Friday, April 20, 2007
Islamic State of Iraq announces establishment of cabinet
Insurgency
(SITE) - The Islamic State of Iraq announced in a 5:10 minute produced and issued to jihadist forums on Thursday, April 19, 2007, by its al-Furqan Foundation for Media Production, the establishment of the cabinet of the “first Islamic administration”. An individual indicated to be the official spokesman for the Islamic State sits at a desk with his face blurred, naming the ten Ministers in the group’s “cabinet” beneath the emir, Abu Omar al-Baghdadi:
Sheikh Abu Abdul Rahman al-Falahi as First Minister for the Emir of the Believers
Sheikh Abu Hamza al-Muhajir, Minister of War
Professor Sheikh Abu Uthman al-Tamimi, Minster of Shari’ah Affairs
Professor Abu Bakr al-Jabouri, Minister of Public Relations
Professor Abu Abdul Jabar al-Janabi, Minister of Security
Sheikh Abu Muhammad al-Mashadani, Minister of Information
Professor Abu Khadr al-Eissawi, Minister of Martyrs and Prisoners Affairs
Engineer Abu Ahmed al-Janabi, Minister of Oil
Professor Mustafa al-A’araji, Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries
Professor Dr. Abu Abdullah al-Zabadi, Minister of Health
From prior communications from the Islamic State of Iraq and its Emir, the group portrays itself as functioning as a state and governing body, possessing means of taxation and jurisprudence, the Mujahideen acting as arbiters, and providing security to Muslims. This latest propaganda of naming ministers is another step within these actions. The announcement unveiling an "Islamic Cabinet" for Iraq appeared to have multiple aims. One was to present the Islamic State of Iraq coalition as a "legitimate" alternative to the U.S.-backed, Shiite-led administration of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, and to demonstrate that it was growing in power despite the U.S. military push against insurgents.
It also likely sought to establish the coalition's dominance among insurgents after an embarrassing public dispute with other Iraqi Sunni militants. The Islamic State of Iraq is a coalition of eight insurgent groups, the most powerful of them al-Qaida in Iraq. It was first announced in October, claiming to hold territory in the Sunni-dominated areas of western and central Iraq.
Abu Hamza al-Muhajer, the "war minister" is the name announced as the successor of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the leader of al-Qaida in Iraq who was killed in the summer of 2006. The U.S. military and Iraqi government have identified him by another pseudonym, Abu Ayyub al-Masri. The names listed by the spokesman were all pseudonyms and their real names were not known, though the pseudonyms included the names of some major Sunni Arab tribes. The video came on the heels of a rare public dispute between the coalition and other insurgent groups.
Sheikh Abu Abdul Rahman al-Falahi as First Minister for the Emir of the Believers
Sheikh Abu Hamza al-Muhajir, Minister of War
Professor Sheikh Abu Uthman al-Tamimi, Minster of Shari’ah Affairs
Professor Abu Bakr al-Jabouri, Minister of Public Relations
Professor Abu Abdul Jabar al-Janabi, Minister of Security
Sheikh Abu Muhammad al-Mashadani, Minister of Information
Professor Abu Khadr al-Eissawi, Minister of Martyrs and Prisoners Affairs
Engineer Abu Ahmed al-Janabi, Minister of Oil
Professor Mustafa al-A’araji, Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries
Professor Dr. Abu Abdullah al-Zabadi, Minister of Health
From prior communications from the Islamic State of Iraq and its Emir, the group portrays itself as functioning as a state and governing body, possessing means of taxation and jurisprudence, the Mujahideen acting as arbiters, and providing security to Muslims. This latest propaganda of naming ministers is another step within these actions. The announcement unveiling an "Islamic Cabinet" for Iraq appeared to have multiple aims. One was to present the Islamic State of Iraq coalition as a "legitimate" alternative to the U.S.-backed, Shiite-led administration of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, and to demonstrate that it was growing in power despite the U.S. military push against insurgents.
It also likely sought to establish the coalition's dominance among insurgents after an embarrassing public dispute with other Iraqi Sunni militants. The Islamic State of Iraq is a coalition of eight insurgent groups, the most powerful of them al-Qaida in Iraq. It was first announced in October, claiming to hold territory in the Sunni-dominated areas of western and central Iraq.
Abu Hamza al-Muhajer, the "war minister" is the name announced as the successor of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the leader of al-Qaida in Iraq who was killed in the summer of 2006. The U.S. military and Iraqi government have identified him by another pseudonym, Abu Ayyub al-Masri. The names listed by the spokesman were all pseudonyms and their real names were not known, though the pseudonyms included the names of some major Sunni Arab tribes. The video came on the heels of a rare public dispute between the coalition and other insurgent groups.
Labels: Abu Ayyub al-Masri, Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, cabinet, first Islamic administration, Islamic State of Iraq
