Eye on Extremism
November 19, 2024
The Wall Street Journal: Israel Finds Large Troves Of Russian Arms In Hezbollah’s Hands
“As Israel advances its invasion of southern Lebanon, its troops are finding large troves of Russian weapons, confirming longstanding suspicions in Israel that Hezbollah is enhancing its fighting capacity with the help of sophisticated Russian arms. Some of the weapons, which include modern Kornet antitank missiles manufactured as recently as 2020, were sent to southern Lebanon in recent years from Russian stockpiles in neighboring Syria, according to Syrian security officials and an Arab official. Russia has long provided arms to Syria’s military, as well as controlling its own warehouses in the country. Although Israeli military leaders knew Hezbollah possessed some Russian-made arms, their inability to access parts of southern Lebanon since fighting a war with Hezbollah in 2006 made it hard to know the full extent of the militant group’s capabilities.”
Reuters: US Warns Turkey Against Hosting Hamas Leaders
“The United States warned Turkey on Monday against hosting Hamas leadership, saying Washington does not believe leaders of a terrorist organization should be living comfortably. Asked about reports that some Hamas leaders had moved to Turkey from Qatar, U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller did not confirm the reports but said he was not in a position to dispute them. He said Washington will make clear to Turkey's government that there can be no more business as usual with Hamas. Miller added that some Hamas leaders are under U.S. indictment and Washington believes they should be turned over to the United States. "We don't believe the leaders of a vicious terrorist organization should be living comfortably anywhere, and that certainly includes in ... a major city of one of our key allies and partners," Miller told reporters at a regular news briefing.”
CEP Mentions
The Jewish Press: Report: Iran Tried To Assassinate Its Prominent Canadian Jewish Critic Irwin Cotler
“... Cotler is an advisory board member of United Against Nuclear Iran and the Counter Extremism Project. Cotler has been a target of Iran’s ire since 2008 when he launched a global campaign to have the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) designated as a terrorist organization. Over the years, he has also represented Iranian political prisoners and has been an outspoken advocate for Israel. In June, under mounting pressure from opposition parties, Canada joined the United States in formally declaring the IRGC a terrorist entity. The move further strained relations between Ottawa and Tehran, which had already deteriorated after Canada severed diplomatic ties with Iran over a decade ago.”
United States
The Hill: Biden Announces New Sanctions Against ‘Extremist’ Israeli Settlers
“The Biden administration on Monday announced sanctions against what it described as Israeli citizens and entities involved in the extremist settler movement in the West Bank, part of U.S. efforts to curb escalating violence targeting Palestinians in the territory. The sanctions fall under an executive order President Biden issued in February to hold accountable violence carried out by extremist Israeli settlers in the West Bank targeting Palestinians, and the organizations supporting such violence. “We once again call on the Government of Israel to take action and hold accountable those responsible for or complicit in violence, forced displacement, and the dispossession of private land,” State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement.”
Bloomberg: US Pushes For Israel-Hezbollah Truce With Envoy Visit To Beirut
“One of Joe Biden’s main Middle East envoys landed in Beirut on Tuesday morning, as the US steps up efforts to clinch a cease-fire between Lebanese militant group Hezbollah and Israel. Amos Hochstein, who handles Israel-Hezbollah affairs for the White House, will discuss a US-drafted proposal to end the war between the two sides. He’s expected to meet Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati and the speaker of parliament, Nabih Berri, who acts as an interlocutor between the West and Hezbollah, considered a terrorist group by the US and many other countries. His visit comes after Lebanese officials signaled they were broadly behind the plan, though they’ve said there are still sticking points. In an interview with Al-Araby TV Monday, Mikati said his government had reservations about certain points in the draft and he’d discuss those with Hochstein.”
Syria
BBC: Turkish Strikes In Syria Cut Water To One Million People
“Turkish air strikes in drought-struck north-east Syria have cut off access to electricity and water for more than a million people, in what experts say may be a violation of international law. Turkey carried out more than 100 attacks between October 2019 and January 2024 on oil fields, gas facilities and power stations in the Kurdish-held Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), according to data collated by the BBC World Service. The attacks have added to the humanitarian crisis in a region reeling from a years-long civil war and four years of extreme drought exacerbated by climate change. Water had already been scarce, but attacks on electricity infrastructure in October last year shut off power to the region’s main water station, in Alouk, and it has not been working since.”
Iran
Reuters: Iran Rejects European and British Sanctions On Its Shipping Lines As ‘Unjustified’
"New EU and British sanctions are based on false claims of missile transfers to Russia and are "unjustified", Iran Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on Tuesday. Brussels on Monday added the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL) and its director to its list of sanctions on Iran, which it said were a consequence of Tehran's support of Russia in its war with Ukraine. On the same day, Britain imposed sanctions against Iran's national airline and shipping carrier, measures it said were taken in response to Iran's transfer of ballistic missiles to Russia. "Iran considers the imposition of new sanctions by the European Union and the United Kingdom against a number of Iranian individuals and legal entities on the false claim of sending ballistic missiles to Russia as an unjustified act that contradicts the norms of international law," Baghaei said, according to the foreign ministry's Telegram channel."
Afghanistan
CNN: ‘My Whole Body Was Praying For My Death’: LGBTQ Afghans Say They Face Abuse In Detention As Taliban Crackdown Intensifies
“It was the early hours of the morning when a guard entered Sohrab’s cell – a small, dark room with a barred window and a blanket on the floor – in Kabul’s sprawling Pul-e-Charkhi prison last August. The 19-year-old was escorted to another room in the complex, where he heard a Taliban member order the prison guards to leave and stop anyone else from entering. Panic set in, for Sohrab knew what these words often preceded. He had experienced physical violence at the hands of the Taliban before. “He grabbed me from behind, tore my clothes apart and raped me,” Sohrab – whose name has been changed for security reasons – told CNN in October. “For several days after that I had severe pain and bleeding.””
Pakistan
Voice Of America: Militants Kill 8 Pakistani Soldiers, Abduct 7 Police Officers
“Authorities in northwestern Pakistan reported Monday that militants ambushed a military convoy near the border with Afghanistan and killed at least eight soldiers. The attack occurred in Khyber, a volatile border district in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, targeting soldiers returning to their base after a counterinsurgency operation. The ambush left at least three soldiers injured, one of whom is in “serious” condition, multiple security officials said. They spoke anonymously to VOA because they were not authorized to discuss the details with the media. The ensuing clashes reportedly also left several assailants dead. The Pakistan military’s media wing did not immediately comment on the deadly attack or the reported casualties that followed.”
Lebanon
Reuters: Lebanon, Hezbollah Agree To US Proposal For Ceasefire With Israel, Lebanese Official Says
“Lebanon and Hezbollah have agreed to a U.S. proposal for a ceasefire with Israel with some comments on the content, a top Lebanese official told Reuters on Monday, describing the effort as the most serious yet to end the fighting. Ali Hassan Khalil, an aide to Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, said Lebanon had delivered its written response to the U.S. ambassador in Lebanon on Monday, and White House envoy Amos Hochstein was travelling to Beirut to continue talks. There was no immediate comment from Israel. Hezbollah, a heavily armed movement backed by Iran, endorsed its long-time ally Berri to negotiate over a ceasefire. "Lebanon presented its comments on the paper in a positive atmosphere," Khalil said, declining to give further details.”
Reuters: Hezbollah Media Head Killed In Israeli Strike On Beirut, Security Sources Say
“Lebanese armed group Hezbollah confirmed its media relations chief Mohammad Afif was killed by an Israeli strike on a building in central Beirut on Sunday. Israel has rarely hit senior Hezbollah personnel who do not have clear military roles, and its air strikes have mostly targeted Beirut's southern suburbs where the group has its heaviest presence. Israel's military, which earlier declined to comment, issued a statement late on Sunday reporting it had "eliminated" Afif. The Lebanese health ministry said the strike had killed one and injured three. A second, separate strike later on Sunday hit Mar Elias street, another central area rarely targeted by Israeli bombs, Hezbollah's Al-Manar TV reported. The Lebanese health ministry said that strike killed at least two people and wounded 22.”
Africa
The Guardian: Migrant Rights Advocate Held In Tunisia Under Anti-Terrorist Investigation
“Tunisian anti-terrorist investigators are handling the case of a leading advocate for migrants who has been taken into custody, in what the head of a rights group said was a troubling first for the country. Abdallah Said, a Tunisian of Chadian origin, was questioned along with the secretary general and treasurer of his association, Enfants de la Lune, said Romdhane Ben Amor, the spokesperson for the Tunisian Forum for Social and Economic Rights. According to La Presse newspaper, which is close to the Tunisian government, Said’s association is suspected of receiving foreign funds “to assist sub-Saharan migrants to enter illegally on to Tunisian soil”. Tunisia is one of the main launching points for boats carrying people trying to cross the Mediterranean to seek better lives in Europe.”
Europe
Reuters: Belarus Holds Police Drills Ahead Of January Presidential Election
"Belarus will conduct police drills this week ahead of the country's January presidential election to ensure that "manifestations of extremism and terrorism" are prevented, the country's interior ministry said on Tuesday. Belarus will hold the presidential vote on Jan. 26 in which President Alexander Lukashenko, who has held the country in firm grip for the past 20 years, is not expected to lose. "The goal (of the drills) ... is to prevent manifestations of extremism and terrorism, the involvement of citizens in illegal actions, and the suppression of violations of public order," the Belarusian interior ministry said in a statement on its Telegram messaging channel. The training from Nov. 19-22 will be conducted in the capital of Minsk and in major regional towns and centres, the ministry said. The 70-year-old Lukashenko, who calls himself the "last dictator in Europe" has been a staunch ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, which has now continued for 1,000 days."
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