Syria
Daily Sabah: Turkish Intelligence Eliminates Top MLKP Terrorist In Syria
“The National Intelligence Organization (MIT) eliminated a senior member of the Marxist-Leninist Communist Party (MLKP) terrorist group in Syria, sources said Saturday. Turkish authorities use the term ‘neutralize’ to imply the terrorists in question surrendered or were killed or captured. PKK/YPG terrorists hide near the Turkish border in northern Syria, where they plan or stage attacks on locals and nearby settlements in Türkiye. The agency neutralized Osman Nuri Ocaklı codenamed ‘Yılmaz Behrareş,’ who was behind a prison attack in Bursa among many other terrorist attacks in Türkiye on behalf of MLKP, according to security forces.”
Iran
AFP News: Top Palestinian Militants Hold Talks In Iran
“The leaders of Palestinian militant groups Islamic Jihad and Hamas held talks Monday with top Iranian officials in Tehran as deadly violence flared in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi received Islamic Jihad chief Ziyad al-Nakhalah while Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh held talks with Ali Akbar Ahmadian, the newly-appointed secretary of the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC), ahead of meeting with other top officials. ‘The most efficient way to end the more than 75 years of occupation of Palestine is resistance,’ Ahmadian told Haniyeh, according to the Nournews website close to the SNSC. Nakhalah has been in Iran since last week and has met top Iranian officials, including the supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Raisi.”
Turkey
Radio Free Radio Liberty: Abducted Turkish-Kyrgyz Educator Handed Lengthy Prison Term In Turkey On Terrorism Charge
“A Turkish-Kyrgyz educator who was abducted by Turkish agents in Kyrgyzstan in 2021 has been sentenced to 21 years in prison on a charge of ‘establishing an armed terrorist group,’ Turkish media reports said on June 16, adding that Orhan Inandi had been "brought to Turkey via an ‘operation’ carried out by the National Intelligence Organization. Inandi, who headed the Turkish-language Sapat school system in Kyrgyzstan, was abducted by Turkish agents in Bishkek in June 2021. Turkish officials have called Inandi a top Central Asian leader of the Gulen movement, which is led by the U.S.-based Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen, a former close friend of Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan before falling out of favor and becoming a rival. Turkey considers the movement, known as Hizmet in Turkish, to be a terrorist organization, though it is mainly involved in educational activities and promoting civil society. Its schools in Kyrgyzstan are considered prestigious and have been attended by thousands of people, many of them now serving in government.”
Daily Sabah: Far-Right German Terrorist’s Father Threatens Turkish Family
“The family of Ferhat Ünvar, one of four Turks killed by far-right terrorist Tobias Rathjen, found themselves the target of Rathjen’s father again. Hans-Gerd Rathjen issued death threats in a letter addressed to Ünvar’s mother, Serpil, according to reports in the German media. The 24-year-old Ünvar was among nine victims of Rathjen in the German town of Hanau in 2020. Tobias Rathjen killed Ünvar and others in attacks targeting two cafes on Feb. 19, 2020. All of his victims in the cafes had migrant backgrounds. Rathjen later killed his mother and himself. His father was accused of sending multiple letters containing death threats to the families of the victims, who sought a restraining order against him. Last March, a court ordered his imprisonment for violating the restraining order and failure to pay a 4,200 euro ($4,589.13) fine for the violation. He has violated the order six times, often approaching the families and in some cases, in the company of an aggressive dog, according to accounts of the families. Germany-based website Perspektive reported that the elder Rathjen has been showing up on the doorstep of Ünvar’s mother and a youth center that Ferhat Ünvar frequented in the past. The website reported that he also sent a letter addressed to Serpil Ünvar, urging her ‘to leave Germany.’”
Afghanistan
Reuters: Taliban Treatment Of Women Could Be 'Gender Apartheid' - UN Expert
“A U.N. expert said on Monday that the treatment of Afghan women and girls by the Taliban could amount to ‘gender apartheid’ as their rights continue to be gravely infringed by the country's de facto authorities. ‘Grave, systematic and institutionalised discrimination against women and girls is at the heart of Taliban ideology and rule, which also gives rise to concerns that they may be responsible for gender apartheid,’ U.N. Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, Richard Bennett, told the Human Rights Council in Geneva. The U.N. defines gender apartheid as ‘economic and social sexual discrimination against individuals because of their gender or sex’. ‘We have pointed to the need for more exploration of gender apartheid, which is not currently an international crime, but could become so,’ Bennett told reporters on the sidelines of the Council.”
Business Insider: Afghanistan's Taliban Needs Money So Badly They Are Selling Tickets To Monuments Their Own Fighters Smashed To Pieces: Report
“The Taliban are selling tickets to vist the site of ancient monuments they themselves blasted to pieces in an attempt to boost Afghanistan's flagging economy, The Washington Post reported. Tickets to see the cavernous remains of the Bamiyan Buddhas, in the Hazarajat region, are sold to locals for 57 cents and $3.45 to foreigners, the paper reported. It appears out of character from the militant political movement that, to the horror of the international community, blasted away the 1,500-year-old Buddhist reliefs, leaving little more than their niches hewn out of the mountain. Over a period of days in March 2001, the Taliban destroyed the two statues, using anti-tank mines, anti-aircraft guns, artillery and systematically placed explosives to reduce them to vacant holes in the rock, as Slate reported.”
Pakistan
Dunya News: 'Most Wanted' Terrorist Among Three Gunned Down In Darra Adamkhel Operation
“The security forces killed the most wanted terrorist commander Zafar alias Zafri along with his companions in Darra Adamkhel area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. According to details, the security forces conducted an operation between Friday and Saturday night and as a result, three terrorists including terrorist commander Zafar were killed. Officials said that the killed terrorists include Hasan from Darra Adamkhel and Anas alias Ali of Nangarhar and Zafar Khan alias Zafri and his associates belonged to the outlawed TTP. The slain terrorist Zafri was a resident of Malan village of Darra Adamkhel and he came back to Peshawar from Nangarhar’s province of Afghanistan and he was involved in 26 major attacks in Pakistan. He used to target security forces, coal contractors, businessmen and influential people and had earned millions through extortion and kidnapping for ransom. Meanwhile, Hasan was an expert of sniping and grenade attacks.”
Samaa: Another TTP Commander Killed Amid Militants Infighting
“Sarbakaf Mohmand was in banned Jamaat ul Ahrar. He died in mysterious circumstances. Earlier, Jamaat ul Ahrar joined TTP. The internal differences have been intensified among militants’ factions and groups. The anti-state element was involved in killing police personnel when the cop was offering namaz. The terrorist also supported the political party’s attacks on army installations.”
Middle East
BBC: Six Palestinians Killed In Israeli Military Raid In Jenin
“An Israeli helicopter fired missiles after Palestinian militants targeted troop carriers with explosives. It marks a sharp escalation of fighting as frequent raids in the city in the occupied West Bank continue. The Israeli army said it had to mount a ‘logistical operation under fire’ to remove several stranded vehicles. Seven Israeli soldiers and border police officers were wounded, three of them ‘moderately’, according to the army. It is the first time in years - possibly since the height of the second Palestinian Intifada, or uprising, two decades ago - that the Israeli military has used attack helicopters in the West Bank. The helicopter reportedly fired at militants on the ground while Israeli forces tried to extract soldiers.”
Fox News: UN Report Shows Al Qaeda And Taliban Ties Remain Strong, Warns Of ISIS Threat
“A damning new United Nations Security Council report claims that terrorist group ISIS-K, the Afghan ISIS affiliate, is the most serious current terrorist threat operating in Afghanistan, with an estimated 4,000 to 6,000 fighters. Since the country fell, ISIS-K has benefited from increased operational capabilities and freedom of movement inside Afghanistan. Most troubling for the United States and its allies is the report's claim that the relationship between the Taliban and al Qaeda and other terrorist groups remains ‘strong and symbiotic.’ Following the collapse of the U.S.-backed Ashraf Ghani government in August 2021, Taliban spokespersons made assurances that Afghanistan would not once again become a safe haven for terrorist groups, and they would not allow any terror group to stage an attack from Afghan territory. The 2020 Doha Agreement, negotiated under former President Trump, laid the groundwork for the withdrawal of all U.S. forces in exchange for a pledge from the Taliban to prevent any terrorist organization from using Afghan soil to threaten or attack the United States or its allies.”
i24 News: Terror Attack In West Bank, 2 Israelis Wounded, 2 Terrorists Neutralized
“Israeli security forces neutralized two terrorists after an attempt ramming attack at Crossing 300 in the northern West Bank, according to Rescue without Borders paramedics. First reports say the arrest procedure was carried out on the suspected vehicle, which ended in a shooting. Earlier on Monday, eight Israeli soldiers were wounded in clashes with Palestinians in the West Bank city of Jenin. During an arrest operation, seven soldiers were lightly and moderately wounded, and another was lightly wounded by shrapnel. The soldiers were evacuated to Rambam Hospital via helicopter.”
Nigeria
Al Arabiya News: Suspected Extremists Kill 11 Farmers In Nigeria
“Suspected Boko Haram militants have killed 11 farmers in northeast Nigeria, the latest attacks in the conflict-wracked region, local militias told AFP on Friday. The attackers stormed farms on motorcycles in Kuwayangiya, a village 15 kilometers from Borno state capital Maiduguri, seizing 11 of them and slitting their throats, three anti-extremism militia members said. ‘The insurgents rounded up 11 farmers working on their fields, bound their hands behind their back and cut their throats,’ militia leader Babakura Kulo said. The attackers chose not to use guns, hoping to avoid alerting soldiers and militia from nearby Molai village, said militia leader Umar Ari. ‘All the 11 farmers were slaughtered and their bodies abandoned on the farms by the Boko Haram terrorists,’ Ari said.”
Somalia
The East African: 43 Al Shabaab Militants Killed In Somalia Airstrike
“Somalia’s government says 43 Al Shabaab militants, including two senior commanders, were killed by Somali National Army forces during a weekend airstrike about 14 kilometres from the Jamame District in the Lower Juba region. ‘The airstrike successfully eliminated key Al Shabaab leaders Aden Abdirahman Aden and Idris Abdirahim Nur, who was of Kenyan national origin, and a total of 43 Al Shabaab fighters,’ the Somali National News Agency (Sonna) reported on Monday. Sonna said the attack, carried out by ‘Somalia’s international partners’, happened on Friday as the militants and their commanders gathered to plan attacks against government soldiers at the Barsanguni military base, which is home to the Somali National Army and local forces. The statement did not specify the foreign partner that conducted the airstrike, but often, US Africa Command drones carry out attacks on Somali militant targets.”
Africa
The National: Militants Linked To ISIS Kill 41 In Attack On Ugandan School
“The death toll in an attack on a school in western Uganda has risen to at least 41 from 25 announced earlier by police, Ugandan media outlets said on Saturday. Privately owned NTV Uganda television said on Twitter that the toll stood at 41, while state-run New Vision newspaper said it was 42. Members of the Allied Democratic Forces, a Ugandan group based in eastern Congo that has pledged allegiance to ISIS, attacked Lhubirira secondary school in Mpondwe, burning a dormitory and looting food late on Friday, police said. ‘So far 25 bodies have been recovered from the school and transferred to Bwera Hospital. Also recovered are eight victims, who remain in critical condition at Bwera Hospital,’ Ugandan police said earlier on Twitter.”
Daily Nation: Two KDF Soldiers Killed In Twin Shabaab Attacks In Lamu
“Two Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) soldiers were killed in an operation of the General Service Unit (GSU) team whose vehicle had earlier ran over an improvised explosive device (IED) at Mlima Faru on the Witu-Pandanguo road in Lamu County on Sunday. Several GSU officers operating under the multi-agency security Operation Amani Boni (OAB), while on patrol in the general areas of Mlima Faru drove over the IED suspected to have been planted on the road by Al-Shabaab militants at around 9.30 am. Confirming the incident to Nation.Africa, the military’s Chief Strategic Communications Brigadier Zipporah Kioko said KDF troops stationed in the area had responded by moving swiftly to secure the area and recover the wounded. They also enhanced patrols in the area.”
France
RFI: Trial Of Four Far-Right Extremists Accused Of Terrorism Opens In Paris
“The men, now aged between 22 and 28, are accused of planning attacks on mosques, the Representative Council of Jewish Institutions in France (CRIF) and the French headquarters of The International League Against Racism and Anti-Semitism (Licra) in Tours. One of the co-accused said they also planned to target a concert at the Bataclan by French rapper Médine – whom the far right accuse of pandering to Islamism – and meetings of Jean-Luc Mélenchon, founder of the hard left France Unbowed party. Since one of the defendants was 17 at the time of the accusations, the men are appearing before the special juvenile assize court in Paris. A fifth protagonist, aged just 14 at the time, was already tried in a juvenile court in December 2022 and handed a two-year suspended sentence.”
Europe
BBC: Vienna Pride Parade Attack Foiled, Austrian Police Say
“The parade, which took place in the capital, Vienna, on Saturday, attracted more than 300,000 people. Austrian security services said those arrested in their homes on Saturday were young men, aged 14, 17 and 20. They released no details, but added that weapons, including knives, an axe, and air guns, had been seized. The Austrian domestic intelligence chief, Omar Haijawi-Pirchner, revealed the arrests at a news conference on Sunday. He said police had waited to reveal details of the planned attack until after the parade to ensure participants did not feel anxious. ‘That's ultimately the goal of terrorism, to cause anxiety and fear in the public. It's also our job not to let that happen.’”
The Print: Eight Pakistan Nationals Arrested In Greece For Plotting Terror Attacks
“Eight Pakistan nationals have been arrested in Greece for plotting terror attacks, according to unconfirmed reports, Greek City Times reported. The arrests have once again brought the spotlight back on Pakistan which has been the main spreader of jihadist terrorism across the globe. Jihadist terrorism in Europe emerged in the 1990s. In many European countries, awareness of this new development took some time. In fact, the threat posed by jihadist terrorism was underestimated, overlooked, and often misunderstood.”
Canada
CBC: Calgary Man Faces 4 Terrorism-Related Charges After Federal Policing Investigation
“RCMP say a Calgary man is facing four terrorism-related charges following a national investigation. In a release issued late Friday afternoon, authorities announced the RCMP Federal Policing Integrated National Security Enforcement Team and Calgary Police Service arrested a local resident in relation to terrorism offences. Zakarya Rida Hussein, 20, appeared in court Friday and was charged with two counts of facilitating a terrorist activity contrary to section 83.19 of the Criminal Code. Police said the man was also charged with two counts of participating in or contributing to, directly or indirectly, an activity of a terrorist group contrary to section 83.18(1) of the Criminal Code. Hussein was remanded into custody pending a future court appearance. Representatives for the RCMP and the Calgary police declined to answer questions about the charges or the man who'd been arrested.”
New York Daily News: Sikh Leader Shot Dead Outside House Of Worship In Canada
“Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Sikh leader in British Columbia, Canada, was shot dead Sunday night outside the house of worship he led in a Vancouver suburb. Nijjar, 45, was president of Guru Nanak Gurdwara in Surrey. He was gunned down by two attackers, according to witnesses. ‘We honor the death of a brave warrior and declare that many more will rise,’ read an Instagram post from BCSikhs. ‘The BC Sikh community has suffered an immeasurable physical loss tonight at the hands of spineless cowards.’ Nijjar was described as a wanted terrorist by Indian media outlets. Indian authorities claimed he was part of a Sikh independence group.
India
The Nation: CTD Punjab Arrests 6 Alleged Terrorists Of Banned Outfits
“The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) Punjab arrested 9 alleged terrorists of banned outfits during operations in different areas of Punjab. According to the spokesman, the CTD Punjab conducted 55 intelligence based operations in different districts of the province to effectively deal with any untoward incident of terrorism, in which 50 suspected persons were interrogated and 6 alleged terrorists were arrested with weapons, explosives and other prohibited materials. Among the arrested terrorists three members of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, Liaquatullah, Nadeem Khan, Inayatullah, a member of Sepah Sahaba Pakistan, Muhammad Younis, a member of Daesh, Muhammad Ammar and a member of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, Ijaz Ahmed are included, he said. The spokesman said that 1358 grams of explosives, one hand grenade, 6.53 feet of Prima Card, one laptop, 82 pamphlets, 45 stickers, 2 flags, 6 receipt books and 18800 rupees cash of the banned organization were recovered from the possession of the terrorists.”
The Times Of India: 5 Jem Terrorists Held In Connection With Circus Worker's Killing In Jammu And Kashmir
“Five Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) terrorists were arrested from Anantnag district of Jammu and Kashmir in connection with the killing of a circus worker last month, police said on Friday. Deepak Kumar (27), a resident of Udhampur district, was shot dead by two motorcycle-borne militants from a close range when he had gone to the market to buy milk on the night of May 29. He worked at a circus in the Janglat Mandi area in the south Kashmir district. The prime accused in the case received weapon training through WhatsApp video calls from his handler, police said. Addressing a press conference in Anantnag, Deputy Inspector General (DIG), South Kashmir Range, Rayees Mohammad Bhat said the terrorists belong to Kashmir Freedom Fighters (KFF) -- an offshoot of proscribed terror outfit JeM.”
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