Eye on Extremism
January 2, 2025
The Washington Post: U.S. Amplifies Strikes On Yemen’s Houthis As Tensions With Israel Flare
“The Biden administration directed new airstrikes on Houthi targets in Yemen on Tuesday, as the United States and its ally Israel struggle to halt a campaign of regional assaults by the Iranian-backed militant group. U.S. Central Command, which oversees military operations in the Middle East, said the attacks struck targets in coastal Yemen and the capital, Sanaa, including a command node and facilities used for manufacturing and storing weapons. The operations, which also included strikes on Monday, destroyed radar positions and one-way aerial drones, Centcom said in a statement.”
The New York Times: Tensions Escalate After Pakistan Pounds Afghanistan With Airstrikes
“Airstrikes by Pakistani warplanes inside Afghanistan have intensified tensions in recent days in an already volatile region. Once-close ties between Pakistan’s leaders and the Afghan Taliban have frayed, and violent cross-border exchanges have become alarmingly frequent. Officially, the Pakistani government has been tight-lipped about the strikes in Afghanistan on Dec. 24. But security officials privately said that the Pakistani military had targeted hide-outs of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, a militant group also known as the T.T.P. or the Pakistani Taliban that has carried out a series of terrorist attacks inside Pakistan. The security officials said that several top militants from the Pakistani Taliban had died in the airstrikes, which came days after 16 Pakistani military personnel were ambushed and killed in a border district.”
CEP Mentions
The National: Syria's Hayat Tahrir Al Sham Gives Foreign Islamist Fighters Defence Roles In Bid To Consolidate Security
“...The Turkistanis comprise many Uighurs who have fled from China and the group is said to have been founded in Afghanistan, according to the Counter Extremism Project think tank. Playing a key role alongside HTS’s operations, the Turkistan Islamic Party regularly carried out suicide bombings during the civil war and in 2018 praised the 2001 Al Qaeda attack on the World Trade Centre in New York. A number of other commanders have also been promoted from groups allied to HTS, including leaders from Ahrar Al Sham, one of the biggest hardline groups in northern Syria which, like its main ally, has tried to soften its views to gain foreign support. During the civil war, the ultraconservative group insisted its struggle was solely with Mr Al Assad and that it posed no threat beyond the country’s borders.”
Firstpost: New Orleans Attack: 'Vehicle Bombs' Have A Long History And All Are Not Terrorism
“Well past the midnight, the New Year’s Day celebrations were still ongoing at the Bourbon Street in the New Orleans city when a car turned the revellers’ cheers into fearful screams. A white pick-up truck was speeding through the street and tearing through revellers. By the time the rampage ended, at least 15 were dead and around three dozen were injured. The driver of the vehicle was killed in a shootout with police. Two police personnel were injured in the shootout… While the MTI study traced the first such vehicular attack to 1963, it found that 70 per cent of these have occurred since 2014. Separately, the think tank Counter Extremism Project (CEP) in report in December 2024 noted that at least 82 vehicular terrorist attacks have been reported since 2006, which collectively killed at least 238 people and injured at least 1,278.”
United States
Associated Press: Islamic State-Inspired Driver Expressed Desire To Kill Before Deadly New Orleans Rampage, Biden Says
“A U.S. Army veteran driving a pickup truck that bore the flag of the Islamic State group wrought carnage on New Orleans’ raucous New Year’s celebration, killing 15 people as he steered around a police blockade and slammed into revelers before being shot dead by police. The FBI said it was investigating the attack early Wednesday as a terrorist act and did not believe the driver acted alone. Investigators found guns and what appeared to be an improvised explosive device in the vehicle, along with other devices elsewhere in the city’s famed French Quarter. President Joe Biden said Wednesday evening that the FBI found videos that the driver had posted to social media hours before the attack in which he said he was inspired by the Islamic State group and expressed a desire to kill.”
Bloomberg: Cybertruck Blast Near Trump Vegas Hotel Probed For Terrorism
“Authorities are investigating a Tesla Inc. Cybertruck explosion outside the Trump Las Vegas hotel on Wednesday as a potential act of terror, including whether there’s any connection to a truck rampage in New Orleans that killed at least 15 people. The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said a 2024 Cybertruck pulled up to the glass entrance doors of the Trump hotel and smoke then appeared from the vehicle before a large explosion. Seven people suffered minor injuries, and all are in stable condition or have been released from hospital. The driver, who died in the explosion, has not been publicly identified. “We do know who rented the truck, but we’re not willing to release that information at this time,” Clark County Sheriff Kevin McMahill told reporters.”
Syria
Reuters: Syrian Foreign Minister Arrives In Saudi Arabia With Delegation
“A Syrian delegation led by newly appointed Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani arrived in Riyadh on Wednesday in its first official visit abroad, Syrian state news agency SANA reported, citing a foreign ministry source. The delegation includes Defence Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra. The visit came less than a month since Bashar al-Assad was ousted by rebels on Dec. 8.”
Associated Press: Protesters In Syria Demand Justice For Disappeared Activists And Accountability From All Factions
“Protesters in Syria held a sit-in Wednesday demanding justice for four activists who were forcibly disappeared in 2013 and whose fate remains one of the most haunting mysteries of the country’s 13-year civil war. On Dec. 9, 2013, gunmen stormed the Violation Documentation Center in Douma, northeast of Damascus, and took Razan Zaitouneh, her husband Wael Hamadeh, Samira Khalil and Nazem Hammadi. Outspoken and defiantly secular, Zaitouneh was one of Syria’s most well-known human rights activists. Perhaps most dangerously, she was impartial. She chanted in protests against then-President Bashar Assad but was also unflinching in documenting abuses by rebels fighting to oust him. There has been no sign of life nor proof of death since she and her colleagues were abducted.”
The New York Times: Rebels Easily Toppled Syria’s Army. Their Challenge Now: Rebuilding.
“More than 50 tanks and military vehicles lay scattered and abandoned across the parade and training grounds of an army base in northern Syria, captured by rebels in their lightning-fast offensive that toppled President Bashar al-Assad. The main garrison building bore the marks of two large explosions, but little sign of close-contact fighting. The assault was over in a day when the Syrian soldiers retreated, said Abu Muhammad, a rebel fighter guarding the base. The government soldiers left behind a filthy jumble of army life: clothes, blankets, gas masks and helmets, and empty tin cans. Living conditions were primitive, with no windows or doors — instead, sacks or sheets of tin roofing were fixed over openings.”
Iran
Reuters: Next Nuclear Talks Between Iran And Three European Countries Due On Jan 13
“The next round of nuclear talks between Iran and three European countries will take place on Jan. 13 in Geneva, Iran's semi-official ISNA news agency cited the country's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi as saying on Wednesday. Iran held talks about its disputed nuclear programme in November, 2024 with Britain, France and Germany. Those discussions, the first since the U.S. election, came after Tehran was angered by a European-backed resolution that accused Iran of poor cooperation with the U.N. nuclear watchdog. Tehran reacted to the resolution by informing the IAEA watchdog that it plans to install more uranium-enriching centrifuges at its enrichment plants. U.N. nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi told Reuters in December that Iran is "dramatically" accelerating its enrichment of uranium to up to 60% purity, closer to the roughly 90% level that is weapons grade.”
Afghanistan
The Independent: Taliban Bans Windows To Stop Women From Being Seen At Home
“The Taliban have banned windows in residential buildings to stop women from being seen while they are at home in Afghanistan. Hibatullah Akhundzada, the leader of the Taliban, ordered that buildings should not have windows looking into places where a woman could be sitting or standing. The order applies to both new buildings and existing ones, according to a four-clause decree posted on social media site X (formerly Twitter) late on Saturday. The decree, posted by government spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid on X, states that new buildings should not have windows where you can see “the courtyard, kitchen, neighbour’s well and other places usually used by women”, AFP reports. “Seeing women working in kitchens, in courtyards or collecting water from wells can lead to obscene acts.””
Pakistan
Associated Press: Elders In Pakistan Broker A Peace Deal Between Sunni And Shiite Tribes After Deadly Clashes
“Tribal elders backed by local authorities in restive northwestern Pakistan on Wednesday brokered a peace deal between minority Shiites and majority Sunni tribes, weeks after deadly clashes that killed at least 130 people, officials said. The violence had flared on Nov. 21, when gunmen ambushed a convoy of vehicles and killed 52 people, mostly Shiite Muslims. The argument was said to be over a land disute, at least initially. No group claimed responsibility for the assault, which triggered retaliatory attacks by rival groups in Kurram, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province that borders Afghanistan. The violence left at least 130 people dead over the past two months. Though the two sides later agreed to a ceasefire, tension have persisted and all roads leading to Kurram have remained closed.”
Associated Press: Pakistani Security Forces Suffer Deadliest Year For A Decade While Fighting Insurgency, Report Finds
“Pakistani security forces in 2024 suffered the highest casualties in nearly a decade while battling insurgency, an Islamabad-based research group said. The Center for Research and Security Studies said in its report Tuesday that this year was the deadliest for Pakistani security forces in 9 years. “On average, nearly seven lives were lost daily,” according to the report which tallied “at least 685 fatalities and 444 terror attacks.” The data was released as militants mounted separate attacks on Tuesday on a security post, a government office and a police van in the country’s restive northwest, which borders Afghanistan, killing a policeman, and two civilians, including a child. An officer was also wounded in the first attack at the Draban Post in Dera Ismail Khan, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, local police official Abdullah Khan said, adding that the civilian was an employee of the Customs department.”
Yemen
Reuters: Yemen Will Continue To Defend Itself, Say Houthis After US Strikes
“Yemen's Houthi spokesperson Mohammed Abdulsalam said that the country would continue to defend itself after several U.S. strikes targeted facilities in the capital Sanaa on Tuesday. The U.S. military said that it carried out strikes against Houthi targets in Sanaa and coastal locations in Yemen on Monday and Tuesday. "On Dec. 30 and 31, U.S. Navy ships and aircraft targeted a Houthi command and control facility and advanced conventional weapon (ACW) production and storage facilities that included missiles and uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAV)," the U.S. military's Central Command said in a post on X. The Iran-backed militant group in Yemen has been attacking commercial shipping in the Red Sea for more than a year to try to enforce a naval blockade on Israel, saying they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians in Israel's year-long war in Gaza.”
Middle East
Voice Of America: Israeli Airstrikes Kill 17 In Northern, Central Gaza
“Israeli airstrikes in northern and central Gaza killed at least 17 Palestinians on Wednesday, according to Palestinian officials and local media reports. One of the strikes hit a house in the Jabaliya area of northern Gaza, while another hit the Bureij refugee camp in the center of the Gaza Strip. Israel’s military did not immediately comment on the attacks, but earlier Wednesday, it warned people to evacuate the Bureij area, saying militants located there were firing rockets. The Israeli military said it killed Abd al-Hadi Sabah, a Hamas militant who helped lead the infiltration into Kibbutz Nir Oz during the October 7, 2023, attack by the militant group on southern Israel. Israel warned Wednesday that it will intensify its strikes in Gaza if Hamas continues its rocket fire.”
The Wall Street Journal: The Palestinian Authority Takes On Hamas Militants In West Bank Power Struggle
“Palestinian Authority security forces are battling militants from Hamas and its allies in the occupied West Bank, in a fight that has the potential to shape the long-running struggle for the leadership of the Palestinian cause. The struggle between Palestinian factions gained new urgency as the Israeli military battered Hamas in Gaza over the past 15 months, leaving a leadership vacuum in the territory. The PA has support in the West, while the militant groups are backed by Iran and deeply rooted in Palestinian society. The Biden administration and others see the PA as the best alternative for running Gaza after the war. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has resisted the idea, saying the PA is anti-Israel at its core. The PA has governed major Palestinian population centers in the West Bank since the 1990s under agreements with Israel.”
Somalia
Voice Of America: Somali Security Forces Fend Off Islamic State Attack In Puntland
“Authorities in the Somali autonomous region of Puntland said eight foreign militants were killed following an attack by Islamic fighters on security forces early Tuesday. Residents said the attack started with a suicide bombing that targeted an area in Dharjale village in the far eastern highlands of Puntland, where security forces and officials were camped. In an audio statement posted on the Telegram channel of the region’s security forces, spokesperson for Puntland security operations Brigadier General Mohamud Mohamed Ahmed confirmed the attack. “Puntland anti-terrorism forces in the Dharjale, Bari region were attacked by the bloodsucking Daesh terrorist group,” he said. “The security forces have been following their movements, and they were ready. The bodies of eight foreigners and their weapons have been displayed.””
France
Voice Of America: France Strikes Islamic State Targets In Syria
“France said Tuesday it had carried out airstrikes against Islamic State militant positions in Syria. French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu said in a post on X that the strikes happened Sunday, but did not specify where in Syria they took place. The French action follows several rounds of U.S. strikes against Islamic State targets in the weeks since rebels ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad from power. Islamic State militants took control of large areas of eastern Syria and western Iraq in 2014, drawing an international response that included a U.S.-led coalition aimed at defeating the group. The militants have lost much of the territory they once held, but they are still present in Syria. The Western military strikes come amid questions about Syria’s political and security future following the fall of Assad’s government.”
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