Abu Suheib Alanssari, a 28-year-old jihadi from Gaza, sees Monday’s deadly attack on a Christmas market in Berlin and the assassination of the Russian ambassador to Turkey as “signs sent by Allah to the Muslims that he’s still with them.”

Alnassari has gone underground since Hamas started persecuting radical Islamists, which led to hundreds of raids and arrests. He spoke to Breitbart Jerusalem from a disposable cell phone.

He was once active in Hamas, but now says, “It is not Islamic enough. They only do their sponsors’ bidding.”

Alanssari’s brother was arrested a few days ago together with another three Salafists when Hamas forces raided the house they were hiding in, he says. His dream is to see Gaza “and the rest of Palestine turned into a welaya of the Islamic State. Inshallah it will happen. We see more and more young people adhering to Salafism despite the cruelty of the corrupt and non-believing Hamas.”

For the Salafists, he says, the attack in Berlin and the assassination of the Russian ambassador are “signs sent by Allah to the Muslims that he’s still with them, that he still supports those who cling to faith and are undeterred by the infidels’ fire power and resist the temptations of the Crusader West. One brother in Turkey did what more than a billion Muslims dream of doing, and two brothers in Germany avenged the death of thousands of Muslims who were killed by the international coalition of Crusaders, in which Germany is a member.”

Alanssari says he cannot say whether the attacks were of the lone-wolf variety or directed from above.

“Either way, it’s a testament to the popularity of IS ideology among young Muslims who are ready to die as martyrs for Islam in retaliation against the enemies of Islam,” he said. “We hear from brothers everywhere that there are volunteers in every Western country, who may carry out an attack at any given moment. Of course, the brothers in the State leadership pledged to avenge the crimes of the non-believing Crusaders and of course it’s only a matter of time until they happen, inshallah.”

Asked whether carrying out the attacks ahead of Christmas does a disservice to Islam, Alanssari says:

I don’t remember that during Ramadan and other Islamic festivals the Crusaders held their fire in Syria, Iraq, Chechnya, Burma, Yemen, Libya, or anywhere else. Islam’s image is important, but the need to tell the enemies of Islam that gone are the days they could wipe out families and villages off the face of the earth and get away with it is no less important. This Christmas will be a lot merrier for the Muslims and less merry for the infidels, because I believe there’s more good news coming. And besides, it’s a fake holiday, because the Quran says that Mary was pregnant when the dates were growing on the trees, and dates are ripe in the summer and the autumn, so it couldn’t have been December, which shows that this entire religion is one big lie. Jesus told his followers: I anticipate the coming of a real Prophet named Ahmad, which is one of Prophet Mohammed’s names.

Alanssari says that America remains the prime target of the Islamic State. “America is the head of the snake, and if we hit it, its venom will stop spreading around the world. We’ll do whatever it takes to give the Americans the same kind of unforgettable Christmas we gave the Germans. To the Muslims, we say: We the mujahideen never cease to try and implement jihad everywhere. We sold our lives in this life, now we’re after the afterlife.”