“Lebanon’s Hezbollah has launched more than 50 rockets, hitting a number of
private homes in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights. The attack on Wednesday
came a day after U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with fellow
mediators Egypt and Qatar as he pressed ahead with the latest diplomatic
mission to secure a cease-fire in the war in Gaza, even as Hamas and Israel
signaled that challenges remain. Hamas in a new statement called the latest
proposal presented to it a “reversal” of what it agreed to previously and
accused the U.S. of acquiescing to what it called “new conditions” from Israel.
There was no immediate U.S. response. First responders in Golan Heights said
they treated a 30-year-old man who was moderately wounded with shrapnel
injuries in Wednesday’s attack. One house was engulfed in flames, and
firefighters said they prevented a bigger tragedy by stopping a gas leak.”











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Eye on Extremism



August 21, 2024



Associated Press: Israel-Hamas War Latest: Hezbollah Fires More Than 50
Rockets, Hitting Israeli-Annexed Golan Heights
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“Lebanon’s Hezbollah has launched more than 50 rockets, hitting a number of
private homes in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights. The attack on Wednesday
came a day after U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with fellow
mediators Egypt and Qatar as he pressed ahead with the latest diplomatic
mission to secure a cease-fire in the war in Gaza, even as Hamas and Israel
signaled that challenges remain. Hamas in a new statement called the latest
proposal presented to it a “reversal” of what it agreed to previously and
accused the U.S. of acquiescing to what it called “new conditions” from Israel.
There was no immediate U.S. response. First responders in Golan Heights said
they treated a 30-year-old man who was moderately wounded with shrapnel
injuries in Wednesday’s attack. One house was engulfed in flames, and
firefighters said they prevented a bigger tragedy by stopping a gas leak.”



Reuters: Lebanon's Hezbollah Says It Launched A Drone Attack On Military Posts
In Northern Israel
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“Lebanon's Hezbollah launched an attack with a swarm of drones on military
posts in the kibbutz of Amiad in northern Israel, the armed group said in a
statement on Wednesday. The Israeli kibbutz is located approximately 22
kilometres (14 miles) from the Lebanese border. Israel's military said it could
not confirm the attack. Hezbollah said the attack was a retaliation for an
Israeli strike on the Lebanese Bekaa region overnight. Hezbollah and the
Israeli military have been locked in hostilities for the last 10 months in
parallel with the Gaza war between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas,
which has spread to several other fronts and prompted fears of an all-out
Middle East conflict.”




The CEP CounterPoint: Expert Analysis

* ISIS Redux: The Central Syria Insurgency in July 2024
<[link removed]>
* The Recent Houthi Attack on Israel
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* CounterPoint Brief: Hamas Names Yahya Singer as New Leader
<[link removed]>
* CounterPoint Brief: Far-Right Riots in the United Kingdom
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* CounterPoint Brief: Implications of Hezbollah Attack on Majdal Shams
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CEP Mentions



The Guardian: Neo-Nazi Terrorist Group Using Steve Bannon Account To
Radicalize People
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“... Joshua Fisher-Birch, an analyst at the Counter Extremism Project who
specializes in monitoring the far right, confirmed he had seen the same
Terrorgram-linked channel, the War Room Posse. “It is still a bit early to tell
what Terrorgram channels will say specifically before the election,” said
Fisher-Birch, adding that the “channels are also continuing to share manuals
that promote lone actor attacks on people of color, LGBTQ people, Muslims,
Jews, government officials and others, as well as encourage attacks on
infrastructure”. That one of the most infectious propagandist groups on the far
right is poisoning mainstream vectors of rightwing politics, shows a continued
blurring of the line between GOP talking points and violent extremism. For law
enforcement, it represents a broader threat as the election season, which
already featured the attempted assassination of one presidential candidate,
heads into the final stretch. “



United States



The New York Times: U.S. Push For Gaza Cease-Fire Falls Short On Key Points,
Officials Say
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“Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken pressed on Tuesday for a cease-fire in
the Gaza Strip, but officials familiar with the latest U.S.-backed proposal
said it left major disagreements between Hamas and Israel unresolved. After
meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel on Monday, Mr. Blinken
said that Israel had accepted the U.S. proposal — the details of which have not
been made public — and that the onus was now on Hamas to agree to it as well.
But Israeli and Hamas officials have downplayed the idea that a deal could be
imminent, saying that mediators’ efforts — and the latest American proposal
aimed at bridging gaps between the two sides — have failed to resolve some of
the most substantive disputes in the talks.”



Syria



Associated Press: Crossing Between A Government And Opposition-Held Area In
Syria Closes After Violence
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“A key crossing inside Syria between an area held by the government and one
held by the opposition was closed again on Tuesday after violence followed its
brief reopening this week. A local activist and a war monitor said that
opposition groups protested the reopening of the Abu al-Zandin crossing in
Aleppo province, which had been closed since 2020, and that it was twice hit by
artillery shelling. A few trucks on Sunday moved through the crossing in what
appeared to be a trial reopening. The move was met by protests and the crossing
was hit by artillery shelling from an unknown source on Monday and again on
Tuesday. Reports of an initial planned reopening in June were met with angry
protests by residents of the opposition-controlled area who saw the move as a
step toward normalization with the government of Syrian President Bashar
Assad.””



Afghanistan



Reuters: Taliban Bars UN Human Rights Special Rapporteur From Afghanistan
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“The Taliban have barred United Nations-appointed special rapporteur Richard
Bennett from entering Afghanistan, the administration's spokesperson told local
broadcaster Tolo, accusing the human rights watchdog of "spreading propaganda".
Bennett was appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council in 2022 to
monitor Afghanistan's human rights situation after the Taliban took over the
previous year. Bennett, who has previously said the Taliban's treatment of
women and girls could amount to a crime against humanity, is based outside
Afghanistan but has visited several times to research the situation. The U.N.
Human Rights Council did not immediately respond to request for comment.
Bennett could not immediately be reached for comment. The Taliban
administration's foreign ministry spokesperson Abdul Qahar Balkhi told Reuters
Bennett "had been unable to acquire a travel visa to Afghanistan".”



Voice Of America: Taliban’s 'Reforms' Lead To 21,000 Musical Instruments
Destroyed In Afghanistan
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“Taliban morality police in Afghanistan said Tuesday that they had "seized
and destroyed" more than 21,000 musical instruments over the past year as part
of a crackdown on what they called anti-Islam practices. Officials of the
so-called Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice
discussed their “annual performance” at a news conference in Kabul a day after
Taliban authorities publicly staged a mass burning of hundreds of musical
instruments in the nearby northern Parwan province. The provincial moral police
department also urged residents not to use musical instruments at weddings and
other celebrations. Speaking in the Afghan capital Tuesday, ministry officials
claimed to have destroyed thousands of “immoral films” and blocked many more
“from use on personal computers” nationwide “as part of societal reforms” being
undertaken by the Taliban administration.”



Yemen



Voice Of America: Ship Attacked Off Coast Of Yemen
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“A merchant ship was attacked by gunmen in two boats before being hit with
three projectiles off the coast of Yemen early Wednesday, United Kingdom
Maritime Trade Operations reported. The British military said the assault was
likely carried out by Yemen's Houthi rebels. The Iran-backed Houthis have been
targeting ships in the region for months in support of Hamas’ fight with
Israel. Although no casualties were reported among the crew, the ship’s ability
to maneuver was affected. The British maritime security agency said the two
smaller boats, one with three to five people and the other with 10 people
aboard, hailed the merchant vessel “leading to a brief exchange of small arms
fire.” The ship moved 4 kilometers away from the smaller boats, and about two
hours after the initial contact, “the Master reported that the merchant vessel
had been struck by two unidentified projectiles before being hit by a third
projectile. The vessel reports being not under command.”



Middle East



NPR: Israel Says It Recovered 6 Hostages' Bodies In Gaza
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“The Israeli military said Tuesday that it recovered the bodies of six
hostages taken in Hamas' Oct. 7 attack that started the war in Gaza, as U.S.
and Arab mediators tried to advance an agreement to halt the fighting and
release scores of other militant-held captives. The military said its forces
recovered the bodies in an overnight operation in southern Gaza, without saying
when or how the six died. A forum for hostage families said they were kidnapped
alive. Hamas says some captives have been killed and wounded in Israeli
airstrikes. An Israeli airstrike on Tuesday killed at least 10 people at a
school-turned-shelter in Gaza City, in what the military said was a precise
strike on a Hamas command center. Another strike killed a mother and her five
children in central Gaza. The recovery of the remains is a blow to Hamas, which
hopes to exchange hostages for Palestinian prisoners, an Israeli withdrawal and
a lasting cease-fire.”



United Kingdom



BBC: Riots Show How The UK's Far Right Has Changed
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“Will the disorder come to be seen as a one-off outburst quickly faced down
by the public and police, or as a display of power by a newly dangerous far
right? The murders in Southport of Elsie Dot Stancombe, Alice da Silva Aguiar
and Bebe King were seized upon by extremists, who exploited the tragedy to
promote their own hatreds and agendas. Online lies and misinformation inflamed
the situation and some key instigators used social media and messaging apps to
spread hatred and call for protests at fixed times and places. The result was a
series of violent flash mobs, spanning over several days, with racial and
religious hatred the central animating motive. Mobs attacked hotels housing
migrants, tried to set the buildings alight and pulled people from their cars.”



Europe



Associated Press: Russia’s Top Court Refuses To Release Navalny’s Lawyers,
Pending Trail On Extremism Charges
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“Russia’s Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to release three lawyers who once
represented Russia’s slain opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, and are now
facing charges of extremism. It also refused to transfer their case to a
different court, even as the defense alleged a conflict of interest. Vadim
Kobzev, Igor Sergunin, and Alexei Liptser were arrested in October in a case
widely seen at the time as a means to ramp up pressure on the Kremlin’s
fiercest foe. According to Navalny’s allies, authorities accused the lawyers of
using their status as defense attorneys to pass letters from the imprisoned
politician to his team, thus serving as intermediaries between Navalny and what
they called his “extremist group.”



Associated Press: Moscow Sees One Of Ukraine’s Largest Drone Attacks As
Fighting Rages In Kursk And Eastern Ukraine
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“Moscow came under one of the largest attacks yet by Ukrainian drones since
the start of fighting in 2022, Russian authorities reported Wednesday, saying
they destroyed all of those headed toward the capital. The drone attacks come
as Ukrainian forces are continuing to push into Russia’s western Kursk region.
“This was one of the biggest attempts of all time to attack Moscow using
drones,” Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin said on his Telegram channel. He said
strong defenses around the capital made it possible to shoot down all the
drones before they hit their intended targets. Russia downed 45 Ukrainian
drones overnight, including 11 over the Moscow region.”



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