Al-Rajhi Bank

This year Al-Rajhi Bank started operations in neighboring Kuwait and more recently in Jordan, where it was granted a license by the Central Bank of Jordan last year to open a branch in Amman. This is a far cry from only a decade or so ago when the bank was renowned for its insularity, parochialism and conservative approach to banking - both in terms of geographic expansion and product innovation. Even in more recent years, Al-Rajhi Bank was a notable absentee from the flourishing global sukuk market, for instance, both as an originator and as investor on the grounds that its Shariah Board was not satisfied with the structures of the sukuk on offer in the market.

The rationale then was that the bank's balance sheet was large enough and very profitable and therefore there was no need to venture beyond the shores of Saudi Arabia and into exotic products whose Shariah-compliance was contentious. This was symptomatic of an institution which had the audacity (or the folly some would say) to take the entire risk of the SR800 million Al-Shuaiba Power Plant (Eastern) on its books by refusing to sell down the financing to others or through a syndication.

However, the breakthrough came in 2010 when Al-Rajhi Bank collaborated with Cagamas Berhad, the National Mortgage Corporation of Malaysia and leading securitization house, to develop and launch the Sukuk al-Amanah Li al-Istithmar (Sukuk ALIm), which was the underlying structure for Cagamas's RM5 billion Islamic Commercial Paper (ICP) and Islamic Medium Term Note (IMTN) program.

This "first-of-its-kind" and "innovative" structure was sold to investors in Saudi Arabia and is a manifestation of Al-Rajhi's new-found strategy of bridging the gap and facilitating cross-border activity in the Islamic capital market between Malaysia and the Middle East.

Al-Rajhi Bank of course traces its roots to its trading and money changing operations established in the Kingdom in 1957 by the founder Saleh bin Abdul Aziz Al-Rajhi and his brothers. In 1987 the group's money changing business was consolidated into a joint stock holding company and a full-fledged Islamic bank, Al-Rajhi Banking & Investment Corporation (ARABIC), which is regulated by the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA). It has since then been transformed into a mega bank complete with name change to Al-Rajhi Bank with total assets of around $46 billion and a paid up capital of $4 billion, and employing some 7,500 people and serving more than 3.25 million customers largely in Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Kuwait and Jordan.

The link with Malaysia has several important implications and will also impact on Al-Rajhi Bank's approach in doing business in Kuwait and Jordan. Over the last two years there has been much talk about setting up mega Islamic banks with a paid-up capital of between $1 billion to $5 billion. Saleh Kamel of Albaraka Banking Group (ABG) has been championing such an institution but without much success because ABG was expecting others to contribute much of the equity.
Saleh passed on the project to the Islamic Development Bank, which has commissioned Ernst & Young to do a third consecutive feasibility study on the viability of such a mega bank. Last year, Bank Negara Malaysia announced that it plans to give licenses for three mega Islamic banks to qualifying promoters on condition that the paid-up capital was a minimum of $1 billion and of course subject to the provisions of the Islamic Banking Act 1983.

The reality is that while these other projects are pretenders, Al-Rajhi Bank is the original Islamic mega bank. The fact that it is now creeping out of its shell and expanding abroad augurs well for the Islamic banking industry.

Its expansion into Malaysia is a unique success story of how a foreign bank can successfully penetrate a new market and take on some of the major domestic players in the commercial banking market. Al-Rajhi Bank's strategy in Malaysia was based on a sound strategy, patience, requisite resources and initial product offerings and the right leadership. In the space of a mere few years Al-Rajhi Bank Malaysia has expanded with over 24 branches and an ATM network with over 21,000 POS installed throughout the country. In terms of product innovation it recently launched a physical gold-based investment product and is expanding into the equities market - all with the aim of bridging the GCC/Middle East and Asia markets.

There are those who would like Al-Rajhi Bank to expand even faster as the torchbearer of a successful mega Islamic bank with the capacity, products and services, and the resources of the likes of the conventional banking majors. The other Islamic banks that have the potential of becoming mega banks include Dubai Islamic Bank, Kuwait Finance House (KFH), CIMB and Maybank. Dubai Islamic Bank has been plagued by two major scandals since it was established as the world's first commercial Islamic bank in 1975. KFH has the potential but it has had corporate governance issues and its business has been affected in the aftermath of the global financial crisis. CIMB and Maybank, while the two biggest banks in Malaysia, have not ventured abroad in any meaningful way.

Its foray into Jordan has other implications for it will compete with Jordan Islamic Bank (JIB), which was established in 1978 as one of the pioneering commercial Islamic banks, and with Arab International Islamic Bank (AIIB), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Arab Bank Group. Al-Rajhi Bank has already opened two fully operational branches in Amman - one in Shmeisani and another in Abdullah Ghosheh Street, with more branches expected to be launch in the near future at various locations nationwide.

With its edge in resources and product suites, the Bank threatens to provide stiff competition to the other two Islamic banks, JIB and AIIB. The bank, for instance, is now the only one in Jordan to offer a Murabaha-based personal finance product that also allows customers to consolidate debts in a single installment.

According to Tarek Akel, regional manger of Al-Rajhi Bank in Jordan, the bank is a manifestation of the group's commitment to establishing a global Islamic banking network, and is eager to bring its varied array of Islamic banking solutions to the Jordanian market. The aim is to introduce quality products and services specifically tailored to meet the demands of the local market.

]The dominant market position of JIB, one of the unassuming success stories of Islamic finance, is likely to remain uncontested over the foreseeable future. But once Al-Rajhi Bank Jordan consolidates its operations and position in Jordan (like the group did in Malaysia), the bank's market share inevitably will increase. JIB is a relatively smaller bank than Al-Rajhi Bank and AIIB is inextricably linked to the group Islamic banking strategy.

Jordan is also constrained by the size of its economy and financial services sector.
As such, with their huge experience in Islamic finance, Jordanian Islamic banks should be the natural gateway for Islamic finance in the Palestinian Territories and perhaps more importantly to Iraq and Syria. While the former two are still mired in political deadlock in their respective situations, Islamic finance is starting to make genuine inroads into Syria, where the Central Bank has already authorized five Islamic banks. However, with the street protests in Syria set to continue, the financial sector there is also in retreat.

The Rest @ Arab News

7 Steps 6 Years later Islamist Plans in Africa:

As a follow up to:

• An Islamic Calpihate in Seven Easy Steps I wrote in September 2006
• Seven Steps Three Years Later I wrote in 2008

I wanted to summarize the status of the plan as it has been implemented in Africa, and how it might look in the future, with some ways to shut it down.

The Global Caliphate Movement in Africa has always worked in three tier depth:

1. Da'wa (education, radicalization) very deep battle
2. Equipping of local Salafist Rebel Groups or political parties
3. Jihad (al Qaeda and other Salafist rebel fighting groups)

There has been a succesful attrition of top Jihad leaders world wide, and this will continue,

but Jihadica suggests that priority for al Qaeda resources, for now, will be to leverage the Arab Spring uprisings to move the "Apostate States" toward Sharia, with an emphasis now on Syria. This was always one of al Qaeda's Objectives (See 7 Steps) .

In Africa it will be a bit different.

Da'wa Tier

Targets: South Africa, Malawi, Angola, Madagascar, Namibia even Botswana

This is the most overlooked assault on Africa. Salafi teachers and large Mosques in Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt and even the west develop relationships in Countries with tiny minority Muslim populations, or in areas with Sufi Muslim areas. These wealthy mosques, underwritten by very large and well known Muslim Charity NGOs send teams of young people into countries to teach the Salafi way. This radicalized both the visotr and the visited. Salafism lays the religious fundamental groundwork that in generations to come will produce Mujahadeen and then martyrs.

What seems to have happened in Africa is that these seed-planter mujaheddin are operating under much more scrutiny than before.

The best option here is to make sure someone locally listens to the teachings, records the names of the organizations and people who are teaching Jihad or global caliphate doctrine during their da'wa. Then, track their movements.

Equipping Tier

Targets: the Congos, Cameroon, Gabon Tanzania, Malawi (Until recently Nigeria) Now, Libya, Egypt, (Syria and Yemen are not in Africa, but fall into the Equipping Strategy) It is possible that South Africa will soon have strong Muslim political parties supported by outsiders.

There are established Minority Muslin Communities here, these communities haves strong ties and support from outside Salfist communities. Though many of their local practices are not yet strictly fundamental Salafi Islam, Their is a flow of Muslim money and business that comes from outside. They fund political opposition parties, and often train militias or send key local Muslim leaders to other countries for Jihad.

Jihad Tier

• Sudan: A Base for Global Jihad - A picture of what Islamic Emirates would try to do if in power- They share borders with 9 ohter countires, and have tried to destabilize them all except Egypt. Lots of traing camps running there
• Eritrea: Supporting Jihad against Ethiopia and in Somalia

• The Horn of Africa: Al Shabaab is fighting Jihad in Somalia, trying to export it to Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, and is training many foreign fighters there.

• The Sahel: Al Qaeda in the Magharebia (AQIM) is fighting in Niger, Mali Mauritania, Western Sahara, Morocco, Algeria. Recently rearmed , acquired SA-7 Anti Aircraft shoulder fired missiles from Libya Rebels. Multi-national cooperation against them has been recently successful, but they

• Nigeria: Boko Haram (Nigerian Taliban) has recently moved from The equipping tier into fighting Jihad, the third tier. Located in the Northern Nigeria Border territories, they are now fighting in Nigeria, attacking south into the Christian districts. They have provided training to leaders from at least one rebel group in Cameroon.

In this three tiered battle to bring all of Africa under a global Caliphate :

At the deepest Daw'a tier level:

Governments need to exposing the connections of tier one actors to Tier three child murdering groups. Like cutting off the blood supply to a growing a cancer, this will starve the Jihad to death by cutting of recruits. Not much is being done to fight this battle, and it is the healthiest tier so far. Recruits are growing from all over Africa.

At the mid-level Equipping Tier:

An accurate list of political groups being supported by al Qaeda related funders needs to be developed, shared and released to press groups. Training of Armed Groups should be attacked militarily, bringing the second tier groups into the the third tier before the fighters are skilled, and the units well trained.

At the Front line tier, Jihad:

Continue to develop Human Intelligence, forensic financial investigation, exposure of hidden individuals to the public, and continue to hit leaders where ever they are, which has been the most successful front to date.

The West has made inroads in developing partnerships with African countries to fight the Third Tier, Jihad, but that has simply brought the fight up to even in Africa. In this next phase African countries will have to decided if they have stomach for a sustained fight against the 7 Step strategy.

In the second tier he West seems to have refocused assets working to identify the players through their financial transactions to work outside of Africa. This must change now just to know who all the players are and where they are active. Then they can add them to the watch lists.

In the first Tier Dawa, just read the people and organizations in Alms for Jihad, the book the Saudi family got squashed. It is still out there. Email me if you don't have it - Most of the players and organizations are still alive and well and working in Africa.

-Shimron Issachar

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Khilafah Teaching Exposes Al Qaeda Battle Strategy

This Post from Muslims in Kenya is a great example of Islamist Dawa about the Khilafah The Author takes real facts and history, gives a legitimate point of view about the role the West has played in the fall of the last Khilafah. He then he distorts the time line, throws in Palestinian occupation, and blames the West and Jews for planting Nationalism into the Ummah, which works against the Khilafah.

His next points are directly along Islamist radicilisation party lines, He accuses, without adequate support:

• Impotent Secular Pan - Arab Entities
• Islamic Armies held at bay by Secular Arab Country Leaders, unable to help the Mujaheddin in countries all over the world
• The Crime of privatisation of Muslim Resources around the world that belong to the Ummah (oil, for example)

Then, his main point:

" However, the signs of awakening for the return of the Khilafah are now clear for all to see....."

It is here He exposes al Aqeda's current strategy:

• The proof of this can be seen in the growing gulf between the rulers and the ruled; (Create dissention in Secular Islamic States between their leaders and righteous Muslims -Manufacture a Crisis)
• the speeches and Khutbahs in universities and mosques throughout the Muslim world that call for a sincere and rightly guided Khilafahto lead the Ummah; (The radicalisation- Propose the Khilafah as the solution to the Ummah)
• witness the mass demonstrations against the bombing and killing of innocent Muslims by US and UK forces in Karachi, Jakarta, Hebron, Dhaka and other places; (Manufacture Demonstrations and Riots to destabilize secular Arab Regimes)
• the increasingly brutal methods and oppression that the regimes are forced to use to quell the desire for political change such as in Egypt and Uzbekistan. (Provoke a harsh response from secular leaders)
• It can also be seen by the actions of the colonial powers who realise that the rulers they imposed upon the Muslim world have no support and no legitimacy, hence they are forced to resort to occupying Muslim lands and cementing their presence through military bases. (convince left - leaning politicians in the west that Muslims just want to be left alone)
• The global reawakening for Khilafah can also be seen in the desperate and pathetic attempts by the regimes and their scholars, who they have bought for a cheap price, to malign, slander and attack the idea of Khilafah. ( malign, slander and attack anyone who suggest that Khilafah proponents are manipulating the Ummah toward unleashing the armies of Islam across the world )
• They lie by saying that the Khilafah cannot be established in the modern age, that Islam and politics do not mix, that sectarian differences are too great, that the western powers are too powerful and that the Ummah of Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم can never be unified. (Now he is reduced to calling everyone a liar)

The most interesting context for this post is that blog appears is targeted @ Kenya Mulims, and appears to have emerged in early 2007 when the radicalisation of Northern Kenya Muslims was undertaken; it is further interesting that He has other posts that suggest inside information about what al Shabaab's war activities, the Terrorist Islamist group, connected to al Qaeda. Al Shabaab's stronghold is right across the border from the Target group for this propaganda.

-Shimron

here is the article....

The 3rd of March is a date that is etched into the history of the Muslim Ummah as one of its darkest days ever. It was on this date in the fateful year of 1924 CE that the last vestige of legitimate Islamic rule was ended. The office of Khilifah was abolished by the treacherous Mustafa Kamal and the Muslim Ummah has since then been plunged in to darkness and humiliation. Thus any trace of the Uthmani Khilafah was extinguished as the 101st Khaleefah of Islam, Abdul Mejid II was exiled from the now secular Republic of Turkey.

His banishment from the land of Anatolia with little more than a suitcase and some cash was the beginning of the humiliation that the Muslim world has suffered to this very day. With what was described as the shield of the Muslims by the Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم - now in exile, the Ummah was set to be subjected to numerous tragedies that would involve against it murderous wars, foreign occupation, economic strangulation, political manipulation as well as a cultural colonialism that sought to distance the Muslim world from the concept of Islamic ruling and the obligation of living under the Khilafah.

With the sole legitimate leadership of the Muslims, the Khilafah, destroyed the lands of Islam were divided in to numerous statelets and disputed territories. These new entities were established along the lines of ethnicity, sectarianism and racism by the colonialist powers of the day in an attempt to ensure that Muslim Ummah would never rise again.

Nationalism that was nurtured by the colonialists in the run up to the destruction of the Khilafah helped to ensure that these new entities would remain at loggerheads, never to think of uniting again. In addition, the blessed land of Palestine was occupied, its inhabitants dispersed so as assuage the West’s guilt and a great injustice was committed in establishing the state of Israel.

Any attempts to replicate the power of a unitary leadership of the Muslim world were replaced by pathetic and impotent bodies such as Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC).

These organisations were designed to perpetuate disunity and division as they preserved the borders and barriers betweens Muslims that the colonialists had established. These states have never had the interests of Islam and the Muslims at heart. This can be seen to this day, as the OIC and Arab League issue countless resolutions on issues such as Palestine and Iraq without ever actually doing anything to change the status quo. These resolutions are but lip service by the insincere leaders of these entities to the cause of Islam, designed solely to pacify their Muslim populations into thinking that Islam cannot solve the Ummah’s problems.

These rulers have committed far more heinous crimes against the Muslims than simply issuing empty resolutions.

Western colonialism put in place a motley crew of dictators, monarchs, autocrats and downright puppets that have served their colonial masters in a manner more loyal than their own populations.

Successive rulers have betrayed the interests of Muslims. With their brutality and lack of self-respect seemingly having no limits, the Muslim rulers are falling over themselves in an attempt to please. For example,

• Qatar today hosts the largest airstrip in the Middle East, to be used exclusively by the US Air Force to bomb Muslim lands and control the skies of the Middle East.
• Bahrain, which previously hosted the naval forces of the British Empire, now serves as the base for the US Navy’s 5th Fleet.
• Almost every nation in the Muslim world today has facilitated the military aims of the various colonial at some point.
• Present day Pakistan, in a clear contradiction of General Musharraf’s own motto of “Pakistan First”, is engaging in a war with his own people whilst compromising the sovereignty of the country in allowing US troops to act with impunity. Deploying his powerful military not to defend Muslims from aggression, he has made the Pakistani Armed forces nothing more than mercenaries. They are forced to act as mercenaries by the regime for some paltry economic aid for a corrupt government whilst the blood and honour of their brothers and sisters is violated on a global scale.
• Due to these tyrannical rulers the armies of the Muslim world have been held back, shackled to their bases, unable to come to the aid of their brethren in
• Chechnya,
• the Balkans,
• Kashmir,
• Afghanistan,
• Iraq

or anywhere else that conflict rages.

Since the destruction of the Khilafah in 1924 there has been an assault on the resources in the Muslim lands.

• Starting with the 100-year contracts signed with western oil companies to drill for oil in the 1930’s, lucrative contracts are being signed by western agencies for natural resources that rightfully belong to the Ummah. The most recent of which have been the colonial style Production Sharing Agreements (PSA’s) for Iraqi oil.
• These agreements mean that Iraq oil will be privatised, ending up in the hands of foreign, mostly US, oil companies. In addition to this, these agreements spell out that these oil companies will make up to a massive 75% profit on the oil, with 65 of Iraq’s roughly 80 known oil fields being offered to these companies for exploration. In the words of Dick Cheney during his time as Haliburton CEO in 1999 who said, “By 2010 we will need [a further] 50 million barrels a day. The Middle East, with two-thirds of the oil and the lowest cost, is still where the prize lies.”

Even the wealth that has been generated has not been utilised by the rulers for the benefit of the people or to secure long-term independence and self-sufficiency. A lack of investment in education, employment and technological infrastructure means that billions of dollars are wasted on importing resources, which could be developed at home. It is shocking that Iran, the world’s fourth largest oil producer, can only produce 57% of the nation’s daily petrol consumption due to a lack of refineries.

The Muslim world has indeed seen destruction, devastation and calamity for the past 83 years.

However, the signs of awakening for the return of the Khilafah are now clear for all to see. The proof of this can be seen in the growing gulf between the rulers and the ruled; the speeches and Khutbahs in universities and mosques throughout the Muslim world that call for a sincere and rightly guided Khaleefah to lead the Ummah; witness the mass demonstrations against the bombing and killing of innocent Muslims by US and UK forces in Karachi, Jakarta, Hebron, Dhaka and other places; the increasingly brutal methods and oppression that the regimes are forced to use to quell the desire for political change such as in Egypt and Uzbekistan. It can also be seen by the actions of the colonial powers who realise that the rulers they imposed upon the Muslim world have no support and no legitimacy, hence they are forced to resort to occupying Muslim lands and cementing their presence through military bases. The global reawakening for Khilafah can also be seen in the desperate and pathetic attempts by the regimes and their scholars, who they have bought for a cheap price, to malign, slander and attack the idea of Khilafah. They lie by saying that the Khilafah cannot be established in the modern age, that Islam and politics do not mix, that sectarian differences are too great, that the western powers are too powerful and that the Ummah of Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم can never be unified.

The Rest @ Muslims in Kenya

Seven Steps to a Caliphate, Three years Later

I mostly just listen, study and pray, but occasionally I emerge from my hole in the watchman's wall and make a comment.

One of the early posts that I did from this blog years ago was an article from Jane Doe of Der Speigel, The Seven Steps to a World Wide Calipihate. The plan listed there seems to actually have been what al Qaeda has attempted to implement. In view of that, it is worthy of a re-look to see what happens next. How well have they accomplished the plan?

A side note:

I am well aware of the teachings of Sayyid Qutb, his Milestones, Hassan al Banna and others, and recognize that this plan is based on their teachings.

al Qaeda is the armed and unruly son in an Ikhwan family; The sons agree in world view, in the nature of the West, and in the final outcome. These brothers (no pun intended) do not like each other much, are frustrated by each others actions, yet they are familly.

....Let us make no mistake in thinking we can interact with one without dealing with the other. They support each other in private if not in public....

That being said, here was the al Qaeda plan, probably gathered in 2004 or 2005:

Phase One: "the awakening" This has already been carried out and was supposed to have lasted from 2000 to 2003, or more precisely from the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 in New York and Washington to the fall of Baghdad in 2003. The aim of the attacks of 9/11 was to provoke the US into declaring war on the Islamic world and thereby "awakening" Muslims

• It is clear by most measures that this phase was successful. The US and the West has been provoked.

Phase Two: "Opening Eyes" According to Hussein's definition, the period we are now in and should last until 2006. Hussein says the terrorists hope to make the western conspiracy aware of the "Islamic community." Hussein believes this is a phase in which al-Qaida wants an organization to develop into a movement. The network is banking on recruiting young men during this period. Iraq should become the center for all global operations, with an "army" set up there and bases established in other Arabic states.

• As of October 2008, most of this phase is still incomplete. Some parts have failed, some are succeeding.
• The West is significantly more aware of the Islamic Community than it was before
• Al Qaeda, and the Muslim Brotherhood, though they have significant differences in tactics but not strategy, are in the ideological process of recruiting young men. They are having some success all over the world, but not as much as they had hoped.
• Their aims in Iraq have utterly failed. Even if there is a civil war when the US departs Iraq, Al Qaeda has been decisively discredited in Iraq and they will not get the credit for the US departure when Muslim men talk over coffee, and that is where it counts.
• However, because of their successful fund raising and recruiting of International Mujahadeen, they have shifted the war to other places, most notably Africa, Europe, Lebanon, Gaza and possibly South Asia.

Phase III The Rising Up" Should last from 2007 to 2010. "There will be a focus on Syria," prophesies Hussein, based on what his sources told him. The fighting cadres are supposedly already prepared and some are in Iraq. Attacks on Turkey and -- even more explosive -- in Israel are predicted. Al-Qaeda's masterminds hope that attacks on Israel will help the terrorist group become a recognized organization. The author also believes that countries neighboring Iraq, such as Jordan, are also in danger.

• Since their failure in Iraq, al Qaeda seems to have taken a decentralized approach to building the Caliphate by creating Islamist bases.
• Note the creation of the "Islamic Emirates" of Somalia (southern Somalia), Afghanistan (Taliban Held areas), the Caucuses (Chechnia) and Waziristan (Paksitan). Look for AQIM in the Sahel to try and do the same. While these are not real states, they are districts in which Al Qaeda has declared itself in charge, establishing Sharia, places into which they can send new recruits.
• Northern Nigeria is semi autonomous and acts as a de facto Emirate, and has no need to declare a separate state, which would provoke a reaction from the government andyway.
• Al Qaeda has failed in coming against secular Arab States, most notably in Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Syria, and even Jordan, but Pakistan is in danager.

Phase Four: Between 2010 and 2013, Hussein writes that al-Qaida will aim to bring about the collapse of the hated Arabic governments. The estimate is that "the creeping loss of the regimes' power will lead to a steady growth in strength within al-Qaida." At the same time attacks will be carried out against oil suppliers and the US economy will be targeted using cyber terrorism.

• Since the Failure in Iraq and the Secular Kafir States has not been effective, Al Qaeda seems to be leaving the The Ikhwan (Muslim Brotherhood) to bring on the collapse of the regimes' power.
• Al Qaeda has recently called for attacks against American and Western oil interests, and has engaged in attacks in many places, mostly with failed results. (note the attack on the American Embassy in Yemmen)
• Cyber Terrorism has largely failed, but Cyber communication and cyber recruiting, small scale cyber criminal enterprise, and cyber training for the Mujahadeen have been succesful.

Phase Five: This will be the point at which an Islamic state, or caliphate, can be declared. The plan is that by this time, between 2013 and 2016, Western influence in the Islamic world will be so reduced and Israel weakened so much, that resistance will not be feared.

In the Future:

• Al Qaeda is hoping that the economic troubles in the West will lead to a reduction in their influence. We will see, but I doubt it.
• They will feed new recruits and money into their Emirates, work to strengthen Sharia, and expand the Jihad outward.
• Al Qaeda now leads the global jihad from the remote Mountains north of Islamibad, PK The fight for Pakistan is out of Wazieristan.
• al Qaeda would love to move out into the open in Pakistan or Afghanistan and declare the multi national Caliphate.
• If Usamma is still alive, they would try to bring him out to declare the Caliphate. They would start roumers with the Shi'ia that the leader is the Hidden Imam returning as prophesied. The leader would hedge, without actually denial, claiming that timing for the Imam's return is not yet right, hopoing to draw some Shi'ia into the movement

Phase Six: Hussein believes that from 2016 onwards there will a period of "total confrontation." As soon as the caliphate has been declared the "Islamic army" it will instigate the "fight between the believers and the non-believers" which has so often been predicted by Osama bin Laden.

• The war would continue from the Emirates, directed by the Caliphate, and they would muster every man of fighting age into military training for great war to come. Shabaab in Somalia made that very annoucmenet as soons as they declared the Islamic Emirate of Somalia.
• The Islamic Finance system will have been built by then, so that the end results of the Saleh Kamel-led Sharia finance qill be that al Qaeda and the Brothers no longer need any financial cooperation with western banks. This process is underway. With the Banking Centers in Dubai, how long before the Caliphate movement won't need Western Banks at all?

Phase Seven: This final stage is described as "definitive victory." Hussein writes that in the terrorists' eyes, because the rest of the world will be so beaten down by the "one-and-a-half billion Muslims," the caliphate will undoubtedly succeed. This phase should be completed by 2020, although the war shouldn't last longer than two years.

• This is pure fantasy, unless the West remains asleep, as it mostly is now.

What the West Can Do:

• The Energy Independence movement has been born in America, but is a decade away away from impacting al Qaeda. We need to nurture it.
• Fight this global war in a more coordinated strategic way.
• Chase he who believes that he must violently fight his god's own battle for him from one country to another.
• Keep sharing intelligence
• Keep reducing the cycle time from actionable intelligence to mission launch.
• Keep moving people deep into the Islamic banking movement, into every invisible transfer point.
• Keep monitoring the Shi'ia-Sunni interactons.
• Keep Tracking Recruiting efforts by all 70 Ikhwan front grous in the US and many more in Europe.
• Keep mnitoring the Ikhwan and martial arts training going on in every country, right under the nose of the authorities (Even Egypt).

finally, The West must regain its spiritual center, it's cultural purpose and take a passionate and moral message of its own about what the best of Western culture is really about, and carry its peace to the cultural Muslim, without destroying their cultural identity. To borrow a quote from Irwin Rommel ( It think) "no one every won a war from a defensive position"

The end of the beginning of the Long war is almost here. We have work to do.

Now, back to my hole in the wall.

-Shimron Issachar

An Islamic Caliphate in Seven Easy Steps

A Jordanian journalist writes, "I interviewed a whole range of al-Qaida members with different ideologies to get an idea of how the war between the terrorists and Washington would develop in the future." What he then describes between pages 202 and 213 is a scenario, proof both of the terrorists' blindness as well as their brutal single-mindedness. In seven phases the terror network hopes to establish an Islamic caliphate which the West will then be too weak to fight.

The First Phase Known as "the awakening" -- this has already been carried out and was supposed to have lasted from 2000 to 2003, or more precisely from the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 in New York and Washington to the fall of Baghdad in 2003. The aim of the attacks of 9/11 was to provoke the US into declaring war on the Islamic world and thereby "awakening" Muslims. "The first phase was judged by the strategists and masterminds behind al-Qaida as very successful," writes Hussein. "The battle field was opened up and the Americans and their allies became a closer and easier target." The terrorist network is also reported as being satisfied that its message can now be heard "everywhere."

The Second Phase "Opening Eyes" is, according to Hussein's definition, the period we are now in and should last until 2006. Hussein says the terrorists hope to make the western conspiracy aware of the "Islamic community." Hussein believes this is a phase in which al-Qaida wants an organization to develop into a movement. The network is banking on recruiting young men during this period. Iraq should become the center for all global operations, with an "army" set up there and bases established in other Arabic states.

The Third Phase This is described as "Arising and Standing Up" and should last from 2007 to 2010. "There will be a focus on Syria," prophesies Hussein, based on what his sources told him. The fighting cadres are supposedly already prepared and some are in Iraq. Attacks on Turkey and -- even more explosive -- in Israel are predicted. Al-Qaida's masterminds hope that attacks on Israel will help the terrorist group become a recognized organization. The author also believes that countries neighboring Iraq, such as Jordan, are also in danger.

The Fourth Phase Between 2010 and 2013, Hussein writes that al-Qaida will aim to bring about the collapse of the hated Arabic governments. The estimate is that "the creeping loss of the regimes' power will lead to a steady growth in strength within al-Qaida." At the same time attacks will be carried out against oil suppliers and the US economy will be targeted using cyber terrorism.

The Fifth Phase This will be the point at which an Islamic state, or caliphate, can be declared. The plan is that by this time, between 2013 and 2016, Western influence in the Islamic world will be so reduced and Israel weakened so much, that resistance will not be feared. Al-Qaida hopes that by then the Islamic state will be able to bring about a new world order.

The Sixth Phase Hussein believes that from 2016 onwards there will a period of "total confrontation." As soon as the caliphate has been declared the "Islamic army" it will instigate the "fight between the believers and the non-believers" which has so often been predicted by Osama bin Laden.

The Seventh Phase This final stage is described as "definitive victory." Hussein writes that in the terrorists' eyes, because the rest of the world will be so beaten down by the "one-and-a-half billion Muslims," the caliphate will undoubtedly succeed. This phase should be completed by 2020, although the war shouldn't last longer than two years.

Read the complete article by Yassin Musharbash

7 Steps to a World Wide Calliphate

7 Steps to a World Wide Calliphate

The following master plan for the installation of a world-wide calliphate can be found in a new book, "al-Zarqawi - al-Qaida's Second Generation" by journalist, Fouad Hussein, who has spent time in prison with Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.

Phase One: "the awakening" This has already been carried out and was supposed to have lasted from 2000 to 2003, or more precisely from the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 in New York and Washington to the fall of Baghdad in 2003. The aim of the attacks of 9/11 was to provoke the US into declaring war on the Islamic world and thereby "awakening" Muslims.

"The first phase was judged by the strategists and masterminds behind al-Qaida as very successful," writes Hussein. "The battle field was opened up and the Americans and their allies became a closer and easier target." The terrorist network is also reported as being satisfied that its message can now be heard "everywhere."

Phase Two: "Opening Eyes" According to Hussein's definition, the period we are now in and should last until 2006. Hussein says the terrorists hope to make the western conspiracy aware of the "Islamic community." Hussein believes this is a phase in which al-Qaida wants an organization to develop into a movement. The network is banking on recruiting young men during this period. Iraq should become the center for all global operations, with an "army" set up there and bases established in other Arabic states.

Phase Three: "Arising and Standing Up" Should last from 2007 to 2010. "There will be a focus on Syria," prophesies Hussein, based on what his sources told him. The fighting cadres are supposedly already prepared and some are in Iraq. Attacks on Turkey and -- even more explosive -- in Israel are predicted. Al-Qaida's masterminds hope that attacks on Israel will help the terrorist group become a recognized organization. The author also believes that countries neighboring Iraq, such as Jordan, are also in danger.

Phase Four: Between 2010 and 2013, Hussein writes that al-Qaida will aim to bring about the collapse of the hated Arabic governments. The estimate is that "the creeping loss of the regimes' power will lead to a steady growth in strength within al-Qaida." At the same time attacks will be carried out against oil suppliers and the US economy will be targeted using cyber terrorism.

Phase Five: This will be the point at which an Islamic state, or caliphate, can be declared. The plan is that by this time, between 2013 and 2016, Western influence in the Islamic world will be so reduced and Israel weakened so much, that resistance will not be feared. Al-Qaida hopes that by then the Islamic state will be able to bring about a new world order.

Phase Six: Hussein believes that from 2016 onwards there will a period of "total confrontation." As soon as the caliphate has been declared the "Islamic army" it will instigate the "fight between the believers and the non-believers" which has so often been predicted by Osama bin Laden.

Phase Seven: This final stage is described as "definitive victory." Hussein writes that in the terrorists' eyes, because the rest of the world will be so beaten down by the "one-and-a-half billion Muslims," the caliphate will undoubtedly succeed. This phase should be completed by 2020, although the war shouldn't last longer than two years.

Jane Doe

SOURCE: Spiegel Online