“A 28-year-old terrorist from Tulkarem in Samaria shouted “Allahu Akbar” and
then stabbed and mortally wounded a woman near the nursing home where she lived
on Kedoshi Hashoah Street in Herzliya on Friday morning. Magen David Adom
emergency personnel treated the victim, Ludmila Lipovsky, 83, and she was
evacuated in critical condition to Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center (Ichilov
Hospital), where doctors pronounced her death. Security guards from the Israel
Postal Company’s Brink’s courier unit shot the lone attacker, who was then
arrested by police. According to initial reports, he was within the Green Line
illegally and had previously served time in an Israeli prison for a security
offense. His condition is described as serious. The terrorist, Ibrahim Shalhob,
had been placed under administrative detention three times, most recently from
June 2023-June 2024.”











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Eye on Extremism



December 27, 2024



Jewish News Syndicate: Terrorist Murders Woman, 83, In Herzliya
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“A 28-year-old terrorist from Tulkarem in Samaria shouted “Allahu Akbar” and
then stabbed and mortally wounded a woman near the nursing home where she lived
on Kedoshi Hashoah Street in Herzliya on Friday morning. Magen David Adom
emergency personnel treated the victim, Ludmila Lipovsky, 83, and she was
evacuated in critical condition to Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center (Ichilov
Hospital), where doctors pronounced her death. Security guards from the Israel
Postal Company’s Brink’s courier unit shot the lone attacker, who was then
arrested by police. According to initial reports, he was within the Green Line
illegally and had previously served time in an Israeli prison for a security
offense. His condition is described as serious. The terrorist, Ibrahim Shalhob,
had been placed under administrative detention three times, most recently from
June 2023-June 2024.”



CNN: WHO Chief And UN Team Caught Up In Israeli Strikes That Killed 6 In Yemen
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“Israeli forces unleashed a series of strikes on the Yemeni capital Sanaa and
the western city of Hodeidah on Thursday, killing at least six people and
injuring dozens more, the Houthi militant group said in a statement. An assault
on the capital’s airport hit as a “high-level UN delegation,” led by World
Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, was due
to fly out of it, a spokesperson for United Nations Secretary-General António
Guterres said in a statement. “The Secretary-General is gravely concerned about
intensified escalation in Yemen and Israel,” the statement added. The
Yemen-based, Iran-backed Houthis vowed to retaliate, and hours later Israel’s
military said a missile launched from Yemen was “intercepted before crossing
into Israeli territory.” No injuries were reported, Israel’s emergency service
said.”




Recent CEP Press Releases

*
Antisemitic Violence Instigated by Pro-Palestinian Protestors in Amsterdam
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Statement on the Death of Hamas Leader Yahya Sinwar
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*
One Year After October 7
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CEP Report: Civilian Counterterrorism Militias Take Action, Introduce New
Challenges To Combatting Violent Extremism In Africa
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Counter Extremism Project Statement Marking 9/11
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CEP Mentions



Ouest France: Germany: President Dissolves Parliament, Sets General Elections
For February 23, 2025
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“German Chancellor Olaf Scholz did not gain the confidence of the German
parliament on Monday, December 16, 2024, and early elections will be held.
President Frank-Walter Steinmeier officially dissolved parliament on Friday,
December 27, and set the general election for February 23… Internal security
was already polarizing the political debate, but it became central after the
car-ramming attack on the Christmas market in Magdeburg, in northeastern
Germany, on Friday, December 20, 2024. Very quickly, far-right circles reacted
"with very Islamophobic posts," Hans-Jakob Schindler, director of the Counter
Extremism Project think tank, told Ouest-France.”



ABC News Australia: 'Unique' Radicalisation Of German Market Attacker
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“Extremism expert Hans-Jakob Schindler says, while the perpetrator of the
German Christmas market attack had been uniquely radicalised, they have been
becoming more common since COVID-19.”



United States



The Times Of Israel: Report: Israeli, US Officials Say Low Odds Of A Hostage
Deal Before Trump’s Return
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“American and Israeli officials said Thursday that the chances of reaching a
hostage-ceasefire deal with the Hamas terror group before the inauguration of
US President-elect Donald Trump on January 20 are low, the Walla news site
reported. The comments came as Israel and the terror group traded blame for yet
another failure to reach an agreement after a burst of renewed negotiations,
more than 14 months since Hamas-led terrorists took 251 people hostage during
its October 7, 2023 attack, of whom 96 — including 34 confirmed dead — remain
in captivity in the Gaza Strip. It was not immediately clear what was expected
to change with the US president-elect’s return to the White House, though Trump
vowed at the start of this month that there would be “all hell to pay” for
terror groups who continued to hold hostages upon his entry.”



Syria



BBC: Assad Loyalists Kill 14 In Clash With Syria's New Ruling Forces -
Authorities <[link removed]>



“Syria's new rebel-led authorities say supporters of ousted President Bashar
al-Assad have killed 14 interior ministry troops in an "ambush" in the west of
the country. They say 10 other troops were wounded in the fighting on Tuesday
near the Mediterranean port of Tartous, a stronghold of Assad's minority
Alawite Muslim sect. The clashes with pro-Assad loyalists are the first direct
challenge to the authority of Syria's de facto leader Ahmad al-Sharaa. Assad's
presidency fell to rebel forces led by al-Sharaa's Islamist Hayat Tahrir
al-Sham (HTS) faction just over two weeks ago. Security forces launched an
operation in Tartous province on Thursday, according to state news agency Sana,
in a bid to "restore security, stability and civil peace".”



Barron’s: Israel Says Struck 'Infrastructure' On Syria-Lebanon Border
<[link removed]>



“The Israeli military reported it conducted air strikes on Friday targeting
"infrastructure" on the Syrian-Lebanese border near the village of Janta, which
it said was used to smuggle weapons to the armed group Hezbollah. "Earlier
today, the IAF (Israeli air force) struck infrastructure that was used to
smuggle weapons via Syria to the Hezbollah terrorist organisation in Lebanon at
the Janta crossing on the Syrian-Lebanese border," the military said in a
statement. It did not specify whether the strikes were on the Syrian or
Lebanese side, but they came a day after Lebanon's army accused Israel of
"violation of the ceasefire agreement by attacking Lebanese sovereignty and
destroying southern towns and villages". There is no official crossing point
near Janta but the area is known for illegal crossings.”



Iran



Tehran Times: Iran Exports Non-Oil Goods Worth $1.5b To Pakistan In 8 Months
<[link removed]>



“Foroud Asgari said that Pakistan was Iran’s sixth top export destination in
the mentioned eight-month period. On November 5, Iran's Industry, Mining, and
Trade Minister Mohammad Atabak said a free trade agreement with Pakistan has
been finalized and the list of commodity items subject to the agreement will be
prepared and released in two months. In a meeting between Head of the Iran
Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines, and Agriculture (ICCIMA) Samad
Hassanzadeh and Pakistani Ambassador to Iran Muhammad Mudassir Tipu in Tehran
in late June, the officials stressed the need for Iran and Pakistan to exercise
barter trade and free trade to materialize a $10 billion trade target. During a
meeting between Atabak and Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Commerce Jam Kamal
Khan in mid-October, the two sides discussed trade ties between the two
countries, with both agreeing that economic exchanges should be promoted
further.”



Iraq



Aljazeera: ‘Modern Slavery’: Trapped In Iraq, Nigerian Women Cry Out For Help
<[link removed]>



“Sometimes when the pain hits, Agnes* has to pause for several seconds to
ride out the excruciating wave. It feels like someone has tied a rope to her
insides and is pulling and twisting it, the 27-year-old Nigerian domestic
worker says, making it hard to bend or stand up straight. Agnes’s ordeal
started in March in the Iraqi city of Basra when her boss raped her at
gunpoint. She fell pregnant, and the man then forced her to undergo a painful
abortion. It was so difficult, Agnes said, that she could not sit for three
days. Since then, the severe abdominal pains won’t go away, and there’s no one
to take her to a hospital. “I just want to go home and treat myself, but I
can’t do that,” Agnes said on a phone call from Basra, where she is holed up in
a hostel belonging to the recruiting firm that hired her from Nigeria last
year. “The man has refused to pay my salary. I don’t know if I am pregnant, but
I have not seen my menstruation since then. I just want to go home and check
myself and see what’s happening inside me,” she added, her voice breaking.”



Afghanistan



Amu TV: Report: 181 Cases Of Media Rights Violations Documented In Afghanistan
In 2024 <[link removed]>



“The Afghanistan Journalists Center has reported 181 cases of media rights
violations in the country over the past year, including the closure of 18
outlets due to new restrictions imposed by the Taliban and the detention of 50
journalists. In its annual report, the center noted an 8 percent increase in
the suppression of media freedoms in 2024 compared to the previous year. The
report describes an intensifying crackdown under the Taliban’s opaque media
policies, highlighting an escalation in restrictions and censorship. The report
underscores a growing divide within the Taliban administration over media
governance. On one side, Taliban spokespeople and officials from the Ministry
of Information and Culture have publicly expressed support for media operations
under the framework of Afghanistan’s previous media laws, which nominally
protected press freedoms.”



Pakistan



The Hill: Taliban Claims Pakistani Airstrikes Killed 46
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“A Taliban government official said the airstrikes Pakistan launched on
Afghanistan Tuesday killed 46 people, including women and children, according
to The Associated Press. Hamdullah Fitrat, the deputy spokesperson for the
Afghan government, said the strikes hit four locations in the district of
Barmal.”



Amu TV: Clashes Erupt Between Taliban And Pakistani Border Forces In Paktia:
Sources <[link removed]>



“Intense clashes broke out late Thursday night between Taliban and Pakistani
border troops in Dand-e-Patan district of Afghanistan’s Paktia province, local
sources reported on Friday. The fighting, which reportedly began around 1 a.m.
local time on Dec. 27, lasted for several hours, with both sides exchanging
heavy fire, sources added. According to local sources, some rockets fired by
Pakistani forces struck civilian homes. However, no detailed information on
casualties or damage on either side has been released. The Taliban have yet to
comment on the incident. The clash comes just three days after Pakistani
airstrikes targeted the Barmal district of neighboring Paktika province. The
Taliban claimed the strikes were aimed at Waziristani refugees and resulted in
the deaths of 46 people, including women and children.”



Middle East



Reuters: Gaza Medics Say Israeli Strike Kills Five Journalists
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““Gaza authorities said an Israeli airstrike killed five Palestinian
journalists in a vehicle outside a hospital on Thursday but the Israeli army
said the victims were Islamic Jihad militants posing as media workers. Medics
said the five were among at least 31 people killed in Israeli air assaults
across the Palestinian enclave before dawn as Hamas and Israel traded blame
over delays in reaching a ceasefire deal after more than 14 months of fighting.
The Palestinian Journalists Union said one strike killed five journalists from
the Al-Quds Today channel who were in a broadcast vehicle in front of Al-Awda
Hospital in the Al-Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza. The union said more
than 190 Palestinian journalists have been killed by Israeli fire since the war
began in October 2023. The Gaza-based channel called the strike a massacre and
said in a statement on Telegram the five "were killed as they carried out their
media and humanitarian duty". It has regularly featured Islamic Jihad leaders
and provided day-to-day coverage of the war in Gaza.”



DW: Israeli Strike Kills 5 Palestinian Journalists In Gaza
<[link removed]>



“Israel is defending its strike on a media broadcast van outside a hospital
in central Gaza. The attack killed five Palestinian journalists with the local
Al-Quds news outlet, which is affiliated with the Islamic Jihad militant group.
The Israeli army says it targeted "Islamic Jihad operatives posing as
journalists."”



The Times Of Israel: IDF Says It Hit Hezbollah Infrastructure Used To Transfer
Arms In Strikes On Syria-Lebanon Border
<[link removed]>



“The IDF confirms launching airstrikes early this morning against what it
says was infrastructure used by Hezbollah on the Syria-Lebanon border to
transfer arms. According to the military, Israeli Air Force fighter jets hit
sites at the Janta crossing, located in the Beqaa Valley of eastern Lebanon.
“The Hezbollah terror organization uses civilian infrastructure to carry out
terror activity and to transfer weapons, which are intended to be used to carry
out terror attacks against Israeli citizens,” the military says.”



Nigeria



CNN: At Least 10 Killed After Nigerian Military Jet Targeting Bandits Bombs
Civilians
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“At least 10 people were killed and several wounded when a Nigerian military
fighter jet pursuing bandits in two villages mistakenly bombed civilians in the
northwestern state of Sokoto on Wednesday, the state governor Ahmed Aliyu said.
“The military jets were on their mission to eliminate criminal armed groups
terrorizing the state, and mistakenly bombed innocent people of this
community,” Aliyu said in a statement. A crowd crush at a church in Nigeria's
capital city Abuja led to the deaths of at least ten people, including four
children. Aliyu added that the state will collaborate with other authorities to
investigate the military operation that killed people in the villages of Gidan
Sama and Rintuwa in the Surame local government area. The military late on
Wednesday said it had struck targets in the vicinity of Gidan Sama and Rumtuwa
identified as associated with the Lakurawa group, but did not provide any
details on civilians affected.



Somalia



France 24: US Airstrike In Somalia Kills Two Al-Shabaab Members, Including Top
Commander
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“The US military said Thursday it had killed two members of the jihadist
Al-Shabaab group in southern Somalia in an airstrike. The strike took place on
Tuesday about 10 kilometers (six miles) southwest of the town of Quyno Barrow,
south of Mogadishu, the United States Africa Command (US AFRICOM) said in a
statement. The strike was conducted "in coordination" with Somalia's federal
government, it said. "The command will continue to assess the results of the
operation and provide additional information as appropriate," the statement
said, providing no further details. The Somalian government issued a statement
lauding a "meticulously planned operation" that was conducted alongside
"international partners" in the same district. That statement said the
operation "has successfully eliminated the terrorist ring leader Mohamed Mire
Jama, also known as Abu Abdirahman, in the Kunyo-Barow district of Lower
Shabelle province." Somalia is one of the poorest countries on the planet,
enduring decades of civil war, a bloody insurgency by the Al-Qaeda-linked
Al-Shabaab, and frequent climate disasters.”



Africa



Associated Press: 6,000 Inmates Escape From A High-Security Prison As
Post-Election Violence Roils Mozambique
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“At least 6,000 inmates escaped from a high-security prison in Mozambique’s
capital on Christmas Day after a rebellion, the country’s police chief said, as
widespread post-election riots and violence are roiling the country. Police
chief Bernardino Rafael said 33 prisoners died and 15 others were injured
during a confrontation with the security forces. The prisoners fled during
violent protests that have seen police cars, stations and infrastructure
destroyed after the country’s Constitutional Council confirmed the ruling
Frelimo party as the winner of the Oct. 9 elections. The escape from the Maputo
Central Prison, located 14 kilometers (9 miles) southwest of the capital,
started around midday on Wednesday after “agitation” by a “group of subversive
protesters” nearby, Rafael said.”



Europe



World Cargo News: Owner Claims Russian Ship Sank Due To “Terrorist Act”
<[link removed]>



“A Russian cargo ship that sank in the Mediterranean on Monday was struck by
three explosions in what has been described as “an act of terrorism,” the
vessel’s owner claimed, according to the Russian state news agency RIA. The
Ursa Major sank after an explosion damaged the engine room, leaving two of its
16 crew members missing, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday.
Oboronlogistika, the ship’s owner and a company affiliated with Russia’s
Defence Ministry, alleged that the incident was a deliberate “terrorist act”,
Reuters reported. Survivors said that the explosions occurred on the ship’s
starboard side, just before the vessel began to heel as water flooded its
compartments.”



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