““Hi can you please forward a message since two of us are trying to get a
carshare from germany to ukraine going,” reads a Feb. 26 message forwarded t

 

 


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Eye on Extremism


March 15, 2022

 

The Washington Post: Neo-Nazis Are Exploiting Russia’s War In Ukraine For
Their Own Purposes
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““Hi can you please forward a message since two of us are trying to get a
carshare from germany to ukraine going,” reads a Feb. 26 message forwarded to a
popular neo-Nazi Web channel. “We are 3 french, leaving Strasbourg tomorrow
morning with our car,” another message answered. “There is place for 2 german
fighters.” These are the types of conversations that have flooded Western
neo-Nazi and white-nationalist venues online every day since Vladimir Putin
ordered the invasion of Ukraine: users organizing carpools, plotting how to
cross the Poland-Ukraine border to join the fight against Russia. Their goal is
not to defend Ukraine as we know it — a multiethnic, democratically minded
society led by a Jewish president. Some neo-Nazis simply see this new war as a
place to act out their violent fantasies. For others, though, the force pulling
them toward the conflict is a shared vision for an ultranationalist
ethno-state. They see Ukraine as a golden opportunity to pursue this goal and
turn it into a model to export across the world. The would-be militants have
been recruited by groups like the Azov Battalion, a far-right nationalist
Ukrainian paramilitary and political movement. Azov was absorbed into the
Ukrainian national guard in 2014 and has been a basis for Putin’s false claim
that Ukraine’s government is run by neo-Nazis.”

 

Reuters: More Than 30 People Killed In Burkina Faso Armed Attacks
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“Armed militants killed at least eight people who were collecting water in a
town in northern Burkina Faso on Monday morning, its mayor said, bringing the
total killed in three days of violence in the restive area above 30. Monday's
attack took place in Arbinda, in the province of Soum, which has suffered
several deadly raids by Islamist militants linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State
that for years have sought to gain control over a swathe of arid terrain where
Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger meet. Mayor Boureima Werem told Reuters insurgents
have been targeting water towers and pumps in recent weeks, in an apparent new
tactic. In separate incidents in northern Burkina Faso, at least 15 people,
including 13 military police officers, were killed in Namentenga province on
Sunday, the military police said, and on Saturday, nine people were killed in
an assault on an informal gold mine in the province of Oudalan, a security
source said. A campaign of violence has already killed thousands of people and
forced more than 2 million to flee their homes in the Sahel region south of the
Sahara Desert. Killings have persisted despite the presence of thousands of
foreign troops, undermining faith in elected governments in the region.”

 

United States

 

Associated Press: Guilty Plea For Seattle Man Who Tried To Join Islamic State
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“A 21-year-old Seattle man pleaded guilty Monday to a terrorism-related charge
after being arrested while trying to board a flight to join the Islamic State
group. Elvin Hunter Bgorn Williams was arrested last June at Seattle-Tacoma
International Airport as he checked in for a flight to Cairo. He entered a
guilty plea in U.S. District Court to one count of providing support to a
foreign terrorist organization and is due to be sentenced June 14. Williams
first came to the FBI's attention when he was 16, after administrators at his
high school reported that he was telling others he wanted to join ISIS,
according to a criminal complaint filed last year. Williams also said that the
fatal terrorist attack on an Ariana Grande concert in England in 2017 was
justified by the way the singer dressed, the complaint said. At the time, his
mother told investigators that Williams had been kicked off social media for
his pro-Islamic State posts and that she cut off the internet service at their
home to prevent him from accessing extremist websites. Members of a
Seattle-area mosque tried to de-radicalize Williams, helping him with housing,
food and tuition for a semester of college. They also gave him a cellphone and
a laptop in hopes he would use them to find a job, the complaint said.”

 

Syria

 

Washington Examiner: Is ISIS In Crisis?
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“The Islamic State finally revealed the name of its new leader — Abu al Hassan
al Hashimi al Qurayshi — 42 days after its late leader, Abu Ibrahim, killed
himself during a US raid in northwestern Syria on February 3. The Islamic State
has never gone this long without a named successor. Four weeks was the longest
gap previously, and Abu Bakr al Baghdadi’s successor was named a mere four days
after his death in October 2019. The delay signals possible weaknesses in the
Islamic State’s senior leadership and operations in Iraq and Syria but not its
global network, which has proven to be insulated from the core’s fate. The
Islamic State has been slowly rebuilding in Iraq and Syria after the collapse
of its physical caliphate in 2019. It had launched a brazen attack on a prison
in Hasakah, Syria, to free detained members, adding hundreds to its force of up
to 10,000 fighters shortly before the raid targeting Abu Ibrahim. But local
security forces have limited the Islamic State to a rural insurgency. And the
October 2021 capture of the Islamic State’s finance chief, privy to the
organization’s inner workings, has put the senior leaders at risk. The February
2022 deaths of Abu Ibrahim and Islamic State spokesman Abu Hamza may have
compounded challenges for an organization already in disarray.”

 

Al Monitor: Islamic State Mines Kill Truffle Hunters In Syrian Desert
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“With this year's abundant rainy season, truffle harvesters are venturing into
the desert despite the danger of land mines and other ordnance planted by the
Islamic State in the Syrian desert in the countryside of Hama, Deir ez-Zor,
Raqqa, Homs, Abu Kamal and al-Mayadin. Syria'a economic collapse, rampant
poverty and unemployment forced Ali al-Hussein, 50, to take the risk with his
wife and three children in the desert in Deir ez-Zor. “I need money for an
emergency surgery for my mother, who suffers from heart problems,” Hussein told
Al-Monitor. Searching for high-priced truffles has become the main source of
livelihood for many Syrian households. But they're getting scarcer, Khalaf
Hassan, 40, told Al-Monitor. “Searching for truffles is a dangerous venture.
Some of the vehicles carrying 30 workers or more could hit a land mine and blow
up — a massacre,” said, adding that his brother died that way. Sabri Khayyam, a
man in his 50s from the city of Raqqa, knows the danger of land mines all too
well. “I hit a mine and lost a leg last year,” he told Al-Monitor. “I went to
collect truffles with a group of workers. Our vehicle hit a land mine in the
Raqqa countryside. I was injured, but my brother and cousin lost their lives.”

 

Pakistan

 

NPR: Pakistan Is Accusing The Taliban Of Letting Militants Conduct
Cross-Border Attacks
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“Pakistan hoped the Taliban's seizure of Afghanistan would secure its western
border. Now, it is accusing the Taliban of allowing militants to conduct
cross-border attacks. AILSA CHANG, HOST: When Afghanistan's Taliban seized
power in August, many people celebrated it in neighboring Pakistan, including
the country's prime minister, Imran Khan. But as NPR's Diaa Hadid reports,
Taliban rule hasn't panned out as well as Pakistan might have wished. DIAA
HADID, BYLINE: A Pakistani military chopper flies us over the dusty, scrubby
peaks of the Hindu Kush to Miran Shah. They're taking us on a tour. Militants
loyal to al-Qaida, the Taliban and their offshoot, the Pakistani Taliban or
TTP, once sheltered around here, slipping in and out of neighboring
Afghanistan. But it's been relatively peaceful here since 2014, when thousands
of Pakistani soldiers pounded this area to push them out. That operation,
called Zarb-e-Azb, is still celebrated in Pakistan. HADID: But years on, tribal
elders say they're still rebuilding after their homes and livelihoods were
destroyed in the shelling. They spoke to us at a jirga, or gathering, arranged
by the army.”

 

Nigeria

 

Sahara Reporters: Breaking: Over 500 'Repentant' Boko Haram Terrorists
Graduate From Rehabilitation Camp In Gombe, Sent Back To Home Communities
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“More than 500 ex-Boko Haram terrorists have been released from the
De-radicalisation, Rehabilitation and Reintegration Camp in Mallam Sidi under
Kwami Local Government Area of Gombe State after undergoing reformation for
some time at the facility. The former insurgents, who passed out from the camp
during a light ceremony over the weekend, had embraced the Nigerian
Government’s amnesty to lay down arms in return for rehabilitation and
reintegration back to society. Chief of Defence Staff, Major-General Lucky
Irabor, who was represented at the occasion by Major-General Lambiri,
admonished the graduates to exhibit a high sense of responsibility by obeying
laid down rules and putting skills acquired during their time in the camp to
good use. During the rehabilitation period, the ex-Boko Haram members were
exposed to different skills including tailoring, shoemaking, cap making,
carpentry and laundry and are now expected to support themselves and their
families by earning an income doing any of the jobs in their home communities.
“I don't know if they're given money or equipment but what I know is that
during the rehabilitation, they were taught different skills like tailoring,
shoemaking, cap making, carpentry, and laundry.”

 

United Kingdom

 

BBC News: St Albans Terror Arrest: Teen In Court On Terror Offence Charges
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“A 15-year-old accused of sharing bomb-making instructions on social media has
appeared in court charged with terrorism offences. He is alleged to have twice
posted a propaganda video, made by the so-called Islamic State group, in chats
on the Discord platform in February. The teenager was arrested a week ago in
Hertfordshire, and on Sunday was charged with two counts of disseminating a
terrorist publication. He has been remanded in custody. Westminster Magistrates
Court heard the boy, who cannot be identified because of his age, was arrested
in St Albans on 7 March. The charges relate to a publication which includes
instructions on how to make the explosive TATP, also known as Mother of Satan,
and an improvised explosive device. The boy, who was accompanied by his mother,
was not asked to enter any pleas and spoke only to confirm his name, date of
birth and address. He was remanded into secure accommodation ahead of his next
appearance at the same court on 21 March.”

 

The National: ISIS Follower Jailed By London Court For Sharing Videos Of
Killings On Telegram
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“A man who pledged his allegiance to ISIS has been jailed by a London court
for sharing terrorist propaganda, including videos of killings. Ali Abdillahi,
who was born in Somalia and has lived in Britain since childhood, forged a
university degree to land a job as a cardiographer at a hospital, the Old
Bailey heard. Abdillahi, 31, who holds a Dutch passport, was found to have used
the instant messaging app Telegram in July 2020 to share recordings of an
extremist preacher telling followers to take up arms and two ISIS videos that
showed graphic content including propaganda murders. Abdillahi’s devices were
seized and examined after he was arrested at his home in Enfield, north London,
in August 2020. On Monday, he was jailed for eight years and 10 months.
Writings in a notebook revealed his extremist mindset, while officers uncovered
his “pledge of allegiance” to ISIS on his mobile phone, the court heard. On the
second day of his trial in November, Abdillahi admitted five counts of
distributing a terrorist publication. He had previously admitted perverting the
course of justice by pretending to have a biomedical science degree from the
University of Hertfordshire as part of an effort to win bail.”

 

Germany

 

The National: German Woman ‘Ran ISIS Fund-Raising Operation’ From Syria
Refugee Camp
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“A German woman faces terrorism charges after allegedly running a secret ISIS
fund-raising operation for extremists detained at Syria’s Al Hol refugee camp.
The woman, named only as Monika K, is accused of running the donation network
via messenger services, while being held at the camp for most of 2019, before
she was smuggled out to marry another ISIS member. She continued to operate the
fund-raising campaign while the pair lived at Idlib, 500 kilometres to the
west, German prosecutors say. The goal was to get other ISIS supporters out of
the camp, said a spokeswoman for the German public prosecutor’s office. Monika
K was captured again in September 2020 as she made her way back to Al Hol to
make contact with ISIS members. She was held in Turkish custody until she was
returned to Germany on Friday, eight years after she first signed up to ISIS in
Syria. She was arrested at Frankfurt Airport on suspicion of membership of a
terrorist organisation abroad. The prosecutor’s office said that the woman
first travelled from Germany to Syria, via Egypt, with her then husband in
2013. The pair signed up to ISIS within months. Her husband died during
fighting in 2015 and she went on to marry two other ISIS fighters and lived
with them in various parts of Syria and Iraq.”

 

Europe

 

The Irish Times: Women Who Tried To Leave Islamic State Faced Severe
Punishment, Lisa Smith Trial Told
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“Women who tried to leave the Islamic State in Syria faced imprisonment,
torture and death an expert on Middle Eastern conflicts has told the trial of
Lisa Smith, a former Irish soldier who denies membership of Isis. Dr Florence
Gaub told the Special Criminal Court that anyone caught trying to get out would
be considered a traitor, a spy or a coward and she described one case in which
an Austrian woman was beaten to death with a hammer when she said she wanted to
go home. The witness also agreed with Ms Smith’s defence counsel Michael
O’Higgins SC that women in Isis-controlled territory could not travel without
the permission of their husbands. Ms Smith (40), from Dundalk, Co Louth, an
Islamic convert and former Irish soldier, travelled to Syria after terrorist
leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi called on all Muslims to travel to the Islamic
State. She has pleaded not guilty to membership of an unlawful terrorist group,
Islamic State, between October 28th, 2015 and December 1st, 2019. She has also
pleaded not guilty to financing terrorism by sending €800 in assistance, via a
Western Union money transfer, to a named man on May 6th, 2015. After her arrest
in 2019, Ms Smith told gardaí that she travelled to Syria because she believed
she was under a religious obligation to join the Caliphate announced by
Baghdadi.”

 

Technology

 

Reuters: Facebook Owner Defends Policy On Calls For Violence That Angered
Russia
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“Facebook owner Meta Platforms (FB.O) said Friday that a temporary change in
its content policy, only for Ukraine, was needed to let users voice opposition
to Russia's attack, as Russia opened a criminal case after the company said it
would allow posts such as "death to the Russian invaders." Russian prosecutors
asked a court to designate the U.S. tech giant as an "extremist organisation,"
and the communications regulator said it would restrict access to Meta's
Instagram starting March 14. The company said the decision would affect 80
million users in Russia. "A criminal case has been initiated ... in connection
with illegal calls for murder and violence against citizens of the Russian
Federation by employees of the American company Meta, which owns the social
networks Facebook and Instagram," Russia's Investigative Committee said. The
committee reports directly to President Vladimir Putin. It was not immediately
clear what the consequences of the criminal case might be.”

 

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