“More than 200 members of Afghanistan's former military, law enforcement and
government have been killed since the Taliban took over, the U.N. mission in
Afghanistan said on Tuesday, despite a "general amnesty" for old enemies. The
mission said in a report it had recorded at least 218 extrajudicial killings
with links to the Taliban from their takeover of Afghanistan in mid-2021 up to
June. "In most instances, individuals were detained by de facto security
forces, often briefly, before being killed," the U.N. Assistance Mission in
Afghanistan (UNAMA) said. Senior Taliban leaders have said there is an amnesty
for former government officials and members of the military by order of their
supreme leader. The Taliban-led foreign affairs ministry said in response to
UNAMA that it had not received reports of any cases of non-compliance with the
order and any cases that did occur would be investigated.”











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Eye on Extremism



August 22, 2023



Reuters: UN Says Over 200 Former Afghan Military, Officials Killed Since
Taliban Takeover
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“More than 200 members of Afghanistan's former military, law enforcement and
government have been killed since the Taliban took over, the U.N. mission in
Afghanistan said on Tuesday, despite a "general amnesty" for old enemies. The
mission said in a report it had recorded at least 218 extrajudicial killings
with links to the Taliban from their takeover of Afghanistan in mid-2021 up to
June. "In most instances, individuals were detained by de facto security
forces, often briefly, before being killed," the U.N. Assistance Mission in
Afghanistan (UNAMA) said. Senior Taliban leaders have said there is an amnesty
for former government officials and members of the military by order of their
supreme leader. The Taliban-led foreign affairs ministry said in response to
UNAMA that it had not received reports of any cases of non-compliance with the
order and any cases that did occur would be investigated.”



The Washington Post: 10 Years After Deadly Chemical Attack, Syria’s Survivors
Seek Justice
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“On that most terrible of nights, when death stalked every street and crept
into bedrooms where small children slept, Taher Hijazi was jarred awake by
someone shouting his name just outside his window. “Bring your camera and come
down immediately!” the voice said. “What’s happening?” Hijazi called, peering
into the dark. “Come down, I can’t talk,” the voice said. Hijazi, then a
26-year-old amateur videographer living in the outer suburbs of Damascus,
Syria, stumbled outdoors clutching his camcorder. It was not yet 3 a.m., but it
was soon clear that a calamity had struck. Strange rockets had fallen in the
neighborhood overnight, and an invisible poison was spreading through the
warrens of apartment buildings east of the capital. Hundreds of people were
dying.”



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Listen to the Fighting Terror Podcast

Fighting Terror is a podcast that brings together counterterrorism experts and
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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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or wherever you get your podcasts.




United States



ABC News: Suspect Identified In Shooting Death Of Store Owner Over Pride Flag:
Police
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“A California clothing store owner and designer was killed allegedly by a
gunman who police say tore down a Pride flag outside her business and shot her
after making homophobic remarks toward her. Laura Ann Carleton, a married
mother of nine children, was killed Friday outside her clothing store in Cedar
Glen, an unincorporated San Bernardino County community on the shores of Lake
Arrowhead, according to a statement from the San Bernardino County Sheriff's
Office. The suspected killer, who is now deceased, was identified as Travis
Ikeguchi, 27, Sheriff Shannon Dicus said at a news conference on Monday
evening. After allegedly shooting Carleton, the suspect fled the crime scene on
foot, but was found by sheriff's deputies several miles from her store, where
he was fatally shot in a confrontation, authorities said. The sheriff's office
said the assailant was armed with a handgun, which authorities said Monday
night was a Smith & Wesson 9mm automatic handgun, and refused orders to drop
the weapon.”



Syria



The Jamestown Foundation Brief: New Islamic State Caliph Inherits Renewed
Syrian Insurgency
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“On August 6, Islamic State (IS) announced its new caliph, Abu Hafs
al-Hashimi al-Quraishi. He is now the organization’s fourth caliph since
Abubakar al-Baghdadi declared the caliphate in 2014 . The announcement also
dispelled the notion that the previous caliph was killed by Turkish security
forces, as the Turkish government had claimed. Rather, IS blamed the formerly
al-Qaeda-aligned Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) for killing the last
caliph.Although IS would presumably focus on targeting HTS in northwestern
Syria based on the announcement, the organization’s recent operations in Syria,
if anything, suggest a resurgence in attacks on roadways in the rural eastern
part of the country. On August 1, for example, IS targeted a convoy of fuel
tankers on the route from Homs to IS’s former capital, Raqqa; the attack
resulted in the burning of the tankers, the death of civilians, and the injury
of nine drivers. This was the first attack on a main Syrian roadway since 2021,
and is reflective of IS’s resurgence in the area. It remains to be seen,
however, whether this attack is representative of a broader trend, and/or
whether it will boost the new caliph’s popularity.”



Homeland Security Today: Perspective: The Future Fighters Of ISIS Are
Adolescents Being Smuggled Out Of Al-Hol By Their Mothers And Financial Networks

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“Despite notable repatriation progress in early 2023, involving 14 countries
returning their nationals, including children, the issue of detention centers
and camps in Northeast Syria remains a critical challenge for the Syrian
Democratic Forces (SDF) and the U.S.-led anti-IS coalition. Likewise, Al-Hol
camp continues to prove a breeding ground for IS resurgence. The tough security
regime and the robust monitoring and surveillance efforts undertaken by the
Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) over the years has
facilitated the camp administration in maintaining a semblance of relative
security and stability, but the ideological influence of IS and its reign of
terror spreads gradually through the group’s foreign female stalwarts who are
passing on the Islamic State’s extremist ideology to the next generation.”



Middle East



i24 News: Hebron Terrorist Attack Victim Bat-Sheva Nagari Laid To Rest
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“The funeral of Bat-Sheva Nagari, murdered this morning by a Palestinian
terrorist, took place in the Beit Hagai settlement this evening in the West
Bank cemetery of Kfar Etzion. Nagari, a 40-year-old schoolteacher and mother of
three, was in the passenger seat of the vehicle that was targeted by the
terrorist. A man was also seriously injured in the attack, and was taken to
Soroka Hospital in Beersheva, south of Hebron, Magen David Adom said. Her 12
year-old daughter, who was sitting next to her, escaped unhurt. "For a little
girl to see her mother murdered before her very eyes is unimaginable," said
Benny Gantz, head of the National Unity party. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netayahu on Monday evening blamed Iranian financing for the attack in Hebron
and other recent attacks across the West Bank.”



Jewish News Syndicate: Hamas Is Building Rocket Production Infrastructure In
Jenin <[link removed]>



“Saleh al-Arouri, the leader of Hamas’s military wing in Judea and Samaria,
has been working to realize his vision of setting up a terrorist network in
northern Samaria dedicated to producing and launching rockets. Established in
May 2023, the Hamas-funded “Al-Ayash Battalion” is named in honor of Yahya
Ayash, also known as “The Engineer.” Ayash was an infamous bomb-maker and
terrorist leader killed by Israel in 1996. While the Israel Security Agency
(Shin Bet) has managed to apprehend some members of this terrorist network in
recent months, most remain concealed within the Jenin refugee camp. Despite
those arrests, the group continues manufacturing and launching rockets at
Israel. Seven of these primitive, locally-produced “Qassam” rockets have been
launched recently. Although these rockets are rudimentary in nature, they
symbolize Hamas’s intent. The group seeks to transfer advanced technological
knowledge for rocket production from Gaza to Judea and Samaria.”



The Jerusalem Post: Terrorism In The Hebron Area: What's The Significance? -
Analysis <[link removed]>



“After around 18 months of deadly terrorist attacks in the West Bank focusing
mainly on the Jenin and Nablus areas of the northern West Bank, terrorism
abruptly returned to Hebron on Monday. It’s not that there has been zero deadly
terrorism in the Hebron area – and definitely not zero attempts at terrorist
attacks or low-grade Palestinian violence. As OC Central Command Maj.-Gen.
Yehuda Fuchs said Monday, Israel’s security forces have been regularly
thwarting terrorist plots in the Hebron area. So, what was really distinctive
about the attack was that it directed attention to how unusual it has been that
Hebron has been quieter than the northern West Bank. Further, what does it mean
that this seemingly well-executed terrorist attack happened there?”



Somalia



Garowe Online: Car Bomb Hits Somalia's Capital Amid Offensive Against
Al-Shabaab
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“A suicide bombing happened on Tuesday morning at Ifka Halane intersection in
Mogadishu, leaving at least one person dead. The suicide attack, which took
place near the Land Office department around Mogadishu stadium, was executed by
a suicide bomber driving a car filled with explosives. Harbi Salad Omar, an
official of the transport department of the Hamar municipality, has been
confirmed dead in the blast. Al-Shabaab has claimed responsibility for the
bombing, which comes as the city's security situation was improving for the
past months. Somali forces conducting operations against Al Shabaab in the
central regions. Analysts say they believed the Mogadishu attack was a
terrorist strategy to divert attention from current army operations.”



Europe



The Jamestown Foundation: Arrests Of Central Asian Jihadists In Germany And
The Netherlands Reveals Persistent Islamic State Threat To Europe
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“On July 6, law enforcement in Germany and the Netherlands arrested nine
Central Asians on terrorism-related charges. In Germany, five Tajik nationals,
one Kyrgyz citizen, and one Turkmenistani citizen were arrested in the Federal
State of North Rhine-Westphalia for allegedly creating and participating in a
local terrorist organization and supporting Islamic State (IS). In the
Netherlands, a married couple—a Tajik husband and Kyrgyz wife—were also
arrested in Eindhoven and Breda. Both are suspected of plotting terrorist
attacks, with the husband also suspected of IS membership. Since 2022, the
suspects have been collecting money for IS and running a terrorist cell in
Germany. They were also probing possible places for attacks and trying to
acquire weapons in that country. The Dutch and German authorities were in
contact with each other during the investigations, as the suspects in the two
countries collaborated in plotting attacks. All nine of the suspects arrived
from Ukraine in 2022 as refugees after the Russian invasion. Most likely,
however, they met each other in Syria or Iraq, where IS controlled vast amounts
of territory between 2014 and 2019—and attracted foreign jihadists from around
the world, including Central Asia.”



India



India Today: Probe Agency NIA Arrests One More Accused Linked To Islamic State
Module
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“Central investigative agency NIA on Monday arrested the fourth accused
wanted in the ISIS Jabalpur module related to expanding terror activities in
India. The Jabalpur Module is an Islamic State-linked terror module that was
developed and operated from Jabalpur city in Madhya Pradesh and includes
dissemination of Islamic State propaganda through social media platforms, as
well as through on-ground ‘Dawah’ programmes. According to the NIA, the
accused, identified as Kasif Khan, a resident of Madhya Pradesh’s Jabalpur
district, had been allegedly working with his three associates, Syed Mansoor
Ali, Mohammad Adil Khan and Mohammad Shahid, who were earlier arrested by the
NIA in May. He was also involved in organising the 'Dawah' programme to
brainwash and radicalise gullible Muslim youth to work for ISIS, a
transnational militant Islamist group, which has been involved in carrying out
major terror attacks across the world.”



The Indian Express: Two Militants Trying To Infiltrate J&K Killed After LoC
Encounter
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“Two militants were killed while trying to infiltrate the Line of Control in
Jammu and Kashmir’s Balakote area of Poonch district, the Army said on Monday.
Sharing details of the incident, Defence PRO Lt Colonel Suneel Bartwal said
“Intelligence Inputs received from multiple agencies and Jammu Kashmir Police
revealed the presence of terrorists waiting to cross the LoC from opposite own
Balakote Sector. Based on these inputs own surveillance grid was placed on
heightened alert and multiple ambushes were sited at suitable location. On
Monday morning, according to the Army, two militants were detected by alert
troops trying to cross the LoC, taking advantage of inclement weather, dense
fog , thick foliage and undulating ground in Hamirpur area of Balakote Sector.
As the militants approached ambush sites of the Army troops, they were
challenged and then engaged with effective fire, the defence PRO said. This
forced the militants to flee, but one of them fell down on the ground near the
Line of Control, he added.”



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