Jund al-Khilafah
| Jund al-Khilafah fi Ard al-Jazayer | |
|---|---|
|
جند الخلافة في أرض الجزائر Participant in the War on Terror, and the Insurgency in the Maghreb (2002–present) | |
|
The ISIL emblem in Algeria. | |
| Active | 14 September 2014[1]–present[2](Active)[3][4] |
| Ideology |
Salafist Islamism Salafist Jihadism |
| Leaders | Gouri Abdelmalek †[1][5] |
| Area of operations | Algeria |
| Strength | Several hundred[6] |
| Part of |
 Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant |
| Originated as |
 al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb faction |
| Opponents |
 Algeria France |
Jund al-Khalifah fi Ard al-Jazayer (Arabic: جند الخلافة في أرض الجزائر, meaning Soldiers of the Caliphate in Algeria or Caliphate Soldiers of Algeria)[7] is an Algerian militant group.
After kidnapping a 55-year-old French mountaineering guide, Hervé Gourdel, Jund stated in a video on 22 September 2014 that the kidnapping was a fulfilling of an order of ISIL spokesman al-'Adnani to attack citizens of countries fighting with the U.S. against ISIL.[8]
On 24 September 2014, Jund al-Khilafah claimed to have beheaded Hervé Gourdel.[8][9][10]
History
Under al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb
Jund al-Khilafah was previously a faction of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, the Al Qaeda affiliate in North and West Africa.[11] AQIM grew out of Algerian Islamist groups that had fought in the 1990s Civil War.[11] Abdelmalek Gouri (who would later lead Jund al-Khilafah) was formerly the "right-hand man" of Abdelmalek Droukdel, who was the leader of AQIM. Gouri was also part of an AQIM cell responsible for suicide attacks on the government's headquarters and the UN compound in Algiers in 2007. He was also behind an attack in Iboudrarene in April 2014 that left 11 Algerian soldiers dead.[11]
As Jund al-Khilafah
On 14 September 2014, the leader of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) in the central region, Khaled Abu Suleiman (nom de guerre of Abdelmalek Gouri), announced in a communique he was breaking allegiance with al-Qaeda and took an oath of allegiance to the leader of Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. He was reportedly joined by an AQIM commander of an eastern region of Algeria. He claimed that other members of AQIM had "deviated from the right path" and declared to al-Baghdadi "You have in the Islamic Maghreb men who will obey your orders."[12]
Timeline
- April 2014: Jund al-Khilafah Ambushes Algerian army convoy, killing 11 Algerian soldiers.
- 14 September 2014: Jund al-Khilafah leader Khaled Abu-Suleiman announces the group's split from Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, and pledges allegiance to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, leader of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
- 21 September 2014: Hervé Gourdel is abducted by Jund al-Khilafah in the Djurdjura National Park in Algeria.
- 22 September 2014: Jund al-Khilafah releases a video showing Hervé Gourdel being held captive. The group stated that the kidnapping was in response to France conducting Airstrikes against "Islamic State" and threatened to behead him if France continued to carry out airstrikes against ISIL.
- 24 September 2014: The group releases a video purporting to show the beheading of Hervé Gourdel. The militants shown stated that the beheading was in response to the order of ISIL spokesman Abu Mohammed al-Adnani, in which he called on followers to attack citizens of member nations of the anti-ISIL coalition.
- October 2014: One of the Jund al-Khilafah militants responsible for the beheading of Hervé Gourdel was killed in an Algerian military operation in October.[13]
- 11 December 2014: The Algerian justice ministry states that Algerian soldiers had killed two Jund al-Khilafah members believed to have been involved in the murder of Hervé Gourdel.[11]
- 20 December 2014: Algerian soldiers kill three Jund al-Khilafah members in the mountains near Sidi Daoud.[11]
- 22 December 2014: Jund al-Khilafah leader Abdelmalek Gouri and two other militants were killed by the Algerian army in a military operation in Issers. Afterwards, troops recovered two automatic rifles, explosive belts, and a large amount of ammunition and mobile phones.[11]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Algeria's al-Qaeda defectors join IS group". Al Jazeera English. 14 September 2014. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
- ↑ Masi, Alessandria (13 November 2014). "ISIS Leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi Allegedly Alive, Announces Expansion Of Islamic State Caliphate". International Business Times. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
- ↑ Zelin, Aaron Y. (14 November 2014). "ISIS Has Declared The Creation Of Provinces In Several Arab Countries". Washington Institute for Near East Policy. businessinsider.com. Retrieved 31 December 2014.
- ↑ Zelin, Aaron Y. (14 November 2014). "The Islamic State's Archipelago of Provinces". Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Retrieved 31 December 2014.
- ↑ Deaton, Jennifer Z.; Hanna, Jason (23 December 2014). "Algeria: Leader of group that beheaded French hiker is killed". CNN. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
- ↑ "Al-Qaeda map: Isis, Boko Haram and other affiliates' strongholds across Africa and Asia". 12 June 2014. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
- ↑ "Hollande blasts ‘cowardly’ murder of French hostage in Algeria". France24. 24 September 2014. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Jund al-Khilafah in Algeria Beheads French Hostage in Video". SITE Intelligence Group. 24 September 2014. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
- ↑ "Algerian extremists behead French hostage". Associated Press. 24 September 2014. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
- ↑ "IS-linked terror group Jund al-Khilafah behead French hostage Herve Gourdel, who was kidnapped in Algeria on Sunday". News Corp Australia. 25 September 2014. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 11.5 "Algerian army 'kills top jihadist'". BBC News. 23 December 2014. Retrieved 23 December 2014.
- ↑ Chikhi, Lamine (14 September 2014). "Splinter group breaks from al Qaeda in North Africa". Reuters. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
- ↑ "Algerian army kills suspect in beheading of Frenchman Hervé Gourdel". France 24. 26 October 2014. Retrieved 30 November 2014.