Turkish Al-Qaeda network targets Israel, Arab regimes and Europe after victory in Syria

Abdallah Bozkurt/Stockholm

A man who is a spokesman for Turkey's al-Qaeda network and has a long history of working with Turkey's intelligence agency MIT said Syria's victory signals the imminent downfall of Israel, Spain and Arab States. He acknowledged Turkey's central role in what he described as Syria's revolution, while describing conciliatory remarks made by the new jihadist leaders as shrewd political maneuvers to avoid mistakes made by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (IS).

In an interview job On his YouTube channel on December 22, Abdulkadir, a radical figure who has escaped numerous terrorism investigations in Turkey, offered insight into the mindset of the jihadist group that now controls Damascus and much of the Syria. He presented his predictions on evolving global jihad tactics, new targets and the central role played by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's Islamist government in supporting and facilitating the jihadist campaign.

“The message of this [Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, HTS] the revolution is directed against [Egypt’s President Abdelfattah] al-Sisi and Israel,” he said, adding: “Afghanistan was first, Syria is second. From now on, we don't know where it will go, but I say: “See you in the new revolution.” »

He predicted that events in Syria would be repeated in other countries. “Revolutions are contagious,” he said, adding: “I believe that in the coming period there could be movements in new places, starting with Yemen. »

en issued a warning to Jordan and Egypt, predicting major conflict if they oppose Syria's new leaders. He stressed that both countries are already in a fragile position due to widespread discontent among their populations with their regime. He further claimed that recent developments in Syria were triggered by Hamas' military actions against Israel and predicted that the Israeli government would ultimately have no choice but to enter into negotiations with Ahmed al-Sharaa (Abu Mohammed al-Jolani) in Syria.

The remarks underscored al-Qaeda's long-standing aspirations to expand its campaign to Europe. Recalling his first Friday prayer at the iconic Umayyad Mosque in Damascus shortly after HTS took control of the city, he noted that worshipers performed the Andalusian nasheed (song) after the prayer. Not only Palestine, but eyes and minds were turned towards [Spains] Andalusia too. Imagine that. We lost Andalusia six or seven centuries ago, and yet it remains etched in our minds, he said, alluding to the symbolic meaning of Andalusia when Spain was ruled by Muslims in the ideology of the group.

fr expressed his gratitude to the Erdogan government, saying: “If Turkey had not intervened in this process [the Syrian conflict] In 2016, by concluding agreements with Russia, sending troops, creating buffer zones or carrying out patrols, this revolution would have ended. If they had not provided such support [to HTS and other jihadist groups]it would have been over.

“If Turkey had not been involved, this revolution would not have happened. There is no doubt about it,” he stressed, saying that the people he spoke with in Syria shared the same view.

He reiterated Erdogan's remarks comparing Syrian and Palestinian jihadists to the Kuvay-i Milliye, the irregular militia that was instrumental in Turkey's war for independence after World War I, a symbolic comparison aimed at elevating the position of jihadist groups in the eyes of the Turkish public.

Commenting on Al-Sharaa's conciliatory remarks, he called them shrewd tactical moves. I think Jolani is pursuing a sound political strategy. He plays with nuances, not just black and white; there are shades of gray in between. Whoever plays well with these gray tones wins, and that's what he's trying to do. It works to reduce enemies, gain advantages and repel damage, he said.

He is playing a very clever political game. Some people seem to want Jolani to declare war on the whole world, on Israel, America, Europe, Russia and others, just like ISIS did in Iraq and Syria. Then, of course, the whole world would gang up on him, he said.

En and his associates are apparently aware of the challenges facing the jihadist group in Syria, which is not yet eager to intensify its campaign, preferring first to establish strong bases in Syria and consolidate its power. Therefore, the moderate remarks of Syria's new leaders appear to be a tactic to buy time rather than a fundamental change in their ideology.

En collaborated with Turkish intelligence services, alongside his brother Brahim En, a former Gitmo detainee and recognized al-Qaeda activist. The two Al-Qaeda cells, operated jointly in Turkey, facilitated the movement of jihadists towards Syria from 2011 and provided them with resources, with the help of the Turkish Intelligence Organization (Milli stihbarat Tekilat, MIT).

Brahim En was arrested in Pakistan due to his links to Al-Qaeda and transferred to Guantanamo, where he was held until 2005, when US authorities decided to hand him over to Turkey. According to a 2014 investigation by Turkish police, he had been working with the Turkish MT since the start of the Syrian crisis in 2011, contributing to efforts to overthrow Bashar al-Assad's regime in line with the political goals of Erdogan's government.

Although the two brothers, members of a secret, close-knit al-Qaeda cell in Turkey, were the subject of terrorist investigations, Erdogan's government intervened in 2014, ending those investigations. Prosecutors and police chiefs who had investigated the illegal activities of MIT, which collaborated with the Al-Qaeda network to fuel the Syrian civil war, were subsequently punished.

From a 2014 terrorist investigation into a Turkish al-Qaeda network operating in Syria, which identified Abdulkadir Sen and others:

Abdulkadir_Sen_network_terror_probe_Redacted

According to the 2014 investigation file, a copy of which was obtained by Nordic Monitor, Brahim En operated in Syria in close coordination with his brother Abdulkadir, who was responsible for providing necessary equipment to Al-Qaeda jihadists in Syria. Abdulkadir also traveled to Syria on several occasions to take part in armed clashes alongside his brother, according to wiretaps obtained as part of a terrorist investigation under file number 2012/1361.

Abdulkadir also used various front NGOs to transport much-needed supplies to jihadists under the guise of humanitarian aid. One of these NGOs was the Global Center for Humanitarian Aid and Political Training (Kresel nsani Yardm ve Siyasi Eitim Merkezi, or KSEM), while another was the Foundation for Human Rights, Freedoms and Humanitarian Aid (nsan Hak ve Hrriyetleri ve nsani Yardm Vakf, or HH), an Islamist organization that works closely with Turkish intelligence services to provide logistical support for Al-Qaeda's global operations.

Abdulkadir ens' involvement was also uncovered during the investigation into the murder of Russian Ambassador to Turkey Andrei Karlov in December 2016. The dossier revealed that Mevlt Mert Altnta, a 22-year-old jihadist police officer, s It was inspired by a book titled “Tm Ynleriyle Suriye Devrimi” (The Syrian Revolution in All Its Aspects), written by Abdulkadir. The assassin had traveled to Istanbul on October 8, 2016, two months before the assassination of the Russian envoy, to meet him in person. The meeting was organized by Enes Asm Silin, a 31-year-old al-Qaeda suspect who had been in communication with the killer for some time.

Much like during the 2014 Al-Qaeda investigation, the Erdogan government protected Abdulkadir from any involvement in the investigation into Karlov's murder. Following government directives, prosecutor Adem Aknc, who drafted the indictment in the Karlov murder case, decided to drop the investigation into the two men. He recorded his decision not to prosecute in the indictment filed on November 22, 2018. Instead, the prosecutor attributed the murder to a group critical of the Erdogan government, without providing any evidence to support the accusation .

Today, Abdulkadir travels across Turkey, gives lectures on the jihadist ideology of Al-Qaeda and presents the Syrian conflict as a success for jihadist groups. He is officially on the payroll of the Turkish state-run Mu Alparslan University as a lecturer and is listed as a postdoctoral researcher at Qatar's Hamad Bin Khalifa University and a member of the Foundation of Qatar for Education, Science and Community Development.

The HTS takeover in Syria has emboldened various jihadist groups in Turkey, particularly Al-Qaeda and its affiliated or splinter factions. Neither police nor prosecutors dare to take action against these groups, which appear to be protected by the Erdogan government due to their secret collaboration with the Turkish intelligence agency MIT.