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Eye on Extremism
December 6, 2021
Reuters: U.S. Condemns Militant Attack In Mali That Killed 31
“The United States “strongly condemns” a militant attack on a bus in central Mali that killed at least 31 people and wounded 17, the State Department said on Sunday. Unidentified gunmen on Friday opened fire on the bus as it traveled from the village of Songho to a market in Bandiagara, 6 miles (10 km) away. The villages sit in the heart of the Mopti region, an epicenter of violence in Mali fueled by insurgents linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State. “The United States strongly condemns the attack on civilians on Saturday near Bandiagara, Mali, which left 31 dead and 17 injured,” State Department spokesman Ned Price said in a written statement. “We extend our deepest condolences to the Malian people and will continue to partner with them in their pursuit of a safe, prosperous, and democratic future,” Price said. Jihadist attacks have surged across Africa's Sahel region, killing thousands and displacing millions across Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.”
BBC News: One Of UK's 'Most Prolific Far-Right Anti-Semitic Video Streamers' Jailed
“One of the UK's most prolific far-right anti-Semitic video streamers, who posted films of himself as an offensive caricature of a Jewish man to 10,000 subscribers online, has been jailed. Richard Hesketh was arrested after a charity showed police his work, which had had about two million views. The 36-year-old, of Hollin Lane in Middleton, admitted seven counts of inciting racial hatred. He was jailed for four years at Manchester Crown Court. Greater Manchester Police said as part of his “campaign of abuse towards the Jewish community”, Hesketh had created an alter-ego called George and dressed up for videos “in an attempt to caricature an offensive stereotype of a Jewish male, using a false voice”. A spokesman said Hesketh used a spare bedroom in his home to “create his obscene videos which focused on celebrating far-right terrorism and showing support for violence against Jewish people”. Counter terrorism police were alerted to his activity by Jewish protection charity The Community Security Trust (CST), which had expressed concerns about the nature of videos being uploaded to Hesketh's profile between 2018 and 2020. The force spokesman said the videos had “a combined viewing figure of two million views.”
United States
“The military branches reported nearly 300 allegations of extremism among troops between Jan. 1 and Sept. 30, though the Pentagon has yet to establish congressionally mandated reporting and tracking standards, according to a Defense Department inspector general report released Thursday. “The military departments reported a total of 294 allegations, 281 investigations and inquiries, 92 instances where action was taken, zero instances where no action was taken and 83 referrals to civilian law enforcement agencies,” according to the report. There were 137 allegations in the Air Force, 81 in the Army, 44 in the Navy and 32 in the Marine Corps, according to the report. All of them triggered investigations, except 13 in the Navy that did not require further inquiry. After completing investigations, the Air Force took action in 37 cases, the Army in 18 cases, Navy referred 27 for punishment — including one for prosecution — and the Marine Corps took action in 10 cases, according to the report. Extremism reporting is required by the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act, which sets the Defense Department’s annual budget. It also required the Pentagon to establish oversight policies, processes and ways to report extremism in the ranks.”
Syria
Associated Press: Kosovo Man Charged With Joining Extremist Group In Syria
“Prosecutors brought terror charges Friday against an ethnic Albanian man from Kosovo who allegedly joined an extremist group in Syria and brought his family there. A statement from the prosecutor’s office in Kosovo said the suspect, identified only as N. L., joined the Jabhat al-Nusra group along his son. Authorities allege he trained as a fighter and participated in attacks in Syria. The statement said the man returned to Kosovo in April 2013 to bring to his wife, two daughters and a daughter-in-law to Syria. He allegedly rejoined his son and the al-Nusra group and was eventually handed over to Syrian forces and repatriated to Kosovo, according to the statement, which did not give the whereabouts of his relatives. If convicted, the man faces up to 10 years in prison. Authorities say that fewer than 90 Kosovo citizens remain in Syria, most of them the widows of former fighters. Kosovo repatriated 110 of its citizens, mostly women and children, from Syria two years ago. Many of the adults have been charged with terrorism-related offensives and are serving prison sentences. More than 400 people from Kosovo are thought to have joined extremist groups in Syria and Iraq.”
CNN: US Officials Say Humanitarian Effort In Syria Is Another Means To Counter ISIS
“United States special operations forces in northeastern Syria have been quietly visiting local villages to help provide medical care to communities which have seen little health care in the wake of years of war. The visits are done in partnership with the Syrian Defense Forces, (SDF) which operate in the region alongside the US in a years-long effort to root out any ISIS fighters. The medical visits are seen by the US as part of the effort to work with SDF to bring stability to the area, so ISIS cannot take hold, a defense official directly familiar with the program told CNN. Overall, there are about 900 US troops in Syria. US officials insist the humanitarian effort is not “mission creep,” because the focus is to provide another means to counter ISIS. But it is a step beyond the initial troop deployment by former US President Donald Trump, aimed at his goal of seizing oil field revenue in the region. US officials are emphasizing the medical work is led by SDF, and US forces work under them. However, security remains a sensitive question given ISIS, Russian and regime forces operate at times in the region. All US troops provide their own security. The US special operations personnel participated in two medical visits in Deir Ezzor in northeast Syria in November, according to Major Charles An, a spokesperson for the Special Operations Joint Task Force-Levant which provides the US troops.”
Fox News: CENTCOM Confirms Drone Strike Targeted Al-Qaeda Leader In Syria
“The United States military conducted a drone strike in Syria targeting a senior al-Qaeda leader and planner, a CENTCOM spokesperson says. “U.S. forces conducted a kinetic strike near Idlib, Syria, December 3, targeting a senior al-Qaeda leader and planner,” CENTCOM spokesperson Captain Bill Urban told Fox News Digital in a statement. “The strike was conducted using a precision strike method from MQ-9 aircraft.” Urban added that an “initial review of this strike indicates the potential for possible civilian casualties.” “We abhor the loss of innocent life and take all possible measures to prevent them. The possibility of a civilian casualty was immediately self-reported to U.S. Central Command. We are initiating a full investigation of the allegations and will release the results when appropriate,” Urban added. CENTCOM says it will reveal the results of the strike “when appropriate.” The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital. News of the strike comes days after Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin ordered a renewed investigation into a 2019 airstrike in Syria that resulted in the deaths of civilians after the attack was first reported in detail by the New York Times earlier this month.”
Iraq
Al Jazeera: Several Civilians And Peshmerga Killed By ISIL In Iraq’s Makhmour
“An attack by ISIL (ISIS) fighters on a village in northern Iraq has caused several fatalities, including of three civilians, according to officials. In a statement late on Thursday, the security forces of Iraq’s Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) said ISIL had attacked “several houses in the village of Khidir Jija in Mount Qarachogh”, in Iraq’s Makhmour region. “Unfortunately, there are martyrs and wounded among civilians,” it added. Local news outlet Rudaw reported the death toll stood at 10, including seven members of the Kurdish security forces known as the Peshmerga. In a statement on Friday, KRG President Nechirvan Barzani condemned the “brutal attack”, which killed “three brothers from one family” and wounded “several other civilians”. He also said “a number” of Peshmerga had been killed, while others were wounded “during the operation to hunt terrorists”. “The attacks by ISIL terrorists require strong reactions and strong military and defence measures in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region to set a permanent limit on their crimes and terrorist acts,” Barzani added, calling for “more efficient cooperation” between the Iraqi army and the Peshmerga, as well as increased support by the international coalition “to fill the security and military gap, particularly in areas between Peshmerga and Iraqi forces.”
Al Jazeera: ISIL Committed War Crimes At Mosul Prison, UN Investigation Finds
“The head of a United Nations team investigating ISIL’s (ISIS) atrocities in Iraq has said the armed group’s fighters committed crimes against humanity and war crimes at a prison in the northern city of Mosul, where at least 1,000 mostly Shia Muslim prisoners were systematically killed seven years ago. Christian Ritscher told the UN Security Council on Thursday that evidence collected from mass graves containing the remains of victims of executions carried out at Badush Central Prison and from survivors shows detailed preparations of the attack by senior ISIL members followed by an assault on the morning of June 10, 2014. “Prisoners captured were led to sites close to the prison, separated based on their religion and humiliated,” he said. “At least 1,000 predominantly Shia prisoners were then systematically killed.” Ritscher said the investigators’ analysis of digital, documentary, survivors and forensic evidence, including ISIL documents, has identified a number of members from the group who were responsible for the crimes. As a result of the investigations, he said the UN Investigative Team to Promote Accountability for Crimes Committed by the Islamic State in Iraq (UNITAD) has concluded that ISIL committed “crimes against humanity of murder, extermination, torture, enforced disappearances, persecution and other inhumane acts” at Badush prison as well as the “war crimes of willful killing, torture, inhumane treatment, and outrage upon personal dignity.”
Afghanistan
The New York Times: In Afghanistan, ‘Who Has The Guns Gets The Land’
“For decades, roughly a thousand families called the low-slung mud-walled neighborhood of Firqa home. Some moved in during the 1990s civil war, while others were provided housing under the previous government. Soon after the Taliban takeover on Aug. 15, the new government told them all to get out. Ghullam Farooq, 40, sat in the darkness of his shop in Firqa last month, describing how armed Taliban fighters came at night, expelling him at gunpoint from his home in the community, a neighborhood of Kandahar city in southern Afghanistan. “All the Taliban said was: ‘Take your stuff and go,” he said. Those who fled or were forcibly removed were quickly replaced with Taliban commanders and fighters. Thousands of Afghans are facing such traumatic dislocations as the new Taliban government uses property to compensate its fighters for years of military service, amid a crumbling economy and a lack of cash. Over decades, after every period of upheaval in Afghanistan, property becomes a crucial form of wealth for those in power to reward followers. But this arbitrary redistribution also leaves thousands displaced and fuels endless disputes in a country where the land ownership system is so informal that few people hold any documentation for the ground they call their own.”
Voice Of America: Taliban Pledge To Probe Alleged ‘Summary Killings’ Of Ex-Afghan Forces
“Afghanistan's ruling Taliban on Sunday rejected Western allegations they were carrying out targeted killings of security officials linked to the ousted U.S.-backed government in Kabul, saying the Islamist group was fully committed to enforcing a general amnesty across the country. “Any (Taliban) member found breaching amnesty decree will be prosecuted and penalized,” tweeted Abdul Qahar Balkhi, the Taliban Foreign Ministry spokesman. “Incidents (of targeted killings) will be thoroughly investigated, but unsubstantiated rumors should not be taken at face value.” On Saturday, the United States led a host of Western countries and allies in condemnation of reports that the Taliban have killed or illegally detained more than 100 former Afghan police and intelligence officers since returning to power in mid-August. “We are deeply concerned by reports of summary killings and enforced disappearances of former members of the Afghan security forces as documented by Human Rights Watch and others,” read a statement by the United States, the European Union, Australia, Britain, Japan and others, which was released by the U.S. State Department. The alleged actions “constitute serious human rights abuses and contradict the Taliban's announced amnesty,” the statement said.”
Lebanon
Gulf News: Kuwait Detains 5 More Suspects In Hezbollah Funding
“Kuwaiti authorities had detained five more suspects in connection to alleged financing of Lebanon’s Iran-allied Hezbollah group, raising the total number of suspects in the high-profile case to 23, according to a Kuwaiti newspaper. Investigations are under way with the new suspects after an investigative judge has already ordered extending remand of 12 other suspects until December 13 in the “state security” case, Al Qabas reported, citing what it termed as a close source. Remand of other suspects is expected to be extended. The new suspects have denied involvement, saying they pursued charity work and did not offer financing Hezbollah. Last month, Kuwait dismantled a cell suspected of having links with Hezbollah, according to local media. The arrests were made after authorities received a security report from an unspecified “sisterly” country, Al Seyassah newspaper said at the time. The suspects included a son of a Kuwaiti ex-lawmaker and a brother of another, it said. The suspects were questioned by the Kuwaiti State Security Service on charges including money laundering for Hezbollah and encouraging young Kuwaitis to collaborate with the Lebanese movement, carry out terror acts and smuggle drugs in Syria and Yemen. The paper said the suspects had admitted in investigations that they had collected donations in mosques in Kuwait without approval from authorities.”
Nigeria
Reuters: Islamist Militants Kill 7 Soldiers In Nigeria's Northeastern Borno State - Sources
“Islamist militants killed seven Nigerian soldiers, including a commanding officer and a lieutenant, in northern Nigeria's Borno state, a military source and two residents told Reuters on Friday. The militants, who the sources said were with Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), attacked a military outpost in Rann, in Kala Balge local government area of Borno state, in three trucks at roughly 1:30 am, firing sporadically for an hour. When the shooting stopped, the soldiers went into the town and were killed in an ambush, the sources said. “Those that had hidden inside the town ambushed and killed the captain, lieutenant and five others soldiers,” the military source said. A military spokesperson did not reply to calls or text messages seeking comment. The Nigerian military has fought an Islamist insurgency in northeastern Nigeria for more than 12 years, launched by Boko Haram and joined later by its offshoot ISWAP, a regional affiliate of Islamic State. The United Nations estimates that the conflict had killed some 350,000 people by the end of 2020. read more Last month, ISWAP killed a Nigerian army general and three soldiers in Borno state.”
Reuters: Islamic State Claims Responsibility For An Attack In Nigeria
“Islamic state claimed responsibility for an attack in Nigeria, the militant group said on Saturday in a statement posted on an affiliated Telegram account. Seven Nigerian soldiers were killed, including a commanding officer and a lieutenant, in northern Nigeria's Borno state, a military source and two residents told Reuters on Friday.”
Africa
Voice Of America: Burkina Faso’s 1.3M Displaced People Increasingly Fall Victim To Terrorists
“Worsening security in Burkina Faso is hitting the country's 1.3 million internally displaced people (IDPs), with many being forced to flee their places of refuge for a second time. One refugee camp was closed after it was visited by Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie. And rights groups say they are investigating reports terrorists infiltrated another camp to commit acts of sexual abuse. As security in Burkina Faso has deteriorated in recent months, state control outside of major cities has diminished and terrorist attacks by groups linked to Islamic State, al-Qaida and local bandits are going up. Increasingly, people displaced by the conflict are falling victim to terrorists in areas they had once fled to for safety. In June, Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie visited the Goudoubo refugee camp in Burkina Faso’s war-torn Sahel province to mark World Refugee Day. During her speech at the camp, the special envoy for the U.N.'s refugee agency (UNHCR) said, “This is where the humanity and decency of the world is measured. Where human strength and resilience are most clearly and starkly seen. Not in the world’s gleaming capitals, but in places like this.” Last month the Goudoubo refugee camp was closed. After incursions by terrorist groups at the camp, security forces were unable to guarantee safety.”
Reuters: Twelve Niger Soldiers Killed In Clashes With Militants
“Gunmen have killed 12 soldiers and wounded eight in a clash in southwest Niger near the border with Burkina Faso, the government said on Sunday, the latest in a flood of attacks that have killed hundreds this year. Soldiers encountered hundreds of fighters near the village of Funio on Saturday and came under heavy fire. Dozens of he militants were killed in the fight, the government said. The attack is part of a wider wave of violence by groups linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State that since 2017 has swept across West Africa's Sahel region, a band of arid terrain south of the Sahara Desert. Some of the worst attacks have been centred in the border region of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso. Thousands of civilians have been killed in the region, and millions displaced.”
Long War Journal: Jihadist Attacks Flow Into Littoral West Africa
“Over the last few days, the West African state of Benin has suffered from two attacks perpetrated by suspected jihadists that have left two Beninese soldiers dead. The strikes are just the latest in a worrying series of jihadist, and/or suspected jihadist, activity across several littoral West African states. In addition to Benin, its neighbor Togo has also recently witnessed its first-ever jihadist assault within its territory earlier last month. Ivory Coast, on the other hand, has been subjected to the majority of the jihadist violence seeping into littoral West Africa. These attacks, which are largely stemming from the proliferation of violence in Burkina Faso, which borders all three countries, are primarily thought to be perpetrated by al Qaeda’s Group for Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM). More specifically, it is believed that JNIM’s largely ethnic Fulani brigade, Katibat Macina, is behind this spread. JNIM, however, has not officially claimed any operation in any of the three countries. While the Islamic State’s local branch, often called the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (ISGS), also operates in Burkina Faso, it has so far not shown the capacity to project into littoral West Africa at the same degree or rate as JNIM. It is possible this dynamic could change in the future, however.”
United Kingdom
BBC News: Terror Suspect Arrested At London Stansted Airport
“A 26-year-old man has been arrested at London Stansted Airport on suspicion of “extreme right-wing” terrorism. Counter Terrorism officers from the Metropolitan Police detained the UK national prior to boarding a outbound flight on Friday. A search of an address in the Hastings area of Sussex was being carried out as part of the investigation, police said. The man was taken to a south London police station and was later released on bail to return in late December. Cdr Richard Smith, from the Met, said the arrest at the Essex airport on suspicion of preparation of acts of terrorism was linked to a “suspected extreme right-wing” threat. He added there was not believed to be any imminent risk to the public.”
Germany
Associated Press: Germany Arrests Suspected Libyan Extremist
“German authorities have arrested a 29-year-old man on suspicion of being part of a Libyan extremist group and extorting money through kidnappings, officials said Friday. Federal prosecutors said the man, a Libyan citizen identified only as Ahmed B. for privacy reasons, was detained in the eastern city of Dresden on Thursday. A judge ordered him held in custody Friday. Prosecutors said the man is suspected of having joined the Libya Revolutionaries Operations Room, or LROR, by 2016 at the latest. The group initially fought against the forces of Gen. Khalifa Hifter but later joined with his Libyan National Army against the U.N.-backed transition government, they said. Federal prosecutors allege that the group, which is deemed a foreign terrorist organization by Germany, continues to have an “Islamist-revolutionary” agenda. The suspect is accused of having commanded a military unit and of illegally obtaining money for the group. After moving to Germany the suspect is alleged to have passed information on Libyans in the country to LROR. The information was allegedly used to kidnap relatives of Libyans living in Germany and demand ransoms for their release.”
Europe
Bloomberg: Finnish Police Detain Five People On Suspected Terrorism
“Finnish police arrested five men identified as right-wing extremists on suspicion of preparing a terror attack. The men detained on Tuesday were planning to use explosives for terrorism, Toni Sjoblom, detective superintendent from Southwestern Finland Police Department told reporters on Friday, without disclosing who the potential targets were. The case is “exceptional and rare” in the Nordic country, he said. All suspects live in the Kankaanpaa region of Satakunta, about 270 kilometers (168 miles) from the capital. There is no acute danger to the public, the police said. The case does not lead to changes in the level of the terrorist threat in Finland from two on a four-point scale, according to Eero Pietila, Senior Analyst at the Finnish Security and Intelligence Service. The level means the threat of terrorism is expected to remain elevated in Finland over the next two years, the agency said earlier this year. Individuals and small groups harboring far-right or radical Islamist ideologies pose the main terror threat, with about 390 people designated as counter-terrorism targets.”
Southeast Asia
Associated Press: Philippine Military Says Muslim Rebel Leader Killed In Clash
“Philippine troops killed an Islamic rebel leader and four of his men in fighting in the volatile south in the latest setback for insurgent forces aligned with the Islamic State group, military officials said Friday. Army troops gunned down Asim Karinda and four others in a gunbattle in a rural village near Mamasapano town on Thursday, just over a month after he took over Daulah Islamiya, an armed Islamic group whose previous leader was killed in an army offensive, regional military commander Maj. Gen. Juvymax Uy said. The military did not report any army casualties in the hourlong firefight in Maguindanao province. Small bands of Muslim rebels, who have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group, remain in the country's south despite a 2014 peace pact between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, the largest guerilla group, which dropped its secessionist bid and embraced Muslim autonomy in the southern third of the largely Roman Catholic nation. The military said troops retrieved the body of Karinda, an alleged bomb maker. Also known as Abu Azim, he took over Daulah Islamiya after its leader, Salahudin Hasan, died in an army offensive Oct. 29 in Maguindanao’s Talayan town.”
Technology
Voice Of America: Belarus Labels RFE/RL's Telegram, YouTube Channels 'Extremist'
“A Belarusian court has designated the official Telegram channel of RFE/RL's Belarus Service and some of the broadcaster's social media accounts as extremist in a continued clampdown on independent media and civil society. The decision to label RFE/RL's accounts “extremist” – including its YouTube channel – was made by the Central District Court on December 3 based on information provided by the Main Directorate for Combating Organized Crime and Corruption, known as GUBOPiK. In a statement, GUBOPiK said that anyone subscribing to channels or other media designated as “extremist” may face jail time or other penalties, such as fines. “RFE/RL adamantly rejects this ridiculous label,” RFE/RL President Jamie Fly said in response to the news. “We are committed to continuing to provide objective news and information to the Belarusian people, who are in need of independent media more now than ever. The Lukashenko regime continues to make clear that their disregard for the truth and their efforts to restrict access to independent information know no bounds,” he added.”
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