The Interrogation: Inside the mind of Islamic State’s new Caliphate, Abu Ibrahim al-Hashemi al-Qurashi.
Rewards for Justice – Increased Reward Offer for Information on ISIS Leader Amir Muhammad Sa’id Abdal-Rahman al-Mawla
The U.S. Department of State’s Rewards for Justice Program is increasing its reward – now up to $10 million — for information leading to the identification or location of ISIS’s new leader Amir Muhammad Sa’id Abdal-Rahma al-Mawla. This represents a doubling of the previous reward offer of up to $5 million announced in August 2019.
Al-Mawla — also known as Hajji Abdallah and Abu-‘Umar al-Turkmani — succeeded Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi as the leader of ISIS following Baghdadi’s death during a U.S. military operation in October 2019.
Al-Mawla helped drive and justify the abduction, slaughter, and trafficking of members of Yazidi religious minority groups in northwest Iraq, and he oversees the group’s global operations.
Born in Mosul, Iraq, in 1976, al-Mawla was a religious scholar in ISIS’s predecessor organization, al-Qaida in Iraq, and steadily rose through the ranks of ISIS to become the deputy emir.
On March 18, 2020, the Department of State designated al-Mawla, as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) under Section 1(a)(ii)(B) of Executive Order 13224, as amended by Executive Order 13886.
As a result of this designation, U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in any transactions with al-Mawla, and al-Mawla’s property and interests in property subject to U.S. jurisdiction will be blocked. In addition, it is a crime to knowingly provide, or attempt or conspire to provide material support or resources to ISIS.
More information about the reward offer is located on the Rewards for Justice website at www.rewardsforjustice.net. We encourage anyone with information on these individuals to contact the Rewards for Justice office via the website, email (INFO@rewardsforjustice.net), phone (1-800-877-3927 in North America), or mail (Rewards for Justice, Washington, D.C., 20520-0303, USA). Individuals may also contact the Regional Security Officer at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate. All information will be kept strictly confidential.
Stepping Out from the Shadows: The Interrogation of the Islamic State’s Future Caliph CTC at West Point by Authors: Daniel Milton, Muhammad Al Ubaydi presents a very lengthy analysis of who al Mawla is.
Abstract: In October 2019, the Islamic State announced its new leader as Abu Ibrahim al-Hashemi al-Qurashi. The U.S. government has publicly designated and named this individual as Amir Muhammad Sa’id ‘Abd-al-Rahman al-Mawla. Although a few details have emerged about al-Mawla, very little is known about his history and involvement in the Iraqi insurgency. Using three declassified interrogation reports from early 2008, when al-Mawla was detained by U.S. military forces in Iraq, this article provides more insights into his early background. This examination shows that some of the current assumptions about al-Mawla are on tenuous ground, but also provides a unique window into what al-Mawla revealed about his fellow fighters during his time in custody. Extracts with link to full article below.
…Oct 2019, Islamic State’s leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi had been killed in a raid by U.S. military forces and the overall organization was merely a shadow of what it had been during the organization’s highwater mark in the summer of 2015.
March 17, 2020, the U.S. government issued its perspective on the issue when it designated an individual by the name of Amir Muhammad Sa’id ‘Abd-al-Rahman al-Mawlac as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist, indicating that he has “succeeded [al-Baghdadi] to become the leader of ISIS.”5 Al-Mawla had been one of the individuals previously tagged as a possible successor, although at least one insider suggested he was “lower in rank in the administration as well as finance and military leadership.”6
….Three Tactical Interrogation Reports (TIRs), provide an inside look at how al-Mawla framed his own experience in joining and participating in the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI). The TIRs present a view of al-Mawla as a religious scholard who also demonstrated political savvy, which during the course of his interrogation appears to have included a willingness to adjust to changing circumstances, even if that required providing information about his jihadi colleagues….
“Talking” with al-Mawla
Details about the operation resulting in al-Mawla’s capture are limited, but al-Mawla’s TIR does reveal that he was captured on January 6, 2008, at around 1:37am local time in Iraq.l The following day, a press release from U.S. Central Command noted that operations in Mosul had resulted in the capture of “a wanted individual believed to be the deputy al-Qaeda in Iraq leader for the network operating in the city.” :
Troops target al-Qaeda in Iraq leadership; six suspects detained
Release No: UNRELEASED Jan. 7, 2008
Coalition forces detained six suspected terrorists Jan. 6, 2008, during operations targeting al-Qaeda in Iraq networks along the Tigris River Valley.
During an operation in Mosul, Coalition forces captured a wanted individual believed to be the deputy al-Qaeda in Iraq leader for the network operating in the city. Reports indicate the suspect is responsible for approving targets for terrorist attacks and previously served as a judge of an illegal court system involved in ordering and approving abductions and executions.
The wanted individual is also believed to be associated with several terrorists targeted by Coalition forces recently, to include a leader of the al-Qaeda network in west Mosul killed Dec. 25, and two other associates detained Dec. 13.
In Baghdad, Coalition forces captured a wanted individual believed to be associated with the al-Qaeda in Iraq network in Rusafah. The wanted individual has close ties to an alleged terrorist attack coordinator who was recruited by the al-Qaeda senior leader in Baghdad. The two individuals were reportedly planning a suicide attack targeting Coalition forces and Concerned Local Citizens operating in the area.
The ground force detained the wanted individual without incident along with another suspect assessed to be his brother.
Coalition forces detained three additional suspected terrorists during an operation in Tikrit targeting an alleged associate of the al-Qaeda in Iraq network operating in the region. The targeted individual is reportedly involved in attacks against Coalition forces and has ties to improvised explosive device operations near Ad Dawr. “Al-Qaeda Iraq is on the run,” said Lt. Patrick Evans. “Coalition and Iraq forces will continue to target their networks in Iraq to degrade their ability to conduct horrific attacks.” End of release.
The authors of the CTC article explain that “The 2008 Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) between Iraq and the United States required that the United States provide information to Iraq on all detainees being held at that time, and that Iraq would either pursue legal avenues against them or the United States would then release them.ak Under the terms of this agreement, the United States transferred custody of al-Mawla to the Iraqi government.73 One question that is beyond the scope of this article, yet looms in the background, is why was al-Mawla, given the level of leadership and involvement in the insurgency to which he appears to have admitted in the three TIRs, ultimately released? The data here does not allow the authors to answer that question, although it is important to note that tens of thousands of individuals were in U.S. military custody from 2003-2011.al Al-Mawla is not the first future Islamic State leader to have been released from custody in Iraq. His predecessor, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, was detained and released by U.S. forces in 2004.74Despite some excellent work in this area, there is a need for more research and analysis, both inside and outside government, on the subject of detention policies and the identification of future threats.75” for the full and lengthy article visit HERE
Daniel Milton, Ph.D., is Director of Research at the Combating Terrorism Center at West Point. His research focuses on the Islamic State, propaganda, foreign fighters, security policy, and primary source data produced by terrorist organizations.
Muhammad al-`Ubaydi is a research associate at the Combating Terrorism Center at West Point.
© 2020 Daniel Milton and Muhammad al-`Ubaydi