Al-Qaeda Leader: Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is a Troublemaker and Unworthy of the Caliphate

Ayman al-Zawahiri, the leader of al-Qaeda, harshly criticized Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the Islamic State (ISIS), in an audio message, describing him as a "troublemaker" and stating that he is unworthy of the "caliphate." The Islamic State captured vast areas of northern Iraq last summer and subsequently declared the establishment of an "Islamic caliphate" in the territories it controlled in Iraq and Syria, naming al-Baghdadi as its caliph. According to CNN, in the audio message released by the SITE intelligence group, which monitors extremist groups, al-Zawahiri stated: "We do not consider Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi a person worthy of the caliphate." He criticized al-Baghdadi for appointing himself as caliph with the support of "unknown individuals" and added: "What he calls the Islamic State was established through force, bombings, and car bombs instead of encouraging and empowering the people." Al-Zawahiri's remarks come at a time when al-Qaeda's branch in Iraq had also carried out suicide attacks and bombings in the past years. This group continues such actions in Afghanistan. The al-Qaeda leader further stated: "When Gaza was burning from Israeli bombs, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi did not support them even with a word. He focused all his efforts on attracting fighters to follow him, so that he could appoint himself as caliph without consulting any of them." Al-Zawahiri continued: "I return to speak about the discord that al-Baghdadi is trying to create among the ranks of the fighters. I have addressed this issue in a series of speeches with various religious and historical arguments and documents." About three months ago, the Islamic State group severely criticized al-Zawahiri, accusing him of "deviating from jihadist policy" and "creating a rift among the ranks of fighters and jihadists." The group also ignored al-Zawahiri's request to withdraw from the battlefronts in Syria. The militants of the Islamic State were once part of al-Qaeda and linked to it, but in the past two years, they have established a separate organization and have fought against it. Currently, in Syria, the al-Nusra Front is considered the al-Qaeda branch that is battling the Islamic State.