# Jund Ansar Allah

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Jund Ansar Allah (Arabic: جند أنصار الله, lit. 'Army of the Supporters of Allah', abbr. JAA) was an armed Palestinian Salafi-jihadist organization operating in the Gaza Strip. It was founded in November 2008 by Sheikh Abdel Latif Moussa. On 14 August 2009, Moussa announced the establishment of the Islamic Emirate of Rafah in the Gaza Strip. The group criticized the ruling power, Hamas, for failing to enforce Sharia law. In response, Hamas attacked the organization, resulting in 24 people killed and a further 150 wounded. The group disbanded after the battle.

## Background

Jund Ansar Allah was established in November 2008 by Sheikh Abdel Latif Moussa, who had headed a Salafi organization in Gaza since the 1980's, and Khalid Banat (Abu Abdullah Suri), who claimed to have fought with leading al-Qaeda figures including Osama bin Laden and Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
Jund Ansar Allah was an organization ideologically affiliated with the movement for global jihad. Moussa, an "Egyptian-educated physician-turned-cleric," was the group's spiritual leader. He left his medical practice in Rafah to become one of the most influential preachers in the southern Gaza Strip. In his Friday prayers that attracted thousands of young men, Moussa argued that Hamas had failed to properly institute Sharia law and had become too lenient. Hamas repeatedly warned Moussa and his followers to abandon his mosque in Rafah.

## Armed activities

On 8 June 2009 the group carried out a raid on the Karni border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Israel. Ten individuals from the group rode into battle on horses laden with large quantities of explosives, with at least three of them being shot dead by Israeli troops. Five Jund Ansar Allah operatives in total died in the operation. Israeli officials said several of the men had been wearing explosive belts, and suspected they had been attempting to kidnap a soldier.
The organization also clashed with Hamas. On 22 July 2009, three Jund Ansar Allah militants holed up in a building in Khan Yunis surrendered in a standoff with Hamas police. Hamas officials also blamed the group for the bombings of several internet cafes, seen as a source of immorality, and of a wedding party attended by relatives of the West Bank-based Fatah leader, Mohammed Dahlan, in which fifty people were injured. Jund Ansar Allah denied any responsibility for the latter attack, and Fatah leaders blamed Hamas. In August 2009, a senior Hamas official told The Jerusalem Post that Jund Ansar Allah received its weapons from former Fatah policemen and security officials in the southern Gaza Strip and that the aim of its attacks were to "defame" Hamas. On 14 August 2009, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades attacked the Ibn Taymiyyah mosque in Rafah and other bases in Rafah. The fighting lasted 7 hours. It was reported that when Hamas reached the positions of Moussa and Abu Abdullah al Suri, they detonated themselves. About 13 Jund Ansar Allah fighters were killed, 40 were captured, 5 civilians were killed, including 6 Hamas militants. al-Qassam brigades commander Abu Jibril Shimali, was also killed during the battle. The group was virtually destroyed after the fighting, having both of its leaders killed, and its bases captured. It was reported that Hamas later released some of the captured.

## Islamic Emirate of Rafah

On Friday, 14 August 2009, Moussa unexpectedly declared the creation of the Islamic Emirate of Rafah in the Gaza Strip before 100 of his armed followers at the Ibn Taymiyyah mosque in Rafah after the Friday prayer sermon. During his sermon, Moussa condemned the nationalist-Islamist Hamas for failing to implement proper Sharia law and "not being any different from a Secular government."

## Ideology

On its website, the group says it has vowed to God to "fight a jihad for his sake" until the "banner of unity is hoisted" and Muhammad "is made victorious". Then on Friday, Jund Ansar Allah announced on its website and jihadist forums its allegiance to the "Islamic emirate in the heart of Beit al-Maqdis [Jerusalem]". The website also stated on the day of the clash with Hamas stated:
   The soldiers of Tawhid [unification] will not rest ... until all Muslim lands are liberated and until our imprisoned al-Aqsa [mosque] is purified from the desecration of the accursed Jews.
Jund Ansar Allah also demanded that Hamas "cease its aggression against Salafis" and warned of a confrontation if security forces interfered.