KARACHI: An Iraq-based militant group named the Ansar al-Islam has released a video of its new training camp, which is named after the Lal Masjid’s Abdul Rasheed Ghazi. They have also apparently named a subdivision of their group after the Lal Masjid’s controversial cleric. Rasheed Ghazi was killed in 2007 when an operation was conducted against the armed militants holed up inside the Lal Masjid in Islamabad. He was the brother of Abdul Aziz, the khateeb of the Lal Masjid.

The video starts, routinely enough, with a slickly edited training montage showing fighters of the Ansar al-Islam engaged in various exercises and posing for the camera, their faces covered by keffiyehs and pieces of cloth. Then, in a departure from the norm, the video segues into a tribute to Abdul Rasheed. In the beginning, what seems to be a ‘message’ from the late Abdul Rasheed Ghazi is read out, addressed to the “men of the ummah”. While the voice-over is in Arabic, in one speech the speaker seems to be switching between Arabic and another language, most likely Kurdish.

In another part of the video, militants appear to be clad in traditional shalwar-like pants commonly worn by Kurds in Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria. This is in keeping with what is known about the Ansar al-Islam, a hardline militant group that operates in the Kurdish-dominated north of Iraq and aims at setting up a radical Islamist state. It was formerly called Ansar al-Sunnah and its membership is believed to be mostly Kurdish. The video then shows visuals of the Lal Masjid itself, along with the Jamia Hafsa and also visuals of troop deployment prior to the operation itself. The voice-over, which showers praise on the Lal Masjid militants, also condemns the government of Pakistan and the army for conducting the operation.

There is also a quote, attributed to Osama bin Laden, which refers to Ghazi as a hero. The Ansar al-Islam had previously released pictures from this camp, but this is the first known video of the actual camp.

The militants, who appear very well-trained, are shown practising hand-to-hand fighting, drilling hostage-taking scenarios and also demonstrating how to disarm opponents. The terrain seems to be that of a flat, rocky desert, and it is difficult to tell exactly where it may have been shot. At one point in the video the heavily armed militants are shown holding a banner with the organisation’s name: Jamaat Ansar al-Islam’s Mu’askar al-Shaikh Rasheed Ghazi. This loosely translates as: Ansar al-Islam’s Shaikh Rasheed Ghazi force.

Even more interesting is that the video ends with an Urdu jihadi anthem, interspersed with Arabic lines. While foreign militants, mostly of Arabic and Uzbek origin, have been known to operate in Pakistan, this is possibly the first time that a group has actually named itself after a Pakistani militant cleric. There is also anecdotal evidence suggesting that some Pakistani-origin militants may be fighting in Syria. Some reports suggests that Ansar al Islam has also sent fighters to Syria, where they operate under the name of Ansar al-Sham.

The writer is Dawn’s Magazine Editor