'Land of Jihad’: Guess Where Pro-Jihad Activists Demonstrated Waving Al Qaeda Flags?

Supporters of Syria’s jihadi rebels held a demonstration in London where they waved black Al Qaeda flags, accused the U.S. of fighting a “proxy war” in Syria, and lambasted Free Syria Army (FSA) fighters as “nothing but infidels.”

Demonstrators decried western efforts to reach a negotiated settlement to end the bloody civil war, which on March 15 will mark its three-year anniversary.

Demonstrators in London held up black Al Qaeda flags and signs in support of jihad and a caliphate in Syria and surrounding countries (Screenshot: MEMRI via YouTube)

“We hope that our voice and our message will reach the Muslims of Syria. There are Muslims in the U.K, and we are bound not by our nationality – that you are Syrians and we are not – but by the bond of brotherhood, of being believers and Muslims,”one supporter of Al Qaeda-linked groups in Syria said. “Our war and your war are one. Your blood and our blood are one.

The demonstration took place on Saturday. On Tuesday, the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) posted a subtitled clip from the rally originally seen on a video-sharing site.

Signs that those in the crowd held up read, “Geneva II will not stop the implementation of the Khilafah [Caliphate]” referring to the location of peace talks, and “Muslims will destroy the crusade and establish the Islamic state.”

Screenshot: MEMRI via YouTube

An unidentified speaker shouting into a megaphone prompted the crowd to answer his rhetorical questions:

Speaker: “Is the solution for Syria democracy?”

Crowd: No!

Speaker: Is the solution for Syria secularism?

Crowd: No!

Speaker: Is the solution for Syria the Free Syrian Army?

Crowd: No!

Speaker: My dear Muslim brothers, the FSA are nothing but infidels. Remember that...They are going to bring heresy under the guise of democracy with the help of the international community.”

He addressed his words to those gathering in Geneva for the negotiations. “We, as Muslims, are standing here today, and showing our support for the Muslims in Syria and giving the Islamic stance,” he said.

“Do you hear, brothers, the Saudi regime is sending billions and billions of riyals to the rebels to fight the mujahideen in Syria. The Americans are fighting their proxy war in Syria, sending millions and millions to fight the mujahideen,” he added.

He also placed the fight within the context of other Islamist conflicts, saying “My dear Muslim brothers, the Levant [Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine/Israel] – that blessed land... The land of Jihad, brothers... Brothers, we betrayed the Muslims of Afghanistan after 9/11. We've betrayed the Muslims of Palestine since 1947. We've betrayed the Muslims of Chechnya, who are fighting against the Russians. Are we going to betray the Muslims of Syria today?”

King’s College in London reported in December that 1,900 western Europeans have traveled to Syria to join rebel fighters, among which 366 are British.

“Some of those people are potential terrorists, some of whom may get training, and in some cases may actually engage in conflict and then return to the UK,” British Home Secretary Theresa May told the BBC in October.

Here is the video courtesy of MEMRI: