“Turkish warplanes launched a new round of airstrikes against Kurdish militant
targets in Iraq on Wednesday hours after the foreign minister warned that
Turkey would hit the militant group’s positions in Syria and Iraq in
retaliation for a suicide bombing in Ankara earlier this week. The outlawed
Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, claimed responsibility for Sunday’s attack
outside the Interior Ministry in Ankara in which one attacker blew himself up
and another would-be bomber was killed in a shootout with police. Two police
were wounded in the attack. The Turkish jets targeted 22 suspected PKK
positions in northern Iraq on Wednesday, destroying caves, shelters and depots
used by the militants, the Turkish defense ministry said. The PKK maintains
bases in the region, where its leadership has a foothold. It was the Turkish
air force’s third airstrike against suspected Kurdish militant sites in
northern Iraq following the attack, which came as parliament prepared to reopen
after a long summer recess. Meanwhile, dozens of people suspected of links to
the PKK have been detained in a series of raids across Turkey.”











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Eye on Extremism



October 5, 2023



Associated Press: Turkey Strikes Kurdish Militants In Iraq Again After Warning
Of Retaliation For A Bombing In Ankara
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“Turkish warplanes launched a new round of airstrikes against Kurdish militant
targets in Iraq on Wednesday hours after the foreign minister warned that
Turkey would hit the militant group’s positions in Syria and Iraq in
retaliation for a suicide bombing in Ankara earlier this week. The outlawed
Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, claimed responsibility for Sunday’s attack
outside the Interior Ministry in Ankara in which one attacker blew himself up
and another would-be bomber was killed in a shootout with police. Two police
were wounded in the attack. The Turkish jets targeted 22 suspected PKK
positions in northern Iraq on Wednesday, destroying caves, shelters and depots
used by the militants, the Turkish defense ministry said. The PKK maintains
bases in the region, where its leadership has a foothold. It was the Turkish
air force’s third airstrike against suspected Kurdish militant sites in
northern Iraq following the attack, which came as parliament prepared to reopen
after a long summer recess. Meanwhile, dozens of people suspected of links to
the PKK have been detained in a series of raids across Turkey.”



Associated Press: Pakistani Army Says Taliban Guard Killed 2 People. UN Is
Concerned Over Crackdown On Afghan Migrants
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“A Taliban guard opened fire at civilians at a border crossing between
Pakistan and Afghanistan on Wednesday, killing two people, including a
12-year-old boy, the Pakistani military said. Another child was wounded in the
shooting at the Chaman border crossing in Pakistan’s Baluchistan province. The
military said in a statement that Pakistani troops “exercised extreme
restraint” to avoid more casualties in the shooting. The army did not say
anything on the Afghan Taliban guard’s possible motives for opening fire and
there was no immediate comment from Afghanistan’s Taliban government. Pakistan
has asked the Afghan Taliban authorities to investigate the “irresponsible and
reckless act, apprehend and hand over the culprit to Pakistani authorities,”
the military also said. On Tuesday, Pakistan announced a major crackdown on
migrants who are in the country illegally, many of them from Afghanistan, and
said it would expel them, starting next month. The announcement raised alarm
among foreigners who are in Pakistan without documentation — including an
estimated 1.7 million Afghans. Caretaker Interior Minister Sarfraz Bugti said
the crackdown was not aimed at Afghans and would apply to all nationalities.”



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United States



Washington Examiner: US Has Its 'Boot On The Neck' Of ISIS, But Concerns It
Could Grow In Afghanistan Remain
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“The threat the Islamic State terror group poses to the United States is
limited at this point but still very real, according to a top military
official. U.S. forces are "in a good spot right now" as it relates to ISIS's
status in Syria but do "not necessarily" have "the touch of everything that's
going on" as it relates to the Afghanistan branch of the Islamic State, known
as Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISIS-K), according to Lt. Gen. Alexus
Grynkewich, commander of U.S. Air Forces Central. "ISIS probably isn't
something to worry about. We've got them down — visually, I think of being on
the ground and we've got our boot on their neck, if you will. So they're not in
a position, ISIS in Syria, they're not in a position to take significant action
against us," he said during a Defense Writers Group event on Wednesday. "They
do have a fair number of cells. They've got a few senior leaders, they've got a
few training grounds that are beyond the area where coalition forces routinely
operate." The U.S. still conducts operations against ISIS fighters, including
36 operations in August, which resulted in the deaths of 7 ISIS operatives and
the apprehension of 25 more, Central Command said. U.S. forces most recently
captured Mamduh Ibrahim al-Haji Shaykh, whom CENTCOM spokesman Lt. Col. Troy
Garlock described as an "ISIS facilitator," in a successful helicopter raid in
northern Syria last week.”



The Jerusalem Post: 128% Increase In Antisemitic Incidents In Illinois - ADI
Report <[link removed]>



“A staggering 128% increase in antisemitic incidents was observed in Illinois
in 2022 compared to 2021, as per the latest report from the Anti-Defamation
League (ADL) this week. The report sheds light on the broader surge in hate and
extremist activities within the Prairie State, highlighting the pressing
challenges faced by its residents. In a particularly alarming event in May
2023, Philip Buyno of Prophetstown attempted to destroy a forthcoming women’s
health clinic in Danville, Illinois, in a violent act against abortion rights.
After failing, he was arrested and later conveyed to the FBI that he would
"finish the job" if given another opportunity. The report delves deep into
various extremist groups and movements active in Illinois. "Over the past
several years, Americans have witnessed a barrage of extremist activity...
Illinoisans have watched these same hatreds – and more – manifest in their own
state," the ADL report stated. The 128% increase in antisemitic incidents in
2022 has been compared to 2021, escalating from 53 to 121. Preliminary data up
to June 2023 shows at least 33 more antisemitic incidents in Illinois.”



The New York Times: The Brooklyn Subway Shooter Faces Sentencing On 10
Terrorism Counts
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“Frank James, who last year positioned himself in a subway car to create a
“kill funnel” and then unleashed a barrage of bullets that miraculously killed
no one, is set to be sentenced in a federal court in Brooklyn on Thursday. Mr.
James, who walked away after the crime, had pleaded guilty to 10 counts of
terrorism in January, one for each person shot in the attack, which unfolded on
a busy N train during the morning rush hour on April 12, 2022. All the victims
survived, albeit with long-lasting injuries and psychological damage. The
government asked the judge to sentence Mr. James, who is 64, to 10 concurrent
life sentences, while the defense sought 18 years. In an order Tuesday, Judge
William F. Kuntz II noted that Mr. James had previously refused to attend court
hearings, and directed federal marshals to “use all necessary force” to get him
into the courtroom. The attack paralyzed south Brooklyn and intensified
citywide anxiety about violence in the subways. The investigation was initially
complicated by the failure of surveillance cameras in the 36th Street station
at the time of the shooting, though images of Mr. James were captured by
cameras elsewhere in the system. Since the attack, the Metropolitan
Transportation Authority and Gov. Kathy Hochul have pledged to add more cameras
to stations and to place them inside subway cars.”



Syria



Associated Press: Shelling In Northwestern Syria Kills At Least 5 Civilians,
Activists And Emergency Workers Say
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“The Syrian government early Thursday shelled a village in the rebel-held
northwestern part of the country, killing at least five civilians, activists
and emergency workers said. The shelling, which comes amid a rise in strikes in
the rebel-held enclave in recent days, hit a family house on the outskirts of
the the village of Kafr Nouran in western Aleppo province, according to
opposition-held northwestern Syria’s civil defense organization known as the
White Helmets. The dead included an elderly woman and three of her daughters
and her son, said Britain-based opposition war monitor the Syrian Observatory
for Human Rights. Nine others from the family were injured, it said. Neither
Syria nor its key military ally Russia commented on the shelling, but Damascus
says strikes in the northwestern province target armed insurgent groups. The
Syrian pro-government newspaper Al-Watan said the Syrian army had targeted the
al-Qaeda-linked militant group Hayat Tahrir al Sham in response to its shelling
of government forces’ positions in southern Idlib.”



Turkey



Reuters: Turkey Says Bombers Came From Syria, Eyes Cross-Border Targets
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“Turkey said on Wednesday that all Kurdish militant facilities in Syria and
Iraq are valid military targets after it found the two attackers who detonated
a bomb in front of government buildings in Ankara at the weekend had come from
Syria. Turkey's military conducted air strikes in northern Iraq and staged
several raids across the country this week in response to the attack, detaining
dozens suspected of alleged links to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party
(PKK). Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said the attackers had entered Turkey
through Syria and received training there, adding the Turkish response would be
"very precise". "All infrastructure, superstructure and energy facilities that
belong to the PKK and the YPG, especially in Iraq and Syria, are legitimate
targets of our security forces, armed forces and intelligence units from now
on," he said. Turkey has carried out several cross-border incursions into
northern Syria in recent years targeting the YPG militia that it sees as an
affiliate of the PKK, which is now based in northern Iraq. The YPG is also the
spearhead of the main ally of the U.S.-led coalition against Islamic State.
Support for the YPG by the United States and other allies, including France,
has strained ties with Ankara.”



Pakistan



Reuters: Taliban Brands Pakistan Expulsion Threat To Afghan Immigrants
'Unacceptable'
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“Pakistan's threat to forcibly expel illegal Afghan immigrants is
"unacceptable", a spokesman for the Taliban administration in Kabul said on
Wednesday, adding that Afghans were not to blame for Pakistan's security
problems. Estimating that there were 1.73 million Afghan immigrants living in
Pakistan without legal status, Pakistan's caretaker government on Tuesday set a
Nov. 1 deadline for them to leave or face forcible expulsion. "The behavior of
Pakistan towards Afghan refugees is unacceptable," Zabihullah Mujahid, the
spokesman for the Taliban administration in Kabul, said in a post on the social
media platform X, formerly known as Twitter. The move to expel illegal migrants
comes as tensions remain high between Islamabad and Kabul. On Wednesday two
people were killed, including a 12 year old boy, when pedestrians moving from
Pakistan to Afghanistan were fired upon. The Pakistani military's public
relations wing, the Inter Services Public Relations agency (ISPR) said in a
statement that "an Afghan sentry employed at Friend Ship Gate of Chaman Border
Crossing along Pakistan-Afghanistan Border in Balochistan Province, opened
unprovoked and indiscriminate firing at pedestrians moving from Pakistan to
Afghanistan."



Middle East



Associated Press: 2 Palestinian Militants Killed In Gunfight With Israeli
Troops In West Bank Raid
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“Two Palestinian militants were killed by Israeli gunfire during an army raid
in the West Bank on Thursday, the Palestinian health ministry said. They were
the latest deaths in a monthslong surge of violence in the occupied territory.
The Israeli military said its troops carried out a raid in the Tulkarem refugee
camp in the early morning hours. It said that soldiers came under fire and that
troops shot Palestinian gunmen. Five border police officers were wounded in the
clashes, it said. The Hamas militant group that rules the Gaza Strip later
claimed the two men as its members. The incident was the latest in a spiral of
violence that has gripped the occupied territory for more than 18 months. The
Israeli military has mounted near-nightly raids into Palestinian towns, often
prompting deadly clashes with residents. Militancy has surged among young
Palestinians who have lost hope in their leadership and in the prospect of a
political resolution to the conflict. Nearly 200 Palestinians have been killed
by Israeli fire so far this year in the West Bank, according to a tally by The
Associated Press — the highest death toll in years. Israel says most of those
killed have been militants, but stone-throwing youths protesting incursions as
well as innocent bystanders have also been killed.”



i24: Five Israeli Soldiers Wounded In Tulkarm Operation Against Palestinian
Terrorists
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“Five Israel Border Police officers were wounded during an operation against
Palestinian terrorists in Tulkarm in the West Bank, according to a joint
announcement by the Ministry of Defense and the IDF Spokesperson's Unit on
Thursday. The operation, which involved soldiers from the Israel Border
Police's Counterterrorism Unit (IOSH), the Mageb (Border Police), and the IDF,
took place in the Tulkarm refugee camp within the Menashe division. The
mission's primary objective was the arrest of a suspect linked to terrorist
activities. During the operation, an exchange of fire erupted, and terrorists
within the camp threw explosive devices at the security forces. In response,
the Israeli forces engaged with fire, successfully hitting the terrorists.
Preliminary findings from the investigation indicate that as the forces were
withdrawing from the operation, five members of the Mageb were injured by
grenade explosions. Two of them sustained serious injuries, one is in critical
condition, while the other two were categorized as light to moderately injured.
The injured soldiers were promptly evacuated to a medical facility, and their
families have been informed of the situation. Border Guard Chief Brik Yitzchak
commended the soldiers for their courageous and determined actions against
terrorism in Judea and Samaria. He expressed his wishes for the full and speedy
recovery of the injured Border Police officers.”



Somalia



Garowe Online: Al-Shabaab Loses Strategic Town To ATMIS And SNA Forces
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“After weeks of heavy artillery and gunfire exchange, the African Union
Transition Mission in Somalia [ATMIS] troops have managed to seize a strategic
forest from the Al-Shabaab militants, in yet another notable milestone in the
fight against the Al-Qaeda-linked group. In a statement published by ATMIS, the
mission team confirmed that Ugandan and Burundi contingents participated in the
operation, which targeted the Cali Fooldhere forest within the Middle Shabelle
region, within the HirShabelle state of Somalia. During the operation, the
forces managed to confiscate Vehicle Borne Improvised Explosive Devices, ATMIS
said. The forest is used by the militants to hide the vehicles used in the
attacks besides helping them on matters of logistics and planning. "The Cali
Fooldhere forest has particularly over the years become a strategic location
where the terrorists wage deadly attacks and conceal ammunition including
vehicles for Vehicle Borne Improvised Explosive Devices," said Lt. Gen Sam
Okiding, the Force Commander. "I commend the brave efforts of our gallant ATMIS
troops and the Somali National Army [SNA] to degrade Al-Shabaab. ATMIS is fully
committed to the implementation of the Somali Transition Plan which will
culminate in the transfer of security responsibilities to Somali forces," added
Mohamed El Amine Souef, the ATMIS boss.”



Voice Of America: Somalia Claims Killing Hundreds Of Militants Amid Recent
Setbacks
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“The Somali government on Wednesday said government troops have killed
hundreds of militants during military operations in the last two months. In a
statement posted by the state-run Somali National Television, the government
reported that 1,650 militants were killed and 550 others were injured following
military operations in the central Hirshabelle and Galmudug states. In the same
statement, the government claimed that 19 al-Shabab commanders were among those
killed, one was injured and three have surrendered to government forces.
Casualty figures given by the Somali government have not been independently
verified. Meanwhile, a Somali regional official is calling for an extension of
the deadline set for African Union, or AU, troops to leave Somalia, citing
al-Shabab attacks and “unstable” political developments. Mohamud Sayid Aden,
the deputy president of Jubaland state, a region where Kenyan and Ethiopian
troops operate, said the withdrawal of AU forces from Somalia should be
extended until December 2025.”



Mali



Reuters: Mali's Northern Rebels Claim Control Of Military Camp
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“Mali's northern Tuareg rebels said on Wednesday that they had seized another
military base from the Malian army, bringing to five the number of conquered
and pillaged camps in recent weeks. Mohamed Elmaouloud Ramadane, a spokesperson
for the Coordination of Azawad Movements (CMA), told Reuters that his fighters
had taken control of the Malian army camp in Taoussa after fighting. There was
no immediate statement from the army. The CMA is an alliance of rebel groups
formed by Mali's semi-nomadic Tuareg people, who have long complained of
government neglect and sought autonomy for the desert region they call Azawad.
The CMA signed a peace deal with the previous government and pro-government
militia in 2015. But tensions have resurfaced since the military consolidated
power in two coups in 2020 and 2021, teamed up with Russian military contractor
Wagner Group, and kicked out French forces and U.N. peacekeepers. Fighting has
picked up again since August. The CMA attack on Taoussa follows those on
military bases in Bamba, Lere, Dioura and Bourem in recent weeks, all in
northern and central Mali where both sides seek to control territory.”



Africa



WTOP: The Hunt: Coastal Terrorism Expansion Spreading Across Africa’s Interior
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“Security officials from around the world are meeting in Luanda, Angola, to
address deep concerns about growing terrorism in Africa. On this week’s episode
of “The Hunt with WTOP national security correspondent JJ Green,” Dr. Hans
Jakob Schindler, senior director of the Counter Extremism Project, is warning
that what’s brewing inside Africa is trouble for the U.S.”



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

DONATE NOW
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