Islamic State figure pleads guilty to aiding terrorist group
Prosecutors stated Khalifa narrated two infamous Islamic State propaganda movies — “Flames of Conflict” in 2014 and “Flames of Conflict II” in 2017 — designed to recruit Westerners to be part of the Islamic State or to kill Westerners as a part of a world holy struggle marketing campaign.
Khalifa additionally fought on the battlefield, in accordance to prosecutors. He was captured by Syrian Protection Forces in 2019 and held abroad till he was introduced to Virginia earlier this 12 months to face expenses.
In accordance to an FBI affidavit, Khalifa instructed FBI brokers he anticipated to be despatched to an Islamic State coaching camp when he joined the group in late 2013. As a substitute, he was recruited to be part of the group’s media division due to his English language expertise and spent almost 5 years as a pacesetter of their English-language propaganda unit, it stated.
The affidavit stated Khalifa narrated quite a few movies apart from “Flames of Conflict” and its sequel, which present prisoners being executed and decapitated. In one other video, titled “Contained in the Khilafah,” Khalifa urges listeners, in the event that they aren’t ready to journey to Syria to be part of the Islamic State, to as a substitute “terrorize the disbelievers along with your jihad outdoors the khilafah by concentrating on them and shedding their blood.”
Khalifa instructed brokers he was captured in January 2019 when he defied an Islamic State order to flee from advancing forces in Shafaa, Syria. As a substitute, he stated, he launched a solo assault of types on Syrian Protection Forces, surrendering after his AK-47 rifle jammed.
In a information launch asserting the guilty plea, federal prosecutors stated the “Flames of Conflict” movies embrace scenes of a masked Khalifa executing a distinct Syrian soldier in every of the 2 movies — whereas different masked ISIS members additionally shoot the prisoners kneeling in entrance of every of them.
Khalifa is scheduled to be sentenced on April 15. He faces a most penalty of life in jail.
