“Turkish police detained 16 people accused of links to Islamic State on Tuesday
after protesters used sticks and stones against security forces trying

 

 


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**NOTE: CEP’s Eye On Extremism will be suspended December 30-31 in observance
of New Year's Day. It will resume Monday, January 3.**

 

Eye on Extremism


December 29, 2021  

 

The Wall Street Journal: Power Struggle Between Somali President And Prime
Minister Threatens Fight Against Extremists
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“A power struggle erupted in already volatile Somalia on Monday, with the
president suspending the prime minister and the latter announcing he would
assume the president’s duties, a battle that threatens to undermine the
country’s fight against Islamist extremists. President Mohamed Abdullahi
Mohamed, who goes by the nickname Farmajo, announced that he was stripping
Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble of his powers for suspected corruption.
“The duty and powers of the Prime Minister remain suspended pending the
conclusion of the ongoing investigations,” Mr. Mohamed’s edict read. He alleges
that Mr. Roble was part of a scheme to encroach on land belonging to the Somali
army and that Mr. Roble interfered in the investigation into his alleged
corruption. A spokesman for the prime minister didn’t respond to a request for
comment on the corruption allegations. Mr. Roble, in a video statement,
referred to Mr. Mohamed as “former president” and accused him of “a deliberate
attempt to overthrow the government, the constitution and the laws of the
land.” Mr. Roble said that his office was assuming responsibility for all
government functions, including command of the military. Mr. Mohamed “cannot
give orders to the armed forces, and they cannot take orders from him,” Mr.
Roble said.”

 

Bloomberg: Taliban Aims To Boost Exports To Ease Crisis As Foreign Aid Ends
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“The Taliban administration is working to boost exports to save the Afghan
economy from collapse, with a government official saying international
humanitarian aid alone won’t prevent the country from slipping deeper into
poverty. “Humanitarian aid cannot solve Afghanistan’s economic problems. The
only way to achieve economic self-sufficiency is to boost domestic products and
export them abroad,” the Taliban deputy foreign minister Sher Mohammad Abbas
Stanekzai told a gathering in Kabul Sunday. Stanekzai’s comments mark a shift
in a country where foreign aid makes up more than 40% of the economy, according
to data from the World Bank. The attempt to move toward self-sufficiency also
comes as Afghanistan has lost access to its foreign reserves of around $9
billion after the U.S. froze them following the Taliban take-over in August. In
2020, the country imported most of its essential items worth around $9 billion.
Exports accounted for just over $800 million and consisted of agricultural
products such as pine nuts and dried fruits mainly to China, Pakistan and Iran.
As the economy has fallen apart over the last four months, the United Nations
has warned that more than half the country’s nearly 40 million people are
facing acute hunger and a million children could die as a consequence.”

 

United States

 

Tampa Bay Times: Tampa Terrorism Case Raises Questions Of Surveillance,
Searches, Mental Illness
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“A year ago, federal prosecutors accused a Tampa man of plotting a mass
shooting in support of the ISIS terrorist group. FBI agents in a criminal
complaint described Muhammed Momtaz Al-Azhari’s collection of a bulletproof
vest, an Uzi submachine gun, a silencer and firearm parts, among other items.
They said he perused Islamic State chat rooms, researched the 2016 Pulse
nightclub shooting in Orlando, and explored Honeymoon Island and other popular
Tampa Bay locations as they said he planned a similar massacre. Since
Al-Azhari’s arrest in May 2020, his case has moved quietly through federal
court, with defense attorneys raising questions about the tactics investigators
used to monitor him and search his belongings. Late last month came a new
wrinkle: His defense says he might be mentally unfit for trial. Court records
detail a complex investigation amid flurries of pretrial litigation. One legal
battle at the heart of Al-Azhari’s case concerns what’s been described as a
“secret spy plane surveillance program.” In a court document filed in August,
Assistant Federal Defender Samuel Landes describes a fleet of small airplanes
that the FBI owns and uses to conduct covert surveillance. Each plane bears a
tail number that is registered with the Federal Aviation Administration to
fictitious front companies, the lawyer wrote.”

 

Daily Mail: Department Of Defense Will Crack Down On Prospective Recruits With
'Questionable Tattoos' And Other Symbols Linked To Extremist Organizations In
Wake Of January 6 Riots
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“The Department of Defense will crackdown on recruits with 'questionable
tattoos' that are linked to extremist and racist groups in the wake of the
January 6 riots. On December 20, the Pentagon released a 21-page report
detailing its plans to root out extremism from its ranks, including furthering
its scope of extremist activity to include tattoos, social media activity, and
more. It did not list examples of specific tattoos which could see prospective
recruits banned from joining the military, but instead said it would consult
with FBI officials on the ever-expanding list of potentially offensive inkings,
which also differ from state to state. 'The overwhelming majority of the men
and women of the Department of Defense serve this country with honor and
integrity,' Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III said in the report. 'We owe
the men and women of the Department of Defense an environment free of extremist
activities, and we owe our country a military that reflects the founding values
of our democracy.' In 2020, the Army was the first to account social media
behavior as a way to 'support extremist activities.' The military has already
regulated tattoos, such as placement - members cannot have them on their hands
or other visible locations - and they cannot be sexist, racist, extremist, and
indecent.”

 

Syria

 

Al Monitor: Kurdish Leaders Say Poverty ‘Biggest Threat’ As It Drives Syrians
Into Arms Of Islamic State
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“A man being led by security guards shuffles into an interrogation cell in a
military prison in the Kurdish-administered city of Hasakah in northeastern
Syria. His hands are cuffed, and his head is shrouded in a black hood. He was
arrested at his home in the city of Raqqa and brought here on Oct. 2 on charges
of membership in the Islamic State (IS). The guards escorting him remove the
hood. He has ruddy cheeks, thick brown hair and a beard. Ahmed (a pseudonym, as
prison authorities would not let him reveal his real name) sat down for an
interview with Al-Monitor on a recent afternoon and described why he joined IS
more than two years after the jihadis lost Baghouz — the last patch of
territory in their collapsed caliphate — to the US-backed Syrian Democratic
Forces (SDF) in March 2019. “I did it for the money,” the 24-year-old father of
three said. “Because of the drought, my farm collapsed. I had a lot of debts.”
Ahmed’s profile is typical, according to the Kurdish official who is in charge
of running the maximum-security prison where an attempted escape by IS inmates
was foiled just days after the interview. “They are paying people to join them,
paying thousands of dollars,” the official, who asked not to be identified,
told Al-Monitor.”

 

Asharq Al-Awsat: Official: Israel Has Struck Dozens Of Hezbollah Targets In
Syria
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“Hezbollah has not yet responded to statements that over the past three years,
the Israeli army has attacked dozens of Hezbollah targets in Syria, a senior
Israeli security official said on Saturday. This is surprising since the
attacks severely hampered the organization's logistical and operational efforts
to establish itself in the southern Golan Heights and the border triangle with
Jordan. Sources affirmed that the Israeli army maintains a high deterrent
capability against the Shiite group. Hezbollah, with the help of Iran, is
preparing for the possibility of attacking the home front and Israeli army
soldiers stationed on the border with Syria in the future, they added. Some of
its weapons came from Iran by sea, and some by land or air via convoys to the
Syrian Golan Heights. In some places, operatives working in the name of
Hezbollah managed to set up weapons depots that the Israeli Air Force attacked,
according to foreign publications, and destroyed them.”

 

Middle East

 

SOFREP: Are Terror Groups In Gaza Conducting Joint Exercises Preparing For A
Renewed War On Israel?
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“With tensions ratcheting up between the Israelis and the leaders of the
Palestinian groups in the West Bank and Gaza, yet another wave of violence
appears imminent. Hamas officials have been vowing renewed violence for weeks
as they have criticized Egyptian mediators who have been trying to hammer out a
peace agreement. “We are considering options for an escalation with Israel in
light of the continued siege of Gaza and the delay in rehabilitating the
Strip,” an unnamed source said earlier in December to Al Jazeera. “We will not
allow the current situation to continue, and the next phase will prove the
credibility of our words.” Now it appears to be happening again. Israeli troops
killed a Palestinian after he fired at them from a passing vehicle outside of
Ramallah. Earlier last week, Israeli troops killed a man who attempted to carry
out a car-ramming attack in the West Bank. Last week, a Palestinian gunman
killed an Israeli man near the unauthorized West Bank settlement outpost of
Homesh. Clashes continue between Israeli soldiers and hundreds of Palestinian
protesters who threw rocks, burned tires, and fired shots at troops in the West
Bank area just outside of the contentious area of Homesh.”

 

Nigeria

 

Sahara Reporters: Exclusive: Terrorists, Bandits Take Over Hometown Of
Secretary To Nigerian Government, Boss Mustapha, Residents Flee Homes Over
Impending Attacks
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“Residents of two villages, Kwapre and Dabna in the Hong Local Government Area
of Adamawa State have abandoned their homes over the fear of attacks by
terrorists and bandits ravaging parts of the state. SaharaReporters learnt that
Kwapre and Dabna villages in Garaha Ward in the Hong Local Government Area were
currently ghost villages, as people fled to safer places. Kwapre, Dabna, Lar,
Zah and other adjoining villages are in Garaha Ward, where the Secretary to the
Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, and the slain Nigerian Army
Brigadier General, Dzarma Zurkusu hailed from. A community leader in Garaha,
Honorable Hyella, told SaharaReporters that people fled Kwapre to escaped being
trapped and kidnapped by bandits and the Boko Haram. He said, “There are only
seven persons left in Kwapre now; the rest have relocated to either Hong or
Pella. “People have justifiable reasons to run for their lives, because 52
persons were abducted in April this year and only eight persons have returned
home since then. Now that there's a buildup of heavy presence of suspected
bandits in the area again; the people have to run for their lives. “People have
to run because kidnappings happen on a daily basis. The bandits have begun to
tax villagers; so far they've taxed Dabna, Sushiu, Lar, and many villages
within the Duguba district to pay safety levies.”

 

Africa

 

France 24: Dozens Killed In Northeast DR Congo In Clashes Between Armed Forces
And Militias
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“Twelve civilians and 38 rebels have died in four days of fighting in
northeast DR Congo, where the armed forces are carrying out a crackdown on
militias, military and local sources said on Monday. The clashes have taken
place in Ituri province, where in separate conflicts, the army is battling the
Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) -- a group with suspected links to the so-called
Islamic State -- and an ethnic-based militia called CODECO. On Thursday, nine
civilians in the Mambembe area were “massacred” by the ADF, and three more were
killed in an attack on Saturday, the area's chief, Janvier Musoki Kinyongo,
told AFP. “People have fled my area. ADF rebels are moving about the region,”
he said. In another part of Ituri, soldiers killed seven ADF operatives and
captured one in an offensive launched on Highway 4, about 90 kilometres (55
miles) south of provincial capital Bunia, army spokesman Jules Ngongo said.
Separately, the army said it had carried out a “helicopter-backed operation”
against CODECO in Ituri's territory of Djugi. “Thirty-one CODECO militia
elements (were) neutralised and several were wounded, it said. The Cooperative
for the Development of the Congo (CODECO) is a military-religious sect that
claims to represent the Lendu ethnic group, which has a historic feud with the
Hema community.”

 

United Kingdom

 

The Guardian: Covid Lockdowns May Have Increased UK Terrorism Threat, Says
Security Minister
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“The terrorism threat to the UK may have been made worse by Covid lockdowns, a
security minister has suggested. Damian Hinds, the MP for East Hampshire who
became security minister in August, told the Daily Telegraph that people
spending long periods of time in their bedrooms during the restrictions could
have pushed them towards radicalisation. His remarks echo similar warnings from
the police and the UN’s counter-terrorism committee executive directorate
(CTED). “Clearly, logically, when you have more people who are spending more
time in their bedrooms at their computer … you are going to get a growth in
that tiny proportion of people for whom that is a dark journey,” Hinds told the
Telegraph. “And as you know, on the internet, if you start to make those kind
of downward spirals, you can quickly accelerate with the material that you come
across and the other people that you can come into contact with.” Since Hinds
took on the brief, there have been two alleged terrorist attacks, the killing
of the MP Sir David Amess and the attack outside Liverpool Women’s hospital.
Counter Terrorism Policing said this month they had foiled seven “late-stage”
terror attacks since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. It took the total
number of foiled terrorism plots in the UK in the past four years to 32.”

 

Australia

 

The Guardian: How Australia’s Far Right Uses Cryptocurrencies To Monetise Hate
Online
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“There have never been more ways to ask for money on the internet. For
rightwing extremists looking to monetise hate, that can be a big opportunity –
and the earning potential of these digital assets hasn’t gone unnoticed in
Australia. Earlier this year, I traced funding networks associated with a
sample of Australian channels that share rightwing extremist content on the
chat app Telegram, and found links to at least 22 online funding tools. These
included donation requests via wallet addresses for cryptocurrencies such as
bitcoin, monero, ethereum and litecoin. Of course an interest in
cryptocurrencies is not on its own indicative of racism or extremism, but a
recent analysis by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) found a cohort of
white supremacists largely originating from North America has likely generated
“a substantial profit” from bitcoin by getting in early, giving them access to
funds “that would almost certainly be unavailable to them without
cryptocurrency”. Controversial Canadian “alt-right” figure Stefan Molyneux, who
denies being a white supremacist but was pushed off YouTube for his commentary
about women and “scientific racism”, has received at least 1,250 bitcoin from
supporters according to the SPLC (one Bitcoin was worth A$68,647 at the time of
writing).”

 

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