Eye on Extremism
August 23, 2019
Business
Insider: Trump's Threat To Dump Thousands Of ISIS Fighters Into Europe
Could End Up Hurting Its Fiercest Ally In Syria
“President Donald Trump on Wednesday threatened to dump thousands
of ISIS prisoners in Europe if the countries they originated from
refused to take them back in. Speaking to reporters at the White
House, Trump specifically mentioned France and Germany as two
countries where its citizens who pledged their loyalty to ISIS could
be dropped off. ”We're holding thousands of ISIS fighters right now,
and Europe has to take them,” Trump said. “If Europe doesn't take
them, I'll have no choice but to release them into the countries from
which they came, which is Germany and France and other places.”
Trump's suggestion for the US to release the prisoners comes amid
plans to reduce its 2,000 troops in Syria, stoking fears of a
rekindling of the jihadist movement throughout the country and beyond
and ultimately hurting the global fight against ISIS. This leaves a
precarious situation for the Syrian Democratic Forces, a US-backed
Kurdish group that relies on the presence of US personnel — and has
the responsibility of holding thousands of prisoners in makeshift
facilities. SDF is detaining the lion's share of ISIS fighters. The
SDF had detained 9,000 militants in Syria by April, according to US
military officials. The military also estimated 1,000 of them hailed
from 50 different countries.”
The
National Interest: ISIS Vs. Al Qaeda: What Lies In The Future Of
Global Jihadism?
“The fall-out from the split between IS and al-Qaeda has led to a
competition viewed by both sides as zero sum in nature, where progress
by one of these groups signaled a loss for the other. One of the
primary drivers of such a heated competition is that, in many ways,
the ideology and objectives of the group are so similar. The Islamic
State reverted to extreme levels of violence as one method of
differentiating itself from its rivals, including al-Qaeda. Both
groups are attempting to recruit from the same milieus and influence
similar constituencies. The main differences are that IS sought to
create a caliphate on a timeline considered premature by al-Qaeda, and
IS pursued a far more sectarian agenda in attempting to achieve this
objective. Whether and how these differences are ever resolved will
have a major impact on the future of the movement writ large. The
split itself occurred at the leadership levels of these groups, so one
of the most interesting questions is: to what extent do foot soldiers
and mid-level commanders really care, in actuality, about the previous
infighting and strategic disputes?”
The
Daily Beast: America’s Key To Keeping ISIS Defeated
“Eastern Syria sits at the crossroads of critical policy decisions
in Washington. The region is at the center of an escalating crisis in
U.S.-Turkey relations, while maintaining America’s presence there
blocks Iranian and Russian gains in Syria. It also is key to keeping
ISIS defeated. Washington should see eastern Syria as one of the most
important strategic pieces of “real estate” to emerge out of the last
half-decade of conflict in the Middle East. The area of northeast
Syria where the U.S. today plays a critical role, roughly the size of
West Virginia, is now a kind of Gordian Knot. While American
adversaries, such as Russia or Iran, have a clear goal in Syria,
keeping the Bashar al-Assad regime in power and entrenching their
influence, the U.S. policy goal is less clear. Turkey, a historic U.S.
ally, recently threatened to launch a military operation into eastern
Syria against key U.S. partners who helped defeat the so-called
Islamic State, leaving Washington with a devil’s bargain: leave
eastern Syria and watch five years of fighting ISIS and working with
local forces collapse, or continue to fuel a crisis with Turkey. The
U.S. chose a temporary solution, telling Ankara it would work on a
“safe zone” along the Syria-Turkey border.”
Reuters:
Ninth Round Of U.S., Taliban Peace Talks Start In
Qatar
“The United States and the Taliban officials resumed talks in Qatar
on Thursday to firm up a deal enabling the withdrawal of U.S. troops
from Afghanistan in return for the Taliban security guarantees, the
Taliban and senior U.S. official said. After 18 years of war and
months of direct talks with the Taliban leaders, the United States
appears to be at the cusp of reaching a deal that could allow a
pullout of foreign forces followed by a ceasefire between the warring
sides. Two Taliban spokesmen said the ninth round of talks between the
United States and the Taliban representatives started on Thursday
evening, and a senior U.S. official privy to the peace negotiations
said the “crucial meeting iron out smaller details had begun” in
Qatar’s capital city, Doha. About 20,000 foreign troops, most of them
American, are now in Afghanistan as part of a U.S.-led NATO mission to
train, assist and advise Afghan forces. Some U.S. forces carry out
counter-terrorism operations.”
United States
The
National: US Offers $5m Reward For Information On Three ISIS
Deputies
“The US State Department is offering $5 million per head for
information leading to the capture of three prominent ISIS deputies.
The Dh11.7m bounty, part of the US Rewards for Justice programme
compensating sources for information, was announced on Wednesday and
applies to ISIS leaders Amir Muhammad Said Abdal-Rahman Al Mawla, Sami
Jasim Muhammad Al Jaburi, and Mu‘taz Numan ‘Abd Nayif Najm Al Jaburi.
Al Mawla, also known as Hajji Abdullah, is listed by the State
Department as a religious scholar who was formerly a member of Al
Qaeda in Iraq. He has risen through the ranks to become a potential
successor to ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi. Both the Al Jaburis
hold important positions within ISIS, the US said. “As ISIS is
defeated on the battlefield, we are determined to identify and find
the group’s leaders so that the global coalition of nations fighting
to defeat ISIS can continue to destroy ISIS remnants and thwart its
global ambitions,” a statement on the Rewards For Justice website
read. The offer of cash for tips on the whereabouts of extremists is
not uncommon, but the timing of this latest announcement shows ISIS is
still a priority for the US government, according to Raffaello
Pantucci, director of international security studies at the Royal
United Services Institute.”
The
Hill: Texas Governor Meets With Tech Firms To Discuss Combating
Extremism
“Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) is reportedly meeting with tech
executives on Thursday to discuss combating extremism in the wake of a
mass shooting that killed 22 people in El Paso, Texas, earlier this
month. Representatives from Google, Twitter and Facebook are slated to
meet with the governor to discuss possible measures to fight the
threat of online extremism, The Associated Press reported. FBI
officials and state lawmakers will also be part of the roundtable
discussion, according to the AP. The suspect accused of gunning down
22 people at a Walmart in El Paso allegedly posted a manifesto online
ahead of the attack warning of a “Hispanic invasion.” A small group of
gun rights advocates rallied outside the state
Capitol before Thursday's meeting, the AP reported. A day after the El
Paso attack, nine people were killed in a mass shooting in Dayton,
Ohio. The back-to-back shootings, which killed more than 30 people,
have renewed pushes for tougher gun control laws at the federal level.
Congress is expected to revisit the issue in some fashion when
lawmakers return to Washington next month.”
New
York Post: Don’t Toss Our Gains Against ISIS Down The
Drain
“Uh-oh: ISIS is back — and it’s regaining strength in Iraq and
Syria.Secretary of State Mike Pompeo acknowledged that Tuesday,
following a similar report by the inspector general for the US
military campaign against the terror group. According to the IG
report, “ISIS remains a threat,” it has “continued its transition from
a territory-holding force to an insurgency in Syria” and it has
“intensified its insurgency in Iraq.” The US-backed Syrian Defense
Forces expelled ISIS from its last piece of Syrian-held territory in
April, but Islamic State fighters fled to the northeast, where cells
still exist. Between then and June, ISIS militants waged “targeted
assassinations, ambushes, suicide bombings and the burning of crops.”
One key problem: The drop in US troops in the region has left the SDF
and Iraqi Security Forces unable to maintain sufficient pressure on
ISIS, which has “reorganized its leadership and established safe
havens in rural Sunni-majority areas” in Iraq. In Afghanistan,
meanwhile, ISIS claimed credit for bombing a wedding in Kabul that
claimed the lives of 80 guests last weekend. Pompeo insists the
caliphate is still dead and ISIS’ “capacity to conduct external
attacks has been made much more difficult.”
Syria
The
Jerusalem Post: Global Irresponsibility: The Lack Of ISIS War Crimes
Trials
“Four years ago a shrine named Mar Elian in Syria near the town of
al-Qaryatain was bulldozed by Islamic State. It had existed since the
sixth century, and was a site of devotion for Christians as well as
locals. It was one of many crimes of ISIS that stretch from Iraq to
Syria and beyond. Yet few have been prosecuted for these crimes, and
there have been no war crimes trials charging senior or mid-level ISIS
members with the systematic genocide and destruction that they wrought
on communities throughout the Middle East. In almost every other
example of genocide since the Holocaust, trials have been held or at
least countries have sought to prosecute criminals from the regimes
involved. This includes the Nuremberg trials (November 1945 to October
1946), the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia
(established 1997), the International Criminal Tribunal for the former
Yugoslavia (1993), the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda
(1994) and the International Criminal Court (ICC) investigations in
Darfur (2005). However imperfect some of these tribunals and UN-linked
attempts have been, they place a clear stamp of international
condemnation on the crimes involved and the perpetrators who have been
detained.”
Xinhua:
Chinese Envoy Stresses Need To Continue Fighting Terrorism In
Syria
“Visiting China's special envoy for Syria Xie Xiaoyan on Thursday
underscored the need for a continued fight against terrorist groups in
Syria. At a press briefing in Damascus, Xie stressed that the war on
terrorism hasn't ended yet. “There should be a continuation in
fighting terrorism because, despite the progress achieved in fighting
terrorism, this process hasn't ended yet,” he said. The Islamic State
(IS) group, he said, has been largely defeated, but some of its
followers are trying to re-emerge. “We believe that there should be a
complete elimination of all the groups that have been branded as
terrorists by the UN,” he said. Xie urged respect for the Syrian
sovereignty. “The Chinese side has repeatedly stressed on many
occasions the need to respect the Syrian sovereignty and its
territorial integrity and to preserve Syria from fragmentation,” he
said. The political process in Syria must serve the reconstruction
process, he said.”
Iran
Al
Jazeera: Iran Unveils New Missile Defence System, Calls US Talks
'Useless'
“Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has inducted a locally built
air-defence system into the country's missile defence network at an
unveiling ceremony in the capital, Tehran. The display of the new
system, Bavar-373, on Tuesday came amid heightened tensions with
the United States, which last year unilaterally withdrew from a
multinational nuclear deal signed between world powers and Iran and
reimposed crippling sanctions on it. Iranian officials have previously
called Bavar, which means “believe” in Farsi, the country's first
domestically produced long-range missile defence system. Iran began
production after the purchase of Russia's S-300 system was suspended
in 2010 due to international sanctions that have barred it from
importing many weapons. It installed the stalled S-300 system in March
2016 following several years of delays in the wake of the
now-crumbling 2015 nuclear deal. Speaking at the ceremony, Rouhani
said the mobile surface-to-air system was “better than S-300 and close
to [more advanced] S-400.” With a range of more than 200km, Iran's
official IRNA news agency said the long-range missile system is suited
to the country's geography. In his speech, Rouhani also struck a
muscular tone on dealings with the US, saying that “talks are useless”
over the nuclear deal."
Iraq
The
New York Times: Israeli Airstrike Hits Weapons Depot In
Iraq
“Israel has carried out an airstrike on a weapons depot in Iraq
that officials said was being used by Iran to move weapons to Syria,
an attack that could destabilize Iraq and thrust it deeper into the
conflict between the United States and Iran. The attack, believed to
be the first Israeli bombing in Iraq in nearly four decades,
represents an expansion of the military campaign Israel has carried
out against Iranian targets in Syria. The Israeli attack last month
was one of several recent attacks on weapons storage facilities
controlled by Iraqi militias with ties to Iran. It was not clear who
carried out the other attacks, which have set Iraq on edge as it
struggles to recover from nearly 40 years of war and instability.
Responding to the attacks on Thursday, Iraq’s national security
adviser, Falih al-Fayadh, said that Iraq wanted to avoid taking sides
in any struggle between Iran and other countries and being “pushed
into a war.” “The Iraqi government and especially its security
agencies and armed forces will take all measures necessary to protect
Iraq and its people and to deter any attempts at destabilization,” he
said. He said the government had yet to determine who was behind the
attacks. A senior Middle Eastern intelligence official said that
Israel had bombed a base north of Baghdad on July 19.”
The
National: Iraq’s Hezbollah Threatens Missile Attacks On US Bases After
Arms Depot Explosions
“A powerful pro-Iranian militia in Iraq has threatened to attack
American bases if explosions such as those at four of its warehouses
continued, despite the US denying any involvement. The Iraqi militia
Kataib Hezbollah, which operates under the pro-Iran Popular
Mobilisation Forces, whose warehouses were targets in the attacks,
threatened on Thursday to strike back. “We are sending a final
warning to the American enemy that any new targeting will be followed
with a decisive and harsh response,” the group said on messaging
platform Telegram. “Your forts will not protect you as they are all
within our missiles' reach.” The statement follows explosions between
July 19 and August 20 at PMF ammunition warehouses. “The US is not
involved in the recent warehouse explosions in Iraq,” a US defence
official told The National. He said the American presence in Iraq was
to support efforts against terror groups such as ISIS, and that
Washington was adhering to new Iraqi government directives. Those
directives, issued after the first two explosions, require all
aircraft to seek permission before flying in Iraqi airspace. Satellite
imagery was released on Thursday of the attack this week that hit near
the Balad air base in Salaheddin province.”
Long
War Journal: Al Qaeda Veteran Reportedly Killed In
Idlib
“Al Qaeda-affiliated Telegram channels reported earlier today that
Abu Khallad al-Muhandis, a veteran jihadist, was killed in a bombing
in Idlib. These same channels posted photos of the car he was
traveling in when a bomb exploded. It appears he was killed in a
targeted assassination, as his car was specifically destroyed.
(Another nearby vehicle was collateral damage.) The jihadist comrades
who commented on Muhandis’s death did not blame any specific party.
One blamed the “treachery” of some unknown traitors. But the authors
of the attack are unknown. Some of the jihadists who mourned Muhandis
posted reminders of his impressive jihadi pedigree. One short
biography reminds readers of his time in Afghanistan, Iraq and Iran,
where he was detained. There are a few men known as Khallad, or Abu
Khallad, in al Qaeda circles. But it appears that the recently
departed Abu Khallad al-Muhandis (meaning “the engineer”) is the same
man who has gone by the name Sari Shihab. (FDD’s Long War Journal will
update this report if the identification changes.) Shihab was a close
friend of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the founder of al Qaeda in Iraq, and
the two worked together. Shihab, a fellow Jordanian, was also from
Zarqa.”
Turkey
Reuters:
Three Turkish Soldiers Killed In Clash With Kurdish
Militants
“Three Turkish soldiers were killed in a clash with Kurdish
militants in southeast Turkey near the borders with Syria and Iraq,
the local governor’s office said on Thursday. Three militants from the
outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) were “neutralized” in the
fighting, the Sirnak governor’s office said in a written statement. It
said the soldiers were maintaining security for state energy company
Turkish Petroleum (TPAO) near the town of Silopi in Sirnak when the
clash broke out on Wednesday. The militants had previously been
spotted by a drone in the same area, it said. The PKK, designated a
terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and European
Union, launched an insurgency against the Turkish state in 1984. More
than 40,000 people have been killed in the conflict.”
Daily
Sabah: Support For Terrorism Main Reason Behind Mayor
Suspensions
“The suspensions of the mayors of three southeastern provinces were
the result of the mayors' monetary and psychological support for the
PKK terrorist organization, Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu said
Thursday. “There is a network giving money, strategy and psychological
support [to the PKK]. For this reason, we took a step on Monday, as
you know,” Soylu said. According to an official statement by the
Interior Ministry on Monday, the mayors of Diyarbakır, Mardin and Van
provinces – Adnan Selçuk Mızraklı, Ahmet Türk and Bedia Özgökçe Ertan,
respectively – have been suspended for supporting terrorism. The
state-appointed governors of the provinces will temporarily replace
the suspended mayors as trustees. The statement added that the mayors
already had active cases against them in which they were accused of
crimes such as establishing or spreading propaganda for a terror group
or just being a member. “We have done nothing wrong. If we conduct an
armed struggle in the mountains [against the terrorist organization],
we had to take this step as well. Because both moral support and food
supplies are going from those municipalities to terrorists,” Soylu
further underlined, referring to the ongoing military counterterrorism
operations in the region.”
Afghanistan
The
Washington Post: Even In The Midst Of Afghan Peace Talks, The Taliban
Still Deny Al Qaeda Was Behind 9/11
“The United States is in the midst of peace talks with the Taliban
in Afghanistan that could lead to a deal to withdraw American troops
from the country in return for the Taliban disavowing al Qaeda. But in
an interview this week, the Taliban’s top spokesperson claimed that al
Qaeda was not the perpetrator of the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001 in the
United States — the act of terrorism that prompted the U.S.-led
invasion of Afghanistan and sparked a conflict that has lasted almost
two decades. “It is not known who is behind that,” Suhail Shaheen told
CBS News during an interview in Qatar, where talks with the United
States are taking place. “If there is proof given to us, we are ready
to try him.” The denial of al Qaeda’s involvement in the 9/11 attacks
has a long history in Afghanistan and across the political spectrum
there, with conspiracy theories flourishing just as they have in much
of the world. These ideas are not limited to groups like the Taliban,
which espouses a fundamentalist view of Islamism that shares
similarities with al Qaeda’s worldview: during an interview with Al
Jazeera in 2015, former U.S.-backed Afghan president Hamid Karzai said
it was a “fact” that 9/11 had not been plotted in Afghanistan and
suggested that al Qaeda was a “myth.”
The
Washington Post: Yes, The Taliban Has Changed — It’s Gotten Much
Better At PR
“The United States is seeking peace with the Taliban. Negotiations
in the Qatar capital of Doha could shortly yield an agreement between
the two sides that will set a schedule for the gradual withdrawal of
U.S.-led forces from Afghanistan. Afghans are watching with
apprehension as they wonder whether such a deal might allow the
long-feared Islamist militants to regain power. The Taliban who are
taking part in the talks seem starkly different from the fanatical
primitives who drew the world’s attention in the wake of the 9/11
terrorist attacks. Eighteen years ago, the headlines focused on public
executions in sports stadiums, bans on music and television, and the
deliberate destruction of archaeological treasures. Women accused of
adultery were stoned to death, and girls were imprisoned behind family
walls. Today, by contrast, Western media are presenting stories about
young Taliban fighters playing cricket, hugging government security
forces during religious festivals and raising normal families. Even
Afghans themselves are expressing surprise at the sophistication of
the insurgent negotiators. Afghan women who recently joined
discussions in Doha marveled that the Taliban delegates sat across
from them and engaged in direct dialogue, unthinkable in the recent
past.”
Pakistan
Gulf
News: Pakistan Blacklisted By FATF Subgroup For Terror
Funding
“The Asia-Pacific Group (APG), a regional affiliate of the
Financial Action Task Force (FATF), has placed the Pakistan in the
“Enhanced Expedited Follow Up List (Blacklist)” for its failure to
meet its standards. In its meeting in Canberra, the APG found that
Pakistan was non-compliant on 32 of the 40 compliance parameters of
terror financing and money laundering, officials said. The FATF APG
discussions lasted over seven hours over two days. On 11 effectiveness
parameters Pakistan was adjudged as low on 10. However, the Pakistan
Finance Ministry on Friday categorically rejected certain media
reports about Pakistan being blacklisted by the Asia-Pacific Group,
the regional affiliate of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF),
reports APP. The ministry termed these reports as incorrect and
baseless. “Media reports being circulated about Pakistan being
blacklisted by APG are incorrect and baseless,” the Finance Ministry
said. Pakistan had submitted a compliance report on its 27-point
action plan to the FATF -- the global watchdog for terror financing
and money laundering -- as three separate evaluations would determine
the country's possible exit from the grey list by October.”
Saudi Arabia
CNN:
US Defense Secretary Esper Appears To Confirm Death Of Bin Laden's
Son
“US Secretary of Defense Mark Esper appeared to confirm Wednesday
that the late al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden's son Hamza bin Laden is
dead. ”That's my understanding,” Esper told Fox News in an interview
when asked if Hamza bin Laden was dead. Asked if the US had any role
in his death, Esper responded: “I don't have the details on that. And
if I did, I'm not sure how much I could share with you.” US
officials told CNN last month that the US had assessed that Hazma Bin
Laden was dead but provided few details. Earlier this year, the US
State Department called bin Laden, who was believed to be in his early
30s, an “emerging” leader in al Qaeda, offering a $1 million reward
for information leading to his capture. The State Department said
items seized from the elder bin Laden's hiding place in Pakistan
during the Navy SEAL raid that resulted in his death indicated he was
grooming Hamza bin Laden to replace him as al Qaeda's leader. He
married the daughter of a senior al Qaeda leader who was charged by a
federal grand jury for his role in the August 7, 1998, bombings of the
US embassies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Nairobi, Kenya. Saudi
Arabia revoked Hamza bin Laden's citizenship, official newspaper Um
al-Qura reported earlier this year, citing a royal order issued to the
Interior Ministry.”
Lebanon
The
National: US Welcomes Paraguay's Action Against
Hezbollah
“The United States has welcomed Paraguay’s decision to designate
Hezbollah and Hamas as terrorist organisations, describing it as an
important step to cut funding and support for such groups in the
western hemisphere. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Washington
commended Paraguay “for designating Hezbollah, Al Qaeda, ISIS, and
Hamas as terrorist organisations”. “This important step will help cut
off the ability of these groups to plot terrorist attacks and to raise
money around the world, including in the Western Hemisphere,” Mr
Pompeo said. He said the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah was “not a
defender of Lebanon as it purports to be, but a terrorist organisation
dedicated to advancing Iran’s malicious agenda” and compared it to Al
Qaeda and ISIS in its global reach and ability to plot attacks in the
Americas, the Middle East, Europe, Africa, and Asia. The Iran-backed
group is accused of involvement in drug trafficking and money
laundering operations in South America to fund its activities in the
Middle East, such as its military support for Syrian President Bashar
Al Assad.”
Middle East
Haaretz:
Two Israeli Arabs Indicted For Plotting ISIS Attacks
“Two residents of the Israeli Arab city of Tamra were arrested and
indicted for assisting and plotting to carry out terror attacks on
behalf of the Islamic State terror group, a Shin Bet statement
released Thursday said. The Shin Bet and Israel Police arrested Amin
Yassin, 22, a student studying medicine in Slovakia, and Ali Bin
Armoush, 28, in a joint operation in July, on suspicion of plotting to
harm Israel's security in the name of the Islamic State. Bin Armoush
had been investigated in the past on suspicion of security crimes and
connections to the terror group, the Shin Bet statement, which was
cleared for release Thursday, said. Over the course of the
investigation, the Shin Bet said they learned the two support
the Islamic State, and see themselves as its emissaries until an
Islamic caliphate is established in Israel. The Haifa District
Prosecutor's Office presented the indictment to the Haifa District
Court Thursday, accusing Armoush and Yassin of security crimes,
connection to a terror organization, assisting a terror organization
and other crimes. According to the indictment, Bin Armoush and Yassin
supported the group throughout 2014. In 2018, the two made contact
with members of the group, with whom they shared Islamic State content
over the Telegram messaging service.”
The
Times Of Israel: Israel Blames Islamic Jihad For Gaza Violence, Tells
Hamas To Clamp Down
“The Israel Defense Forces on Thursday blamed the Iran-backed
Palestinian Islamic Jihad for the recent increase in violence from the
Gaza Strip and called for Hamas, the de facto ruler of the enclave, to
rein in the terror group. “We do not plan to accept terror attacks and
rocket fire against our citizens,” the IDF’s Arabic-language
spokesperson Avichay Adraee tweeted. Adraee was referring to a number
of rocket and mortar attacks directed against southern Israel and
infiltration attempts along the border in recent days. Rockets were
fired at Israel from the enclave late Wednesday and early Thursday,
prompting Israeli reprisal attacks. There were no injuries in the
Palestinian rocket attacks. The Islamic Jihad is the second most
powerful terror group in the Gaza Strip after Hamas. Israel has
routinely accused the Iran-backed group of seeking to derail its
unofficial ceasefire agreements with Hamas by carrying out attacks
from Gaza. “Hamas, as the ruler of the Strip, must enforce its
authority over Islamic Jihad and prevent these terror attacks and
plots,” Adraee said. The spokesman said Islamic Jihad is responsible
for any failure to implement the conditions of the ceasefire
agreements and that it will “suffer the consequences” for these
activities.”
Libya
Asharq
Al-Awsat: LNA Accuses Qatar Of Being 'Terrorism Base'
“The Libyan National Army (LNA) – commanded by Chief Marshal
Khalifa Haftar – accused Qatar again of becoming a base for terrorism
in Libya. LNA spokesman Ahmed Mesmari described Qatar as the base for
terrorism in Libya and other countries that witnessed terrorist
attacks. During a press conference on Wednesday in Benghazi, Mesmari
said that the battle of the army is huge because it counters terrorism
and countries standing behind it. Further, Head of Libya's Government
of National Accord Fayez al-Sarraj chaired a meeting in Tripoli on
Wednesday to discuss the oil topic. During the meeting, which was
attended by government officials, Sarraj was briefed on the battle
updates. The meeting also discussed security conditions in Murzuq,
and tackling the issue of refugees there as well as aid delivery to
them. Moreover, UN envoy to Libya Ghassan Salame and Foreign Minister
Carmelo Abela stressed during a meeting on Wednesday the necessity of
resuming the political process as a sole solution for ending the
Libyan crisis. The UN mission revealed that the meeting tackled the
latest developments in Libya and the UN efforts on immigration.”
Somalia
Bloomberg:
Somalia State Key To War On Islamist Militants Re-Elects
Leader
“Somalia’s southern state of Jubaland extended its leader’s rule by
four years in an election that will have repercussions extending
beyond a region that’s at the forefront of a battle against
al-Qaeda-linked militants. Mohamed Islam Madobe won 56 votes in the
state parliament, while his closest rival, Anab Mohamed Dahir, secured
17, Speaker Sheikh Abdi Mohamed announced Thursday. Madobe has ruled
the territory for six years and made some headway in a war with
al-Shabaab, an extremist group that stages frequent attacks in
Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu, and has struck nearby countries,
including Kenya and Uganda. The election in Jubaland was closely
watched by a central government that’s seeking regional allies before
next year’s national election and is struggling to firm up a
federation of states that includes Jubaland, Puntland and Somaliland.
The states and are jostling for more autonomy and control over oil,
gas and other resources. Jubaland won some political autonomy in 2013.
The central government is wary of Madobe, who leads a powerful militia
known as Ras Kamboni that’s previously fought alongside Kenyan troops
against al-Shabaab to recapture a port in Kismayo city in 2012.”
Africa
Voice
Of America: Are DRC, Mozambique Insurgencies A Real IS
Threat?
“Experts are warning that a focus on alleged Islamist militant ties
is hindering efforts to respond to insurgencies in Mozambique and the
Democratic Republic of the Congo. Local insurgent groups have claimed
ties to Islamic State to increase their clout, but the groups operate
autonomously, experts who study the regions say. On April 18,
a strike on an army base near the Congo’s border with Uganda left
several Congolese soldiers dead and others injured. It was the first
attack credited to Wilayat Central Africa, previously known as the
Allied Democratic Forces, a group that has pledged allegiance to IS.A
month later, an IS group took responsibility for attacks in
northeastern Mozambique, part of a growing insurgency in the country
led by several groups, including Ahlu Sunnah wa-Jama and al-Shabab.
The latter group, consisting of about 1,000 fighters who operate in
decentralized units, shares its name but no known connection with the
Somali terrorist organization. On July 24, IS released a video
featuring a man named “Sheikh Abu Abdul Rahman” who called for an end
to division and infighting among Muslims in Central Africa. He also
called for the creation of a caliphate. The video features heavily
armed fighters in a forested area pledging allegiance to IS.”
Brookings:
Corruption And Terrorism: The Case Of Kenya
“Around the world, corruption poses a major threat, contributing to
many of the crises that have plagued economies and democracies over
the past decade. One aspect of corruption that receives too little
attention is the link between corruption and the success of
terrorism. Research has shown that high levels of corruption increase
the number of terrorist attacks originating in a country. This impact
has been felt in key battlegrounds against extremism, including
Afghanistan, Nigeria, Iraq, and Kenya, at times derailing efforts to
defeat terrorism. To illustrate the ways in which corruption can
impact and distort a counterterrorism campaign, we look to the case of
Kenya, a key recipient of U.S. counterterrorism aid that suffers
from severe corruption. Since 2006, Kenya has been a prime target of
al-Shabab, an al-Qaida affiliate originating in Somalia. In the past
several years, high-profile attacks including the 2013 Westgate
shopping mall siege, the 2015 shooting at Garissa University College,
and this January’s hotel bombing in Nairobi have galvanized the fight
against al-Shabab. Yet, little progress has been made. Widespread
corruption has rendered U.S.-funded Kenyan counterterrorism efforts
ineffective, and efforts to combat corruption repeatedly fail.”
Xinhua:
AU Strongly Condemns Terrorist Attack In Burkina Faso That Killed 24
Soldiers
“Chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission, Moussa Faki
Mahamat, on Thursday condemned a recent terrorist attack that targeted
a military base in Burkina Faso that left at least 24 soldiers dead.
Terrorists on Monday attacked a military base in northern Burkina
Faso, killing at least 24 soldiers while injuring a dozen others. “The
Chairperson condemns, in the strongest terms possible, the heinous
terrorist attack on August 19 on a military base in Koutougou in the
north of Burkina Faso that left at least 24 soldiers dead and others
wounded,” an AU statement issued on Thursday read. He reiterated the
AU's solidarity with the government and people of Burkina Faso “in
their efforts in preventing and countering terrorism and violent
extremism in all their manifestations in the country.” He further
reaffirmed the pan African bloc's “strong rejection of all acts of
terrorism and violent extremism and stresses the need for enhanced
cooperation among the countries of the region and their security
services to prevent and counter-terrorism and violent extremism.” The
chairperson expressed his “confidence in the solidarity of the Sahel
countries in combating terrorism in the Sahel region, and the efforts
of the Nouakchott Process on Enhanced Security Cooperation to
strengthen sharing of intelligence in the region in the fight against
terrorism and extremism.”
Technology
The
Guardian: The Physics Professor Who Says Online Extremists Act Like
Curdled Milk
“Lone wolves. Terrorist cells. Bad apples. Viral infections. The
language we use to discuss violent extremism is rife with metaphors
from the natural world. As we seek to understand why some humans
behave so utterly inhumanely, we rely on comparisons to biology,
ecology and medicine. But what if we’ve been working in the wrong
scientific discipline? What if the spread of hate is less like the
spread of cancer through the proverbial body politic and more like …
the formation of bubbles in a boiling pot of water? That is the
contention of Neil Johnson, a professor of physics at George
Washington University and the lead author on a study published this
week in Nature analyzing the spread of online hate. If that sounds
like an odd topic for a physicist – it is. Johnson began his career at
the University of Oxford, where he published extensively on quantum
information and “complexity theory”. After moving to the US in 2007,
he embarked on a new course of research, applying theories from
physics to complex human behavior, from financial markets and conflict
zones to insurgency and terrorist recruitment. Johnson’s unusual
approach has resulted in some surprising conclusions – he says all
online hate globally originates from just 1,000 online “clusters” – as
well as counterintuitive policy proposals.”
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