The U.S. on Wednesday imposed sanctions on two of Islamic State’s fast-growing
affiliates in Central Africa for the first time, underscoring the

 

 


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Eye on Extremism


March 11, 2021

 

The Wall Street Journal: U.S. Sanctions Islamic State’s Central African
Franchise For First Time
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“The U.S. on Wednesday imposed sanctions on two of Islamic State’s
fast-growing affiliates in Central Africa for the first time, underscoring the
rising threat posed by the group outside the Middle East. The State Department
said it was sanctioning the assets of the Congolese franchise of Islamic State
in Iraq and Syria and its leader, Musa Baluku, along with an affiliate in
nearby Mozambique and its commander, Abu Yasir Hassan. The designation requires
banks to freeze the assets of these individuals and groups and bans any
dealings with them. “Today’s designations notify the U.S. public and the
international community that these groups have committed or pose a significant
risk of committing acts of terrorism,” the State Department said in a press
release. The move underscores how the radical Islamic State has been able to
grow again after its defeat in Syria and Iraq and regroup outside the Middle
East, including in sub-Saharan Africa. The two groups, which operate as ISIS’s
Central African franchise, have become some of the most lethal among the
group’s global affiliates and are threatening billions of dollars of
U.S.-funded oil and gas projects in East Africa.”

 

The Guardian: US Far-Right Extremists Making Millions Via Social Media And
Cryptocurrency
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“Dozens of extremist groups and individuals, including some involved in the
Capitol attack, have used social media platforms, cryptocurrencies, tax-exempt
status and other fundraising tools to rake in about $1.5m in the last year,
according to experts. Two recent studies by groups that track extremist
financing, the Global Disinformation Index (GDI) and the Southern Poverty Law
Center (SPLC), underscore the growing threat posed by far-right extremists,
including those who attacked Congress to stop the certification of the 2020
election results. The recent studies and testimony delivered to a House
committee by representatives from the SPLC and GDI in late February showed that
the Oath Keepers, Proud Boys and others with white supremacist and
anti-immigrant bias, reaped windfalls via the streaming platform DLive,
cryptocurrencies and other fundraising methods. Megan Squire, a computer
science professor at Elon University and a senior fellow at the SPLC, found
that from 15 April to early February, 55 extremist individuals and groups used
the video streaming platform DLive, which allows cryptocurrency-based donations
for content, to pull in just under $866,700.”

 

United States

 

Associated Press: Man Tied To Extremist Movement Pleads Guilty To Gun Charge
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“A Maryland man who prosecutors say admitted to being a member of the
anti-government “boogaloo” movement has pleaded guilty to illegal possession of
a firearm by a convicted felon after getting his girlfriend to purchase a
portion of a rifle. Frank William Robertson Perry, 39, entered his plea
Tuesday, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in
Baltimore. Boogaloo followers are part of a loose, anti-government, pro-gun
extremist movement. The name is a reference to a slang term for a sequel — in
this case, a second U.S. civil war. According to the plea agreement, Perry’s
girlfriend bought the lower receiver of an AM-15 rifle from a firearms dealer
in eastern Baltimore County in April 2020 for his own use. The lower receiver
of a firearm, while not a completed and functioning weapon, is legally defined
as a firearm. Perry was prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition due
to a prior burglary conviction, the FBI said. The girlfriend said on a
government form that she bought the lower receiver for herself, but the FBI
said investigators reviewed the girlfriend’s social media accounts and did not
find any evidence that she is interested in firearms or capable of assembling
her own rifle.”

 

Iraq

 

Newsweek: Iraq Praises West's Fight Against Isis, Syria Says It Only Made
Things Worse
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“Iraqi officials have offered praise for the West's continued support in the
country's war on the Islamic State militant group (ISIS), but their Syrian
counterparts see efforts by Europe and the United States as most damaging to
the country as it prepares to mark 10 years of civil war. Iraqi Foreign
Minister Fuad Hussein spoke via telephone Wednesday with U.S.-led NATO Western
military alliance Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, discussing “ways to
continue cooperation between Iraq and NATO within the framework of the full
sovereignty of Iraq and the decisions of the Iraqi government” in their joint
security mission that emerged after the rapid rise of ISIS in 2014. Stoltenberg
emphasized that NATO's presence is “limited to aspects of training and
providing logistical support to the Iraqi forces and security services,” and
the pair “also agreed to continue coordination in a way that enhances the joint
confrontation against ISIS terrorist gangs.” The conversation came after NATO's
top commander in Iraq, Lieutenant General Per Olsen, discussed a recent
decision to support “an expansion of NATO Mission Iraq.” The move was described
as “incremental” and “based on the requirements and consent from the Iraqi
authorities and conditions on the ground, including with respect to logistical
and other security aspects necessary for NMI to continue operating in a safe
and effective way.”

 

Yemen

 

The Jerusalem Post: Yemen’s Houthis Seek World Stage For Their Threats
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“Several years ago, if someone had not heard of the Houthi rebels in Yemen, it
would not have been a major surprise. The idea that the US might one day be
sending a team to negotiate with them would have appeared ludicrous. At the
time, beginning in 2015, a Saudi-led intervention in Yemen was supposed to push
back the rag-tag fighters by using the best Western military equipment. Today,
that has all changed. With Iranian technology and support, the Houthis are
raining down ballistic missiles and kamikaze drones on Saudi Arabia almost
every day. The new US Biden administration sought to take the group off a
terrorist list which the Trump administration had tacked them onto during its
last days in office. But the Houthis took the signal as evidence that they had
Washington’s ear. Push a little bit more on Saudi Arabia, they reasoned, and
they might launch themselves to be one of the important forces in the region.
Iran has a habit of turning groups like the Houthis, Hezbollah and the Popular
Mobilization Units in Iraq into terrorist armies that seem to sponge up most of
the country around them. Hezbollah now has a state attached to it which is
called Lebanon. The Houthis seem to have a smaller state attached to them which
is called Yemen.”

 

Nigeria

 

Sahara Reporters: Boko Haram Allegedly Kills 30 Nigerian Soldiers In Borno
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“Militants from the Islamic State backed faction of Boko Haram, the Islamic
State West Africa Province (ISWAP), formerly known as Jamā'at Ahl as-Sunnah
lid-Da'wah wa'l-Jihād, have allegedly killed 30 Nigerian soldiers in Borno
state. According to ISWAP in a statement released on Tuesday, the soldiers were
killed when two explosive-laden vehicles rammed into a military convoy in
Wulgo. The suicide bombers were identified as Abu Bakr al-Siddiq and Bana
Jundullah. The group also claimed four military vehicles were destroyed. The
claim by ISWAP comes few hours after troops of the Special Forces Brigade
engaged the insurgents in a gun battle at Chikingudu, a community in Marte
Local Government Area. According to a military signal seen by SaharaReporters,
seven soldiers also sustained injuries during the clash. About 25 AK-47 rifles,
three anti-aircraft guns, three general purpose machine guns, two automatic
grenade launchers (AGL), and two gun trucks, among other ammunition, were also
recovered by troops. ISWAP, which split from the mainstream Boko Haram in 2016,
has become a dominant group, focusing on military targets and high-profile
attacks, including against aid workers.”

 

Somalia

 

Deutsche Welle: Somalia's Security Situation In Crisis Amid Political
Uncertainty
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“In Somalia's capital Mogadishu, no one seems to know where the next terror
attack will come from. On Friday, 25 people were killed and many others injured
when al-Shabaab militants targeted a popular restaurant. Before that, suspected
al-Shabaab insurgents stormed the central prison in Bosaso city in Somalia's
semi-autonomous Puntland region. At least eight soldiers were killed, and more
than 400 inmates were released from captivity. Puntland's military officials
later said they had recaptured 87 of the hundreds of inmates that the armed
Islamist extremists had freed. “When you look at the atrocities perpetrated by
terrorist groups in Mogadishu, it is very obvious al-Shabaab is taking
advantage of the political unrest and the election impasse, Abdullahi Hashi, a
Somali security expert, told DW. “If this is not addressed urgently, jihadists
will continue to launch deadly attacks” Tensions are still running high among
the central federal government, two federal member states, and various
opposition groups. Somalian President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed's mandate ended
on February 8."


 

United Kingdom

 

NBC News: As U.K. Strips Citizenship From ISIS Members, Other Children Of
Immigrants Decry 'Two Tier' Citizenship
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“Shamima Begum was 15 when she and two friends left their home in east London
to join the Islamic State in Syria. She was 19 when she emerged from the
terrorist group’s collapsing “caliphate” — prompting the British government to
strip her of citizenship and declare she would never be allowed to return to
the country. And she was 21 when the Supreme Court issued a landmark ruling
that she could not come back to London to appeal the loss of her citizenship.
Her future is in legal limbo and her home is now a refugee camp in northern
Syria. The story has consumed the British press, which has lingered on details
of how the schoolgirl became a “jihadi bride” and how all three of the children
she had with a Dutch ISIS fighter died as infants in Syria. But less discussed
is the chill that the case has sent through many other British children of
immigrants. Many have watched in alarm at how easily their government took
citizenship away from a woman of color who was born and raised in the United
Kingdom. “It makes all of our citizenship precarious, and based on our skin
color, our religion, and our heritage. That's a very dangerous precedent and I
do not believe that Britain should go down this route,” said Halima Begum,
chair of the Runnymede Trust, a racial equality think tank.”

 

The Independent: Terrorism Is Evolving: Isolation Is A Route To Radicalisation
We Cannot Ignore
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“Mixed, unstable and unclear” ideologies accounted for 51 per cent of all
referrals to the UK’s counterterrorism programme, Prevent, in 2019-20. This
represents a significant rise for the third consecutive year. Despite this
fact, our understanding of less “conventional” extremist ideologies, and
combinations thereof, remains in its infancy. So what is meant by “mixed,
unstable and unclear” exactly? “Mixed” refers to individuals who exhibit a
combination of elements from multiple ideologies; “unstable” describes those
who shift between different beliefs; and finally, “unclear” refers to an
individual who does not present any fixed or coherent set of ideas or
philosophies. What they all have in common, though, is a fascination with
various types of extremist or violent content. The perpetrators of school
shootings are consistently cited as poster boys by mass-murderers and
terrorists today, who refer to events such as the Dunblane massacre in 1996,
Columbine in 1999, or Sandy Hook in 2012. While many such attacks have taken
place in the US, the UK is certainly not immune to the threat of school
shootings. There have been at least two cases in the last three years in the UK
where individuals convicted of terrorism offences have subscribed to this
particular ideology.”

 

Germany

 

The Straits Times: Raids Renew Fears Of Extremist Networks In German Army
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“German investigators are to press insurrection charges against a 21-year-old
soldier after a raid uncovered an arsenal of guns, knives, a machete, plastic
explosives and a 10-page manifesto called “How one can seize power in Germany”.
The man from Glashütten, 30km west of Frankfurt and identified only as Tim F,
joined the Bundeswehr armed forces in November 2019. Now he faces dismissal
from the army and the charge of “preparing a serious act of violence
endangering the state”. As well as the weapons, the raid turned up two phones
filled with extremist posts to far-right chat groups. Investigators said his
chat messages, and his manifesto, are the work of a man whose rejection of the
German state stands in contrast to his admiration for the SS, the Nazi elite
paramilitary division. But until the raid, following a tip from the man’s
ex-girlfriend, investigators say he had never crossed their radar as an
extremist. What in the past could have been written off as an angry, extremist
loner has triggered warning bells in Germany’s defence ministry, after yet
another unflattering report into the army’s KSK special forces unit. The report
suggests the KSK is a black hole for arms and ammunition and lists 48,000
articles that have vanished without trace.”

 

Canada

 

Reuters: Canadian Man Sentenced To Six Years For Attack On Prime Minister's
Home
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“A Canadian man who drove with five loaded firearms through the gates of the
wooded estate where Prime Minister Justin Trudeau lives, planning to confront
the leader, was sentenced to six years in prison on Wednesday. Corey Hurren,
46, pleaded guilty last month to eight charges related to the July incident at
the Ottawa estate that includes the prime minister’s residence, Rideau Cottage.
The most serious charges were for possession of illegal firearms. Ontario Court
Justice Robert Wadden gave Hurren a six-year prison sentence with a credit for
one year of time served, and banned him from owning firearms for life,
according to the hearing, which was broadcast online. “He has not expressed
remorse for his actions,” Wadden said. Hurren, who had two handguns, two
shotguns and a semi-automatic rifle, rammed a gate to the 88-acre (0.35 square
km) estate where the prime minister lives with his family, and then proceeded
on foot toward the residence. Trudeau and his family were not at home. After a
90-minute standoff, police convinced Hurren to surrender. Hurren, a master
corporal in an army reserve unit that serves in remote areas of the country,
had driven more than 1,900 kilometers (1,200 miles) from his home in the
province of Manitoba to confront Trudeau because he was angry over COVID-19
restrictions and a federal ban on assault-style firearms.”

 

Southeast Asia

 

The Jerusalem Post: Singapore Arrests Would-Be Terrorist Planning To Kill Jews
For Hamas
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“A 20-year-old Singaporean man was detained on Wednesday under the Internal
Security Act for his plan to stab local Jewish community members after their
prayer service at Maghain Aboth Synagogue in the city-state, The Straits Time
reported. The man, Amirull Ali, was serving as a national serviceman in the
Singapore Armed Forces at the time of his arrest and is believed to have been
self-radicalized since at least the age of 14, when he became interested in the
Palestinian-Israeli conflict. He seemed to have operated under the assumption
that any Jewish worshipers he would be able to kill would have been involved in
Israel’s actions in the Gaza Strip. Home Affairs and Law Minister K. Shanmugam
said that many Jewish people in Singapore are local citizens and would have
served in that country’s defense forces and not the IDF. “It’s perfectly okay
to support the Palestinian cause,” the minister said, “but it’s not okay to go
around killing people.” He added that no matter how many people would have been
killed or hurt, the planned attack would have had serious implications for
social relations in Singapore itself. Ali seemed to have acted on his own,
without links to Hamas or other Islamic groups, and had been angered by news
reports of how Israeli security forces allegedly mistreat Palestinians.”

 

Technology

 

The Washington Post: YouTube Still Hosts Extremist Videos. Here’s Who Watches
Them.
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“YouTube is overshadowed by Facebook and Twitter in the debate over the harms
of social media, but the site has massive reach — 3 in 4 Americans report using
it. This growth has been driven by YouTube’s use of algorithms to recommend
more videos to watch, a feature that critics warn can lead people down rabbit
holes of conspiracy theories and racism. In 2018, for example, the sociologist
Zeynep Tufekci described how YouTube started suggesting she check out “white
supremacist rants, Holocaust denials and other disturbing content” after she
started watching videos of Donald Trump rallies in 2016, prompting her to warn
about the site “potentially helping to radicalize billions of people.” Google —
YouTube’s parent company — has sought to address these concerns. In 2019, for
instance, it announced new efforts to remove objectionable content and reduce
recommendations to “borderline” content that raises concerns without violating
site policies. Has YouTube done enough to curb harmful material on the
platform? In a new report published by the Anti-Defamation League, my
co-authors and I find that alarming levels of exposure to potentially harmful
content continue.”



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