Besieged Islamic State terrorists in eastern Syria on Wednesday called on jihadists around the world in general – and Europe in particular – to carry out attacks to avenge their devastating losses.
The once mighty group tried to define itself for the future ahead of the end of its once vaunted “caliphate”, depicting its crumbling domain as the one place ruled by “God’s law” and promising it would one day be victorious.
The exhortation came in an audio recording and video released online by militants said to be inside the village of Baghouz, where they have been besieged for weeks and, in the past few days, under stepped up assault and bombardment by the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces.
In one minute and a half long message, an unidentified Islamic State militant calls on Muslim “brothers, in Europe and in the whole world” to “rise against the Crusaders and … take revenge for your religion.” As the man speaks, cracks of gunfire can be heard in the background, apparently meant to suggest that he is in Baghouz. He said men, women and children in Baghouz are being subjected to a “holocaust by the Crusaders,” which is militant jargon for the U.S.-led coalition against IS.
In another video, a militant identified only as Abu Abdul-Azim talks the camera as he and his comrades eat soup — likely intended to show that the fighters still have food. A young boy sits next to him.
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