By Robert Spencer September 3, 2015
While the world is consumed with horror over the plight of the refugees now flooding into Europe, it is useful to remember these threats that were made just six months ago.
“Islamic State ‘planning to use Libya as gateway to Europe,'” by Ruth Sherlock and Colin Freeman, Telegraph, February 17, 2015:
Islamic State militants are planning a takeover of Libya as a “gateway” to wage war across the whole of southern Europe, letters written by the group’s supporters have revealed.
The jihadists hope to flood the north African state with militiamen from Syria and Iraq, who will then sail across the Mediterranean posing as migrants on people trafficking vessels, according to plans seen by Quilliam, the British anti-extremist group.
The fighters would then run amok in southern European cities and also try to attack maritime shipping.
The document is written by an Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) propagandist who is believed to be an important online recruiter for the terror in Libya, where security has collapsed in the wake of the revolution that unseated Colonel Gaddafi in 2011.
The group has already established Libyan-based cells, who on Sunday released a video showing a mass beheading of 21 Egyptian Christian guest workers.
The video, which prompted Egypt to launch retaliatory bombing raids on Isil positions in Libya, included footage of a khaki-clad militant pointing a bloodstained finger northwards, declaring: “We will conquer Rome, by Allah’s permission.”
The Isil propagandist, who uses the alias Abu Arhim al-Libim, describes Libya as having “immense potential” for Isil. He points out with relish that it is awash with weapons from the Libyan civil war, when large quantities of Col Gaddafi’s arsenals were appropriated by rebels. Some of those weapons came from Britain, which supplied the Gaddafi regime with machine guns, sniper rifles and ammunition during his final years in power, when he was seen as an ally against Islamist terrorism.
Mr Libim also points out that Libya is less than around 300 miles from parts of the nearest European mainland.
He writes: “It has a long coast and looks upon the southern Crusader states, which can be reached with ease by even a rudimentary boat.”
He also cites “the number of trips known as ‘illegal immigration’ from this coast, which are huge in number … if this was even partially exploited and developed strategically, pandemonium could be wrought in the southern European states and it is even possible that there could be a closure of shipping lines and targeting of Crusader ships and tankers.”…
“ISIS Threatens to Flood Europe and Elsewhere as ‘Libyan Refugees,'” by S. Noble, Independent Sentinel, February 19, 2015:
Quilliam Foundation reports that ISIS/ISIL/IS plans to use Libya as a gateway to Europe, sending fighters masked as refugees.
They are urging fighters to flood into Libya from Syria and Iraq to then head for Italy and elsewhere.
Quilliam, the British anti-extremist think tank translated and analysed a document written by an Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) propagandist who uses the alias Abu Arhim al-Libim.
The document is entitled, “Libya: The Strategic Gateway for the Islamic State”, on why jihadists needed to urgently flock to Libya to assist supporters of the so-called caliphate in their jihad.
Libim pointed out that Libya is only 300 miles from some parts of Europe.
The document states that Libya is awash with Gaddafi’s arsenal of weapons and has “immense potential.”
Libim writes: “It has a long coast and looks upon the southern Crusader states, which can be reached with ease by even a rudimentary boat.”…
When ISIS/ISIL recently executed 21 Christian Egyptians in Libya, the terrorist pointed a bloody finger north and said, “We will conquer Rome, by Allah’s permission.”
Flashback to February 2015: Islamic State threatens to flood Europe with refugees
