"It is the duty of everyone who is sincere in his desire to defend Islam and Muslims today, to take the initiative to perform the individual obligation of jihad ... by striking the Zio-Crusader interests," he said, referring to Western and Jewish interests.

Gadahn, who has been hunted by the FBI since 2004, also sought to discredit attempts by moderate Muslim leaders to suppress the "jihadi awakening."

He spoke in Arabic in the video, which was made available by the U.S.-based SITE Intelligence Group, which monitors extremist activity.

Dawud Walid, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations' Michigan chapter, called Gadahn's video "a desperate plea for attention" that will be ignored in the Detroit area — home to one of the largest Muslim communities in the U.S.