Eye on Extremism

June 6, 2023 

AFP News: Taliban Provincial Governor Killed In Suicide Attack: Officials

“The acting governor of an Afghan province was killed by a suicide bomber Tuesday, officials said, months after the region's police chief was killed in a similar attack claimed by the Islamic State group. Security has improved dramatically since the Taliban stormed back to power in August 2021, ousting the US-backed government and ending their two-decade insurgency, but IS remains a threat. The bomber drove a car filled with explosives into the vehicle carrying Nisar Ahmad Ahmadi -- the deputy governor of northern Badakhshan before stepping up as acting governor last month -- in the provincial capital Faizabad. ‘The target of this attack was the vehicle carrying Nisar Ahmad Ahmadi,’ said Muazuddin Ahmadi, the head of culture and information in the province. The driver was also killed and six others wounded in the attack, which has so far not been claimed by anyone.”

The Street Journal: Al-Qaeda, IS Displaces 2 Million People In Burkina Faso - Report

“Violence linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State (IS) group as of May 2023, has displaced more than two million people in Burkina Faso making the country one of the world's fastest-growing populations of internally displaced people. The majority of those displaced were women and children, and this has been causing an increase in humanitarian crises as the conflict pushed people from their homes into congested urban areas. Aid groups and the government are making efforts to respond amid a lack of funds and growing needs. According to United Nations (UN), one in four people requires aid, and tens of thousands are facing catastrophic levels of hunger. Yet not even half of the $800 million humanitarian response budget requested in 2022 by aid groups was funded.”

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Turkey

Daily Sabah: New Defense Minister Güler Vows Continued Fight Against Terrorism

“Türkiye's newly appointed Defense Minister Yaşar Güler on Monday vowed to continue the country’s fight against terrorism as he took the reins of the ministry from his predecessor Hulusi Akar. ‘I'm taking over the flag today. Our aim is to raise this flag higher,’ Güler said at the handover ceremony in the capital Ankara, adding that his priority will be the fight against terrorism. ‘We will continue our fight against all kinds of terrorist organizations that threaten the peace and security of our country until the last terrorist is eliminated,’ Güler stressed. He also thanked Akar for his ‘active’ role in ensuring the peace and security of Türkiye, especially in the fight against terrorism and border security.”

Pakistan

Dunya News: Terrorist Killed In Attack On Police Team In Peshawar's Maattani

“An alleged terrorist was killed in crossfire with a police team in Mattani area of Peshawar on early Tuesday, police said. Four miscreants attacked a police team headed by the Saddar circle SP duing a 'targeted' operation. All officals including the officer remained unhurt. Three suspects managed to escape. Police said one of the runaway suspects suffered gunshot wound. Police are probing the incident.”

Middle East

The National: Jordan Foiled 'Terrorist Scheme' To Kill Shiite Visitors, Report Says

“Jordanian intelligence foiled a ‘terrorist scheme’ to kill Shiite visitors at a shrine in the centre of the kingdom two years ago, the official Al Rai newspaper said on Tuesday. Details of the plot were revealed as officials from Jordan and Iran signalled a desire to improve ties following a Chinese-brokered rapprochement between Iran and Saudi Arabia in March. The paper said intelligence personnel arrested a male ISIS supporter who had monitored a shrine in the town of Al Mazar, located 130km south of Amman, in August 2021. The shrine contains the grave of Jaafar Al Tayyar, a companion of the Prophet Mohammed who was killed in a battle against Byzantine forces in the seventh century. The man observed the movement of people at the shrine's entrance and exit, Al Rai said, citing official documents.”

Jewish News Syndicate: Hamas, Islamic Jihad Meet In Cairo To Address Post-War Tensions

“In the shadow of tensions stemming from May’s Gaza war (‘Operation Shield and Arrow’), senior Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad officials convened in Cairo on Sunday for the first official meeting since the military campaign. The terrorist groups were represented by their top leaders, Hamas Political Bureau Chairman Ismail Haniyeh and Islamic Jihad Secretary-General Ziyad al-Nakhalah. During the five-day conflict, Hamas refrained from intervening in support of Islamic Jihad after the latter’s top command in the Gaza Strip was targeted by the Israel Air Force, creating persistent tensions between the two terrorist groups. The Israeli strikes on the Islamic Jihad leaders came against the backdrop of a rocket barrage fired by the terrorist group following the death of Khader Adnan on May 2.”

Jewish News Syndicate: Two IDF Soldiers Run Over In Huwara; Terrorist Arrested

“Two Israeli soldiers were wounded on Monday night when a terrorist rammed them with his vehicle in Huwara, near Nablus in Samaria. The driver fled the scene but was captured by Israeli forces following a chase. A knife was found in his vehicle, according to the Israel Defense Forces. The victims were evacuated to the Rabin Medical Center’s Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikva, one with light and one with moderate injuries.”

Somalia

Garrowe Online: New Video Shows Al-Shabaab Leader Dispatching Fighters To AU Military Base

“The Al-Shabaab militants have released a new video purportedly of its leader Ahmed Umar alias Abu Ubaidah, the Emir who is on the US list of most wanted terrorists, allegedly addressing fighters in an undisclosed location just moments before the deadly attack on a Ugandan military base in Somalia. Last week, an estimated number of over 800 Al-Shabaab militants ransacked Bulo Marer Forward Operating Base in southern Somalia, killing several soldiers who were on duty. This was the first single-largest attack on a military base by Al-Shabaab since 2017 when they raided Kenya Defence Forces [KDF] base in Kulbiyow. The face of Abu Ubaidah in the video appears blurred as a customary practice whenever he addresses his fighters and is heard sending the militants to raid the base. The video comes a few days after the militants released a similar one in which he insisted that the operations against the group had ‘fatally failed’.”

Homeland Security Today: U.S. Strike Kills Three Al Shabaab Fighters

“At the request of the Federal Government of Somalia and in support of the Somali National Army engagements against al Shabaab, U.S. Africa Command conducted a collective self-defense strike in the vicinity of Wayanta, Somalia on June 1. The initial assessment is that the strike, approximately 60 km southwest of Kismayo, killed three al Shabaab fighters. The command’s initial assessment is that no civilians were injured or killed. Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has publicly stated that economic reform, social and political reconciliation, and religious tolerance are key pillars of his strategy to mobilize society against international terrorism. Military actions are just one part of the Federal Government of Somalia’s efforts to comprehensively address their security challenges.”

Africa

Voice Of America News: Ugandan Soldiers Survive Six Days Hiding From Al-Shabab, Says Military

“Ugandan soldiers hid for six days before being rescued after al-Shabab militants overran their base, a spokesperson for the Uganda Peoples' Defense Forces (UPDF) told VOA Somali. Brigadier General Felix Kulaigye said the four soldiers, including a lieutenant, survived by hiding within and around the base in the town of Bulo Marer, 110 kilometers south of Mogadishu. He said the troops were found after the Ugandan contingent retook the base on Thursday. ‘When we recovered, they were weak because they were only surviving on urine,’ Kulaigye said. He said each of the soldiers was hiding alone, in separate locations. ‘They were weak out of hunger,’ he said.”

United Kingdom

BBC: Reading Terror Inquest: Killer's Deportation Dropped Before Murders

“Khairi Saadallah's deportation was initially stalled because he faced charges, including eating a police station mattress, the hearing was told. The process was then dropped because of the war in Libya, the court heard. In June 2020, Saadallah stabbed James Furlong, Joe Ritchie-Bennett and David Wails in Forbury Gardens, Reading. He was handed a whole-life sentence at the Old Bailey in 2021 after pleading guilty to three murders and three attempted murders.”  

Germany

DW News: Is The So-Called Islamic State Still A Real Threat?

“Interview with CEP’s Hans-Jakob Schindler: The anti-terrorism operation involved raids across ten German states. The suspects are thought to be part of a network seeking donations for the Islamist terrorist group in Syria. Prosecutors say they collected 65-thousand euros for IS members, which in some cases helped finance their escape from camps in northern Syria.”

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