Iran
The Economic Times: Modi, Iran President Explore Partnership On Afghanistan, Counter-Terrorism
“PM Narendra Modi on Thursday met Dr Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi, President of Iran, shortly after Iran’s inclusion as one of the new members of BRICS and explored cooperation with regard to Taliban-ruled Afghanistan and counter-terror partnership. The two leaders also explored partnership in the fields of energy, trade & investment, energy and connectivity including smooth operationalization of the International North South Transport Corridor or INSTC via Iran. Modi and Raisi also decided to fast-track infrastructure cooperation including the Chabahar Port, India’s gateway to Afghanistan and Central Asia, according to officials. Terror emanating from Afghanistan and stability of the landlocked country is a priority for India and Afghanistan. Last week the two leaders had spoken over phone before their meeting in Johannesburg. Iran was admitted as a full member of the SCO this year under India’s chairmanship of the grouping.”
Iraq
The Economist: Failing To Reintegrate Iraq’s Sunni Rebels Could Prove Costly
“For two decades the war on terrorism preoccupied Western policymakers in the Middle East. America had to rally the world against Islamic State (is), a force of Sunni Muslim jihadists who by 2016 governed an area the size of Britain and extolled their desire to conquer the world for the caliphate. But four years after a Western coalition recaptured the last redoubts of is in Iraq and Syria, it is walking away from the clear-up. In north-eastern Syria tens of thousands of women and children of captured jihadists are languishing in a detention camp called al-Hol. In Iraq jihadist sympathisers, their families and displaced people who had come under the sway of is and were held in camps recently closed have fared little better. Far from being reintegrated back into society, they could still pose a threat. “Iraq is still fragile,” says a Western diplomat in Baghdad. “Without a sustainable return, there’s an increased tendency for displaced people to be pushed back into is’s extremist narrative.””
Afghanistan
The Washington Times: With U.S. Gone, Terrorist Groups Thrive Again In Taliban-Ruled Afghanistan
“Last month, the U.S. Central Command said it conducted 20 joint operations in Iraq and 11 in Syria, killing five Islamic State operatives and capturing 30 fighters. Gen. Michael “Erik” Kurilla, CENTCOM head, emphasized that partnerships with Iraqi and Syrian Kurdish allies were “crucial to addressing challenges posed by ISIS within the region.” According to Combined Task Force Commanding Gen. Matthew McFarlane, the U.S. has “seen a dramatic reduction in ISIS activity and effectiveness across our area of operations.” The Pentagon has some 900 troops in Syria and 2,500 troops in Iraq. They have compiled an outstanding record dealing with terrorist threats in the region before they could be visited on our shores. Partners like the Kurdish-Syrian Defense Forces serve as a force multiplier for protecting our nation’s security.”
The Jerusalem Post: Iran vs Taliban? Afghanistan's Islamic Rulers Detain Iranian Journalist
“Iran was determined “to pursue securing the release of a photojournalist in Afghanistan,” Iranian President’s Special Envoy for Afghanistan Affairs Hassan Kazemi Qomi said earlier this week. Reports state that Mohammad Hossein Velayati, an Iranian photojournalist working for the Tasnim News Agency, was arrested by the Taliban in Kabul when he was on the way out of Afghanistan. Iran and Afghanistan have had tensions in the past. However, Iran has sought to mollify concerns about rising tensions because it doesn’t want problems on its eastern border. Iran has in the past backed the Shi’ite minority in Afghanistan and recruited them to fight in Syria as Iran’s proxies. Iran also supported the US leaving Afghanistan. Iran plays a key and increasing role in Central Asia and has ties with India and Pakistan, countries that also have interests in Afghanistan.”
Voice Of America: Taliban Leader Considers New Afghan Media Law
“After two years of legal ambiguity and stringent restrictions on free press, de facto Taliban authorities have submitted a draft of a new Afghanistan media law for approval by their supreme leader. The draft, shrouded in secrecy until now, will regulate the Islamist leadership's fraught and sometimes combative relationship with journalists as well as state and private media bodies. With no parliament or a constitution in the Taliban's self-declared Islamic Emirate, only the reclusive supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, holds unchecked power over the fate of the country's laws, including the new media law. In an exclusive interview with VOA, the Taliban's chief spokesperson, Zabihullah Mujahid, unveiled some details of the new law. "About 70% of it [the draft] is taken from the old law," said Mujahid, adding that the changes that were made are aimed at aligning the law with Islamic Sharia law. The media law enacted under the previous Afghan government also required that all media activities be in accordance with Islamic law.”
Middle East
i24: Israeli Forces Map House Of Terrorist Who Killed Negrekar Father, Son - Report
“Israeli security forces mapped Thursday morning the house of a terrorist who killed Shai Negrekar and his son Aviad on Saturday, in a rare move before capturing the suspect. The mapping is done in preparation for the house’s likely demolition. The activity was carried out in the suspected terrorist’s house in the village of Aqraba, east of Huwara and near the West Bank city of Nablus. The terrorist was identified by Palestinian reports as Osama Issa Bani Fadl. The manhunt by the Israeli forces was still being carried out to find the wanted man, though the weapon he used to carry out his attack was found not far from Huwara. The early mapping was particularly unusual, since it usually takes place after a terrorist has been apprehended and interrogated, or deceased. After the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) operation, the terrorist's father spoke to the media, telling them that "armed men entered the house and accused my son of the attack. They measured the house and turned it upside down.””
Associated Press: Palestinian Authorities Say An Explosion At A Hamas Site In Gaza Has Killed 1 Militant
“An explosion ripped through a Hamas militant site in the central Gaza Strip on Thursday, Palestinian authorities said, killing one militant and seriously wounding another. The Gaza-based interior ministry did not reveal the cause of the blast but said it killed Ashraf Hussein, a member of Hamas’ military wing, the Qassam Brigades. The Qassam Brigades acknowledged that Hussein was killed in what the group described as an accidental explosion. There was no information about what kind of militant facility was affected in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, or about the extent of damage caused. Gaza’s Hamas rulers have a number of training sites and underground facilities used for manufacturing weapons and storing raw rocket material. Accidental explosions have been reported in the past at bomb laboratories and munitions storehouses.”
Libya
The National News: Libya Captures ISIS Figure Suspected Over Three Attacks In 2018
“A leader of the ISIS extremist group who allegedly planned and sponsored three deadly attacks in the Libyan capital Tripoli in 2018 has been captured, the country's prime minister ha said. "Our forces apprehended on Tuesday a leader of the terrorist organisation Daesh, involved in the planning and command of terrorist acts that targeted the institutions of our country and their fallen officials," Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh, Prime Minister of Libya's Government of National Unity, said during a live TV broadcast on Thursday, using the Arabic acronym for ISIS. The government's media office offered no further details on the identity or nationality of the alleged ISIS figure, who was arrested in a joint military operation. Mr Dbeibah also renewed his government's commitment to "combat terrorism in all its forms", to "prosecute anyone involved" in terrorist acts and to "strengthen stability throughout the country".”
Nigeria
The Guardian: Boko Haram Frees 48 Abducted Women In Borno
“The terrorist group, Boko Haram has granted freedom to at least 48 women abducted in Maiwa and Shuwarin Villages in the Mafa Local Government Area (LGA) of Borno State. A counter-insurgency expert and security analyst, Zagazola Makama. who is based in the Lake Chad region broke this news on Thursday. Makama while confirming their freedom on Twitter said that the women were kidnapped in their farmlands on Tuesday, August 22, 2023. According to Makama, they were taken to an unknown destination after being abducted and Boko Haram later demanded ransome from their family members. “On Wednesday, August 23, the women were released after paying N50,000 each as ransome to the terrorists,” the security analyst said.”
Somalia
Garowe Online: Somalia: Military Parades Captured Al-Shabaab Militants
“The Somali National Army [SNA] has paraded captured Al-Shabaab militants, even as the country continues to ask members of the terror group to surrender to the army, amid an ongoing crackdown against the Al-Qaida-linked group, which the country plans to eliminate completely by next year. According to the state media, the military paraded the militants to showcase milestones made in the fight against the group which still controls large swathes of rural central and southern Somalia. The group has been in operation for the last two decades, necessitating military operations. Those paraded were Abdirahman Fodey Kulmiye, Abdullahi Ibrahim Hassan, and Adan Ibrahim Abshi, with the military accusing them of terrorizing innocent civilians and security officers within Owswayn town which was recently seized from the militants during the operation.”
Mali
BBC: Inside Mali: What Now For The Country That Bet Its Security On Wagner?
“It was late in the evening when we set up camp, lit a fire to cook our dinner and laid down our blankets to sleep under the open sky. Suddenly the silence of the hot desert night was broken by the roar of a motorbike. Around us we heard a series of clicks as the armed men in our convoy cocked their rifles and machine guns. We were with a group of Tuareg separatists who told the man on the motorbike to move on.As soon as he left, our hosts told us we had to leave too. Immediately. It was too risky to stay put as the man was a scout for a local group linked to al-Qaeda. We had been careful, swapping our jeans for traditional robes and Tuareg headscarves to blend in, but if he realised foreigners were in the camp he could lead the militants to us and we could be kidnapped. We packed up as quickly as we could and drove off into the pitch black without any headlights or torches so that we couldn't be followed.”
Africa
Reuters: Niger Allows Mali, Burkina Faso Troops To Enter Its Territory In Case Of Attack
“Niger has authorised Mali and Burkina Faso's armed forces to intervene on its territory in case of an attack, the countries said in a joint statement on Thursday, a possible sign the junta in Niger plans to keep resisting regional pressure to stand down. The main West African bloc ECOWAS has been trying to negotiate with the coup leaders but warned it is ready to send troops into Niger to restore constitutional order if diplomatic efforts fail. Any escalation risks further destabilising the insurgency-torn region as Niger's junta-led neighbours, Mali and Burkina Faso, have said they would back Niger in any conflict with ECOWAS. On Thursday, the three allies' foreign ministers said they had met in the Nigerien capital Niamey to discuss boosting cooperation on security and other joint issues. The statement said the ministers welcomed the signing on Thursday by Niger junta leader General Abdourahamane Tiani of two orders "authorising the Defense and Security Forces of Burkina Faso and Mali to intervene on Nigerien territory in the event of an attack."”
Australia
The Guardian: Labor’s Counter-Terror Laws May Stifle ‘Political Dissent’, Law Council Warns
“Australia’s peak body for lawyers has joined civil liberty groups, journalists and advocacy groups to sound the alarm on proposed laws to criminalise the accessing of violent extremist material, saying the new powers are unnecessary and may inadvertently interfere with “legitimate matters of political dissent or struggle”. The federal government is seeking to expand counter-terror powers by introducing new offences for possessing or controlling violent extremist material using a carriage service. The purpose is to address what the government says is a gap in current law, which it says only criminalises the accessing of such material if it is done in connection with a planned terrorist act. The government’s examples of the type of material that would be covered include images and videos depicting terrorist incidents, manifestos and propaganda, instructional material on how to build a bomb, launch attacks, or manufacture harmful chemicals.”
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