|
Eye on Extremism
September 30, 2020
The New York Times: Pompeo Threatens To Close U.S. Embassy In Iraq Unless Militias Halt Attacks
“Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has threatened to close the American Embassy in Baghdad within weeks if Iraqi leaders fail to prevent Iranian-backed militias from firing rockets at the compound, three U.S. officials said. The move would place U.S. diplomats out of harm’s way but could jeopardize years of efforts to both stabilize the Iraqi government and keep it from becoming too dependent on neighboring Iran. It could also undercut international missions to train Iraqi security forces, and prompt diplomats from other nations to consider withdrawing from Baghdad as militias continue low-level but potentially deadly rocket and mortar attacks. A shutdown of the U.S. embassy, one of the largest American diplomatic missions in the world, would also send a signal that Washington is abandoning the new Iraqi prime minister, Mustafa al-Kadhimi, a former intelligence chief whom U.S. diplomats had praised in the spring as a “patriot” capable of limiting Iranian influence and guiding a nation wracked by political turmoil, a coronavirus outbreak and violence. Just last month, Mr. al-Kadhimi met with President Trump in Washington to press for keeping American troops in Iraq.”
The New York Times: Paris Attack Suspect Wanted To Target Charlie Hebdo With Arson
“The man suspected of stabbing two people outside the former Paris office of Charlie Hebdo last week admitted to investigators that he wanted to set the building on fire, and he railed against cartoons of the prophet in a video found on his phone, but he did not pledge allegiance to any known terrorist group, French authorities said on Tuesday. Jean-François Ricard, the top antiterrorism prosecutor, said at a news conference that the video showed the suspect, Zaher Hassan Mahmood, 25, weeping and denouncing the publication of cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad. Mr. Ricard said Mr. Mahmood had told investigators that he had searched online for the address for Charlie Hebdo, the satirical newspaper whose office was attacked in January 2015, and scouted the area, but had not realized that they moved. He had initially planned to set the former newspaper’s offices on fire, Mr. Ricard said, adding that the police found several bottles of turpentine in his bag. But Mr. Mahmood changed his mind when he saw two people smoking outside the building near a mural paying tribute to those killed in 2015, Mr. Ricard said. Thinking they were employees of the newspaper, he lunged at them with a meat cleaver. The “extremely violent” attack, caught on surveillance cameras, lasted only 20 seconds, Mr. Ricard said.”
Afghanistan
Voice Of America: Afghan Team Told To Be Flexible In Negotiating With Taliban
“Afghanistan’s senior leadership has told its team in Doha to be flexible in negotiating with the Taliban in order to seize the opportunity to end the country’s conflict, according to Abdullah Abdullah, the chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation. “We’ve asked our own delegation, President (Ashraf) Ghani and myself, to be patient, to be ready to make compromise, and not to miss any other opportunity, not to lose any opportunity, or waste time,” he said during his address at the Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad, a foreign policy research group. Abdullah, who is in Pakistan on a three-day visit to discuss the peace process and bilateral relations, seemed hopeful about the future. “I’m visiting Pakistan at a time when a new future, indeed a peaceful future, is on the horizon,” he told the audience. The visit reflects a shift in bilateral relations between the two countries that have been rocky for several years. Both sides have accused each other of harboring groups that carry out attacks on each other’s soil. Both Afghanistan and the United States have long said that the Taliban leadership lives in Pakistan and demanded the South Asian country pressure them to come to the negotiating table.”
Agence France-Presse: Roadside Bomb Kills 14 Civilians In Afghanistan
“At least 14 civilians, including women and children, were killed Tuesday by a roadside bomb in central Afghanistan, officials said, as violence continues despite peace talks between the Taliban and Afghan government. Seven women, five children and two men died when their vehicle detonated an explosive device in Daikundi province, interior ministry spokesman Tareq Arian said in a statement. Three children were also wounded, he added, blaming the Taliban for the blast. Nasrullah Ghori – the spokesman for the governor of Daikundi – said the victims were traveling to a shrine when their minibus struck the bomb. No group has claimed responsibility for the blast, but roadside bombs have been a weapon of choice for the Taliban. “Deliberate attacks” targeting civilians killed or wounded more than 800 civilians in Afghanistan during the first half of 2020, according to a UN report released in July. The violence comes as Taliban and Afghan government negotiators are meeting in Doha, where they are trying to find a way to end 19 years of war. Despite calls for a cease-fire, the Taliban have refused to halt their violence, seeing it as key to leverage at the negotiating table.”
Lebanon
Associated Press: Israeli PM To UN: Hezbollah Storing Missiles In Beirut
“Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday accused the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah of maintaining a “secret arms depot” in a residential neighborhood of Beirut, warning it could cause another tragic explosion in the Lebanese capital. Hezbollah denied the allegations and invited international and local media to immediately visit the site, where they found a small factory housing heavy machinery but no weapons. In an address to the U.N. General Assembly, Netanyahu pointed to maps purportedly showing the missile depot’s location next to a gas company and residential housing, not far from Beirut’s international airport. He also showed what he said was a picture of the entrance to the depot. “Here’s where the next explosion will take place, right here,” he said. “You’ve got to act now, you’ve got to protest this, because if this thing explodes, it’s another tragedy,” Netanyahu said, addressing the Lebanese people. “You should tell them, ‘Tear these depots down.’ Last month, a warehouse filled with nearly 3,000 tons of ammonium nitrate exploded in Beirut’s port, killing nearly 200 people, wounding thousands and causing widespread destruction in the capital.”
Libya
“The United Arab Emirates ramped up deliveries of military supplies to Libyan warlord Khalifa Haftar this year, according to a confidential United Nations report, flouting an arms embargo as the Gulf state tried to salvage the leader’s military campaign and check the influence of regional rival Turkey. The U.A.E.’s military flights surged as Mr. Haftar fought to prevent the collapse of his yearlong attack on Libya’s internationally recognized government in Tripoli, according to a diplomat with access to an unpublished report prepared by a U.N. expert panel monitoring the arms embargo. Between January and April, the U.A.E. air force dispatched some 150 flights that the U.N. experts believe carried ammunition and defense systems. Dozens of flights continued from the Emirates over the summer using an American-made C-17 military transport plane even after Mr. Haftar’s offensive unraveled, the diplomat said. The U.A.E. has also been accused of using ships to ferry jet fuel to Libya for military purposes in violation of the Libyan arms embargo. The European Union, which this year launched naval patrols to give teeth to the embargo, earlier this month stopped a vessel loaded with jet fuel that EU officials allege was meant for military use in an area controlled by Mr. Haftar.”
Somalia
Shabelle Media Network: Somalia: Officials Say Army Killed 7 Militants In Raid On Al-Shabaab
“The commander-in-chief of the Somali armed forces, General Odowa Yusuf Rage said Monday that the SNA soldiers have neutralized seven Al-Shabaab during an operation. The state media, citing Rage reported that the latest crackdown saw the recapture of key areas in Lower Shabelle, a contested region that witnessed rising US military airstrikes. Somali troops with the support of AU and US personnel are making gains against the Al-Qaeda-linked militants in several fronts in the southern region as the nation heads to polls. Despite this, Al-Shabaab still a potent threat to the security and staging car bombs in the country, mainly in the seaside capital, Mogadishu, where the government is based.”
Africa
Bloomberg: Zimbabwe Asked By U.S. To Help Fight Militants In Mozambique
“The U.S. asked Zimbabwe to help put down an Islamist insurgency in neighboring Mozambique that’s destabilizing a region rich in natural gas, people familiar with the matter said. The request came in a phone call between U.S. Assistant Secretary for African Affairs Tibor Nagy and Zimbabwe Foreign Minister Sibusiso Moyo last week, the people said, asking not to be identified because the content of the talks hasn’t been made public. The foreign minister asked that the U.S. first drop targeted sanctions against Zimbabwean officials, the people said. Mozambique has been struggling to suppress the Islamic State-affiliated group that’s destabilizing a region where nearly $60 billion in investment in natural gas facilities are planned by companies including Total SE and Exxon Mobil Corp. While Zimbabwe is in a state of economic collapse, its army is battle-hardened with its troops having fought in the Democratic Republic of Congo as well as having supported U.S. operations in Angola and Somalia. Zimbabwe has a long history of involvement in neighboring Mozambique. The guerrilla army affiliated to it ruling party used Mozambique as a base from which to launch attacks on then White-ruled Rhodesia in a 1970s liberation war.”
United Kingdom
Yahoo News: Boy, 14, 'Tried To Make Homemade Bombs During Lockdown'
“A teenager influenced by Isis tried to construct homemade bombs during the coronavirus lockdown and order parts through his mother’s Amazon account, a court has heard. The 15-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is alleged to have filmed homemade videos in which he said he would “carry out jihad” and “become a martyr”. Prosecutors claim the teenager, from Eastleigh, made bottle bombs in his wardrobe, and made a note on his phone which read: “The extinction of the western race and ethnic cleansing of the colonised land stolen by the western plague.” He denies one count of preparing acts of terrorism. The boy, who was 14 at the time of the alleged offence, researched homemade items to make basic explosives with and added some of those parts to his mother’s Amazon wish list, the court heard. He wrote a note on his iPhone in which he branded women as “tools, an object to be used... a sex slave”, jurors at Leicester Crown Court were told on Tuesday. Anne Whyte QC, prosecuting, said the case was “unusual” and the boy felt “isolated and angry about his personal circumstances”. “As you have just heard, he is facing an allegation of preparing acts of terrorism,” she told jurors.”
The National: Britain Warned Of Rising Religious Terrorism Threat With No-Deal Brexit
“The threat of terrorism would increase significantly if there were no Brexit agreement between Britain and the EU, the former head of MI6 said. “The simple answer is yes,” Sir John Scarlett, former head of Britain’s foreign intelligence service, told The National. Mr Scarlett was joined by Britain’s last top EU diplomat, Sir Julian King, in an online seminar to highlight what could be a serious loss of intelligence caused by Brexit. Britain’s intelligence services, including MI6, MI5 and police counter-terrorism units, will lose access to European databases on criminals and terrorists if there were no formal agreement by December 31. They will be denied access to the crime database Schengen Information System II, which British intelligence services used 570 million times last year, making the country the third biggest user in the EU. Britain will also be blocked from the European Criminal Records Information Service, which allows quick sharing of records, and Prum, a DNA database used 12,000 times in the past year by UK investigators. Without such combined resources, UK intelligence agencies will struggle to battle terrorism effectively, Mr Scarlett said.”
France
Agence France-Presse: France Arrests 29 In Anti-Terror Syria Financing Sting
“French police on Tuesday arrested 29 people in a sting operation targeting a network of terror financing for jihadists in Syria, prosecutors said. The network, active since 2019, mostly operated via the purchase of crypto-currency coupons whose references were given to jihadist contacts in Syria and then credited to bitcoin accounts, the anti-terror prosecutors' office said in a statement. This marks a departure from previous methods to transfer funds identified by France's anti-terror financing and money laundering services, which mostly involved cash mandates, it said. “Constant surveillance of these networks prompted terrorist organisations to seek more opacity by using crypto-currencies such as bitcoin,” the statement said. Two French jihadists, identified as Mesut S and Walid F, both 25, are believed to be the architects of the network, working from northeastern Syria, the prosecutors said. They are suspected members of the Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham organisation, an Al-Qaeda affiliate. They were both sentenced to 10 years in prison in absentia in 2016, and are the target of an international arrest warrant. Their accomplices were caught after purchasing coupons worth 10 to 150 euros ($12 to $176) each on many occasions over recent months in several locations in France.”
Europe
Associated Press: Italy Repatriates Female Islamic Fighter And Her 4 Children
“Italian carabinieri arrested a female foreign fighter on Tuesday after returning her and her four young children to Italy from a displaced person’s camp in Kurdish-controlled territory. The woman, Alice Brignoli, traveled in 2015 with her Moroccan-born husband, Mohamed Koraichi, and their three young children by car from their home north of Milan to Islamic State-controlled territory. Another child was born in Syria. The children, now 11, 8, 6 and 4, were in foster care pending a decision by an Italian juvenile court. Authorities say Brignoli will face trial on terror-related charges. Brignoli contributed to the radicalization of the children, turning them against the West and “thereby embracing the cause of global jihadism,” Italian Carabinieri said in a statement. Authorities say the children have family members in Italy and that their experience with other children returning from Islamic State territory -- notably an 11-year-old Albanian boy Alvin Berisha who was brought back to Italy last November -- has showed that indoctrinations can be reversed. “There was a minimal amount of indoctrination -- but no military training -- enough to make them understand and agree with the choices that the parents had made.”
Radio Free Europe: Poland Deports Five Tajiks Suspected Of Terrorism
“The Polish authorities have deported five Tajik nationals suspected of having links to the Islamic State group and recruiting Poles and Ukrainian citizens for terrorist acts in Poland. Radio Poland reported on September 28 that four of the Tajik citizens were detained in May, while the fifth suspect, who fled Poland in December 2019, was arrested later with the assistance of international counterterrorism entities. According to Poland's Agency for Domestic Security, the fifth suspect was going to travel to Syria, where he planned to join Islamic extremists and develop close contact with a member of a terrorist organization linked to Al-Qaeda. The five Tajik citizens have been banned from entering Poland and other Schengen zone member-states. In April, four Tajik men were arrested in neighboring Germany on suspicion of preparing terrorist attacks in the country.”
| |
Click here to unsubscribe.