“A senior Taliban minister who expressed support for reversing the ban on
girls’ education in Afghanistan appears to have been forced to flee the
country. Speaking at a graduation ceremony in Khost province, near the
Afghan-Pakistani border, on 20 January, Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, the Taliban’s
deputy foreign minister, criticised the government’s ban on girls attending
secondary schools and higher education. “There is no excuse for this – not now
and not in the future,” Stanikzai said. “We are being unjust to 20 million
people. “During the time of the prophet Muhammad, the doors of knowledge were
open for both men and women,” he said.”











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Eye on Extremism



February 4, 2025



The Guardian: Taliban Minister ‘Forced To Flee Afghanistan’ After Speech In
Support Of Girls’ Education
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“A senior Taliban minister who expressed support for reversing the ban on
girls’ education in Afghanistan appears to have been forced to flee the
country. Speaking at a graduation ceremony in Khost province, near the
Afghan-Pakistani border, on 20 January, Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, the Taliban’s
deputy foreign minister, criticised the government’s ban on girls attending
secondary schools and higher education. “There is no excuse for this – not now
and not in the future,” Stanikzai said. “We are being unjust to 20 million
people. “During the time of the prophet Muhammad, the doors of knowledge were
open for both men and women,” he said.”



Daily Mail: Inside The ISIS Open-Air Prison Camp Where Thousands Of Families
Are Forcibly Indoctrinated To Become Fanatics In A Lawless Dystopia Set To
Become The Ground Zero For Islamic State 2.0
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“In northeastern Syria, there is a jihadist crisis waiting to happen.
Scattered across Rojava - the Kurdish-led autonomous region that spearheaded
the global fight against the Islamic State - there are prisons holding
thousands upon thousands of captured ISIS fighters. But another chilling threat
lurks inside the sprawling refugee camps where their radicalised families are
infecting helpless refugees with their ideology. Nearly six years after the
Battle of Baghuz marked ISIS' territorial defeat, Rojava's authorities are
warning that the terror group is poised for a resurgence. At the heart of their
fears is Al-Hol - the largest refugee camp that many believe will become Ground
Zero for ISIS' return.”



CEP Mentions



Süddeutsche Zeitung: “They Will Look For Even More Spectacular Targets”
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“23 burned-out police vehicles, property damage totaling around two million
euros: that is the result of the fire at the police dog unit in the Munich
district of Allach-Untermenzing on the night of January 25th. The police are
investigating arson and assume that the attack was carried out by serial
offenders. A reward of 10,000 euros has been offered for information leading to
these. Bavaria's Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann ( CSU ) sees "basic
terrorist features". But what does that mean? Terrorism and extremism expert
Hans-Jakob Schindler, Senior Director at the Counter Extremism Project (CEP),
explains what is known about the case so far.”



Red Circle: Auschwitz Liberation 80th Anniversary And CEP's ARCHER At House
88; Axel Rudakubana; And Saudi Arabia
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“Ian Acheson and Edmund Fitton-Brown discuss the 80th anniversary of the
liberation of Auschwitz and the launch of CEP's major new initiative ARCHER at
House 88, based at the former home of the Commandant of Auschwitz. They also
discuss the jail sentence given to Axel Rudakubana in the U.K. and a changing
Saudi Arabia. They end with "Never," a moving poem by Holocaust survivor Elie
Wiesel.”



United States



Reuters: Trump And Netanyahu Set For Pivotal Talks On Middle East Agenda
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“When Benjamin Netanyahu meets U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday, the
Israeli prime minister is expected to try to turn the page on sometimes tense
relations with the Biden White House as the two leaders address the future of
the Gaza ceasefire and ways to counter Iran. But Netanyahu, the first foreign
leader to be hosted by Trump since his Jan. 20 inauguration, could also come
under pressure from the staunchly pro-Israel president whose policy goals for
the Middle East may not always coincide with Netanyahu's interests. They will
meet just as indirect negotiations are due to resume this week between Israel
and Hamas on the second stage of the ceasefire deal and hostage release.”



Syria



Associated Press: Trump’s Aid Freeze Shocks A Syria Camp Holding Families
Linked To The Islamic State Group
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“Ahmad Abdullah Hammoud was lucky to have some food stored to feed his family
after a U.S.-funded organization abruptly suspended its aid activities at the
sprawling tent camp in northeastern Syria where they have been forced to stay
for nearly six years. His family is among 37,000 people, mostly women and
children, with alleged ties to the Islamic State group at the bleak,
trash-strewn al-Hol camp, where the Trump administration’s unprecedented freeze
on foreign aid caused chaos and uncertainty and worsened the dire humanitarian
conditions. Human rights groups have for years cited poor living conditions and
pervasive violence in the camp, which houses mostly wives and children of IS
fighters as well as supporters of the militant group.”



Bloomberg: Syria’s President Reveals Talks With US-Backed Group Over Arms
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“Syria’s authorities are holding talks with a US-backed armed group as part
of an effort to control firepower in the war-torn country, a step that would
cement the new rulers’ grip after the downfall of autocrat Bashar Al-Assad. The
armed group, the Syrian Democratic Forces, expressed readiness for a new
situation in which arms in Syria will all come under the authority of the
state, although several disagreements are still being discussed, Interim
President Ahmed Al-Sharaa said in an interview with Syria TV. He didn’t
disclose the points of contention with the group, which is based in the
autonomous Kurdish areas of northern and eastern Syria, and has been a key ally
in the US fight against Islamic State.”



Reuters: Exclusive: Syria's Sharaa To Discuss Defense Pact With Turkey's
Erdogan, Sources Say
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“Syria's transitional President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Turkish President Tayyip
Erdogan are expected to discuss a joint defense pact in Ankara on Tuesday,
including establishing Turkish airbases in central Syria and training for
Syria's new army, four sources familiar with the matter said. NATO member
Turkey has long backed Syria's armed and political opposition to ousted leader
Bashar al-Assad, who was toppled in late December in a lightning offensive
spearheaded by Sharaa's forces. Ankara is positioning itself to play a major
role in the new Syria, filling a vacuum left by Assad's main regional backer
Iran, in an expansion of Turkish sway that could spark rivalry with Gulf Arab
states and put Israel on edge.”



Iraq



Reuters: Iraqi-Led Air Strikes Kill Five Islamic State Operatives, US Centcom
Says
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“Precision airstrikes led by Iraqi security forces (ISF) killed five Islamic
State (ISIS) operatives near Iraq's Kirkuk on Jan. 31, the U.S. Central Command
(Centcom) said in an X post on Tuesday. "An initial post-strike clearance found
multiple explosive suicide belts and other materials," Centcom said, adding
that the airstrikes were enabled by Centcom forces.”



Afghanistan



Associated Press: A Taliban Fires At A UN Compound In Kabul And Is Later Found
Dead
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“A Taliban fighter opened fire at the United Nations compound in Kabul,
slightly injuring a security guard, and was later found dead, the U.N. mission
in Afghanistan said Monday. The gunman shot at a U.N. guard post on Sunday from
outside the compound’s perimeter wall, according to the U.N. U.N.-contracted
security guards did not return fire. One international guard sustained minor
injuries and received hospital care, the U.N. said. The Taliban fighter was
later found dead in a location outside the compound. The U.N. statement did not
clarify how the fighter died. The U.N. and the Taliban are carrying out
separate investigations into the incident.”



Lebanon



Reuters: Hezbollah Tells Iran It Would Fight Alone In Any War With Israel
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“With ally Hamas under attack in Gaza, the head of Iran's Quds Force visited
Beirut in February to discuss the risk posed if Israel next aims at Lebanon's
Hezbollah, an offensive that could severely hurt Tehran's main regional
partner, seven sources said. In Beirut, Quds chief Esmail Qaani met Hezbollah
leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, the sources said, for at least the third time
since Hamas' deadly Oct. 7 attacks on southern Israel and Israel's devastating
retaliatory assault on Gaza. The conversation turned to the possibility of a
full Israeli offensive to its north, in Lebanon, the sources said.”



Middle East



Associated Press: Middle East Latest: At Least 6 Injured In Attack In
Israel-Occupied West Bank; Assailant Is Killed
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“At least six people were injured in a shooting attack at a checkpoint in the
Israeli-occupied West Bank early Tuesday morning, according to the Israeli
military and area hospitals. The Israeli military said an attacker fired at
soldiers at a checkpoint in the village of Tayasir, which is in the northern
West Bank. In a tense exchange, soldiers returned fire and the attacker was
killed, the military added. Israeli hospitals said they had received a total of
six people injured in the shooting attack. Israeli media reported the injured
are soldiers and at least two of them were critically injured. Hamas and the
smaller Islamic Jihad militant group praised the attack but neither claimed
responsibility for it.”



Associated Press: Middle East Latest: Hostages Freed From Gaza Rarely Saw
Sunlight, Families Say
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“The families of hostages freed from Gaza over the weekend, the latest
release in the ceasefire deal, described difficult conditions — including
rarely seeing the sun — during their captivity. The six-week first phase of the
truce calls for the release of 33 hostages and nearly 2,000 prisoners, as well
as the return of Palestinians to northern Gaza and an increase in humanitarian
aid to the devastated territory. Israel and Hamas are beginning to negotiate a
second phase of the ceasefire, which calls for releasing the remaining hostages
and extending the truce indefinitely. The warcould resume in early March if an
agreement is not reached.”



Russia



Reuters: Moscow Urges Hamas To Release Russian Hostage From Gaza
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“A senior Russian diplomat urged a top official of the Palestinian movement
Hamas on Monday to keep to its commitment to release a Russian hostage held by
the group since its raid on Israel in October 2023. Deputy Foreign Minister
Mikhail Bogdanov raised the issue in talks in Moscow with Musa Abu Marzuk, a
member of Hamas's Politburo, Russia's Foreign Ministry said in a statement. "It
was again stressed from the Russian side that it was vital to fulfil the
promise expressed by the Hamas leadership concerning the release of Russian
citizen A. Trufanov and others being held hostage in the Gaza Strip," it said.
The statement also noted the "importance of continuing appropriate work in the
interests of achieving inter-Palestinian unity".”



Technology



Voice Of America: Australia Hits Right-Wing Online Network ‘Terrorgram' With
Sanctions
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“Australia on Monday imposed sanctions on extreme right-wing online network
"Terrorgram" as part of its efforts to combat a rise in antisemitism and online
extremism, following similar moves by Britain and the United States. Foreign
Minister Penny Wong said the government's action would make it a criminal
offense to engage with "Terrorgram" and help prevent children from becoming
caught up in far-right extremism. "Terrorgram is an online network that
promotes white supremacy and racially-motivated violence," Wong said in a
statement. "It is the first time any Australian Government has imposed
counterterrorism financing sanctions on an entity based entirely online."”



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