Overview
Daesh propaganda claimed attacks in Afghanistan, Iraq, the Philippines, Somalia and Syria. Al-Naba, released on 6 July, included: an infographic featuring claimed statistics of Daesh operations between 28 June and 5 July; photos of two captives, described as Libyan officers; and an article stating that the current losses suffered by Daesh are a starting point for future success – as similar losses were back in 2007.
A 26-minute video, Barqah Province branded and released on 4 July, showed footage of suicide attacks in Libya. Homs Province announced the death of al-Baghdadi’s son, although this was not mentioned in al-Naba.
Other outlets included: commentary on the death of the son of al-Baghdadi; a French pro-Daesh group issued a poster warning of future attacks; a Daesh affiliated network warned against false social media accounts; posters were circulated on Telegram threatening the White House; and a media group promoted a Daesh affiliate in Kashmir.
Video honouring death
The ‘Barqah Province’ released a 26-minute video titled “The point of death” on 4 July via Telegram. The message is one of promoting death and martyrdom. It starts with archive footage of a speech of Donald Trump in which he supports an oil-driven foreign policy and says he is only interested in Libya for the oil. Further, it shows US jets bombing unspecified locations, claimed to be in Libya. It features messages from suicide bombers praising death before carrying out their attacks, although no specifics on date and place of these attacks are given. The video ends with an English subtitled speech of Daesh spokesperson al-Muhajir to Libyan fighters and footage of clashes and beheadings.
The death of Al-Baghdadi’s son announced
Daesh news outlets on Telegram circulated a poster, labelled as part of a series called ‘Caravans for Martyrs’, announcing the death of al-Baghdadi’s son in fighting in Homs Province in Syria. The statement did not specify when he died, but stated that he was killed during an attack against the Syrian Army and the Russians (an attack that has not been claimed by Amaq nor Homs Province).
Daesh supporters have used this announcement as a way to promote the sincerity and intentions of the group. Others have used the picture of al-Baghdadi’s son to symbolise the Daesh’s leader’s words about pursuing the group’s enemies to the death.