“Islamist hate preacher Anjem Choudary has been banned from Twitter, less than
a week after he set up a profile on the social media platform. The 54-y

 

 


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Eye on Extremism


July 30, 2021 

 

Sky News: Anjem Choudary: Islamist Hate Preacher Banned From Twitter
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“Islamist hate preacher Anjem Choudary has been banned from Twitter, less than
a week after he set up a profile on the social media platform. The 54-year-old
confirmed to Sky News that his account had been suspended. Twitter has not yet
commented on the move. Choudary had been the subject of significant legal
restrictions, preventing him from speaking publicly, since his release from
prison in October 2018. He was convicted on terrorism charges in 2016, which
included inviting support for the terrorist group Islamic State. Most of the
legal conditions preventing him from speaking publicly expired 10 days ago and
Choudary, also known as Abu Luqman, set up a Twitter profile just days later.
Reacting to the news of his ban, he told Sky News: “That was quick, a record,
just five days after I set up my account.” He said Twitter had not given him a
reason for the suspension and that he believed he had been “quite moderate” in
his posts. The hate preacher served his sentence at the high-security Frankland
prison in Durham, which houses a number of terrorist prisoners. Counter
terrorism police have previously described Choudary as one of the most
influential Islamist extremists in Europe.”

 

ABC Chicago: Al Qaeda Launches 1st Public Campaign In 4 Years To Encourage
Lone Wolf Terrorist Attacks
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“More than 10 years ago the I-Team uncovered Al Qaeda's plans for “Open
Source” Jihad against the Chicago skyline. Now they're back with a new
high-gloss publication for radical followers and a new video, encouraging
violent attacks on America by one-person jihadists and lone wolf terrorist.
Hundreds of people were killed and injured by truck-ramming attacks from
terrorist groups in the past decade. The one-man rampages were encouraged by Al
Qaeda and ISIS leaders targeting cities worldwide.  The playbook for those
attacks date to a more than 10-year-old edition of al Qaeda's “Inspire
Magazine,” set with Chicago as a backdrop and a pick-up truck as “the ultimate
mowing machine.” But there have not been any public marching orders for
lone-wolf jihadists since 2017. Until now. The new edition of Inspire is once
again calling for attacks on Americans in the U.S., and praising recent mass
murderers who claimed to have been fighting for the jihadist cause. That
includes Ahmad Al-Issa, an American from Syria who is accused of killing 10
people last March in a Colorado grocery store.”

 

Syria

 

Reuters: Syrian Rebels Attack Army Outposts In Southern Syria
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“Syrian rebels waged a spate of mortar attacks on Syrian army checkpoints in
the southern province of Deraa in the biggest flare-up of violence since
government forces retook the restive region three years ago, rebels, residents
and the army said on Thursday. The widespread attacks at army outposts near the
Damascus-Deraa highway leading to the border crossing of Nassib with Jordan
also disrupted passenger and commercial traffic at the main gateway for goods
from Lebanon and Syria to the Gulf. Multiple army checkpoints around key towns
and villages from the town of Nawa north of the province to Muzarib near the
border with Jordan were also seized, they said. The army has sent
reinforcements from its elite Fourth Division, run by Syrian President Bashar
al-Assad's brother Maher, senior military defectors said, confirming army
leaks. The attacks came after the army launched a dawn operation against the
rebel-held old quarter of the city of Deraa, where peaceful protests against
decades of autocratic Assad family rule began in 2011 and were met by deadly
force before spreading across the country. The army has sought to reassert its
control after the collapse of talks earlier this week to get local elders and
former rebels to allow the army to extend its control inside the old quarter,
known as Deraa al Balad.”

 

Afghanistan

 

The Washington Post: Dozens Of Afghan Troops Killed In Insider Attacks During
U.S. Military Withdrawal, Watchdog Says
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“The Taliban’s offensive this spring included more than two dozen insider
attacks during the 90-day period ending June 30, a wave of violence that left
at least 81 Afghan troops dead, a new U.S. government report revealed Thursday,
highlighting the rapid deterioration of security throughout much of Afghanistan
as the United States completes its military withdrawal. At least 37 Afghan
troops were wounded in those attacks, according to the report released by the
Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, and American military
officials told the watchdog’s investigators that the numbers could be
incomplete, citing gaps in knowledge during the pullout, which is now
effectively over. The data underscores the enormous challenges and immense
pressure facing Afghan forces, who have been left to fight the militants with
little U.S. support. Thousands of Afghan troops are killed annually, and those
numbers are on the rise. Others, meanwhile, have abandoned the security forces,
cutting deals with the Taliban, surrendering their weapons and allowing a
growing number of districts to fall under insurgent control. Afghan military
fatalities “have shown an upward trend, especially during the month of June,”
U.S. Forces-Afghanistan told the inspector general, according to the new
report, which notes, too, that the Taliban’s aggressive push to retake lost
territory continues.”

 

NPR: Waiting For U.S. Visas, Afghan Interpreters Fear The Taliban
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“Fida started working with U.S. Special Forces in 2006. In the following
decade, the Afghan interpreter worked for USAID, U.S. Marines and finally the
U.S. State Department. When he spoke to NPR back in 2018, Fida asked to only be
identified by his first name for security reasons. “I am proud to have worked
with such wonderful people,” he said of the Americans he met over the years,
“And they stand by me.” But that did not seem to translate into Fida receiving
the U.S. visa he'd been promised in exchange for risking his life alongside
American forces. His application for a Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) was
rejected several times. He was getting death threats from the Taliban, and he
was worried. Fida wouldn't criticize the U.S. himself, but he said he was
hearing more and more Afghans critical of American promises. “In the future,
people will think that, no, they broke the promises to a lot of interpreters
who were shoulder-to-shoulder with them and who saved American lives,” he said.
Finally, a U.S.-based group, the International Refugee Assistance Project
(IRAP), took on his case. Last December, after several appeals, Fida and his
family were cleared to immigrate to the US. Weeks later, he was murdered by
Taliban gunmen, in front of his 10-year-old son.”

 

Saudi Arabia

 

Asharq Al-Awsat: Saudi Arabia Executes ISIS Member In Jazan
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“The Saudi Interior Ministry announced on Thursday that it had carried out the
death penalty against a member of the ISIS terror group in Jazan city. In a
statement, it identified the individual as Saudi national Mohammed bin Ibrahim
bin Ali al-Rifai. It said he had adopted takfiri ideology, which violates
Islamic values. He had consequently declared his allegiance to ISIS and its
terrorist practices and sought to fulfill the group’s agenda. He had at one
point attacked a bank in Jazan city, opening fire at the people inside, leaving
two dead and two wounded. Others were held hostage at the scene. The
perpetrator resisted arrest and opened fire at the security forces. He was
eventually arrested and charged. He was referred to the specialized court where
he was convicted and sentenced to death. The Interior Ministry underscored the
government’s keenness on consolidating security and pursuing justice against
everyone who violates the country’s security and stability and commits
terrorist acts.”

 

Lebanon

 

The Jerusalem Post: Constrain Hezbollah Before It Drags Region Into War, Erdan
Tells UNSC
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“Hezbollah could spark a regional war unless the United Nations Security
Council empowers its peacekeeper mission to fully monitor the terror group's
movements so its activity can be constrained, Israel Ambassador to the UN Gilad
Erdan said on Wednesday. “If not, Hezbollah may drag the entire region into a
war that would only bring great destruction on Lebanon,” Erdan told the UNSC at
its monthly meeting on the Middle East. He urged the Security Council to
increase the powers granted to the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, tasked with
monitoring violations to the ceasefire – codified under UNSC Resolution 1701 –
which ended the 2006 second Lebanese war.  UNIFIL has operated along the
Lebanese-Israeli border since 1978 and has a mandate that is renewed on an
annual basis. The UNSC is expected to vote on that mandate next month. “This
council must take the opportunity of the renewal of UNIFIL’s mandate next month
to rein in Hezbollah’s terror activity in southern Lebanon by assuring that
UNIFIL has the tools, authority and resolve to fulfill its mandate,” Erdan told
the UNSC.”

 

Middle East

 

The Times Of Israel: Hamas Warns Terror Groups May Resume Rocket Fire Unless
Qatari Funds Enter Gaza
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“Hamas will escalate the situation on the border if Israel does not allow the
passage of Qatari funds into the Gaza Strip by the end of this week, sources in
the terror group told a Lebanese newspaper on Thursday. The sources from Hamas,
which controls the Gaza Strip, told the Al Akhbar newspaper that if there are
no changes to the current situation regarding the entry of money and goods to
the enclave, it may push some Gaza terror factions to launch rockets at
southern Israel. In June, a similar threat was conveyed via the Lebanese paper,
which apparently resulted in the resumption of incendiary balloon attacks. With
Israel’s approval, Qatar has in recent years distributed hundreds of millions
of dollars in cash to enable Gaza’s Hamas rulers to pay for fuel for the
Strip’s power plant, pay civil servants’ salaries, and provide aid to tens of
thousands of impoverished families. An official familiar with the negotiations
told The Times of Israel this month that Israel had notified Egyptian mediators
that it will no longer allow the entrance of unmonitored Qatari cash into the
Strip, as had previously been done.”

 

Libya

 

The New York Times: Qaddafi’s Son Is Alive. And He Wants To Take Libya Back.
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“Ten years ago, near the remote Libyan desert town of Awbari, a band of armed
rebels ambushed a small convoy that was fleeing south toward Niger. The gunmen
stopped the cars and found a youngish bald man with bandages covering his right
hand. They saw a face that had been ubiquitous on Libyan state television: Seif
al-Islam el-Qaddafi, the second son of the country’s notorious dictator and one
of the rebels’ chief targets. Until the Libyan uprising began, in February
2011, Seif was widely seen in the West as the country’s best hope for
incremental reform. With his clean-cut good looks, rimless glasses and
impeccable English, he seemed utterly different from his flamboyant, erratic
father. Seif had studied at the London School of Economics and spoke the
language of democracy and human rights. He cultivated respected political
scientists and lectured young Libyans on civics. Some of his Western friends
even spoke of him as Libya’s potential savior. But when the revolution came,
Seif enthusiastically joined the Qaddafi regime’s brutal crackdown. The rebels
who triumphed nine months later might easily have rewarded him with a summary
execution, as they did his father and other high-ranking officials.”

 

Nigeria

 

Reuters: Proposed U.S. Arms Sale To Nigeria On 'Hold' Over Human Rights
Concerns -Sources
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“U.S. lawmakers have put on hold a proposal to sell almost $1 billion of
weapons to Nigeria over concerns about possible human rights abuses by the
government, three sources familiar with the matter said on Thursday. The
proposed sale of 12 AH-1 Cobra attack helicopters made by Bell (TXT.N) and
related equipment worth $875 million is being delayed in the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee and in the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs
Committee, the sources told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Foreign Policy reported this week that the State Department had informally
notified Congress of the proposed sale but that it was frozen in the Senate
committee. The package includes the helicopters, spare engines, navigation
systems and 2,000 precision-guided munitions, it said. The hold could have an
impact on Nigeria's efforts to seek support to fight Islamic State-allied group
Boko Haram in the northeast and armed bandits in the northwest of the country.
However, the hold may not hinder Nigerian military capabilities on some
missions. A U.S. government official said Nigeria recently took delivery of
Embraer-made (EMBR3.SA) A-29 Super Tucanos, a slow-flying plane that can
provide close air support to infantry much like a helicopter.”

 

Daily Post Nigeria: Boko Haram: Nigerian Troops Kill 42 Terrorists, Bandits –
DHQ
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“Nigerian troops have eliminated 42 terrorists and bandits, arrested 41 and
rescued 93 kidnapped victims in the Northeast, Northwest and North Central
theatres of operation in the last two weeks, Defence Headquarters says. The
Acting Director, Defence Media Operations, Brig.-Gen. Bernard Onyeuko,
announced this while giving updates on the military operations across the
country on Thursday in Abuja. Onyeuko said troops of Operation Hadin Kai, had
eliminated 16 Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists and arrested 29 as well as rescued 40
civilians in the Northeast within the period. He said the successes were
achieved through several land and air operations which include robust
clearance, ambush and road piquet operations as well as comprehensive air
patrol within the theatre. “Cumulatively, the operations led to the
neutralisation of 16 BHT/ISWAPs as well as the arrest of 29 of them, while 40
civilians were rescued. “BHT and their families, five female adults and 12
children were arrested at FOB Mayanti and Darajamel on July 15. “Troops also
recovered one General Purpose Machine Gun, four AK-47 rifles, 50 rounds of
7.62mm special ammunition and one belt containing 296 rounds of 7.62 mm NATO
ammunition, accessories for making IED among other items,’’ he said.”

 

Africa

 

Voice Of America: 19 Civilians Die In New Attack In Niger
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“A fresh attack in western Niger near the border with volatile Mali has left
19 civilians dead, the government said Thursday. The attack took place
Wednesday in the village of Deye Koukou in the Banibangou area, where 14
civilians were killed Sunday, it said. Three others were wounded and one was
missing. A local official earlier told AFP that 18 people had been killed in
the raid. The latest attack takes to 33 the number of civilians killed in the
region in less than a week. Banibangou falls inside what is known as the
three-borders region between Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali, which for years has
been the scene of bloody attacks by jihadist groups linked to al-Qaida and the
Islamic State group. In mid-March, an attack by suspected jihadists in the same
district targeting a village market left 66 people dead. And on June 24,
attacks on villages in Tondikiwindi, in a neighboring district, killed 19
people. Despite repeated efforts by the authorities to secure the region, the
deadly attacks have continued, often carried out by gunmen on motorbikes who
flee across the border into Mali after their raids. A contingent of 1,200
Chadian soldiers is deployed in the three-borders region as part of a
multinational force put together by the G-5 Sahel group, which included Burkina
Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger.”

 

Voice Of America: Zimbabwe To Deploy At Least 300 Soldiers In Mozambique To
Train Battalion To Fight Islamic State Insurgents
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“Zimbabwe is planning to send more than 300 soldiers to Mozambique to train a
battalion, which will fight against an Islamic State-linked insurgency.
According to the state-controlled Herald newspaper, Defence Minister Oppah
Muchinguri-Kashiri told reporters in Harare today that the soldiers will
consist of 303 trainers and one specialist officer, who is expected to be based
at the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Force Headquarters in the
country’s capital city, Maputo. Kashiri is quoted by the newspapers as saying
parliament would be informed about the planned deployment of the soldiers in
accordance with some provisions of the Constitution of Zimbabwe. Section 214 of
the Constitution of Zimbabwe stipulates that “when the Defence Forces are
deployed in Zimbabwe to assist in the maintenance of public order or outside
Zimbabwe; the President must cause Parliament to be informed, promptly and in
appropriate detail, of the reasons for their deployment and where they are
deployed in Zimbabwe, the place where they are deployed; where they are
deployed outside Zimbabwe, the country in which they are deployed.” Reuters
reports that South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has authorized the use of
1,495 members of the military to help Mozambique fight the Islamic State-linked
insurgency.”

 

United Kingdom

 

BBC News: Man Admits Sharing Islamic State Beheading Videos
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“A British man who went to Syria to join the Islamic State (IS) group has
admitted sharing beheading videos.

Stefan Aristidou, 27, entered guilty pleas to four terrorism offences at the
Old Bailey and will be sentenced in September. BBC research reveals he is the
14th person convicted of terror charges out of hundreds who returned from Syria
after joining jihadist groups. The research shows only 3% of returnees have
been convicted of such offences. Aristidou, from Enfield in north London,
travelled to Syria in April 2015 with Kolsoma Begum, whom he had married
shortly before. The pair were reported missing by concerned family members.
Aristidou, who is of Cypriot origin, is a convert to Islam. The couple spent
time living in Raqqa - then the “capital” of Islamic State's self-declared
caliphate - and had a baby while living in Syria. They were later arrested
crossing into Turkey in April 2017. Both were convicted in a Turkish court in
October 2018 of being part of IS. IS militants hold up black jihadist banners
in Raqqa on 30 June 2014 They were each sentenced to more than six years in
prison, although Kolsoma Begum was convicted in her absence having already been
returned to the UK with their child.”

 

BBC News: Gloucestershire Teenager Sentenced For Far-Right Terrorism Offences
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“A teenager who downloaded manuals on how to make bombs and poisons has been
sentenced to a 12-month referral order. The 17-year-old from Gloucestershire,
who cannot be identified for legal reasons, was arrested by counter-terrorism
police in December 2019. Far-right symbols such as swastikas were found
scratched into a desk in his bedroom, Bristol Youth Court was told. Detailed
guides explaining ways of killing someone were also found on his phone.
Gloucestershire Police said the boy's electronic devices contained images of
him performing Nazi salutes, posing with imitation firearms and memes of mass
killers such as Norwegian terrorist Anders Breivik. The boy admitted 11 counts
of collecting material of use to a person committing or preparing an act of
terrorism contrary to section 58 of the Terrorism Act 2000. Senior District
Judge Paul Goldspring, chief magistrate for England and Wales, sentenced the
teenager to a 12-month referral order, which included a programme of
rehabilitation. The judge said he felt the boy did not pose a significant risk
of serious harm to the public. “It is very important that you take this
opportunity to pause and think,” the judge told the boy, saying that if he
appeared before him again a custodial sentence was likely.”

 

Europe

 

The Jerusalem Post: Fight Against Terrorism: Dangerous ISIS Member Arrested In
Greece
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“Moroccan security services have ended the hectic career of an Daesh
terrorist. The General Directorate of Studies and Documentation (DGED) and the
General Directorate of Territorial Surveillance were able, thanks to precise
information, to arrest, in Athens, the so-called Abou Mohamad Al Fateh, a
28-year-old Moroccan who joined the ranks of Daesh and which was the subject of
an international arrest warrant at the initiative of the Moroccan justice
system.  The concerned is a big name of the terrorist organization in which he
held important positions, in particular in what is called special group of
operational services, in Dir Ezzour, in Syria. He was also part of the
religious police in Riqqa province.  Video recording showed him targeting a
Syrian soldier with a weapon of war threatening to kill the “enemies of
religion », as he said. According to information available to the Moroccan
security services, he was planning to carry out terrorist attacks in Morocco.
According to information provided by a source familiar with the matter, Abu
Mohamad Al Fatah either escaped from the war zones controlled by Daesh in Syria
to take refuge in Europe and more specifically in Greece, using a false
identity.”



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