Al-Zawahiri ISIS, Osama Bin Laden's successor at the helm of the murderous 9/11 group blasted ISIS chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in an online message.
The 'declaration of war' could be golden news for counter-terror agencies, experts say.
Ayman al-Zawahiri said ISIS left al-Qaida no choice but to respond, as counter terror experts say the spat will "irreconcilably" divide the terror groups.
His outburst came ahead of the 14th anniversary of al-Qaida's attacks in the United States.
In the message, released online, al-Zawahiri said: "We preferred to respond with as little as possible, out of our concern to extinguish the fire of sedition, but Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and his brothers did not leave us a choice, for they have demanded that all the mujahideen reject their confirmed pledges of allegiance, and to pledge allegiance to them for what they claim of a caliphate."He added that "everyone" was taken by surprise at Baghdadi anointing himself as the fourth caliph in Islamic history, as he did this "without consulting Muslims".
Speaking to 6abc, counter terrorism expert Matthew Olsen said: "Zawahiri until now has not been willing to openly condemn Baghdadi and ISIS - it highlights how deep the division is between al-Qaida leadership and ISIS.
"It suggests that the differences are irreconcilable.
"Had ISIS and al-Qaida realigned by joining forces, it would be terrible."
The spat between the jihadi groups could open the door for counter-terror agencies to move in on them.
Officials say that in Afghanistan and Pakistan, an ISIS franchise "has been fighting non-stop" with the Taliban and al Qaeda.
ISIS, formerly the Al-Qaida branch in Iraq, split from the larger group two years ago.
The 'declaration of war' could be golden news for counter-terror agencies, experts say.
Ayman al-Zawahiri said ISIS left al-Qaida no choice but to respond, as counter terror experts say the spat will "irreconcilably" divide the terror groups.
His outburst came ahead of the 14th anniversary of al-Qaida's attacks in the United States.
In the message, released online, al-Zawahiri said: "We preferred to respond with as little as possible, out of our concern to extinguish the fire of sedition, but Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and his brothers did not leave us a choice, for they have demanded that all the mujahideen reject their confirmed pledges of allegiance, and to pledge allegiance to them for what they claim of a caliphate."He added that "everyone" was taken by surprise at Baghdadi anointing himself as the fourth caliph in Islamic history, as he did this "without consulting Muslims".
Speaking to 6abc, counter terrorism expert Matthew Olsen said: "Zawahiri until now has not been willing to openly condemn Baghdadi and ISIS - it highlights how deep the division is between al-Qaida leadership and ISIS.
"It suggests that the differences are irreconcilable.
"Had ISIS and al-Qaida realigned by joining forces, it would be terrible."
The spat between the jihadi groups could open the door for counter-terror agencies to move in on them.
Officials say that in Afghanistan and Pakistan, an ISIS franchise "has been fighting non-stop" with the Taliban and al Qaeda.
ISIS, formerly the Al-Qaida branch in Iraq, split from the larger group two years ago.
Blogger Comment
Facebook Comment