Eye on Extremism
April 2, 2020
CBS
12 News: Georgia Man Pleads Guilty To Planning Terrorist Attacks On
White House, Other DC Monuments
“The U.S. Department of Justice announced Wednesday a Georgia man
has pleaded guilty to planning a terrorist attack on the White House.
23-year-old Hasher Jallal Taheb, of Cumming, pleaded guilty to a
charge of attempting to destroy, by fire or an explosive, a building
owned by or leased to the United States, according to the press
release. Officials say he had planned an attack on the White House
using weapons and explosives. Back in March of 2018, a member of the
Atlanta community reported concerns to local law officials who then
got in touch with the FBI, officials say. “Taheb hatched a dangerous
plan that would have resulted in unimaginable injury,” said Byung J.
“BJay” Pak, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia. “We
are grateful to community members who noticed his dangerous evolution
and alerted law enforcement. Along with our federal, state and local
partners, we will remain vigilant in order to disrupt these types of
attacks before they happen.” The press release goes on to say an
undercover operation by the FBI in October 2018 revealed that Taheb
had applied for a U.S. passport and started planning domestic attacks
as part of a desire to participate in “jihad.”
Voice
Of America: UN Warns Right-Wing Extremist Groups Getting Bolder, More
Lethal
“Nations around the world are growing increasingly worried about
violence linked to extreme right-wing terror groups, with new research
showing there has been a 320% jump in the number of related attacks
over the past five years. Deadly attacks over the past year, like the
shootings in Christchurch, New Zealand, and in El Paso, Texas, in the
U.S., as well as a couple in Germany, have gotten most of the
international attention. But the research, highlighted Wednesday in a
new report from the United Nations’ Counter-Terrorism Committee
Executive Directorate, also warns the trend is worsening, with attacks
by individuals linked to right-wing extremist groups becoming
ever-more deadly, while the groups themselves are getting increasingly
sophisticated. “Although extreme right-wing terrorism is not a new
phenomenon, there has been a recent increase in its frequency and
lethality,” UN-CTED said in its April trends report. Raymond Duda, FBI
Special Agent in Seattle, speaks during a news conference on Feb. 26,
2020, about charges against a group of alleged members of the neo-Nazi
group Atomwaffen Division for cyber-stalking and mailing threatening
communications.”
ABC
News: Terrorist Groups Spin COVID-19 As God's “Smallest Soldier”
Attacking West
“While much of the United States and Europe has been staying home
to avoid COVID-19 as it kills thousands, terrorist groups are blasting
online propaganda messages toward followers and potential recruits
which hail the calamity of the disease as divine retribution. In
propaganda communiques this week, ISIS and al-Qaeda have each claimed
that the highly contagious and deadly coronavirus is God's wrath upon
the West, and the disease itself is a “soldier of Allah,” as one ISIS
supporter recently said in an online chatroom, according to the
private SITE Intelligence Group. “Allah, the Creator, has revealed
the brittleness and vulnerability of your material strength. It is now
clear for all to see that it was but a deception that could not stand
the test of the smallest soldier of God on the face of the earth,”
al-Qaeda said in a statement this week distributed by its propaganda
arm As-Sahab. COVID-19 has killed more than 47,000 people worldwide
but there are relatively few cases in regions where Islamist extremist
groups have their strongholds, such as in Afghanistan and Pakistan,
the Arabian Peninsula and the Sahel region of North Africa.”
Iran
The
Wall Street Journal: Iran Or Allies Are Plotting Against U.S. Forces
In Iraq, U.S. Intelligence Suggests
“U.S. intelligence out of the Middle East suggests that Iran or
Iran-backed forces are planning a potentially serious attack against
U.S. military personnel in Iraq, said officials monitoring the
information. “We’ve been seeing something brewing and developing
pretty seriously,” a U.S. official said Wednesday. The intelligence
has mounted over a two-week period, officials said. “We expect
something soon,” the official said. Shiite militias such as Kataib
Hezbollah have been targeting U.S. troops in Iraq in recent weeks with
a series of rocket attacks. Two Americans and a British soldier were
killed in a missile attack in March at Camp Taji, an Iraqi base where
coalition troops are stationed. While the rocket attacks in general
are considered to be intended as harassment, the new potential attack
is thought to be more ominous, the U.S. official said. President Trump
took note of the threat in a Twitter post on Wednesday, accusing Iran
of planning an attack and warning of consequences. “Upon information
and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on U.S.
troops and/or assets in Iraq,” Mr. Trump wrote. “If this happens, Iran
will pay a very heavy price, indeed!” He didn’t elaborate. Iranian
officials didn’t immediately respond to a request for
comment.”
Afghanistan
The
New York Times: Roadside Bombing In Afghanistan Kills 8, Mostly
Children
“A roadside bombing in southern Afghanistan on Wednesday killed at
least eight civilians, including six children. The victims were all
from a single family, according to Helmand police spokesman Zaman
Hamdard. The family had just left the southern district to Greshk when
the bomb hit their car, Hamdard added. Two more family members were
wounded, he said. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the
attack, but both the Taliban and the Islamic State militants are
active in the province. On Tuesday, the Taliban sent a three-member
technical team to Kabul to monitor the release of Taliban prisoners as
part of a peace deal signed by the insurgents and the U.S. at the end
of February. That deal calls for the Afghan government to release of
5,000 Taliban prisoners and for the Taliban to free 1,000 government
personnel and Afghan troops they hold captive. The deal is also
supposed to be followed by intra-Afghan peace talks that would include
the Taliban. Kabul said Wednesday that discussions between the
government and the Taliban's technical team would continue under the
observation of the International Committee of the Red Cross, though it
was not known when the prisoner release process would start.”
The
New York Times: Afghanistan Prepares To Swap 100 Taliban Prisoners For
20 Security Forces
“Afghanistan began on Thursday the process of releasing from jail
100 Taliban Islamist militants in a prisoner swap for 20 of its
security forces, a senior security official and a Taliban
representative said. It is the first step towards freeing 6,000
prisoners held by the Afghan government and the insurgent group, among
confidence-building measures key to the success of a peace deal
between the United States and the Taliban to end nearly two decades of
war. “It was decided in the morning that 100 Taliban should be
released in exchange for 20 members of Afghan security forces today,”
said a senior official in the office of President Ashraf Ghani. The
names of those to be released had been sent to prison authorities,
added the official, who sought anonymity because he had not been
authorised to speak to the media. The Taliban have said the swap
begins this week as teams from the warring sides work out technical
details and logistics for receiving prisoners amid a coronavirus
pandemic. “The technical issues require some time,” said Zabihullah
Mujahid, a Taliban spokesman. “I think the release of 100 Taliban
fighters and 20 Afghan security force members will happen either
tomorrow or the day after.”
Foreign
Affairs: Can America Trust The Taliban To Prevent Another
9/11?
“For nearly 20 years, the U.S. intervention in Afghanistan has been
sustained by a single, vital national interest: the clear and present
danger of another September 11–like attack emerging from this region
of the world, absent constant efforts to thwart it. To this end, U.S.
strategy has been threefold: deploying American and allied forces to
Afghanistan to conduct sensitive counterterrorism missions there and
in neighboring parts of Pakistan; training and enabling Afghan partner
forces to assume the bulk of responsibility for security inside their
country; and backing a friendly government in Kabul that has permitted
international forces to operate from its territory against Islamist
extremism. This strategy has been costly and unsatisfying—but also
reasonably successful. It enabled the United States to eliminate the
al Qaeda camps that flourished in Afghanistan under the Taliban prior
to its ouster from power in late 2001, and equally important, it has
kept that extremist infrastructure from being reestablished. When
terrorists attempted to rebuild their networks in the nearby tribal
areas of northwest Pakistan in the mid-2000s, the United States was
able to smash them there, too, from its Afghan bases.”
Long
War Journal: Taliban Touts Training Camps ‘Still Going On’ That
Prepare Fighters For ‘War’
“As U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo calls for the Taliban to
honor a non-existent commitment to “reduce violence,” the Taliban
continues to train for war. The Taliban has publicized the training of
its fighters at three separate camps over the past five days.
Photographs from the training camps, know as Abu Ubaidah bin Jarrah,
Abu Bakr Al-Siddiq, and Abu Dardaa, were published on the Arabic and
Pashto language versions of Voice of Jihad, the Taliban’s official
website. The Taliban has not disclosed the locations of the Abu
Ubaidah bin Jarrah and Abu Bakr Al-Siddiq camps, however, the location
of both should be relatively easy to discern by U.S. and Afghan
intelligence services. The Abu Ubaidah bin Jarrah camp is situated in
a fixed location, with buildings. The mountainous terrain and
vegetation should help locate the Abu Bakr Al-Siddiq camp. The Taliban
explicitly stated that the Abu Dardaa Training Camp is located in the
province of Faryab. Wearing new uniforms, the Taliban fighters were
shown in various levels of training. “The Mujahideen were trained with
light and heavy weapons, combat skills and military tactics, and camp
officials said that the chain of training of the Mujahideen will
continue,” noted the statement promoting the Abu Bakr Al-Siddiq
camp.”
Saudi Arabia
Al
Monitor: Hamas, Houthis Hope For Deal With Saudi
Arabia
“In an unprecedented development that further strained relations
between the Palestinian Hamas movement and Yemen’s internationally
recognized government, Hamas welcomed the initiative of Yemen’s Houthi
leader, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, to release Saudi captives in exchange
for Hamas prisoners detained in Saudi Arabia. In a televised speech
March 26 on the television channel Al-Masirah, marking the fifth
anniversary of the outbreak of the Yemeni war, Houthi said his group
is ready to release five Saudi captives, including a pilot, if Saudi
Arabia frees Hamas members detained since April 2019. “We declare our
complete readiness to free a Saudi pilot and four government officers
and soldiers in exchange for the release of unjustly detained Hamas
members in the kingdom,” he said Hamas’ repeated calls demanding the
Saudi government release its detainees from the kingdom’s prisons fell
on deaf ears. Hamas’ politburo chief, Ismail Haniyeh, addressed King
Salman bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud in an urgent note March 22 and asked him
to take a decision to release the Palestinian detainees to avoid
becoming infected with the novel coronavirus that has become a
pandemic. Hamas welcomed the Houthi initiative in a statement March
26, saying, “We highly appreciate the sympathy and brotherly spirit
with Palestinians and the support for their resilience and
resistance.”
Lebanon
Defense
News: Lebanese Armed Forces Must Act Against Hezbollah To Retain
America’s Military Aid
“As Lebanon struggles with an economic crisis and the new
coronavirus pandemic, momentum is building in Washington to curtail or
end U.S. assistance to the Lebanese Armed Forces. Such a move could
diminish U.S. influence and empower Russia and Iran. But the LAF is
not helping its advocates to make their case. The Lebanese military
must address Hezbollah’s growing arsenal if the LAF is to retain U.S.
support. The United States has fostered close ties with the LAF for
years “as the sole legitimate defender of Lebanon’s sovereignty.”
Pentagon leaders laud it as a capable partner. Since 2010, the United
States has provided more than $1.8 billion in security assistance to
the LAF. Among other things, the United States demands that the LAF
counter the Iran-backed terrorist group Hezbollah — an entity with the
blood of Americans on its hands and a foreign terrorist organization
pursuant to U.S. law. The fiscal 2020 appropriations bill, signed into
law by the president, reiterates that the purpose of American funding
is to “professionalize the LAF to mitigate internal and external
threats from non-state actors, including Hizballah.” (“Hizballah” is
an alternative spelling for Hezbollah).”
Somalia
BBC
News: Coronavirus: Fighting Al-Shabab Propaganda In
Somalia
“Muslim clerics in conflict-hit Somalia are moving to the
front-line of the battle against coronavirus in a bid to counter the
propaganda of militant Islamists, writes BBC Somalia analyst Mary
Harper. The al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab group has warned Muslims to
beware of infectious diseases such as coronavirus, which it says are
spread “by the crusader forces who have invaded the country and the
disbelieving countries that support them”. The militants control much
of southern and central Somali and have been a powerful force for well
over a decade. Although there have only been a handful of confirmed
cases of coronavirus in Somalia so far, the authorities are deeply
worried that if the disease takes hold they will be unable to cope.
About 30 years of conflict has devastated health facilities. Hundreds
of thousands of displaced people are crowded into camps, with limited
access to soap and water, and no way of practising social distancing.
The message from al-Shabab only adds to the government's concerns,
especially as it could oppose medical help from international aid
agencies just as it resisted most food aid during the 2010-2012
famine, when more than 250,000 people were estimated to have
died.”
Africa
North
Africa Post: Tunisia: Security Forces Nab ISIS Affiliate Planning
Attack In Ramadan
“Tunisian security forces arrested an Islamic State group (ISIS)
sympathizer who was planning terror attacks against vital state
institutions in the holy month of Ramadan scheduled to start late this
month, the Tunisian interior ministry said in a statement Tuesday. The
terrorist, according to the statement, has developed a plan targeting
security establishments and vital state institutions. The alleged
terrorist had bought items in view of making explosives and confessed
that he had pledged allegiance to ISIS and was in touch with two
experts in subside belt and explosives making. The North African
country has been on the alert after subside bomb attack outside the US
embassy in capital Tunis. Two Tunisians on a motorbike blew themselves
up, killing a policeman and injuring six other people, early last
month. The attack according to the interior ministry was targeting a
police patrol, in the street leading to the US embassy. It was the
latest major attempt that rocked the country in a series of attacks
that began in 2015.”
Southeast Asia
The
Diplomat: Southeast Asia’s Teenage Extremists
“Since 2015, Singapore’s Ministry of Home Affairs has publicly
reported four cases of teenage radicalization. All four teenagers
identified were radicalized by acquaintances online and displayed
sympathy to a foreign conflict in “jihad” zones like Syria and Iraq.
Other countries globally, and in Southeast Asia, have also seen the
same trend of teenage radicalization, which continues even after the
demise of the so-called Islamic State (IS) caliphate. This has
prompted the question of why teens are susceptible to the Islamic
State’s narratives. Are there common driving factors radicalizing
teenagers in Southeast Asia, in particular? IS has demonstrated its
prowess and mastery over social media since 2014. Around 1,000
Southeast Asians were reported to have traveled to Iraq and Syria to
become foreign fighters. Many were driven by networks and propaganda
forged primarily through social media, primarily Facebook and
Telegram. IS propaganda capitalizes on two factors to radicalize
teens: atrocities against Muslims globally and the heroism narrative.
IS Telegram groups and channels directed at Southeast Asians often
exploit global atrocities to invigorate local grievances. While most
IS propaganda centers around conflicts in the Levant, IS exploits the
“unfair” treatment of Muslims in the region to drive an “us-vs-them”
narrative.”
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