“Militants killed at least 50 people and wounded more than 100 in three
explosions targeting girls outside a school in a predominantly Shiite neighbor

 

 


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Eye on Extremism


May 10, 2021

 

The Wall Street Journal: Afghanistan Bomb Attack Targeting Schoolgirls Kills
At Least 50 People
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“Militants killed at least 50 people and wounded more than 100 in three
explosions targeting girls outside a school in a predominantly Shiite
neighborhood in Kabul, officials said, an attack that could exacerbate
sectarian tensions ahead of the U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan. The
blasts hit the Sayed Shuhada school in the Dasht-e Barchi area of west Kabul,
an area populated largely by the Shiite Hazara community. The area has suffered
a string of deadly attacks in recent months. No group claimed responsibility
for the bombings. In the past, Islamic State’s regional affiliate, which
considers Shiites to have rejected Islam, usually took credit for attacks
targeting Shiite civilians. While the Taliban harshly oppressed the Hazaras
when the movement ruled most of Afghanistan in the 1990s, the Taliban now say
they tolerate the Shiite minority. A Taliban spokesman tweeted to condemn
Saturday’s attack, accusing Islamic State of being behind it. Afghan President
Ashraf Ghani, however, blamed the Taliban. In a statement condemning the
bombings, he said that “the Taliban, by intensifying their illegitimate war and
violence, showed that they have no interest in a peaceful solution to the
current crisis.”

 

The Washington Post: Ransomware Attack Leads To Shutdown Of Major U.S.
Pipeline System
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“A ransomware attack led one of the nation’s biggest fuel pipeline operators
to shut down its entire network on Friday, according to the company and two
U.S. officials familiar with the matter. While it is not expected to have an
immediate impact on fuel supply or prices, the attack on Colonial Pipeline,
which carries almost half of the gasoline, diesel and other fuels used on the
East Coast, underscores the potential vulnerability of industrial sectors to
the expanding threat of ransomware strikes. It appears to have been carried out
by an Eastern European-based criminal gang — DarkSide, according to a U.S.
official and another person familiar with the matter. Federal officials and the
private security firm Mandiant, a division of FireEye, are still investigating
the matter, they said. “We are engaged with the company and our interagency
partners regarding the situation,” said Eric Goldstein, executive assistant
director of the cybersecurity division at the Department of Homeland Security’s
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, or CISA. “This underscores
the threat that ransomware poses to organizations regardless of size or sector.
We encourage every organization to take action to strengthen their
cybersecurity posture to reduce their exposure to these types of threats.”

 

United States

 

Vice: Former Neo-Nazi Terror Leader Turns Self In After Bond Revoked
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“The former Michigan cell leader of the neo-Nazi terror group the Base, who
was out on bond awaiting trial, turned himself in yesterday after violating the
terms of his release and being ordered by a judge back to jail. In October
2020, Justen Watkins, 25, who was at one point overall leader of the Base, was
arrested for a series of terrorism-related charges, including ones related to a
botched death threat against an antifascist podcaster in 2019. But even though
authorities knew he had access to firearms and was posting threateningly about
mass murder on social media, Watkins posted bail in February and was required
to stay away from other members of the Base as a condition. He didn’t, though,
and—according to Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel's office the man who
posted his bail was another member of the Base. A local judge ordered Watkins
to surrender and turn himself in. “Given the circumstances, the court's
decision to revoke Mr. Watkins' bond was the correct course of action,” said
Nessel in a statement. “We are pleased with the outcome.” While he was out on
bond, Watkins was charged with possessing illegal steroids in February and, in
early April, with breaking and entering into a garage on the property where he
once held paramilitary training for the Base, alongside an accomplice.”

 

Iraq

 

Asharq Al-Awsat: US Report: Militias Have Taken Over ISIS’ Legacy In Iraq
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“A US intelligence report has revealed that Iraqi Shiite militias now control
ISIS’ “legacies” in Iraq, such as the lands seized by the terrorist group and
the oil wells and commercial relations on the Iraqi-Syrian borders. The report
has provided extensive, never before revealed details on how the Iran-linked
militias are creating a new order to dominate a strategic region of the country
that connects Iraq and Syria. The militias are taking advantage of the vacuum
caused by the collapse of ISIS’s so-called “caliphate” to begin building
security, social, political, and economic structures to dominate the area, said
the US Newlines Institute report done by Senior Analyst Rasha Alaqeedi. “The
militias’ infiltration into police and security forces has allowed them to
control Iraqi citizens’ movements, trade, occupation and other aspects of their
private life,” it noted. Some factions threaten journalists, block roads to
important commercial areas to hamper business and even take scores of residents
from villages to unknown locations. Militants also use threats and acts of
violence to get their preferred academics put in charge of some of the more
important colleges in provinces where the militias are flourishing. They have
also established schools that do not follow local or federal norms and rules.”

 

Afghanistan

 

The Washington Post: School Bombing Heightens Fears Among Afghanistan’s
Hazaras, Long A Target For Militants, Amid U.S. Exit
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“A deadly bombing outside a school in one of Kabul’s Hazara neighborhoods is
heightening fears within the minority group that they are increasingly
vulnerable as international forces withdraw, leaving the Taliban a more
formidable political and military force than ever before. The attack killed
more than 50 people, mostly students, as class let out Saturday. And at least
100 were wounded in the blast that left the building’s outer wall pockmarked by
shrapnel, according to the Interior Ministry. Afghanistan’s Hazara community is
frequently targeted by militant groups and was long persecuted by the Taliban.
The scale and brutality of Saturday’s attack left many Afghans and the
international community stunned. Most of the victims were schoolgirls between
13 and 18 years old. Distrustful of the government and the Taliban, many of
Afghanistan’s minority groups, particularly the Hazaras, viewed the presence of
foreign forces as protective. Following the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, many
Hazara militias disbanded, trusting that the new order would bring them safety.
But now, as U.S. and NATO troops leave amid rising insecurity in the country,
many Hazaras describe feeling abandoned, fearing a return to widespread
persecution and an increase in attacks like Saturday’s bombing.”

 

Reuters: Afghan Taliban Declares Three – Day Ceasefire For Eid Celebration
This Week – Spokesman
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“Taliban insurgents said on Monday they would observe a three-day ceasefire in
Afghanistan for the Muslim religious holiday of Eid, starting this week, after
weeks of increasing violence that gripped the country. “In order that the
Mujahideen again provide a peaceful and secure atmosphere to our compatriots
during Eid-ul-Fitr so that they may celebrate this joyous occasion, all
Mujahideen ... are instructed to halt all offensive operations,” Mohammad
Naeem, a Taliban spokesman, said on Twitter. Eid will begin on Wednesday or
Thursday this week depending on the sighting of the moon. The ceasefire
declaration came two days after bombings outside a school in the western part
of the Afghan capital, Kabul, killed at least 68, most of them students, and
injured more than 165 others. No group claimed responsibility for the attack.
Taliban insurgents, fighting to overthrow the Afghan government since their
ouster by U.S.-led forces in late 2001, denied involvement in the bombings and
condemned them. Afghan government leadership said the group was behind the
attack. Naeem said the group's fighters had been instructed to cease all
military operations against the Afghan government, but added they were ready to
retaliate if attacked by government forces.”

 

Nigeria

 

Reuters: Six Killed At Southern Nigerian Police Station - Spokesman
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“Armed attackers killed six people at a police station in southern Nigeria, a
police spokesman said on Sunday, bringing the total number of officers killed
over the weekend to 12 amid escalating violence nationwide. The attack early on
Saturday morning in Akwa Ibom state killed five officers and one of their
wives, spokesman Odiko Mcdon told Reuters. The killings followed three attacks
on Friday night in the southern oil hub of Rivers state where seven officers
were killed. Rivers is the home to Port Harcourt, the gateway to the oil-rich
Delta region - while Akwa Ibom state is also oil producing. Rising violence
across Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation and its biggest economy, has
alarmed residents and observers. Parliament last week called for a
comprehensive response to mounting insecurity and the lower house urged
President Muhammadu Buhari to declare a state of emergency. read more Since
December, bandits have kidnapped more than 700 people from schools in the
northwest, Islamist militants have killed scores of soldiers and civilians in
the northeast and kidnapping and crime have increased nationwide.”

 

Premium Times Nigeria: High-Profile Nigerians Suspected To Be Financing
Terrorism Identified – Malami
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“The Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami, said on
Friday, that ongoing investigations have revealed many highly placed Nigerians
and businessmen involved in financing terrorism. Mr Malami, who doubles as the
Minister of Justice, said the ‘strongly’ suspected financiers were already
being profiled for prosecution. The minister, who disclosed this while fielding
questions from State House reporters in Abuja, said investigations revealing
the activities of the suspected terrorism financiers were triggered by a recent
conviction of some Nigerians in the United Arab Emirate (UAE) for funding Boko
Haram. This is coming amid heightened attacks by Boko Haram, non-state actors
and other perpetrators of violent crimes in different parts of the country.
Daily Trust earlier in November 2020 reported how an appellate court in Abu
Dhabi, UAE, affirmed the conviction of six Nigerians funding the dreaded
terrorist group. The newspaper also reported in April that dozens of persons
had been arrested by security agencies in an ongoing nationwide crackdown on
the suspected financiers and collaborations.”

 

Africa

 

Reuters: UN Says Armed Attacks In Burkina Faso Displace Over 17,500 In Past 10
Days
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“More than 17,500 people in Burkina Faso have been forcefully displaced from
their homes in the past 10 days due to a series of attacks by unidentified
armed groups that have killed 45 people, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said on
Friday. Attacks by jihadist armed groups linked to al Qaeda and the Islamic
State in the West African Sahel region have been rising sharply since the start
of the year, particularly in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, with civilians
bearing the brunt. The UNHCR report said gunmen had carried out a series of
attacks in three separate regions, burning down houses and shooting civilians
dead. The assailants also ransacked health centres and damaged homes and shops.
“Clearly one of the reasons is to cause mayhem and to torment civilians,” UNHCR
spokesman Boris Cheshirkov told a briefing in Geneva. The security situation in
the Sahel region is fuelling one of the fastest growing displacement crises in
the world, he said. Security sources told Reuters on Monday that armed
assailants had killed around 30 people in an attack on a village in eastern
Burkina Faso. Last week, two Spanish journalists and an Irish citizen were
killed in an armed ambush by suspected militants during an anti-poaching patrol
near a nature reserve in eastern Burkina Faso.”

 

United Kingdom

 

The Independent: Man Accused Of Encouraging Terrorism Said Nazis Should Have
‘Finished The Job’ In Holocaust, Court Hears
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“An alleged neo-Nazi said the only issue with the Holocaust was that “we did
not finish the job” and that the “entire Jewish race” should have been killed,
a court has heard. Andrew Dymock, 23, is accused of 15 offences including
encouraging terrorism using websites, propaganda posters, social media posts
and articles he is accused of creating. Prosecutors allege that he set up and
operated the website and social media accounts for a neo-Nazi group called
System Resistance Network (SRN) in 2017 and 2018. One article uploaded to its
website in October 2017 was called “The Truth about the Holocaust”, the Old
Bailey heard on Friday. It argued that Holocaust denial is irrelevant, because
the total destruction of Jewish people was not achieved. “The only guilt felt
by the Germanic race in regard to the Holocaust should be that we did not
finish the job,” the article said. It contained numerous conspiracy theories
regarding supposed Jewish control of banks and governments, calling Jews a
“cancer on this earth … that must be eradicated in its entirety”. Prosecutor
Jocelyn Ledward told jurors that Mr Dymock had written and posted the article
onto the SRN website. “The article is clear in its encouragement of the
eradication of Jewish people,” she added. “Such encouragement constitutes
encouragement to commit acts of terrorism.”

 

The National: Irish Woman Accused Of Supporting ISIS Wins Appeal Against Ban
From UK
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“An Irish woman accused of being a member of ISIS won her appeal against a ban
on entering the United Kingdom. Lisa Smith’s legal team argued she was entitled
to the rights of a dual citizen as a consequence of her father’s birthplace,
Belfast in Northern Ireland. On Friday, a judge upheld her appeal. Ms Smith, a
Muslim convert from Dundalk near the border with Northern Ireland, was served
with a Home Office-issued exclusion order in December 2019 on the grounds of
public security. She travelled to Syria in 2015 where she married British ISIS
fighter Sajid Aslam who later died in fighting. She escaped the Ain Issa camp
in Syria before being deported from Turkey. The former Irish Defence Forces
member was arrested at Dublin Airport after returning from Turkey in December
2019 with her two-year-old daughter. Smith, 39, is charged with membership of
the ISIS terrorist group and funding terrorism. She denies the charges. She is
currently on bail in Ireland ahead of a scheduled trial in the country’s
Special Criminal Court next January. Both sides in the case before the Special
Immigration Appeals Commission accepted that the UK had a legal right to
exclude non-British citizens from European Economic Area countries, including
Ireland.”

 

Express: Counter-Terror Expert Urges Media To Stop ‘Celebrisiting’ British
ISIS Volunteers
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“From 2014 estimated 900 British citizens went to join the ISIS terror group
in Syria and Iraq. Some have been attempting to return home after the group’s
self-styled ‘Caliphate’ was crushed by Iraqi, Kurdish and western forces.
Certain cases, particularly that of Shamima Begum, who left the UK to join ISIS
aged just 15, have attracted widespread public attention. However Liam Duffy, a
strategic advisor to the Counter Extremism Project (CEP), argued we must focus
on the victims of ISIS like the Yazidi community. The Yazidis, a small
religious group concentrated in Iraq who practice a pre-Islamic faith, were
brutally oppressed when the Sinjar region fell to ISIS in 2014. Thousands of
men and older women were murdered whilst the younger women were taken away to
be sold as sex slaves. ISIS boasted about this treatment in propaganda they
posted online. Speaking to Express.co.uk Mr Duffy hit out at the
“celebritisation” of western ISIS recruits. He contrasted “the plight of the
Yazidis and the situation they’re living in now” with “westerners who joined
ISIS, who in some cases are living in much more comfortable conditions than
their victims”. Mr Duffy added: “I just wish as much attention was given to the
people they tormented as to the tormenters.”

 

France

 

The National: France To Expel Refugees If They Commit Crimes Or Are Flagged
For Extremism
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“France's interior minister said refugees and other migrants could be expelled
if they commit crimes that go “against the values of the republic”. Gerald
Darmanin, known for his tough line on crime and immigration, made the comments
in a newspaper interview published on Friday. “For the first time, we've asked
Ofpra (France's refugee agency) to withdraw asylum protection for anyone found
to be going against the values of the republic,” he told Le Figaro. French
Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, left, and French Prime Minister Jean Castex
attend a news conference following discussions over a bill for the prevention
of acts of terrorism. The policy is the latest sign of the new focus on
immigration, security and Islamism by the government of President Emmanuel
Macron one year before presidential and parliamentary elections. Political
experts expect those issues to shape a contest in which far-right leader Marine
Le Pen is Mr Macron's closest rival, according to recent polls. Mr Darmanin
said that in the past three months, 147 refugees had lost their asylum status.
“Our policy is clear: judging foreigners based on what they do, not who they
are,” he said. He said that 1,093 foreigners living illegally in France are
currently on a watch list maintained by security services, suspected of being a
terrorist threat.”

 

Australia

 

Yahoo News: Aussie ISIS Suspect Arrested On Return
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“A 30-year-old Sydney man alleged to be an Islamic State recruit has been
arrested upon his return to Australia. Mohamed Zuhbi arrived in Melbourne on a
flight from Turkey about 4pm on Saturday and was taken into custody by
counterterrorism authorities at the airport. Zuhbi travelled from Sydney to
Turkey in 2013 and then allegedly on to Syria, where he recruited and helped
foreign fighters travel to the area. He has been charged with supporting a
terrorist organisation, engaging in hostile activity overseas, supporting
another person to engage in hostile activity overseas and entering a banned
jurisdiction. A masked Zuhbi appeared via video link before Melbourne
Magistrates Court on Sunday morning, with his case to return to the same court
on May 21. An extradition hearing to NSW will be heard on that date. “We have a
responsibility to prevent our citizens from contributing to violence and
instability overseas,” Australian Federal Police'Commander Stephen Dametto said
in a statement. “Our laws are aimed at discouraging Australians from fighting
in overseas conflicts and endangering their lives.”

 

Southeast Asia

 

Reuters: Myanmar’s Junta Brands Rival Government A Terrorist Group
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“Myanmar’s military rulers have branded a rival National Unity Government a
terrorist group and blamed it for bombings, arson and killings,
state-controlled media said on Saturday. Myanmar's army has struggled to impose
order since seizing power on Feb. 1 and detaining elected leader Aung San Suu
Kyi. Bombings are reported daily and local militias have been formed to
confront the army while anti-junta protests have not stopped across the
Southeast Asian country and strikes by opponents of the coup have paralysed the
economy. The National Unity Government (NUG), which operates under cover and
itself describes the army as a terrorist force, announced this week that it
would set up a People's Defence Force. “Their acts caused so much terrorism in
many places,” state television MRTV said, announcing that the NUG, a committee
of ousted lawmakers known as the CRPH and the new force would all now be
covered by the anti-terrorism law. “There were bombs, fires, murder and threats
to destroy the administrative mechanism of the government,” the announcement
said. The anti-terrorism law bans not only membership of the groups, but also
any contact with them. The junta had previously accused its opponents of
treason.”

 

BBC News: Maldives Bombing: 'Prime Suspect' In Attack On Mohamed Nasheed
Arrested <[link removed]>

 

“Police in the Maldives say they have arrested the alleged “prime suspect” in
the attempted assassination of the country's former president. Adhuham Ahmed
Rasheed, 25, was arrested on Sunday, three days after Mohamed Nasheed, 53, was
badly injured in an explosion outside his home in the Indian Ocean nation's
capital, Male. Mr Nasheed's condition had improved on Saturday, according to
family. A British national and two others were also injured in the 6 May
bombing. The official Twitter account of the Maldives Police announced the
arrest on Sunday, saying the man is believed to be the prime suspect in the
attack. They allege he is the same man seen on CCTV waiting in an alley just
before a device planted on a motorbike parked near Mr Nasheed's car exploded on
Thursday evening. Police say the attack was carried out by “religious
extremists,” and have also arrested two other men, named as Mujaz Ahmed, 21,
and Thahmeen Ahmed, 32. Investigators are still searching for others believed
to be involved in the attack. The Maldives is known for its luxury holiday
resorts, but has also faced political unrest and Islamist militant violence. Mr
Nasheed - who was ousted in a coup four years after his 2008 election, but now
holds the second most powerful position in parliament - has been an outspoken
critic of hardline Islamists.”

 

Technology

 

Reuters: Biden Administration Joins Global Campaign Against Online Extremism
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“The United States will join a New Zealand-led global campaign to stamp out
violent extremism online, the White House said, making a policy change two
years after the administration of former president Donald Trump declined to
participate. The initiative was started by New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda
Ardern and French President Emmanuel Macron in 2019 after a gunman killed 51
people at two mosques in the New Zealand city of Christchurch while
live-streaming his rampage on Facebook. Biden administration spokeswoman Jen
Psaki said the United States would join the “Christchurch Call to Action to
Eliminate Terrorist and Violent Extremist Content Online” in a statement late
Friday. “Countering the use of the internet by terrorists and violent
extremists to radicalise and recruit is a significant priority for the United
States,” Psaki said in the statement. “Joining the coalition of governments and
companies that have endorsed the Christchurch Call to Action reinforces the
need for collective action.” Ardern said on Saturday the U.S. had been a
“constructive, engaged partner on many Call-related issues since its launch”
and the announcement was a “formalisation of that relationship and a commitment
for us to work even more closely.”

 

GazetteXtra: Cohen: Facebook's Blacklisting Of Trump Deserves A Boycott
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“The Alliance to Counter Crime Online and the Counter Extremism Project have
spent years tracking how violent groups like IS, Mexican cartels and Hezbollah
utilize Facebook. It found that Hezbollah, for example, “has used Facebook to
broadcast propaganda, recruit for attacks, report on the activities of its
leadership and even shill for money,” Josh Lipowsky and Gretchen Peters wrote
in Morning Consult last November. “Hezbollah also uses social media to promote
fund-raising campaigns, meaning Facebook is effectively facilitating terror
financing. In 2019, for example, Hezbollah’s Islamic Resistance Support
Association ran a crowdfunding campaign on Facebook to ‘Equip a Jihadi.’”



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