“Edmund Fitton-Brown, the former British ambassador to Yemen who is now a
senior adviser to the Counter Extremism Project, a New York-based non-profit
organisation, said: “To me, this is clear material support for terrorism. X has
a lamentable history of failing to police itself properly against extremists
[and] this is a problem that has clearly got worse since Twitter became X. The
very fact that they sell blue tick marks to terrorist groups like the Houthis
and the Taliban is obviously a breach of sanctions and a breach of the law.”











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Eye on Extremism



August 23 2024



The Times: ‘Houthi’ Arms Dealers Using Social Media To Buy And Sell Weapons
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“... Edmund Fitton-Brown, the former British ambassador to Yemen who is now a
senior adviser to the Counter Extremism Project, a New York-based non-profit
organisation, said: “To me, this is clear material support for terrorism. X has
a lamentable history of failing to police itself properly against extremists
[and] this is a problem that has clearly got worse since Twitter became X. The
very fact that they sell blue tick marks to terrorist groups like the Houthis
and the Taliban is obviously a breach of sanctions and a breach of the law.”
... The Counter Extremism Project this week wrote to Musk, urging him to take
down Hamas and pro-Hamas content on X, some of which is spread by paid,
verified accounts on the platform.”



Voice Of America: Taliban Enact Law That Silences Afghan Women In Public, And
Curbs Their Freedom
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“Taliban leaders in Afghanistan have ordered fresh limitations on women,
forbidding them from singing, reciting poetry or speaking aloud in public and
mandating them to keep their faces and bodies covered at all times. The
restrictions are part of a new so-called Vice and Virtue decree published by
the Taliban's Justice Ministry on Wednesday after approval from their reclusive
supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, said a ministry spokesman in a video
message. The 35-article document is the first formal declaration of the vice
and virtue laws under the Taliban's strict interpretation of Islamic Sharia law
since they regained power in Afghanistan three years ago. The decree greatly
restricts personal freedoms and religious practices, covering aspects of
everyday life such as transportation, music, shaving, celebrations, and women's
behavior and appearance in public.”




Recent CEP Press Releases

* CEP Webinar: Protecting and Fostering Jewish Life in The EU After October 7
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* Extremist Content Online: Content From Extreme-Right Eskisehir, Turkey
Knife Attacker Spreads Online
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* Extremist Content Online: Extreme Right Celebrates Anti-Muslim and
Anti-Immigrant Riots on Telegram and X
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* The Recent Houthi Attack on Israel
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* Counterpoint Brief: Hamas Names Yahoo Sinwar as New Leader
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CEP Mentions



BBC: Yemen Weapons Dealers Selling Machine-Guns On X
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“... "It is inconceivable that they [the weapons dealers] are not operating on
the Houthis’ behalf," said the former British Ambassador to Yemen, Edmund
Fitton-Brown, who now works for the Counter Extremism Project. "Purely private
dealers who tried to profit from supplying, [for example] the government of
Yemen, would be quickly shut down." An investigation by The Times newspaper
found that several of the Yemeni accounts bore the blue tick of verification.
Both The Times and the BBC have approached X for comment, but have not so far
received any response. Most of the platform’s content moderators were laid off
after the new owner Elon Musk bought the company in 2022. The advertisements
are mostly in Arabic and aimed primarily at Yemeni customers in a country where
the number of guns is often said to outnumber the population by three to one.”



Iraq



Al Arabiya: Turkish Drone Strike Kills Three PKK Members In Northern Iraq
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“A Turkish drone strike on Friday killed three members of the Kurdistan
Workers Party (PKK) on northern Iraq, Iraqi Kurdistan’s counter-terrorism
service said. The statement said a vehicle which belonged to the PKK was hit by
the drone strike near the northern city of Sulaimaniya. A senior PKK member,
his driver and a guard were killed in the attack, the statement added.



Turkey



Asharq Al-Awset: Türkiye: No Agreement with Iraq to End Military Presence
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“Türkiye has stressed that the memorandum of understanding on military and
security cooperation and counter-terrorism signed with Iraq does not include
any provision regarding the termination of Turkish military presence on Iraqi
soil. The Center for Combating Disinformation, affiliated with the Directorate
of Communications at the Turkish Presidency, denied media reports that the MoU
signed by Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Güler and Iraqi Defense Minister
Thabet Muhammad al-Abbasi, aims to end the presence of Turkish military forces
in Iraqi territory.”



Pakistan



Associated Press: Death Toll From Bandit Attack On Police In Pakistan Rises To
12
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“The death toll from Pakistan’s deadliest bandit attack on police rose to 12
after one of the wounded officers died at a hospital in the eastern province of
Punjab as police pursued the bandits believed to be behind the attack,
officials said Friday. Thursday’s attack with guns and rocket-propelled
grenades also wounded eight officers. It took place in the Kacha area in Rahim
Yar Khan district, which is known for hideouts along the Indus River where
hundreds of heavily armed bandits evade police.”



Yemen



Associated Press: French Destroyer Rescues 29 Mariners From Oil Tanker
Stricken In Red Sea Attacks By Yemen Rebels
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“A French destroyer rescued 29 mariners from an oil tanker that came under
repeated attack in the Red Sea by Yemen’s Houthi rebels, officials said
Thursday, while also destroying a bomb-carrying drone boat in the area. The
assault on the Sounion, the most serious in the Red Sea in weeks, comes during
a monthslong campaign by the Houthis targeting ships over the Israel-Hamas war
in the Gaza Strip that has disrupted a trade route through which $1 trillion in
cargo typically passes each year. The Sounion is now at anchor in the Red Sea
and no longer drifting, the European Union’s Operation Aspides said. The vessel
had been staffed by a crew of 25 Filipinos and Russians, as well as four
private security personnel, who have been taken to nearby Djibouti, the EU
mission in the Red Sea said.”



Reuters: Yemen's Houthis Say They Targeted Two Vessels In Red Sea And Gulf Of
Aden
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“Yemen's Houthis targeted the Sounion oil tanker and the SW North Wind I
vessel in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, the Iran-aligned group's military
spokesman Yahya Saree said on Thursday.”



Reuters: Oil Tanker Sounion 'Poses Environmental Risk' After Houthi Attack In
Red Sea
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“A Greek-flagged oil tanker carrying 150,000 tonnes of crude that was
evacuated by its crew after being attacked in the Red Sea now poses an
environmental hazard, the EU's Red Sea naval mission "Aspides" said on
Thursday. Houthis, who control Yemen's most populous regions, said on Thursday
that they attacked the Sounion oil tanker in the Red Sea, as the Iran-aligned
group has been attacking ships in solidarity with Palestinians in the war
between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. Sounion "belongs to a company that have ties
with the Israeli enemy and violated the ban decision of entry to the ports of
occupied Palestine," the Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said in a
televised speech. Sounion was targeted on Wednesday by multiple projectiles off
Yemen's port city of Hodeidah.”



Lebanon



The Washington Post: As Hezbollah And Israel Step Up Attacks, Ailing Lebanon
Fears The Worst
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“For weeks, the Middle East has been on edge, waiting for a retaliatory
Iranian attack on Israel that many fear could trigger an all-out war. While a
nervous calm prevails, and Tehran has signaled it will bide its time, daily
violence continues to rage along the Israel-Lebanon border. Israel has targeted
what it says are Hezbollah weapons caches along the border and in Lebanon’s
east, as deep as 50 miles inside the country. Hezbollah has responded with
deeper attacks inside Israel, and on Wednesday released a wave of more than 50
rockets and drones at the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. The “center of
gravity” of Israeli military operations is shifting away from Gaza and toward
the border with Lebanon, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said this week.
Recent strikes on alleged weapons stockpiles were “preparation for anything
that might happen.””



Qatar



Reuters: Qatar Prime Minister To Visit Iran In Coming Days, Tasnim Report Says
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“Qatar's prime minister will visit Iran in the coming days, Iran's
semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Thursday. "Qatar's Prime Minister
and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani is scheduled to
consult with Iranian officials, including Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, on
bilateral and important regional issues," Tasnim said.”



Middle East



Associated Press: Israel-Hamas War Latest: Israel’s Evacuation Orders Have
Displaced 90% Of Gaza Residents, UN Says
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“Successive Israeli evacuation orders in Gaza, including 12 just in August,
have displaced 90% of its 2.1 million residents since the Israel-Hamas war
began in October, the top United Nations humanitarian official for the
Palestinian territory says. United States Vice President Kamala Harris says she
and President Joe Biden are working to end the war in Gaza, where the
International Rescue Committee says the polio virus has been circulating for
the first time in 25 years due to the destruction of hospitals and water
infrastructure, along with overcrowded living conditions. Israeli Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Office says a delegation from the country has
arrived in Cairo to resume efforts to salvage a cease-fire deal. The talks are
being mediated by the United States, Egypt and Qatar. A crucial sticking point
involves Israel’s demand for lasting control over two strategic corridors in
Gaza.”



Nigeria



Associated Press: Armed Men Kill At Least 13 Farmers In Nigeria's Conflict-hit
Region, Official Says
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"Armed men killed at least 13 farmers during an attack in north-central
Nigeria, a local official said Thursday. No group immediately claimed
responsibility for the killings, which took place Wednesday in the state of
Niger. Akilu Isyaku, a local government official, told the local radio station
Crystal FM that herders and kidnappers were suspected in the attack. He
suggested the farmers were killed for providing information to intelligence
agencies about the movements of the gunmen."



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