Eye on Extremism
November 5, 2019
The
New York Times: White Supremacist Plotted To Bomb Colorado Synagogue,
F.B.I. Says
“Federal authorities in Colorado have arrested a man they accused
of plotting to blow up a synagogue in Pueblo, a city two hours south
of Denver, according to federal court documents. The man, identified
as Richard Holzer, 27, used several Facebook accounts to promote
violence and show support for the Holocaust, writing in July in a
private message, for example, that he was “getting ready to cap
people,” the documents said. The message included a picture of him
aiming a long gun while dressed in clothing displaying white supremacy
symbols. He told another Facebook user, “I wish the Holocaust really
did happen” and, speaking of Jews, “they need to die.”
The
Guardian: Sister Of Killed Isis Leader Captured, Says Turkish
Official
“Turkey claims to have captured the sister of killed Isis leader
Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and is interrogating her and her husband and
daughter-in-law, who were also detained. A senior Turkish official
told Reuters that Rasmiya Awad, 65, was seized on Monday during a raid
near the Turkish-controlled northern Syrian town of Azaz. When
captured, she was also accompanied by five children. “We hope to
gather a trove of intelligence from Baghdadi’s sister on the inner
workings of Isis,” the official said. Picture provided by Turkish
officials of who they say is Rasmiya Awad, the sister of slain Isis
leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Little independent information is
available on Baghdadi’s sister and Reuters was not immediately able to
verify if the captured individual was her. Fahrettin Altun, the
communications director of Turkish president Tayyip Erdoğan, called
the arrest “yet another example of the success of our
counter-terrorism operations”. “Our determination to bring justice to
those who seek to terrorize our people and destabilize our region
cannot be questioned,” he wrote on Twitter. “We have been leading in
the fight against terrorism in all its forms.”
Voice
Of America: IS Media Aims To Build Momentum Behind Newly Appointed
Caliph
“The Islamic State terror group appears to be trying to show that
momentum is building in support of its new leader, distributing
photographs of fighters from various provinces and affiliates swearing
allegiance. Since Saturday, IS media officials have posted a series of
photos showing fighters from five of the group's affiliates gathering
to pledge bay'ah (allegiance) to Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurashi.
The first of the pledges came from IS-Sinai of IS distributing three
photographs of about 25 masked fighters gathering in a sparsely wooded
area in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, with guns raised. That release was
followed hours later by a series of photographs showing a group of
about seven or eight masked fighters, allegedly from Bangladesh,
pledging their loyalty. IS media officials have since distributed more
photographs, similarly showing masked gunmen from Yemen and Pakistan
pledging allegiance. “Some of this is, we're seeing some of the weaker
affiliates rapidly realign with Islamic State,” said Katherine
Zimmerman, project manager with the American Enterprise Institute's
Critical Threats Project. “Four of the five are actually pretty small
affiliates — Yemen, Somalia, Bangladesh and Pakistan — that haven't
really had a massive presence on the ground and don't seem to have the
sort of global pull that other ISIS branches have had,” she
added.”
NBC
News: ‘Defeated' ISIS Has Found Safe Haven In An
Ungoverned Part Of Iraq
“Just months after the Islamic State militant group lost the last
of its territory in Syria, and days after its leader, Abu Bakr
al-Baghdadi, was killed in a U.S.-led raid, the group has found safe
haven in a remote, ungoverned space in Iraq, as foreign fighters move
across the border from Syria, military officials tell NBC news. “The
fight against ISIS is continuous,” said U.S. Marine Corps Brig. Gen.
William Seely, commander of Task Force-Iraq. “We're seeing ISIS
fighters move from Syria across hundreds of miles of desert.” Their
goal, Seely says, is to re-establish their physical caliphate in the
region. In 2014, ISIS controlled vast areas of land across Syria and
Iraq, with more than 34,000 square miles and 10 million people living
under its control, in what the group referred to as its caliphate.
U.S.-backed fighters in Syria declared victory over ISIS in March, and
amid Turkey's invasion into northeast Syria last month, President
Donald Trump tweeted that the U.S. had defeated “100% of the ISIS
Caliphate.” But in its most recent quarterly annual report on U.S.
operations in Syria, released in August, the Defense Department's
inspector general said that “ISIS remains a threat in Iraq and
Syria.”
The
New York Times: Russia Dominated Syria’s War. Now It’s Sending
Mercenaries To Libya.
“The casualties at the Aziziya field hospital south of Tripoli used
to arrive with gaping wounds and shattered limbs, victims of the
haphazard artillery fire that has defined battles among Libyan
militias. But now medics say they are seeing something new: narrow
holes in a head or a torso left by bullets that kill instantly and
never exit the body. It is the work, Libyan fighters say, of Russian
mercenaries, including skilled snipers. The lack of an exit wound is a
signature of the ammunition used by the same Russian mercenaries
elsewhere. The snipers are among about 200 Russian fighters who have
arrived in Libya in the last six weeks, part of a broad campaign by
the Kremlin to reassert its influence across the Middle East and
Africa.”
The
Washington Post: Iran’s Hostage Factory
“In 2016, British national Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, with her
daughter Gabriella, traveled to her native Iran to spend the holidays
with relatives. She planned to stay for two weeks. Instead, her
vacation turned into a nightmare in an Iranian prison that has already
robbed her of more than three years of her life. Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a
charity worker, was arrested at the airport, blocked from flying home
to London, and eventually charged with plotting to overthrow the
Iranian government. She is one of at least 50 foreign nationals — many
of them with Iranian citizenship — arrested in Iran on unsubstantiated
charges over the past decade. Zaghari-Ratcliffe is an example of the
latest iteration of a foreign policy tactic that began on Nov. 4,
1979, when radical Iranian students stormed the U.S. Embassy in
Tehran, taking dozens of Americans captive. The episode ended after
444 days, when the hostages were released in 1981. But the seeds were
already planted: using hostages to achieve political goals. Now these
cases are growing in frequency.”
United States
National
Post: After Al-Baghdadi: Who Are The FBI's Next Most-Wanted
Terrorists, And How Much Are They Willing To Pay For
Them?
“On Sunday the search for notorious ISIL leader Abu Bakr
Al-Baghdadi drew to a close, and as a result one informant is in for a
massive payday. For years, the ISIL leader had sat atop the FBI’s list
of most wanted terrorists, with the agency offering a payout of $25
million to anyone who could provide information on his whereabouts.
The reward matched that previously placed on Osama Bin Laden, and also
matches that of Bin Laden’s Al-Qaeda successor, Ayman Al-Zawahiri. The
money — which had been boosted from the initial $10 million offered in
2016 — is expected to be paid soon. The mole in line for the cash is
said to be a former ISIL security official who turned on Al-Baghdadi.
The FBI’s practice of offering bounties for information on wanted
terrorists, known as the Rewards for Justice program, is a
long-established one, dating back to 1984’s Act to Combat
International Terrorism. As of 2019, it has seen more than $150
million paid to informants worldwide."
The
New York Times: Facebook Isn’t Just Allowing Lies, It’s Prioritizing
Them
“First, do no harm,” a doctrine typically associated with the
practice of medicine, is the right ethic when it comes to decisions
surrounding Silicon Valley’s paid promotion technologies and their
effects on elections and democracy. A desire to avoid harm — in
particular, the spread of misinformation — is part of what persuaded
Twitter’s chief executive, Jack Dorsey, to announce that his company
will no longer run political ads. And Twitter is not alone: LinkedIn,
Pinterest, Microsoft and Twitch also refuse political ads, while
Google accepts them in some states but not others. Facebook is now the
outlier, and it is increasingly hard to understand why it is insisting
on accepting not only political advertising, but even deliberate and
malicious lies if they are in the form of paid advertisements.”
CBS
News: Alleged White Supremacist Arrested In Thwarted Synagogue Attack
In Colorado, FBI Says
“A man who repeatedly espoused anti-Semitic views has been arrested
in a plot to bomb a historic Colorado synagogue, federal officials
said Monday. The co-conspirators turned out to be undercover agents.
Court documents say Richard Holzer was arrested Friday in Pueblo just
after the agents brought him what were supposedly two pipe bombs along
with dynamite to blow up Temple Emanuel. In fact, the undercover
agents had phony bombs incapable of causing damage, authorities said.
The agents said Holzer described the inert explosives as "absolutely
gorgeous" and said they should go ahead with the attack overnight to
avoid police. He had allegedly earlier made threatening comments about
Pueblo's Jewish community and said he wanted to plot "something that
tells them they are not welcome in this town," according to a criminal
complaint filed in federal court.”
The
Washington Post: 8chan Is Back Online, This Time As
8kun
“8chan, the anonymous message board known for propelling
white-supremacist and extremist content, is up and running after being
knocked offline in August. The site, rebranded as 8kun, claims
anything deemed illegal in the United States will be removed. Though
it isn’t clear how many of the millions of 8chan users tried the new
incarnation Sunday, site administrator Ron Watkins — the son of 8chan
owner Jim Watkins — said surging traffic combined with cyberattacks
caused some initial disturbance. But, he added, “we are alive." 8chan
vowed to fight on, saying its ‘heartbeat is strong.’ Then a tech firm
knocked it offline. 8chan became known for promoting online hate and
extremism, including during mass shootings. This year, the platform
was used to announce deadly attacks at mosques in Christchurch, New
Zealand; a synagogue in Poway, Calif., and a Walmart in El Paso. It
has also been widely condemned for fueling the spread of such
violence. In March, as the New Zealand gunman live-streamed his
rampage on Facebook, fewer than 200 people watched before the social
media site took it down. But 8chan, where the gunman had announced his
“attack against the invaders” with a link to the live footage, allowed
the grisly footage to reach millions.”
DW:
What Is The Atomwaffen Division?
“The Atomwaffen Division (AWD) is made up of a series of leaderless
terror cells, drawing on the structure of other US-based neo-Nazi
terror organizations such as the National Socialist Liberation Front
from the 1970s and The Order, which followed it in the 1980s. It sees
violence and degeneracy as the only way of bringing about the lawless,
apocalyptic conditions needed for it to wipe out non-white races and
those who do not conform to its values. According to the Hague-based
International Center for Counterterrorism (ICCT), the group is "but
one subsection of a rising American radical right that is growing in
size, viciousness of message, and acceptance of violence." However,
the group has been remarkably effective in attracting young
violence-prone men to join it.”
ABC
News: Suspected White Supremacist Arrested In Thwarted Synagogue
Attack, FBI Says
“FBI officials said they have arrested a 27-year-old suspected
white supremacist who was allegedly planning a bombing at a Colorado
synagogue. The suspect, identified as Richard Holzer, was allegedly
planning to target Temple Emanuel in Pueblo, which is the state's
second-oldest synagogue, the FBI said Monday. Holzer is charged with
attempting to obstruct religious exercise by force using explosives
and fire. He allegedly told an undercover FBI agent that he hoped to
poison members of the synagogue and claimed he had paid off a “Mexican
cook to hex and poison” attendees by putting arsenic in the water
pipes, according to an arrest affidavit. The undercover agent
connected with Holzer through a Facebook account that portrayed her as
a white female who is supportive of white supremacy ideology. Holzer
allegedly told her that he was “a skinhead” and former member of the
Ku Klux Klan and sent her images of himself wearing clothing that
featured symbols related to white supremacy. Richard Holzer was
arrested for was allegedly planning to bomb a synagogue in Pueblo,
Colorado. The FBI said the account was one of several that Holzer
allegedly used to “promote white supremacy ideology” and
racially-motivated acts of violence.”
Syria
France24:
US Troop Level In Syria Stable Despite Announced
Withdrawal
“The number of US troops in Syria remains roughly stable at just
under 1,000 three weeks after President Donald Trump announced their
withdrawal, a US official said Monday. The withdrawal of American
troops from Syria's northern border opened the way for Turkey's
military incursion against Kurdish forces in the country. Trump's
decision to protect oil fields in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor
led the Pentagon to send reinforcements to that area while US troops
move away from areas close to the Syrian border with Turkey, the US
official said on condition of anonymity. Reinforcements have started
to arrive in Deir Ezzor, while some troops have been sent to the north
to help secure the withdrawal from that area and others have moved
from Syria to northern Iraq. But overall, the number of American
troops in Syria is similar to that before the announcement of the
withdrawal in mid-October.”
Foreign
Policy: No Cease-Fire In Syria As Joint Russian-Turkish Patrols
Begin
“Russian and Turkish troops, drones, and armored vehicles began
joint patrols in northeastern Syria on Friday, as part of an agreement
designed to halt a violent Turkish offensive against Syrian Kurdish
fighters that has so far killed almost a thousand civilians and
soldiers and wounded hundreds more. Turkey looks to expand its gains.
Under the agreement, brokered by Russian President Vladimir Putin last
month, Moscow and Ankara will jointly patrol two sections of the
Syrian border to the west and the east of the Turkish incursion. But
though Syrian Kurdish fighters completed their withdrawal to 20 miles
from the border last week, clashes continued throughout the region as
Turkey sought to expand the planned “safe zone” deeper into Kurdish
territory.”
The
Wall Street Journal: Battle For Syrian Town Pits Turkey Against Assad
Regime
“Turkey’s weekslong efforts to seize Kurdish-held territories in
Syria have put the Turkish military on a collision course with the
army of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad despite a recent agreement
between Moscow and Ankara to prevent hostilities. The Turks and the
Assad regime are battling to control the Syrian town of Tal Tamar and
surrounding villages, located at a strategic highway intersection.
Fighting intensified over the weekend, with Turkish troops reaching
the eastern side of Tal Tamar, the Assad regime sending reinforcements
to shore up Kurdish positions, and U.S. officials saying a U.S. convoy
witnessed artillery strikes landing close to its position. The battle
for Tal Tamar is emblematic of a volatile race under way in
northeastern Syria as rival forces seek to fill the void created by
President Trump’s decision to withdraw U.S. troops from areas Turkey
covets."
The
Washington Post: The Death Of Baghdadi Isn’t The End Of
ISIS.
“On Oct. 26, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, arguably the most wanted
terrorist in the world, detonated a suicide belt to avoid capture by
U.S. forces. His death, an important and symbolic event in the fight
against the Islamic State, was soon followed by the announcement of a
successor last Thursday. ISIS has suffered significant setbacks over
the past two years, losing most of its territorial control, and has
returned to its roots as an insurgent organization. Although the group
no longer operates as a proto-state governing vast amounts of land, it
remains active with estimates of between 10,000 and 15,000 fighters in
Iraq and Syria. According to the Global Terrorism Database, ISIS has
carried out thousands of attacks since 2014. Given the recent
successes in the fight against ISIS, many analysts and government
officials are optimistic that Baghdadi’s death will result in
substantial weakening and perhaps the demise of ISIS. Advocates of
this view argue that Baghdadi is irreplaceable, given his claim of
lineage to the prophet Muhammad, religious credentials and education
in Koranic studies, and operational success in creating an Islamic
state. Despite this belief in Baghdadi’s authority and legitimacy as a
leader of the caliphate, however, ISIS is not a cult of
personality.”
Iran
CNBC:
US Sanctions 9 People With Ties To Iran’s Top Leader
“The United States imposed sanctions on nine people with ties to
Iran Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, including his chief of
staff, one of his sons and the head of Iran’s judiciary, the U.S.
Treasury Department said on Monday. The United States also sanctioned
Iran’s Armed Forces General Staff, the department said in the
statement, which came 40 years after Iran seized the U.S. embassy in
Tehran, taking more than 50 Americans hostage. “Today the Treasury
Department is targeting the unelected officials who surround Iran’s
Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, and implement his destabilizing
policies,” U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement.
“These individuals are linked to a wide range of malign behaviors by
the regime, including bombings of the U.S. Marine Barracks in Beirut
in 1983 and the Argentine Israelite Mutual Association in 1994, as
well as torture, extrajudicial killings, and repression of civilians,”
Mnuchin added.”
The
Guardian: Iran To Begin Injecting Uranium Gas Into 1,044
Centrifuges
“Iran’s president has announced that Tehran will begin injecting
uranium gas into 1,044 centrifuges, in the latest step away from its
nuclear deal with world powers since the US president, Donald Trump,
withdrew from the accord over a year ago. The development is
significant as the centrifuges previously spun empty, without gas
injection, under the terms of the landmark 2015 accord known as the
Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). It also increases pressure
on European nations that remain in the accord, which at this point has
all but collapsed. Iran’s president, Hassan Rouhani, did not clarify
in his announcement whether the centrifuges, which are at its nuclear
facility in Fordow, would be used to produce enriched uranium. The
centrifuges would be injected with the uranium gas as of Wednesday,
Rouhani said.”
The
Wall Street Journal: Iran Finds Itself In Crosshairs Of Arab
Protesters
“The largest mass protests to hit Iraq and Lebanon in decades are
posing a direct challenge to the influence Iran has gained in both
countries as demonstrators seek to overturn the political order. Late
Sunday, protesters in the holy Shiite city of Karbala torched the
Iranian consulate with Molotov cocktails, hauling an Iraqi flag up on
the compound walls. Security forces killed three people when
dispersing the crowd with live ammunition, according to Iraq’s
human-rights commission. Over the past decade, Iran has leveraged
instability in the Middle East to expand its footprint in the region.
But as paramilitary groups backed by the Islamic Republic have gained
political clout, protesters are holding Tehran and its local allies
just as accountable as their own political classes for poor governance
and state violence.”
The
New York Times: Iran Steps Further From Nuclear Deal With Move On
Centrifuges
“In an effort to counter American sanctions, Iran will pull further
away from a landmark nuclear accord signed four years ago, President
Hassan Rouhani said on Tuesday, announcing that the country would
inject uranium gas into more than 1,000 centrifuges. Injecting the gas
is a step toward uranium enrichment, which in turn moves Iran closer
to being able to build a nuclear weapon, though it has denied
harboring such ambitions. The country has taken several steps this
year to exceed the limits the agreement had put on its nuclear
program, after President Trump withdrew from the accord last year and
imposed economic sanctions in an effort to put pressure on the
government in Tehran.”
The
Wall Street Journal: Iran Plans To Breach Nuclear Deal
Again
“Iran plans to step up work at its Fordow nuclear facility from
Wednesday, raising concerns of a significant breach of the 2015
nuclear deal as Tehran intensifies pressure on Europe to provide
relief from U.S. sanctions. The Islamic Republic first began to breach
limits imposed by the multilateral deal in early July, warning it
would take further steps every two months. Tehran is pushing European
countries to do more to offset the impact of harsh sanctions the U.S.
reimposed after it pulled out of the accord in 2018. On Monday,
Washington sanctioned Iranian officials viewed as close to Iranian
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. On Tuesday, Iranian President
Hassan Rouhani said Iran would start injecting gas into the machines
that produce uranium at the underground Fordow nuclear plant. He
didn’t say what gas Iran would be using, but renewed activity at the
site is expected to raise concerns in the West.”
U.S.
Department Of Defense: 40 Years After Hostage Crisis, Iran Remains
Hotbed Of Terrorism
“Forty years ago today, a crowd of college students broke into the
housing complex at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, Iran, and took 66
Americans hostage, including 26 service members. Some of the hostages
were released two weeks later, but the majority — 52 in all — were
held for 444 days. They were released on Jan. 20, 1981. As part of
U.S. efforts to free the hostages, eight U.S. service members were
killed during a failed military operation called Operation Eagle Claw.
The White House says the political climate in Iran hasn't changed much
since then. The Iranian regime has a choice. Instead of being the
world's leading state sponsor of terrorism, it can put the Iranian
people first.” “The Iranian regime continues to target innocent
civilians for use as pawns in its failed foreign relations,” according
to a statement from the White House press secretary. “Until Iran
changes this and its other hostile behavior, we will continue to
impose crippling sanctions. “The Iranian regime has a choice,” the
statement continues. “Instead of being the world's leading state
sponsor of terrorism, it can put the Iranian people first. It can
choose peace over hostage taking, assassinations, sabotage, maritime
hijacking and attacks on global oil markets. The United States seeks
peace, and we support the Iranian people. It is time for the Iranian
regime to do the same."
Iraq
The
New York Times: Iraqis Rise Against A Reviled Occupier:
Iran
“It started quietly a month or so ago with scattered protests.
Those steadily expanded until last week more than 200,000 Iraqis
marched in Baghdad, raging against the Iraqi government and a foreign
occupier — not the United States this time, but Iran. While the
current leaders of the Iraqi government cower inside the Green Zone,
where officials running the American occupation once sheltered, the
protesters outside direct their anger against the Islamic Republic of
Iran, which they now see as having too much influence. “Free, free
Iraq,” they shout, “Iran get out, get out.” On the streets and in the
squares of Iraq’s capital, in the shrine city of Karbala — where
protesters on Sunday threw gasoline bombs at the Iranian Consulate —
in back alleys and university hallways, a struggle is taking place
over who will shape the country’s future. Iraq, along with Lebanon,
another heavily Shiite country that has been roiled by protests, is
part of a developing revolt against efforts by Shiite-dominated Iran
to project its power throughout the Middle East.”
Asharq
Al-Awsat: Government: Dutch Airstrike Killed Dozens Of Civilians, ISIS
Militants In 2015
“A Dutch airstrike against an alleged ISIS bomb factory in northern
Iraq in 2015 killed about 70 people, including civilians and
militants, the Dutch Defense Ministry said on Monday. The government
of the Netherlands had not previously provided a detailed estimate of
the number of deaths in Hawija, near the city of Kirkuk. A bomb
dropped by a Dutch F-16 fighter jet taking part in US-led
counter-terrorism operations on the night of June 2 “resulted in
around 70 victims, including ISIS militants and civilians,” Defense
Minister Anna Bijleveld-Schouten wrote in a letter to parliament. It
was unclear precisely how many civilians were killed, the letter said,
but the number of victims was higher than had been anticipated in the
night-time raid, partly due to a series of blasts from explosives
stored at the building, it said. The facility was on an industrial
site and “intelligence available to the Netherlands did not anticipate
civilians deaths because there were no civilians living in the area
near the target,” it said. “After the raid there were a number of
secondary and larger explosions that could not have been anticipated
from earlier strikes on similar targets,” it said, according to
Reuters. “This caused the destruction of a large number of other
buildings.”
Turkey
Al
Jazeera: Turkey Captures Sister Of Slain ISIL Leader Abu Bakr
Al-Baghdadi
“Turkey captured the sister of slain Islamic State of Iraq and the
Levant (ISIL or ISIS) leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi on Monday in the
northern Syrian town of Azaz, a senior Turkish official told Reuters,
and is interrogating her and her husband and daughter-in-law who were
also detained. “Rasmiya Awad was captured in a raid on a container
near Azaz,” the official said. “We hope to gather a trove of
intelligence from Baghdadi’s sister on the inner workings of ISIS,” he
added. US President Donald Trump announced in late October that
American forces carried out an operation killing Baghdadi in Syria's
Idlib province.”
Yahoo
News: Turkey Releases Journalists Convicted Of Aiding Terror
Group
“A court on Monday convicted two journalists of aiding a terror
group but ordered both released from prison, where they had served
more than three years in a case that has severely tested press freedom
in Turkey. The court in Istanbul convicted Ahmet Altan and Nazli
Ilicak of aiding the network of U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen,
whom Turkish officials have identified as the mastermind of a failed
coup in 2016. The charge was aiding a terror network without being
members of that network. The journalists — along with Altan's brother,
columnist Mehmet Altan, and two others — were previously sentenced to
life in prison without parole in 2018 for attempting to overthrow the
government. The Supreme court overturned those convictions in July.
After Monday's retrial and new convictions, Ahmet Altan was sentenced
to 10 ½ years and Ilicak to nearly nine. Mehmet Altan was acquitted of
charges of attempting to overthrow the government. He previously had
been convicted on that charge and sentenced to life but was released
from prison in June 2018 pending his appeal.”
Stars
And Stripes: Foreign Fighters Transiting Through Turkey Could Help
Islamic State To Regenerate, US Report Warns
“Turkey remains a transit point for foreign fighters looking to
join the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, which could help the
terrorist group to reorganize and regain influence, a U.S. report on
global terrorism says. The annual U.S. State Department country
reports on terrorism released Friday trumpeted how “the United States
and its partners made major strides to defeat and degrade
international terrorist organizations in 2018,” including liberating
nearly all the territory previously held by ISIS in Syria and Iraq.
But the section on Turkey warned that country could serve as a
corridor for militants looking to replenish the radical group’s ranks
and allow ISIS to regenerate. “Turkey is a source and transit country
for FTFs (foreign terrorist fighters) seeking to join ISIS and other
terrorist groups fighting in Syria and Iraq,” the report stated. The
U.S. has emphasized to Turkey the importance of ensuring its borders
are secure, the State Department’s counterterrorism coordinator Nathan
A. Sales told reporters Friday. “We don’t want other fighters flooding
into Syria to provide a shot in the arm to an ISIS that is seeking to
reconstitute itself,” Sales said.”
Afghanistan
The
New York Times: Afghan President, Chinese Fm Discuss Dialogue With
Taliban
“Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi
have discussed a planned meeting in Beijing that would include Afghan
figures and Taliban representatives. That meeting — known as
“intra-Afghan dialogue” —was to take place last month but has been
postponed. No new date has been set. The last time it was held was in
July in Qatar. The dialogue is a separate process from the
U.S.-Taliban talks that collapsed in September. Tuesday's Afghan
statement says Ghani and Wang underscored the Afghan government and
people's role in the peace process. Ghani insists his government must
lead any dialogue with the Taliban, though the insurgents refuse to
talk to government representatives. The future of his office is also
uncertain as Afghanistan awaits the long overdue results of September
presidential elections.”
Pakistan
The
Defense Post: Grenade Blast In Kashmir Market Kills 1, Injures
17
“At least one person was killed and 17 wounded in a grenade blast
at a crowded market in Indian-administered Kashmir’s main city
Srinagar, police and doctors said on Monday, November 4. Kashmir has
been on a knife-edge since August 5 when the Indian government moved
to strip the region of its autonomy, imposed a lockdown, cut
telecommunications and detained thousands. No one claimed Monday’s
blast but authorities have in the past accused militants backed by
Pakistan of intimidating people in Kashmir into resisting Indian
attempts to return life to normal. Doctors at the main hospital told
AFP that the deceased was a resident of northern Indian state of Uttar
Pradesh. “Two people are critical,” a doctor said on condition of
anonymity. Srinagar police chief Haseeb Mughal told AFP that 18 people
were injured out of whom one died at the hospital. Kashmir is divided
between India and its arch-foe Pakistan, and both claim it in full.
Militants seeking independence or a merger with Pakistan have waged an
armed rebellion against India since 1989. Around half of mobile phones
remain cut off, as does the internet, while hundreds of local
political leaders are still in detention, mostly without charge.”
Radio
Free Europe: Bomb Blasts Kill Four Soldiers In Northwestern
Pakistan
“Four Pakistani soldiers have been killed in two separate bomb
explosions in the North Waziristan tribal district, local officials
say. Local administration officials told RFE/RL on November 4 that two
soldiers were killed and another was wounded in a roadside bomb blast
in the Razmak area. The soldiers were on a routine patrol, the
officials said. Two more soldiers died in a second roadside bomb
explosion in the town of Mir Ali. Militants of Hizbul Ahrar, a
splinter group from the Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP), claimed
responsibility for the attacks. Pakistan launch a massive military
operation in North Waziristan in 2014 to cleanse the region of Islamic
militants.”
Yemen
The
National: Yemen's Houthi Rebels Jeopardise Hodeidah Ceasefire By
Fortifying Positions
“Yemeni government forces say Houthi rebels have started digging
defensive trenches in Hodeidah, threatening recent progress on
implementing a UN-brokered ceasefire and troop withdrawal in the port
city. The UN-chaired Redeployment and Co-ordination Committee was
given the task of implementing the ceasefire and set up joint
monitoring posts on the eastern and southern outskirts of Hodeidah
last month. The UN special envoy for Yemen, Martin Griffiths, welcomed
the move as “remarkable and tangible progress” that could lead to the
full implementation of the ceasefire agreed to at talks in Sweden last
December. But the rebels soon started fortifying their positions by
digging 19 trenches in areas under their control in the city centre, a
spokesman for the government’s Joint Forces in Hodeidah told The
National. “The new channels were dug a few days after the UN put the
local monitors in place to observe any new violations,” Col Wathah Al
Dubaish said.”
The
National: Arab Parliament Calls On Yemen's Houthis To Complete
Stockholm Agreement
“The Arab Parliament on Monday called for the implementation of the
UN-brokered Stockholm agreement by the warring parties in Yemen almost
a year ago, but is yet to be fully executed. The Parliament, part of
the Arab League, repeated its endorsement of the December 13 ceasefire
agreement between Yemen’s government and the Houthi rebels. It calls
for the “rapid mutual withdrawal” of fighters from Hodeidah and its
three ports. It also includes agreements on a prisoner swap and the
formation of a committee to negotiate the future of Taez city. Neither
has yet come to fruition. Hodeidah is the international entry point
for nearly 70 per cent of imports and humanitarian aid to Yemen, where
five years of war have spawned the world’s worst humanitarian
crisis.”
Lebanon
Foreign
Policy: Hezbollah’s Old Tricks Won’t Work In Lebanon
“Expectations were high for Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah’s
speech on Nov. 1, which arrived at the end of a tumultuous week in
Lebanon that included widespread street violence in Beirut and Prime
Minister Saad Hariri’s resignation after two weeks of nationwide
protests. But the militant group’s leader had little to say. Like in
his previous speech on Oct. 25, Nasrallah stressed pragmatism over
idealism and delivered bland criticisms of Lebanon’s politicians while
echoing their calls for a speedy government formation process
following Hariri’s departure. “We call for dialogue between political
parties, parliamentarians, and honest leaders of the protests,”
Nasrallah said. “We must all get past the wounds that were created in
the last two weeks.” For the leader of a party that has branded itself
as the vanguard of Lebanon’s grassroots resistance for decades,
Nasrallah’s backing of the country’s corrupt establishment might seem
odd. Yet for now—struggling to adapt to the sudden changes in the
political system around it and on the ground beneath it—the group has
left itself with few alternatives other than backing the current order
and betting on the power of its brand and its ability to dispense
violence and threats to keep its supporters in
line.”
Middle East
The
Algemeiner: How Hezbollah Recruits Palestinian
Terrorists
“A lot of attention has been devoted to the Islamic State’s use of
the Internet to inspire or direct international terrorist attacks. But
little has been written about how Hezbollah uses similar approaches to
recruit and execute attacks. A new study published this month in the
CTC Sentinel explores this development by analyzing several cases of
Hezbollah’s alleged social media efforts to recruit Israeli Arabs and
Palestinians to kill Israelis. From the end of 2015 through 2017, both
the Islamic State and Hezbollah recruited terrorists outside their
base countries using social media and encrypted communications
platforms to help people form cells and conduct terrorist attacks
abroad. Several high-profile Islamic State virtual plots were carried
out successfully, killing people in Europe and beyond during this
period.”
Egypt
Al
Jazeera: Egypt Forces Kill 83 Fighters In Sinai, Military
Says
“Egypt's security forces have killed 83 suspected fighters in
operations in central and North Sinai over the past month, the
military said on Monday. It also said 61 criminal suspects were
detained and it found and detonated 376 explosive devices during the
period, which it dated from September 28. One officer and two soldiers
died or were wounded, it added. The military did not say what armed
groups those killed belonged to. Conflict in the Sinai escalated after
then-president Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood was toppled by
the military in 2013. In late 2017, North Sinai was the scene of the
deadliest attack in Egypt's modern history when fighters killed more
than 300 worshippers at a mosque, without any group claiming
responsibility. In February 2018, the army launched a military
operation aimed at defeating Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
(ISIL or ISIS) or related armed groups in the Sinai Peninsula.
Hundreds of fighters and dozens of soldiers have been killed since the
start of the offensive, according to the armed forces. Access to North
Sinai has been restricted for years, making it difficult to
independently verify what is happening on the ground. In a 134-page
report published in May, Human Rights Watch (HRW) accused Egyptian
security forces of committing widespread abuse against civilians, some
of which amounted to war crimes, it said.”
Nigeria
Xinhua:
Boko Haram Militants Kills 3 Farmers, Abduct 6 Women In
Nigeria
“At least three local farmers were killed following a raid by
terror group Boko Haram at a village in Nigeria's northeastern state
of Borno, an official source confirmed on Monday. The source told
Xinhua six women were also abducted during the same attack which
lasted a few hours in Rann, a village in Kalabalge local government
area of the state on Sunday. The victims were working on their farm in
the village, near Nigeria's border with Cameroon, when the Boko Haram
militants attacked them. While the men were shot dead, the female
farmers were taken away by the militants, the source said. Umar
Gamaye, a witness who fled the attack scene, said the Boko Haram
militants carried out the raid on motorbikes. Gamaye said the bodies
of his colleagues were recovered during a search by locals. Rann and
some nearby villages had been frequently targeted in a number of
attacks by Boko Haram in the past, though successes recently recorded
by the Nigerian military had pushed the militants out of some areas to
nearby bushes. Boko Haram, which launched attacks in Nigeria's
northeast region a decade ago, is known for its agenda to maintain a
virtual caliphate in the most populous African country.”
Somalia
Xinhua:
Al-Shabab Militants Ambush Somali Forces, Killing 2 Government
Soldiers
“Members of al-Shabab extremist group on Sunday night ambushed and
killed two Somali government soldiers in Bula Burde town in the
central region of Hiiraan, an official said on Monday. Liban Abdi, the
governor of Bula Burde town told journalists that government soldiers
were attacked by al-Shabab militants, sparking a confrontation between
the army and the militants. “Two of our soldiers were killed in the
gunfight and the militants finally turned back to their bases in the
outskirt of the town,” Abdi said, adding that the army is now
conducting intense operations following the ambush. “We heard an
exchange of firefight last night and we later learned al-Shabab
militants ambushed government forces in the town, but the forces are
now manning the town,” Fahim Salad, a resident told Xinhua by phone.
The latest incident came barely four days after Somali forces killed 7
al-Shabab extremists and injured 8 others in Lower Juba region in
southern Somalia. Somali forces backed by African Union forces have
heightened operations against Al-Shabab in southern parts of the
country pushing the militants out of major strongholds.”
Africa
Voice
Of America: US Helps Senegal Defend Against Sahel
Extremists
“The West African country of Senegal is known for its stable
democracy and peaceful culture. But as terrorist activity expands
across the Sahel, the threat of extremism has grown in the country –
so much so that the United States government is ramping up efforts to
help Senegal secure its borders. While Islamic State and al-Qaida
factions have wreaked havoc across West Africa, Senegal has managed to
maintain peace and security within its borders. But as conflicts
surround the country — where 95 percent of the population practices
Islam — experts warn the unrest could spill over and end the country’s
tradition of religious and ethnic pluralism. The United States and
other countries are taking steps to help Senegal implement security
measures. Ambassador Nathan Sales is the United States coordinator for
counterterrorism. “We think that the situation has become increasingly
fraught. And that's exactly why the counterterrorism bureau in
particular in the State Department and generally have been surging
resources into the region. We're trying to stand up the capabilities
of these governments to confront these terrorist threats on their own…
we want to make sure that the terrorist threats in the region don't
destabilize and disrupt a government and an economy that had been
really on the leading edge in the region,” he said.”
All
Africa: Kenya: Police Target Most Wanted Terror Suspect In
Crackdown
“Police have zeroed in on most wanted terror suspect Abdullahi
Banati as the mastermind of a group targeting security forces in parts
of the North Eastern region. According to a security brief seen by the
Sunday Nation, the group's operations include an intelligence wing
that shares information on potential targets. Mr Banati is not a new
name to the police, but he has remained elusive. despite efforts to
locate him. He is thought to be part of a group that operates between
Somalia and Kenya carrying out attacks using Improvised Explosive
Devices (IED's) targeting the police. A source within the security
agencies this week told the Sunday Nation that it is suspected Mr
Banati led the group of terrorists that planted the IEDs which killed
11 police officers last month in Garissa County. “Our officers traced
his activities and his team to the border, and we believe they escaped
to Somalia immediately the attack took place, but we shall get him,”
said the source who spoke in confidence. Our source further revealed
that Mr Banati has been receiving aid from a some refugees who reside
within the vast Dadaab Camp who police are also tracking down. His
name has featured in all the three deadliest attacks that have taken
place in Kenya over the years.”
North Korea
Associated
Press: N. Korea Says US Terrorism Blacklist Hinders Nuke
Diplomacy
“North Korea said Tuesday the U.S. redesignation of Pyongyang as a
sponsor of terrorism is dimming prospects for nuclear diplomacy
between the countries. The North’s statement comes as North Korea is
escalating its pressures on the United States over a stalemate in
nuclear negotiations. Last week, North Korea test-fired projectiles
from what it called a newly developed “super-large” multiple rocket
launcher in the country’s first weapons test in about a month. The
North’s Foreign Ministry said Tuesday the State Department’s terrorism
blacklist report released last week proves again the United States
maintains a “hostile policy” and “inveterate repugnancy” toward North
Korea. “This is an insult to and perfidy against a dialogue partner,”
said the statement carried by state media. “The channel of the
dialogue between (North Korea) and the U.S. is more and more
narrowing” due to the U.S. stance. North Korea had been on the
terrorism blacklist for two decades after its agents were blamed for
the bombing of a South Korean airliner that killed 115 people in 1987.
It was delisted in 2008 as Washington tried to entice North Korea into
a nuclear deal. But the Trump administration relisted it in 2017,
saying the North repeatedly supported acts of international
terrorism.”
United Kingdom
BBC
News: UK Terrorism Threat Downgraded To 'Substantial'
“The UK's terrorism threat level has been downgraded from “severe”
to “substantial”, the Home Office says. Home Secretary Priti Patel
said the UK was still at “a high level of threat” and an attack could
“occur without further warning”. The terrorism threat is now at its
lowest since August 2014. Substantial is the third of five ratings at
which the threat level can stand. The separate terrorism threat level
for Northern Ireland remains “severe”. Ms Patel said in a statement on
Monday that terrorism remained a “direct and immediate” risk to the
UK's national security. Assessments determining the country's threat
level are taken by the Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre (JTAC) - part
of MI5 - which makes its recommendations independently from the
government. There was a surge in terror attacks in 2017, including in
London Bridge where eight people were killed “Government, police and
intelligence agencies will continue to work tirelessly to address the
threat posed by terrorism in all its forms,” Ms Patel said. The threat
level is kept under “constant review”, she added. Neil Basu, head of
counter terrorism policing, said there had been “positive
developments” in the fight against terrorism but it was “vital that we
all maintain a high level of vigilance.”
The
National: British Politicians Must Do More To Tackle Extremism, Says
Top Adviser
“The British government’s extremism adviser has called on leaders
of the country’s three main political parties to commit to challenging
hateful acts. Sara Khan has written to Conservative leader and Prime
Minister Boris Johnson, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and Jo Swinson,
head of the Liberal Democrats, accusing politicians of not doing
enough to counter extremism. The letter, which follows the recent
release of the Commission for Countering Extremism’s report
Challenging Hateful Extremism, said: “Our country’s response to
hateful extremism is weak, insufficient and often ineffective. In the
interests of our country, we need to do better. “Hateful extremism is
undermining the social fabric of our country and is having a
devastating impact on the lives of individuals, communities and the
country as a whole.” In the letter, the commission puts forward some
recommendations for the British government to adopt. These include a
clear vision and definition for a whole-society effort to counter
hateful extremism that is proportionate, based on human rights and
focuses on victims, and a review of existing legal powers to ensure
they are being used effectively.”
Germany
Deutsche
Welle: Germany's Angela Merkel Vows To Fight Right-Wing Extremist
Terrorism
“As a nation we have to ensure that these things don't repeat
themselves,” German Chancellor Angela Merkel told reporters in the
eastern German town of Zwickau, where a new memorial in honor of the
victims of the right-wing extremist cell National Socialist
Underground (NSU) was erected. The memorial consisted of 10 trees
planted across a sprawling field in the city center, one for each of
the group's 10 victims. Between 2000 and 2007, the group's three
leaders were based in Zwickau, where they evaded authorities and
orchestrated attacks across the nation with the help of underlings.
Police largely ignored the crimes, directed at immigrants, and failed
to trace connections between them for years until a policewoman was
also killed by the group. “It's our mission that something like this
never happens again so that these families are not always portrayed as
victims, but rather can once again lead a good life in Germany, just
as we all wish to,” she said. The NSU's racially motivated attacks
still resonate today, Michael Kretschmer, state premier of Saxony,
said in his remarks in Zwickau. Over the past week, high-level
politicians from parties representing the entirety of the German
political spectrum have fielded death threats.”
Deutsche
Welle: Germany: Vigilante Patrols Pose Far-Right 'Terror
Threat'
“Self-proclaimed citizen militias patrolling German towns are the
“beginnings of right-wing terrorist potential,” according to the
German Interior Ministry. The ministry's statement, published by the
Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung newspaper on Monday, came in response to a
question from the Left Party's parliamentary group. The ministry said
there was a natural transition from vigilantism to “advocacy of
security and order separate from the state monopoly on the use of
force, or even to a violent act.” Vigilante groups attempt to justify
their existence by claiming that state security forces cannot
guarantee public safety, the ministry said. It added that the real
goal, however, was something else: for “foreigners and political
opponents to feel intimidated by the presence of right-wing patrols on
the ground.” The ministry did not provide information about how many
people are involved in German vigilante groups. But according to
government estimates, there are now self-appointed patrols of this
kind in just about every state across the country. Left Party
politician Ulla Jelpke called for authorities to do more to combat
their activities, the Neue Osnabrücker reported.”
Southeast Asia
Philippines
Lifestyle: 2 Suspected ISIS Members Planning To Terrorize SEA Games
Arrested
“Two suspected members of the ISIS who allegedly plan to sow
violence in the upcoming 30th SEA Games have been arrested by
Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon) operatives.
The police seized various weapons, bombs, and equipment from the
suspects in separate raids in Quezon and Laguna provinces. The
suspected ISIS members were arrested three weeks before SEA Games
would kick off in the country. According to Calabarzon Police Director
Brig Gen. Vicente Danao Jr., police arrested a suspected terrorist
Saidie Saro, a businessman, in Matungo, Lanao del Sur, Friday
afternoon. A black ISIS flag was confiscated from Saro during the raid
in Tayabas City. Saro was arrested following on a warrant of arrest
issued by a court at his rented store in Tayabas City. Police
confiscated a hand grenade, improvised explosive device (IED), pipe
bombs and ammunition from Saro. Despite this, Saro vehemently denied
that he was a member of the international terrorist group ISIS.
According to the PNP’s Explosive Ordinance Division, it is possible to
cause significant damage if the recovered pipe bomb, which is the
cellphone detonator of the recovered IED, explodes.”
Technology
The
Wall Street Journal: Twitter Suspends Accounts Linked To Hamas,
Hezbollah
“Twitter Inc. has suspended accounts linked to Iran-backed militant
group Hezbollah and Palestinian group Hamas after U.S. lawmakers
criticized the social-media company for allowing those entities to
remain active on the platform even though the State Department has
designated both as terrorist organizations. Twitter, on its messaging
platform, shows that accounts including Hamas’s English and Arabic
language accounts had been suspended for violating its rules. “There
is no place on Twitter for illegal terrorist organizations and violent
extremist groups,” Twitter said Monday. The company’s move is an
apparent about-face after previously telling a bipartisan group of
lawmakers that it distinguished between the military and political
arms of the two groups, effectively allowing those organizations and
their affiliates to use the site. House members sent a letter in
September to the chief executives of Twitter, Facebook Inc., and
Google’s YouTube requesting information on the number of accounts that
groups deemed as foreign terrorist organizations have active and
provide a timeline for removing such content. The letter also asked
how companies distinguish content from Hamas and Hezbollah from other
organizations deemed terrorist groups.”
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