Free Republic

TEL AVIV – A top Islamic State-tied jihadist in the Gaza Strip claimed in an interview on Sunday that he “knows” that Omar Mateen, the Orlando club shooter, was a member of a terrorist organization. Abu al-Ayna al-Ansari, a Salafist movement senior official in the Gaza Strip, claimed he was told that Mateen was a member of one of the groups that fall under the jihadiya Salafiya franchise, meaning the network of loosely-based Salafist jihadist groups such as the Islamic State, Al-Qaeda, and the Al Nusra Front. Ansari made the claim in a pre-recorded interview to air in full tonight...

TEL AVIV – A news agency known for its close ties to the Islamic State claimed that Israeli aircraft on Tuesday struck outposts of Wilayat Sinai, the IS’s branch in the Egyptian Sinai. With no documentary evidence to back up its claim, the Amaq News Agency reported that seven “Israeli drones, war-planes and helicopters” bombed targets in the IS-heavy north-eastern Sinai. Contacted by Brietbart Jerusalem, a spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces declined to comment, explaining it is the IDF’s general policy to refrain from commenting on reports of operations outside the boundaries of Israel and the Gaza Strip. IS...