“Germany's interior ministry said on Wednesday it has banned the Islamic Centre
Hamburg (IZH) association and its subsidiary organisations, saying it pursues
radical Islamist goals. The ministry said in a statement that 53 of the
organisation's premises had been searched by authorities in eight German states
early on Wednesday, acting on a court order. In addition to the Hamburg-based
IZH, which includes one of the oldest mosques in Germany known for its
turquoise exterior, its subgroups in Frankfurt, Munich and Berlin were also
banned. As a result, four Shiite mosques will be closed, said the ministry. The
IZH was not available for comment by phone on Wednesday morning, and its
website was not accessible to the public. Evidence from an earlier search of 55
properties conducted in November provided the basis for Wednesday's ban of the
IZH, known in German as Islamisches Zentrum Hamburg, said the ministry. "Today,
we banned the Islamisches Zentrum Hamburg, which promotes an
Islamist-extremist, totalitarian ideology in Germany," said Interior Minister
Nancy Faeser.”











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Eye on Extremism



July 24, 2024



Reuters: Germany Bans Muslim Association For Pursuing Radical Islam
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“Germany's interior ministry said on Wednesday it has banned the Islamic
Centre Hamburg (IZH) association and its subsidiary organisations, saying it
pursues radical Islamist goals. The ministry said in a statement that 53 of the
organisation's premises had been searched by authorities in eight German states
early on Wednesday, acting on a court order. In addition to the Hamburg-based
IZH, which includes one of the oldest mosques in Germany known for its
turquoise exterior, its subgroups in Frankfurt, Munich and Berlin were also
banned. As a result, four Shiite mosques will be closed, said the ministry. The
IZH was not available for comment by phone on Wednesday morning, and its
website was not accessible to the public. Evidence from an earlier search of 55
properties conducted in November provided the basis for Wednesday's ban of the
IZH, known in German as Islamisches Zentrum Hamburg, said the ministry. "Today,
we banned the Islamisches Zentrum Hamburg, which promotes an
Islamist-extremist, totalitarian ideology in Germany," said Interior Minister
Nancy Faeser.”



Associated Press: Radical British Preacher Anjem Choudary Convicted Of
Directing A Terrorist Group
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“Radical British preacher Anjem Choudary was found guilty Tuesday by a London
jury of directing a terrorist group. Choudary, 57, was convicted in Woolwich
Crown Court of membership in a banned organization, the radical Muslim group
al-Muhajiroun, or ALM, and for drumming up support for the group. ALM was
outlawed by the British government in 2010 as a group involved in committing,
preparing for or promoting terrorism. “ALM’s tentacles have spread across the
world and have had a massive impact on public safety and security,”
Metropolitan Police Cmdr. Dominic Murphy said. “There are individuals that have
conducted terrorist attacks or traveled for terrorist purposes as a result of
Anjem Choudary’s radicalizing impact upon them.” Prosecutor Tom Little, who
described Choudary as having a “warped and twisted mindset,” said that he had
stepped in to lead ALM after Omar Bakri Muhammad, the group’s founder, was
imprisoned in Lebanon between 2014 and March 2023.”




The CEP CounterPoint: Expert Analysis

* Reactions to Trump Assassination Attempt From Extreme Right Telegram
Channels
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* Thirty years on, AMIA victims still looking for justice
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* The Financial Motive Behind Houthi Spyware Hacks
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* ISIS Redux: The Central Syria Insurgency in June 2024
<[link removed]>
* CounterPoint Brief: U.S. Designated Nordic Resistance Movement as Specially
Designated Global Terrorist Organization
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United States



Associated Press: Netanyahu Looks To Boost US Support In Speech To Congress,
But Faces Protests And Lawmaker Boycotts
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“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks before Congress Wednesday in hopes
of bolstering U.S. support for continuing Israel’s fight against Hamas and
other adversaries, even as the Biden administration is urging him to focus on
closing a deal ending the devastating nine-month war in Gaza. Netanyahu is
assured a warm welcome from Republican lawmakers who arranged his speech in the
House chamber, an appearance making him the first foreign leader to address a
joint meeting of Congress four times, surpassing Winston Churchill. But many
Democrats and independents plan to boycott his appearance. The most notable
absences will be behind Netanyahu as Vice President Kamala Harris, who serves
as president of the Senate and traditionally would sit behind whatever
dignitary is speaking, says a long-scheduled trip will keep her away. The next
Democrat in line, Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, is declining to attend.”



Iraq



Associated Press: Iraq Bans A Kurdish Separatist Group And Strengthens Its
Cooperation With Turkey
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“The Iraqi government announced Tuesday an official ban on a Kurdish
separatist group which has been engaged in in a long-running conflict with
Turkey. Turkey has been seeking greater cooperation from Baghdad in its fight
against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, a Kurdish separatist group that
has waged an insurgency against Turkey since the 1980s and is banned there. The
order issued July 14 and published Tuesday by the Department of Administrative
Affairs at the Iraqi Parliament said Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani had
issued instructions for the PKK to be described as the “banned Kurdistan
Workers’ Party” in all official correspondence. It was the clearest statement
from the Iraqi government on the group’s status to date. Turkish President
Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited Iraq in April for the first time in more than a
decade. At the time, Erdogan said he and Sudani had “consulted on the joint
steps we can take against the PKK terrorist organization and its extensions,
which target Turkey from Iraqi territory.””



Afghanistan



Voice Of America: Taliban Lament Lack Of Support Despite Victory Against
Illicit Afghan Drugs
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“Afghanistan’s Taliban claimed Tuesday that their crackdown on illegal drug
production in the country has helped address a major global challenge but
expressed frustration at the ongoing lack of international support in response.
Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi told a national labor conference in
Kabul that his country used to be the world’s largest opium-poppy producer. It
was detrimental and smuggled to the entire world and resulted in more than four
million Afghans becoming drug addicts in the past two decades, he said. “The
illegal production of drugs has ceased. The addicts are now in need of medical
treatment while the farmers need livelihoods and employment,” Muttaqi said in
his televised speech. He noted that their counternarcotics campaign has led to
immense economic pressures and severe hardships for Afghans reeling from the
effects of years of war and natural disasters in the impoverished country.”



Yemen



Reuters: Houthi Threat To Red Sea Shipping Is Growing, Says UN Envoy To Yemen
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“Recent developments in the Red Sea and surrounding waterways suggest that
the threat to international shipping from Yemen's Houthis is growing, U.N.
Special Envoy to Yemen Hans Grundberg told the U.N. Security Council on
Tuesday. In a briefing on the situation in Yemen, Grundberg warned of a real
danger of a devastating regional escalation following new Houthi attacks on
commercial shipping and the first Israeli air strikes on Yemen in retaliation
for Houthi drone and missile attacks on Israel. "I remain deeply concerned
about the continued targeting of international navigation in the Red Sea and
its surrounding waterways," Grundberg said. "Recent developments suggest that
the threat against international shipping is increasing in scope and
precision." The Houthi attacks on Israel and July 20 Israeli retaliatory
strikes on Yemen's port of Hodeidah and its oil and power facilities represent
"a new and dangerous level" of violence, he said.”



Associated Press: UN Envoy To Yemen Warns Of A ‘Devastating’ Regional
Escalation, But Points To Glimmer Of Hope
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“The U.N. envoy for Yemen warned Tuesday that recent developments in the Red
Sea, Israel and inside the country “show the real danger of a devastating
region-wide escalation” — but he also pointed to a glimmer of hope. Hans
Grundberg said Yemen’s warring parties — the internationally recognized
government and Houthi rebels – informed him Monday night “that they have agreed
on a path to de-escalate a cycle of measures and countermeasures which had
sought to tighten their grip on the banking and transport sectors.” But he
warned the U.N. Security Council that seven months of escalating actions
reached “a new and dangerous level last week” which saw a Houthi drone attack
on Tel Aviv and Israeli retaliatory attacks on Yemen’s key port of Hodeida and
its oil and power facilities. He said Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea
and surrounding waterways continue and the rebels are escalating their
crackdown “on civic space and on international organizations.””



Middle East



The New York Times: Rival Palestinian Factions Project Unity, But Deep
Divisions Remain
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“The two main rival Palestinian factions, Fatah and Hamas, signed a joint
statement in Beijing on Tuesday that endorsed, in concept, a temporary
government for the Gaza Strip and the Israeli-occupied West Bank, in a grand
show of unity brokered by China’s foreign ministry. The statement supports the
formation of a unified government for the two territories that all parties can
agree on — a high bar to clear for two factions that have long been vehemently,
sometimes violently, opposed. But it offers little about how such a government
would be formed, or when. Smaller Palestinian groups also signed the statement.
For China, the agreement represents an opportunity to promote an image of
Beijing as a peace broker and an important player in the Middle East. Mousa Abu
Marzouk, a senior Hamas official, declared that “historic moments” were
underway. Mahmoud al-Aloul, the deputy leader of Fatah, showered praise on
China for standing beside the Palestinian people.”



Somalia



Garowe Online: Somali Army Records Multiple Successes Against Al-Shabaab
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“Monday's outing by the Somali National Army (SNA) could be the best in as
many months, with statistics showing the army may have as well killed over 120
Al-Shabaab militants in three separate operations after the group tried to run
military bases. The coordinated counterattacks were carried out by the Somali
National Army and Jubaland Security Forces in three separate locations, in
Western and Southern Kismayo, the regional administrative capital of Jubaland
state. Multiple reports indicate that the militants tried to launch attacks at
Bulo Haji, Harbole, and Mido, all of which were seized from al-Shabab last
month. The militants also fired on a fourth base at Bar Sanguni in an apparent
attempt to disrupt possible reinforcement to the bases under attack. But Major
Mohamed Farah Dahir, the spokesperson of Jubaland Regional Forces, said close
to 135 militants were killed with an additional 28 captured alive by the
determined security teams engaged in the operations.”



France



Reuters: France Probed Migrant Communities To Fight ISIS-K Threat To Olympics
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“French security services have been probing migrant communities from former
Soviet republics in an effort to safeguard the Olympics from the ISIS-K
militant group, the interior minister said, confirming a Reuters report
published last week. Gérald Darmanin, interviewed in a Le Parisien article
published on Tuesday, said ISIS-K was "undoubtedly the most dangerous
movement", though he said authorities hadn't identified any concrete threat to
the Games. ISIS-K is a resurgent wing of Islamic State, named after the
historical region of Khorasan that included parts of Iran, Afghanistan and
Central Asia. To counter the danger, Darmanin said security services had
"looked particularly at all the people who revolve around the 10 nationalities
of the former Soviet Union". Last week, Reuters reported that French security
services had been racing to address an intelligence blind spot and forge deeper
ties with Tajiks, Central Asians and other people from former Soviet republics
living in France.”



Reuters: France Arrests Russian Suspected Of Planning To Destabilize Olympics
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“French police have arrested a Russian man suspected of planning to
destabilize the Olympics, the Paris prosecutor's office said on Wednesday, just
days before the Games begin. The 40-year-old man was detained on Tuesday after
police raided his house at the request of the Interior Ministry, the
prosecutor's office said in a statement. The evidence found at his home raised
"fears of his intention to organize events likely to cause destabilization
during the Olympic Games," it said. Relations between France and Russia have
been deteriorating for months as President Emmanuel Macron is a prominent
critic of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine and a strong supporter of the Kyiv
government. French authorities have repeatedly flagged suspected Russian
disinformation campaigns, while Russia has arrested a French researcher in the
country on espionage charges. The arrested man has been placed in pre-trial
detention and could face up to 30 years in prison, the statement said.”



Germany



Associated Press: German Government, Mainstream Opposition Move To Protect
Highest Court Against Extremist Forces
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“Germany’s governing coalition and the conservative opposition on Tuesday
presented a plan to protect the country’s highest court against possible future
manipulation or obstruction by extremist or authoritarian politicians. Justice
Minister Marco Buschmann cited experiences in Poland, Hungary and Israel as
illustrating the need to bolster the Federal Constitutional Court. Germany’s
own political landscape has become increasingly fragmented in recent years,
with the far-right Alternative for Germany party emerging as a significant
political force. The plan put forward by Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s three-party
coalition and the mainstream conservative Union bloc, the biggest opposition
force, calls for the court’s ground rules to be anchored in the Constitution,
which they largely weren’t when the post-World War II German Constitution was
drawn up 75 years ago. That means a two-thirds parliamentary majority would be
required to change them in the future, rather than a simple majority.”



Associated Press: Germany Carries Out Raids And Bans A Group Accused Of Links
To Iran And Support For Hezbollah
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“The German government on Wednesday banned an organization accused of being
an “outpost” of Iran’s theocracy, promoting the ideology of its leadership and
supporting Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group. Police raided 53 properties
around the country, including a prominent mosque in Hamburg. The ban on the
Islamic Center Hamburg, or IZH, and five suborganizations around Germany
followed searches in November. Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said evidence
gathered in the investigation “confirmed the serious suspicions to such a
degree that we ordered the ban today.” The IZH “promotes an Islamist-extremist,
totalitarian ideology in Germany,” while it and its suborganizations “also
support the terrorists of Hezbollah and spread aggressive antisemitism,” Faeser
said in a statement. Her ministry said that “as the direct representative of
Iran’s ‘Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution,’ the IZH disseminates the
ideology of the Islamic Revolution in an aggressive and militant way and seeks
to bring about such a revolution in the Federal Republic of Germany.””



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