by: Oren Segal
July 21, 2016
Cover image of the Inspire Guide
Al Malahem media, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP)’s propaganda wing, released a new pamphlet examining the details of the July 14 attack in Nice, France, and encouraging copy-cat attacks.
The pamphlet is the second in a series called "Inspire Guides," which state that they are designed to “[provide] guidance to the Lone Mujahid (fighter)” and to “follow-up, guide, put right and correct Lone Jihad operations in order to realize the best military and political results that serve the general policy of the Mujahidin (fighters) in our war with America.”
The first Inspire Guide was released in the aftermath of the June 12 shooting in Orlando, and provided tips for amplifying Al Qaeda’s message and increasing casualties in copycat attacks.
The new guide was released on Telegram on July 12. It proclaimed that Muhammad Lahouaiej Bouhlel, who conducted the attack, “executed the operation in its totality and perfection,” and suggested only that extremists seeking to replicate it refer to Inspire magazine, AQAP’s English-language propaganda magazine, for tips on increasing the lethality of truck attacks.
The speed with which the Inspire Guide was released after the Orlando and Nice attacks stands in contrast to the irregularity of Inspire magazine, which has produced a sporadic 15 issues since it was first published online in 2010. Unlike the magazine, however, both issues of Inspire Guide have consisted of only a few pages on one subject, without any graphics or attempts at sophisticated design.