Eye on Extremism
August 12, 2019
Bloomberg:
Facebook, Twitter Pressed To Help Prevent Domestic
Terrorism
“Social media companies came under fire again last week after
another mass shooting was linked to a hate-filled manifesto posted
online. For years, Twitter Inc. and Facebook Inc. largely reacted to
horrific events after the fact. Now they’re now being asked by
politicians to take a more proactive approach to prevent domestic
terrorism. But while the companies certainly want to make their
platforms safe and not be seen as nests for violence or hatred, the
proposals from politicians wouldn’t be easy to achieve and could even
backfire on some of the proponents. The attacker in El Paso, Texas,
who killed 22 in a rampage at a Walmart Inc. store last Saturday,
posted a racist screed on message site 8chan minutes before the attack
began, laced with words and phrases President Donald Trump has used in
reference to immigrants and the media. On Monday, the president
ordered federal officials to work with social media companies to
identify people who may perpetrate mass shootings before they can act.
He asked tech companies to find “red flags” in social media postings
that would help deter shooters before they strike and the FBI has put
out a call for a contract on social media monitoring technology to
parse public user postings to predict threats.”
Voice
Of America: Islamic State Working To Make US Military's Fears Come
True
“In the 4½ months since U.S.-backed forces declared victory over
the Islamic State terror group’s last shred of territory in Syria,
there has been a steady drumbeat of doubt. One by one, military
leaders, diplomats and experts began raising concerns, aiming to
convince policymakers that for all of the success in rolling back IS’s
self-declared caliphate, the group was far from dead. “This is not the
end of the fight,” U.S. Special Representative for Syria Ambassador
James Jeffrey warned, just days after the victory celebrations in
Syria in late March. “That will go on,” he said. “It is a different
type of fight.” A series of new reports, citing intelligence from
United Nations member states, the U.S. military and other sources, now
indicate it is a fight that IS is increasingly well-positioned to win.
“As long as it can gain revenue, it will remain a danger,” the Rand
Corp. declared Thursday in “Return and Expand?” a report on the terror
group’s finances and prospects following the collapse of its
caliphate. The Rand report estimates IS had perhaps in excess of $400
million in assets by early 2019. Intelligence from U.N. member states,
included in another recent report, indicates even after the fall of
the caliphate, IS may still have up to $300 million at its
disposal.”
The
New York Times: The Global Machine Behind The Rise Of Far-Right
Nationalism
“Johnny Castillo, a Peruvian-born neighborhood watchman in this
district of Stockholm, still puzzles over the strange events that two
years ago turned the central square of this predominantly immigrant
community into a symbol of multiculturalism run amok. First came a
now-infamous comment by President Trump, suggesting that Sweden’s
history of welcoming refugees was at the root of a violent attack in
Rinkeby the previous evening, even though nothing had actually
happened. “You look at what’s happening last night in Sweden. Sweden!
Who would believe this? Sweden!” Mr. Trump told supporters at a rally
on Feb. 18, 2017. “They took in large numbers. They’re having problems
like they never thought possible.” The president’s source: Fox News,
which had excerpted a short film promoting a dystopian view of Sweden
as a victim of its asylum policies, with immigrant neighborhoods
crime-ridden “no-go zones.” But two days later, as Swedish officials
were heaping bemused derision on Mr. Trump, something did in fact
happen in Rinkeby: Several dozen masked men attacked police
officers making a drug arrest, throwing rocks and setting cars ablaze.
And it was right around that time, according to Mr. Castillo and four
other witnesses, that Russian television crews showed up, offering to
pay immigrant youths “to make trouble” in front of the cameras.”
Express:
Children Of ISIS Fighters Will Not Be Brought Back To UK As Rescue
Efforts ‘Too Dangerous’
“The Government has ruled that children of British fighters stuck
in warzones will not be rescued as it would be too risky. Sajid
Javid made the ruling as one of his last acts as Home Secretary,
before being promoted to chancellor under Boris Johnson’s Government
last month. Concerns emerged too that parents who had been stripped of
their British citizenship could use their repatriated children to
reclaim citizenship under human rights laws. The decision was not
reached by Mr Javid alone, having also been discussed in a cross
departmental review, the Times revealed. But the move is likely to
spark criticism from children’s charities working to help youngsters
in Syria who argue that innocent children should not be made to pay
for their parents’ mistakes. The review also covered processes for
children rescued from Syria. Officials explored options to allow
relatives living in Britain to adopt the children, as well as making
provision in the care system. Mr Javid made the decision to revoke her
citizenship in order to “protect the country”, after she showed no
remorse for fleeing the UK in February 2015 to join Islamic State. He
said that “the loss of any child is a tragedy”, but told the Commons:
“I do not want any more children brought into a war zone because their
parents think that they will automatically be bailed out.”
The
Wall Street Journal: Pakistan’s New Plight In Kashmir: What To Do
About The Jihadists
“India’s decision to revoke Kashmir’s autonomy leaves Pakistan’s
leadership in a bind over how to handle jihadist groups that
Pakistan’s military nurtured to liberate the disputed area. Islamabad
is under international pressure to crack down on the extremists or
face financial sanctions. Worst, attacks by those militant outfits
could ignite armed conflict between India and Pakistan. But the
government is also under domestic pressure to counter India’s move in
a region Pakistan views as an integral part of its identity, making
such extremist groups a tempting tool. Now, after India’s shift,
experts say Pakistan is unlikely to continue what they say is the
government’s first serious effort to dismantle its jihadist
infrastructure. While Hindu-majority India has long viewed Jammu and
Kashmir as one of its states, it had until now given the
Muslim-majority area an unusual degree of autonomy. India regards its
shift last week as a purely domestic issue, while Pakistan sees it as
an annexation of a disputed territory. The developments have put on
edge already fraught relations between the two nuclear-armed nations
over the mountainous border region between them. India, which has
hundreds of thousands of soldiers there, has imposed an almost
complete military lockdown and cut off nearly all phone service in
Jammu and Kashmir.”
United States
The
New York Times: Las Vegas Man Planned Attack Of Synagogue, Officials
Say
“The authorities arrested a Las Vegas man who discussed attacking a
local synagogue and charged him on Friday in connection with
bomb-making materials found in his home, officials said. The man,
Conor Climo, was charged on Thursday with one count of possession of
an unregistered firearm, namely, the component parts of a destructive
device, the Department of Justice said in a statement. Prosecutors
said that Mr. Climo, 23, had communicated with people who identify
with a white supremacist extremist organization, and had encrypted
online conversations in which he regularly used derogatory racial,
anti-Semitic and homophobic slurs. Conor Climo tried unsuccessfully to
recruit a person who was homeless to conduct surveillance on a local
synagogue and other targets leading up to an attack, officials said.
He discussed attacking a Las Vegas synagogue, making Molotov cocktails
and improvising explosive devices, officials said. Mr. Climo also
discussed conducting surveillance on a bar he believed served the
lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community in downtown Las
Vegas. During the execution of a search warrant on Thursday, the
authorities seized a notebook with hand-drawn schematics for a
potential Las Vegas-area attack.”
The
New York Times: Inside The Government, Addressing Domestic Terrorism
Has Been Fraught
“Not long after Barack Obama took office in 2009, a Homeland
Security Department analyst produced a report presciently predicting
that the deep economic downturn, the rise of social media and the
election of the first black president would combine to make
race-driven extremism a growing and serious threat to national
security. But when the report was made public, it ignited a storm of
protest, mostly from the right. Mike Pompeo, then a Republican
congressman from Kansas and now secretary of state, said focusing on
domestic terrorism was a “dangerous” undertaking born of political
correctness that denied “the threat that radical Islamic terrorism
poses.” Inside the Obama administration there was concern that
highlighting the issue would only fuel white supremacist conspiracy
theories or give unwarranted publicity to fringe figures, according to
six former administration officials. Within weeks, Janet Napolitano,
then the homeland security secretary, rescinded the threat assessment.
The report’s primary author left the government, and the department’s
unit dedicated to tracking domestic terrorism was essentially
disbanded.”
CBS
News: What Is “Domestic Terrorism” And What Can The Law Do About
It?
“The deadly shooting in El Paso is being treated as a “domestic
terrorism” case, prosecutors there said. And the FBI said it has
opened a “domestic terrorism” investigation into the July shooting at
the garlic festival in Gilroy, California. But the individuals who
commit these violent acts will ultimately be indicted on different
federal charges — hate crimes or weapons possession. Here's why:
Domestic terrorism is defined in the U.S. legal code but it is not
codified as a law that can be prosecuted. “It's confusing to the
public to call someone a domestic terrorist but not charge them with a
crime of terrorism,” said Mary McCord, a former Department of Justice
official who served as acting assistant attorney general for national
security from 2016 to 2017. The FBI defines domestic terrorism as acts
“perpetrated by individuals and/or groups inspired by or associated
with primarily U.S.-based movements that espouse extremist ideologies
of a political, religious, social, racial, or environmental nature.”
The USA Patriot Act from 2001 defines domestic terrorism as a
dangerous act occurring within U.S. territory that violates criminal
laws in ways that are “intended to intimidate or coerce a civilian
population; influence the policy of a government by intimidation or
coercion; affect the conduct of a government by mass destruction,
assassination or kidnapping.”
The
Jerusalem Post: What Do White Supremacists And ISIS Recruits Have In
Common?
“On the surface, white supremacists and Islamic State recruits
would not seem to have much in common. One group embraces a racist,
anti-immigrant ideology and is mobilized by fear that a majority of
people in the United States will soon no longer be white. The other
group believes it must kill “infidels” and create an Islamic
“caliphate.” Terrorism experts, however, say the radicalization
process, tactics and narratives used by violent white nationalists are
actually strikingly similar to those employed by ISIS. Understanding
what the two groups have in common, experts say, can help officials
develop a strategy for preventing homegrown extremism. “I see
extremism as a structure for beliefs,” said JM Berger, author of the
book Extremism. “We need to do a better job in treating extremism as a
universal phenomenon.” The challenge of combating domestic terrorism
and white supremacist violence was thrust into the spotlight after a
gunman, who is alleged to have posted a racist screed online, went on
a bloody rampage last Saturday, killing 22 people in the aisles and
parking lot of a Walmart in El Paso. (Several hours later, another
shooter who had reportedly held leftist beliefs killed nine people in
Dayton, Ohio.)”
Syria
Voice
Of America: Syria's Raqqa Struggles To Recover, 2 Years After IS
Ouster
“Once considered the Islamic State’s de facto capital, the Syrian
city of Raqqa is slowly recovering, nearly two years after its
liberation from the terror group. U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces
(SDF) liberated Raqqa from IS in October 2017. But during the
3-month-long battle, much of the city’s infrastructure was reduced to
rubble. Local officials complain the international coalition to defeat
IS, which helped free the city, lost interest in rebuilding Raqqa as
the focus has shifted to other areas recently liberated from IS. “We
used to meet second-tier coalition officials – sometimes from the
first tier,” said Abdullah Aryan, head of the planning department at
the Raqqa Civil Council, which has been largely responsible for
reconstruction. “But now we only get visits by an employee from the
French ministry of defense or British ministry of agriculture or an
employee responsible for civil society in the U.S. government,” he
told VOA. The lack of funding is forcing local officials to
concentrate the limited money on restoring essential services, which
will allow more displaced people to return. For other restoration
projects, they rely on low-cost efforts. “To repair roads and bridges,
we had to use primitive methods.”
Reuters:
Syrian Army Takes Strategic Town From Rebels In New
Advance
“Syria’s army has captured a strategically important town in Idlib
in the rebels’ last major enclave, a war monitor and a military media
unit run by its ally Hezbollah reported on Sunday. The capture of
al-Hobeit represents the most significant advance the army has made in
Idlib province since the start of its offensive three months ago, the
Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The Hezbollah
media unit described the town as the gateway to the southern
countryside of Idlib, to the main Damascus-Aleppo highway and to the
city of Khan Sheikhoun. Rebels have not yet commented on the fighting
around al-Hobeit but this week acknowledged losing ground nearby as
the army ramped up its offensive after a brief ceasefire. Fighting on
Saturday killed more than 100 fighters from both sides as the army and
its allies unleashed about 2,000 air and artillery strikes against
rebels dug into Syria’s northwest, the Observatory said. The
three-month offensive has made slower progress than any by Syrian
President Bashar al-Assad since Russia entered the war on his side in
2015, prompting a run of military victories that have brought most of
Syria back under his rule.”
Iraq
New
York Post: US Marine Killed In Iraq Days After Pentagon Warned Of
‘ISIS Resurgence’
“A US Marine from Colorado who had been serving in Iraq was killed
in combat over the weekend — just days after the Pentagon warned of an
“ISIS resurgence,” according to defense officials. Gunnery Sgt. Scott
A. Koppenhafer, 35, died Saturday “after being engaged by enemy small
arms fire,” the Pentagon said in a statement. He was advising an Iraqi
Security Force mission in Ninewah Province — in support of Operation
Inherent Resolve, a US-led military campaign to counter ISIS — when
the incident occurred. “Koppenhafer was assigned to the 2nd Marine
Raider Battalion, Marine Forces Special Operations Command, Camp
Lejeune, North Carolina,” defense officials said. His death “is under
investigation.” Koppenhafer hailed from the Colorado town of Mancos,
which is about 30 miles west of Durango. He joined the Marines in 2005
— first serving as a machine gunner and later as a scout
sniper, according to KUSA. Over the course of his military career,
Koppenhafer won several medals — including two Bronze stars and a
Humanitarian Service medal. He was dubbed MARSOC’s Critical Skills
Operator of the Year in 2018. The Marine reportedly leaves behind a
wife and two children. Koppenhafer’s death comes just days
after Pentagon officials reported a resurgence in ISIS-related
activity in Iraq and Syria.”
Afghanistan
The
Washington Post: Taliban Says Latest Talks End On US’s Afghanistan
Withdrawal
“A Taliban spokesman says the latest round of talks with the United
States on a deal to withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan has ended
and now both sides will consult their leadership on the next steps. A
statement by spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid says the eighth round of
talks in the Gulf nation of Qatar ended after midnight on Monday. He
called them “long and useful.” Another Taliban spokesman last week
said a deal was expected at the end of this round. The agreement is
expected to include Taliban guarantees that Afghanistan would not be a
base for other extremist groups. It also could include a cease-fire
and Taliban negotiations with other Afghan representatives, though the
Taliban has refused to negotiate with the Afghan government,
dismissing it as a U.S. puppet.”
The
National Interest: The Rise Of Afghanistan's Taliban
“The latest round of U.S.-Taliban talks appears to be heading to a
framework for peace. In exchange for a timeline for the withdrawal of
U.S. forces, the Taliban have agreed to a guarantee that Afghan
territory will not be used to sponsor terrorist groups or stage
attacks against the United States or its allies. This would be
followed by a nationwide ceasefire and the start of an intra-Afghan
dialogue, leading to the release of prisoners from both sides. For all
the progress, the peace talks face criticism for excluding the Afghan
government. The Taliban have consistently refused to recognize
Afghanistan’s elected government—calling it a U.S. puppet—and demanded
to negotiate solely with the United States. But intra-Afghan
negotiations between the Taliban and Afghan leadership will only begin
once a deal with the United States is agreed upon. The ugly truth is
that the Taliban have a legitimate claim of representing a part of
Afghan society. The southern provinces of Helmand, Oruzgan, Zabul and
Kandahar—part of the Pashtun heartland—does not fully reject the
Taliban and provides 80 percent of its fighters. It has also become a
fertile recruiting ground for Al Qaeda as well as Daesh.”
Pakistan
Reuters:
India's Kashmir Clampdown Pushes Some In Pakistan To Discuss Rejoining
Militants
“Three decades ago, Ali Mohamad says he made a trip into
Indian-controlled Kashmir to join a small armed militant group. Now he
works in a shop on the Pakistani side of the region, but he hasn’t
given up thoughts of returning to the conflict. After the Indian
government clamped down on Kashmir this week, Ali has again been
thinking of going back. ”I have not left, we are all watching”, he
said, adding that he believes all Kashmiris will take up arms when
needed. “I fought for my rights. When someone crushes you then what
else can you do?” said Ali, 53, who was born in Indian-controlled
Kashmir and then moved to the Pakistani side. Seeking to tighten its
grip on the region, India this week withdrew special rights for Jammu
and Kashmir state. It has cut off almost all communications,
prohibited assemblies of more than four people and detained hundreds
of political and separatist leaders. The constitutional change will
mean that non-residents will be able to buy property, get government
jobs and take college places in the state, to the fury of arch-rival
Pakistan, which claims the region as its own and accuses India of
trying to change the demographics of its only Muslim-majority
state.”
Yemen
The
National: Brother Of Yemen’s Houthi Leader Assassinated Near
Sanaa
“Ibrahim Badreddin Al Houthi, the brother of Houthi leader
Abdulmalik Al Houthi, has been assassinated, several outlets reported.
Reuters, quoting a Yemeni security source, said the senior leader was
found dead in a house near the capital, Sanaa. The Houthi-owned Al
Masirah channel announced the killing on Friday, saying ”the
treacherous hands affiliated with the US-Israeli aggression and its
tools assassinated Ibrahim Badreddin Al Houthi”. But Al Alrabiya news
station released its own detailed account of the killing, saying
Ibrahim was assassinated in his car on Wednesday at
8pm while travelling from Omran to Sanaa. It said the killing was an
inside job in a battle between different Houthi wings, and the senior
figure was killed along with nine of his guards. Sources linked with
the Arab Coalition said that he was killed in an air strike on the
border with Saudi Arabia. Ibrahim was a de facto finance minister for
the Iran-supported rebel movement. A source in Sanaa told The
National that the young Houthi leader was found dead in his house and
attributed his murder to deep rifts among senior leaders in the Houthi
movement. “Frictions are behind the murder of Ibrahim Al Houthi,” the
source said. Ibrahim was the younger brother of Abdulmalik.”
Middle East
The
New York Times: Israeli Military Kills 4 Palestinian Militants After
Attack At Gaza Border
“Israeli forces shot and killed four Palestinian militants near the
Gaza border fence after one tossed a hand grenade at Israeli troops on
Saturday, the military said. The men were armed with assault rifles,
anti-tank missiles and other grenades, the Israeli military said on
Twitter. The Israeli military posted images of the weapons it said the
men had been carrying. It said, “These are the weapons possessed by
the terrorists who attempted to infiltrate into Israel from Gaza last
night.” At a news briefing, an Israeli army spokesman, Lt. Col.
Jonathan Conricus, said that it had been a “very significant attempt
to attack Israel.” He said Israeli soldiers had opened fire when the
militants tried to climb the fence, and that the militants had
returned fire before being killed. No Israelis soldiers were hurt, he
added. A spokesman for Hamas, the Islamist group that governs Gaza,
said on Saturday that the Palestinian militants had been engaging in
“an individual act,” stressing that the operation had not been planned
by Hamas. The spokesman, Abdel-Latif al-Qanou, said the attempted
infiltration had been carried out by “angry youths” who were reacting
to Israel’s 12-year blockade of Gaza.”
The
Wall Street Journal: Israel Says It Foiled Large Attack On Gaza
Border
“Israel’s army said it killed four heavily armed militants from
Gaza attempting to cross into the country early Saturday, accusing the
Palestinian territory’s ruler Hamas of allowing what it called a
potential mass-casualty attack. The militants were armed with AK-47
assault rifles, RPG grenade launchers, hand grenades and wire cutters,
the Israeli military said. The quality of their arms pointed to a
planned attack, it added, noting the militants were carrying energy
bars and dates in case they needed to hide out. “A large terror attack
was thwarted,” Israeli army spokesman Brig. Gen. Ronen Manelis said.
It wasn’t clear whether Israeli civilians or soldiers were the target
of attack, the military said. The militants threw one grenade at
Israeli soldiers but didn’t injure anyone, the military said. Israel
didn’t directly blame Hamas for the attack but said it was responsible
for not preventing it as the sole authority in Gaza. No one
immediately claimed the infiltration attempt. The border has seen a
few infiltration attempts by individuals from Gaza in recent weeks.
Israel has also warned recently that Islamic Jihad, the enclave’s
second-largest militant group, is acting to inflame tensions in the
region. Hamas spokesman Abdel Latif al-Qanoa said in a statement that
the attack was carried out by “angry and rebellious youth” inspired to
act due to Israel’s “organized terrorism and the ongoing siege of the
Gaza Strip.”
The
Jerusalem Post: Hamas Distances Itself From Terror Attack, Wants To
Keep Truce With Israel
“Hamas has distanced itself from Saturday’s botched attempt to
infiltrate into Israel from the Gaza Strip by arguing that the four
terrorists who were killed by the IDF had acted independently. This
was the second time in the past 10 days that Hamas has distanced
itself from a terrorist attack along the Gaza-Israel border. By
disassociating itself from the recent terrorist attacks, Hamas is
signaling that it is keen on preserving the ceasefire understandings
reached with Israel earlier this year under the auspices of Egypt and
the United Nations, Palestinian political analysts explained. Earlier
this month, Hani Abu Salah, 20, was killed in a gun battle with IDF
soldiers after he infiltrated the border with Israel. An IDF officer
and two soldiers sustained moderate and light injuries during the
exchange of gunfire. Although Abu Salah was said to be a member of
Hamas’s military wing, Izaddin al-Qassam, sources in the Gaza Strip
said that he carried out his attack to avenge the killing of his
brother, Fadi, by the IDF during the weekly protests along the
Gaza-Israel border last year. Hamas did not endorse Abu Salah as one
of its “martyrs” and said that the attack was “personally motivated.”
Libya
The
New York Times: Car Bomb Kills 3 U.N. Staff Members Outside A Benghazi
Mall
“At least three United Nations staff members were killed in Libya
after a bomb-laden vehicle exploded this weekend outside a shopping
mall in the eastern city of Benghazi, a spokesman for the
international body said. The attack on Saturday occurred even as the
country’s warring sides said they had accepted a cease-fire proposed
by the United Nations aimed at stopping combat in the capital,
Tripoli, during a coming Muslim holiday. Health officials said the
bomb had exploded outside Arkan Mall in the Hawari neighborhood, where
people were gathering for shopping a day before the Eid al-Adha
holiday. The Benghazi municipal council said the attack had targeted a
convoy for the United Nations Support Mission in Libya. Footage
circulated online showed what appeared to be burned United
Nations-owned vehicles as thick smoke bellowed into the sky. No group
immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, which came a month
after two bomb-carrying vehicles went off in Benghazi, the stronghold
of the Libyan National Army, led by Gen. Khalifa Hifter. The July
attack killed at least four people and wounded 33 others. The planned
cease-fire would be the first since the army began a surprise military
offensive on April 4 aimed at capturing Tripoli, ushering in fierce
battles with militias loosely allied with a United Nations-supported
but weak administration in the capital.”
Nigeria
Sahara
Reporters: Boko Haram: Nigeria Intensifies Bombardment Of Sambisa
Forest, Kills Several Terrorists, Air Force Says
“The Nigeria Air Force says it attacked and destroyed Boko Haram
command and control centre at Dusula located on the fringe of the
Sambisa forest, leaving several terrorists dead. According to Air
Commodore Ibikunle Daramola, a spokesperson for the air force, the
operation was executed after a series of intelligence surveillance and
reconnaissance (ISR) missions revealed solar panels, communications
equipment, and other facilities at the command centre. The bombardment
targeted the remnants of Boko Haram and Islamic State of West Africa
Province (ISWAP) terrorists in northeast of Nigeria, under the
Operation Green Sweep 3, aimed at identifying and destroying
terrorists’ positions in the troubled Borno State. The air force
stated that the structures housing the command centre were destroyed
in the airstrikes while several of the terrorists were killed.”
Xinhua:
Nigerian Military Kill Boko Haram Militants, Destroy Command Center In
Airstrikes
“Airstrikes by the Nigerian military killed a number of Boko Haram
militants and destroyed a location identified as their command and
control center following a raid in the northeastern state of Borno, a
military spokesman said here on Saturday. The raid, on Friday,
targeted the command and control center of the Boko Haram terror group
in Dusala, on the fringes of the Sambisa forest in Borno, Ibikunle
Daramola, spokesman for the Nigerian air force, said in a statement
made available to Xinhua in Abuja. Three Alpha jets dispatched by the
Air Task Force engaged the location in multiple passes, recording
accurate hits on the target area, he said. Daramola declined to give
the accurate figure of Boko Haram militants killed in the raid but
said the structures housing the command center were completely
destroyed by the airstrikes. “The few surviving terrorists, who were
seen attempting to flee the area, were taken out by follow-on
attacks,” he said. The spokesman said the raid was part of renewed
efforts aimed at eliminating remnants of Boko Haram and Islamic State
of West Africa Province terrorists in the troubled northeast of
Nigeria.”
Somalia
The
Washington Post: Mogadishu’s Mayor Was Killed In A Tragic Attack. A
Blind Female Suicide Bomber Was Responsible, Officials
Say
“On July 24, shortly after a U.N. envoy left the mayor’s office in
the capital of Somalia, a suicide bomber found her way in. The bomb
killed at least six people and severely wounded Mayor Abdirahman Omar
Osman, who was flown to Qatar for treatment. He died a week later.
Now, Somali officials say they have identified the perpetrator: a
blind woman employed by the municipal government. In a statement
Friday, Somalia’s security ministry said the woman and another female
colleague had taken time off work a month earlier and are now believed
to have traveled to territory controlled by the extremist group
al-Shabab. A spokesperson for the extremist group told local media in
July that the bomber intended to target the U.N. envoy, veteran
American diplomat James Swan. “Preliminary findings show a female who
worked in the local government blew herself up with the help of
another female, who . . . also worked at the local government,” the
ministry statement said. “The female bomber was disabled. She misused
the opportunity and acted with enmity against the bosses and the
people she worked with.” The Associated Press reported that visitors
to the mayor’s office typically must pass through a number of metal
detectors, raising serious questions about how someone laden with
explosives was able to gain such proximity to high-level
officials.”
Europe
The
New York Times: After Attack On Norway Mosque, Body Found At Home Tied
To Assailant
“A worshiper thwarted an attack on a mosque Saturday by a young man
wearing a helmet and body armor, according to the Norwegian
authorities and a witness. Hours later, the police said they had found
a dead woman at a home linked to the assailant. The police described
the suspect as a young white man who appeared to have acted alone. He
was arrested and charged with attempted murder in connection with the
mosque attack near the capital, Oslo, and later with murder in
connection with the dead body. When the police made their way into a
home where the suspect once lived, they found the body of a young
woman. “He is indicted for murder,” said Rune Skjold, a police
spokesman. During the mosque attack, the suspect was overpowered by a
75-year-old member of the congregation who sustained light injuries,
said Irfan Mushtaq, a former director of the al-Noor Islamic Centre
mosque and a board member who witnessed it. “The man carried two
shotgun-like weapons and a pistol” and was wearing body armor, a
helmet and black clothes, Mr. Mushtaq told Norwegian televisionTV2.
“He broke through a glass door and fired shots.” Only three people
were in the mosque at the time, at about 4 p.m. local time. If he had
arrived earlier during prayers, the attacker could have hurt many more
people, he said.”
Voice
Of America: Norway Mosque Shooting 'Attempted Act Of
Terror'
“The shooting at a mosque near Oslo is being treated as an
“attempted act of terror”, Norwegian police said Sunday, with the
suspect appearing to harbour far-right, anti-immigrant views. “We are
looking at an attempted act of terror,” acting chief of the police
operation Rune Skjold told a press conference after Saturday's
incident left one man injured. Skjold said the investigation had shown
that the man appeared to hold “far-right” and “anti-immigrant” views.
The suspect, armed with multiple weapons, opened fire in the mosque in
Baerum, a suburb of Oslo, on Saturday afternoon, before being
overpowered by a man who suffered “minor injuries” in the process.
Norway was the scene of one of the worst-ever attacks by a right-wing
extremist in July 2011, when 77 people were killed by Anders Behring
Breivik. Hours after the attack on Saturday, the body of a young woman
related to the suspect was found in a home also in Baerum.
Investigators are treating her death as suspicious and have opened a
murder probe. Police said earlier Sunday they had tried to question
the suspect, described as a “young man” with a “Norwegian background”
who was living in the vicinity but he did not want to “give an
explanation to police.”
Technology
The
Washington Post: YouTube’s Arbitrary Standards: Stars Keep Making
Money Even After Breaking The Rules
“YouTube stars attract millions of eyeballs and generate billions
of dollars in ad revenue for the media giant, which pledges to run its
business without tolerating hateful and otherwise harmful videos. But
some of the workers hired to flag problematic content accuse YouTube
of playing favorites, doling out more lenient punishments for top
video creators whose work brings in the most money for the company.
Eleven current and past moderators, who have worked on the front lines
of content decisions, believe that popular creators often get special
treatment in the form of looser interpretations of YouTube’s
guidelines prohibiting demeaning speech, bullying and other forms of
graphic content. Moderators said that YouTube made exceptions for
popular creators including Logan Paul, Steven Crowder and PewDiePie.
Google-owned YouTube denies those claims, saying it enforces rules
equally and tries to draw the line in the right places. YouTube, the
world’s largest video platform with nearly 2 billion people logging in
monthly, has faced fierce backlash from critics who say it is enabling
hateful and inappropriate content to proliferate. With each crisis,
YouTube has raced to update its guidelines for which types of content
are allowed to benefit from its powerful advertising engine —
depriving creators of those dollars if they break too many rules.”
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