Al Qaeda chief Zawahiri praised ‘his sister’ Muskan Khan (Image: Reuters/Twitter)
Ayman al-Zawahiri called Muskan his sister and the video was titled ‘Noble Woman Of India’ in Muskan Khan’s praise
Al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri has resurfaced quashing rumours of his death and the terrorist expressed his support towards unruly elements who are using the Hijab row to flare communal tensions.
Zawahiri’s video was verified by the non-governmental counterterrorism organisation SITE Intelligence. The translations provided by SITE Intelligence shows that in the video Zawahiri praised Muskan Khan, a hijab-clad girl who went viral for confronting a mob of boys who were opposed to women wearing Hijab.
Zawahiri called Muskan his sister and said that he wrote a poem praising her courage. The thumbnail of the video and the poster that accompanied the upload was titled ‘The Noblewoman Of India’. The terrorist said that he was made aware of Muskan Khan’s actions through social media. He accused the government of allegedly mistreating Muslims living in the country. He asked Muslims in India to react to the hijab controversy.
The video shows evidence that al-Qaeda is actively following developments in India. It was released by As-Sahab Media, Al-Qaeda’s official media wing.
The Karnataka high court last month upheld the ban on hijab in educational institutions saying that the wearing of Hijab is not an essential religious practice of the Islamic faith.
The al-Qaeda leader also lashed out at Egypt and Morocco for their anti-hijab policies while also criticising France, the Netherlands and Switzerland for their policies on Hijab. He also lashed out at Pakistan and Bangladesh for empowering the west instead of fighting them.
Zawahiri was believed to have died from natural causes but he resurfaced when he released a video last year. In that video, he praised the attack on Russian forces in Syria and also said that Jerusalem will never be ‘Judaized’. He was the second-in-command in al-Qaeda after Osama Bin Laden.
Following Laden’s death, Zawahiri is now the leader of al-Qaeda. There is a $25 million reward announced by the US state department if it leads ‘directly to the apprehension or conviction of Ayman Al-Zawahiri’.
Read all the Latest News , Breaking News and IPL 2022 Live Updates here.