Ayman al-Zawahiri, who has led the Al-Qaeda* terror group since Osama bin Laden’s death in 2011, has reportedly called for jihad against the US in response to its relocation of the US Embassy to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv. A five-minute-long video titled "Tel Aviv is Also a Land of Muslims" has been released on social media accounts of the militant organization ahead of the opening ceremony, according to the news agency AFP. In the video, one of the most wanted men in the world claims, cited by the news agency, that the latest US move has proved that negotiations have failed the Palestinians, dubbing the Palestinian authorities “sellers of Palestine.”
According to a transcript of his speech by SITE monitoring agency, al-Zawahiri stresses that the US president "was clear and explicit, and he revealed the true face of the modern Crusade, where standing down and appeasement does not work with them, but only resistance through the call and jihad."
The news agency also stated, that al-Zawahiri recalled the the position of his predecessor bin Laden, who named the US "the first enemy of the Muslims, and swore that it will not dream of security until it is lived in reality in Palestine, and until all the armies of disbelief leave the land of Muhammad."
However, the US was not the only target of his war declaration, as, according to the reports, the Al-Qaeda leader also criticized Islamic countries for failing to protect Muslims. He blamed them for cooperating with the United Nations, which recognizes Israel, and following resolutions of the Security Council and General Assembly instead of sharia laws.
"Many have even established public or secret relations with Israel and accepted that Tel Aviv or West Jerusalem be the capital of Israel, even though it is also Muslim land that cannot be ceded to Jews," al-Zawahri said in the video, cited by the Israeli newspaper Jerusalem post, whose authenticity has yet to be verified.
The US Embassy is to be opened on May 14 in a ceremony, which will be attended by White House advisers, Trump’s daughter Ivanka and her husband Jared Kushner. Earlier this year the US president decided to move the mission from Tel Aviv, thus recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. This has enraged Palestinians, has been praised by Israelis and has received mixed responses from the international community.
READ MORE: US to Move Embassy to Jerusalem as Mideast Tensions Simmer
Jerusalem has remained an apple of discord in the Arab-Israeli conflict, being an obstacle to reaching a peace agreement between the Jewish state and the Palestinians, who see east Jerusalem, captured in the 1967 war by Israel, as the capital of their own future state.
*Al-Qaeda, as well as Daesh, also known as ISIS/ISIL/IS, are terrorist groups banned in Russia and many other countries.
