The image advertises an al-Qa’ida (AQ) transcript of an audio message published following the Israeli response to the Turkish Mavi Marmara flotilla ships bound for Gaza on 31 May 2010. The image indicates that the date is August 2010. The caption at the top reads: “nukhbat al-i‘lam al-jihadi-qism al-tafrigh wal-nashr-tafrigh al-isdar al-sawti-risala lil-sha‘b al-turki al-mulsim al-sadira ‘an mu’assasat al-sahab lil-intaj al-i‘lami” (“Jihadi Media Elite-department of distribution and publication-distribution of an audio production-a message to the Muslim people of Turkey produced by the al-Sahab Foundation for Media Production”). The figure pictured in the image is Ayman al-Zawahiri, who is identified by name and title, along with the customary prayer/blessing: “al-shaykh Ayman al-Zawahiri, hafizahu Allah” (“may Allah protect him”).
The logo at the bottom is that of Nukhbat al-I‘lam al-Jihadi (Jihadi Media Elite), a jihadi distribution company. In the background, behind the picture of Zawahiri, there is a watermark calligraphic representation of what appears to be either the basmalah (i.e. the words “bi-smi allahi al-rahman al-rahim,” or “in the name of God the merciful and compassionate”) or the shahada (Islamic testimony of faith holding that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is his messenger). Finally, the logo at the bottom of the image contains two additional elements important in jihadi propaganda.The first is the black banner. According to prophetic tradition (hadith), the black flag was the battle flag of the Prophet Muhammad and it was carried into battle by many of his companions. The image of the black flag has been used as a symbol of religious revolt and engagement in battle (i.e., jihad). In the contemporary Islamist movement, the black flag with the shahada is used to evoke notions of jihad and of reestablishing the Islamic Caliphate.The second important element in the logo is the globe, which in jihadi visual propaganda is utilized in order to globalize localized issues and conflicts, as well as to articulate the global aims/nature of the jihadi struggle and/or particular groups. In this case, it is clear that AQ is interested in placing the flotilla incident within a jihadist context.
