Zawahiri Issues Orders to “Strike Everywhere” in Revenge For Gaza

By Evan Kohlmann


The NEFA Foundation has obtained and translated a new audio recording from Al-Qaida Deputy Commander Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri released on January 6 and titled, “The Massacre of Gaza and the Siege of the Traitors.” During his address, Dr. al-Zawahiri condemned the ongoing Israeli raids in Gaza and blamed the actions of Israel on Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and incoming U.S. President Barack Obama: “These attacks are the gift of Obama to you, before he shall receive his position… this is Obama, whom the American machinery of lies attempted to portray before the world as the deliverer, who would change the policy of the U.S. He is killing your brothers and sisters in Gaza without any mercy or compassion.” As a consequence of the U.S. role in the events in Gaza, al-Zawahiri called upon Al-Qaida supporters around the world to carry out indiscriminate revenge attacks on American and Israeli interests: “O’ Muslims everywhere, fight against the Zionist-Christian campaign, and strike its interests wherever you encounter them… attack the Zionist-Christian alliance and its interests. O’ lions of Islam everywhere, the leaders of the Muslim lands are the protectors of the interests of the Americans and Zionists… so thwart the efforts of these traitors by striking the interests of the enemies of Islam—namely, the Christians and the Jews—wherever and by whatever means you can.”

An English transcript of Zawahiri's remarks can be downloaded from the NEFA Foundation website.

January 9, 2009 05:52 AM Link

Afghans sign up to fight Israeli troops in Gaza
Thu Jan 8, 2009 By Hamid Shalizi

KABUL (Reuters) - More than a thousand Afghans signed up on Thursday to say they wanted to go and fight Israel in the Gaza Strip, many of them blaming the United States which has some 30,000 troops in Afghanistan, for supporting the Jewish state.

Accusations by Taliban militants and some Muslim clerics that Israel and its main ally, the United States, aim to destroy Islam have a strong impact on public opinion in Afghanistan, where Washington plans to almost double its troop numbers this year.

Scores of young men crowded into the library of Kabul's Milad ul-Nabi mosque, lined with banners reading "Death to Israel" and "Death to America," to sign up to fight Israel.

"More than a thousand brave Afghans registered their names here to fight Israeli troops in Gaza," said Habibullah Assam, the imam of the mosque and organizer of the campaign.

"Several hundred Afghans, including doctors and teachers, have also volunteered to give blood to help the miserable people of Palestine," he said.

"The acts of Israel against the innocent Muslims of Gaza are barbaric and inhumane and widely helped by the Americans," Assam said, adding that nearly 10,000 people across Afghanistan had so far volunteered to fight in Gaza.

One Afghan at the mosque said he fought in Chechnya in the 1990s after being trained by the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba Islamist militant group which India says is behind the Mumbai attacks.

"I have the military training and I will do whatever possible to go to Gaza to at least fire one bullet toward Israel," Mohammad Ayaas said. "I will be the luckiest person to die beside my Muslim brothers fighting for an honorable cause."

The 13-day Israeli operation against Hamas in Gaza led to protests in Afghanistan last week.

While reaching Gaza from Afghanistan is all-but impossible, many of the volunteers said they would take revenge on U.S. troops inside Afghanistan instead.

"Infidels are killing Muslims everyday and the United States is saying Israel's offensive is just," said Mohammad Akram, a shopkeeper. "If we can't reach Gaza, we should seek revenge on Israel's allies in our own country like the Taliban do."

U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan are struggling to contain a virulent Taliban insurgency to expel them and topple the Western-backed Afghan government.

U.S. President-elect Barack Obama has vowed to make Afghanistan a foreign policy priority once he comes to office on January 20.

(Editing by Sugita Katyal)

© Thomson Reuters 2008. All rights reserved.

White House 'Very Concerned' About Gaza Situation

yeah, the White House is concerned, sure Bush is.
It is so obvious he gave the go-ahead, and the fighting will stop the end of the coming week.

How coincidental.