Eye on Extremism
August 15, 2019
CNN:
Republican Senator To Introduce Bill Next Month Making Domestic
Terrorism A Punishable Federal Crime
“Arizona GOP Sen. Martha McSally plans to introduce legislation
next month that would make domestic terrorism a punishable federal
crime, an effort that aims to close a loophole in federal authorities'
ability to prosecute suspects in domestic terrorism cases. McSally
released a discussion draft of the legislation Wednesday, which her
office said would “add specific punishments for acts of domestic
terrorism and provide federal law enforcement with new charging
options.” The legislation would allow federal authorities to charge
suspects with domestic terror, criminalize politically-motivated
violence and ensure that victims of terrorism are “properly
recognized,” among other things. The draft bill comes on the heels
of three recent mass shootings in California, Texas and Ohio that left
a total of 34 people dead. Authorities are treating the massacre in El
Paso, Texas, as a case of domestic terrorism and are considering
bringing federal hate crime and federal firearm charges, which carry a
possible death penalty. McSally's drafted legislation would allow
authorities in future domestic terrorism cases to charge the suspect
with domestic terrorism and seek the punishments outlined in the
legislation.”
The
New York Times: European Fears Hinder Plans To Rescue ISIS Children
From Syria
“Years after their parents left Belgium and France to join the
Islamic State, 18 children were taken from squalid refugee camps in
Syria and flown recently to new lives in Belgium and France, drawing
widespread attention in those countries as examples of Europe
grudgingly accepting the children of its jihadis. But they were the
exceptions, not the rule; estimates vary, but 1,300 or more children
of European fighters and followers of the self-professed caliphate
remain trapped in Syria and Iraq. While some European governments have
softened their stands on repatriation, marginally, it is still unclear
when — or even whether — the children might be able to leave. The
recent airlifts, which took place only after months of negotiation and
vetting of the children, illustrate how resistant Western countries
still are. On those flights in June, France and Belgium received only
children whose extremist parents were dead; most are orphans, and some
were taken to ISIS lands by their fathers, who were killed there,
while their mothers remained in Europe. Days earlier, a Belgian team
had set up a makeshift clinic in the overcrowded Al Hol camp in
northeastern Syria, which holds thousands of current and former ISIS
adherents and their family members, providing medical care and
psychiatric assessments for the children of Belgian nationals.”
Radio
Free Europe: A Decade In The Making: U.S.-Taliban Peace Deal Appears
Within Reach
“In the fall of 2010, U.S. officials secretly met a young Taliban
representative outside the southern German city of Munich. Tayyib
Agha, a member of the militant group's political wing, presented the
U.S. diplomats with a road map for a negotiated end to the war. It was
not the United States' first contact with the Taliban. Since the
U.S.-led invasion toppled the Taliban regime in 2001, the militant
group had sought a channel with Washington. There had been contact
between U.S. and Taliban military commanders. But the 2010 meeting,
brokered by Germany, was a turning point in the conflict. “For the
first time, both the Taliban and the United States had some degree of
seriousness in seeking talks towards a political settlement,” Jarrett
Blanc, a former diplomat who was involved in former President Barack
Obama administration's negotiations with the Taliban, tells RFE/RL.
“Even then, people knew enough to know that we weren't going to 'win
the war.'“ But in the intervening years, meaningful U.S.-Taliban talks
failed to take off, hampered by mutual mistrust, missed opportunities,
protests by the Afghan government, and the deaths of two successive
Taliban leaders. Now, nearly a decade since those initial secret
contacts, the United States and the Taliban are apparently on the
verge of agreeing to a landmark peace deal that would end the United
States' longest-ever war.”
Reuters:
India Accuses Pakistan Of Helping Militants Infiltrate
Kashmir
“Indian security officials said on Wednesday a group of Pakistani
militants backed by the military tried to infiltrate Indian-controlled
Kashmir to foment violence, according to Reuters partner ANI. Tension
is running high between India and Pakistan after New Delhi this month
revoked the special status for the portion of Kashmir that it
controls, scrapping a constitutional provision that allows the state
of Jammu and Kashmir to make its own laws. Muslim-majority Kashmir
has been the site of decades of hostility between nuclear arch-rivals
India and Pakistan. Both countries claim it in full but rule it in
part. ANI cited unidentified Indian army sources as saying there was
a major infiltration attempt in the Uri sector of Jammu and Kashmir on
Tuesday night by militants who were given fire cover from Pakistani
army posts. Pakistan’s military did not respond to requests for
comment.”
Gizmodo:
Terrorist Who Allegedly Killed 51 People In New Zealand Gets Letter
Published To 4chan From Jail
“The white supremacist accused of killing 51 people at two mosques
in Christchurch, New Zealand, currently has no access to internet, TV,
newspapers, and radio. Yet he’s still able to get his hateful ideology
out into the world, all thanks to extremists on 4Chan and lax rules
about letter writing in New Zealand prisons. Brenton Tarrant, the
28-year-old Australian national who allegedly broadcast his mass
murder on Facebook Live earlier this year, wrote a six-page letter
that was published to 4Chan’s /pol/ message board yesterday. The
letter, dated July 4, 2019, was addressed to someone in Russia named
Alan, and referred to a “great conflict on the horizon” as well as “a
great amount of bloodshed” that he predicted for the future. Tarrant
has pleaded not guilty to 51 counts of murder, 40 counts of attempted
murder, and one count of terrorism. Commenters on 4Chan initially
doubted the letter’s authenticity, saying “it looks like it was
written by a preschooler.” But prison officials in New Zealand have
confirmed that the letter is real. “I know a lot of New Zealanders
will be surprised to hear that this offender is allowed to send and
receive mail–but there are rights every prisoner has under the law as
it stands,” New Zealand Corrections Minister Kelvin Davis told the
news website Stuff today.”
New
York Post: 8chan Owner Jim Watkins Faces Grilling On Extremist
Content
“The House Committee on Homeland Security subpoenaed Jim Watkins,
the owner of the far-right internet message board 8chan, as part of a
probe into the social media site’s connections to extremists. “In
recent years, violent extremist content has proliferated on both large
and small social media platforms. At least three acts of deadly white
supremacist extremist violence have been linked to 8chan,” committee
chair Bennie Thompson of Mississippi and ranking GOP member Mike
Rogers of Alabama said in a statement. “We have questions on what is
being done to counter this trend so we can be sure it is being
properly addressed. Receiving testimony from Mr. Watkins is critical
to our oversight on this matter.” Watkins, who acquired the website in
2016, has been ordered to appear before the committee on Sept. 5,
according to the subpoena. 8chan has been online and offline in recent
days since its biggest internet service provider, Cloudflare, stopped
doing business with it. Authorities believe that the suspect in the El
Paso mass shooting, Patrick Crusius, 21, posted an anti-immigrant
diatribe on the website before the attack, which left 22 dead.
Watkins, an American who has lived in the Philippines, has been in
contact with the committee, according to Adam Comis, spokesman for
Thompson, NBC News reported.”
United States
ABC
News: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Forms Domestic Terrorism Task Force In
Response To El Paso Shooting
“Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is taking action to prevent domestic
terrorism in the state following a shooting at an El Paso
Walmart where the attacker said he targeted Mexicans. Abbott, a
Republican, has directed the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS)
to “take immediate action against extremism” by forming a domestic
terrorism task force to “combat these hateful acts,” according to a
press release from his office. Twenty-two people were killed and
dozens more were injured in the Aug. 3 shooting, which occurred at a
shopping center near the Mexican border. The gunman allegedly cased
the store to look for Mexicans to kill before he carried out the
attack, according to law enforcement officials. A woman touches a
cross at a makeshift memorial for victims outside Walmart, near the
scene of a mass shooting which left at least 22 people dead, on Aug.
6, 2019 in El Paso, Texas. Federal prosecutors have said they're
weighing hate-crime charges and considering it a domestic terrorism
case. In response, Abbott has ordered the Texas DPS to conduct an
intelligence assessment on the domestic terrorism threat in the state
and “proactively seek, assess and monitor” both domestic terrorism and
other mass casualty threats.”
Fox
News: Former Acting ICE Director Tom Homan: Attack On Immigration
Offices Was An Act Of 'Domestic Terrorism'
“The former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement
(ICE), Tom Homan, said the attack on federal immigration offices
in San Antonio, Texas, should be considered an act of ”domestic
terrorism,” and he warned against the effects of extreme political
rhetoric. The FBI is calling the early-Tuesday event a ”targeted
attack” after shots were fired at an ICE building where two floors of
administrative and executive offices were housed, according to the San
Antonio Express-News. The outlet also reported there was also
gunfire at another facility where an ICE contractor was located. “I
think this was an act of terrorism. I mean, look at the definition
of terrorism, this is exactly what they're doing,” Homan said during
an interview on “Outnumbered Overtime” on Wednesday. ”This is domestic
terrorism.” Homan, who also wrote an op-ed for Fox News on Wednesday
about the dangers of left-wing immigration rhetoric, took issue
with House Democrats for radicalizing their talking points, and said
hate should have no place in policymaking. “We've got to stop the
hate,” he said. ”They say the Trump administration -- all hate
rhetoric is coming out of there. No, there's just as much hate
rhetoric, if not more, on the left.”
Fortune:
Domestic Terrorism Is Likely To Grow, Experts
Warn
“Gilroy. El Paso. Dayton. Three mass shootings in eight days are
all being investigated as acts of domestic terrorism—coercive violence
fueled by extremist ideologies of a political, religious, social,
racial, or environmental nature. These jarring, tragic events have
cast new attention on the rise of extremist behavior in the United
States. Researchers and law enforcement officials say the issue has
been neglected, allowed to fester and proliferate. Stoked by divisive
rhetoric on cable news, social media, and online message boards,
domestic terrorism is an expanding national security threat, and while
white supremacist violence has been the most prevalent, extremism is
growing in all corners and ideologies. As far back as 2009 analysts
at the Department of Homeland Security warned of the rising threat of
domestic terrorism, particularly from white supremicist factions. At
the time, the report got caught in the political spin cycle, dismissed
as partisan fare that demonized conservative views, and the team that
produced it was reassigned. Today, agents investigating foreign
terrorism still wield far more resources and legal power than those
pursuing threats at home. “On the left and the right there is denial
about the extent that this is happening,” said David Neiwert, a
reporter who has covered white nationalists for decades and the author
of Alt-America: Rise of the Radical Right in the Age of Trump.”
Al
Jazeera: Killer Narratives: The Real Culprit Of Mass Shootings In The
US
“Sci-Fi films like the Terminator series (in particular
Terminator II - Judgment Day), or The Matrix trilogy, use morphing -
a special-effects process in which someone or something changes shape
or form - to present the viewer with alternative perspectives on the
same reality. In the Terminator, the “cyborg” robot has the power to
take the shape of humans - usually after killing them - of any age or
gender. Once it takes the human form, characters within the film start
responding to the violent attacks against “the monster” with horror.
However, the viewers applaud these brutal attacks, and even demand
more. The narrative demands it, after all, especially after the
atrocities it perpetrates! This illustration of the effect of
narrative framing holds the key to understanding instances of mass
violence, such as the recent series of mass shootings in the United
States. The two young men who carried out the mass shootings on August
3 in El Paso, Texas and August 4 in Dayton, Ohio, were acting in a
different movie from the one we are all watching. In their story, they
were not opening fire on “innocent people”, but heroically responding
to “an existential threat”. The two episodes occurred within 14 hours
of each other, and only a few days after a similar attack in
California. This indicates a shared story that is gaining
traction.”
The
Hill: Criminal Justice Alternatives Could Shrink The Domestic Terror
Threat
“Yet again, two young white men have been implicated in mass
shootings, this time in El Paso and Dayton. In the El Paso case,
federal prosecutors are treating the massacre as domestic terrorism.
The racially-motivated shooter could be charged with a federal hate
crime. Media attention rightly has identified the easy availability
of guns and online right-wing nationalist recruitment as contributory
factors in the tragedies. Calls for stricter background checks for gun
purchases certainly are part of the response. But there is more we can
do, and it does not require new law. “If you see something, say
something” is the well-known catchphrase disseminated by the
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in the wake of the 9/11 World
Trade Center and Pentagon attacks. In an effort to thwart further
mayhem on American soil, citizens and members of vulnerable
communities were deputized to share with law enforcement information
about potentially troubled or dangerous individuals. The problem for
those who considered stepping forward were the legal consequences to
them, and more importantly to their potentially violent loved ones. It
is a paradox that has led many Americans with valuable information to
remain silent. Consider the case of 22-year-old Adam Shafi, son of a
Silicon Valley executive.”
The
Jerusalem Post: Mexico Urges U.S. To Designate El Paso Shooting As
Terrorism
“Mexico's government on Wednesday amplified its assertion that the
Aug. 3 mass shooting in El Paso, Texas, was an act of
terrorism against Mexicans, urging the United States to ensure the
attack was designated as such. Speaking after meetings on Tuesday
between US and Mexican government officials about the incident,
Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard told a regular government news
conference that steps needed to be taken to prevent future killings.
“It's very important to persevere, to specify, clarify and demand that
measures are taken so that this is not repeated, and the first measure
is to classify it for what it is, an act of terrorism that seeks to
take Mexican lives,” Ebrard said. Twenty-two people, including eight
Mexican citizens, were killed in the shooting at a Walmart store in
the US border city, an event Mexico quickly said it would investigate
as a terrorist act. A four-page statement believed to have been
written by the suspected shooter, Patrick Crusius, and posted on
8chan, an online message board often used by extremists, called the El
Paso attack “a response to the Hispanic invasion of Texas.” And,
according to an El Paso police affidavit released on Friday, Crusius
told police while surrendering that he had been targeting
“Mexicans.”
Syria
The
Washington Post: Captured ISIS Fighters Get Short Sentences And Art
Therapy In Syria
“At a closely guarded prison in this northeastern Syrian town,
former Islamic State fighters make papier-mâché models of birds,
flowers and trees while serving sentences that typically run two or
three years. Across the border in Iraq, Islamic State detainees are
being held in degrading conditions, subjected to torture and often,
when brought to trial, given long sentences or the death penalty,
according to human rights groups. The Syrian Kurdish allies of the
United States are attempting a different approach. Their goal, Kurdish
officials say, is to rehabilitate and reintegrate many of the Islamic
State fighters in their custody, in hopes of deterring a revival of
the militant movement. The Syrian Kurds’ leftist ideology precludes
the death penalty, and their few functioning courts issue light
sentences for fighters not found to have committed major crimes.
Hundreds more militants have simply been freed in deals with local
Arab tribes whose cooperation the Kurds need to maintain. By acting
with leniency, the Kurds hope to break the cycle of revenge that has
trapped so much of the region in conflict for decades, said Khaled
Barjas Ali, a senior judge in the terrorism courts run by the
self-proclaimed Kurdish administration in northeastern Syria.”
Iran
Al
Jazeera: Iran's Rouhani Criticises US Military Build-Up In
Gulf
“Iran's President Hassan Rouhani has criticised a US-led naval
mission in the Strait of Hormuz, saying Washington's military build-up
in the Gulf was aimed at “creating division and emptying the
treasuries” of countries in the region. Speaking during a cabinet
meeting on Wednesday, Rouhani said the Gulf countries could handle
their own security and called for unity to do so. “All talks about
establishing a new coalition in the Persian Gulf and Sea of Oman won't
be practical,” Rouhani said, according to the Iranian Student News
Agency. “No doubt that it won't help the security of the region. There
is no need for the presence of foreign forces to provide security.”
“The Islamic Republic of Iran is ready to ensure the security of the
historical region alongside its littoral states, as it has done so
throughout the history,” he added. The narrow Strait of
Hormuz between Oman and Iran has become a flashpoint between the US
and Iran in recent months, with Washington accused Tehran in May of
sabotaging tankers along the important trade route. Iran denied the
allegations. The US military has since deployed additional forces,
including an aircraft carrier and B-52 bombers, to the Middle East as
tensions have mounted.”
Iraq
Iraqi
News: Iraq Anti-Terrorism Troops Kill 10 IS Militants, Capture 5
Others In Anbar
“Iraqi security forces killed on Wednesday 10 Islamic State
militants and arrested five others during a counter-terrorism
operation in Anbar province. In a statement carried by Al Ahd News
website, the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service said that its troops have
carried out a military operation based on intelligence information to
arrest IS militants in Ar Rutbah and Wadi Hauran districts in Anbar.
The operation, according to the statement, “resulted in the killing of
10 Islamic State militants, beside five arrests.” Iraq declared the
collapse of Islamic State’s territorial influence in Iraq in November
2017 with the recapture of Rawa, a city on Anbar’s western borders
with Syria, which was the group’s last bastion in Iraq. In November,
Iraqi forces recaptured Anbar’s western town of Rawa, the last Islamic
State entrenchment in Iraq.”
Iraqi
News: Iraq Foils Islamic State Scheme To Attack Village During Eidul
Adha
“A pro-government force said on Wednesday that a plot by Islamic
State militants to spoil Iraqis’ celebration of Eidul Adha (Greater
Bairam) was foiled in the oil-rich province of Kirkuk. In a press
statement, a copy of which was obtained by Iraqi website Alforat News,
the paramilitary Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) said that a plot by
the Islamic State militant group to storm a village in Hawija
district, in Kirkuk, was successfully foiled during Eidul Adha
holiday. “A PMF member was killed while repelling the IS attack on the
village,” added the statement. In October 2017, former Iraqi prime
minister Haider al-Abadi declared that Iraqi troops recaptured Hawija,
a main town held by Islamic State in the country. The town had fallen
to IS in June 2014, when the militant group seized control of much of
northern and western Iraq and proclaimed the creation of a self-styled
“caliphate”. There, Islamic State’s reign forced thousands to flee to
refugee camps, while hundreds had been executed by the group for
attempting to escape the area or contacting security forces. The
offensive on Hawija began in September 2017 and has involved army,
police and special forces units, as well as the Shia-led paramilitary
Popular Mobilization Forces.”
The
National: The Dark Legacy Of ISIS Lives On In Tal
Afar
“At Tal Afar General Hospital in northwestern Iraq, dozens of women
squeeze onto waiting room chairs. They all want to see the small team
of gynaecologists, who appear stressed and overworked. Since the other
hospital in the area was blown up by ISIS, Tal Afar General Hospital
has been overburdened and under-resourced, serving the city as well as
towns and villages far and wide. But even if services were sufficient,
one group of the neediest would-be patients would still stay away.
They are the 22 Shia Turkmen women and girls who have returned from
being raped, beaten and forced into marriage to ISIS members. Some
were just 12 years old when they were kidnapped as they tried to
escape the terror group’s assault on northern Iraq five years ago.
Since their return, community stigma – mainly from their tribes and
nosy neighbours – has prolonged their suffering. Some are forced to
stay at home by their relatives, who associate a rape survivor with
shame. They prevent the girls from going to school, having any kind of
financial independence or repairing their friendships. Instead, their
families make them do menial chores at home. Even if healthcare
services weren’t overstretched, the girls couldn’t leave the house to
get regular check-ups for any physical or mental health effects of
ISIS’s abuse.”
Turkey
Al
Jazeera: Turkey Tourism Revives Since Freedom From
ISIL
“Turkey's government is encouraging tourists to visit an ancient
city which was controlled by fighters of the Islamic State of Iraq and
the Levant (ISIL or ISIS) group, not so long ago. The ancient city of
Karkamesh straddles the Turkey-Syria border. The extensive ruins on
the Syrian side of the border were recently in the hands of ISIL but
now the ancient city is set to open to visitors, all part of a drive
by the Turkish authorities to encourage tourism back to southeastern
Anatolia.”
Afghanistan
The
Washington Examiner: Charismatic Young Recruiter Training Hundreds Of
ISIS Fighters In Afghanistan As Possible Sleeper
Agents
“A popular young ISIS recruiter from Tajikistan is leading hundreds
of fighters in Afghanistan as part of an effort to draw more
foreigners to the terrorist group's banner. Sayvaly Shafiev, also
known as Mauaviya, and his group of about 200 fighters operate out of
Nangarhar, a province in eastern Afghanistan located along the
Pakistani border. At only 31 years old, he has become a key figure in
ISIS-Khorasan Province, the jihadist group's affiliate in Afghanistan
and Pakistan. “He seeks to recruit Tajik fighters and to raise funds
using online propaganda in the Tajik language,” according to a United
Nations report on ISIS activities. Tajik authorities believe Shafiev
is training his recruits in Afghanistan to become sleeper agents in
Tajikistan. He is also part of ISIS-K's Shura Council, a select group
of leaders responsible for governing the province. Shafiev has been
known to Tajik authorities for some time. He hails from a small town
outside the capital of Dushanbe, which he left in 2011 or 2012 to
“study religion in Pakistan.” Several jihadist figures have gone to
Pakistan to study in Islamic religious schools only to end
up fighting for terrorist groups such al Qaeda and the Haqqani
network.”
Long
War Journal: Taliban Promotes Its ‘Preparation For
Jihad’
“In a newly released video, the Taliban promotes its “Preparation
for Jihad” while focusing on a team of its so-called special forces.
The Taliban continues to churn out propaganda that promotes
jihad and the training of its fighters even as it is simultaneously
negotiating an agreement with the United States that will lead to the
withdrawal of US forces. The video, titled “Preparation for Jihad (2)”
was released by the Taliban on Aug. 10 on its official website, Voice
of Jihad. The video was produced by Manba’ Al-Jihad Media, the main
propaganda outlet for the Haqqani Network, an integral faction of the
Taliban that is closely allied with al Qaeda and other foreign
terrorist groups. Manba’ Al-Jihad Media was integrated into the
Taliban’s propaganda apparatus years ago. Sirajuddin Haqqani, the head
of the Haqqani Network, is the Taliban’s deputy emir. Siraj’s father,
Jalaluddin, who died in 2018, is also featured in the video. The video
appears to show one of the Taliban’s specially trained units. The
fighters are wearing new uniforms, boots, vests, backpacks, and other
gear. They are outfitted with identical equipment, and their weapons
appear to be well maintained. The Taliban are also shown navigating
an obstacle course, in the same fashion as al Qaeda propaganda videos
from its training camps in Afghanistan in the 1990s.”
Yemen
The
Daily Signal: Terrorist Attacks In Southern Yemen Complicate Civil War
Peace Process
“Two separate terrorist attacks earlier this month struck the
Yemeni governorate of Aden, and those were followed by a
third attack in Abyan. All told, the attacks reportedly killed at
least 68, including security personnel from the United Arab
Emirates-backed Security Belt Forces, shaking the relative calm in one
of the deadliest eruptions of violence in southern Yemen in two
years. The Security Belt Forces is an elite paramilitary unit
connected to the Southern Transitional Council, a secessionist
political organization calling for southern Yemen’s independence. The
first attack took place Aug. 1 in the Sheikh Othman neighborhood of
Aden, when a suicide bomber targeted a security center during the
morning lineup. The liberal Left continue to push their radical
agenda against American values. The good news is there is a solution.
The death toll was 13, according to the Yemeni Ministry of the
Interior. The next day, ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack.
Yemen’s southern provinces have long been a stronghold for Islamist
extremist groups, and the attacks might point to a growth in extremist
presence as the United Arab Emirates takes a less overt role in the
conflict.”
Lebanon
The
Times Of Israel: Iran General: Hezbollah Strong Enough To Annihilate
Israel On Its Own
“The commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said Wednesday that
the Lebanon-based Hezbollah terror group had sharpened its military
capabilities fighting in Syria and was now strong enough to “wipe the
Zionist regime off the map” on its own. “They [the US and its allies]
intended to undermine Iran’s regional influence, but everyone
witnessed how this policy backfired to increase Iran’s influence and a
united front was formed against the Zionist regime,” Gen. Hossein
Salami said at a ceremony in the northern city of Urumiyeh, according
to the Fars news agency. “The Lebanese Hezbollah has now developed
such an extent of power through the experience of confrontation
against proxy wars that it is now able to wipe the Zionist regime off
the map in any possible war by itself,” he said. The Islamic Republic
funds the terror group’s activities. Salami’s remarks come amid
soaring tensions between the US and Iran and growing accusations in
the Arab world that Israel was responsible for a massive explosion
earlier this week at a weapons depot in Baghdad controlled by an
Iranian-backed Shiite militia. On Tuesday, a former Iraqi deputy prime
minister appeared to blame Israel for the massive explosion the night
before.”
Nigeria
The
Defense Post: ISIS Publishes Images Of ISWAP Attack On Nigeria
Military Base In Borno
“Islamic State on Wednesday published a series of images that it
said were from an attack in Nigeria’s northeast Borno state. The
images included one of a large group of fighters in at least seven
technical vehicles, battle scenes, at least two purportedly captured
vehicles, ammunition, and, unusually, one artillery piece. ISIS did
not say when the raid took place but a Nigerian Army base at Gubio,
around 80 km (50 miles) north Borno state capital Maiduguri was
attacked by Islamic State West Africa Province fighters on Saturday,
August 10, ahead of Monday’s Eid al-Adha festival, AFP reported
military sources as saying on Sunday. Three soldiers were killed
“defending the base from ISWAP terrorists who wanted to overrun it,”
the first source said. “Three civilians were hit and killed in
crossfire,” said the source, an officer who asked not to be identified
for fear of punishment. Two soldiers and six civilians were injured,
he said. The fighters attacked the base in eight pickup trucks fitted
with machine guns, leading to a two-hour long battle, said the second
source, who gave the same toll. The attack was repelled with the aid
of a fighter jet which deployed two hours into the clashes, said the
officer.”
The
Daily Mail: Nigeria's Girl Suicide Bombers: Woman Abducted By Boko
Haram Islamic Militants At 13 Only Escaped By Cutting Off Her
Device
“Two would-be suicide bombers who were sent to their deaths by Boko
Haram militants shared their harrowing stories of survival in
a BBC documentary. Presenter Stacey Dooley travelled to the city of
Maiduguri, the birthplace of Boko Haram, to meet Faltama, who spent
almost two years with the Islamic extremist group after being abducted
from her village at the age of 13. Faltama, now 20, was forced to
marry three different men - all of whom died - before being sent on a
suicide mission. She managed to escape by taking off the bomb and
fleeing when she was dropped off at her target, despite the risk of
being blown up. Stacey met a second woman Ammabua, now in her 20s, who
chose to join Boko Haram at 15 and spent five years with the terrorist
organisation before being picked up by the military after a failed
suicide bomb mission. 'I was unlucky, it was only sickness that
stopped me,' Ammabua told Stacey in a startling interview. 'The people
I went with made it all the way. They entered the crowd and exploded.
God did not grant me that fortune.' Boko Haram has wreaked havoc in
Nigeria for more than a decade, carrying out a wave of bombings,
assassinations and abductions that have struck fear in the heart of
the population. Its aim is to overthrow the government and establish
an Islamic State.”
Somalia
CNN:
3 People Killed In A Foiled Al-Shabaab Attack On A Somali Military
Camp
“Three people were killed in a foiled attack Wednesday against a
newly established military camp near Mogadishu, Somali army officials
said. Troops managed to “fend off two car bombs and a gun raid,” but
three people died in the attack in Awdheegle district, about 70
kilometers (43.5 miles) from the city, regional army official Hussain
Barre told CNN. Al-Shabab, the al-Qaeda-linked militant group, claimed
responsibility for the attack. The claim came in a statement and
without supporting evidence. The attack happened hours after Somali
state-run media reported that Al-Shabaab's spokesman, Sheikh Ali
Dheere, was wounded Sunday during a military operation in Awdheegle.
Al-Shabaab is a Somali group that the United States in 2008 designated
as a foreign terrorist organization. It aims to turn Somalia into a
fundamentalist Islamic state, according to the Council on Foreign
Relations. The group has claimed to have carried out several recent
attacks targeting top government officials and public places in
Somalia, though CNN has not been able to independently confirm the
assertions. At least 10 people, including the Mogadishu's mayor, died
following a suicide bombing in July on a government office in the
capital city.”
Africa
Reuters:
Suicide Bomber Kills Five In Chad, Including Soldier:
Sources
“A suicide bomber killed five people, including a Chadian soldier,
when she blew herself up on the shores of Lake Chad on Wednesday,
three military and government sources said. The sources said the
attack happened shortly after midnight in the compound of a
traditional chieftain in the district of Kaiga-Kindjiria. The attacker
walked in and detonated her bomb just as people in the compound were
preparing to go to bed, they said, without giving further details.
Lake Chad, which sprawls across Nigeria, Niger, Chad and Cameroon, is
a stronghold for the two main factions of Nigerian Islamist militant
group Boko Haram: Boko Haram itself and the Islamic State in West
Africa Province (ISWAP) splinter group. Violence in the region has
killed more than 30,000 people and displaced about 2 million since
2009, when Boko Haram first launched an uprising with the intention of
carving out an Islamic caliphate in northeast Nigeria. Jihadists in
the Lake Chad region have routinely ambushed soldiers, opened fire on
markets and kidnapped women and children, including nearly 270
schoolgirls in the village of Chibok in 2014, a hundred of whom are
still missing.”
Germany
Deutsche
Welle: Germany: Far-Right Offenses Rise In 2019
“German authorities have registered 8,605 right-wing extremist
offenses in the first half of 2019, according to the Federal Ministry
of Interior. Compared to the first half of 2018, an increase of 900
far-right crimes was recorded during the same period this year, the
ministry said in response to a parliamentary inquiry. The number of
violent crimes, however, remained almost the same. By the end of June,
neo-Nazis and other far-right groups had committed 8,605 crimes
nationwide, including 363 violent crimes, the ministry told Petra Pau,
the vice president of the German parliament, on Wednesday. At least
179 people have been injured and so far only 23 people out of 2,625
suspects have been arrested for these offenses. According to
the Tagesschau German newspaper, the actual number of such crimes
could be significantly higher as state police officials often classify
right-wing offenses as non-political in their initial reports. The
newspaper also said that parliamentary figures did not include the
murder of Walter Lübcke, the head of the Kassel regional government,
as a far-right crime. Stephen E., a 45-year-old suspect, initially
confessed to killing Lübcke in June over his pro-migrant views, but
retracted the confession shortly thereafter.”
Southeast Asia
BBC
News: China Describes Hong Kong Protests As 'Near
Terrorism'
“China has condemned violent clashes in the Hong Kong protests as
“behaviour that is close to terrorism” - in a sign of its rhetoric
hardening. After days of peaceful protests at Hong Kong International
Airport, clashes with police broke out on Tuesday night. Video showed
an officer drawing his gun on protesters who beat him with his own
truncheon during the disturbance. It is the second time in a week that
Chinese officials have publicly likened the protests to terrorist
activity. Some observers believe that the repeated use of such
language suggests that China is losing patience with the protesters,
and could increase the likelihood of an intervention from Beijing. The
US said it was “deeply concerned by reports of Chinese paramilitary
movement along the Hong Kong border” and urged China to respect Hong
Kong's high degree of autonomy. However, most analysts consider that
at this stage, a direct military intervention is still unlikely. The
former British colony has a special status, with its own legal system
and judiciary, and rights and freedoms not seen in mainland China.
However, many activists believe this is now under threat. Millions of
Hong Kong citizens have taken part in 10 weeks of anti-government
protests, demanding democratic reform and an investigation into
alleged police brutality.”
Technology
The
Telegraph: Streamed Video Of Terrorist Killings At New Zealand Mosques
Are Still Up On Facebook Five Months After The
Atrocity
“Video livestreaming the terrorist killings of worshippers at the
Christchurch mosque in New Zealand is still available on Facebook five
months after the attack in which 51 adults and children died. The
footage of white supremacist Brenton Tarrant entering the mosque with
his automatic rifle firing indiscriminately at the victims only has a
filter on it, which states: “This video may show violent or graphic
content.” This suggests Facebook’s algorithms have identified it as
violent content but its moderators have failed to spot it, allowing
users simply to click on “Uncover the video” to view it.”
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