WarSclerotic

On March 19, 2012, a terrorist opened fire on the Jewish school Ozar Hatorah in Toulouse, France. As of this writing, the suspected gunman, 24-year-old Muhammad Merah, is holed up in a nearby apartment building, with French police still attempting to negotiate his surrender.

Merah, a French-Algerian who spent time training in jihad camps in Pakistan and Afghanistan in 2010 and 2011, told the French authorities that the shooting was to avenge the deaths of Palestinian children. He also claimed responsibility for the March 15 murder of three French soldiers, which he said was due their role in the Afghanistan war.

Merah claims to belong to Al-Qaeda, and, indeed, appears to be a member of the French Al-Qaeda branch Fursan Al-‘Izza (“The Knights of Glory,” spelled in French, “Forsane Alizza”).

Following is an overview of this group:

Fursan Al-‘Izza Affiliated with Global Shari’a Movement

For its logo, Fursan Al-‘Izza uses Al-Qaeda’s well-known black flag, and is ideologically aligned with the worldwide shari’a movement calling to Islamize Western states and societies by implementing shari’a law, exalting the word of Allah, abolishing democratic states, and replacing them with Islamic regimes.[2]

The group’s leaders include Abu Hamza, aka Mohamed Achamlane, who used the handle “Cortex” on Islamic forums. Abu Hamza, 33, hails from the French city of Nantes, is fluent in both Arabic and French, and identifies himself as Fursan Al-‘Izza’s spokesman. He was set to stand trial on June 24, 2011, in Limoges for incitement, and for publicly trampling a copy of the French Penal Code while saying: “This is the book that should be burned,” apparently in a reference to Koran burnings spurred by American pastor Terry Jones. Another man, Oueri Neba, was to stand trial along with Abu Hazma for antisemitic comments he made at a McDonald’s restaurant in Limoges.[3]

Another central figure in Fursan Al-‘Izza, who used the handle “MedMed,” described himself as living in Caen, France.[4] He is the creator of Fursan Al-‘Izza’s official website[5] and a longtime active member of France’s Islamist forums.[6]

Fursan Al-‘Izza has supporters and members in Limoges, Caen, Paris (specifically in the 17th district and the immigrant suburb La Courneuve), and Toulouse, the scene of the shooting. In one of the group’s videos, it is shown holding a public meeting, which it says are held weekly and intended to “confront unbelievers” and provide “Islamic reminders [of a Muslim’s duties].”[7]

Fursan Al-‘Izza’s pages on Facebook[8] have been closed down several times. For this reason, the group is mainly active on Mon-islam.com, a comparable social network used by France’s Islamist community.[9] It also maintains a Twitter page.[10]

A recent Fursan Al-‘Izza video calls on “all Arab countries to boycott France and its products, and to teach them a lesson” by “pushing France a little deeper into the [economic] rut it has dug for itself,” until it repeals its laws banning the niqab and hijab. The video opens with the slogan “Restore the Caliphate,” and ends with the slogan “Disavow the idol of democracy.”[11]

“The future is Islam”[12]

Fursan Al-‘Izza Participates in Islamist Demonstration against France’s Burqa Ban

On April 4, 2011, Fursan Al-‘Izza, along with other Islamist groups like Jama’at Al-Tawheed, Sharia4Belgium, and Sharia4UK, announced that it would take part in an April 9 demonstration in Paris’s Place de la Nation against the French law prohibiting full concealment of the face – the so-called burqa ban – which went into effect on April 11.[13] The French authorities ultimately revoked the demonstration’s permit and broke it up, arresting several participants.

Following is a summary of the events:

Online flier for the April 9 demonstration: “The ummah is awakening!”

On April 3, 2011, Sharia4Belgium issued a video in which its leader, Abu Imran, aka Fouad Belkacem, responded to the France-based Jama’at Al-Tawheed’s call to participate in an April 9 demonstration against France’s so-called burqa ban, by affirming that he would, indeed, be in Paris to take part. Abu Imran also called on Carla Bruni to divorce French President Nicolas Sarkozy and to don the niqab. He asked Allah for the strength to hoist the black flag of Al-Qaeda atop the Elysée Palace. On April 6, MEMRI TV posted the video, with English subtitles, on its site.[14] On April 7, Jama’at Al-Tawheed’s website featured both the Sharia4Belgium video as well as another video, in which UK-based Islamist Anjem Choudhary, head of Sharia4UK, said he would also attend the April 9 demonstration in Paris.

On April 8, the demonstration, which had until then been authorized by the police, was banned on the grounds of “possible violence and turmoil.” Anjem Choudhary and Abu Imran were arrested en route to Paris, as were 19 niqab-clad women on their way to the Place de la Nation. One of these women was carrying an “illicit weapon.”[15]

This entry was posted on March 21, 2012 at 4:31 PM and is filed under Uncategorized. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments. You can comment below, or link to this permanent URL from your own site.