Eye on Extremism
September 30, 2019
The
New York Times: U.S. Officials Warn Of Rising Threat From Qaeda Branch
In Northwest Syria
“American counterterrorism officials are voicing increased alarm
about a Qaeda affiliate in Syria that they say is plotting attacks
against the West by exploiting the chaotic security situation in the
country’s northwest and the protection inadvertently afforded by
Russian air defenses shielding Syrian government forces allied with
Moscow. The rise of this latest Qaeda branch in Syria, as well as the
operations of other Qaeda affiliates in West Africa, Somalia, Yemen
and Afghanistan, underscore the terrorist group’s enduring threat
despite the death of Osama bin Laden and being largely eclipsed in
recent years by the Islamic State, or ISIS, as the terrorist group of
choice of global jihadis. The new Qaeda branch, called Hurras al-Din,
emerged in early 2018 after several factions broke away from a larger
affiliate in Syria. It is the successor to the Khorasan Group, a small
but dangerous organization of hardened senior Qaeda operatives that
Ayman al-Zawahri, Al Qaeda’s leader, sent to Syria to plot attacks
against the West. The Khorasan Group was effectively wiped out by a
series of American airstrikes a few years ago. But with as many as
2,000 fighters, including seasoned leaders from Jordan and Egypt, the
successor Hurras al-Din group is much larger and is operating in areas
where Russian air defenses largely shield them from American
airstrikes and the persistent stare of American surveillance
planes.”
ABC
News: Extremists Attack US Military Base In
Somalia
“A Somali official says a suicide car bomber detonated a vehicle
packed with explosives at the gate of a military airstrip which is a
base for U.S. and Somali forces. Yusuf Abdourahman, a security
official with the Lower Shabelle regional administration, told The
Associated Press that a burst of gunfire could be heard across the
base after bombing, suggesting an ongoing attack on the base.
Somalia's Islamic extremist rebels, al-Shabab, have claimed the
responsibility for the attack. The U.S. military uses Belidogle
airstrip in the Lower Shabelle region as a base where it launches
drones that attack al-Shabab and trains Somali troops. There are
reports of a second attack on European Union peacekeepers in
Mogadishu.”
CBS
News: Illinois Man Indicted On State Terrorism Charge After Driving
Van Into Suburban Chicago Mall
“A man accused of driving an SUV through a suburban Chicago
shopping mall is facing a state terrorism charge, authorities
announced Sunday. Police in Schaumburg announced early Sunday that the
Cook County state's attorney had authorized the charge against Javier
Garcia, 22, of Palatine, Illinois. Garcia also was charged with felony
criminal damage to property. Garcia was scheduled to appear in bond
court Sunday. Under Illinois law, the Class X felony of terrorism can
apply if the suspect is believed to have caused more than $100,000 in
damage to any building containing five or more businesses, according
to a statement issued by Schaumburg Police Sergeant Karen McCarthy.
Class X felonies can carry sentences of up to 30 years in prison.”
The
Washington Post: Amid Tension With Iran, U.S. Air Force Shifts Middle
East Command Center From Qatar To South Carolina
“For 13 years, the United States has used a single building in this
tiny Persian Gulf state to command fighter jets, bombers, drones and
other Air Force assets in a region that stretches from Northeast
Africa through the Middle East to South Asia. And yet on Saturday, as
300 planes were in the air in key areas such as Syria, Afghanistan and
the gulf, hundreds of seats at the Combined Air and Space Operations
Center at al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar sat empty. Instead, the air power
of the United States and its allies was being controlled by teams at
Shaw Air Force Base in South Carolina — more than 7,000 miles away.
Though the move was only temporary — al-Udeid took back control on
Sunday after 24 hours — it was a significant tactical shift.”
Fox
News: Third Libya Airstrike In Eight Days Kills 17 ISIS Terrorists, US
Military Says
“The U.S. military said Friday it had killed 17 Islamic State
(ISIS) fighters in an airstrike Thursday outside Murzuq in southwest
Libya. The airstrike was the third announced by U.S. Africa Command
(AFRICOM) in eight days. Prior to last week, the U.S. military had not
hit any targets in Libya since Nov. 29, 2018. “This ongoing campaign
against ISIS-Libya demonstrates that U.S. Africa Command persistently
targets terrorist networks that seek to harm innocent Libyans,” said
Navy Rear Adm. Heidi Berg, AFRICOM director of intelligence. “We
continue to pursue ISIS-Libya and other terrorists in the region,
denying them safe haven to coordinate and plan operations in
Libya.”
The
Wall Street Journal: Afghan Turnout For Presidential Vote Appears
Light Amid Taliban Threats
“Afghans trickled to polling stations to vote for a new president
on Saturday, their numbers depleted by fears of attacks by Taliban
insurgents and concerns that fraud and other voting irregularities
would render any vote meaningless. As reports of mostly idle polling
stations began accumulating Saturday, Hawa Alim Nuristani, head of the
government-appointed Independent Election Commission, went before
reporters to declare the turnout satisfactory but provided no details.
Ms. Nuristani later ordered the polls to stay open for an additional
two hours to allow people to cast their votes in an election that has
shaped up as a contest between the president, Ashraf Ghani, and
Abdullah Abdullah, his partner in the current national unity
government. Still, by the time polls closed at 5 p.m. local time, it
appeared that the vast majority of the country’s 9.7 million
registered voters had decided to stay home. Privately, Ghani campaign
officials spoke of a voter turnout as low as 1 million. Mr. Ghani
later went on national television to praise the outcome of the
election, saying that because of those who participated, “our emerging
democracy has been more institutionalized.”
United States
The
New York Times: Man Is Charged With Terrorism After Driving S.U.V.
Through Illinois Mall
“A 22-year-old man who drove his black sport utility vehicle into a
mall in a Chicago suburb on Sept. 20 was charged with terrorism, the
police said on Sunday. The man, Javier Garcia, of Palatine, Ill., was
also charged with criminal damage to property. He was denied bail on
Sunday after a court appearance. No one sustained life-threatening
injuries from the episode, though three people were taken to the
hospital and four were treated at the scene, the police said.
Prosecutors said that Mr. Garcia walked into a Sears store at the
Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg, Ill., which is about 30 miles northwest
of Chicago, at about 2:20 p.m. He did not touch or buy anything before
exiting the store, prosecutors said. Four minutes later, he crashed
his black sport utility vehicle through the store’s glass and steel
entrance. The shattering glass sounded like multiple gunshots and
caused shoppers to first think there was an active shooter, a
statement from the Cook County State’s Attorney Office said. More than
100 emergency calls were received by 911 dispatchers. Surveillance
cameras captured the chaos as people ran and jumped to evade the
vehicle, prosecutors said.”
CNN:
A Man Accused Of Threatening To Attack A Jewish Community Center Faces
Federal Charges
“A man arrested last month for allegedly threatening to attack an
Ohio Jewish community center has been indicted on federal charges, the
US Attorney's Office of the Northern District of Ohio said Friday in a
news release. James P. Reardon, 20, was charged with one count of
transmitting an interstate communication threat and one count of
possession of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, the
news release said. The New Middletown, Ohio, man was arrested when an
Instagram account that allegedly belonged to Reardon featured a video
that showed a man holding an assault rifle as audio played of
gunshots, sirens and people screaming, the news release said, citing
the criminal complaint. The post tagged the Jewish Community Center of
Youngstown, the news release said. The post was accompanied by a
caption that read, “Police identified the Youngstown Jewish Family
Community shooter as local white nationalist Seamus O'Rearedon” -- a
Gaelic version of Reardon's name. “This defendant used a firearm to
threaten people who simply want to worship as they choose, as
guaranteed by our Constitution,” US Attorney Justin Herdman said in a
statement. “Law enforcement will not stand by and allow someone to
intimidate others with threats of violence.”
Foreign
Policy: What Terror Experts Can Learn From Public Health
Experts
“In the early 2000s, two events sowed fear in the United States and
around the world: the 9/11 attacks in 2001 and the SARS outbreak of
2002 and 2003. In the years that followed, the professional
communities responsible for responding to these threats, and informing
the public about them, have followed two very different paths. In the
fight against deadly diseases, public health experts have sought to
balance the need for preparedness with their duty to avoid hyperbole,
which can lead to panic. National security experts should adopt this
same ethos. SARS started in China and spread around the world, leaving
hundreds of people dead. The global public health community mobilized
immediately to contain the epidemic—and to manage perceptions of it.
“SARS is a serious problem that needs to be dealt with seriously. Yet
our actions must be based on facts and experience, not on fears,”
Richard Schabas, the chief of staff at York Central Hospital in
Richmond Hill, Canada, wrote in an article for the Canadian Medical
Association Journal in 2003. “The response should not be worse than
the disease.” “We will continue to see new SARS cases, usually at
relatively low levels but with occasional flare-ups,” he
continued.”
CNN:
Police Feared Odessa Shooter Was Planning Attack - 8 Years
Ago
“A mother in distress called police. Her son had refused to take
his mental-health medication. He was delusional about a government
conspiracy against him and had threatened to end his own in life in a
shootout with police. When Amarillo, Texas, police officers arrived at
her home the night of February 7, 2011, they found what they
interpreted as preparations for an attack -- a machete hidden in her
son's bed and an underground shelter he had dug in the backyard. In a
recording the mother shared with police, her son declared, “911 will
bow down before me.” The officers were so troubled by what they
encountered that they recorded floor plans of the property and shared
the information with the city's SWAT team, according to incident
reports. The woman's then-28-year-old son, they concluded, was
volatile and might hurt somebody someday. Those concerns were
tragically realized when the woman's son—Seth Ator—engaged police in a
wild shootout not unlike what officers feared might happen eight years
earlier. Ator killed seven and wounded 25 in last month's shooting
rampage in West Texas. He was also killed in the shootout.”
Foreign
Policy: White Supremacy Has Triggered A Terrorism
Panic
“Our collective response to terrorism seems to swing on a pendulum
between rank complacency and terrified myth-making. In January 2014,
U.S. President Barack Obama dismissed the Islamic State as al Qaeda’s
“JV team.” But by September of that year, after the group had captured
Mosul in Iraq and launched a genocidal campaign of slaughter against
the Yazidis, he started bombing it. Within the year, the Western news
media was awash with alarmist stories about how the Islamic State
spectacle would soon be playing in a town near you. It wasn’t just
that some balaclava-clad ninja-jihadi might kill you; it was that he’d
gaslight your teenage daughter into ditching her studies and becoming
a jihadi baby-making machine. Whole reports and toolkits were
published to help teachers spot signs of extremism.”
Syria
AFP:
In Syria’s Aleppo, Reconstruction Makes Slow Start
“Among the destroyed buildings of Syria’s Aleppo, a battered sign
between two army checkpoints welcomes visitors to an area earmarked to
become a beacon of post-war reconstruction. Once the country’s
powerhouse, Aleppo was devastated by Syria’s ongoing civil war before
Russia-backed government forces expelled the last rebels in late 2016
after a devastating siege. As some of the city is slowly rebuilt, the
Russian army this week showed reporters around, as Moscow seeks to
highlight its role in reconstruction of the war-torn country. Several
factories have reopened in the almost three years since the fighting
ended in Aleppo, large parts of which were flattened.”
The
New York Times: Syria Demands Immediate Withdrawal Of U.S. And Turkish
Forces, Again
“Syria’s international minister demanded on Saturday that American
and Turkish forces evacuate the war-ravaged nation instantly or face
“any and all countermeasures authorized under international law.”
Syrian officers have made related threats up to now to push
unauthorized forces from the nation however have by no means taken
critical steps to take action. Syrian troops, which have been floor
down by years of warfare and defections, are in no form to combat the
USA, and it seems that the nation has calculated that any assaults on
American forces would deliver a couple of formidable response. In a
speech earlier than the United Nations Basic Meeting, the
international minister, Walid al-Moallem, stated the USA and Turkey
“maintain an illegal military presence in northern Syria.” “Any
foreign forces operating in our territories without our
authorization,” he added, “are occupying forces and should withdraw
immediately.” Mr. al-Moallem’s demand comes after the USA and Turkey
reached an settlement in August to collectively patrol a strip of land
in the country’s northeast that borders Turkey. President Recep Tayyip
Erdogan introduced that he intends to make use of the strip, referred
to as a “safe zone,” to repatriate at least one million Syrian
refugees.”
The
Jerusalem Post: After The Fall Of The Isis Caliphate
“Since the beginning of Syrian civil war Russia has been an
important player in Syria. The country has been a big supporter of the
Bashar Assad regime and has played a major role in changing the course
of the conflict as well as contributing to the territorial defeat of
ISIS in Syria. However, according to different sources, the number of
Russians who joined ISIS is estimated to be around 5,000, making
Russia the biggest source of foreign fighters of the so-called
“Islamic State” (a number that was officially acknowledged by the
Russian government). The defeats of ISIS in Rawa, Iraq, in November
2017 and in Baghouz in March 2019 led to its total territorial
eradication from the Levant. It also raised a question of what
happened to those who were and are part of that once powerful and
influential terrorist organization. In general, since the territorial
defeat of ISIS in the Levant, Russians who travelled to Syrian and
Iraq with the aim of joining ISIS can be divided into three
categories. The first and probably largest were those who completely
accepted its ideology and were loyal to ISIS until the end. Second
were those who followed their family members or were born during the
conflict (wives and children of ISIS fighters).”
Jerusalem
Post: Once A US Ally Against ISIS, Big Power Politics Now Poised To
Betray Them
“When US forces first noticed the People’s Protection Units (YPG)
in the fall of 2014 and spring of 2015 they were barely hanging on.
They had been placed under siege in Kobani in northern Syria. US
airstrikes helped break the siege and soon the YPG were re-capturing
territory from ISIS. For all the other groups in Syria that had talked
about fighting ISIS and even received US support to “fight ISIS,” this
one was actually taking back territory. Today the US is facing a
literal “road to Damascus” moment in Syria as it seeks to find a way
to walk away. This will be seen as a betrayal despite the sacrifices
made, Washington’s task now is to make it seem like isn’t a
betrayal.”
Iran
Radio
Farda: Whistleblowers Arrested In Iran, Accused Of Terrorist
Intentions
“Security forces have arrested nine people connected to a
whistleblower page on social media platform Telegram, the chief of
Police in the province of Kurdistan, western Iran, says. Fifteen
natural and ten legal persons have sued the managers of the page,
named “A'MAK”, (Persian acronym for “disclosure of the performance of
Kurdestan's managers”), the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps General
Ali Azadi announced, adding, “The judicial department in Kurdistan has
charged the detainees with disappointing people, disrupting the public
peace, libelous publications, action against national security, and
having links with Iranian dissident groups outside the country.” Gen.
Azadi has also claimed that the Telegram channel administrators had
terrorist intentions since they published the names of the “people
related to the Islamic Republic regime.” Although there are Kurdish
group actively opposed to the Islamic Republic, it is not clear if the
detainees are in any way connected with insurgents. All admins and
contributors to the page are inside Iran and currently detained, Gen.
Azadi declared, adding that they have not yet been indicted.
Meanwhile, he admitted that he had no information about their
condition behind bars.”
The
New Yorker: Trump’s Close-Call Diplomacy With Iran’s
President
“On the evening of Tuesday, September 24th, the President of
France, Emmanuel Macron, went to see his Iranian counterpart, Hassan
Rouhani, at the Millennium Hilton Hotel, across the street from the
U.N. headquarters, in New York. The hotel is one of only three places
that the Iranian leader could go in the city, because of U.S.
sanctions. Macron intended to set up a three-way telephone
conversation with Rouhani and President Trump. A team of technicians
arrived to set up a secure line, in a meeting room on Rouhani’s floor,
for the call at 9:30 p.m. The telephone conversation was supposed to
cap twenty-four hours of frenetic diplomacy—including personal appeals
to Rouhani by the British, Japanese, and Pakistani Prime Ministers and
the German Chancellor—after months of quiet French diplomacy.”
Iraq
Asharq
Al-Awsat: Iraq: Disputes Topple Prominent Leader In
The Fight Against ISIS
“The decision of Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi to move
Lieutenant General Abdulwahab al-Saadi, commander of the Iraqi CTS
(Counter-Terrorism Service), to the Ministry of Defense has sparked
various reactions. While some saw it as a normal procedure that falls
under a military context, other politicians and experts said that it
came in the wake of deep disputes inside the CTS – led by General
Talib Shaghati al-Kinani. A security source announced Friday that
Abdul Mahdi referred Saadi to the ministry of defense. Saadi is a
prominent leader who participated in the latest liberation operation
in some provinces, also he was in charge of several important posts in
the Iraqi Special Operations Forces and the CTS. He had a major role
in the operations against ISIS since the Battle of Ramadi – Anbar
province in 2014 until liberating Mosul in 2017. He is seen as the
most popular leader who fought against ISIS in Iraq. Further, his name
surfaced as a prime minister candidate last year. In a press statement
on Friday, Saadi described this decision as an embarrassment for him
as an officer and a fighter. Yet, he said he had no clue why it had
been taken. Saadi inquired about the motive behind this decision
through a phone call with the Iraqi PM – who in his turn praised his
skills.”
Independent:
‘People Are Dying’: The Shia City Where ISIS Are Trying To Make Their
Presence Known
“At about midnight on 20 September, a young man got off a white
minibus at the entrance to the Shia shrine city and pilgrimage centre
of Karbala, southwest of Baghdad. A few minutes later, he pressed a
remote control, detonating the explosives he had left in a bag under
his seat on the bus. The bomb killed 12 people and injured a further
five: footage shows the bus engulfed in flames and a voice screaming
that “people are dying.” Iraqi security sources say that the alleged
bomber was swiftly identified from CCTV pictures and was arrested with
two other men, whose families hail from the Sunni town of Jurf
al-Sakhar. Isis claimed responsibility for the attack.”
Xinhua:
8 IS Militants Killed In U.S.-Led Coalition Airstrikes In
Iraq
“Eight Islamic State (IS) militants were killed on Saturday in
airstrikes conducted by the U.S.-led coalition aircraft in the central
Iraqi province of Salahudin, the Iraqi military said. Acting on
intelligence tip-off, a joint force from Salahudin's Operations
Command, backed by Iraqi and U.S.-led coalition aircraft, conducted an
operation to hunt down IS militants in a desert area in west of the
provincial capital Tikrit, said a statement by the media office of the
Joint Operations Command (JOC). During the operation, the coalition
aircraft pounded IS positions and killed eight IS militants, while the
troops destroyed four of their hideouts, of which one was
booby-trapped, the statement said, adding that the militants were
using the hideouts as warehouses for their various supplies. According
to the statement, the operation also resulted in the destruction of an
IS shelter, three of their pick-up vehicles and a truck. The security
situation in Iraq was dramatically improved after Iraqi security
forces fully defeated the extremist IS militants across the country
late in 2017. IS remnants, however, have since melted in urban areas
or resorted to deserts and rugged areas as safe havens, carrying out
frequent hit-and-run attacks against security forces and
civilians.”
Afghanistan
Reuters:
The Taliban Cut Off His Finger For Voting, He Defied Them
Again
“The Taliban cut off Safiullah Safi’s right forefinger for voting
in 2014. That did not stop the businessman from doing it again. Safi's
act of defiance in Afghanistan's 2019 presidential elections on
Saturday sparked admiration after a photo of the 38-year old was
posted on Twitter showing his missing right forefinger and the left
one stained with indelible ink, indicating he had voted. (here)
Braving the threat of militant attacks and delays at polling booths,
Afghans cast their ballots in a major test of the Western-backed
government’s ability to protect democracy. The Taliban regime was
overthrown by U.S.-led forces in 2001. But the Islamic insurgency is
now at its most powerful since its defeat, violently disrupting the
nascent democracy’s elections and carrying out gruesome, often deadly
retribution on those who take part. During the 2014 presidential vote,
Taliban fighters cut off the fingers of at least six voters. “I know
it was a painful experience, but it was only a finger,” Safi said by
telephone. “When it comes to the future of my children and country I
will not sit back even if they cut off my whole hand.” Safi described
how in 2014 he had cast his vote and a day later traveled from the
capital Kabul, where he lives, to the eastern city of Khost, his
finger marked by the ink from voting.”
Pakistan
Radio
Free Europe: Nine Killed In Bombing, Bus Attack In
Pakistan
“At least three people were killed, including an opposition
politician, and seven others injured in a bomb blast on September 28
in Pakistan’s southwestern town of Chaman in the province of
Balochistan. Police officials said the bomb was planted in a
motorcycle parked outside the office of a religious party in Chaman,
which is located near Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan. Officials
said the bomb detonated remotely when Maulana Mohammad Hanif, the
leader of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, a right-wing religious party, was
exiting the building, killing Hanif and two other men. “Maulana
Muhammad Hanif was the target of the bomb blast,” senior police
officer Muhammad Iqbal said. Hanif, whose party opposes Imran Khan's
Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government, was planning an
anti-government march on the country's capital, Islamabad, next month.
No group has claimed responsibility for the blast, which damaged
nearby buildings and shops. Attacks are common in Balochistan where
separatists have for decades fought a low-level insurgency against the
government. In a separate incident on September 28, six people were
killed and four others injured when gunmen opened fire on a bus in
Pakistan’s northwestern Hangu district.”
Gulf
Times: Security Forces Kill 6 Militants In Kashmir
“Security forces killed six militants in Jammu and Kashmir
yesterday, police said, as the region simmers under a lockdown imposed
by New Delhi after it revoked its constitutional autonomy in August.
Three militants were killed in the Batote market area of Jammu where,
according to officials, they had taken a local civilian hostage inside
his house. The hostage was rescued unharmed, a spokesman for the
Central Reserve Police Force told journalists. Three others were
killed in an encounter in Kangan in the north of the region, Dilbagh
Singh, director general of Jammu and Kashmir police said. Singh also
said militants had thrown a grenade in the Safakadal area of Srinagar
city but that no one was injured in the incident. Security forces had
tightened restrictions in Kashmir and the Hindu-majority Jammu region
on Friday, fearing protests ahead of speeches at the UN by the leaders
of India and Pakistan. Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan warned the
body that his country’s dispute with India over Kashmir could escalate
into an all-out nuclear war that would have consequences for the
world. Following his speech, authorities tightened restrictions on
people’s movements yesterday to prevent possible protests.”
Yemen
Al
Jazeera: Yemen's Houthi Rebels Release Saudi Attack
Video
“Yemen's Houthi rebels on Sunday broadcast footage they said was of
a major attack into Saudi Arabia that killed or wounded 500 soldiers
with thousands of others surrendering. Yahya Saree, a Houthi military
spokesman, described an ambush on the Saudi forces that then developed
into an “all-out” cross-border offensive that trapped the troops
inside Saudi Arabia. “More than 200 were killed in dozens of [missile
and drone] strikes while trying to escape or surrender,” Saree said.
The fighting took place in the southern region of Najran with video
images aired showing armoured vehicles hit by blasts and surrendering
soldiers. Saudi Arabia has not yet responded to the Houthi claim. Al
Jazeera was not independently able to verify the footage or claims
broadcast on Houthi-run Almasirah TV. Saree said the offensive 72
hours earlier had defeated three “enemy military brigades”, leading to
the capture of “thousands” of troops, including Saudi army officers
and soldiers, and hundreds of armoured vehicles. He said the prisoners
“will be treated according to the ethics and the customs on the basis
of a deal to exchange the POWs with the aggressors.”
The
Guardian: Houthis Claim To Have Killed 500 Saudi Soldiers In Major
Attack
“Houthi rebels in Yemen say they have killed 500 Saudi soldiers,
captured a further 2,000 and seized a convoy of Saudi military
vehicles. The extraordinary claims at a press conference on Sunday,
involving still photographs and inconclusive videos of captured
soldiers, many not in uniform, could not be corroborated, and there
was no independent confirmation from Saudi Arabia. The Houthis,
showing pictures of upturned Saudi vehicles and immobilised convoys,
claimed the attacks had occurred over the past three days in the
southern Najran region of Saudi Arabia, which borders Yemen, and would
continue with greater intensity. “Operation Victory from God is the
largest military one since the brutal aggression began. The enemy
suffered heavy losses … and wide swathes of territory were liberated
in only a few days,” said the Houthi spokesman, Mohammed Abdul Salam.
He also claimed hundreds of Saudi soldiers lay dead or injured on the
battlefield, and Riyadh had little option but to consider how to
withdraw. He said the Houthis would end their attacks if the Saudis
took reciprocal measures.”
Lebanon
The
National: Hezbollah Dominance Starts To Drag On
Lebanon
“Relying on the legacy of his supremely connected late father,
Prime Minister Saad Hariri used to repeatedly conjure solutions for
Lebanon to survive economic trouble. Having in the past secured Arab
Gulf rescue packages and employed seasoned players to manage monetary
policy, Mr Hariri seems to be running out options, largely because of
a power-sharing deal he struck with Hezbollah this year. The deal
sidelined Mr Hariri from foreign policy, handing the domain firmly to
Hezbollah and its allies in government and the presidency. Since 2011,
Hezbollah has launched fervent rhetoric against Arab Gulf states and
acted as a cross-border Shiite militia, drawing intensified US
sanctions. The Arab carte blanche, extended to Lebanon so many times
in the past, has vanished. As Mr Hariri prepares to visit Dubai for a
Lebanese-UAE investment conference on October 7, pressure on the
Lebanese pound, or lira, has mounted. Economic growth has been
negligible for years, the real estate market collapsed and the public
debt, at one and half times the gross domestic product, one of the
highest ratios in the world, shows no signs of falling under
control.”
The
Times Of Israel: Nasrallah: Hezbollah Will ‘Enter Occupied Palestine’
With Improved Intelligence
“Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on Saturday issued further
threats against Israel, saying the Lebanese terror organization’s
“unprecedented levels of intelligence” would soon lead to its fighters
“entering occupied Palestine.” In an interview series published this
week on the website of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei,
Nasrallah boasted of the terror group’s intelligence capabilities. “We
have extensive, unprecedented information on all the events that
happen to the enemy, both by public and secret means,” Nasrallah said.
“We have very good information.” “In various ways, Hezbollah obtains
the necessary information for any future war or military action on the
part of the Israeli enemy,” he said. “The enemy is on the defensive —
we have always been on the defensive, now we are in attack mode,” said
the leader of the Tehran-backed terror group, according to Channel 12
news. “We are threatening them, and we will enter occupied Palestine,”
Nasrallah said. The website also released a “never before seen” photo
of Nasrallah alongside Khamenei, and Qassem Soleimani, the commander
of the Revolutionary Guards Quds Force. The three men are shown in
front of what appears to be a door covered by a curtain and surrounded
by shelves stacked with books — decor associated with Khamenei’s
Tehran office.”
Middle East
The
Washington Post: Israel Says 3 Suspects In Deadly West Bank Blast
Arrested
“Israeli officials say they have caught the Palestinian militants
responsible for a bombing in the West Bank that killed a teenage girl
last month. The Shin Bet internal security agency said Saturday the
suspects were three members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of
Palestine and lived in the area of Ramallah. The Aug. 23 attack killed
17-year-old Rina Shnerb and wounded her father and a brother at a
water spring near Dolev, a settlement northwest of Jerusalem. Israeli
security agencies were perplexed by the case since it involved a
hidden explosive device, a tactic rarely used by Palestinian militants
in the West Bank. Shin Bet says the suspects were arrested recently in
a joint operation with the police and the army and that they were
planning other attacks. It said an additional bomb had been
uncovered.”
Egypt
Voice
Of America: Egyptian Security Forces Killed In Northern Sinai Terror
Attack
“More than half a dozen people were reportedly killed Friday during
a terrorist attack on an Egyptian military checkpoint near the
northern Sinai town of Bir al-Abed. The Islamic State group reportedly
claimed responsibility for the attack. Amateur video showed ambulances
-- sirens blaring -- rushing to the checkpoint which faces an apple
orchard outside Bir al-Abed. It was not the first time that the area
has come under attack by terrorists. The Egyptian military issued a
statement in response saying that it has exacted a heavy toll on
terrorists in the northern Sinai in recent weeks, killing 118 of them,
destroying their armored vehicles, motorcycles, and hideouts, but that
it has also lost a number of its own men. An Egyptian military
spokesman said that nine soldiers and one officer were killed or
wounded during fighting while conducting searches. VOA could not
independently confirm how many were killed. Social media websites
showed pictures of at least five Egyptian soldiers who were reportedly
killed in Friday's attack. Reuters news agency reported that Islamic
State claimed responsibility for the attack on the Egyptian military
checkpoint. It was not clear from which country the terrorist group
issued its declaration.”
The
Defense Post: ISIS Claims Attack On Egyptian Security Checkpoint In
Sinai As Cairo Braces For Protests
“Islamic State fighters attacked an Egyptian security checkpoint in
the Sinai peninsula on Friday, September 27, as security forces
deployed in downtown Cairo to block planned protests against President
Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. Islamic State said in statement on Friday,
September 27 that fighters from its Sinai Province affiliate attacked
the checkpoint near Tafaha, south of Bir al-Abed. ISIS’s Amaq
propaganda agency claimed the fighters “wiped out” 15 Egyptian Army
soldiers at the checkpoint with “shells and rockets.” However,
independent news website Mada Masr cited a security source and a
medical source as saying seven soldiers and one officer were killed,
with five others wounded. The sources told Mada Masr that a civilian
was also killed, and five others, including a toddler, were wounded.
Egyptian security forces deployed heavily throughout Cairo earlier on
Friday in preparations to stifle planned protests against President
Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who faces widespread discontent over a stagnant
economy and a massive crackdown on dissent. Rare protests broke out
last week in multiple Egyptian cities in response to calls by a
dissident living in Spain who has posted a series of YouTube videos
detailing vast alleged corruption schemes within Sisi’s inner
circle.”
Asharq
Al-Awsat: Egypt Court Asks Mufti To Weigh In On Terror
Sentences
“An Egyptian court has referred the case of seven defendants facing
terrorism charges to the country's top religious authority, the Grand
Mufti, for a non-binding opinion on whether they can be executed as
the prosecution seeks. The Cairo Criminal Court says Saturday the
defendants are members of a local affiliate of the ISIS group
operating in northern Sinai. The men are part of 32 defendants accused
of killing eight police, including an officer, when they ambushed a
microbus in Cairo's southern suburb of Helwan in May 2016. The verdict
is set for November 12, and the presiding judge may rule independently
of the Mufti. Egypt has battled extremists for years in the Sinai
Peninsula that has occasionally spilled over to the mainland.”
Nigeria
Premium
Times Nigeria: Nigerian Army Arrests Man Accused Of Supplying
Materials To Boko Haram
“The Nigerian Army on Sunday arrested a suspected Boko Haram
insurgents’ logistics supplier and seized a car stacked with
motorcycle used tyres in Borno. A.K. Ibrahim, the Acting General
Officer Commanding (GOC) 7 Division, made the disclosure while
parading the suspect at the Gubio Super Camp in Maiduguri. Mr Ibrahim
disclosed that the suspect, Samuel Chukwudon, was arrested on
September 27, by a joint team of troops of Operation Lafiya Dole
(OPLD) and personnel of the Nigeria Custom Service (NCS), while
travelling along Baga-Monguno Road. He said that the troops seized
items which included a car, 136 used motorcycle tyres, 200 new tubes
and a number of rubber gum. “The arrest is based on the subsisting ban
on motorcycles in the theater of operation due to the security
challenges. “We know that the insurgents use motorcycles in their
operations; nobody is allowed to ride a motorcycle, the suspect is
arrested with the banned items heading toward Lake Chad basin. “Boko
Haram insurgents are around the area and we felt that something was
fishy. He made several attempts to bribe our men at the time of the
arrest and during interrogation,” Ibrahim said.”
AFP:
Jihadists Kill 9 In Nigeria Attacks
“Nine people, including a soldier and a policeman, were killed in
two separate attacks by jihadists in restive northeast Nigeria,
officials and vigilantes said Saturday. Fighters from the IS-aligned
Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) group attacked Nigerian and
Chadian troops in the town of Gajiram late Friday, prompting a fierce
battle in which eight people were killed. “We lost eight people in the
attack including a policeman, a local hunter and six residents,” local
district official Shettima Maina told AFP.”
The
Guardian: Nigeria Warned It Risks Humanitarian Disaster By Expelling
Charities
Nigeria has been warned it risks a humanitarian disaster if the
government goes ahead with its threat to throw aid agencies out of the
north-east of the country, claiming they are in league with extremist
Islamic groups. A spate of aid offices have been forcibly shut after
unproven claims they have been acting as conduits for cash that has
ended up with Boko Haram, or Islamic State West Africa Province
(Iswap). The Nigerian army is stepping up its 10-year effort to drive
out extremists and claims that despite several warnings, agencies
continue to provide aid to terrorist groups.
Somalia
CBS
News: Al-Shabab Militants Claim Attack On Somalia Base Used By U.S.
Forces
“A Somali official confirmed reports of an attack on a U.S. base in
the country on Monday. Yusuf Abdourahman, a security official with the
Lower Shabelle regional administration, told The Associated Press that
a suicide car bomber detonated a vehicle packed with explosives at the
gate of a military airstrip that serves as a base for U.S. and Somali
forces.”
The
New York Times: Car Bombers in Somalia Hit U.S. and European Military
Bases
“Car bombers attacked United States and European military targets
in Somalia on Monday morning, officials said, and the Islamist
extremist group known as the Shabab claimed responsibility for at
least one of the assaults. The first attack was on the Bale Dogle
airstrip in the Lower Shabelle region in southern Somalia. The United
States military uses the base to launch aerial attacks on Shabab
targets and to train Somali troops. A suicide car bomber detonated a
vehicle packed with explosives at the gate of the airstrip, according
to Lt. Comdr. Desiree Frame, a spokeswoman for the United States
Africa Command, and Yusuf Abdourahman, a security official with the
Lower Shabelle regional administration. Bursts of gunfire could be
heard across the base after the bombing, suggesting an ongoing attack
on the base.”
Africa
Xinhua:
AU Welcomes Recent Counter-Terrorism Efforts In Lake Chad Basin
Region
“The African Union (AU) Peace and Security Council has commended
the recent peace and security initiatives undertaken by countries in
the Lake Chad Basin region in the fight against terrorism. The
Council, in a statement issued late Saturday, said it “welcomes the
initiatives taken by the Lake Chad Basin Region, with the support of
the AU Commission, through their Regional Strategy for the
Stabilization, Recovery and Resilience of the Boko Haram- affected
Areas, as well as the comprehensive approach adopted by the G5-Sahel
and the recent decision by the Extraordinary Summit of Heads of State
and Government of the Economic Community of West African States
(ECOWAS) on the fight against terrorism.” The AU Peace and Security
Council, in particular, commended the recent decision that was adopted
on September 14 by the Extraordinary Summit of Heads of State and
Government of the ECOWAS on the fight against terrorism, in which
ECOWAS leaders had decided to mobilize 1 billion U.S. dollars for a
comprehensive and holistic action plan to fight against terrorism in
the region. The Lake Chad Basin region, comprising Nigeria, Chad,
Cameroon and Niger, has been wracked by attacks from terror group Boko
Haram, as the region remained a hotbed of terrorist attacks from the
group.”
United Kingdom
Sky
News: SAS Could Be Sent To Bring Children Of Islamic State Fighters
Back To Britain
“Plans to send members of the SAS into Syria to bring back the
British children of Islamic State fighters are being considered by the
government. There are estimated to be around 30 minors with claims to
UK citizenship living in camps after being born to British parents who
joined IS. The controversial plans are being discussed by the National
Security Council (NSC) but members are currently split on launching
operations. A final decision is expected early next month and, if
agreed, only those aged 16 and under would be extracted. A government
spokesperson said: “The safety and security of our country and our
communities remains the government's number one priority.” It is
believed the repatriation plans are being led by Foreign Secretary
Dominic Raab and International Development Secretary Alok Sharma.
Chancellor Sajid Javid, Home Secretary Priti Patel and Defence
Secretary Ben Wallace are understood to be against the move. While he
was home secretary, Mr Javid introduced a law that will see any
British citizen who goes to live in a terror hotspot facing up to 10
years in prison. It is now a specific criminal offence to enter or
remain in a “designated area” overseas, under the Counter-Terrorism
and Border Security Act 2019.”
Germany
France
24: Far-Right 'Terror' Group In Dock In Germany Over Attack
Plot
“The trial of a neo-Nazi “terrorist” cell accused of plotting
violent political upheaval in Germany opens Monday amid reports the
country's far-right scene is growing more armed and radical. Eight
members of the so-called Revolution Chemnitz group aged between 21 and
32 will answer to charges of “forming a right-wing terrorist
organization”, according to federal prosecutors. Almost a year to the
day after most of the suspects' arrest in coordinated raids, the
proceedings will take place under tight security in Dresden, the
capital of Saxony state, a stronghold of the extreme right. Resentment
runs deep in the region over Merkel's liberal refugee policy that led
to the arrival of more than a million asylum seekers to Germany since
2015. The anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim Alternative for Germany (AfD)
party scored 27.5 percent in a state election earlier this month, just
shy of the 32 percent garnered by Chancellor Angela Merkel's
conservatives. The suspects are accused of “coming together to achieve
their political goals -- to shake the foundations of the state -- with
serious violent acts”, a spokeswoman for the superior regional court
said. They allegedly sought to carry out “violent attacks and armed
assaults” against immigrants, political “opponents”, reporters and
members of the economic establishment.”
Europe
The
Washington Post: Bosnia Police Arrest 2 For Attack On Radio Station
Over News
“Two people have been arrested after a group of soccer fans broke
into a radio station’s offices in Sarajevo and forced its staff to
withdraw a news item, Bosnian police said Saturday. The two face
charges of threatening the safety and limiting the freedom of Radio
Sarajevo’s online journalists and editors during the incident late
Friday. The station said hooligans broke into its offices while angry
over the news that a fan of soccer club Sarajevo received five years
in prison in Belarus for cocaine possession. They threatened the staff
and their families. The station described the incident as “an actual
hostage situation.” Faced with death threats, the editor was forced to
remove the news item, its statement added. The incident has sparked
widespread condemnation in Sarajevo, the capital of the Balkan country
which is still struggling to overcome the consequences of a
devastating war in the 1990s. The U.S. Embassy said on Twitter that
“this outrageous attack ... is unacceptable.” The embassy added that
“when journalists are silenced, society suffers.” Denis Zvizdic, the
chairman of Bosnia’s Council of Ministers — the de facto government —
said “such acts are a threat to democracy and present an unacceptable
attack on free journalism.”
The
Telegraph: Catalonia Braced For Fresh Unrest After Terrorism Raids On
Separatists
“Catalonia is braced for a tumultuous few weeks as protesters vow
to reignite mass civil disobedience in revenge for the anticipated
convictions of 12 independence leaders. This week's terrorism raids on
separatist activists have only galvanised anger, with what some saw as
a Spanish warning shot ahead of the second anniversary of the bloody
independence referendum appearing to have backfired. With lengthy
prison sentences expected in the leaders' mass trial, the independence
movement has promised “massive civil disobedience to force Spain solve
the conflict democratically”. The possibilities include a mass strike
that could shut down key cities like Barcelona or another illegal
referendum.”
Technology
The
New York Times: Ahead Of 2020, Facebook Falls Short On Plan To Share
Data On Disinformation
“In April 2018, Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s chief executive, told
Congress about an ambitious plan to share huge amounts of posts, links
and other user data with researchers around the world so that they
could study and flag disinformation on the site. “Our goal is to focus
on both providing ideas for preventing interference in 2018 and
beyond, and also for holding us accountable,” Mr. Zuckerberg told
lawmakers questioning him about Russian interference on the site in
the 2016 presidential election. He said he hoped “the first results”
would come by the end of that year.”
The
New York Times: The Internet Is Overrun With Images Of Child Sexual
Abuse. What Went Wrong?
“The images are horrific. Children, some just 3 or 4 years old,
being sexually abused and in some cases tortured. Pictures of child
sexual abuse have long been produced and shared to satisfy twisted
adult obsessions. But it has never been like this: Technology
companies reported a record 45 million online photos and videos of the
abuse last year. More than a decade ago, when the reported number was
less than a million, the proliferation of the explicit imagery had
already reached a crisis point. Tech companies, law enforcement
agencies and legislators in Washington responded, committing to new
measures meant to rein in the scourge. Landmark legislation passed in
2008."
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