CEP Mentions
BBC: Yemen Weapons Dealers Selling Machine-Guns On X
“... "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
“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
“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
“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
“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
“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
“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
“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
“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
“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
"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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