Al-Qaeda have declared war on ISIS after their leader called himself the leader of all Muslims. However, an opportunity for this quarrel to come to an immediate end has been offered after Al Qaeda’s leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri, insisted he’d like to join together with ISIS to fight the U.S.
Al-Zawahiri, who replaced Osama Bin Laden at the top of Al Qaeda, set upon the Islamic State during an angry tirade, which was released as an audio message on the eve of 9/11’s 14th anniversary.
Al-Zawahiri took umbrage with Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of ISIS, after he called himself the leader of all Muslims, and on Wednesday the Egyptian doctor released a message online, via the Mirror , criticizing his rival.
“We have endured a lot of harm from Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and his brothers, and we preferred to respond with as little as possible, out of our concern to extinguish the fire of sedition.
But Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and his brothers did not leave us a choice, for they have demanded that all the mujahideeen reject their confirmed pledges of allegiance, and to pledge allegiance to them for what they claim of a caliphate.”
Zawahiri added that “everyone was surprised” by Al-Baghdadi’s remarks, which he insisted had been made without the consultation of the group.
Last year, during a speech in Mosul, Iraq, Al-Baghdadi declared in a speech to the world’s Muslims that they must “obey” him.
“I am the wali (leader) who presides over you, though I am not the best of you, so if you see that I am right, assist me. If you see that I am wrong, advise me and put me on the right track, and obey me as long as I obey God in you.”
Matthew Olsen, a counter-terrorism expert, told 6ABC that Al-Qaeda and ISIS will be “irreconcilably” divided by these remarks.
However, during the same audio message on Wednesday, via Fox News , the Al-Qaeda head admitted that, despite their differences, he would work alongside the Islamic State to battle the West.
“Despite the big mistakes (of ISIS), if I were in Iraq or Syria I would cooperate with them in killing the crusaders and secularists and Shi’ites even though I don’t recognize the legitimacy of their state, because the matter is bigger than that.”
ISIS began as the Iraqi branch of Al-Qaeda, but two years ago they split from the group. Since then there has reportedly been nonstop fighting between ISIS and the Taliban and Al-Qaeda in Syria, Pakistan, and Afghanistan.
[Image via Steve Allen/Shuttershock]
