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Eye on Extremism
January 7, 2021
The Hill: RNC Communications Director Calls Capitol Violence 'Domestic Terrorism'
“The communications director of the Republican National Committee (RNC) condemned as “domestic terrorism” the violence perpetrated by a pro-Trump mob at the Capitol on Wednesday. “What happened today was domestic terrorism. Our soldiers have died carrying the American flag into battle for our freedom. To see that flag used in the name of unfounded conspiracy theories is a disgrace to the nation, and every decent American should be disgusted by it,” Michael Ahrens said on Twitter. Thousands of rioters raided the Capitol building as Congress was certifying the Electoral College vote, forcing the building to shut down and lawmakers to evacuate. Rioters broke windows and invaded the House chamber. At least one woman was shot and killed in the ensuing chaos. At one point, a pipe bomb was found near the RNC headquarters, and the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee was evacuated after a suspicious package was discovered. Ahrens confirmed on Twitter that a suspicious device was found, tweeting “RNC staff was safely evacuated from the building and the device has been successfully detonated by a bomb squad.”
Al Monitor: IS Cells Escalate Attacks On Civilians, Regime Soldiers In Eastern Syria
“Backed by air support from the US-led international coalition against the Islamic State (IS), the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) raided the village of Abriha in the eastern countryside of Deir ez-Zor on Dec. 19 and dismantled an IS network. The operation resulted in the arrest of Ali al-Jadoua, a prominent IS leader, along with his two assistants Khalaf al-Qura and Muhammad al-Qura. An SDF officer told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, “Jadoua held several positions in IS. He was the mastermind behind the assassination of some Arab tribal sheikhs and leaders in the region. He also orchestrated the killing of a number of SDF forces and was behind the extortion of civilians and merchants. He coordinated with other IS leaders who are yet to be found and arrested.” He added, “During the period of IS’ control of Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor, Jadoua carried out field executions against the prisoners of the Syrian regime forces and beheaded [regime supporters], including women. He extorted civilians through his cells and threatened them with kidnapping and killing if they failed to pay taxes to the organization. He threatened merchants who did not abide by his rules either with beheading, bombing their houses or booby-trapping their cars.”
Sahara Reporters: Scores Missing As Boko Haram Terrorists Attack Another Borno Community
“Many residents of Uba community in the Askira/Uba Local Government Area of Borno State have yet to be accounted for after Boko Haram terrorists attacked the community on Tuesday. An eyewitness told SaharaReporters that the insurgents invaded the community on gun trucks and motorcycles around 7:30pm and carted away food items from shops and houses before setting them ablaze. He added that the villagers fled into the bush while others ran to neighbouring towns. “Most of the shops on the major roads were burgled; they opened them and went away with goods and other people’s belongings. After doing this, they set the shops and some houses on fire. In fact, because they couldn’t open one of the shops easily, they shot it with a rocket launcher,” the source said. “We still have not found some of those who ran away and we have not found any corpse yet. Some came back but scores of people have yet to be found.” The attack on Uba comes barely 24 hours after the insurgents attacked a military settlement in Kuda, near Chibok town, killing six soldiers and one civilian. Boko Haram insurgency has caused over 35,000 deaths since 2009. The terror group wants an Islamic caliphate in Northern Nigeria.”
United States
“Lawmakers resumed counting Electoral College votes on Wednesday, hours after a mob of Trump loyalists stormed the Capitol resulting in the death of one woman, with Vice President Mike Pence gaveling in the session and saying that Wednesday was a “dark day in the history of the United States Capitol.” “To those who wreaked havoc in our Capitol today, you did not win,” Mr. Pence said. “Violence never wins. Freedom wins. And this is still the people’s house.” Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky, promptly vowed that the Senate would finish its work Wednesday night, undeterred by “failed insurrection.” “They tried to disrupt our democracy,” he said. “They failed. They failed.” Earlier in the evening, Speaker Nancy Pelosi wrote in a letter to colleagues that they were determined to reconvene saying, “We always knew this responsibility would take us into the night.” Violence overtook the Capitol on Wednesday afternoon, when a mob loyal to President Trump stormed the building, halting Congress’s counting of the votes as the police evacuated lawmakers in a scene of violence, chaos and disruption that shook the core of American democracy.”
Associated Press: More Than A Week Later, FBI Avoids Terror Label For Bombing
“The FBI investigation into whether the Nashville bombing was a terrorist act has sparked criticism about a possible racial double standard and drawn questions from downtown business owners whose insurance coverage could be affected by the bureau’s assessment. More than a week after an explosion that struck at the heart of a major American city, the FBI has resisted labeling it an act of terrorism, an indication that evidence gathered so far does not conclusively establish that the bomber was motivated by political ideology — a key factor in any formal declaration of terrorism. The bureau is still examining evidence and has not announced any conclusions, but investigators are known to be reviewing whether Anthony Warner believed in conspiracy theories involving aliens and 5G cellphone technology. Warner died in the Christmas Day explosion of a recreational vehicle that also wounded three other people. “When we assess an event for domestic terrorism nexus, it has to be tied to an ideology. It’s the use of force or violence in the furtherance of a political or social ideology or event. We haven’t tied that yet,” Doug Korneski, the FBI agent in charge of the agency’s Memphis office, told reporters last week at a news conference.”
New York Post: Trump Orders Pompeo To Consider Banning Antifa Members From Entering US
“President Trump has signed an executive order asking Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to determine if the far-left group Antifa can be classified a terrorist organization — and to bar its members from entering the country. A Tuesday memorandum signed by the outgoing president instructs Pompeo — in consultation with Acting Attorney General Jeffrey A. Rosen and Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf — to “assess whether to classify” Antifa as a terrorist group, backing up a promise he made months ago. “The Department of Justice has already publicly confirmed that actions by Antifa and similar groups meet the standard for domestic terrorism,” the memo reads. “The violence spurred on by Antifa — such as hurling projectiles and incendiary devices at police, burning vehicles and violently confronting police in defiance of local curfews — is dangerous to human life and to the fabric of our nation.” The order also states it would ensure “immigration benefits may be granted only to those individuals who will follow the laws that govern all United States citizens.”
“Thousands of pro-Trump rioters descended on the US Capitol building on Wednesday during Congress' attempt to certify Joe Biden as the winner of the 2020 Presidential Election. Hundreds of those armed insurrectionists broke into the building itself, forcing members of Congress to huddle in safe locations until local police and members of the DC National Guard had secured the premises. In addition to pro-Trump regalia, the group also sported clothing, accessories, and symbols associated with largely far-right, racist extremist groups. Below are images and descriptions of some of the most recognizable groups and symbols present at the Capitol. A member of a labor union (R) debates with a conservative protester wearing a Kekistan flag during competing demonstrations in Portland, Oregon, US. Jim Urquhart/Reuters The flag, which mimics a Nazi war flag, is the purported banner for a fictional country known as “Kekistan” created by white nationalist users of 4chan, a messaging board home to racist and hateful chat groups. The nation is ruled by a frog-headed deity called “Kek,” normally represented by Pepe the Frog.”
Syria
Air Force Magazine: Airstrikes Continue Against ISIS In Iraq And Syria
“The air campaign against the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria continues, as the U.S. withdraws forces from the region and the operation has largely fallen off the public’s radar. Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve on Jan. 6 disclosed that throughout November 2020, the coalition conducted 14 airstrikes consisting of 34 total engagements in Iraq and Syria. In Iraq, this included 22 engagements resulting in 35 ISIS fighters killed and one weapons cache destroyed. In Syria, the coalition conducted seven strikes consisting of 12 engagements, though the results of those strikes were not disclosed. The total marks a slight increase from the previous month’s total of 10 strikes, but is a sharp drop from previous years, according to OIR. In November 2019, the coalition conducted 153 airstrikes in support of the operation—a significant decrease from the 1,424 conducted in November 2018. “CJTF-OIR and partner forces have liberated nearly 110,000 square kilometers (42,471 square miles) from Daesh. As a result, 7.7 million people no longer live under Daesh oppression,” the coalition said in a statement, using another term for ISIS. “CJTF-OIR remains committed to the enduring defeat of Daesh to improve conditions for peace and stability in the region and to protect all our homelands from the Daesh terrorist threat.”
Iran
Eurasia Review: What Are Sources Of Iran’s Financing Of Terrorist Groups?
“Mohammad Reza Naghdi, deputy coordinator of the IRGC, admitted that Iran has spent billions of dollars in the region over the past 30 years, in an interview with “Studio Negah Yek”, of the first channel of Iranian TV. Of course, the IRGC’s budget and its financial aid to its allied forces in the region is not clear, but the main income of the IRGC, in addition to its dedicated official budget by the government, is provided from both domestic and foreign sources. The IRGC is currently involved in all economic and financial affairs in Iran and is the owner or shareholder of the largest commercial and economic sectors of the country, while it is exempt from paying taxes, and even the government does not supervise the IRGC’s financial affairs. The IRGC controls several berths in the Persian Gulf ports and exports and imports from these berths without customs control, including oil, so nobody is aware of the IRGC’s revenue. Recently, some Hezbollah and Hamas officials announced huge financial contributions from the IRGC to them. In his speech, Mohammad Reza Naghdi introduced these countries as Iran’s strategic depth in the region.”
Pakistan
Associated Press: Pakistani Shiites Continue Sit-In Over Killing Of 11 Miners
“Hundreds of minority Shiites continued a sit-in for a fourth straight day Wednesday in southwestern Pakistan to protest the killing of 11 Shiite Hazara coal miners by the Islamic State group. Despite Prime Minister Imran Khan’s request that the miners be buried, family members insisted they would do so only when Prime Minister Imran Khan personally visits them to assure their protection. Residents and relatives began their protest Sunday on the outskirts of the city of Quetta after IS militants abducted and then shot and killed the miners in Baluchistan province. Six died at the scene and five, critically wounded, died on the way to a hospital. The Sunni IS affiliate has declared war on minority Shiite Muslims in Pakistan and Afghanistan and staged dozens of attacks in the two counties since emerging in the region in 2014. Pakistan’s Hazara community has been targeted many times in recent years by Sunni militant groups, including the Islamic State group, which quickly claimed responsibility after the abduction and killing of the miners. Police video of the bodies revealed the miners were blindfolded and had their hands tied behind their backs before being shot.”
Yemen
Arab News: Houthi Militants Kidnap Safer. Co Engineers, Kill Civilians
“Iran-backed Houthi militia kidnapped three engineers employed by the Safer Company for Oil Exploration and Production, state news agency Saba New reported. The company has released a statement which accused the militants of abducting the three employees. The first two were kidnapped off a bus on their way to Sanaa, as they were heading to the gas fields in Marib, the report added. The third engineer was taken from his house in Sanaa. Safer Oil Co. called the local and international communities and organizations to condemn such acts and intervene – demanding the release of the engineers. Meanwhile, the militia killed six civilians and injured seven others during attacks on houses in Taiz on Wednesday, Saba News added. Four of the dead are children and the other two are women, the report added.”
Middle East
The Jerusalem Post: Iron Dome Deployed In Eilat Due To Sinai Area Terror Groups - Report
“Israel's Iron Dome Defense System battery was deployed in Eilat, Maariv, the sister publication of The Jerusalem Post, reported on Wednesday. It was deployed with the awareness of threats from terrorist cells which are located in the Sinai area. This move also comes in light of ISIS-affiliated Houthi militia groups in Yemen.”
Nigeria
“Radical Islamic militants and terrorist groups killed at least 200 people in the last two weeks of December, bringing the number of Nigerian Christians killed in 2020 to 2,400, according to a new report. Nigerian human rights group The International Society for Civil Liberties and the Rule of Law released the report on Sunday that catalogs the killings. Intersociety’s founder and chairman of the board, Emeka Umeagbalasi, told The Christian Post that this December was one of the deadliest months on record for Nigerian Christians. “We’ve noticed an upsurge in the killings. At least one of the reasons that I haven’t relocated to my village [for Christmas is] just to monitor what is going on,” he said. “The local media is operating under censorship.” This recent wave of killings follows a pattern of radical Islamist violence in Nigeria, he said. Since 2009, over 34,000 Nigerian Christians have been killed and many more have been displaced by the violence. Militants murdered seven Christians every day in 2020 on average, said Umeagbalasi. Nigeria’s Southern Kaduna province experienced the most deaths, with at least 495 people killed by radical Islamists. In one incident, Islamic militants stopped cars on a highway, he said.”
Somalia
Shabelle Media Network: Somalia: Somali Police Nabbed Al-Shabaab Suspects In Jowhar Sweep
“Somali security forces have carried out security operations in the neighborhoods of Jowhar, the capital of Hirshabelle on Tuesday, residents said. During the operation, a number of people, some suspected Al-Shabaab militants were detained and taken into custody. The top officials of Hirshabelle praised the troops for their operations and how they are treating the community during their operations aimed to ensure security in Jowhar.”
Mali
Al Jazeera: Witnesses Say 20 Killed In Air Strike In Central Mali
“France said it killed dozens of fighters in a weekend air raid in central Mali, while several villagers and a local group said up to 20 wedding guests were killed by fire from a helicopter. Villagers in Bounti said a lone helicopter opened fire in broad daylight on Sunday, sowing panic among a crowd gathered for a wedding. “It was run for your lives,” resident Ahmadou Ghana said. Another villager, Mady Dicko, added: “We were surprised by the intensity of the strike. The helicopter was flying very low.” On Sunday, Tabital Pulakuu, an association that promotes the culture of Mali’s Fulani ethnic group, reported an “air strike that claimed the lives of at least 20 civilians” during a wedding. A French military spokesman, Colonel Frederic Barbry, denied a connection between the raid and the wedding party, saying such a link “does not correspond to information collected prior to the air strike”. Barbry told The Associated Press news agency the operation followed an intelligence mission of several days that showed a “suspicious gathering of people”. The French military was able to conclude it was a “terrorist armed group based on individuals’ attitudes, their equipment and other intelligence information”, he said.”
Africa
Voice Of America: US Envoy Sees Hope In Africa’s Violence-Wracked Sahel Region
“The top U.S. envoy to Africa’s Sahel region acknowledges that it has been a rough few weeks in the sprawling desert region — which covers the West African nations of Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger. Recent violence in Mali, Niger and the Central African Republic have left hundreds dead. For years, the region has been beset by a wave of deadly violence from extremist groups, with more than 1,000 violent incidents in the first half of 2020, according to a report from the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project. Most recently, in western Niger, extremists attacked three villages on January 2, killing more than 100 civilians. Peter Pham, the U.S. special envoy to the Sahel, strongly condemned the attacks in a call to journalists this week, calling the perpetrators “cowardly” and “godless.” But he quickly added there is cause for hope, as Niger heads to a second round of presidential elections in February. “We have congratulated the people of Niger who exercised their democratic right to vote in their presidential and legislative elections on December 27th and look forward to observing an equally successful run-off presidential election process on February 21st,” he said. “These elections hold the promise of Niger’s historic first peaceful transition of power from one democratically elected president to another.”
Canada
Global News: Coronavirus Pandemic May Cause Decline In Democracy, Rise In Extremist Groups: Report
“A new research report by the Department of National Defence suggests the longer the COVID-19 pandemic rages, the stronger right-wing extremism and other threats in Canada and around the world are likely to become. The report prepared by the Defence Department’s research arm lays out a range of political, economic and security challenges that could emerge — or become more prominent — depending on how long the pandemic remains. To that end, it looks at what may happen in a best-case scenario that would see COVID-19 brought under control by the end of this year, as well as the potential ramifications should the pandemic last past 2023 and — as a worst-case — 2025. The best-case scenario would see effective vaccines rolled out quickly, which would not only kickstart a strong economic recovery but also boost trust in the governments, international institutions and science that ended the pandemic. Yet even if that happens, reads the Defence Research and Development Canada report, “we can expect that the adversarial states will remain those already identified as such prior to the pandemic, including China, Iran, North Korea and Russia.”
Southeast Asia
Al Jazeera: Two People Linked To Philippine Church Blast Killed In Indonesia
“A counterterrorism unit raiding a hideout of armed fighters in central Indonesia on Wednesday shot dead two men suspected of involvement in twin bombings at a Philippine church in 2019 that killed more than 20 people. Police said in a statement the raid in Makassar in South Sulawesi by the Densus 88 unit led to a fatal shoot-out with two suspected fighters who resisted arrest. Makassar police chief Witnu Urip Laksana told Reuters news agency the suspects were involved in the bombings of a church on southern Jolo Island in a restive, predominantly Muslim region of the Catholic-majority Philippines. Police carried out “firm and calculated” action against the two suspects, Witnu said, adding an investigation was continuing. Police suspect the men were members of the ISIL-inspired Jamaah Ansharut Daulah (JAD), which has carried out a series of attacks in Indonesia. Philippine authorities have concluded the January 2019 church attack was a suicide bombing by an Indonesian couple, with the help of a faction of the Abu Sayyaf Group, which has pledged allegiance to ISIL (ISIS). Abu Sayyaf fighters also trained with the Southeast Asian armed group Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), which was founded by an Indonesian preacher, and both groups had been previously linked to al-Qaeda.”
Al Jazeera: Indonesians Unknowingly Fund Hardline Group Behind Bali Bombings
“Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), the al-Qaeda-affiliated group that masterminded the Bali bombings in 2002, has found a new source of income – a network of charity donation boxes stationed across Indonesia that were only discovered after one of the group’s leaders was arrested along with 23 other members late last year. The group’s use of the seemingly innocuous boxes, which are clustered outside minimarkets across the archipelago and usually used by charities, could be more significant than the arrest of JI leader Zulkarnaen, also known as Aris Sumarsono, who had been on the run for 18 years, analysts said. He is thought to be one of the most senior members of JI and was instrumental in the attacks on Bali, which left more than 200 people dead. “The real major blow for JI isn’t the arrest of Zulkarnaen but the discovery of JI’s source of income through both illegal and legal ‘charity work’”, Noor Huda Ismail, a former member of the hardline group Darul Islam who has since founded the Institute for International Peace Building and runs deradicalisation programmes and workshops across Indonesia, told Al Jazeera.”
Bloomberg: Vietnam Labels Canada-Based Viet Dynasty A ‘Terrorist’ Group
“Vietnam’s government labeled the Canada-based exile group Viet Dynasty a “terrorist” organization, the Ministry of Public Security said in a statement posted on its website. Led by former members of the California-based Provisional National Government of Vietnam that authorities also labeled as a “terrorist” group in 2018, Viet Dynasty allegedly financed and directed its units in Vietnam to carry out terrorist and destructive activities and incite Vietnamese to protest and riot against the government, according to the government statement. The group, also known Trieu Dai Viet, allegedly financed weapons purchases and efforts to make bombs and publish “reactionary leaflets,” it said. Representatives of Viet Dynasty were not immediately available for comment. Bloomberg News sent an email to the address listed on Viet Dynasty’s Facebook account seeking a response to the labeling. The move comes ahead of the National Party Congress later this month, a politically sensitive time in the nation as a new slate of national leaders are picked for five-year terms. In September, a Ho Chi Minh City court convicted 20 people of the 2018 bombing of a police station, an attack authorities said was orchestrated by people connected with Viet Dynasty, according to VnExpress news website.”
BBC News: Abu Bakar Ba'asyir: The Radical Indonesian Cleric Linked To Bali Bombings
“Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, a radical Muslim cleric and alleged mastermind of the 2002 Bali bombings, is set to be freed from jail this week. The 82-year-old is widely considered to be the spiritual leader of Jemaah Islamiah (JI), an al-Qaeda-inspired group that was blamed for the attack that killed 202 people. In March 2005 he was jailed for conspiracy over the blasts, but his conviction was later quashed on appeal. He was jailed again in 2010 on a separate conviction of supporting militants in Indonesia's northern Aceh province. Now, after completing two-thirds of his jail term, he is set to be released on Friday. The decision to release Ba'asyir is drawing mixed reactions. Some Indonesians have urged compassion for the ageing cleric while others fear the implications of freeing a notorious extremist. Born in 1938, in East Java, Ba'asyir has spent decades teaching religion. He swiftly rose to become one of the most influential jihadi ideologues in South East Asia. A consistent theme of his teachings has been that Islamic communities are the necessary pre-condition for setting up an Islamic state. In 1972, he co-founded the Al-Mukmin Islamic boarding school in Ngruki, Central Java, with Abdullah Sangkar.”
Technology
“Thousands of President Donald Trump's supporters and other rioters who stormed the Capitol on Wednesday as Congress prepared to formally declare Joe Biden president fomented the violence and chaos in the days leading up to the protest. Violent rhetoric including threats against elected officials and police officers flooded all social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter and Google's YouTube, not just online forums popular with extremists. “We are seeing significant volumes of rhetoric online,” Daniel Jones, president of Advance Democracy, told USA TODAY. “And we’re seeing this rhetoric – fueled by President Trump’s voter fraud claims – across all social media platforms.” There were calls from Boogaloos, an extremist group, to “Burn down DC.” One person asked on Twitter, “Whos running arms and ammo to dc for when the fun starts.” Moderators of TheDonald, a message board formed after the group was banned from Reddit, ignored and, in some instances, encouraged calls for violence with one account urging: “Start shooting patriots. Kill these (expletive) traitors.”
Vice: Neo-Nazi Accelerationists Celebrating Attack On Congress As Start Of Civil War
“As far-right rioters stormed Capitol Hill, neo-Nazi accelerationists are celebrating the current moment as the beginning of the end of the U.S. and the start of a “Second Civil War.” “This is a moment that has been in the waiting for a long, long time…” said one post shared and seen close to 600 times on Telegram, an encrypted chat app favoured by neo-Nazis and other members of the far right. “Today is better than Christmas,” said another … Joshua Fisher-Birch, a terrorism researcher with the Counter Extremism Project who specializes on the far-right told VICE News that “Neo-Nazis and white supremacist propagandists on Telegram are hoping that the seditionists escalate, leading to more violence in Washington D.C.,” “The chaos benefits the accelerationist narrative that violent force can achieve what electoral politics cannot,” said Fisher-Birch. “It is extremely likely that in the coming days and months, propagandists will seek to capitalize on disorder and encourage acts of terrorism to further inflame the situation.”
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