The sixth “distinguished martyr” is Sayf al-Ummah, who was a veteran Saudi jihadist. Muhajir tells us that prior to Iraq, Sayf fought in Afghanistan and in Chechnya, where he appeared in the infamous “Russian Hell” film series, which depicts battles with Russian soldiers. We are not told whether Sayf knew Commander Khattab, but it is plausible that the two crossed paths, as both were Saudi foreign fighters in Chechnya during this period. We simply note that such an experienced jihadist died in February 2004, two months prior to the official announcement of Jama’at al-Tawhid wal-Jihad’s existence.
Interestingly, Muhajir reports that Sayf was surprised by the efficacy of suicide bombings when he came to Iraq. Recall that this tactic was not especially common prior to the wars in Iraq and Syria, during which it was deployed to devastating effect. It was particularly shocking in the early stages since suicide bombings had not yet been used to such a great extent. Another more famous Sayf–that is, current Al Qaida chief Sayf al-‘Adl–recently commented that suicide bombings have lost their shocking power due to overuse in Iraq and Syria. In another idiom, Sayf al-Ummah was a highly enthusiastic “early adopter.” His fanaticism is unsurprising in light of what we know about Saudi jihadism.
In the name of God, the most Gracious, the most Merciful
Sayf al-Ummah:
He is the brave and daring man, the deadly hero, and the bold and daring man, from the Land of the Two Shrines [Saudi Arabia]. God knows that I am not qualified to write about this lofty mountain, so ask about him in the Hindu Kush mountains in Afghanistan, and the villages and valleys of Chechnya, and the Tigris and Euphrates, and then you will know who this man is...
The Sword of the Nation [Al-Sayf al-Ummah],1 a lion who needs no introduction, especially to the veterans of the Mujahidin, for they knew him at the top of the ranks, storming death and wrestling with horrors, rushing where heroes hesitate, laughing when men’s hearts are torn out, and strutting over the enemies of God Almighty when feet stumble over each other in fear. The large number of the enemy increases their weakness in his eyes–he sees them as more contemptible than flies, and their strength is weaker than a spider’s web for him. The people were not frightened until they found him in front of them. The world saw him in the film “Russian Hell”2 holding two PKC weapons, firing them together in a moment that will remain etched in memory as long as the jihad continues.
Sayf al-Ummah in Chechnya. Source: “Russian Hell” ep. 1
He once told us here in the Land of Two Rivers, urging us:
What’s wrong with you? By God, we used to attack an entire enemy camp with thirty mujahidin, destroying as many armored vehicles as we wanted, killing and capturing, then carrying our wounded and withdrawing!
And he once said to me:
Give me fifty to a hundred mujahidin, and I will bring out the prisoners of Abu Ghraib for you. By God, they are cowards. Do you think they will fight and stand firm?
In addition to his courage, he was very modest and chaste. He came with his Chechen wife and children to an Arab country, and he could not go to his country simply because he was wanted and monitored.
And since he thought that he was being watched and surveilled, he did not contact any of his brothers, and he spent all the money he had, until I was told that his children would sleep crying from hunger for many days. He was the son of the most generous, and despite this he did not ask anyone for money, and he always showed whoever met him that he was in good condition, and I think that he was among those about whom God Almighty: {The ignorant thinks them to be rich because of their abstinence. You will recognize them by their mark. They do not ask people importunately. [2:273]} He remained in this state until God provided for him without any self-expectation.
Imam Ahmad was asked: “A man cannot find anything to eat, so may he ask from people?” Ahmad said: “No.” They said: “Then he will die of hunger!” He said: “No, God will provide for him.”
The martyr sent his wife and children away, and he remained waiting for the opportunity to go to Iraq, to carry out the duty of support and defense of religion and honor. When he arrived, he was surprised by the extent of the harm caused by the martyrdom operations . He said: “Glory be to God, every operation is a conquest in itself! The best thing that benefits us and dizzies the enemy here is the martyrdom operations. Their sound is deafening, and their shrapnel cannot be avoided by any force, and the world hears their news.”
He always used to quote [Yitzhak] Rabin, may God curse him, when he spoke of martyrdom operations in Palestine, where he said: “You cannot stop a man who wants to die.” One of the brothers told me that they sat with Sayf one day and said to him: “You are experienced and knowledgeable, come on let’s form a group and do this and that.” He said: “I have decided on something from which I will not stray.” And so the idea of the martyrdom operation filled his life.
It remains for me to say something that I hesitated about a lot, which is: Sayf al-Ummah taught me truthfully, and made me understand the true meaning of the Almighty’s saying: {So flee to God! [51:50]}
He had some faults and minor sins, and he saw them as if they were a mountain about to collapse on him, taking away his religion and his worldly life. This is a confirmation of the words of Ibn Massud, may God be pleased with him, as reported by Al-Tirmidhi: “When a believer sins, it is as if he is under a rock, fearing that it will fall on him and kill him. Therefore, a man would flee to God and say: ‘Nothing will purify me except martyrdom in the way of God. I ask you not to deprive me and hasten for me to seek the meeting with my Lord.’”
Some worldly desires demanded of him, so Sayf fled to God with all his might, and his inner voice said: “O Lord, help me, accept me, do not leave me, my hope in You is that I have not been deprived of Your mercy.”
His Lord accepted him with a good embrace–we think so–and provided him with good reward, as he harvested in one moment hundreds of soldiers of disbelief and apostasy, between dead and wounded, and his operation was very blessed, and one of the operations that caused the most losses in the ranks of the enemy, as he carried out a martyrdom attack on the Iskandariya police station south of Baghdad, with a pick-up truck holding about a ton of C4 dough explosives on the back. Since the station was surrounded by a wall of dirt bags, the material was placed in a high car, so that if the brother came near the wall, the entire material would be higher than the bags. At exactly eight o'clock in the morning, when the apostate enemies of God and some groups of Americans gathered, and before they set out to carry out their frenzied attacks on the Sunnis, Sayf al-Ummah blew up his car, and the enemy admitted that sixty people were killed and more than a hundred wounded.3 I ask God to accept this work from him, and not to deprive us of His reward, Amen...
And in my soul, and in a fear like that of Sayf, I said:
O Lord, if I have erred or forgotten...
Your mercy is hoped for and near.O Lord, who covers the faults of others...
Nothing escapes You, not even the smallest ant's movement.O Lord, I confess my past sins...
You are the Merciful, and who else can forgive?O Lord, You hold the reins of my affairs...
And the calamities that approach me are overwhelming.These afflictions have burdened me; do not let...
My heart perish for a moment and then heal.A necklace of misfortune has broken and scattered...
Wherever I go, hardship follows me.O You who removes hardship, lighten...
My burden from my shoulders, for Your kindness is my answer.
Written by:
Abu Ismail al-Muhajir
Sayf’s name is a double entendre here.
An infamous series of films from the Chechen jihad depicting fierce combat with Russian troops.
The attack took place on 10 February, 2004. It killed 53 and wounded 150 people. Cf. “Suicide bombing at police station kills dozens,” Times Herald-Record, 11 February, 2004. Link: https://www.recordonline.com/story/news/2004/02/11/suicide-bombing-at-police-station/51144976007/
The detailed tally of suicide bombings in 2003-04 can be found at the following link: https://www.ausa.org/sites/default/files/LWP-46-Suicide-Bombings-in-Operation-Iraqi-Freedom.pdf
Interesting case of an arab veteran of chechnya fighting in iraq. Most arabs that fought in Chechnya didnt make it out of there