WILAYAH NEWS VOICE OF THE GLOBAL AWAKENING
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Exclusive: Believed to be the first jihadi defection to the Islamic State outside of Middle East, move emphasis growing influence of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi’s self-declared caliph and the wanning hold of al Qaeda
A Pakistani terror group has become the first in the region to break ranks and declare allegiance to the Islamic State that has seized power across Iraq and Syria.
It represents a breakthrough for Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi as he tries to win support for his caliphate, potentially extending his influence into South Asia and bolstering his challenge to al-Qaeda for leadership of the global jihadist movement.
Little is known about the Tehreek-e-Khilafat group other than that it has claimed responsibility for a string of attacks in Karachi.
This week it pledged to raise the Islamic State’s flag in South Asia and Khurasan – the historic name used by Islamist militants for an area covering Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Using the poetic language often favoured by jihadist groups, it said in a statement: “From today, Sheikh Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi shall consider Tehreek-e-Khilafat and Jihad mujahideen fighters of Pakistan as one of the arrows among his arrows which he has kept for his bow.
“We are praying from the almighty Allah to give us chance in our lives to see the expansion of Islamic State boundaries toward the SubContinent and Khurasan region in order to hoist the flag of Islamic State here.”
It is thought to be the first group beyond the Middle East to have offered support.
Pakistan is home to dozens of militant groups with greater or lesser ties to al-Qaeda or the Taliban.
Tehreek-e-Khilafat and Jihad is considered part of the Pakistan Taliban, an umbrella movement linked to al-Qaeda containing dozens of terrorist groups, racketeers and sectarian outfits.
Its statement was passed on through trusted sources.
Saifullah Mehsud, of the Fata Research Centre which monitors activity in Pakistan tribal areas, said he expected more militant groups to follow suit.
“This seems to be the in thing now. If you monitor social media, as I do, all the talk is about the Islamic State rather than al-Qaeda,” he said.
“All the chatter is about Baghdadi – negative and positive.”
Analysts believe the latest generation of fighters has only known al-Qaeda on the defensive. Osama bin Laden was shot dead in Pakistan three years ago and its current leaders are all but invisible as they dodge drones in the country’s tribal areas.
In contrast, the Islamic State, as it is now known, has seized hundreds of square miles in Iraq and Syria.
Al-Qaeda formally distanced itself from the group earlier this year, chiding it for its lack of teamwork in its aggressive, brutal expansion.
As it did so, it snatched power not just from local administrations but also al-Qaeda, undermining its claim to be the pre-eminent Islamist terror force.
That tension has sent warnings echoing around the world that what is left of al-Qaeda may try a spectacular terror attack on the West in order to wrest back the initiative.
Source: The Telegraph
