Islamic State (IS) militants from Chechnya in the Syrian town of Kobani have urged Chechens in Europe to either join the fighting in Syria, or commit terrorism in Europe. In a video put out by the media wing associated with the predominantly Chechen Islamic State (IS) faction Katibat Al-Aqsa, a militant named Musa Abu-Yusuf Shishani calls on the Chechen diaspora to join IS. The video, in Chechen, was shared on several pro-IS Russian-language social media accounts on October 26 and gives an insight into the attitudes of Chechen IS militants who are on the frontline in Kobani.
The speaker, Musa Abu-Yusuf, is filmed in front of a burned-out car and says he is in Kobani. He says that IS militants are defending not just against attacks from the Kurds, but also from the whole world, who have "suddenly started to defend the Kurds."
He calls on all Chechens in Europe "not to look for reasons not to come [to Syria], you are obliged to come, and kill everyone."
Musa Abu-Yusuf says, "There are no civilians. Kill them all wherever they are, that is, in Europe itself. Kill just one Frenchman, one American, then they will rise up. Kill them all, wherever they are. In Europe."
According to the Jamestown Foundation, there may be as many as 30,000 Chechens in France, 25,000 in Austria and 17,000 in Belgium. There is also a large Chechen population in Turkey, including memebers of the North Caucasian militant group, the Caucasus Emirate.
Musa Abu-Yusuf is a member of the Katibat Al-Aqsa ("Al-Aqsa Brigade"), a Chechen and Russian-speaking group closely tied to IS military commander in Syria, Umar Shishani.