Eye on Extremism
November 20, 2019
TIME:
ISIS Fighters Are Gaining Strength After Trump's Syria Pullout, U.S.
Spies Say
“The Defense Intelligence Agency says ISIS is resurgent inside
Syria and has a greater ability to mount terrorist attacks against the
West as a result of President Donald Trump’s decision to hastily
withdraw American troops from the war-torn country last month. The
assessment, publicly disclosed Tuesday in a Department of Defense
Office of Inspector General report, focused on the abrupt decision to
remove all 1,000 U.S. troops from northern Syria. The move created a
power vacuum and set off a series of violent developments on the
ground that risks upending more than five years of progress in the war
against the terrorist group. “ISIS exploited the Turkish incursion and
subsequent draw-down of U.S. troops to reconstitute capabilities and
resources within Syria and strengthen its ability to plan attacks
abroad,” the 116-page report says. “The DIA also reported that without
counter-terrorism pressure, ISIS will probably be able to more freely
build clandestine networks and will attempt to free ISIS members
detained in… prisons and family members living in internally displaced
persons camps.”
The
Wall Street Journal: Israel Strikes Iranian Targets In Syria In
Response To Rocket Attack
“Israel’s military said it struck dozens of targets in Syria after
four rockets were fired toward the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights on
Tuesday. The violence ratcheted up tensions in Israel’s north days
after a shaky cease-fire ended fighting with Iran-backed militants in
Gaza that had raised concerns of a wider conflict in the country’s
south. The rockets fired from Syria were intercepted by Israel’s
air-defense systems and caused no harm, Israel’s military said. In
response, Israeli jet fighters attacked targets in Syria, including
what it described as an Iranian Quds Force site and Syrian military
bases. Syrian aerial defense batteries were also struck, the Israeli
military said. The U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights on
Wednesday said the Israeli strikes had killed 11 people, of which at
least seven were foreign nationals, likely Iranians or men in
Iranian-backed militias. Several others were injured by the strikes,
it said.”
The
New York Times: Iran’s ‘Iron Fist’: Rights Group Says More Than 100
Protesters Are Dead
“Protests against the Iranian government erupted for a fifth day
across the country on Tuesday, as the authorities scrambled to crush
the unrest and reports emerged of mounting injuries and deaths. The
rights group Amnesty International said that as many as 106 protesters
in 21 cities had been killed over the course of the protests, in what
would be a dramatic increase, if confirmed, from the 12 reported
killed by semiofficial Iranian news agencies. Hundreds of people have
been injured over the last week and more than a thousand arrested,
according to official Iranian news agencies. Iran’s security forces
said protesters had killed two police officers and at least five
members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps and the paramilitary
force known as the Basij. The protests started last Friday in response
to a sudden increase in gasoline prices, which ignited widespread
anger amid an economic crisis that Iran’s president has called the
worst in 40 years. The country is reeling from economic sanctions
reimposed by the Trump administration after it pulled out of the
nuclear deal with Iran.”
The
Independent: Gunmen, Bomb Plots And Secret Networks: Inside Iran’s
Alleged Campaign Of Terror In Europe
“Everywhere Yaghoub al-Tostari goes, an officer from Denmark’s spy
service follows him. Wearing an earpiece and armed with a handgun, the
official keeps an eye not just on the Arab-Iranian activist, but on
those around him – a man lingering on a street corner, a motorcyclist
carrying a passenger stopped next to them at the traffic light. When
Tostari has an appointment, his driver circles around seemingly at
random before dropping him off. If a stranger stares at him too long
at a restaurant or on the street, or appears to be listening in to his
conversation, the guard asks them for identification. Tostari’s house
in the Copenhagen area is under constant watch. And when Tostari
travels to another country, local security services take over. Their
worry is that an agent of the Islamic Republic of Iran will try to
shoot Tostari dead, as they have other members of his Arab opposition
group, the Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation of Ahvaz (ASMLA),
and other opponents of the regime in Tehran living in Europe. “We must
never be out of the eye of their security officials,” Tostari says in
an interview. “Even if I go to a hotel they book a room next to you.
When we go somewhere, we drive around and look before stopping. It’s
the highest level of security possible.”
Forbes:
Terrorist Targets: The Ten Countries Which Suffer Most From
Terrorism
“For the first time since it was invaded by U.S. forces in 2003,
Iraq is no longer the country most affected by terrorism, according to
new research released today. The latest edition of the Global
Terrorism Index, produced by the Institute for Economics and Peace
(IEP), finds the number of deaths caused by terrorism in Iraq fell by
75% between 2017 and 2018, with 3,217 fewer people being killed. Even
so, some 1,054 people were killed in the country in terrorist
atrocities last year. While the situation in Iraq has improved
following the territorial defeat of Islamic State, in other parts of
the world things are getting much worse. Last year four countries
recorded a large increase in deaths from terrorism. Mali, Mozambique
and Nigeria all saw more than 100 additional deaths while Afghanistan,
which has overtaken Iraq at the top of the table, suffered 2,700 more
fatalities. The Global Terrorism Index ranks 163 countries according
to the impact of terrorism, based on factors such as the number of
attacks, fatalities, injuries and the extent of property damage. The
definition of what is included covers intentional acts of violence by
non-state actors but not acts of state-sponsored violence, so it
offers only a limited insight into the overall level of violence or
political freedom in a country.”
USA
Today: Undercover FBI Agents Say Chicago College Student Tried To
Write Code For ISIS
“A 20-year-old U.S. college student was arrested Monday for
allegedly writing computer code to help the Islamic State spread
propaganda online, according to the FBI. Thomas Osadzinski, a student
at DePaul University who lives in the city's northside neighborhood of
Buena Park, was charged in a federal criminal complaint with one count
of attempting to provide material support to a terrorist organization
— a charge punishable by up to 20 years. Osadzinski appeared before
U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeffrey Cole in Chicago Tuesday and was ordered
held without bond. According to the complaint, Osadzinski designed a
process that uses a computer script to make ISIS propaganda easier to
access and disseminate on a social media platform, bypassing
preventive code which routinely removes ISIS content due to the
violent nature of the materials. The complaint, however, did not
identify the social media platform, saying only that it was a mobile
and desktop messaging application. Osadzinski earlier this year shared
his script — and instructions for how to use it — with individuals
whom he believed to be ISIS supporters and members of pro-ISIS media
organizations, the complaint says. Those individuals were actually
covert FBI employees and a person working with them.”
United States
The
Hill: Dem Lawmaker Introduces Bill To Tackle Online Terrorist
Activity
“Rep. Max Rose (D-N.Y.) on Wednesday introduced a bill that could
help reduce the amount of terrorist content circulating across the
country's top social media platforms. The Raising the Bar Act would
create a government-backed program to help tech companies eliminate
the scourge of posts, images and videos from terrorist groups like
ISIS and al-Qaeda on their social networks. "The social media
companies have established standards for themselves that everybody
agrees on for terrorist content ... it should have no place on their
platforms," Rose told The Hill in a phone interview on Tuesday. "This
bill is about establishing a public-private partnership that holds the
social media companies to their own standards." The legislation would
direct the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to designate a lead
institution – such as a research center to think tank – to administer
a voluntary exercise program that would score how well tech companies
handle terrorist content. The program, run by a team of terrorism and
social media experts, would assess how well companies like Facebook
and Twitter are adhering to their own anti-terrorism policies.”
Voice
Of America: Pompeo Heads To NATO Ministerial Meeting With
Counterterrorism Topping Agenda
“The United States and NATO are pledging unity in tackling
challenges, including fighting terrorism, cyber threats and boosting
energy security, seven decades after the establishment of the
transatlantic partnership. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo departs
for Brussels Tuesday to attend a NATO foreign ministerial and meet
with key NATO allies. “Emerging security challenges and threats such
as terrorism and energy security” will top the agenda when Pompeo
holds talks with allies ahead of the December summit of NATO Leaders
in London, according to the State Department. “We are now living in a
totally new time where we have terrorism. We have a shifting balance
of power globally and we have cyber and many other things,” NATO
Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told VOA's Serbian service last
week in an interview. ‘That is the reason why we need an agile NATO
ready to be able to react when a new crisis occurs.’ All NATO allies
are part of the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS, focused on the
Islamic State terror group that is also known as IS or Daesh. The
talks come days after Stoltenberg and more than 30 members of the
U.S.-led coalition gathered in Washington to reaffirm what leaders say
is a full commitment to ensure the enduring defeat of IS.”
Deutsche
Welle: How The US And EU Could Facilitate A Free Internet For
Iran
“Richard Grenell, the US ambassador to Germany, tweeted that the
United States and EU could "turn the internet on" for Iran after the
regime shut it down during protests against fuel price hikes. Here's
how it could work. Grenell followed up with a tweet to cellphone
manufacturers and social media companies, encouraging them to join in
the task. In order for the World Wide Web to work well, it requires a
constant connection through which data can be sent and received. If
the state or the provider cuts off the connection, nothing works. It's
nearly impossible for ordinary users with computers and routers to
quickly access familiar internet services if a regime blocks network
connections. However, limited communication may still be possible with
a fair amount of effort. The World Wide Web, with its web browsers, is
one of many technologies that use the internet. The internet can be
used just as well without the World Wide Web. Before the World Wide
Web got going in the 1990s, plenty of people already used the internet
to communicate without being online all the time.”
NBC
News: 16-Year-Old Girl Allegedly Plotted To Attack Black Church In
Georgia
“A 16-year-old white girl has been arrested after police said
classmates reported she had a plot to attack a black church in
Gainesville, Georgia. The unidentified student allegedly had a
notebook with plans to murder parishioners at the Bethel African
Methodist Episcopal Church, which has a predominantly black
congregation, according to a release from the Gainesville Police
Department. Police were contacted Nov. 15 after the girl's classmates
at the Gainesville High School alerted counselors about the alleged
plot. She was charged with criminal attempt to commit murder and is
being held at a youth detention center, police said. Bishop Reginald
Jackson, presiding prelate of the Sixth Episcopal District of the AME
Church, told reporters Tuesday that the girl was inspired by Dylan
Roof, the man who was convicted of killing nine black worshipers at
the Emmanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina, four years ago
in an effort to start a race war. “Idealizing him and sharing the same
ideology, she plotted to accomplish the same at Bethel church in
Gainesville,” Jackson said. “This incident raises very serious issues
and also raises questions that need to be answered.”
Miami
Herald: He Pledged Loyalty To ISIS. He Then Taught An FBI Agent How To
Make Bombs, Cops Say
“A St. Augustine man was arrested on a federal charge for helping
to better arm the ISIS terrorist organization through producing and
disseminating instructional explosive videos, according to a court
documents. Romeo Xavier Langhorne, 30, is charged with providing
material support or resources to terrorists as first reported by the
Florida Times Union. Under federal law, he faces up to 20 years in
prison if convicted. Law enforcement first became aware of Langhorne’s
allegiance to ISIS in 2014 after a Facebook post supporting the
terrorist organization, investigators say. That’s when they began
monitoring his presence on social media platforms including Facebook,
Twitter and YouTube. The complaint affidavit alleges Langhorne and an
undercover FBI agent communicated with one another from Feb. 14 until
Nov. 7. During that time, Langhorne made and published a video on how
to manufacture triacetone triperoxide (TATP), the same explosive used
in both the 2016 Manchester Arena and 2019 Sri Lanka Easter bombings .
“Although the video includes disclaimers about education purposes,
Langhorne’s true purpose is to arm ISIS adherents and others with
knowledge of how to make TATP,” the FBI agent wrote.”
Newsweek:
Far-Right Terrorism Has Increased 320 Percent In Just 4 Years,
Extremism Watchdog Warns
“The annual report from conflict watchdog the Institute for
Economics and Peace (IEP) has found that while the number of deaths
from terrorism is falling, more countries were affected by terrorist
violence in 2018 than in 2017. The 2019 Global Terrorism Index showed
a general downwards trend in the number of attacks, deaths and
economic damage wrought by terrorism worldwide. However, the report
also noted that terrorist activity remains significant, adding that
increasing activity among right-wing terrorist groups is particular
cause for concern. The number of deaths from terrorism fell by 15.2
percent from 2017 to 2018, to a total of 15,952 people worldwide. This
represents the fourth consecutive year-on-year reduction for
fatalities, with the number of deaths having dropped 52 percent since
2014. Ninety-eight nations recorded an improvement in the number of
deaths, which is the highest number posting an annual improvement
since 2004, the report noted. Forty countries recorded an increase in
the number of terrorist deaths. Seventy-one countries recorded at
least one terrorism-related death in 2018. Terrorism remains a global
threat, the report said, with 71 nations recording at least one
related death in 2018—the second-highest number since 2002 and four
more than the year before.”
Washington
Examiner: US Charity Accused Of Funding Palestinian Terrorist
Organizations
“A United States nonprofit group is being accused in a federal
lawsuit of funneling charitable donations to Palestinian terrorist
organizations, including Hamas and the Popular Front for the
Liberation of Palestine. The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court
for the District of Columbia last week by a group of U.S. citizens
living in Israel and an Israeli environmental group against the U.S.
Campaign for Palestinian Rights. It also claims that the defendant
funded arson attacks against Israelis that have led to deforestation.
It seeks to recover damages for pain and suffering on behalf of the
U.S. plaintiffs. “With this lawsuit, we’re exposing the link between
organizations masquerading as human rights organizations but who use
donations to advance the campaign of terror against Israel,” said
Daniel Atar, chairman of the Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael-Jewish National
Fund, the Israeli group that helped file the lawsuit. The complaint
claims the U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights violated the
Anti-Terrorism Act by collecting donations on behalf of the Boycott
National Committee, an umbrella group that includes at least five
designated terrorist organizations, including Hamas, as members.”
Syria
Fox
News: Israel And Syria Exchange Fire, Syrian Aerial Defense Batteries
Destroyed, Israeli Military Says
“The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said that the Israeli military
carried out “wide-scale strikes” of targets in Syria belonging to
Iranian forces and the Syrian regime on Wednesday, in response to the
four rockets launched into Israel in the overnight hours. In a series
of tweets on Tuesday night the IDF wrote, “We just carried out
wide-scale strikes of Iranian Quds Force & Syrian Armed Forces
targets in Syria in response to the rockets fired at Israel by an
Iranian force in Syria last night.” “During our strike of Iranian
& Syrian terror targets, a Syrian air defense missile was fired
despite clear warnings to refrain from such fire. As a result, a
number of Syrian aerial defense batteries were destroyed,” another IDF
tweet said. Syria's state SANA news agency said the two people were
killed by shrapnel when an Israeli missile hit a house in the town of
Saasaa, southwest of Damascus. The report also said several others
were wounded in the airstrikes near the capital, Damascus. It claimed
that Syrian air defenses destroyed most of the Israeli missiles before
they reached their targets. A Britain-based war monitoring group
reported that 11 civilians, including seven non-Syrians who were
likely Iranians, were killed in the attack.”
CNN:
New Pentagon Report Says Turkey's Syria Incursion Is Helping ISIS
Mount A Comeback
“Turkey's decision to launch a military operation targeting
America's Kurdish partners in northern Syria and the Trump
administration's subsequent retreat has allowed ISIS to rebuild itself
and boosted its ability to launch attacks abroad, the Pentagon's
Inspector General said in a new report. The Pentagon's Defense
Intelligence Agency said in the report “that ISIS has exploited the
Turkish incursion and subsequent drawdown of US troops from
northeastern Syria to reconstitute its capabilities and resources both
within Syria in the short term and globally in the longer term.” “The
withdrawal and redeployment of US troops has also affected the fight
against ISIS, which remains a threat in the region and globally,”
Glenn Fine, the principal deputy inspector general, wrote in an
introduction to the report. Referring to Kurdish-led forces, Fine said
that “with SDF and US operations against ISIS in Syria diminished,
ISIS was likely to exploit the reduction in counterterrorism pressure
to reconstitute its operations in Syria and expand its ability to
conduct transnational attacks. The report, published Tuesday and
covering July 1 to Oct. 25, paints a damaging picture of the fallout
from the Trump administration's decision to pull back from
northeastern Syria and Turkey's attack on America's Kurdish
allies.”
Iran
The
New York Times: The Ayatollah Comes For The Internet
“Authoritarian governments have increasingly sought to use internet
disruptions and blockades as weapons to crush dissent. Reports of
internet shutdowns have recently come from Hong Kong, Iraq and
Indian-controlled Kashmir, where access to the internet has been cut
off for more than three months now. Now it’s Iran’s turn. Over the
weekend, the government imposed a nationwide internet blackout to
suppress news of anti-government protests. The country’s internet
access was disrupted during the protests in 2017 and 2018 — but this
almost complete shutdown sets a new oppressive benchmark. On Saturday
morning, I spoke to a relative in Tehran who was trying to beat the
city’s notorious traffic, looking for the best route to run an errand.
She went on Waze, a popular navigation app that crowdsources traffic
information. Within moments, she realized that a number of Tehran
residents were using the app to coordinate “car protests” — where
Iranians park their cars on the city’s roads to create roadblocks —
against the government’s decision to raise gasoline prices by 50
percent. Protests erupted across the country.”
Iraq
The
New York Times: ‘Our Patience Is Over’: Why Iraqis Are
Protesting
“In the morning, the squarely built father of four wore flowing
tribal robes to receive visitors in his garden, but by early afternoon
he was in jeans, traveling light, his cellphone in one hand and his
to-do list in his head. He had a half dozen stops before he reached
Tahrir Square in Baghdad, ground zero for the demonstrations now
shaking Iraq. The man, Bassim al-Kaabi, 41, is one of scores of people
organizing the protests from Sadr City, a vast, impoverished
neighborhood of Baghdad with a history of defying the government. “Let
us be frank, we are poor people in Sadr City and we need many things:
schools, health clinics, jobs,” said Mr. al-Kaabi, who drives a taxi
to support his family. “What is a pity is that we believed the
politicians who said, ‘vote for us and we will do our best for you,’”
he said. “But then we found they were liars and so now we are saying,
‘enough.’”
Los
Angeles Times: Russia Repatriates 32 Children Of Islamic State Members
From Iraq
“Russia says it has repatriated another 32 children of members of
the Islamic State group from Iraq. Russia’s state TV on Tuesday showed
footage of the children arriving at Zhukovsky airport outside Moscow.
It said the children ranging from age 1 to 9 will undergo extensive
medical checkups before relatives take them home. Russia’s Foreign
Ministry said the children had been held in asylum centers in Iraq or
in prisons with their mothers. Their arrival represents the fourth
group of Russian children to be repatriated from Iraq. The Foreign
Ministry said a total of 122 children have been brought home. Russian
President Vladimir Putin has said that over 4,000 Russian citizens and
some 5,000 citizens of other ex-Soviet nations have joined the Islamic
State group in Syria and Iraq.”
Turkey
Al
Jazeera: Turkey To Send Most ISIL Detainees Home By
Year-End
“Turkey plans to repatriate most of its ISIL detainees to their
home countries by the end of the year. Turkish Minister of Interior
Suleyman Soylu said on Tuesday that Ankara aims to send six or seven
fighters from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL or ISIS)
armed group home, including to Ireland and the Netherlands, this week
alone. His remarks came a week after Turkish authorities began the
repatriation programme. Ankara said it captured 287 fighters in
northeast Syria, where Turkish troops launched an offensive against
the Kurdish Syrian forces, the People's Protection Units (YPG), last
month and has hundreds more ISIL suspects in detention. “The number of
detainees to be repatriated by the year-end depends on how long the
processes take, but especially for Europe, the process is under way,”
Soylu said, adding that countries that revoked the citizenship of
their nationals were violating international law. “They do not have
the right to leave their citizens without a nationality. They have no
such right,” he said. “This is why we held evaluations with certain
countries on this and they are taking them back.” Turkey has accused
its European allies of being too slow to take back their citizens who
travelled to the Middle East to join ISIL.”
The
Telegraph: Isil Leaders With 'Vast Amounts Of Cash' Planning Comeback
In Turkey, Iraq Spy Chief Claims
“Senior Islamic State members with access to “huge” amounts of
money are in Turkey and plotting a comeback, an Iraqi spy chief has
warned. Lieutenant General Saad al-Allaq, head of Iraq’s Military
Intelligence, claimed in an interview with CNN that Iraq has given
Ankara dossiers on nine alleged leaders of Islamic State of Iraq and
the Levant (Isil), including top financiers for the terror group. The
general said senior Isil figures known as “emirs” have access to vast
reserves of cash and were forming new cells in Turkey. He claimed many
of them had managed to escape from Isil’s final patch of territory in
Baghouz, eastern Syria, after bribing Western-backed Syrian Democratic
Forces (SDF) to reach Idlib in the north-west. From there, he said,
they crossed the border to Gaziantep in southern Turkey. “Some of its
important leadership fled north, I mean in the direction of
neighbouring countries and into border areas like Gazientep,” Lt. Gen.
Allaq said. “They have secretly crossed into these areas from the
Syrian-Turkish border - top leaders who have money. They crossed with
the help of smugglers by paying large amount of money and have
secretly entered Turkish territory.” He added: “Those elements who are
right now in Turkey play a key role in the recruitment of fighters and
terrorists.”
Afghanistan
Reuters:
Afghanistan's President Claims Victory Over Islamic
State
“Security forces have “obliterated” Islamic State (IS) militants in
Afghanistan, President Ashraf Ghani said on Tuesday, hours after a
prisoner swap with Taliban insurgents raised hopes of a lull in
violence in the country. More than 600 fighters from IS, locally known
as Daesh, have surrendered with their families to the Afghan
government in past weeks. Officials say air strikes by Afghan and
coalition forces, lack of funds and low morale have forced the group
to give up. “No one believed one year ago that we would stand up and
today be saying we have obliterated Daesh,” Ghani told a gathering of
elders and officials in Jalalabad, the main city of eastern Nangarhar
province that saw a wave of suicide attacks in past years claimed by
the jihadists. “Now that Daesh militants have surrendered, I ask
authorities to treat their families humanely,” Ghani added. The
government says among fighters in its custody are foreign nationals
from Pakistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Iran, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan
and the Maldives. However, the Afghan Taliban, which has been battling
IS and the government for control of the country, disputed that.
Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban’s official spokesman, described
Ghani’s announcement as “absurd.”
CNN:
Report Finds The Taliban Were Deadlier Than ISIS In
2018
“Attacks by the Taliban were deadlier than those committed by any
other group in 2018, according to a report released by an
international think tank on Wednesday. The 2019 Global Terrorism Index
found that the militant group took significantly more lives than ISIS
did last year. Although the overall number of deaths by terrorism
declined in 2018, according to the report, 71 countries recorded at
least one death by terrorism. Afghanistan was most affected, with more
than 7,000 deaths. The index also identified a sharp rise in far-right
terrorism globally, particularly in Europe and North America. The
report was produced by the Institute for Economics & Peace, a
nonpartisan think tank that develops metrics to study peace and its
economic impact. It pulls its data from the Global Terrorism Database
of the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to
Terrorism. The database includes the deaths of assailants in its
fatality numbers. According to Steve Killelea, the executive chairman
of the Institute for Economics & Peace, the Taliban “now account
for 38 per cent of all terrorist deaths globally,” which he believes
“underscores the difficulty with the current conflict” in
Afghanistan.”
Bloomberg:
Afghan Decision To Free Taliban Members Can Help Foster
Peace
“The Taliban said the release of three of its senior members by the
Afghan government could help President Ashraf Ghani’s efforts to find
peace with the militant group, which has battled U.S. and Afghan
forces since 2001. The release is “a step forward in goodwill and
confidence-building measures that can aid the peace process,” Taliban
spokesman Zabihullah Mujahed said in a statement sent by WhatsApp to
reporters. Ghani last week had announced the release in the hope of
starting direct talks with the militants and end the 18-year old
conflict that has claimed tens of thousands of Afghan lives, killed
more than 2,400 U.S. soldiers and cost the U.S. about a trillion
dollars.”
Asharq
Al-Awsat: US Service Members Killed In Afghanistan Helicopter Crash,
Taliban Claims Responsibility
“Two US service members were killed in a helicopter crash in
Afghanistan on Wednesday, the US military said in a statement. “The
cause of the crash is under investigation, however preliminary reports
do not indicate it was caused by enemy fire,” the statement said. The
Afghan Taliban claimed responsibility for downing the helicopter,
which it said crashed in Logar province south of the capital Kabul,
Reuters reported. “US Chinook helicopter shot down and completely
destroyed last night while trying to raid Mujahideen (Taliban)
position in Pangram area of Sarkh, Logar,” Taliban spokesman
Zabihullah Mujahid said in a tweet. It was not possible to
independently verify the group’s claim. The Taliban often claims
responsibility for accidental crashes, and the Afghan government ruled
out their involvement. “There was no involvement of the enemy fire in
the helicopter crash and no Afghan security force member is hurt,”
said Fawad Aman, a spokesman for the Afghan defense ministry. The
crash comes a day after the Taliban swapped two Western hostages for
three of its commanders held by the Afghan government, raising hopes
of a thaw in relations between the militant group and coalition
forces.”
Stars
And Stripes: Islamic State’s ‘Backbone Was Broken’ In Afghanistan As
Hundreds Surrender
“Hundreds of Islamic State fighters have surrendered after separate
operations by government forces and the Taliban hemmed them into the
mountainside in the country’s south, Afghan officials said Tuesday.
During the past two weeks, 243 ISIS fighters and nearly 400 family
members have surrendered, Nangarhar provincial governor Shahmahmood
Miakhel said Tuesday. In total, 2,000 fighters and their families are
expected to surrender, Miakhel said. Afghan officials said their
forces, aided by U.S. personnel, starved the ISIS fighters by cutting
off their supply lines in Nangarhar, Miakhel said. “The result is
Daesh’s backbone was broken,” Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said in a
speech Tuesday, using an Arabic acronym for ISIS that the group
dislikes. Some ISIS fighters from Afghanistan who have surrendered
will be investigated through the justice system, while others will be
released without punishment to “start their normal life,” Nangarhar
province spokesman Attaullah Khogyani said. Those from Pakistan and
other countries — about a third of the group — will be sent to Kabul
for questioning, he said. While the Pentagon said there were fewer
than 2,000 ISIS fighters in July, the United Nations the same month
said there were between 2,500 and 4,000 fighters.”
Yemen
Asharq
Al-Awsat: Yemen Denounces Iran's Recognition Of Houthis'
Envoy
“Yemen’s Foreign Affairs Ministry denounced Iran's recognition of
Houthi militia's representative in Tehran. In a statement, the Yemeni
Foreign Ministry expressed its strong condemnation of Iran’s
recognition of Houthi representative and considered Tehran's approach
a clear violation of UN Charter, Vienna Convention on Diplomatic
Relations, and Security Council's relevant resolutions on Yemen,
mainly Resolution 2216. The ministry held the Iranian regime
accountable for the repercussions of this blatant violation, which
confirmed Tehran's involvement in supporting Houthi militias and
recognizing them. The ministry also said Iran is accountable for not
protecting the diplomatic premises and the ministry's possessions,
confirming that it will take legal action against this approach. It
called on the international community and the Security Council to
condemn this behavior, considering it irresponsible. Houthi media in
Sanaa reported that the group's top commander Ibrahim Mohammed
al-Dailami presented his credentials to Iranian President Hassan
Rouhani in his capacity as ambassador to Yemen.”
Lebanon
The
Christian Science Monitor: ‘Without A Shot’: How A Local Warlord Aims
To Break Hezbollah’s Hold
“Al-Hajj Mohamed Ja’afar looks more like an unassuming businessman
than a powerful Lebanese Shiite tribal warlord hunting for an infusion
of cash to challenge Hezbollah in his native Bekaa Valley. Interviewed
in Qasr – a village on the northeast edge of Lebanon overlooking
farms, orchards, and Syrian battlefields – Mr. Ja’afar is clean shaven
and dressed in a dark blue windbreaker, dress trousers, and sensible
shoes. But from their homes in a region of Lebanon known more for
smuggling and lethal tribal disputes he led 1,000 armed members of his
Ja’afar tribe into battle in Syria. His militia fought as a unit of
Syria’s Russia-backed V Corps. With Russian air support, they helped
oust Islamic State jihadists from Palmyra in 2016, and later fought in
Deir Ezzor. All told, Mr. Ja’afar lost 47 men in Syria, and says he
“won many awards” from Russian commanders and kudos from President
Vladimir Putin. Video footage on his phone shows him in Syria –
wearing the same Everyman windbreaker – inspecting military hardware
and meeting Russian commanders.”
Middle East
The
Middle East Media Research Institute: Qatar's Role In 9/11 And Hosting
Jihadi Commanders; Afghan Taliban's Hideouts Move To Safe Haven Of
Doha
“This report examines Qatar's relationships with jihadi
organizations. Right through the 1980s, Afghan mujahideen – backed by
the U.S., Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Arab donors – fought against the
Soviet troops from their hideouts in the mountainous terrains of
Afghanistan. Since the 9/11 attacks on New York, the Pentagon, and
other American targets, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (the Afghan
Taliban, especially its Haqqani Network) has been fighting and killing
American and NATO soldiers from its shelters in Afghanistan and in
Pakistani cities such as Abbottabad, Rawalpindi, Karachi, and Quetta.
While this situation has not changed, a new dimension has been added
since 2013: As part of a highly ingenious plot, which the world is yet
to realize, the Afghan Taliban leaders' hideouts have moved to the
safe haven of Doha, the capital of Qatar, from where the senior-most
Taliban commanders plot, direct, and execute terror attacks on U.S.
and NATO troops in Afghanistan. These jihadi leaders execute such
anti-U.S. activities while dining with American officials in Qatar's
luxurious hotels in the name of peace talks.”
The
Daily Wire: HAMMER: Terror-Funding Qatar Once Again Proves It Is Not
America’s Friend
“The enigmatic Gulf emirate of Qatar, which is obscenely wealthy
due to its fortuitous location above the world’s largest natural gas
field, has a longstanding problem with Sunni jihadism. The wealthy
petrochemical sheikh minority of the majority slave state Qatari
populace is, along with Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s Turkey,
disproportionately responsible for funding and exporting more radical
Sunni Islamism than any other cloistered clerisy the world over. The
Qatari ruling class proudly hosts Islamist cleric Yusuf Al Qaradawi,
the Muslim Brotherhood‘s de facto global caliph, and has long been the
preeminent state bankroller of Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Pro-terror
network Al Jazeera also serves as a state-run Qatari propaganda
outfit, and it is the evil bile spewing from Al Jazeera’s airwaves
that led more moderate Sunni Gulf states, such as Saudi Arabia and the
United Arab Emirates, to boycott and embargo Qatar in 2017.”
CNN:
Report Finds The Taliban Were Deadlier Than ISIS In
2018
“Attacks by the Taliban were deadlier than those committed by any
other group in 2018, according to a report released by an
international think tank on Wednesday. The 2019 Global Terrorism Index
found that the militant group took significantly more lives than ISIS
did last year. Although the overall number of deaths by terrorism
declined in 2018, according to the report, 71 countries recorded at
least one death by terrorism. Afghanistan was most affected, with more
than 7,000 deaths. The index also identified a sharp rise in far-right
terrorism globally, particularly in Europe and North America. The
report was produced by the Institute for Economics & Peace, a
nonpartisan think tank that develops metrics to study peace and its
economic impact. It pulls its data from the Global Terrorism Database
of the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to
Terrorism. The database includes the deaths of assailants in its
fatality numbers.”
Associated
Press: Israel Strikes Iranian Targets In Syria; 11 Reported
Killed
“The Israeli military said it struck dozens of Iranian targets in
Syria on Wednesday, carrying out a “wide-scale” strike in response to
rocket fire on the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights the day before. A
Britain-based war monitoring group said the Israeli airstrikes killed
11 people, including seven non-Syrians who are most likely Iranians.
Syrian state media only reported that two civilians were killed. The
Israeli military said its fighter jets hit multiple targets belonging
to Iran’s elite Quds force, including surface-to-air missiles, weapons
warehouses and military bases. After the Syrian military fired an air
defense missile, the Israeli military said a number of Syrian aerial
defense batteries were also destroyed. The death toll of 11 was
reported by Rami Abdurrahman, who heads the Britain-based Syrian
Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition activist group with a
network of activists across Syria. The Observatory said the airstrikes
targeted arms depots belonging to the Quds Force in the Damascus
suburbs of Kisweh and Qudsaya. Abdurrahman added that several other
areas were targeted in Wednesday’s strikes, including the Mazzeh
airbase in western Damascus where air defense units are stationed.
Syria’s state SANA news agency said the two civilians were killed by
shrapnel when an Israeli missile hit a house in the town of Saasaa,
southwest of Damascus. It said several others were wounded, including
a girl in a residential building in the suburb of Qudsaya, also west
of the Syrian capital.”
Deutsche
Welle: Fewer Terror Victims Globally, Far-Right Attacks On The
Rise
“The number of deaths caused by terrorist attacks has fallen
globally, but the number of countries experiencing terror has
increased, largely as a result of the rise in far-right attacks,
according to the Global Terrorism Index 2019, published Wednesday by
the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP) think tank. Global deaths
from terrorism totaled 15,952, a 15.2% decrease in 2018. The number
has more than halved when compared with a high of 33,555 deaths in
2014, according to the think tank's report. The report attributed the
fall in terrorism-related deaths to the fall of Islamic State in Iraq
and victories in Somalia over al-Shabab insurgents. "The collapse of
ISIL in Syria and Iraq was one of the factors allowing Western Europe
to record its lowest number of incidents since 2012, with no deaths
attributed to the group in 2018," IEP executive chairman Steve
Killelea wrote in a statement, referring to Islamic State by an
alternate acronym. Western Europe also saw numbers of deaths from all
terrorist incidents fall for the second year in a row, down from 200
in 2017 to 62 deaths in 2018. The region also recorded its lowest
number of incidents since 2012.”
Nigeria
Xinhua:
Nigerian Troops Overcome Boko Haram Ambush In Northern
State
“Nigerian troops in the northeast region of the country on Monday
encountered an ambush by terror group Boko Haram but overcame the
attack, the army said on Tuesday. In a statement reaching Xinhua in
Abuja, the army said the troops who were on fighting patrol to hunt
the militants were ambushed in the Dikwa local government area of
Borno State. The ambush was reinforced with a crudely prepared
improvised explosive device planted by the militants against the
troops along the patrol route at Ala village, 7 km away from the town
of New Marte, according to the statement by Aminu Iliyasu, a spokesman
for the army in the northeast region of Nigeria. “In a rare display of
boldness, resilience and faithful service to their fatherland, the
troops, turned around the initial setback and dealt a devastating blow
on the criminals,” the statement said. Most of the Boko Haram
militants fled with gunshot wounds, the statement said, adding the
troops had further embarked on a pursuit of the scampering militants
who abandoned some of their fighting equipment in utter confusion. Two
gun trucks and anti-aircraft guns each, as well as one motorcycle,
some clothes, foodstuffs and mechanical tools belonging to the Boko
Haram group, were, among other items, recovered from the fleeing
militants, the statement said.”
Somalia
Yahoo
News: US Military Drone Strike Kills Senior Al-Shabab
Official
“A Somali intelligence official says a U.S. drone strike has killed
a senior officer with the al-Shabab extremist group. The official says
the unidentified officer had maintained links with foreign extremist
groups with the aim of coordinating future attacks. The official spoke
on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to
reporters. Residents said the officer’s vehicle was struck Tuesday
outside the al-Shabab-held town of Kunya Barow in southern Somalia’s
Lower Shabelle region. The U.S. military in a statement confirms the
strike and says the al-Shabab member had direct ties to al-Qaida. The
U.S. says the strike was carried out in coordination with Somalia’s
government. A United Nations expert report released this month says
al-Shabab remains a potent regional threat and now makes its own
explosives.”
Africa
The
New York Times: Death Toll In Mali Attack Rises To 30 Soldiers:
Army
“The death toll from an attack against an army patrol in northern
Mali has risen to 30 from an earlier count of 24, army spokesman
Diarran Kone told Reuters on Tuesday. The attack on Monday in the Gao
region was the third large-scale strike against Malian forces in the
last two months in parts of the country where jihadist groups are
mounting increasingly sophisticated operations. No one has yet claimed
responsibility for Monday's attack. An attack on an army post in early
November, which killed at least 53 soldiers, was claimed by an Islamic
State affiliate, while coordinated raids in late September that killed
38 soldiers were claimed by al Qaeda's West Africa affiliate.”
Reuters:
Jihadist Violence Putting 'Generation At Risk' In Africa's
Sahel-WFP
“Jihadist violence in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso has forced
nearly 1 million people to flee their homes, destroyed fragile
agricultural economies and hobbled humanitarian aid efforts, the World
Food Programme (WFP) said on Tuesday. Groups with links to al Qaeda
and Islamic State, once confined to lawless areas of northern Mali,
have in recent years spread across the arid scrublands of the Sahel,
to the south of the Sahara, into Burkina Faso and Niger, stoking local
ethnic conflicts and attacking security forces wherever they go. “The
world does not yet fully grasp the extent of the mounting humanitarian
crisis in the central Sahel region,” said WFP spokesman Herve
Verhoosel. “If we do not act now to tackle hunger in the Sahel, a
whole generation are at risk.” In all, 860,000 people have been
displaced across the three countries and 2.4 million are in need of
urgent food assistance, the WFP said. But a lack of security stops
most of the aid reaching those in need. Despite the presence of
growing ranks of international troops, the violence continues to
spread. On Monday, unidentified gunmen killed 24 Malian soldiers and
wounded 29 in an ambush that bore the hallmarks of a jihadist attack.
It was the third major attack against the army in less than two months
that together have killed over 100 soldiers.”
The
Independent: UN Warns Of Growing Humanitarian Crisis In Africa’s Sahel
As Extremist Attacks Rise
“Ousmane Sawadogo, his wives and children recently fled their
village in northern Burkina Faso because of growing extremist
violence. After walking 124 miles to the regional city of Kaya, they
now forage for wild leaves to survive. “What we need now is food.
Everything else can wait,” Ms Sawadogo told the United Nations World
Food Program. “Once we get food then we will worry about clothes.” The
UN on Tuesday said a humanitarian crisis is growing in West Africa's
arid Sahel region where insecurity linked to growing extremist attacks
has forced more than 860,000 people in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger to
flee their homes. Nearly half a million people have been displaced
this year in Burkina Faso alone as the landlocked country becomes the
new hunting ground for extremists linked to the Islamic State group
and al-Qaeda. Burkina Faso saw more attacks in the first half of this
year than it did in all of 2018. “A dramatic human crisis is unfolding
in Burkina Faso that has disrupted the lives of millions,” the WFP's
executive director, David Beasley, said in a statement. “A third of
the country is now a conflict zone.” WFP teams are seeing malnutrition
levels “pushed well past emergency thresholds”, he said.”
United Kingdom
The
Telegraph: Britain Is Country Worst Affected By Terrorism In EU, Study
Reveals
“Britain is the country worst affected by terrorism in the EU,
according to an authoritative study of the its impact worldwide. The
Global Terrorism Index puts the UK in the top 30 of the world’s 168
nations, ahead of France, Germany, Belgium and Spain as well as Sri
Lanka, Iran, Russia and Israel. Afghanistan has overtaken Iraq as the
nation worst affected by terrorism followed by Nigeria, Syria and
Pakistan, according to the analysis of a database logging 170,000
terrorist incidents worldwide. Turkey is 16th and the USA 22nd. The UK
- at 28th - is the highest placed in the EU, based on the analysis of
the data by the think tank Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP). It
cites the rising threat from the new IRA as a key contributor to
Britain’s high ranking as well as Islamic terrorism although it also
warns of a significant rise in right-wing terrorism and a growing
threat from women radicalised by Isil. “There has been a growing trend
of increased female participation in terrorism, although still a small
percentage of all attacks,” says the report.”
Germany
Associated
Press: Son Of Former German President Stabbed To Death In
Berlin
“The son of former German president Richard von Weizsaecker was
stabbed to death while he was giving a lecture at a hospital in Berlin
where he worked as a head physician, police said Wednesday. A
57-year-old German man is in custody after he jumped up from the
audience at the Schlosspark-Klinik and attacked Fritz von Weizsaecker
with a knife on Tuesday evening. An off-duty police officer in the
audience who tried to stop the attack was seriously wounded and had to
undergo surgery. Von Weizsaecker died at the scene despite immediate
attention from colleagues. “We cannot yet say anything about the
attacker’s motive,” said police spokesman Michael Gassen. Police said
later that the man, who was not a patient at the hospital, had been
questioned overnight. Police were also investigating if von
Weizsaecker or his family had received threats in the past. The
59-year-old was the son of one of Germany’s most esteemed presidents.
Richard von Weizsaecker became West Germany’s head of state in 1984
and when the country was unified, became the first president of the
new nation, serving until 1994. He died in 2015. Fritz von Weizsaecker
was one of the ex-president’s four children. His sister Beatrice
posted a picture of Jesus on the cross on Instagram after the killing
of her brother and wrote, “Take care of my brother ...” Both
politicians and colleagues expressed shock over the brazen
murder.”
Reuters:
German Police Arrest Syrian Suspected Of Planning
Attack
“German police on Tuesday arrested a 37-year old Syrian man
suspected of exchanging bomb building material through an Islamist
messenger group with the aim of planning an attack, police and
prosecutors said. Police special forces searched the apartment of the
suspect in Berlin who had started to buy chemicals and other materials
needed to build an explosive device, the general prosecutors’ office
said. “This (device) was meant to be detonated at an unknown time at
an unknown location in Germany to kill as many people as possible,”
prosecutors said. German police last Tuesday detained three people in
the western city of Offenbach on suspicion of planning a bomb attack
for the Islamic State militant group.”
The
Hill: US Tip Helped Thwart Terror Attack In Germany:
Report
“A U.S. tip helped thwart a terror attack in Germany, helping
German special police forces arrested a Syrian man Tuesday who was
planning an extremist attack, The Associated Press reported. Federal
prosecutors described the man as a 26-year-old “radical Islamist” who
was organizing an attack designed to “kill and injure a maximum number
of people,” in a statement obtained by the AP. Martin Steltner, a
spokesman for Berlin state prosecutors, said the man had entered
Germany in 2014 as an asylum seeker and resided under “protected”
status. Steltner would not comment on where the tip came from,
according to the AP. A U.S. official speaking on condition of
anonymity told the AP that the tip came from an American and German
partnership and cooperation in law enforcement and intelligence
efforts. The suspect reportedly looked up online how to build bombs
and discuss plans for an attack in internet chats, which Berlin’s top
security official Andreas Geisel told the dpa news agency came from an
“allied foreign intelligence service.” He had allegedly gathered
supplies since January, including chemicals like acetone and hydrogen
peroxide, for a bomb. The timing and location of the reported planned
attack is unknown.”
Europe
The
Washington Post: Woman And Man Charged With Terror Offenses In
Kosovo
“Kosovo prosecutors have filed terrorism charges against two people
suspected of supporting or fighting with the Islamic State group in
Syria. A prosecutors’ statement Tuesday said they had accused a woman,
identified only as F.Z., as fighting with the Islamic State group in
Syria. She was among 110 Kosovo citizens repatriated from Syria in
April. A man identified as F.Ll. was accused Wednesday of using his
Facebook page to encourage people to join terror groups, downloading
hate speeches from IS and hailing a recent murderous attack in Sri
Lanka. If convicted, the woman could face a prison sentence of more
than 15 years and the man up to five years. Kosovo authorities say 30
of the country’s citizens are still actively supporting terror groups
in Syria.”
Technology
The
New York Times: What Is End-To-End Encryption? Another Bull’s-Eye On
Big Tech
“A Justice Department official hinted on Monday that a yearslong
fight over encrypted communications could become part of a sweeping
investigation of big tech companies. While a department spokesman
declined to discuss specifics, a speech Monday by the deputy attorney
general, Jeffrey A. Rosen, pointed toward heightened interest in
technology called end-to-end encryption, which makes it nearly
impossible for law enforcement and spy agencies to get access to
people’s digital communications. Law enforcement and technologists
have been arguing over encryption controls for more than two decades.
On one side are privacy advocates and tech bosses like Apple’s chief
executive, Timothy D. Cook, who believe people should be able to have
online communications free of snooping. On the other side are law
enforcement and some lawmakers, who believe tough encryption makes it
impossible to track child predators, terrorists and other
criminals.”
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