Volume 13: The Rafidah
Da’esh opens this volume with the peculiar case of Rizwan Farook and his wife Tashfeen Malik. A husband and wife duo who in San Bernardino, California held a shootout with police and security services. The couple had a small child which they placed with a third party prior to conducting their operation. Da’esh cite this as the embodiment of taqwÉ (God consciousness). Da’esh pushes its readership to attack any target anywhere, in what can best be described as an indiscriminate call to violence. They continue to showcase their operational reach across the world as they boast operations conducted in Pakistan, Indonesia, United States, Yemen, Syria and Iraq.
There is a strong push against the 'palace' scholars of Saudi whom Da’esh advocate should be killed for supporting an apostate regime. They also take an increasingly more aggressive stance against al-Zawahiri and air criticism of him which is much more vocal and disrespectful compared to previous volumes. Al-Zawahiri was critical of Da’esh’s attacks on the Shia communities and stated that Shia laypersons should be educated and given an invitation to Islam rather than being killed. A-Zawahiri held the opinion that the real threat was America and alliances with the Shia should be considered in order to fend off the greater threat. Da’esh believe that any alliance with the Shia and not fighting them is apostasy and therefore al-Zawahiri is fatally wrong in his opinions. Da’esh proceed to offer an overview of the Shia presence across the Middle East and Persia and also offer clarification on why they are fighting other jihadi groups; the others have apostosized due to their stances on the Shia.
This volume contains a segment on Jihadi John, who trekked for two months across Europe to get to Syria despite being under surveillance from MI6. They relay a story regarding him when he was in prayer and began to cry during prostration as another group member spoke of the situation in Palestine. Da’esh assert that military might is not necessary to fight when the help of Allah is at hand.
Da’esh present a comprehensive discussion on the Rafidah community, their origins, a staunch rebuttal of their ideology and a firm stance on their apostasy. From their own content it appears that other organisations such as the al-Qaedah and the Taliban, do not share the same ideological views as Da’esh. They appear to be far more diplomatic in maintaining inter and intra faith relations whilst channelling their aggression to immediate combatants and the crusading ‘west’. The title of this volume relates to the comprehensive discussion put forth by Da’esh on the Shia and Rafidah communities.