Ansar al-Khilafah Brazil (, ) was a disorganized

Islamic State The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadism, Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS ...

terror cell and organization that was active in Brazil from 2016 to 2018.

History

The group gained prominence in 2016 after pledging their allegiance to the

group and threatening the 2016 Olympic Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Through

Telegram Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas pi ...

, the group would disseminate Islamic State propaganda in Portuguese, this included the 14 issues of the Islamic State online magazine, Dabiq. It is believed to be the first

pledge of allegiance The U.S Pledge of Allegiance is a patriotic recited verse that promises allegiance to the flag of the United States and the republic of the United States. The first version was written in 1885 by Captain George Thatcher Balch, a Union Army o ...

to the Islamic State coming from South America. In the same month of the threats, 10 members of the group would be arrested in

conspiracy A conspiracy, also known as a plot, ploy, or scheme, is a secret plan or agreement between people (called conspirers or conspirators) for an unlawful or harmful purpose, such as murder, treason, or corruption, especially with a political motivat ...

of the threat. In September 2016, 8 more members would be arrested for their support of the Islamic State and planning on an attack against Brazil, with one of the members buying an AKM from

Paraguay Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...

, 4 more would be under investigation. In 2018, the group attempted to re-establish itself as a

sleeper cell A clandestine cell system is a method for organizing a group of people, such as resistance fighters, spies, mercenaries, organized crime members, or terrorists, to make it harder for police, military or other hostile groups to catch them. In ...

, but all 11 members were arrested after

WhatsApp WhatsApp (officially WhatsApp Messenger) is an American social media, instant messaging (IM), and voice-over-IP (VoIP) service owned by technology conglomerate Meta. It allows users to send text, voice messages and video messages, make vo ...

messages between them were leaked to the Brazilian police.

References

{{Terrorism in Latin America Anti-Israeli sentiment in South America Factions of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant Islamic extremism Jihadist groups Defunct organisations based in Brazil 2016 establishments in Brazil 2018 disestablishments in Brazil