As Israel continues to wage attacks on Gaza, a 2014 viral video is making the rounds on Indonesian social media and according to security sources, is being used as an attempt to encourage jihadis to travel to Gaza to fight against Israel.
A security specialist dedicated to monitoring Indonesian terror networks said the video appeared on jihadist WhatsApp chat groups on Monday morning and was still circulating on Tuesday.
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In the video, a group of Malaysian militants can be seen standing outside a house in an unidentifiable location in Syria, and are waving weapons during Eid celebrations.
The man recording the video praises God and claims that Malaysian mujahideen have been called upon to participate in an operation for defense or attack. He also states that this may be the last video, hinting that the group may be on its way to martyrdom.
The Malaysian militant ends the video by wishing Eid to all members of his family and the people of Malaysia.
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As per a senior Malaysian security source, the video by the mujahideen had been produced in 2014, and almost all the men in it were now dead, except for the fighter who filmed the footage.
“The person who took the video eventually returned home in August 2014. We have arrested and charged him. He is still serving his prison sentence,” said the source. “The video has re-emerged maybe to create jihadist sentiment among Malaysians against the Israeli attacks in Gaza.”
However, the sources also believe that the video will not succeed in encouraging jihadis in the region to head for Gaza as the militants in the WhatsApp video preferred going to Syria because of the attractiveness of the caliphate, and Gaza is not fighting for the caliphate, it is fighting for the Palestinians who are suffering due to Israeli atrocities.
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Recently, the Gaza Health Ministry announced 213 people, including almost 36 women and 61 children, had been killed in Gaza by Israeli attacks over the past week.
Palestinian Ministry of Health-Gaza
Update:
19-5-2021\9:30 AM
Two hundred and nineteen (219) Palestinians have so far been killed, including 63 children, 36 women, and 16 elderly people, while 1530 are wounded due to the ongoing Israeli attacks on Gaza Strip.#GazaUnderAttackk— Palestinian Ministry of Health- Gaza (@mohenglish3) May 19, 2021
Despite a call for a cease-fire by President Joe Biden, Israel is adamant to launch an offensive aimed at permanently destroying the capabilities of the armed factions of Hamas and the militant group Islamic Jihad.