ISIS In Gaza?
Hundreds of Islamic militants in Gaza consider themselves to be acting under the banner of ISIS, a top Islamic militant in the Gaza Strip claimed to KleinOnline.
The information could not immediately be corroborated, and a spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces declined to comment on a possible ISIS presence in Gaza.
Some reports last week indicated that Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis, Egypt’s most active Islamic militant organization, swore allegiance to ISIS.
The group, highly active in the Sinai and along the Sinai-Gaza-border, is partnered with Ansar al-Sharia Bayt al-Maqdis, a Salafi jihadist group in the Gaza Strip.
Reuters reported that the Egypt-based Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis released a statement announcing, “After entrusting Allah, we decided to swear allegiance to the emir of the faithful Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, caliph of the Muslims in Syria and Iraq and in other countries.”
Reuters reported the Egyptian Ansar had previously told the news agency that it sought inspiration and advice from ISIS.
However, a report by the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War claimed the Reuters article was based on statements falsely attributed to Ansar.
“This is not the first time that false statements have been attributed to Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis, and this probably false report may be related to the group’s recent prominence in conjunction with the suicide attack targeting Egyptian security forces in the Sinai,” stated the Institute for the Study of War.
“Egypt is facing real and very serious threats emerging from its territory, but Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis joining forces with ISIS is not yet one of them.”
A separate Al Jazeera article reported that Abu Khatab, the leader of the Gazan-based Ansar, released a video declaring that his group “supports ISIS morally and financially and in terms of preaching.”
The Gazan Ansar is ideologically aligned with Al Qaeda. It often releases statements in opposition to Hamas, complaining that Gaza’s rulers have abandoned their Islamic jihadist ideology.