Islamic State claims responsibility for attack at Texas event

CAIRO — The Islamic State group yesterday claimed responsibility for a weekend attack at a centre in the United States which was exhibiting cartoon depictions of the Prophet Muhammad.

An audio statement on the extremist group’s Al Bayan radio station said that “two soldiers of the caliphate” carried out Sunday’s attack near Texas and promised to deliver more in the future.

The statement did not provide details and it was unclear whether the group was opportunistically claiming the attack as its own. It was the first time the Islamic State, which frequently calls for attacks against the West, had claimed responsibility for one in the US.

Two suspects in Sunday’s attack in the Dallas suburb of Garland were shot dead after opening fire at a security guard outside the centre. It was unclear whether the Islamic State, which has captured large swathes of territory in Syria and Iraq, had an actual hand in Sunday’s operation, or whether the two suspects had pledged allegiance to the group and then carried out the attack on their own.

The suspects have been identified by officials as Elton Simpson and Nadir Soofi.

According to mainstream Islamic tradition, any physical depiction of the Prophet Muhammad — even a respectful one — is considered blasphemous, and drawings similar to those featured at the Texas event have sparked violence around the world.

In January, gunmen killed 12 people in the Paris offices of French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in what was said to be revenge for its cartoons of Prophet Muhammad.

The authenticity of the statement could not be confirmed but it was read on the Al Bayan radio — a station based in the Syrian city of Raqqa, which the group has proclaimed the capital of its self-styled caliphate.

“We tell ... America that what is coming will be more grievous and more bitter and you will see from the soldiers of the caliphate what will harm you, God willing,” it said.

Following its claim of responsibility, its members and followers celebrated online with postings on affiliated militant websites. “How are you (Americans) going to live when we create our lone wolves to be nuclear bombs ... by God, you can’t match us and in the heart of your homes you will see,’’ said one Twitter posting.

“Let anyone who wants to draw the picture of our Prophet to think one thousand times before doing so, because our hands can reach his neck,” said another.

There have been numerous attack in Western countries believed to be related in some way to the group, which holds roughly a third of Iraq and Syria. In October, Canada was hit by two terror attacks by so-called “lone wolves” believed to have been inspired by the Islamic State group. AGENCIES