Every Tribe---One Smooth Stone

Chapter 1

Admittedly, he was going to kill them for one reason: they were Jesus followers.

Al-Kabeer had one hand on the steering wheel, and the other hand was firmly grasped around a long, sharp knife. He squeezed the knife, feeling the cold metal in his hand. I will show no mercy, he thought. I will not hesitate even slightly. He knew he wouldn’t, because the texts forbade such foolish acts, and he was a faithful follower of the texts.

But Al-Kabeer wasn’t convinced about the other two occupants. So he recited the text just in case they were harboring any doubt. “When you meet the unbelievers, cut their necks until you have extinguished them, and then tie your prisoners up; thereafter, set them free, either by an act of grace or for ransom, until the war ends.”

“Allahu Akbar,” the two occupants responded, their voices muted to avoid drawing attention to themselves.

“The text is clear, unambiguous, is it not?” asked Al-Kabeer softly.

The two occupants nodded.

Then Al-Kabeer spoke forcefully. “There are true believers and weak believers. A weak believer is one who turns his back and flees. There will be no kindness shown to such a person. A true believer is one who trembles when Allah’s name is mentioned. He trusts in Allah and carries out his plan.”

“We are the sword of Allah,” was the terse reply from the two occupants.

“We will soon find out—won’t we?” murmured Al-Kabeer. He tightened his grip around the knife and glared out the window in the direction of Café Elah.

Café Elah was nestled on the side of the hill overlooking the Elah Valley. It was a popular destination for bicyclists and motorists who frequented the café’s large back deck to take in the panorama of the scenic valley. It was also a popular destination for another group—Christians, Jesus followers, people of the cross—who gathered on the hillside next to the café and pointed to the narrow stream that cut through the valley below. The Elah Valley was the site of the epic battle between David and Goliath and a major tourist attraction.

Al-Kabeer knew all this, of course. And that was why he and the other two occupants were there, waiting.

Al-Kabeer turned and stared at the masked man sitting in the passenger seat. The masked man had his hand on the camera and his thumb resting on the record button. Attached to his waist was a leather sheath that held a nine-inch fixed-blade hunting knife. He wouldn’t need the knife, Al-Kabeer supposed.

There simply wouldn’t be time to use it. The masked man’s job was to record clear, crisp, up-close movies with excellent sound quality.

Both men jumped when they heard the back door open. Al-Kabeer glared in the rearview mirror and watched the young boy slide out the door. He then looked across the parking lot and observed a church van pulling in. He gestured toward the camera, and the masked man quickly pushed the play button. The camera captured the boy sauntering toward the side of the café, where he abruptly stopped,

turned, and grinned into the camera.

Al-Kabeer grinned back, but the boy couldn’t see the wry smile underneath his mask. Al-Kabeer’s eyes darted back to the church van. He counted four adults and nine kids. His eyes darted back to the boy. The boy was staring at him, waiting patiently for the church group to walk by. When the last member of the church group filed past the boy, Al-Kabeer gestured with his finger, and the boy quietly stepped in line and followed the group.

The church group and the boy walked to the side of the café and stopped near the edge of the hill. They huddled around one of the adults, who began reading from Scripture the story of David and Goliath. The boy stood behind the group and listened for a minute. Then he slowly turned and faced the camera, spat on the ground, held his arms out to form a cross, and blew himself up.

Al-Kabeer and the other masked man rushed toward the smoke and dust as it hovered over the valley. The camera was rolling. The blast wasn’t designed to kill everyone, just most of them. Al-Kabeer was elated when he quickly counted five survivors: two adults and three kids. He quickly ran over to one of the adults and grabbed him by the hair and lifted his head up. He then reached around and cupped his chin and held it steady for the camera. The adult was too stunned to fight back. The other masked man zoomed in with his camera.

“To the people of the cross, Jesus followers,” said Al-Kabeer as he brought the knife up and pressed it against the man’s neck.

When the adult realized what was about to happen, he brought his tattooed arms up and tried to pull the knife away but could only manage a brief scream before he went silent.

“This is what awaits you unless you embrace Allah and his teachings or pay ransom.” Al-Kabeer finished beheading the adult. He then walked over to the other adult and made quick work of her, positioning her head on her chest.

But Al-Kabeer wasn’t done. There were three kids who had survived.

The camera was already focused on a confused young boy sitting up and crying for his mom. The boy held up his small hand as Al-Kabeer approached him. Al-Kabeer didn’t hesitate. He knelt down beside the boy and smirked into the camera. Realizing the mask concealed his mouth, he quickly raised it, revealing his grotesque grin for the camera. He pulled it back down and in perfect English said, “The blood of a Jesus follower for the blood of a Muslim. The choice is yours: Allah or the knife.”

The boy was no match for the long, sharp knife, and neither were the other two kids.

Al-Kabeer and the masked man hurried back to the car. Al-Kabeer held up the bloodied knife for the camera. “We are the sword of Allah. To you Jesus followers, we are coming for you, and you will not see us until we strike at your neck. There is no place where you are safe.”

It took fewer than four minutes to complete the act, and then the two men fled. The video was posted online in less than an hour and quickly spread across the globe.

Israeli authorities captured one of the masked men and tracked the other man to Venezuela, where they lost him.