“Kurdish militants from the outlawed PKK group said they are ending a
unilateral ceasefire they declared after Turkey was hit by a major earthquake
earlier this year. The announcement, carried by pro-Kurdish media on Tuesday,
threatens to see a return of violence that has claimed tens of thousands of
lives since the PKK launched its fight for an autonomous state in Turkey's
southeast in 1984. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who was re-elected for
another five years last month, has intensified operations against the militant
group and its offshoots in both Iraq and Syria. A Kurdish militant umbrella
organisation that also includes the PKK said it was responding to Turkey's
renewed operations.”











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Eye on Extremism



June 15, 2023



AFP News: Kurdish Militant Group Ends Ceasefire With Turkey
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“Kurdish militants from the outlawed PKK group said they are ending a
unilateral ceasefire they declared after Turkey was hit by a major earthquake
earlier this year. The announcement, carried by pro-Kurdish media on Tuesday,
threatens to see a return of violence that has claimed tens of thousands of
lives since the PKK launched its fight for an autonomous state in Turkey's
southeast in 1984. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who was re-elected for
another five years last month, has intensified operations against the militant
group and its offshoots in both Iraq and Syria. A Kurdish militant umbrella
organisation that also includes the PKK said it was responding to Turkey's
renewed operations.”



Garowe Online: US Offers $5 Million For Al-Shabaab Bomb Expert And Media Wing
Head
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“The United States has stepped up in pursuing top Al-Shabaab leaders, with
the latest being the group's media coordinator, who is tasked with the
generation and dissemination of propaganda, a tool effectively used to mislead
and misinform members of the public. For decades, the group has been using
al-kataib, the media wing when communicating to the public, often giving
periodical updates on raids carried across the country, with most being
manufactured propaganda for the benefit of Al-Shabaab's operations across the
country. State Department designated Abdullah Oman Mohamed alias Engineer
Ismail, who is also the group's head of explosives [Improvised Explosive
Devices [IEDs] and the special advisor to Al-Shabaab leader Ahmed Umar alias
Abu Ubaidah, the man who is also on trial by the US. ‘Abdullahi Oman Mohamed
alias Engineer Ismail is the senior explosives expert for the Al-Shabaab
terrorists. He is also the leader of the group's media wing, al-kataib, and
special advisor for the group's leader Ahmed Umar alias Abu Ubaidah,’ the State
Department said.”



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Fighting Terror is a podcast that brings together counterterrorism experts and
practitioners from Europe, the United States, and beyond to address different
approaches to combating terrorism in our society. Our frank discussions cover
the lifecycle of terrorism from propaganda and recruitment, to financing,
action, and failure. Listenhere
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United States



New York Post: US Soldier Pleads Guilty In Botched Plot To Help ISIS Attack
9/11 Memorial
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“A US soldier pleaded guilty Wednesday in an attempted plot to try and help
ISIS launch terror attacks on a 9/11 memorial in Manhattan and on American
fighters abroad, prosecutors announced. Army Pfc. Cole Bridges began
communicating with people he believed were various members of the terrorist
organization ISIS in October 2019 and told them that the Ground Zero memorial
was ‘a key target,’ for a ‘sniper kill,’ according to prosecutors. Bridges, a
22-year-old calvary scout from Ohio who had joined the army just months
earlier, soon learned that a single undercover FBI agent was posing as phony
ISIS fighters, prosecutors said. The turncoat — who also went by the alias
‘Cole Gonzalez — tried to help the phony plotters kill his fellow soldiers in
the Middle East by giving them parts of an Army training manual and a combat
training video, officials claimed. Bridges — who was based out of the Third
Infantry Division in Fort Stewart in Georgia — pleaded guilty in Manhattan
federal court Wednesday to attempting to provide material support to a
designated foreign terrorist organization and attempted to murder US military
service members. He faces up to 20 years behind bars at his Nov. 2 sentencing.”



The National: UN Adopts Resolution Acknowledging Effect Of Extremism And Hate
Speech On Global Peace
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“The UN Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution on Wednesday
acknowledging the role of hate speech, racism and other forms of intolerance in
fuelling conflicts. Jointly drafted by the UAE and the UK, the resolution also
highlighted the adverse effects of gender discrimination and acts of extremism
on global peace and stability. Noura Al Kaabi, UAE Minister of State, who
headed the ministerial-level Security Council session on the values of human
fraternity in promoting and sustaining peace, noted that no nation or region is
immune to the growing threat of hate speech. She added that the ‘clear
challenges’ posed by hate speech and extremism cannot be ‘overlooked’. ‘Our
approach and initiatives are based on the challenges experienced by the Arab
region, including the spread of hate speech and its role in inciting,
exacerbating and prolonging conflicts,’ she said.”



Daily Mail: Bodycam Footage Shows Shocking Moment Female ISIS Supporter
Threatens To DECAPITATE Indiana Cops After Burning American Flag
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“Shocking body camera footage shows the moment an Indiana woman threatened to
decapitate local police officers as she claimed she was a member of the Islamic
State terrorist group. 'If y'all don't get fired, f****** toast, ISIS will cut
your f****** heads off,' Sierra Justice Malloy, 43, could be heard telling
officers who responded to reports of arson outside a Spectrum cable store on
Old Business Road in Evansville Sunday night. Malloy went on to tell officers
at the scene they do not know who they were dealing with as she allegedly
admitted to tearing down the business' American flag, setting it on fire and
replacing it with a green ISIS flag. 'You've been hit by terrorists at the
worst time, you just don't know it yet,' she tells the police — whom she
accuses of 'selling my children to pedophiles' and keeping children under
government buildings to drink their blood. Malloy was charged with flag
desecration, intimidation, criminal mischief and trespassing. She is being held
a the Vanderburgh County Jail on a $1,500 bond.”



Syria



France24 The Observers: Interview: Why The Islamic State Group Is 'Returning
To Its Roots' In The Syrian Desert
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“…Our team spoke to terrorism expert Gregory Waters, who documents the
Islamic State group’s activities for the Counter Extremism Project. Our
interview with him has been transcribed below and lightly edited for clarity
and length.”



Afghanistan



Voice Of America News: UN Report Warns Al-Qaida, Islamic State Growing In
Afghanistan
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“…Fitton-Brown, now an adviser to the nonprofit Counter Extremism Project,
said that even if there are disagreements over the extent to which al-Qaida or
IS-Khorasan have grown their footprints in Afghanistan, the larger point
remains. The report “makes it very clear why the Taliban cannot, will not, live
up to their responsibilities under the Doha accords,” he said, citing
intelligence in the U.N. report that some Afghan Ministry of Defense courses
now feature some al-Qaida training manuals.”



Pakistan



Dunya: CTD Pips Four Terrorists In Balochistan
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“The Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) on Wednesday pipped four terrorists
including a suicide bomber in an intelligence-based operation (IBO) near
Pakistan-Afghanistan border. The CTD spokesperson said the authorities raided
terrorists’ hideout in Gohri Kol near Afghan border and surrounded the
terrorists. In response, terrorists opened fire which was countered by the
authorities. The four terrorists were killed during the operation, said the
spokesperson. The authorities also recovered modern weapon, hand-grenade, and
car being used for terrorism. They were also involved in attacks on security
forces, CTD spokesperson said.”



Lebanon



Al Arabiya: US Releases And Deports Alleged Hezbollah Financier To Lebanon
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“‘I would be proud to send money to Hezbollah,’ Hammoud said in one video,
sitting in front of a portrait of Iran’s supreme leader, Hezbollah’s Hassan
Nasrallah, and the slain Qassem Soleimani. The US has released an alleged
Hezbollah financier 23 years after he was sentenced to life in prison for
funneling money to the Iran-backed group and leading a cigarette smuggling ring
throughout the United States and Canada. Mohamad Youssef Hammoud, initially
sentenced to 155 years, was serving a 30-year prison term. It is unclear why he
was released ahead of schedule. Al Arabiya English has contacted the US Justice
Department and the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for comment. He
was seen being carried on the shoulders of friends and family upon arriving in
Beirut on Wednesday. Shortly after landing, Hammoud had multiple interviews
with Hezbollah-affiliated media outlets.”



Africa



Al Arabiya: Eight Kenyan Police Officers Killed In Suspected Al-Shabaab Blast
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“Eight Kenyan police officers were killed when their vehicle was blown up by
an improvised explosive device in a suspected attack by Somalia-based extremist
group al-Shabaab, police said. The incident took place on Tuesday in Garissa
county in eastern Kenya, a region on the border with Somalia, where al-Shabaab
has been waging a bloody insurgency against the fragile government in Mogadishu
for more than 15 years. ‘We lost eight police officers in this attack,’ North
Eastern Regional Commissioner John Otieno said. ‘We suspect the work of
al-Shabaab who are now targeting security forces and passenger vehicles.’ Kenya
first sent troops into Somalia in 2011 to combat the al-Qaeda-affiliated
extremist militants and is now a major contributor of troops to an African
Union military operation against the group.”



News Ghana: Cameroon Army Kills Two Boko Haram Militants
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“The fighting began when several Boko Haram militants armed with guns and
heavy weapons stormed a military base in Amchide town on the border with
Nigeria. Security forces repelled the terrorists and managed to clear Amchide
from Boko Haram militants, an official who declined to be named told Xinhua
over the phone. Cameroon is facing protracted armed conflict in Far North
Region, where Boko Haram continues to attack soldiers and civilians. Founded in
Nigeria, Boko Haram has been a security challenge to the most populous country
in Africa since 2009 when the Nigerian government launched an investigation
into the group’s activities following reports that its members were arming
themselves.”



France



WTOP: The Hunt: 4 Children Were Stabbed In France. Was It Terrorism?
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“On this week’s episode of ‘The Hunt with WTOP national security
correspondent J.J. Green,’ Hans-Jacob Schindler, senior director at the Counter
Extremism Project, discusses the how propaganda from terror groups works.”



The Counter Extremism Project depends on the generosity of its supporters. If
you value what we do, please consider making a donation.

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