The "dissidents" reportedly announced their decision to join the group led by Caliph Abu Bakr al Baghdadi in a video. According to Algerian media, the group of dissidents is the so-called Al Ghurabaa sect that is active in the Constantine Province in north-east Algeria. In the video message posted on the Internet, the jihadists declared their dissent with the position of AQIM leader Abdelmalek Droukdel and gave their full support to the Islamic State. The expansion of the Islamic State's ideology in North Africa, which has member groups in Libya and Egypt, and the offensive of the Algerian army have weakened the actions of the Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb group. Analysts think that, in a show of force, the group reportedly attacked areas that normally lie outside its scope of interest and it is precisely this situation that spurred the group's attack on Algerian soldiers in the Ain Defla Province on July 17. The terrorist group promptly claimed responsibility for the attack. (AGI)