join its ranks.[14]

Al-Tiryaq is an independent media foundation that is active on Facebook; it posts jihadi materials by various groups, with a special focus on JN and ISIS. On its Facebook page, which was created May 21, 2012 and has over 6,380 "likes," Al-Tiryaq features an image of prominent Tunisian Salafi scholar Abd Al-Hakim Mansouri, and a call for his release from prison in Tunisia.

Al-Ma'ali production foundation, which produces its own videos, is associated with ISIS. Since its May 17, 2013 creation, AlMa'ali has been very active in posting news and materials related to ISIS and its activities in Iraq and Syria. Its Facebook page has nearly 4,000 "likes." Despite its clear association with ISIS, whose logo appears on its page, Al-Ma'ali states that it is an "independent" foundation. At least one Al-Ma'ali-produced video has featured children firing in the air and shouting "Allah Akbar." As of this writing, AlMa'ali has no Twitter account.

Jihadi Media Foundations On Facebook And Twitter

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Baqiya is an independent media foundation which supports ISIS. All the posts published on Baqiya's Facebook and Twitter accounts are related to ISIS and its military and social activities in Syria. The official Facebook page of the Baqiya foundation, which produces its own videos, was created July 15, 2013. Its Twitter account, @Baqiya_Media, which has more than 1,600 followers, was launched July 10, 2013. Although its YouTube account, which has more than 230 subscribers, is still active, the only video that the foundation produced was removed for "violation of YouTube's policy on violence."

Created July 17, 2013, Al-Battar media squad was launched by online jihadis to publish jihadi productions, news, and books, as well as to participate in hashtags and support jihadi accounts on Twitter. @AL_Bttaar, which has more than 1,500 followers, is run by five individuals who take turns keeping the account active around the clock. The email address provided for contacting the account managers is albttaar5@gmail.com.

Himam News Agency, an independent media foundation based in Syria, is associated with JN. This foundation, which produces its own material, has an official YouTube channel and Facebook account. So far, its YouTube channel, which contains eight videos documenting social and humanitarian activities such as cleaning up streets and food distribution, has 81 subscribers. Its Twitter account, @Hemm_Agency, which has more than 1,100 followers, was created July 7, 2013. According to tweets that it has posted, the foundation focuses on covering the daily lives of Muslims in general and jihadis in particular, including their victories, their creative ideas, and their social activities. * Mansour Al-Hadj is director of the Reform in the Arab and Muslim World Project at MEMRI. Endnotes:
[1]

See MEMRI JTTM report AQIM Launches Its Official Twitter Account, Threatens To Kill French Hostages, March 28, 2013.

Jihadi Media Foundations On Facebook And Twitter

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[2]

See MEMRI JTTM report Twitter Suspends Al-Shabab Al-Mujahideen's English Twitter Account, January 25, 2013. See MEMRI JTTM report Following Its Suspension Last Month, Al-Shabab Relaunches English Twitter Account, February 4, 2013. See MEMRI JTTM report Palestinian Jihadi Group Claims Responsibility For Fire In Residential Building In Israel, February 1, 2012. See MEMRI JTTM report Jihadi Group Embraces 'Google Plus' As Additional Means Of Disseminating Its Propaganda, July 20, 2012. See MEMRI JTTM report AQIM Launches Its Official Twitter Account, Threatens To Kill French Hostages, March 28, 2013. See MEMRI JTTM report ISI Subsidiary Media Company Al-I'tisam Releases Video Showing Signs Of Support For Jabhat Al-Nusra, March 3, 2013. See MEMRI JTTM report Libyan Ansar Al-Shari'a Group Lays Down Its Arms In Favor Of Da'wa-Based Approach, October 16, 2012. See MEMRI JTTM report Social Media Campaign Calls For Release Of 30 Sudanese Jihadis Who Aimed To Join Jihadi Fronts, July 1, 2013. See MEMRI JTTM report New Jihadi "Ibn Taymiyya Media Center" Established, December 21, 2011.

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

See MEMRI JTTM report Ibn Taymiyya Media Center Calls For Pressuring Hamas Government To Release Imprisoned Leader Of Gazan Salafi-Jihadi Group, April 13, 2012.
[11] [12]

See MEMRI JTTM report New Jihadi Media Group Announces Its Establishment, April 19, 2012. See MEMRI JTTM report Now On Twitter, Facebook: Jihadi Media Foundation Fursan Al-Balagh, January 9, 2013. See MEMRI JTTM report Online Jihadi Media Company Fursan Al-Balagh Reaches Out For New Recruits, February 25, 2013.

[13]

[14]

Jihadi Media Foundations On Facebook And Twitter