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'Clinton created ISIS': Trump brushes off Islamist video appearance, puts blame on Clinton for ISIS

After jihadists used his tough remarks about Muslims in a recruitment video, Donald Trump refused to back down, saying in remarks aired Sunday, "I have to say what I have to say."

The Republican presidential hopeful made the comments on CBS's Face the Nation after a US monitoring group said that his call for a ban on Muslims entering the US had been used in a video by Somalia's extremist Shebab group.

Trump told CBS that Democrats don't want to talk about Islamic radicalism, but he won't shy away from it for the sake of depriving extremists of fodder for their recruitment. "What am I going to do?" he asked.

"I have to say what I have to say. And you know what I have to say? There's a problem. We have to find out what is the problem. And we have to solve that problem."

Trump's call for a total, if temporary, ban had drawn criticism around the globe, including from Hillary Clinton, the leading Democratic candidate, who said his remarks were used by radicals in recruitment videos -- a suggestion Trump aides had sharply denied.

Trump continued his attack on Clinton while on Fox & Friends, accusing the Democratic frontrunner of lying in her debate statement.

"It wasn't ISIS and it wasn't made at the time, and she lied."

At a campaign rally in Biloxi, Mississippi, Trump redoubled his attack on Clinton, accusing her and President Barack Obama of creating ISIS.

"They've created ISIS. Hillary Clinton created ISIS with Obama," Trump said before adding he was "the most militaristic person in this room" other than some people who who he pointed to off cameras.

In the new Shebab video, the Trump soundbite is preceded by a speech by the late Anwar al-Awlaki, a US-born radical imam, calling on Muslims in America to "flee the oppressive Western atmosphere for the lands of Islam".

Al-Awlaki, who Washington alleges was a senior Al Qaeda operative, was killed by a US drone strike in Yemen in September 2011.

The video, which lasts more than 50 minutes, specifically targets black youths, urging them to convert to Islam and leave for the Somali battlefield using footage of Malcolm X, protests against police actions, and speeches of white supremacists, SITE said.

It portrays America as a country hostile to its Muslim population, with the narrator claiming that "in the United States, basic human rights and concepts such as justice, tolerance, and the rule of law do not apply if you are a Muslim".

ISIS's best recruit

Trump's inflammatory remarks sparked a wave of global outrage, with his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton warning that his words were playing into the hands of extremist groups.

During a Democratic debate last month, Clinton accused Trump of being "ISIS's best recruiter," referring to the self-described Islamic State group, and said the radical jihadists were "going to people showing videos of Donald Trump insulting Islam and Muslims in order to recruit more radical jihadists."

Trump hit back, accusing her of lying, but Clinton's spokeswoman insisted that his remarks were "being used in social media by ISIS as propaganda... to help recruiting," sourcing the information to groups that monitor IS's online activities.

US media outlets were unable to find any footage evidence to back up Clinton's initial claim.

The video was uploaded onto Twitter by the Al-Kataib Media Foundation, a regular conduit for the group's propaganda material, SITE said.

The Shebab was born out of the Islamic Court Union, which controlled central and southern Somalia for six months in 2006, including the capital Mogadishu.

The insurgents, who were driven out of Mogadishu in 2011, are fighting to overthrow Somalia's internationally-backed government, which is protected by 22,000 African Union troops.

Supporters turn nasty

Planes flying over the New Year’s Day Rose Parade in the US state of California spelled it out :"America is great! Trump is disgusting. Anybody but Trump, US."

An hour later, the planes were still circling overhead, writing messages such as "Trump is delusional," and "Trump is a fascist dictator."

CBS News reported that millionaire real estate developer and backer of Republican nominee hopeful Marco Rubio, Stan Pate, was behind the stunt.

At a Bernie Sanders rally at the University of Massachusetts, one Trump supporter stood up to heckle the Democratic hopeful with a sign that said: "Obama is as Christian as Bruce Jenner is a woman".



"Here's a Trump supporter worried about Mr. Trump's money," the senator replied as the crowd turned on the heckler.

I say to Mr. Trump and his supporters that the billionaires in this country will not continue to own this nation," he added.

News break – January 4