Eye on Extremism
January 30, 2025
Reuters: Syria's Sharaa Declared President For Transition, Consolidating His Power
“Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa was declared president for a transitional phase on Wednesday, tightening his hold on power less than two months after he led a campaign that toppled Bashar al-Assad. Sharaa was also empowered to form a temporary legislative council for a transitional period and the Syrian constitution was suspended, according to an announcement made by the military command which led the offensive against Assad. The decisions emerged from a meeting of military commanders who took part in the assault, a campaign spearheaded by Sharaa's Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group - a former al Qaeda affiliate.”
Reuters: Israel Delays Prisoner Release After Chaotic Hostage Handover
“Hamas handed over three Israelis and five Thai hostages in Gaza on Thursday, but Israel delayed the expected release of Palestinian prisoners after chaotic scenes at one of the handover points, where large crowds swarmed around the captives. Arbel Yehud, 29, abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz in the Hamas-led assault on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, looked fearful and struggled to walk through a surging crowd as armed militants handed her to the Red Cross in a tense scene in the southern city of Khan Younis. Another Israeli hostage, Gadi Moses, 80, was also released along with five Thai nationals working on Israeli farms near Gaza when the militants burst through the border fence, the Israeli military said. The mother of one of the Thais watched a livestream of the scene anxiously from her home in the northeastern Udon Thani province.”
CEP Mentions
HNA: Nazi Villa In Auschwitz Gets A New Coat Of Paint: “As A Warning”
“... The 2023 feature film "The Zone of Interest" painted an impressive picture of those years. Now the NGO Counter Extremism Project (CEP) is turning the house and property at Legionów Street 88 into a research center and memorial against extremism. Project name: Archer at House 88, an acronym for "Auschwitz Research Center on Hate, Extremism and Radicalization". CEP campaigns, among other things, against extremism and radicalisation on the Internet and urges the operators of social media platforms such as TikTok or X to take more consistent action against hate speech and concerted fake news campaigns.”
WTOP News: The Hunt: Here’s What Terror Groups Are Trying Do In 2025
“After a wave of plots and attacks in Europe and the stunning New Year’s Day attack in New Orleans, experts think terrorists are growing stronger and more sophisticated. On this week’s episode of “The Hunt with WTOP national security correspondent J.J. Green,” Hans-Jakob Schindler said the groups are not hiding their ambition.”
KCRA3: Auschwitz Commander's Home Open To The Public, Converted Into Center For Holocaust History
“In the outskirts of the city of Oświęcim, Poland, lies a home, adjacent to the site of one of the worst atrocities ever committed. The home is the former residence of the commander of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp, Rudolph Höss. The house recently featured heavily in the movie "Zone of Interest," which told the story of the commander and his family and how sheltered they were from the atrocities being committed just yards away. The house, until this year, had always been in private hands. A U.S.-based group, the "Counter Extremism Project," has purchased it. Now, in conjunction with the Auschwitz Museum and UNESCO, they have created "The Auschwitz Center on Hate, Extremism and Radicalisation." The home is now open to the public for the first time.”
Oklahoma's News: Elliott Broidy And Dr. Thomas Kaplan Co-Chair Fundraising Initiative To Convert Nazi Commandant’s Home Adjacent To Auschwitz Into A New Global Center For Combating Antisemitism, Extremism, And Hate
“Spearheaded by the Counter Extremism Project (CEP), ARCHER aims to transform the former residence of Auschwitz Commandant Rudolf Höss in Oświęcim, Poland, from a center of hate to a center against hate in all forms. In addition to the residence, famed architect Daniel Libeskind has designed an extraordinary new building on the grounds of House 88 to house the organization’s research, education, and advocacy activities.”
United States
NPR: Trump Order Cracks Down On Antisemitism And Could Deport Foreign Student Protesters
“An executive order signed Wednesday by President Trump outlines a broad federal crackdown on antisemitism in the U.S., especially on college campuses, and suggests foreign students who take part in prohibited activities like supporting terrorist organizations could be deported. The order cites "an unprecedented wave of vile anti-Semitic discrimination, vandalism and violence" and states that U.S. policy "shall be" to use "all available and appropriate legal tools to prosecute, remove, or otherwise hold to account the perpetrators of unlawful anti-Semitic harassment and violence."”
Syria
BBC: Russia Withdraws Military Equipment From Syrian Port, Images Show
“Russia has stepped up its military withdrawal from Syria, removing vehicles and containers from its key Tartous port on the country's Mediterranean coast, analysis by BBC Verify suggests. After the fall of the Assad regime in December, verified footage showed columns of Russian vehicles moving north towards the port. Satellite images subsequently showed military hardware being stored there. But new images published on Wednesday by Planet Labs showed that much of the material has now disappeared, after the departure of vessels linked to the Russian military. It comes as Russian officials held "frank discussions" with the new government in Damascus, Reuters reported on Wednesday.”
Pakistan
Associated Press: Pakistani Man Accused Of Killing US-Born Daughter Over TikTok Videos Appears In Court
“A Pakistani man suspected of killing his U.S.-born 15-year-old daughter in a so-called honor killing after she apparently refused to stop sharing videos on TikTok appeared in court Thursday in the southwestern city of Quetta, police said. The man, who was arrested Wednesday, recently moved his family back to Pakistan from the United States, police said. The shooting happened on Tuesday in Quetta, the capital of Balochistan province, said Babar Baloch, a local police chief. He said the father of the teenager initially suggested that an unidentified gunman had killed his daughter, but after he was taken into custody for questioning he confessed to the crime.”
Middle East
Politico: Hamas Begins Handing Over 8 More Hostages To Israel
“Hamas handed Agam Berger over to Israel, the first of eight hostages expected to be released from Gaza on Thursday. In exchange, Israel is set to release 110 Palestinian prisoners, including about 30 people serving life sentences, in the third swap since the Gaza cease-fire and hostages agreement came into effect earlier this month. The cease-fire aims to end the most destructive war ever fought between Israel and the Palestinian armed group Hamas, who killed more than 1,000 people in Israel in an attack on Oct. 7, 2023. The group also took some 250 hostages into Gaza.”
Somalia
Voice Of America: Somali General Confident Of Defeat Against Is
“For almost a month, security forces in the semi-autonomous Somali region of Puntland have been advancing on the mountainous hideouts of Islamic State militants. The fiercest clashes occurred late last week when the regional forces dislodged the militants from Turmasaale, a strategic location about 150 kilometers southeast of Bosaso. Puntland’s leader, Said Abdullahi Deni, went to the airport over the weekend to meet wounded soldiers, including a senior officer, a sign of clashes taking place. Before the Turmasaale clashes, the region’s forces seized caves, camps and small villages largely unopposed.”
Africa
Associated Press: ECOWAS Pledges To ‘Keep Door Open’ After 3 Coup-Hit West African Nations Exit Regional Bloc
“The junta-led West African nations of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso have formally withdrawn from the regional bloc known as ECOWAS, the body said Wednesday. The previously announced withdrawal, which marks the culmination of a yearlong process during which the group tried to avert an unprecedented disintegration, “has become effective today,” ECOWAS said in a statement. The bloc, however, said that it has also decided to “keep ECOWAS’ doors open,” and requested member nations to continue to accord the trio their membership privileges, including free movement within the region with an ECOWAS passport.”
United Kingdom
The New York Times: A U.K. Teen Became Fixated On Extreme Violence. But Was It Terrorism?
“On Oct. 4, 2019, a 13-year-old British boy called a child welfare hotline from his home in Banks, a village in northwest England, and asked: “What should I do if I want to kill somebody?” The teenager, Axel Rudakubana, said that he had started taking a knife to school because he was being bullied. After counselors from the hotline called the police, he told officers that he thought that he would use the weapon if he became angry. It was the first of several warnings about Mr. Rudakubana, now 18, and his increasingly violent tendencies.”
Australia
Bloomberg: Australian PM Labels Caravan Packed With Explosives As Terrorism
“Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has said the discovery of a caravan packed with explosives in outer suburban Sydney was part of a terrorist plot, with local officials drawing a link between the find and a recent spate of antisemitic attacks. The explosives were uncovered on Jan. 19 in the Sydney suburb of Dural, though authorities waited until this week to reveal the discovery. Albanese said that more than 100 police are involved in investigating the cache, as well as the country’s Joint Counter Terrorism Team. The prime minister said that, like the leader of New South Wales state, he is treating the find as terrorism.”
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