Hacker group Anonymous claims to have forced their first jihadi website down since announcing online war against extremists in the wake of Charlie Hebdo murders
- The hacking group have condemned the Paris massacre which killed 12
- Anonymous released video last week 'declaring war' against terrorists
- Pledged to close jihadi social network accounts to avenge those murdered
Hacking group Anonymous claims to have closed down its first extremist website after launching an online war in retaliation for the Charlie Hebdo massacre.
The campaign group posted a tweet on the account @OpCharlieHebdo boasting it had crippled the French terrorist website ansar-alhaqq.net.
It came with the hashtag #TangoDown and the message: 'Expect us. #JeSuisCharlie' - a reference to the campaign of solidarity launched worldwide in the wake of the atrocity.
The ansar-alhaqq.net page remains down, instead directing to the search engine DuckDuckGo.
![Hacking group Anonymous has claimed on the Twitter @OpCharlieHebdo (above) to have crippled the French extremist website ansar-alhaqq.net as part of its online war on jihadists in retaliation for the Paris massacre](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2015/01/12/24A3B4C800000578-2906987-Hacking_group_Anonymous_has_claimed_on_the_Twitter_OpCharlieHebd-m-18_1421082679392.jpg)
Hacking group Anonymous has claimed on the Twitter @OpCharlieHebdo (above) to have crippled the French extremist website ansar-alhaqq.net as part of its online war on jihadists in retaliation for the Paris massacre
It is not clear exactly how the site was brought down, but Anonymous has previously used a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) that overloads the website with vast amounts of data.
The group last week promised a 'war on jihadists' in the wake of the Charlie Hebdo massacre in Paris, which left 12 people dead when gunmen stormed the offices of the satirical magazine.
In the clip, which was uploaded to the group's Belgian YouTube account, a figure wearing the group's Guy Fawkes mask and a hood says in French in an electronically-distorted voice: 'We are declaring war against you, the terrorists.'
Sitting at a desk and reading from a piece of paper, the figure says the group will track down and close all accounts on social networks related to terrorists to avenge those killed.
![The group (pictured) declared war on the jihadists after the tragic massacre in Paris last month](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2015/01/10/2490E54400000578-2904637-image-a-57_1420909332175.jpg)
Hacker group Anonymous (pictured) has declared war on jihadists after the Charlie Hebdo massacre in Paris
The hashtag #OpChalieHebdo - presumably meaning Operation Charlie Hebdo - also appears on screen.
The group also reportedly published a statement on text-sharing website Pastebin, entitled 'Message to the enemies of freedom of expression'.
In it they wrote: 'Freedom of expression has suffered inhuman assault ... It is our duty to react ... We wish to express our condolences to the families of the victims of this cowardly and despicable act.'
![Massacre: The hackers have threatened to target terrorists online after Al Qaeda brother Cherif and Said Kouachi (above) stormed the Charlie Hebdo offices killing a dozen people](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2015/01/10/247A1D8400000578-2904637-image-a-61_1420910134759.jpg)
Massacre: The hackers have threatened to target terrorists online after Al Qaeda brother Cherif and Said Kouachi (above) stormed the Charlie Hebdo offices killing a dozen people
They added: 'We will fight always and everywhere the enemies of freedom of expression ... Freedom of expression and opinion is a non-negotiable thing. To tackle it is to attack democracy.
'Expect a massive frontal reaction from us because the struggle for the defense of those freedoms is the foundation of our movement.'
Anonymous has previously carried out cyber attacks on websites belonging to the Government, as well as those of corporate and religious organisations.
In 2012 Anonymous crippled the Home Office's website by flooding it with huge amounts of internet traffic.
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