IS calls for jihad, martyrdom during Ramadan

I didn’t have a chance to post this on Tuesday – they weren’t joking were they!

Baghdad (AFP) – Islamic State group spokesman Abu Mohammed al-Adnani called on Tuesday for Muslims to engage in jihad and become martyrs during the holy fasting month of Ramadan. 

“The best acts that bring you closer to God are jihad, so hurry to it and make sure to carry out the invasion this holy month and be exposed to martyrdom in it,” Adnani said in an audio message posted online. “These are your weapons and this is Ramadan.”

Adnani also announced a “last chance” for tribesmen, soldiers and police, calling on them to “repent” and surrender their weapons as a sign of good faith. He singled out the Jughaifa tribe that is besieged in the town of Haditha, saying it faces utter destruction if it does not surrender. If they do not “repent”, then “for generations those passing Haditha will say: ‘The Jughaifa were here, and their houses’.”

As IS has previously executed hundreds of security personnel and tribesmen who opposed the group, it is unlikely that many will take up the offer.