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| Arabia |
| Al-Qaeda statement on the al-Hesbah network |
| 2006-04-05 |
| Al-Qaeda in Saudi Arabia issued a communiqué yesterday, April 3, 2006, which concerns both the recent arrest by Saudi security officers of forty suspects accused of abetting terrorist activity in the state, and their impact on the jihadist Internet community, specifically, the al-Hesbah network. The group states that all claims made by the Saudi government that those arrested managed the group’s statements and multimedia presentations are fallacious. Rather, these people are argued to have little influence and the announcement of their arrest is only to scare the supporters of the mujahideen from using the Internet. In addition, al-Qaeda in Saudi Arabia promises to “bring the worshippers good tidings of the surprises that will be released soon, especially a chain of blood that will heal the chests of the believers and irk the infidels and hypocrites.” Concerning the al-Hesbah Internet network, the group states that reports linking the forum and purported “infiltrators” to fallen mujahideen in Yarmouk are false, and al-Hebsah has “provided great services to the jihad and the mujahideen”. The message states: “We warn the supporters of the Jihad and the Mujahideen to lend no weight to those who are trying to rend the ranks of the Mujahideen and bring fear to their supports.” Al-Hesbah, before going down on Friday, March 17, 2006, used by thousands of members, was one of the primary forums used by al-Qaeda, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi’s al-Qaeda in Iraq and other insurgency groups in Iraq, and myriad terrorist organizations that have a presence on the Internet. Membership to the board became very selective over time, employing lengthy screening procedures and member oversight, rarely opening new registration for even limited access, and utilizing passwords. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |