The NEFA Foundation has obtained and translated a new selected article from the official magazine of Al-Qaida’s network in Yemen, “Sada al-Malahim”—in this case, featuring an interview with most wanted Saudi Al-Qaida operative Nayif bin Mohammed al-Qahtani (a.k.a. Abu Hummam al-Qahtani).
During the interview, al-Qahtani acknowledged that he had recently sought sanctuary in neighboring Yemen, explaining, “there is one [united] land of the Muslims, and it does not acknowledge the narrow borders drawn by the colonialists with the cooperation of our treacherous rulers…
However, the true secret of my arrival in Yemen is the search for good military preparation.” When asked why he had chosen the jihad in the Arabian Peninsula over Afghanistan or Iraq, al-Qahtani outlined his “military rationale”:
“if the enemy's interests in the Arabian Peninsula were devastated, his access to our petroleum interrupted, and the oil refineries put out of order, this would cause the enemy to collapse—and they won’t merely be forced to withdraw from Iraq and Afghanistan, but moreover would face a total collapse. If [our enemy] were to be struck hard in various places, then he would scatter, turn around, and flee forlornly from the land of the Muslims, with his tail between his legs.”
A translation of the interview can be accessed on the NEFA Foundation website. |