“The U.S. State Department on Thursday urged Americans who may be considering
travel to the United Arab Emirates to reconsider, citing the threat of m

 

 


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Eye on Extremism


January 28, 2022

  

Reuters: U.S. Cites Missile, Drone Threat In Latest UAE Travel Warning
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“The U.S. State Department on Thursday urged Americans who may be considering
travel to the United Arab Emirates to reconsider, citing the threat of missile
or drone attacks. The department retained the highest level warning for the UAE
in its updated travel advisory. It had already urged Americans against
traveling to the country because of COVID-19. Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi
movement launched a missile attack at the UAE on Monday that targeted a base
hosting the U.S. military, U.S. and Emirati officials said. It was the second
attack in a week. A Houthi military spokesperson said the group had fired
Zulfiqar ballistic missiles at al-Dhafra airbase, used by U.S. forces, and
other "sensitive targets". Houthis had also launched drones towards Dubai, the
spokesperson said.”

 

Associated Press: UN: Syria Prison Attack Shows Need To Deal With IS Detainees
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“The attack by Islamic State militants on a Syrian prison holding around 3,000
of its fighters and about 700 children is a predictable tragedy spotlighting
the need for urgent international action to deal with those allegedly linked to
the extremist group in prisons and camps in the country’s northeast, the U.N.
counter-terrorism chief said Thursday. Undersecretary-General Vladimir Voronkov
told the U.N. Security Council that the Islamic State group “has been
highlighting and calling for jail breaks,” and “there have been previous
instances in Syria and elsewhere in the world.” Most of the men, women and
children with alleged links to IS who are held in Syrian prisons and camps
“have never been charged with a crime, yet remain in prolonged detention,
uncertain of their fate,” the head of the U.N. Office of Counter-Terrorism
said. Using the Arabic acronym for the IS extremist group, he said, “It is a
reminder also of why Da’esh continues to embed itself in Syria.”

 

United States

 

KPNX NBC: Arizona Lawmaker Wendy Rogers Tops Advocacy Group's Extremist
Politician List
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“A prominent national organization that advocates for acceptance and equality
singled out Arizona State Senator Wendy Rogers for her extremist views. “We’ve
just released an analysis of extremist rhetoric in the elections this year, and
Wendy Rogers is at the top of that list,” said Tammy Gillies, Anti-Defamation
League Regional Director for San Diego and Phoenix. The analysis comes after
Rogers recently shared a message on Martin Luther King Jr. Day that stated,
“Celebrate Lee-Jackson Day.” The tweet contains photos of confederate leaders
Stonewall Jackson and Robert E. Lee who fought against the Union and to
preserve slavery. Rogers represents legislative District 6, which includes
parts of four counties in the central and northern portions of Arizona. She is
a Vice-Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee and Chair of the Blockchain and
Cryptocurrency Study Committee. Rogers did not respond to requests by 12 News
for an interview. The first-time state lawmaker routinely rails on social media
against what she calls “cancel culture” with incendiary tweets that appear
intended to shock. “Merry Christmas to Aunt Jemima, Uncle Ben, the Washington
Redskins, and the Land O Lakes Indian – all whom the racist communists have
cancelled,” Rogers wrote on December 25.”

 

Syria

 

The New York Times: ISIS Beaten? Not Yet. U.S.-Backed Forces Still Fighting At
Syria Prison
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“Forces from a Kurdish-led militia traded fire from the rooftops with dozens
of Islamic State fighters still holed up in an embattled prison in northeastern
Syria on Thursday, despite claims by the U.S.-backed militia a day earlier that
it had regained full control of the entire complex. The Syrian Democratic
Forces militia announced Wednesday that it had retaken Sinaa prison in the city
of Hasaka, which held thousands of former ISIS fighters, nearly a week after
their fellow militants attacked the prison to try to free them. But when New
York Times journalists arrived Thursday, the first international reporters on
the scene, the fight was still on. The Kurdish-led forces fired
rocket-propelled grenades at the partly destroyed prison complex, and the sound
of truck-mounted antiaircraft guns rang out as they confronted up to 90 ISIS
militants still fighting from inside. An official with one of the Syrian
Kurdish paramilitary groups battling ISIS said most of the holdouts were among
those who stormed the prison, but some were prisoners who had joined forces
with them.”

 

Reuters: Jordan Says 27 Drug Smugglers Killed At Border With Syria
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“Jordanian soldiers killed at least 27 armed smugglers on Thursday and wounded
others as they crossed the border from Syria during a dawn snowstorm with a
large quantity of amphetamines, the army said. Others also carrying drugs fled
back into Syria during the attempted crossing, the latest among a growing
number of such incidents over the past year, many involving firefights, that
have prompted the army to toughen its rules of engagement with smugglers.
Several others among the smugglers, who were "supported by other armed groups",
were wounded, the army said in a statement in the largest number of casualties
inflicted by smugglers in many years. "We will strike with an iron fist..those
who dare think of tampering with our national security," the army statement
said. It did not specify where along the 370-km (230-mile) border with Syria
the incursion took place but Syrian sources said the incident occurred in an
area northeast of the city of Mafraq in Jordan.”

 

Afghanistan

 

Voice Of America: Afghanistan Tops 2021 Global Survey Of Islamic State
Casualties
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“A survey of the Islamic State group’s attacks around the world in 2021
indicates the group killed and injured more people in Afghanistan last year
than it did anywhere else, and experts warn the terror group is on the rise
following the U.S. military withdrawal from the country. Widely known as ISIS,
the group conducted its most deadly attack in 2021 last August at the Kabul
International Airport when a suicide bomber killed 170 Afghan civilians and 13
U.S. military personnel. During 2021, Islamic State carried out 365 terrorist
attacks in Afghanistan that caused 2,210 casualties, a significant increase
compared with 2020 when 82 IS attacks that caused 835 casualties were reported,
according to an Israeli think tank, the Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism
Information Center. Globally, IS operatives carried out 2,705 attacks resulting
in 8,147 casualties. Iraq stood second to Afghanistan in casualties with 2,083.
The Meir Amit group uses Islamic State’s claims of responsibility, as published
in public sources, to attribute responsibility for attacks.”

 

Voice Of America: UN, Amnesty Decry Latest Taliban Crackdown On Afghan
Journalism
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“The United Nations and press freedom advocates Thursday criticized
Afghanistan’s Taliban for allegedly banning a journalist organization from
holding news conferences without permission from the ruling Islamist group.
“Blocking the media from holding a press conference is a disturbing restriction
on free expression,” the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan tweeted. “The
Taliban are urged to support dialogue among Afghans and not to try and gag
those they think may have different views.” Officials at the Afghanistan
Federation of Journalists and Media said they had organized a press conference
in Kabul on Wednesday to share findings of a survey on the status of
journalists and media workers in the country, but they were forced by Taliban
authorities to cancel the event. Ali Asghar Akbarzada, a senior member of the
federation, told local media the Taliban also verbally instructed his group not
to hold any future press conferences without permission from the Ministry of
Information and Culture. Amnesty International denounced attempts by the
Taliban to limit access to information and suppress free media were “a blatant
attack” on journalism. “Media plays a pivotal role in informing the world about
the situation in Afghanistan. Media workers & journalists must be allowed to
work freely & protected,” Amnesty said on Twitter.”

 

Pakistan

 

Associated Press: Pakistani Army Says 10 Soldiers Killed In Militant Raid
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“Militants attacked a security post in a remote area of southwest Pakistan,
triggering a firefight that killed 10 soldiers and an assailant, the military
said Thursday. The predawn attack happened Wednesday in Kech, a town in
Baluchistan province, according to a statement released by the military. It
said the troops returned fire, killing one attacker. No group or individual
claimed responsibility for the attack. The military said security forces later
arrested three insurgents and that a search for those who launched the attack
was still underway. Baluchistan has been the site of a long-running insurgency,
with an array of separatist groups staging attacks, mainly on government troops
and police. The separatists in the province have been demanding independence
from the central government in Islamabad. Although Pakistani authorities say
they have quelled the insurgency, violence in Baluchistan has persisted. The
latest violence comes days after a Baluchistan-based separatist group claimed
responsibility for a bombing in the city of Lahore that killed three people.”

 

The Print: No One Allowed To Raise Funds For ‘Jihad’ In Pakistan: LHC
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"Inciting public to raise funds for ‘Jihad’ (holy war) is not allowed to
individuals or any organisation in Pakistan and is considered as treason, the
Lahore High Court has ruled as it dismissed appeals of two terrorists convicted
for raising funds for a proscribed terror outfit. The court ruling came on
Wednesday on the appeals of Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) terrorists,
Muhammad Ibrahim and Ubaidur Rehman, who were arrested in Sargodha, some 200-km
from Lahore, and handed down five-year imprisonment each by an anti-terrorism
court for terror financing early this month. “Inciting public to raise funds
for ‘Jihad’ is not allowed to individuals or any organisation in an Islamic
state (Pakistan) as it is considered treason,” a two-judge bench headed by
Justice Ali Baqar Najafi said while dismissing the appeals. “It is the job of
the state to collect national funds for a declared war, if essential. The same
cannot be raised by a person or any organization,” it said. The court said TTP
is a defunct and proscribed organisation that has caused damage not only to the
state institutions and targeted the state high functionaries but also
intensified the wave of terrorism in the country in the past, which would not
have been possible without financial support.”

 

Yemen

 

Al Jazeera: Saudi-Led Coalition Announces Probe Into Yemen Prison Attack
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“A Saudi-led coalition accused of a deadly attack on a prison in northern
Yemen last week has said it is investigating the incident after denying it
launched an air raid. The coalition has said it was not behind Friday’s attack
on a detention centre in the Houthi rebel heartland of Saada, in which at least
70 people were killed, according to the medical charity Doctors Without Borders
(Medecins Sans Frontieres, or MSF). The Houthi movement said at least 91 people
were killed and more than 200 others wounded in the air raid. The Joint
Incidents Assessment Team (JIAT), set up by the coalition, which claims it
operates independently, said it was following up on the matter in its
“commitment to professionalism, transparency, impartiality and credibility”,
according to the official Saudi Press Agency. “From the first hours after news
of the incident broke, the relevant team began investigation procedures and
collecting data and documents pertaining to it,” it said on Thursday. “The
results will be announced as soon as the investigation wraps up.”

 

Saudi Arabia

 

Reuters: France Investigates Possible Second Blast At Dakar Rally In Saudi -
French Radio
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“French authorities are looking into a second potentially suspicious explosion
at the Dakar sports car rally in Saudi Arabia last month, French radio station
RMC reported on Thursday. According to RMC, a truck belonging to the team of
Franco-Italian rally competitor Camelia Liparoti caught fire on Dec. 31 after
the driver heard a "boom". A day earlier an explosion under a support vehicle
at the rally seriously injured French race driver Philippe Boutron. French
anti-terrorism prosecutors opened a preliminary investigation into the first
explosion earlier this month. Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian has said
"there were hypotheses that it was a terrorist attack". However, Saudi Arabia's
foreign ministry said on Jan. 8 that an initial investigation into the first
blast had not raised any criminal suspicions.”

 

Lebanon

 

Reuters: Druze Leader Jumblatt Says Iran Gains In Lebanon As Arabs Abandon It
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“Druze leader Walid Jumblatt said on Thursday that Iran had gained influence
in Lebanon because Arab states had abandoned the country, stepping up criticism
of the Iran-backed Hezbollah and suggesting Tehran wants to erase the Lebanese
state. One of Lebanon's main politicians, Jumblatt was speaking days after
leading Sunni Muslim politician Saad al-Hariri withdrew from political life,
citing Iranian influence as one of the reasons he saw no hope of positive
change. The move by Hariri, three times prime minister, has opened a new phase
in Lebanon's sectarian politics, adding to uncertainties four months from a
parliamentary election and as Lebanon faces a crippling financial crisis.
Jumblatt and Hariri were both part of the Western-backed March 14 alliance that
confronted the heavily-armed Hezbollah and its allies in Lebanon after the 2005
assassination of Hariri's father, Rafik al-Hariri.”

 

Egypt

 

Asharq Al-Awsat: UAE, Bahrain, Egypt Call For Firm Stance Against Terrorist
Militias
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“A quartet summit was held in Abu Dhabi between Dubai Ruler Prime Minister
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Zayed Al
Nahyan, Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa of Bahrain, and Egypt's
President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. The four leaders discussed consolidating
cooperation and coordination over issues of common concern, the latest regional
international developments, and the everyday challenges in the Arab region. The
summit reviewed the terrorist attacks carried out by the Houthi militia on
civil sites and facilities in the UAE and the launch of two ballistic missiles
towards the UAE, according to Emirates News Agency (WAM). The leaders stressed
that the terrorist militias' attacks threaten regional and international
security and stability and violate all international laws and norms. They
called on the international community to take a unified and firm position
towards these militias and other terrorist forces along with their supporters.
The King of Bahrain and the Egyptian President affirmed their countries'
solidarity with the UAE and their support for all the steps the Emirates is
taking to preserve its security and territorial integrity.”

 

Libya

 

AFP: Libya: Islamic State Attack Kills Three Security Personnel
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“Fighters linked to the Islamic State group killed three of Libya’s security
personnel in the country's southwest, the interior ministry said Thursday. The
attack on Wednesday, in the desert some 430 miles south of Tripoli, "targeted a
patrol of the Umm al-Aranib Martyrs' Brigade, killing three of its members,"
the ministry said in a statement. It added that government forces "killed four
members of Daesh (an Arabic term for IS) and destroyed their vehicle." The
department added that a search was underway for other "terrorists" who fled. It
said the jihadists were attempting to "undermine stability and terrorize
civilians." IS on Monday claimed it attacked the same brigade in the same area
a week earlier, killing two members. The Umm al-Aranib Martyrs' Brigade is
largely composed of members from the long-marginalized Tubu ethnic group. Libya
has been roiled by lawlessness since the 2011 fall of despot Muammar Gaddafi,
with an array of armed groups vying for control of the area.”

 

Mali

 

Stars And Stripes: Us Service Member Injured In Mali Mortar Attack
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“A U.S. military member was hurt in the mortar attack that killed a French
soldier on Saturday, U.S. Africa Command said Wednesday. The U.S. service
member, whose injuries are not life threatening, was injured in a strike on a
French military base in the city of Gao, AFRICOM said. The service member’s
identity and unit were not released. AFRICOM said the servicemember was
airlifted to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center on Sunday. French artilleryman
Alexandre Martin, 24, died while serving with the anti-insurgent force
Operation Barkhane, according to a French army statement Sunday. A small
contingent of U.S. troops provides support to the French-led counterterrorism
effort in Mali, where a mix of Islamic extremist groups have long operated.
AFRICOM did not disclose how many troops are now supporting Operation Barkhane.”

 

Africa

 

BNO News: France Warns Of Imminent Terrorist Attack In Kenya
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“The French Embassy in Kenya has urged people to exercise “extreme vigilance”
during the next few days, saying there’s a threat of an imminent terrorist
attack against Westerners. “There’s a real risk of targeting public places
frequented by foreign nationals (restaurants, hotels, leisure venues, shopping
malls), in particular in Nairobi,” the French Embassy said in a statement on
Thursday. Other details about the threat or the source of the intelligence were
not immediately released. “People in Kenya are advised to exercise extreme
vigilance and avoid frequenting these public places in the coming days,
including this weekend,” the statement added. Maarten Brouwer, the Dutch
Ambassador to Kenya, said his French colleagues had informed his embassy about
the threat. “The information is being assessed as credible,” he said. “Of
course we all hope that this threat turns out to be a false alarm, but
nonetheless we want to share this information with you so you can take your own
precautions,” Brouwer said in a letter. “The information is, as usual, not
specific: the time and place of the attack are unknown.” Kenya has experienced
a number of attacks over the years, many of which were carried out by the
al-Qaeda affiliate al-Shabaab, which is based in neighboring Somalia.”

 

Reuters: Denmark Pulls Mali Troops Out As Junta Takes Swipe At France
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“Denmark will start pulling its troops out of Mali after the West African
country's transitional junta government this week insisted on an immediate
withdrawal, a blow to France as its counter-terrorism operations in the Sahel
begins to unravel. The decision comes amid tension between Mali and its
international partners including regional bodies and the European Union that
have sanctioned Mali after the junta failed to organise elections following two
military coups. Tensions have escalated also over allegations that transitional
authorities have deployed private military contractors from the Russia-backed
Wagner Group to Mali, which some EU countries have said was incompatible with
their mission. "We can see that the Malian transitional government, or the coup
generals, last night sent out a public statement where they again reiterated
that Denmark is not welcome in Mali, and we of course will not put up with
that," Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod told reporters on Thursday. "So therefore
we have decided to withdraw our soldiers home." Denmark had sent 105 military
personnel to Mali on Jan. 18 to join a European special forces mission, known
as Takuba, that was set up to help Mali tackle Islamist militants. It said its
troops had deployed after a "clear invitation" by Mali.”

 

Germany

 

Reuters: Germany Charges Russian Citizen Suspected Of Space Tech Espionage
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“Germany last year arrested and charged a Russian citizen with spying for
Russia, prosecutors said on Thursday, alleging he had passed information on
Europe's Ariane space launcher vehicle to handlers from Russian intelligence.
Federal prosecutors said the suspect, identified only as Ilnur N., worked as a
researcher at a Bavarian university until his arrest in June last year. He has
been in custody since and was charged on Dec. 9. The arrest casts a spotlight
on Russian intelligence activity in Germany even as Berlin faces pressure from
Western allies to take a more robust stance in support of Ukraine as Russian
forces mass on its borders. Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) first
approached the suspect no later than autumn of 2019, the prosecutors said in a
statement, adding he had told the SVR he was prepared to cooperate with them.”

 

Associated Press: German Woman Allegedly Took 6yo Daughter To Watch IS Stoning
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“A German who allegedly took her young daughter to watch a woman being stoned
while in Islamic State-held territory in Syria has been charged with membership
in the extremist group and other offenses, federal prosecutors said Friday. The
woman, identified only as Romiena S. in keeping with German privacy laws, was
arrested at Frankfurt airport when she arrived on Oct. 7 among a group of women
and children repatriated from a camp in northeastern Syria where suspected IS
members were held. She was charged at a court in the northern town of Celle
with membership in a foreign terrorist organization, recruiting members for the
group, a crime against humanity, the abduction of a minor, violating her duties
of care and education, and approving of crimes, prosecutors said in a
statement. The suspect traveled to Syria in late 2014 along with a 16-year-old
girl she had persuaded to join her, prosecutors said. They said she took her
4-year-old daughter, against the wishes of the child’s father.”

 

Europe

 

The National: EU Commission Accused Of Giving €52m To Groups Linked To Muslim
Brotherhood
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“More than €52 million ($57.96m) in European Commission money was directly or
indirectly given to organisations with alleged links to the Muslim Brotherhood
between 2007 and 2020, according to a new report. The lion's share of funding
from the EU's executive branch was received by controversial aid agency Islamic
Relief Worldwide, with €36.2m, in a story first reported by French magazine Le
Point. Heshmat Khalifa, the former director of Islamic Relief, quit his role in
2020 after anti-Semitic remarks were discovered on his Facebook profile. fter
investigating Islamic Relief, the UK’s Charity Commission concluded the charity
“has overseen significant improvements to the recruitment and oversight of
trustees and senior staff”. Islamic Relief denies it is linked to the Muslim
Brotherhood despite claims to the contrary by some European politicians.
Islamic Relief is proscribed as a terrorist organisation by the UAE and Israel
accuses it of having links to Hamas. Commission data shows that nearly €1
million was given to Islamic Relief Worldwide, its international headquarters,
in 2020 – the last year for which figures are available.”

 

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