Global political leaders are often characterized in jihadi propaganda as oppressors of Islam and enemies of the jihadi movement. In particular, they are depicted as the main obstacles to achieving the declared goals of the jihadi enterprise, namely creating a state governed by divine (Islamic) law, rather than man-made laws. In this image, former U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is portrayed as weak and exposed, so to speak, to an Islamic State of Iraq (ISI) gunman. The large caption on the right reads: “dawlat al-‘iraq al-islamiyya dawlat al-murabitin” (“ISI is the state of [garrisoned] troops”). The Arabic word “murabitun” has its origins in the Qur’an and in several places is used interchangeably with the word “jihad” or its derivatives (cf. Q 3:200). The caption on the left, under the ISI/al-Qa’ida in Iraq, logo is the slogan: “labbayki dawlat al-‘iraq al-islamiyya” (“we are here [at your service] O, Islamic State of Iraq”).
