ISIS judge issues 'death warrant' for Turkey's Erdogan

Baku. 3 September. REPORT.AZ/ Islamic State social media accounts have uploaded a fatwa to the Internet calling for the death of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, himself politically an Islamist, for collaborating with the United States on airstrikes against the jihadist terror group, Report informs referring to foreign media.

The 'death warrant' is allegedly signed by a judge of the Islamic State’s makeshift court system, Shaykh Abu Khabab al-Iraqi, and calls Erdogan an “apostate” who must be killed for working with American military units and NATO and participating in the “shedding of Muslim blood.” He is also accused of “acting in unison with Arab Alawites and Jews,” the former likely a reference to the most prominent Alawite leader in the region, Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad. Erdogan has referred to Assad as a 'terrorist' and repeatedly called for his removal from power.

The author of the fatwa appears most incensed with Erdogan’s agreement to work with NATO and the United States, calling him a “cheap doll in their hands” with little discretion as to how the Turkish military is actually being used. Erdogan is given a chance to “repent,” upon which time the fatwa will be revoked. “Anyone who has joined or supported this coalition, even if by a single word or action, is considered an apostate and should be killed. He [Erdogan] has no intercessor but to repent,” it reads. It is unclear what actions Erdogan must take as head of state for the Islamic State court to accept his “repentance.”

As with most official Islamic State documents, journalistic outlets have found no way of independently verifying the fatwa.