Today in Terror: Ansar Swears Allegiance To ISIS?

Coming as no surprise to Egyptians, the homegrown radical terrorist group Ansar Bayt Al-Maqdis has released a statement swearing allegiance to the extremist militant group ISIS.

"After entrusting God we decided to swear allegiance to the emir of the faithful Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, caliph of the Muslims in Syria and Iraq and in other countries," the statement reportedly said. However, immediately after the story went internationally viral, being picked up by many credible news outlets, the angered group requested the media “to check the accuracy of their sources and to stick to ABM’s official statements.”

تنبيه البيان المتداول اعلاميا المنسوب لنا بخصوص اعلان بيعة الجماعة لخليفة المسلمين لا يخصنا وعلى الجميع تحري الدقة والنقل عن مصادرنا الرسمية

— أنصار بيت المقدس (@3Ansar_B_Almqds) November 4, 2014

Considering that both groups are committed to violence, and considering that Ansar Bayt Al-Maqdis had previously told Reuters that it sought out inspiration and advice from the radical Al-Qaeda offshoot ISIS, the alleged statement released on Monday doesn't truly matter in the grand scheme of dealing with terrorists, as both are threats.

Whether the statment is true, there has been a surge in attacks in north Sinai, which is why last week the Egyptian government declared a three-month state of emergency, after an attack took the lives of 33 security personnel. Although Ansar Bayt Al-Maqdis hasn’t claimed credit for this particularly extraordinary attack, they have taken credit for similar attacks in the region.