“Jihadist-hit Burkina Faso said Saturday it had extended a state of emergency
in place in eight of the country's 13 regions since the end of March by six
months. The bill, adopted unanimously by the interim parliament on Friday, will
be in effect through to October 29. It ‘aims to strengthen and consolidate the
fight against the insecurity and to give more opportunities and resources’ to
security forces, Justice Minister Bibata Nebie Ouedraogo said. The government
installed the state of emergency in March in areas most affected by jihadist
attacks.”











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Eye on Extremism



May 15, 2023



AFP News: Jihadist-hit Burkina Extends State Of Emergency By 6 Months
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“Jihadist-hit Burkina Faso said Saturday it had extended a state of emergency
in place in eight of the country's 13 regions since the end of March by six
months. The bill, adopted unanimously by the interim parliament on Friday, will
be in effect through to October 29. It ‘aims to strengthen and consolidate the
fight against the insecurity and to give more opportunities and resources’ to
security forces, Justice Minister Bibata Nebie Ouedraogo said. The government
installed the state of emergency in March in areas most affected by jihadist
attacks.”



Voice of America News: Somalia Official Says 44 Militants Killed in Military
Operation
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“Somalia's army says it has killed 44 al-Shabab militants in the latest
offensive against the group in the Lower Shabelle region. Somalia's deputy
information minister, Abdirahman Al-Adala, told state media Saturday that
forces from the intelligence unit, with the support of international partners,
killed 44 al-Shabab militants in the Ali Fuuto area, about 200 kilometers from
the capital, Mogadishu, near the Kurtowarey district of the Lower Shabelle
region. The minister said the militants were regrouping at the time. The
operation comes about a week after the Somali army said it killed 67 militants
in the central Mudug region.”




CEP Expert Analysis

* Extremism in Erdogan's AKP
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* Security Risks Emanating From Afghanistan
<[link removed]>
* Unsolved Murders In Syria's Badia
<[link removed]>
* Transnational Linkages Between Violent Right-Wing Extremism, Terrorism and
Organized Crime
<[link removed]>
* Prosecution of Returnees from Syria and Iraq in France
<[link removed]>



Syria



Associated Press: Syria’s Main Insurgent Group Seeks To Move Away From
Al-Qaida Past, Get Off Western Terrorism Lists
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“The leader of an insurgent group that rules much of northwest Syria rose to
notoriety over the past decade by claiming deadly bombings, threatening revenge
against Western ‘crusader’ forces and dispatching Islamist religious police to
crack down on women deemed to be immodestly dressed. Today the man known as Abu
Mohammed al-Golani is trying hard to distance his group, Hayat Tahrir al Sham,
known as HTS, from its al-Qaida origins, spreading a message of pluralism and
religious tolerance. As part of the rebranding, he has cracked down on
extremist factions and dissolved the notorious religious police. For the first
time in more than a decade, a Mass was performed recently at a long-shuttered
church in Idlib province.”



Daily Sabah: Turkish Intelligence Operation Eliminates Senior PKK/YPG Terrorist

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“A Turkish intelligence operation in northern Syria resulted in the
elimination of a high-ranking PKK/YPG terrorist, security sources said on
Saturday. Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organization (MIT) ‘neutralized’
Haydar Demirel, code-named Bager Türk and the terror group's so-called general
manager of the Hol province in northern Syria, according to security sources
who requested anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media. The
terrorist, who had been followed by MIT since 2020, was ‘neutralized’ while
training PKK/YPG members in the northern town of Tal Hamis in Syria. According
to the sources, Demirel joined the terror group in 1993, received training from
its convicted ringleader Abdullah Öcalan between 1993 and 1994, and then took
part in various terrorist activities.”



Iran



Al Jazeera: Iran Summons Iraq Envoy To Protest Presence Of ‘Terrorist Groups’
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“Though the groups were not named, the reference appeared to be to Kurdish
armed groups, including the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan, a banned
group that has advocated for the separation of the northwestern province of
Kurdistan from Iran and the overthrow of the government. The foreign ministry
reportedly conveyed that the groups’ presence goes against a security agreement
Iran and Iraq signed last month in Baghdad. Iran’s security chief, Ali
Shamkhani, had at the time said Tehran hopes the agreement ‘can completely and
fundamentally end the vicious actions’ of Kurdish groups and stop Iraqi borders
being used to threaten Iran. Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdish region hosts camps
and rear bases operated by several Iranian Kurdish factions, which Iran has
accused of serving Western or Israeli interests in the past and conducting
operations with their support.”



Pakistan



Associated Press: Pakistan Leader Says Those Involved In Violence Following
Khan Detention Will Face Terrorism Trials
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“Pakistan’s prime minister said Saturday that authorities would go after those
involved in violent protests following the detention of his predecessor, Imran
Khan, including prosecution in anti-terrorism courts. Shahbaz Sharif’s warnings
were a sign of further escalation in the long-running showdown between the
government and Khan, who has the backing of large numbers of supporters. Khan
returned to his home in the eastern city of Lahore early Saturday, after a
court agreed to shield him from renewed arrest for two weeks. The 70-year-old
former cricket star, who was toppled by parliament a year ago, delivered a
speech from his home later Saturday.”



Associated Press: Pakistani Army Says Raid On Militants In Southwest Leaves 7
Troops, 6 Militants, Civilian Dead
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“A raid on militants in Pakistan’s southwest in response to an earlier attack
on soldiers left seven troops, six militants and a civilian dead, the army said
Saturday. The operation continued for two days after a group of militants
attacked a camp of soldiers in the Qila Saifullah district of northern
Balochistan province early Friday. The militants also held hostage three
families, including women and children, at the residential area of the army
camp, the army said. No group immediately claimed responsibility for that
attack. A statement by the military’s media wing said seven soldiers, six
militants and a civilian were killed in the ensuing raid. A woman was also
wounded during the operation.”



Middle East



Outlook India: Israel And Palestinian Islamic Jihad Reach Ceasefire After Days
Of Rocket Attacks And Air Strikes
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“…The PIJ is a Palestinian terrorist organisation committed to the destruction
of Israel, says think tank Counter Extremism Project (CEP). ‘PIJ is dedicated
to eradicating Israel and establishing an autonomous Islamic Palestinian state
in the lands currently comprising Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza. PIJ believes
that the land of Palestine is consecrated for Islam, that Israel usurped
Palestine, and, therefore, that Israel is an affront to God and Islam and that
Palestine’s re-conquest is a holy task,’ says CEP. The PIJ is the
second-largest Palestinian terrorist group after Hamas, which is also committed
to the destruction of Israel. Hamas rules Gaza.”



Reuters: Kurdish PUK Party Returns To Cabinet Meetings After Boycott
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“One of the dominant Kurdish parties in northern Iraq on Sunday ended a more
than half-year boycott of regional government cabinet meetings with its main
coalition partner, easing tensions between factions that fought a civil war in
the 1990s. The rifts had been a source of alarm to Western countries, and
especially the United States, which has backed both parties, most recently in
the fight against Islamic State. The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan Party (PUK)
ministers returned to cabinet meetings for the first time since a rare
assassination in the city of Erbil in October last year, according to three
Kurdish government officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they
are not authorized to speak to the media. Iraqi Kurdish Prime Minister Masrour
Barzani's ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) which has long tussled for
influence with its junior coalition partner in government, the Patriotic Union
of Kurdistan (PUK), led by the Talabani clan, have largely kept a lid on
mistrust since the war.”



The Jerusalem Post: Terrorists Behind Third Huwara Shooting Attack Arrested In
Nablus <[link removed]>



“The terrorists behind the last of three shooting attacks in Huwara in which
two IDF soldiers were injured in March were arrested by Israeli forces in
Nablus on Sunday morning. The terrorists were identified as Iyad Takrouri and
Musab Mazhar, residents of of Nablus. During the arrests, armed clashes broke
out between Palestinians and Israeli forces, with one Palestinian shot and
injured during the clashes. Israeli forces seized an M16 and ammunition during
the raid as well. With the arrests, all of the terrorists involved in the three
shooting attacks carried out against Israelis in Huwara this year have been
apprehended.”



The Jerusalem Post: Gaza Conflict By The Numbers: 1,478 Islamic Jihad Rockets,
422 IDF Attacks <[link removed]>



“With Operation Shield and Arrow concluded after around five days of fighting
following a ceasefire late Saturday night, the IDF on Sunday put out its
summary of the Gaza conflict. From May 9 to May 13, Islamic Jihad fired 1,478
rockets and mortars on Israel, while the IDF hit the terror group 422 times,
including 278 completely distinct targets. The Iron Dome missile defense system
shot down around 95% of Islamic Jihad rockets that threatened Israelis, with
over 430 shoot downs. In addition, 20% of Islamic Jihad rockets landed in Gaza,
killing three Gazans and wounding dozens. Another key aspect of the IDF’s
strategy was successfully keeping Hamas out of the conflict.”



Somalia



Garowe Online: Somalia: At Least 4 Soldiers Killed In Al-Shabaab Bomb Attack
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“Uganda-trained soldiers were among security officers killed in Sunday's
suspected Al-Shabaab explosion, police said in a report, just moments after
Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre lauded the progress made in the restoration of
safety in Somalia's capital, Mogadishu. Abdikadir Ahmed Ali is reported to be
among at least four soldiers who were recently trained in Uganda who died in a
landmine exptosion on Sunday evening in the Kahda district, Mogadishu. The
explosion was the first in as many days within Mogadishu,

which has been experiencing relative peace and stability.Several others were
wounded in the IED attack on their military vehicle, police said, adding that
those injured were rushed to various hospitals within Mogadishu for advanced
treatment. The Al-Shabaab militants have been targeting security officers who
have heightened crackdown against the group in recent months.”



Garowe Online: Somalia: FGS Dispatches Troops For Second Phase Of Al-Shabaab
Crackdown
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“Somalia President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has dispatched soldiers to various
front lines awaiting the second phase of a crackdown against Al-Shabaab
militants, in what comes a few days to the official scale-down of soldiers
serving in the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia [ATMIS]. The second
phase will focus on the elimination of Al-Shabaab terrorists from Jubbaland and
Southwest states where the militants may have shifted bases, President Hassan
Sheikh Mohamud said. The first phase mainly focused on Galmadug and HirShabelle
states which Hassan Sheikh said were ‘almost liberated in totality’. At
Mogadishu on Sunday, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud inspected a guard of honour mounted
by the newly trained soldiers whom he later flagged off to join the rest of the
Somali National Army [SNA] in various frontlines ahead of the battle in
Jubaland and Southwest where the militants have been waging sporadic
retaliatory attacks.”



Africa



AFP News: 33 Civilians Killed In Burkina Faso 'Terrorist' Attack
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“At least 33 people were killed when gunmen opened fire on vegetable farmers
in a jihadist-hit region of Burkina Faso, the governor said Saturday, as the
country struggles to stem an insurgency. A state of emergency has been in force
in eight of Burkina Faso's 13 regions since March, including in western Boucle
du Mouhoun. The attack on the farmers happened on Thursday evening around 5:00
pm (1700 GMT), Governor Babo Pierre Bassinga said in a statement. ‘The village
of Youlou in the department of Cheriba, Mouhoun province suffered a cowardly
and barbaric terrorist attack,’ he said. ‘The gunmen targeted peaceful
civilians’ who were farming along the river, he said, adding that the
‘provisional death toll’ included 33 people.”



United Kingdom



BBC: Weapons Found At 'Neo-Nazi Terrorist' Prison Officer's Home, Jury Told
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“A bow and arrows, an eight-inch knife and an axe were found at the home of a
West Yorkshire prison officer accused of being a neo-Nazi terrorist, a court
has heard. Ashley Podsiad-Sharp, 42, is alleged to have set up a club to train
like-minded right-wing extremists. The HMP Leeds worker sent rap songs
glorifying Hitler to the group online, a Sheffield Crown Court jury heard. Mr
Podsiad-Sharp denies possessing and disseminating terrorist documents. The
prison officer, from the Barnsley area, is alleged to have been the founder of
a group called the White Stag Athletics Club and created a channel for the
group on the messaging app Telegram, where he called himself ‘Sarge’.”



BBC: Teen's Terror Plot Against Police And Soldiers Thwarted By Mother
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“The judge at the Old Bailey has adjourned the sentencing of 19-year-old
Matthew King from Wickford in Essex. He was put under surveillance after his
mother raised concerns that videos he was watching promoted hatred. Judge Mark
Lucraft KC said she had ‘done exactly the right thing’. King pleaded guilty in
January to the preparation of terrorist attacks between 22 December 2021 and 17
May 2022.”



Europe



The National: Europe's New Push To Bring The Women Of ISIS To Justice
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“…Two opposing narratives are commonly heard in courtrooms. While defendants'
lawyers often present these women as being subjugated to violent husbands, some
experts and victims believe that by supporting the men in the household – and
sometimes also in the ISIS security apparatus – they contributed to
strengthening the group's grip on the region and its ability to terrorise
western countries with a string of suicide attacks in 2015 and 2016. The
reality probably lies somewhere in between, says Sofia Koller, a senior
research analyst at the Counter Extremism Project, a non-profit organisation in
New York. ‘It would be wrong to say they were all naive, but also wrong to say
they all knew exactly what they were doing,’ she told The National.”



India



The Tribune: Security Forces Bust Terrorist Hideout In J-K's Anantnag
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“Security forces on Sunday busted a terrorist hideout after a brief exchange
of fire with the ultras in Jammu and Kashmir's Anantnag district, police said.
The security forces had launched a cordon and search operation in Andan in the
district's Sangam area following information about the presence of terrorists
there, a police officer said. Security forces on Sunday busted a terrorist
hideout after a brief exchange of fire with the ultras in Jammu and Kashmir's
Anantnag district, police said. The security forces had launched a cordon and
search operation in Andan in the district's Sangam area following information
about the presence of terrorists there, a police officer said.”



The Nation: CTD Arrests Four Terrorists Of Banned Outfits In Punjab
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“The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) arrested four terrorists belonging to
banned outfits, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Al-Qaeda group, during
multiple operations in Punjab. As per details, CTD conducted a grand operation
on the hideouts of terrorists in several districts of Punjab including Multan
Rawalpindi and Sargodha and arrested four terrorists. During the operation, the
forces arrested four most wanted terrorists including Ayaz Khan, Yasin, Saleem
and Asad, said CTD spokesperson. Apart from suicide jackets, explosives,
ammunition was also recovered from the arrested terrorist of the banned
outfits. The spokesperson said that cases were registered against the
terrorists and the investigation was underway.”



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