Draft:Abu Omar al-Shishani
| Abu Omar al-Shishani | |
|---|---|
| File:Abu Omar Shishani.jpg | |
| name | Tarkhan Tayumurazovich Batirashvili |
| Personal details | |
Tarkhan Tayumurazovich Batirashvili (Georgian: თარხან ბათირაშვილი), known as Abu Omar al-Shishani (Persian: Omar the Chechen) (born 1986 in Birkiani – died 10 July 2016 in Mosul), was the former Minister of War of ISIS and a jihadist militant from Georgia. Following the death of Abu Abdulrahman al-Bilawi al-Anbari, he was appointed as the military commander of ISIS. Prior to this, he led the jihadist group "Jaysh al-Muhajireen wal-Ansar," whose members were predominantly fighters from the North Caucasus.
Life
Omar al-Shishani's family resides in an impoverished area of Chechnya, near the Georgian border. Omar left the Georgian army six years earlier for medical reasons. Timur Batirashvili, Omar's father, stated that his son was raised in a Christian environment and turned to radical Islam due to his inability to find employment. He believes his son was brainwashed by extremist Muslim clerics in the region.
Presence in Syria and Iraq
Al-Shishani commanded one of the militant groups in Syria that first extended its offensive line into Iraq, effectively erasing the borders between the two countries. Upon entering Iraq, he declared in a video: "Our objective is clear, and everyone now knows why we fight here. Our path leads to the establishment of the Caliphate or the Islamic State. We will restore the Caliphate, and if God wills otherwise, He will grant us martyrdom." Charles Lister, an expert at the Brookings Institution, told the Associated Press regarding this matter: "ISIS relies heavily on independent individuals. These complex connections and relationships centered on individuals allow anyone joining these forces to suddenly become a military commander of a region, or later the overall military commander of the group, through military innovation or victory on a small or large front." Western media dubbed him the "Star of ISIS." Western outlets had previously assumed that Arabs were fighting among themselves, but the presence of this young Chechen fighter altered their perception of ISIS militants. Subsequently, ISIS completely collapsed[1].
Claims of al-Shishani's Death
In the final week of Ordibehesht 1393 SH (May 2014), numerous media outlets claimed that Omar al-Shishani had been killed during clashes with forces of Al-Nusra Front [2]. However, approximately a month and a half later, the Associated Press reported al-Shishani's entry into Iraq and released a video of his speech, demonstrating that reports of his death were false. In this report, the Associated Press published images of him along with his biography, stating that he was still alive and fighting against the Iraqi army. The video referred to al-Shishani as one of the ISIS fighters without mentioning his operational history in Syria. Consequently, it was speculated that he had been appointed as the overall military commander of ISIS. Nevertheless, the ISIS group has not officially confirmed such news to date [3].
Omar al-Shishani was severely wounded on 20 Esfand 1394 SH (March 2016) due to an airstrike by the coalition against ISIS, and on 25 Esfand, US officials announced a high probability of his death. On 10 Farvardin, ISIS-affiliated domestic media released new images of Omar al-Shishani, confirming he was alive. In Tir 1395 SH (July 2016), one of the media outlets affiliated with the Islamic State group (Amaq News Agency) revealed his death, stating that Abu Omar al-Shishani was killed while repelling an attack on the city of Al-Shirqat near Mosul [4].
Death
On 13 July 2016, rumors circulated in the media regarding al-Shishani's death due to severe injuries sustained from an attack by anti-ISIS coalition forces. ISIS confirmed his death on 14 July.
Film: At the Time of Sunset
This character is portrayed as the leader of ISIS fighters in the film At the Time of Sunset. His role in At the Time of Sunset is played by a Lebanese actor named Joseph Salameh. A dialogue delivered by the character Abu Omar al-Shishani, titled "How are you, Iranian?!", became famous among the audience of At the Time of Sunset and in cyberspace [5].