United States
WGBH: Nonprofit CEO Raises Concern Over Neo-Nazi Group's Targeting Of Military Veterans
“Since it's founding in 2019, the Nationalist Social Club, or NSC-131, has been expanding its membership in New England. The group began in Eastern Massachusetts and has established small chapters throughout the region. The Southern Poverty Law Center identifies them as a neo-Nazi group that targets immigrants and members of the LGBTQ+ and Jewish communities. NSC-131 made headlines last year after flashing a "Keep Boston Irish" sign at the South Boston St. Patrick's Day parade. As the group has expanded, activists have voiced concern about military veterans who have been joining its ranks. Kristofer Goldsmith is the CEO of Task Force Butler Institute, a nonprofit that monitors domestic extremist groups and trains veterans to counter them. He says that while veterans aren't more likely to hold extremist beliefs, extremist organizations target them for recruitment.”
Turkey
Republic World: Turkish Intelligence Seizes IS Database, Names Of 10,000 'Lone Wolf Terrorists' Revealed
“Turkish National Intelligence Organization (MIT *Milli Istihbarat Teskilati) and Turkish police on Tuesday, August 8 seized a secret database of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist organization (Arabic acronym Daesh) that revealed names of almost 10,000 so-called lone wolf terrorists. The database has been a central piece of hunting for the global Intelligence agencies for decades and contains secret information about 'lone wolf terrorists' of IS sleeper cells from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Switzerland, Austria and Spain. The hunt began with a phone call in the Tajik language that was wiretapped by the Turkish intelligence.
Yemen
AFP: Bangladeshi UN Worker Meets PM After Freed From Al Qaeda In Yemen
“A Bangladeshi citizen working for the United Nations has been freed after a year and a half abduction by Al-Qaeda in Yemen, the prime minister's office said. "I never thought I would return home," Akam Sofyol Anam told reporters in Dhaka, following his return a day earlier, calling the last 18 months "horrifying". In February 2022, Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) kidnapped Anam and four others as they returned to Yemen's southern port city of Aden after a field mission while working for UN Department of Safety and Security.”
Middle East
i24 News: Palestinian Terrorist Killed, 4 Others Injured In Clashes With Israeli Army
“Clashes erupted in the town of Tulkarem, where Israeli forces were carrying out a counter-terrorism operation. A Palestinian terrorist was killed and four others were injured in clashes on Friday morning with Israeli soldiers in Tulkarem, in the West Bank. Palestinian media reports stated that Israeli forces, who were carrying out an anti-terrorist operation in the city, fatally wounded 23-year-old Mahmoud Jihad Jarad, a member of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade.”
Somalia
Anadolu Agency: Several Somali Soldiers Killed In Mogadishu Bomb Explosion: Report
“Several Somali soldiers have been killed in a bomb explosion in the capital Mogadishu on Thursday, according to local media reports. Local broadcaster Radio Shabelle said the incident took place when a military vehicle drove over a landmine planted on the road near Darussalam area. Quoting a witness, the broadcaster said all six Somali soldiers aboard the vehicle died. Anadolu could not independently verify the casualties. Roadside explosions and suicide bombings are common in Somalia, a Horn of Africa country plagued by years of insecurity caused by al-Shabaab terrorists.”
Africa
Reuters: West African Bloc Prepares Standby Force For Possible Niger Intervention
“West African nations on Friday worked on plans for a possible military intervention in Niger following an army coup there although they have not given up hope of a peaceful resolution to a crisis that has shaken the region. The Nigerien military ousted former President Mohamed Bazoum on July 26, the seventh coup in West and Central Africa in three years and an action that raised the spectre of more unrest in an impoverished region battling an Islamist insurgency. The regional bloc ECOWAS ordered the activation of a standby force on Thursday for possible use against the new junta, saying all options including military action were on the table. It was not clear how big the force would be, if it would actually invade, and which countries would contribute. Security analysts said an ECOWAS force could take weeks or longer to assemble, potentially leaving room for negotiations.”
Reuters: Gunmen Kill 20 People In Nigeria, Others Wounded – Police
“At least 20 people were killed and others sustained gunshot wounds on Thursday after armed men attacked two villages in the north central state of Plateau, where violence between cattle herders and farmers is common, police said. Plateau police spokesperson Alfred Alabo said the attacks took place in the early hours of Thursday when unidentified gunmen stormed Tagwam Lawuru village, shot and killed 17 people before killing another three in nearby Layowok village. "As a result of the attacks, several other people sustained varying degrees of gunshot injuries," said Alabo in a statement, urging calm and promising to arrest and prosecute perpetrators. The violence is often painted as ethno-religious: chiefly Muslim Fulani herders clashing with mainly Christian farmers.”
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