Eye on Extremism
September 17, 2019
The
Wall Street Journal: U.S. Tells Saudi Arabia Oil Attacks Were Launched
From Iran
“U.S. intelligence indicates Iran was the staging ground for a
debilitating attack on Saudi Arabia’s oil industry, people familiar
with the matter said, as Washington and the kingdom weighed how to
respond and oil prices soared. Monday’s assessment, which the U.S.
hasn’t shared publicly, came as President Trump said he hoped to avoid
a war with Iran and as Saudi Arabia asked United Nations experts to
help determine who was responsible for the airstrikes. The attack sent
Brent crude, the international benchmark for crude prices, soaring 15%
to $69.02 a barrel on Monday, the largest gain recorded in over three
decades. Higher fuel prices pose another threat to the world economy
amid a U.S.-China trade dispute, although Saudi and U.S. officials
said they would ensure that the oil market remains well supplied.”
Voice
Of America: US Service Member Killed In Action In
Afghanistan
“A U.S. service member was killed in action in Afghanistan on
Monday, NATO said, without providing further details. Last week,
President Donald Trump abruptly called off talks with the Taliban to
end American's longest war, citing the killing of a U.S. service
member in a Taliban attack days earlier. Monday's death was the 17th
U.S. combat death in Afghanistan this year, according to the
Pentagon's count. There also have been three non-combat deaths this
year. More than 2,400 Americans have died in the nearly 18-year war.
Across Afghanistan, militant attacks and more violence killed at least
seven people as the country prepares for presidential elections later
this month, Afghan officials said. At least five civilians, including
women and children, were killed when their vehicle struck a roadside
bomb in western Farah province on Sunday, according to Mohibullah
Mohib, spokesman for the provincial police.”
The
Washington Post: ISIS Leader Baghdadi Urges Followers To Continue
Attacks, Storm Prisons In Purported New
Recording
“The Islamic State released an audio recording Monday that
purportedly features its fugitive leader exhorting followers to carry
out attacks where they can, striking security forces and storming
prisons and camps where the militant group’s adherents now languish.
In the half-hour recording, released by the group’s al-Furqan media
wing, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi praised what he described as “daily
operations” across ”different fronts” spanning the Middle East, Africa
and Asia. The provenance of the recording is not known, though its
authenticity was not immediately questioned. Since losing control of
its self-proclaimed caliphate, which spanned parts of Syria and Iraq,
the Islamic State has slipped back to its guerrilla roots: Sleeper
cells lie low and strike when they can. Crude bombs target security
forces. Places of worship are singled out for mass-casualty attacks.
Baghdadi is one of the world’s most wanted men, having eluded a global
coalition of states for more than five years and inspiring attacks
around the globe. The United States is offering $25 million for
credible information about his whereabouts.”
Associated
Press: Bombing Kills 24 At Afghan President’s Rally; Ghani
Unhurt
“A Taliban suicide bomber on a motorcycle targeted a campaign rally
by President Ashraf Ghani in northern Afghanistan on Tuesday, killing
at least 24 people and wounding 31. Ghani was present at the venue but
was unharmed, according to his campaign chief. Just hours later, an
explosion struck near the U.S. Embassy in Kabul but details on that
blast were not immediately known. The Taliban claimed both attacks.
The violence comes as Afghanistan faces presidential elections on
Sept. 28 — a vote the Taliban vehemently oppose. The insurgent group
has warned Afghans not to vote in the election, and said their
fighters would target election campaigns as well as polling stations.
In Tuesday’s attack in northern Parwan province, the bomber rammed his
motorcycle packed with explosives into the entrance of the venue where
Ghani was campaigning on the outskirts of the city of Charakar.”
Haaretz:
Airstrike Targets Iran-Backed Militias Near Iraq-Syria Border, Media
Reports Say
“An airstrike targeted Iran-backed militias near the border between
Iraq and Syria overnight Monday, according to media reports in both
countries. One Iraqi news channel attributed the attack in Al Bukamal
to Israel. The purported strike came a week after twenty-one people
were reportedly killed in an explosion at a weapons warehouse used by
Iran-affiliated militias in Iraq's Anbar province. Iraqi military
sources and reports in Arab media outlets didn't say who was
responsible for it, but the incident was linked to recent attacks in
the country, some attributed to Israel. The explosion came a day after
drones struck Iran-backed militias in eastern Syria, killing at least
18 militia fighters. A Syrian security official said Israeli jets
staged the airstrikes, but denied there were any casualties. A series
of recent strikes in Iraq have been attributed to Israel, some taking
place near the Syrian border. The attacks were aimed at Shi’ite
militias affiliated with Iran, aimed at foiling attempts to smuggle
weapons into Syria.”
LabourList:
How Should We Regulate Online Extremism?
"Preventing online extremism has become a priority for
policy-makers in Europe. Germany was the first to legislate against
extremist content in 2018, with its NetzDG Law, and earlier this year
the EU has put forward a proposal for a regulation on preventing the
dissemination of terrorist content online. In the UK, the Home Office
and DCMS have proposed to regulate internet platforms in the online
harms white paper, which considers a much wider range of harms than
extremism and terrorism, such as bullying, child sexual exploitation
and gang-related content."
United States
Voice
Of America: Some US Lawmakers Consider Designating White Supremacists
As Terrorists
“In June, Canada labeled the white supremacist group Blood &
Honor and its armed branch, Combat 18, as terrorist organizations. In
announcing the move, Canada's public safety department said Blood
& Honor derives its ideology from “the National Socialist doctrine
of Nazi Germany” and, through Combat 18, has carried out murders and
bombings. The designation of a white supremacist group as a terrorist
organization, the latest of several by Western nations, comes as U.S.
allies respond to a recent rise in violence committed by right-wing
groups. But the U.S. government is powerless to take such action
because of the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment protections, even
though it would strengthen the hand of law enforcement agencies in
cracking down on extremist groups. “A white supremacist organization
is an ideology, it's a belief,” assistant FBI Director Michael
McGarrity testified before the House Homeland Security Committee in
May. “But they're not designated as a terrorist organization.” While
prosecutors have successfully charged dozens of Islamic State
sympathizers with providing “material support” to a foreign terrorist
organization included on a government watch list, they can't bring
similar charges against individual white nationalists.”
AL.com:
16-Year-Old Charged With Making Terrorist Threats Against Alabama
Schools
“A 16-year-old faces charges connected to threats against Douglas
High and Douglas Middle schools in Marshall County. Marshall County
Sheriff Phil Sims said the male student was arrested at DHS today. He
is charged with making terrorist threats involving the schools, a
class C felony, and is being held by juvenile authorities. The
sheriff’s office and Douglas Police Department began investigating the
threats after becoming aware of posts on social media on Sept. 14. “We
were able to quickly assess the information and make an arrest today
based on the hard work of our deputies and investigators. We will hold
students accountable for their actions that disrupt school and related
school activities,” Sims said. Authorities said during the course of
the investigation they did not believe the student or faculty were in
danger. Heavy law enforcement presence was at both schools today as a
precaution.”
The
Dallas Morning News: Arlington Teen Who Tried To Recruit Man To
Terrorist Group Gets 20-Year Sentence
“An Arlington teenager who tried to help a man join a Pakistani
terrorist group has been sentenced to 20 years in federal prison.
Michael Kyle Sewell, 18, pleaded guilty in May to conspiring to
provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. U.S.
District Judge Reed O'Connor gave him the maximum sentence Monday.
According to authorities, Sewell encouraged another man to join
Lashkar-e-Taiba, an Islamic extremist group based in Pakistan that
wants to establish a caliphate in South Asia. The group was behind a
series of attacks in Mumbai, India, that killed 166 people in 2008. In
November, Sewell conversed with the man — who is not named in court
documents — through social media and advised him to join either
Lashkar-e-Taiba or the Taliban. He gave the man the contact
information for someone who could facilitate his travel to Pakistan.
Unbeknownst to Sewell, that facilitator was an undercover FBI agent.
(According to court documents, Sewell previously had bragged to the
undercover agent about his skills, including Greco-Roman wrestling,
marksmanship and boxing, but said he would need several years of
training and Lasik surgery before he himself would be able to join the
extremists.)”
Syria
Voice
Of America: Isolated Among Extremists: Conditions Deteriorate For
Children Of Islamic State
“Small children usually flock to photographers as they snap
pictures in refugee camps. They make silly faces, flash victory signs
and jostle to be in the front of the shot. But nothing is usual about
the children of Islamic State militants in Syria. At the Ain Issa
camp, some children of foreign IS fighters shun the camera while
others flash their middle fingers or pretend-shoot the cameraman as if
their hands were guns. They are among the more than 50,000 children of
militants now stuck in camps after the last IS stronghold in Syria
fell in March. Most are with their mothers, the wives and other
female relatives of the fighters of the so-called “Caliphate.” Their
fathers are almost all dead or in jail. The international media have
called these camps “incubators” for an IS resurgence. But aid
organizations say that despite their exposure to violence and
extremism, children in these camps can be rescued, rehabilitated and
reintegrated into the outside world. However, action must be taken
soon to be effective, they add, as the trauma deepens day by day. The
children are mostly under 12-years-old, according to UNICEF, and were
born in IS-controlled areas or brought in by parents. Some were
coerced or forced into supporting the group.”
Kurdistan24:
Syrian Gov. Threatens US-Backed SDF, Calls Them
'Terrorists’
“The Syrian Foreign Ministry on Sunday described the Syrian
Democratic Forces (SDF) as “separatist terrorist” forces and asserted
Damascus is determined “to reclaim every inch of Syrian territory.”
The ministry made the statement in a letter directed to the United
Nations Secretary-General, the pro-Syrian government channel SANA
reported. It claimed the SDF was implementing “US and Israeli schemes
in the region and prolonging the war of terror in Syria.” The
statement comes after recorded video messages by Fadi Efais, a leader
of the pro-Iranian Liwa al-Baqir militia, affiliated to Nawaf
al-Bashir, the leader of the Baggara tribe, went public. In a video
released on Sept. 12, Efais urged Syrian tribes to join regime forces
to “liberate all areas controlled by SDF forces,” and claimed the
Baggara and other tribes were supporting Damascus. “We do not allow
the Kurds to occupy [us], neither the Americans nor the Israeli
Zionists.”
Iran
The
Financial Times: Iran Has Embarked On A Dangerous
Provocation
“The confrontation between the US and Iran risks spinning out of
control. If the weekend attacks on Saudi Arabian oil facilities were
launched by Iranian proxies, they will mark a reckless escalation both
of Tehran’s resistance to US pressure and of its struggle for
supremacy with its biggest regional rival. The incident has laid bare,
too, the vulnerability of the Saudi oil industry despite its vast
military spending — and the influence the kingdom still exerts on
global crude prices despite the US shale boom. The pressure on
President Donald Trump to retaliate may be irresistible. A wiser,
though difficult, course would be to seek ways to de-escalate the
situation. Much is still unclear about Saturday’s attacks. There are
claims that they could have originated in Iranian territory, which
would amount to an act of war. If Iranian proxies were responsible, it
has yet to be established whether they were by drones launched by
Houthi rebels from Yemen, or missiles fired from Iraq by
Iranian-linked militias. If the former, their sophistication suggests
they could only have been carried out with Iranian assistance. If the
attacks originated from Iraq, a US ally, that complicates any US
response.”
NPR:
Sophistication Of Saudi Airstrike Points To Iranian
Involvement
“An attack over the weekend crippled a major Saudi Arabian oil
facility. Evidence suggests the strike may have involved both missiles
and drones and means Iran probably played a role.”
The
New York Times: Trump Says Iran Appears Responsible For Saudi Attack
But That He Wants To Avoid War
“President Trump said Monday that Iran appeared to have been
responsible for the weekend attack on Saudi Arabian oil facilities.
But he also said he would “like to avoid” a military conflict with
Tehran, emphasized his interest in diplomacy and played down the
attack’s jolt to the global oil market. Asked at the White House
whether Iran was behind the strikes on Saturday that crippled much of
Saudi Arabia’s oil output, Mr. Trump said, “It’s looking that way.”
But he stopped short of a definitive confirmation, adding, “That’s
being checked out right now.” The attack was the most destructive blow
to Saudi Arabia since it began waging war in Yemen more than four
years ago. The damage inside Saudi Arabia helped drive world oil
prices up by 10 percent on Monday, the fastest rise in more than a
decade. Mr. Trump warned that the United States has fearsome military
capabilities and is prepared for war if necessary. “With all that
being said, we’d certainly like to avoid it,” he said. “I know they
want to make a deal,” he said of Iranian officials, whom he has been
trying to draw into talks over their nuclear program and other issues.
“At some point it will work out.”
Iraq
Iraqi
News: Seven Iraqis Wounded In Two Bomb Blasts In
Baghdad
“Seven Iraqi people were wounded Monday in two bomb explosions in
northern Baghdad, a security source said. Speaking to Alsumaria News,
the source said that a roadside bomb exploded in al Shaab area, north
of Baghdad, leaving two civilians wounded. Two other explosive charges
went off in al Shorta and al A’lam districts in southern Baghdad,
leaving five people wounded, the source added. Violence in the country
has surged further with the emergence of Islamic State extremist
militants who proclaimed an “Islamic Caliphate” in Iraq and Syria in
2014. The surge in violence between armed groups and government forces
has resulted in over five million internally displaced persons across
Iraq and left more than 11 million in need of humanitarian assistance,
according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian
Affairs.”
Iraqi
News: Iraqi Troops Destroy Four Islamic State Terrorist Hotbeds In
Diyala
“Iraqi security forces have destroyed four terrorist hotbeds of the
Islamic State group in the eastern province of Diyala, a police
spokesman said. “A security operation was launched in Mandali town, 90
km east of Baqubah, where troops of the Iraqi army and police
destroyed four Islamic State terrorist hotbeds and seized a large
cache of ammunition and four locally-made explosive charges,” the
Iraqi Baghdad Today news website quoted Diyala police spokesman Col.
Ghaleb al-Attia as saying in a press statement Monday. The operation
was conducted by a joint force of Diyala emergency and SWAT
directorates, the spokesman added. Also, troops of the Iraqi army and
Diyala intelligence took part in the operation. In January 2015, Iraqi
forces announced liberation of Diyala province from Islamic State
extremist militants who proclaimed an “Islamic Caliphate” in Iraq and
Syria in 2014. The province has seen months of fighting between Iraqi
troops and IS militants especially in the Jalawla and Saadiyah areas
in the province’s north and areas near the town of Muqdadiyah.”
Kurdistan
24: Iraq Launches Anti-ISIS Operation Near Saudi
Border
“Iraq’s Joint Operations Command announced on early Monday the
start of a military operation to “dry up the sources of terrorism” in
the desert areas between the provinces of Anbar and Najaf along the
Saudi Arabian border. This marks the latest military campaign Iraq has
launched among four other operations that took place in Anbar and
north of Baghdad and then in remote areas of Diyala and Nineveh. The
military operation, dubbed “The Will of Victory,” is being carried out
almost weekly and in phases to pursue sleeper cells and remnants of
the so-called Islamic State, which continues to reorganize and launch
attacks across different parts of the country. “The fifth stage of
this operation began at dawn on Monday in the desert of Anbar, south
of the international road that borders Karbala and Najaf to the
Saudi-Iraqi border,” the Joint Operations Command said in a statement
seen by Kurdistan 24. It added that the detachments from different
parts of the Iraqi security apparatus are participating in the
military push, including the Iran-backed Popular Mobilization Forces
(PMF), with aerial support from the Iraqi air force and the
international anti-ISIS coalition."
Turkey
BBC
News: Turkey Says Three Million Could Return To Safe Zone In
Syria
“Turkey's president has said that up to three million Syrian
refugees could return to their country to live in a "safe zone" in the
north. Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the zone - which is already being set
up in co-operation with the US - needed to be extended for the goal to
be met. US-backed Kurdish fighters earlier moved back from a strip of
Syrian territory along the Turkish border. Turkey regards the Kurdish
forces as terrorists. Mr Erdogan's comments came after talks in Ankara
with the presidents of Russia and Iran, Vladimir Putin and Hassan
Rouhani. The Kurds have yet to respond to Mr Erdogan's plan, but they
are almost certain to bitterly oppose it, the BBC's Alan Johnston
reports. Earlier this month, Turkey warned it might reopen the route
for Syrian refugees to enter Europe if it did not get more
international support for the "safe zone" in northern Syria. Turkey is
hosting more than 3.6 million Syrians who have fled the civil war that
began in 2011.”
Afghanistan
Associated
Press: Jihad, History Link Taliban To Al-Qaida In
Afghanistan
“The Taliban promised Washington during months of negotiations that
the United States would never again be attacked from Afghan soil. Such
a pledge would have included al-Qaida, which planned the 9/11 attacks
from inside Afghanistan. Yet jihad, or holy war, and a shared history
continue to bind the two militant groups, and there’s no evidence of a
break in relations between the long-time allies. U.S. Secretary of
State Mike Pompeo had said the Taliban agreed to cut ties with
al-Qaida as part of peace negotiations, which President Donald Trump
abruptly called off last week. The al-Qaida leadership still vows
allegiance to Taliban chief Maulvi Hibatullah Akhunzada, and al-Qaida
has been growing stronger in recent years, according to analysts and
experts. The group has overcome setbacks from the establishment of a
rival Islamic State affiliate in eastern Afghanistan and from U.S.
drone strikes that had reduced its numbers. The militants even
established a subsidiary in the region called al-Qaida in the Indian
Subcontinent, with ties to jihadi groups as far away as Myanmar.
“Since 2017, the group has recovered meaningfully,” said Asfandyar
Mir, a fellow at the Center for International Security and Cooperation
at Stanford University.”
Long
War Journal: Taliban Supplies Al Qaeda With Explosives For Attacks In
Major Afghan Cities
“The Taliban continues to work closely with al Qaeda’s branch in
South Asia. Afghan Commandos and a unit from the National Directorate
of Security raided a Taliban warehouse that was used to store
explosives that would be used by Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent
(AQIS) to conduct attacks in the Afghan capital and other “major
cities.” The news comes only one week after U.S. Secretary of State
Mike Pompeo said that al Qaeda is “a shadow of its former self in
Afghanistan” and the Taliban “would break from al Qaeda publicly and
permanently” to sign a so-called peace deal, which was canceled by
President Trump. “Commandos and NDS special Unit 703 with support from
the Air Force” attacked a Taliban “stronghold and warehouse of
explosive materials” in Ghazni’s Muqur district, the Ministry of
Defense (MoD) reported on Sept. 14. Muqur is a contested district, and
Ghazni is a known haven for al Qaeda. Afghan forces attacked two
bases, killed 26 “terrorists,” and destroyed 120 barrels of explosives
and “2000 kilograms of primary explosive substances.” The explosive
materials “were transported to Ghazni from the neighboring country.”
Although not named, that country is certainly Pakistan, which borders
Ghazni province.”
NPR:
Taliban Lift Ban On Red Cross, Pledge To Protect Aid Workers In
Afghanistan
“The Taliban are rescinding a 5-month-old ban that prevented staff
with the International Committee of the Red Cross from working in
Afghanistan, saying they also will renew security guarantees for the
aid workers. The new arrangement was worked out during talks in Doha,
the capital of Qatar, according to representatives from both the
Taliban and the Red Cross. “In a message sent via social media, a
Taliban spokesman said they had all instructed all their fighters to
'pave the way' for the International Committee of the Red Cross to
resume work,” NPR's Diaa Hadid reports from Islamabad. “The
organization is one of the largest working in Afghanistan today —
they've faced deadly attacks in the past — including in 2017, when
eight Red Cross workers were killed,” Hadid says. In April, the
Taliban issued threats to both the Red Cross and the World Health
Organization, saying their staffs would be targeted if they kept
working in Afghanistan. Those threats came during vaccination
campaigns. Schaerer Juan-Pedro, who leads the International Committee
of the Red Cross delegation in Afghanistan, says the two sides
reestablished a “common understanding” about the Red Cross' work in
Afghanistan.”
Yemen
The
New York Times: The Secret Of Yemen’s War? We Can End
It
“Yemen’s war has to end. And the secret is that the way it ends is
no secret at all. On Sept. 14, a drone attack on Aramco facilities in
Saudi Arabia destroyed approximately half of Saudi crude oil
production. The Houthi militia in Yemen claimed responsibility for the
attack; Saudi Arabia and the United States, however, are pointing
fingers at Iran. This situation threatens to turn regional tensions
into a shooting war, as well as destabilizing the global economy. And
for Yemen, the risk of being drawn into a war between states, and not
merely between proxies, is now very real. If more evidence was needed
for the urgency of a political solution in Yemen, then these attacks
provide it. Most wars appear to have no solution. They are occasioned
by rival states, fueled by rival ideologies and impermeable to the
cries of the victims. Yemen is in some ways no different. Every single
family in the country has lost a generation of education among its
children; every single family has seen a relative or a friend killed.
Few see the sense in a war among their leaders that costs each and
every one of them so dearly. This is a conflict the international
community can resolve. And because we can, we must. The details of
this settlement are in plain sight. Seven elements will necessarily
underpin any agreement to end the war.”
The
National: Top Houthi Rebel Commander Killed In Southern
Yemen
“A high-ranking Houthi commander and several other rebel fighters
were killed in Yemen’s southern Dhalea province during two days of
clashes. Capt Majed Al Shouaibi, a spokesman for the pro-government
forces, said the rebel commander was killed on Saturday. “Maj Gen Adel
Mokbel Abu Esba, commander of the 135th brigade of the Houthi militia,
was killed in clashes with our forces in Al Reibi on the Hajer front
with a number of his fighters,” Capt Al Shouaibi told The National.
The rebels reported the commander’s death on affiliated news websites
and broadcast his funeral on their Al Masirah TV channel. A coalition
of militias known as the Southern Joint Forces repelled a Houthi
attempt to seize Dhalea earlier this year and have pushed the rebels
back to the northern edges of the province. Fighting has flared up in
northern Dhalea over the past week, Capt Al Shouaibi said.”
Lebanon
The
National: Special Tribunal For Lebanon Issues New Charges Against
Hezbollah Suspect
“The Special Tribunal for Lebanon unveiled charges on Monday that
widen the investigation into assassination attempts and killings
believed to be linked to the 2005 murder of prime minister Rafiq
Hariri. The charges come six years after the last indictment was
issued and as the court process into Mr Hariri's murder enters the
final stages. Pre-trial judge Daniel Fransen lifted the
confidentiality of his decision confirming the new charges against
Salim Ayyash. They relate to the assassination of former Lebanese
Communist Party secretary general George Hawi in a car bombing in June
2005. They also concern the attempted murders of Lebanese politicians
Elias Al Murr in July 2005 and Marwan Hamadeh in October 2004. Mr
Ayyash is one five members of the Lebanese group Hezbollah who have
been charged over Hariri's killing, all of whom are being tried in
their absence. The new charges against him include assassination
attempts on 19 people. There were a string of car bombings in Lebanon
against anti-Syrian journalists and politicians about the time of
Hariri’s death, which led to the withdrawal of Syrian troops after 29
years of occupation.”
The
Washington Free Beacon: Hezbollah, Operating Under Constraints, Hopes
To Avoid War
“Two weeks ago, a third Lebanon war was narrowly averted. Hezbollah
fired several anti-tank missiles at an IDF ambulance and missed. Both
Hezbollah and Israel breathed a sigh of relief. The reasons for
Israel's reluctance for an all-out war have been widely discussed
(Hezbollah's missile arsenal, international opprobrium, the election
cycle). Less understood are Hezbollah's reservations. But the terror
group, too, operates under constraints. It's caught between Iran and
Lebanon. Hezbollah is a contractor. Its real headquarters isn't Beirut
but Tehran, to which it owes its very existence (Iran pulled together
various Lebanese Shiite groups to form Hezbollah in the 1980s). Former
U.S. ambassador to Lebanon Jeffrey Feltman calls Hezbollah “the most
successful, and the most deadly, export of the 1979 Iranian
revolution.” While Hezbollah may be at its militarily strongest ever,
with a missile arsenal estimated at 130,000 and troops battle-tested
in Syria, it's still no match for the Israel Defense Forces. And while
Iran must be grating its teeth as it watches Israel knock out its
proxy's assets one after another, it's not about to throw its most
valuable chess piece into a game it can't win. Also, Hezbollah has
money issues. That's because its patron has money issues.”
The
Wall Street Journal: Islamic State Releases Purported Audio Message
From Leader Baghdadi
“Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi ordered his followers to
redouble their efforts to further the extremist group’s cause, in an
audio message apparently aimed at raising morale after it lost control
over its self-proclaimed caliphate in parts of Syria and Iraq earlier
this year. The purported Baghdadi message follows Islamic State’s
April release of what was the first known video footage of him in
nearly five years. Severely weakened by the five-year military
campaign that forced it underground in March, the extremist group
remains a potent threat after reverting to insurgency while seeking to
inspire attacks globally. “O soldiers of Allah everywhere, know that
what is coming is good…so the efforts must be redoubled and one’s best
must be given in all aspects, whether in preaching or media or
military or security,” Baghdadi said in a 30-minute recording,
according to monitoring group SITE Intelligence.”
Libya
Reuters:
East Libyan Forces Carry Out Air Strike On Central City, Widening
Front
“Eastern Libyan forces on Monday mounted an air strike on the
central city of Sirte held by the internationally recognised
government, an official and residents said, widening a conflict
engulfing the capital Tripoli. Khalifa Haftar’s eastern-based Libyan
National Army (LNA) force has been trying since April to take Tripoli,
which is held by the internationally recognised government, with a
ground campaign supported by air strikes. The campaign has displaced
more than 120,000 people in Tripoli alone, killed hundreds of
civilians, and risks disrupting oil supplies from the country in chaos
since the toppling of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. There have been
LNA-claimed strikes in recent days on Sirte, some 450km (280 miles) by
road east of Tripoli, but mainly on the outskirts, residents
said. Haftar, who is allied to an eastern parallel administration,
might be trying to shift the frontline from Sirte away from Tripoli
where he has been unable to breach the city’s defences and even lost
his main forward base in Gharyan, said Emad Badi, a Libya
researcher. Such a move would also pre-empt attacks on the main LNA
supply base in Jufra, a central oasis, which the Tripoli forces have
attacked by air, said Badi, a non-resident scholar at the Middle East
Institute.”
Nigeria
The
Defense Post: Boko Haram Suicide Bomb And Gun Attack At Maiduguri
University Military Camp
“Boko Haram fighters staged gun and suicide bomb attacks on a
military camp outside a university in Nigeria’s northeastern Borno
state, the emergency services said on Monday. The insurgents attacked
the camp’s outlying the perimeter wall of the University of Maiduguri
at around 8:30 p.m. on Sunday, September 15, forcing troops to
withdraw before a bomber detonated his explosives. Maiduguri is the
birthplace of the Boko Haram movement and has been repeatedly attacked
by the group. Known as UniMaid, the university campus is on the
outskirts of the city, on the road southeast to Bama. “We evacuated
the remains of a suicide bomber who blew himself up inside the lodging
used by soldiers guarding the rear parameter of the university,” said
Bello Dambatta, the Head of the Rapid Response Team of the Borno State
Emergency Management Agency. “Luckily no soldier was hurt in the
attack as there were no troops inside the building at the time,”
Danbatta told AFP. The fighters had waded through deep trenches dug
around the university fence to stave off Boko Haram incursions.
“Everybody ran out of the hostels, thinking the university was under
attack because the sounds and explosion were very close,” said student
Rebecca Simon.”
Africa
Asharq
Al-Awsat: Tunisia Kills ‘Terrorist’ Who Pledged Allegiance To
Al-Qaeda
“Tunisian security services specialized in the fight against
terrorism have killed a militant belonging to the terrorist “Uqba ibn
Nafi battalion,” which pledged allegiance to al-Qaeda in the Islamic
Maghreb. Security sources said that the defendant, 30, resided in
Monastir (central eastern Tunisia). He was accused of glorifying
terrorism, adopting the takfiri ideology, and inciting people to join
terrorist organizations. Preliminary security investigations revealed
that he had downloaded data and information about the Uqba ibn Nafi
battalion on his own account and was communicating with extremist
elements who have joined terrorist organizations abroad. The defendant
asserted that he has adopted the extremist ideology within the branch
of the Africa Foundation, an affiliate of the Uqba ibn Nafi battalion
in Monastir. It is noteworthy that the battalion has been established
in Tunisia since 2012, and is affiliated with al-Qaeda in the Islamic
Maghreb. Most of its elements have carried out operations within Ansar
al-Sharia organization, which has been classified as a terrorist
organization by the Tunisian authorities and the USA.”
Xinhua:
Morocco, Senegal Renew Support To Defeat Regional
Terrorism
“Morocco and Senegal renewed, on Monday in Rabat, their support to
regional and international initiatives to put an end to terrorism and
extremism in the Sahel-Saharan zone. The two countries also agreed to
intensify their cooperation in counter-terrorism field through the
exchange of experience and information, said a joint statement
published after talks with Moroccan Minister of Foreign Affairs Nasser
Bourita, and his Senegalese counterpart Amadou Ba. Bourita and Ba
praised the exceptional quality and density of the long-standing
relations between the two countries, added the statement. They
expressed “deep satisfaction” to the progress made in bilateral
cooperation, meanly in health, agriculture, transport, fisheries and
diplomacy, said the statement. The two ministers agreed to encourage
mutual investment and take the necessary measures to create new
investment opportunities for the business communities of both
countries. They underlined the enormous economic and trade
opportunities offered by both countries, said the statement.”
France
Asharq
Al-Awsat: France To Press To Drop Sudan From US Terror
List
“French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said Monday that Paris
will exert efforts to drop Sudan from the US blacklist of state
sponsors of terrorism and to support efforts to reintegrate the
country into the international community. Le Drian was in Khartoum for
a one-day visit, the first such trip to Sudan by France's top diplomat
in more than a decade. His visit comes as the northeast African
country transitions to civilian rule after decades of
authoritarianism. “We will use our influence to ensure that Sudan is
removed from this list,” Le Drian said at a joint press conference
with his Sudanese counterpart Asma Mohamed Abdalla after the two held
talks. “It is the way to ensure that we can consider a new
relationship (for Sudan) with financial institutions, everything is
obviously linked,” he said, asked by AFP if France would back efforts
to remove Sudan from Washington's blacklist. Decades of US
blacklisting along with a trade embargo imposed on Sudan in 1997 has
kept overseas investors away from the country, in turn isolating it
from the global economy. Sudan's worsening economic situation was the
key trigger for nationwide protests that finally led to the ouster of
longtime ruler Omar al-Bashir in April.”
Germany
Deutsche
Welle: Germany To Extend Anti-IS Mission: Reports
“The German government has reached a compromise to extend the
Bundeswehr's anti-”Islamic State” mission in Syria and Iraq, according
to media reports. The Christian Democrats (CDU) and Social Democrats
(SPD) have been in a tussle over extending the mission's mandate, with
the SPD demanding the Bundeswehr end its role. Germany has four
Tornado reconnaissance jets, an AWAC aircraft and an in-flight
refueling tanker based in Jordan carrying out missions as part of a
US-led international coalition against IS. The Bundeswehr also has a
military training mission in Iraq. Frustrated soldiers and a defense
system struggling to repair its way into a fully functioning military.
And a new defense minister who will have to regain confidence from
army representatives. According to a text of the CDU-SPD agreement
seen by several German media outlets, the Tornados and refueling
tanker will be given a mandate to continue operations until March 31,
2020. The mandate was set to expire at the end of October and would
normally have been extended by a year. The Iraqi military training
mission and AWAC flights will be extended “no later than October 31,
2020,” according to the compromise.”
Fair
Observer: How Crime Helps Finance Radical-Right
Terrorism
“Little research has been done on the financing of radical-right
terrorist groups, especially when it comes to Germany. However, the
finding within terrorism research that “money is the lifeblood of any
organization, including the ones waging clandestine wars,” as Dipak K.
Gupta puts it, also applies to terrorism on the far right. Indeed,
several financial sources for (West) German right-wing terrorism since
the 1970s can be found: In some cases, sympathizers or activists
themselves brought in their own private, personal assets, such as an
inheritance or savings. Existing evidence indicates that the vast
majority of right-wing terrorist groups financed their activities and
underground life through crime, particularly bank robberies and theft
— sometimes attaining considerable amounts of money. The Hepp/Kexel
Group, led by the neo-Nazis Odfried Hepp and Walther Kexel, active in
the early 1980s, serves as an example. This was a well co-ordinated
terrorist group with a pronounced political profile that
systematically committed bank robberies to finance its activities. The
main enemy was “US imperialism,” particularly the US troops deployed
in West Germany. The Hepp/Kexel was well equipped for the underground
fight.”
Asia
Voice
Of America: India’s Top Court Asks Government To Return Normal Life To
Kashmir
“Six weeks after the Indian government imposed a partial clampdown
in Kashmir, the Supreme Court directed authorities to “make the very
best endeavor” to return normal life to the disputed Himalayan region.
Judges also asked the Indian government to ensure smooth functioning
of schools, hospitals and public transport. The Supreme Court did not
order the government to take specific actions to address the crisis.
India imposed a security lockdown and communication restrictions in
the restive region on August 5, after scrapping its partial autonomy
and bringing it directly under New Delhi’s control. Since then some
curbs have been eased and most landlines have been restored. But the
Kashmir valley continues to be largely shuttered, and mobile and
internet services are still blocked. Although schools have opened,
most students are not attending classes. An estimated 1,000 people
including regional political leaders are in detention. The court’s
ruling came in response to petitioners who have challenged the
restrictions in the state calling them “draconian.”
Southeast Asia
Foreign
Affairs: The Islamic State Meets Southeast Asia
“On March 23, 2019, U.S.-backed Kurdish and Arab militias captured
the last territorial redoubt of the Islamic State (or ISIS) in Iraq
and Syria. After a bloody, four-year campaign, a caliphate
approximately the size of the United Kingdom had been reduced to a
1.5-square-kilometer village in eastern Syria—then wiped from the map
entirely. Six months later, ISIS is still reeling from the shock. ISIS
militants initially sheltered underground in enclaves throughout the
Levant. They began a sustained campaign of assassinations and
ambushes against political power brokers and security forces,
particularly in Iraq. At the same time, the organization’s affiliate
and franchise groups grew in importance and their territorial reach
extended east. Southeast Asia, in particular, has assumed a greater
role in the terrorist group’s global strategy, despite having been
overshadowed by higher-profile wilayats, or provinces, of the
self-proclaimed caliphate in the past. The number of ISIS fighters,
suicide bombers, organized training programs, and propaganda videos
originating from the region has grown steadily in recent years.
Without a claim to physical territory anymore, the group’s information
operations have become even more critical to its success. The nature
and spread of ISIS as an organization have changed as a result.”
Yahoo
News: Singaporean Man Who Supports ISIS Charged With Terrorist
Financing, Detained Under ISA
“A Singaporean man who allegedly sent money to two individuals to
finance terrorist acts was charged in the State Courts on Monday (16
September). Ahmed Hussein Abdul Kadir Sheik Uduman, 34, who has been
detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA) since August last year,
was radicalised and wanted to undertake armed violence in support of
the terrorist group Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), the
Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said in a statement. Hussein is accused
of two offences under the Terrorism (Suppression of Financing) Act. He
allegedly transferred S$1,059 on 26 July, 2016 to a person known as
Patrick Gray though Western Union Global Network, believing that the
money would benefit a person who was facilitating terrorist acts. The
person is named as Sheikh Abdullah al-Faisal in court documents. He
was also charged with sending US$62 (S$85.14) via PayPal to a person
known as Nzingha Kokayi, believing that the monies would benefit
Sheikh Abdullah. If convicted, Hussein’s Order of Detention will be
cancelled, and he will serve the jail term imposed by the court, MHA
said. “To prevent him spreading his radical ideas to other inmates, he
will be held separately, and will continue to undergo rehabilitation
whilst serving his prison sentence.”
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