Eye on Extremism
December 3, 2019
NBC
News: San Diego-Raised Man Now Leading Terrorists In Africa, Officials
Say
“A man raised in San Diego has become a leader of one of Africa’s
deadliest terror groups and the highest-ranking U.S. citizen fighting
with foreign terrorists, federal authorities said Monday. Prosecutors
in California disclosed the allegations against Jehad Serwan Mostafa,
37, by unsealing an indictment accusing him of providing critical
support to the East African terror group al-Shabab. Mostafa was
indicted in 2009 on similar crimes, but he has remained at large —
even after a $5 million reward for his arrest and conviction was
offered, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District
of California said in a news release. The charges announced Monday
allege that he now plays a critical role in al-Shabab, which promotes
an Islamic state and has killed thousands of people since its founding
in 2006. One of the group’s deadliest attacks targeted the Westgate
shopping mall in Kenya that killed 60 people in 2013. Earlier this
year, the group claimed responsibility for killing 21 people in an
attack on a hotel in Kenya's capital, Nairobi.”
Daily
Mail: Hate Preacher Anjem Choudary ‘To Have His Release From Jail
Reviewed’ After Links Emerged Between Him And London Bridge Killer
Usman Khan
“Hate preacher Anjem Choudary is set to be subjected to even
tighter controls after he was pictured in the capital today for the
first time since Friday's murderous rampage by Usman Khan. Khan had
previously called the Islamist cleric a 'personal friend' and it is
believed that Choudary's licencing conditions are currently under
review by the authorities. Choudary, 52, was pictured in east London
wearing an ankle tag after his disciple Usman Khan butchered two in a
murderous rampage on Friday. The government is now cracking down on 67
jihadi terrorists who have been freed and who are already living in
the community, with police visiting them over the coming days to
establish if their conditions have been breached. The Telegraph
reported that counter terrorism police across the country are now in a
race against time to lock up those who have already embedded
themselves in local communities up and down the country. Speaking to
the publication, government sources said: 'We need to look at his
whole licencing because we need to make sure vulnerable people are not
going to be radicalised by him.'”
The
Washington Post: Separate Airstrikes By Ankara And Damascus Kill At
Least 20 In Northwestern Syria
“Airstrikes hit marketplaces in two rebel-held towns in
northwestern Syria on Monday, killing at least 10 civilians and
injuring dozens, a civil defense group in Syria’s Idlib province said.
The attacks marked what could be the start of a new push by Syrian
government forces to retake one of the few remaining bastions held by
rebels, contributing to one of the bloodiest days for Syrians in the
area in months. Hours after the Idlib attacks, an airstrike by Turkish
forces occupying part of northern Syria hit the nearby Kurdish-held
town of Tal Rifaat, also killing 10 civilians, mostly children, a
spokesman for a Kurdish-led military group said. The Idlib attack
comes amid renewed fighting around the final rebel bastion in
northwestern Syria that is crammed with civilians displaced from
elsewhere in the country and hardened radical Islamist fighters. In
the past week, the Syrian army has been slowly pushing into the
territory, recapturing villages and inflicting dozens of casualties.
Footage released by the civilian rescue team known as the White
Helmets showed pools of blood staining the ground in front of piles of
onions and lettuce at a market in the town of Maaret al-Numan. Civil
defense members carried bloodied bodies away from the site of the
airstrike.”
Voice
Of America: Terror Attack Has Britons Questioning De-Radicalization
Effort
“When Usman Khan left prison last December after serving half of a
16-year sentence for his part in a plot to blow up the London Stock
Exchange, and for planning to establish a terror training camp in
Pakistan, he was thought to be making good progress towards being
de-radicalized and was seen as a poster boy for Britain’s
rehabilitation programs. Cambridge University, which ran one of the
programs Khan attended, was even considering offering him a place to
study. But now following 28-year-old’s dramatic knife attack Friday on
London Bridge during a university-sponsored justice event, which left
two people dead and three seriously injured, the early release of
convicted terrorists, as well as de-radicalization programs, are
coming under immediate scrutiny amid accusations that militants are
gaming the rehabilitation system and hoodwinking authorities. Some
criminal justice experts say Khan played the rehabilitation system
cleverly to secure his release and to lull his probation officers into
allowing him to travel unsupervised from his home in the English
county of Staffordshire to London for the justice event, where he
killed two rehabilitation tutors, 25-year-old Jack Merritt and
23-year-old Saskia Jones.”
National
Review: Iran’s Multi-Front War Against America And Its
Allies
“Two days before Thanksgiving, as President Donald Trump was
preparing his surprise visit to U.S. troops in Afghanistan, Iranian
foreign minister Javad Zarif phoned Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ)
leader Ziyad al-Nakhalah and met with a delegation from the Taliban.
The object of both discussions was to pressure U.S. and its allies:
Zarif told the Taliban representatives that Iran wants a full
withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan, and offered al-Nakhalah
Iran’s full support for PIJ’s “valiant resistance” against Israel.
Iran’s decisions to push the Palestinians to fight Israel and to
encourage the Taliban are part of a regional policy that seeks to
evict the U.S. from the Middle East and stir up trouble for Washington
worldwide. This is Tehran’s answer to the “maximum pressure” campaign
of economic sanctions that the Trump administration has mounted since
pulling the U.S. out of President Obama’s Iran nuclear deal in May
2018. Iran fought its multi-front war against the U.S. in multiple
ways. In the Persian Gulf, it twice struck at foreign oil tankers over
the summer, shot down a high-tech U.S. drone in late June, and
launched drone and cruise-missile attacks on key Saudi oil facilities
in September. It is also seeking to use its terrorist proxies in the
Gaza Strip to provoke Israel into a wider regional war. In the fall of
2018, Israel accused Iran of ordering PIJ to attack from
Gaza.”
The
Wall Street Journal: Iran, Cut Off From Vital Cash Reserves, Is
Approaching Economic Peril, U.S. Says
“While Iran’s sanction-battered economy has sparked protests across
the nation, U.S. officials cite new intelligence suggesting Tehran’s
finances are more dire than previously thought and are bringing it
closer to a financial crisis. Tehran’s sophisticated sanction-evasion
efforts have offset some of the losses from plummeting oil exports due
to global U.S. sanctions pressure. But according to new U.S. financial
intelligence, the government is scraping the barrel on
foreign-exchange reserves, a critical indicator of the country’s
ability to control economic forces and to import equipment and
supplies. That shortfall, combined with the oil drop-off and a
widening trade deficit, puts Iran in even greater economic duress than
in 2013, when the government of President Hassan Rouhani was pressured
into starting official nuclear negotiations with global powers, U.S.
officials say. The state of Iran’s economy is clouded by unknowns, as
the country’s economic statistics aren’t always considered reliable or
transparent, and intelligence from U.S. allies indicate Iran’s
government may have sufficient amounts of off-book income to ease its
shortfall.”
United States
CNN:
FBI Offers $5 Million To Find US Citizen On Most Wanted Terrorist
List
“The Federal Bureau of Investigations is offering $5 million for
information that leads to the arrest of an American citizen on the
agency's Most Wanted Terrorist List. An indictment unsealed in federal
court on Monday accuses Jehad Serwan Mostafa, 37, of providing
material support to al-Shabaab, which the US has designated a
terrorist organization for its activities to undermine the Somali
government. “We believe this defendant is the highest-ranking U.S.
citizen fighting overseas with a terrorist organization,” US Attorney
for the Southern District of California Robert Brewer said in a news
release Monday. “Al-Shabaab's reign of terror threatens U.S. national
security, our international allies and innocent civilians. Today we
seek the public's assistance in capturing Mostafa and disrupting
Al-Shabaab.” Mostafa -- also known as “Ahmed Gurey,” “Ahmed,” “Anwar,”
“Abu Anwar al Muhajir,” and “Abu Abdallah al Muhajir” -- was formerly
a resident of San Diego, but is currently believed to be in Somalia,
according to San Diego special-agent-in-charge Scott Brunner. He has
been linked to the use of Improvised Explosive Devices in attacks in
Somalia, according to the release.”
Reuters:
Trump Administration Lifts Hold On Lebanon Security
Aid
“U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration has lifted a
mysterious “hold” on more than $100 million in security aid for
Lebanon, congressional and State Department officials said, more than
a month after lawmakers learned the funds were being blocked. As first
reported by Reuters, the U.S. State Department told Congress on Oct.
31 that the White House budget office (OMB) and National Security
Council had decided to withhold $105 million in foreign military
assistance, without providing any explanation. As lawmakers demanded
answers from the administration about why the aid had been withheld,
some compared it with a similar decision from the administration to
withhold nearly $400 million in security assistance to Ukraine that
also had been approved by Congress. That decision has been at the
center of an impeachment inquiry into Trump.”
The
Daily Beast: San Diego Man Is Now A Terrorist Leader In East Africa,
Say Prosecutors
“A U.S. citizen who was raised in San Diego has become a leader of
one of Africa’s deadliest terror groups, federal authorities said
Monday. Jehad Serwan Mostafa, 37, is now believed to be the
highest-ranking U.S. citizen fighting with foreign terrorists.
Prosecutors in California disclosed the allegations by unsealing an
indictment accusing the man of providing support to the notorious East
African terror group al-Shabab. He was indicted in 2009 on similar
crimes, but has not been captured even after a $5 million reward for
his arrest and conviction was offered. The new charges allege that he
now plays a leading role in al-Shabab—an Islamist terror group that
has been accused of killing thousands of people since its founding in
2006. Authorities say Mostafa grew up in the Serra Mesa area of San
Diego, where he attended high school and college. He traveled to Yemen
14 years ago and is now believed to be based in Somalia. NBC News
reports he’s accused of helping train soldiers, working in media
operations, and helping lead the group’s explosives department.”
Los
Angeles Times: Memorial In San Bernardino Marks Four Years Since
Terrorist Attack
“The more than 1,400 days since Yvette Velasco died at the hands of
two terrorists in the San Bernardino attack hasn’t buffered the grief
for the family she left behind. They said it’s actually worse. Every
time there’s another mass tragedy, Velasco’s mother and sister say
they live through the pain again. When Velasco’s mother, Marie,
watched news coverage of the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando,
Fla., and the shooting at a Walmart in El Paso in August, she heard of
other mothers searching for their children, only to learn they were
killed. That mentally transports her back to where she was four years
ago, she said. “When you hear parents on TV saying, ‘I can’t find my
kid,’ I know what that felt like,” she said. “We know that nightmare
because we’ve lived it. It’s indescribable.” There are ways to cope
with the pain even though it is permanent, the family said. On Monday,
the four-year anniversary of when Velasco and 13 others were killed,
Cal State San Bernardino held a memorial for the victims. Speaking
before the crowd, Velasco’s sister, Erica Porteous, said these moments
help her family though hard times. “For our family, not a day goes by
that we don’t feel the loss,” Porteous said. “But this brings us
comfort.” On Dec. 2, 2015, a San Bernardino County employee and his
wife marched into an office holiday party at the Inland Regional
Center; they were clad in black and armed with assault rifles and
pistols. They killed 14 people and injured 22 others. Authorities
killed them in a shootout.”
Idaho
Statesman: Idaho Man Sentenced To 15 Years In Prison For Sending
Police A Terrorism Threat
“A Canyon County judge on Monday ordered 22-year-old Grant
Stevenson to serve 15 years in prison after making sarin gas threats
in Nampa in March, authorities reported. Third Judicial District Judge
Davis VanderVelde sentenced Stevenson to three years of fixed time in
prison, meaning he must serve three years in prison before he could be
eligible for parole, after Stevenson pleaded guilty to felony
terrorism, according to online court records. In exchange for his
plea, prosecutors dismissed Stevenson’s additional charges of felony
use of weapons of mass destruction and two misdemeanor charges of use
of a telephone to harass, threaten or annoy. Police said they
initially learned of the threat in a message on social media, and they
were forced to ask a Nampa neighborhood to shelter in place for about
six hours. The probable cause affidavit in his case reported that as a
teenager in 2013, Stevenson was arrested for making bomb threats to
Skyview High School, Caldwell High School and Kuna High School. He
served some time in juvenile detention for the threats. According to
the affidavit, Stevenson sent a Facebook message to Nampa Police
Department in March, saying some Nampa apartments “have a bomb planted
in one of many units” and the bomb contains “deadly sarin gas” that he
threatened to detonate within one hour.”
Syria
NPR:
Kurds In Syria Make A Deal With Russia
“Kurds in Syria have been U.S. allies but now they're making a deal
with Russia. Russian flags are flying in Kurdish territory, a sign
that the Kurds want a hedge in case the U.S. pulls out. MARY LOUISE
KELLY, HOST: America's allies in the fight against ISIS, the Kurds in
Syria, have opened the door to a new friend - Russia. Russian troops
and flags moved into Kurdish territory over the weekend. That's a part
of Syria where U.S. troops also work with the Kurds. After months of
mixed signals from the Trump administration, the Kurds seem to be
hedging their bets on continued U.S. support.”
Reuters:
Syrian Air Strikes On Idlib Markets Kill At Least 11: Civil
Defense
“Syrian government air strikes on the rebel-held area of Idlib
killed at least 11 people and wounded dozens on Monday after hitting
two outdoor markets, Syrian civil defense forces said. Syria’s
northwestern corner, including the Idlib region, is the last major
chunk of territory still in rebel hands after more than eight years of
war. The air strikes hit a fruit and vegetable market in Maaret
al-Numan, south of Idlib, and a second produce market in Saraqib to
the east, according to the White Helmets, a civil defense and rescue
group operating in rebel areas of Syria. Photos and videos posted by
the group on Twitter showed victims being carried away from demolished
produce stands and charred vehicles. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad
met an envoy to Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday to discuss
the situation in Idlib and attacks launched by militant groups based
there, according to a tweet from Syria’s presidency. There was no
mention of the air strikes on Syrian state media. The British-based
Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor, put the number of
those killed in the attack at 15. It said separately that Russian air
strikes had targeted a prison in Idlib, causing casualties and
prisoners to flee. It did not provide specific figures.”
Al
Monitor: Report: China, Russia Worried About Militants' Return From
Syria
“Both China and Russia are concerned that thousands of citizens who
left to fight with terror organizations in Syria could return home to
stoke radicalization, a congressionally appointed panel said in a
report. The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission’s report
indicates that Beijing in particular is worried that an influx of
fighters returning home from the Syrian battlefield could sow
insurgent activity along critical stretches of planned Chinese
infrastructure investment. The report said the prospect of
radicalization among members of the Muslim Uighur minority in the
Xinjiang region “is of particular concern to the Chinese government
because the region is a crucial hub” for China's Belt and Road
Initiative, which has used railway, port, and construction investments
to woo Middle Eastern nations. The initiative has stoked concerns at
the Pentagon about threats to American military technology. Chinese
officials have claimed that up to 5,000 Uighurs are fighting in Syria,
according to the report, but those figures have not been verified by
American government agencies or independent experts, who indicate the
actual number of foreign fighters may be lower.”
Iran
The
Hill: Iranian Protests Were Not About The Price Of
Gas
“Anyone who thinks that the recent protests in 100 cities
throughout Iran were about gas prices did not pay attention to what
the protesters were saying. The immediate spark that led to the Arab
Spring was the 2010 self-immolation of a Tunisian fruit vendor, but
the Arab Spring revolution was not about Tunisian citizens’ ability to
obtain permits to sell fruit. Likewise, this unrest in Iran was not
about the price of gas. Iranian protesters (and rioters) chanting “No
to Gaza, no to Lebanon!” “Leave Syria and think of us,” and even
“Death to Palestine!” indicates that something much larger than the
price of gas drove their outrage. Forty years after the Islamic
Revolution, substantial numbers of Iranians are finally rejecting the
priorities of their masters. When Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini
consolidated power in Iran for himself in 1979, he risked being
accused of a sin that Islamists of all stripes object to in any
non-Sharia government — “making partners with Allah,” something
specifically prohibited by the Koran (see 3:64, 12:40 and 42:41, for
example). This accusation is especially relevant to democracies. As
Abu al-Ali al-Mawdudi, founder of the Jamaat-e-Islami, one of the
first Islamist organizations, put it: “Democracy is the deification of
man.” Or, as current al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri put it:
“Democracies raise up gods, establish masters and assign partners to
Allah Most High.”
Asharq
Al-Awsat: Iranian Drones: New Terrorism
“During the inauguration of the fourth year of the Saudi Shura
Council, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz,
confirmed that, thanks to the military forces, the ballistic and drone
attacks on Saudi Arabia did not impact development and the lives of
the people. Rockets are well established and understood weapons, but
it is the use of drones, a more novel tool, which is frightening.
Drones, because they are relatively easy to build at a limited cost,
are creating a kind of strategic imbalance in battlefields around the
world. So how are we to characterize this distressing development?
Several studies trace the origin of drones back to the First World
War, when the English tried to fly them in an effort to reduce
casualties. The Americans developed the aircraft further during the
Second World War, using them to watch over enemy naval vessels. Drone
technology was developed further still during the Vietnam War in order
to launch surprise attacks with minimal casualties. It was natural for
Israel to obtain such aircraft at the time it was waging wars with the
Arab world and when it needed to monitor the occupied territories.
Since the 1970s and until this day, drones have become a global
concern, especially after terrorist groups managed to obtain these
aircraft that bring death from the air.”
Iraq
The
National: Tribal Fighters Secure ISIS Prisons Amid Chaos In Southern
Iraq
“Southern Iraqi tribal fighters are posted around a prison where
ISIS detainees are being held, over fears that the chaos of mass
rallies could be used to free the militants, clan elders say. Tribal
sheikh Natham Rumayad claimed unidentified “infiltrators” were
entering the Nasiriyah area, which has been rocked by a crackdown on
demonstrations in recent days. Sheikh Rumayad said tribal militias set
up checkpoints on the major roads towards the city of Nasiriyah to
check those entering the area and were guarding Al Hoot prison. “We
have communication with the police commanders and security commanders
in the province,” he told The National. “We heard that there are
movements of infiltrators towards the police centres and Al Hoot
prison where terrorists are imprisoned. Therefore tribal sheikhs
decided to help secure the security situation.” Sheikh Rumayad did not
specify who the “infiltrators” were but said some were sparking much
of the violence at recent protests. Baghdad and southern Iraq have
been rocked by weeks of demonstrations against corruption and poor
public services, which led on Sunday to Parliament accepting prime
minister Adel Abdul Mahdi’s resignation two days earlier.”
Turkey
Reuters:
Turkey To Oppose NATO Plan If It Fails To Recognize Terrorism Threats:
Erdogan
“Turkey will oppose NATO’s plan for the defense of Baltic countries
if the alliance does not recognize groups that Turkey deems
terrorists, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday, ahead of
a NATO alliance summit in London. Relations between Turkey and its
NATO allies have been strained over a host of issues, ranging from
Ankara’s decision to procure Russian air defense systems to Syria
policy. Several NATO members condemned Turkey’s decision to launch an
offensive into northeastern Syria against the Kurdish YPG militia.
Ankara has refused to back a NATO defense plan for the Baltics and
Poland until it receives more support for its battle with the YPG,
which it views as a terrorist organization. Ahead of his departure
from Ankara for the NATO summit, Erdogan said he had spoken to Polish
President Andrzej Duda on the phone on Monday and had agreed to meet
with him and leaders of Baltic countries in London to discuss the
issue. “With pleasure, we can come together and discuss these issues
there as well,” he said. “But if our friends at NATO do not recognize
as terrorist organizations those we consider terrorist organizations
... we will stand against any step that will be taken there.”
Asharq
Al-Awsat: Turkey Deported 21 ISIS Terrorists Since November
11
“Turkish authorities announced they have sent 21 ISIS terrorists
back to their countries since Ankara began its deportation operations
on November 11. The number of foreign terrorists in Turkish
deportation centers dropped to 938, announced a source at the Turkish
Interior Ministry. Thirteen of the deported terrorists were German,
Belgians, Dutch, Danish, British, American and Irish nationals. The
Ministry stressed in a statement that deportations will continue. On
Friday, it announced the deportation of two Belgian ISIS sisters.
Fatima Ben Meziane, 24, fled the Ain Issa camp in October during the
Turkish military operation against Kurdish factions in northeastern
Syria last month. Meziane managed to enter Turkish territory with the
help of smugglers and was arrested as soon as she arrived in Kelis, on
the border with Syria. Rahma Ben Meziane, her sister, 31, managed to
flee the al-Hol displacement camp during the Turkish offensive.
Belgian authorities announced the arrest of the two citizens upon
their arrival in the capital Brussels from Turkey. Turkish authorities
plan to deport 11 members of the terrorist organization to France in
the next few days.”
Afghanistan
Reuters:
Exclusive: U.S. Troop Drawdowns In Afghanistan 'Not Necessarily' Tied
To Taliban Deal - Esper
“U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said on Monday that any future
troop drawdowns in Afghanistan were “not necessarily” linked to a deal
with Taliban insurgents, suggesting some lowering of force levels may
happen irrespective of the ongoing peace push. The remarks by Esper in
an interview with Reuters came on the heels of a Thanksgiving trip
last week to Afghanistan by President Donald Trump, who spoke of
potential troop reductions and said he believed the Taliban insurgency
would agree to a ceasefire in the 18-year-old war. If honored by all
sides, a ceasefire could lead to a significant reduction in violence.
But U.S. military commanders would still focus on the threats
associated with two other militant groups in Afghanistan: Islamic
State and al Qaeda. Speaking as he flew to London for a NATO summit,
Esper said the Trump administration had been discussing potential
reductions in troop levels for some time, both internally and with
NATO allies. “I feel confident that we could reduce our numbers in
Afghanistan and still ensure that place doesn’t become a safe haven
for terrorists who could attack the United States,” Esper said,
without offering a figure. “And our allies agree we can make
reductions as well.”
Foreign
Policy: Hurdles Remain For Renewed Afghan Peace Talks
“Both the Taliban and the Afghan government appeared caught off
guard by U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement during a
Thanksgiving Day visit to Afghanistan—his first since taking
office—that the Taliban was ready to agree to a cease-fire deal. But
the insurgent group responded quickly, with a spokesman saying on
Friday that they were “ready to restart the talks.” Trump abruptly
canceled peace talks with the Taliban in September, but the surprise
comments and the group’s positive response have raised hopes once more
for a long-elusive peace deal to end the 18-year war in Afghanistan.
The development comes a week after a prisoner swap between Washington
and Kabul suggested the Taliban was still eager for a deal. Cautious
optimism. It’s not yet clear if the renewed discussions will lead to
peace. Key disputes still need to be resolved, including the Taliban’s
refusal to talk directly with the Afghan government. And, contrary to
what Trump said last week, there are no signs the Taliban is ready for
a cease-fire—a condition has long been a sticking point for the
insurgent group, which primarily uses violence as leverage. Election
uncertainty. Adding to the uncertainty is that the country is still
awaiting the results of the presidential election in September amid
charges of widespread irregularities.”
Xinhua:
2 Intelligence Officials Killed In Terrorist's Ambush In Afghan
Capital
“Two Afghan intelligence agency employees were killed and three
others wounded when gunmen opened fire on a vehicle here on Monday, an
official said. The incident happened at about 7:00 a.m. local time in
the Police District 9 in Jalalabad Road in eastern side of national
capital, where a vehicle belonging to the National Directorate of
Security came under attack by unidentified gunmen, a security source
told Xinhua. Spokesman of the Ministry of Interior Nasrat Rahimi, when
approached by Xinhua, confirmed the incident, saying an investigation
into the case was still on. “No one has so far been arrested in
connection to the case but police launched an investigation into the
incident,” said the spokesman. Over the past months, big Afghan cities
have witnessed a spate of terror attacks by the Taliban insurgents and
Islamic State (IS) outfit opposing the government. On Nov. 25, a U.S.
citizen working for the United Nations Assistance Mission in
Afghanistan (UNAMA) was killed and five civilians, including two
Afghan staff members of UNAMA, were wounded when a grenade attack hit
an UN-marked vehicle in the same district.”
Middle East
Gulf
News: ‘Qatar Has Failed To Honour Obligations’
“The UAE and Saudi Arabia on Monday accused Qatar at the UN high
court of failing to honour its obligations amid a two-year diplomatic
spat locking a Saudi-led bloc and Doha. The UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain
and Egypt, which in 2017 severed diplomatic and transportation links
with Qatar over its support for terrorism, say the International Civil
Aviation Organisation (ICAO) does not have the jurisdiction to handle
an aviation dispute with Doha. The four countries have banned flights
from Qatar that accuse them of discrimination against its citizens.
UAE Ambassador to the Netherlands Hissa Al Otaiba defended the
quartet’s measures against Qatar in an appeal against an ICAO decision
at the International Court of Justice in The Hague. “These measures,
including the closure of the airspace to the Qatari planes and those
registered in Qatar were aimed at protecting national security of
these countries and in response to Doha’s failure to honour its legal
obligations,” Ambassador Al Otaiba told the court, according to a
statement from the UAE Foreign Ministry on Monday.”
Foreign
Affairs: This Is Your Brain On Terrorism
“In September 2014, when the Islamic State (ISIS) was at the height
of its power, Director of U.S. National Intelligence James Clapper
acknowledged that the United States had underestimated the terrorist
group’s will to fight. “We underestimated the Viet Cong and the North
Vietnamese and overestimated the will of the South Vietnamese,” he
told The Washington Post. “In this case, we underestimated ISI[S] and
overestimated the fighting capability of the Iraqi army … It boils
down to predicting the will to fight, which is an imponderable.”
Scholars and policymakers have long sought to determine what drives
people to keep fighting when the chips are down, and, if need be, to
give their lives to a cause. Traditional explanations, based on
rational choice theory or focused on mental abnormalities, have
largely failed to explain what motivates the members of extremist
insurgent movements. But Clapper was wrong to suggest that the will to
fight is imponderable. In fact, it is possible to predict who is
willing to fight and die, based on a combination of cultural and
psychosocial factors. Research on the human brain suggests that people
fight when their sacred values—that is, the values that define their
identity and therefore can’t be compromised—are under threat.”
Egypt
Middle
East Monitor: Egypt Says Qatar Supported Muslim
Brotherhood
“Egypt has cut ties with Qatar as a result of the Gulf state’s
“support to terror groups [Muslim Brotherhood],” Egyptian
representative at the International Court of Justice said yesterday.
“Qatar has been holding a hostile stance against Egypt by supporting
terror operation in the Sinai Peninsula,” Amgad Abdel Ghaffar pointed
out, adding that Doha was “promoting the doctrine of Al-Qaeda and
Daesh.” Responding to what he described as “Doha’s interference in
Egypt’s internal affairs,” Abdel Ghaffar stressed that his country had
repeatedly rejected the Qatari move. “Qatar has left Egypt no choice
but to cut ties,” he reiterated, pointing out that its interference
was “threatening Egypt’s national security.” “All the region’s
countries were affected by the Qatari interference in their internal
affairs,” the Egyptian official noted, explaining that, in 2013,
Qatar’s Al-Jazeera TV channel was promoting what he described as
“hatred and violence across Egyptians.”
Libya
The
Wall Street Journal: Don’t Let Russia Dominate
Libya
“American interests are under attack in Libya, whether we realize
it or not. Adversaries and allies alike are attempting to install a
dictator. In doing so, they’re undermining U.S. credibility and
challenging American leadership of the international order.
Hundreds—maybe thousands—of Russian mercenaries joined the battle for
Tripoli, Libya’s capital, this fall, fighting alongside aspiring
strongman Khalifa Haftar. Russia’s primary interest isn’t Libya, but
the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. President Vladimir Putin
interpreted the Arab Spring, and particularly the NATO intervention
that led to the death of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, as Western
threats to the survival of his autocratic regime. His interventions in
Syria and now Libya are attempts to shore up faltering strongmen. Mr.
Putin wants to put a new Gadhafi in power to show that revolutions are
doomed to fail and that he, not the U.S. or NATO, is an effective
power broker in the region. Mr. Putin aims to undermine America’s
post-Cold War leadership of the international order by casting the
West as hypocritical and building an alliance system of like-minded
autocrats.”
Nigeria
News
24: Four Soldiers 'Killed By Boko Haram' At Lake Chad
Base
“Suspected Boko Haram jihadists killed four Chadian troops early on
Monday in a newly established military outpost on Lake Chad, the
military and local officials said. Boko Haram has training camps on
several of the islands that dot the vast, shallow Lake Chad, which
straddles the borders of Nigeria, Niger and Cameroon as well as Chad.
“We killed 13 Boko Haram elements and we deplore the loss of four
soldiers,” a military source said, adding that three soldiers were
injured in the attack at around 1:00 am Monday local time. Nouki
Charfadine, the governor of the Lake Chad region, also confirmed the
toll. “We set up this military post between Ngouboua and Bagassoula
village after the kidnapping” of a doctor, a nurse and their driver in
the area on October 31, the governor said. Five villagers were also
killed in the area in the middle of November. The jihadist insurgency,
which broke out in northeastern Nigeria a decade ago, has spilled over
into neighbouring countries. In 2015, the Lake Chad countries,
together with Benin, set up a combined force to fight Boko Haram with
the help of local groups of armed citizens.”
All
Africa: Nigeria: 'Nigerian Military Not Recruiting Boko Haram
Ex-Fighters'
“The Defence Headquarters has debunked reports that it was
recruiting Boko Haram ex- fighters into the Nigerian military,
insisting that such reports were false. According to a statement
signed by Acting Director, Defence Information, Brigadier General
Onyema Nwachukwu, the claims was not true and there was no such plans
in the offing by the military. He noted that the de-radicalization,
rehabilitation and reintegration program which was ongoing was a
Federal Government program conducted under the auspices of Operation
Safe Corridor as a non- kinetic operation. According to him, over 250
repentant insurgents who willingly abandoned their struggle and
surrendered to federal troops have been de-radicalized, rehabilitated
and re-integrated into the society by their respective state
governments in conjunction with traditional and religious
institutions. Nwachukwu explained that Nigeria's de-radicalization
model was not new in the global community, as such model exists in
Algeria, Colombia, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, where persons involved
in violent extremism have been de-radicalized and rehabilitated hence
the process was an internationally acceptable practice.”
Africa
Bloomberg:
Burkina Faso Seeks Safeguard For Gold Sector Against
Militants
“Burkina Faso is facing a challenge on how to protect its gold
industry against a wave of jihadist violence that last month left
scores of mining employees dead in a single attack. While every mine
has security arrangements in place, with sites generally safe, there’s
no easy solution to protect access roads, Minister of Mines and
Quarries Oumarou Idani said in a phone interview Monday. “There are
mines that have even built their own barracks and where we’ve sent
security forces so those sites are secure,” Idani said. For access
routes, “the security is linked to the overall security of the
country. It is much more difficult.” At least 39 people were killed in
an Islamist militant attack on a bus convoy that was heading for
Semafo Inc.’s Boungou operation in eastern Burkina Faso. The Nov. 6
raid came as several West African countries battle a widening
insurgency and at a time when gold producers and prospectors are
pouring money into the region as prices rally. Prior to the attack,
the government forecast gold output to reach 60 tons in 2019, up from
almost 53 tons last year. Gold mining accounts for about 10% of gross
domestic product in the nation that also produces cotton. Perenti
Global Ltd., whose African Mining Services unit is a contractor of
Semafo, has withdrawn its employees from the Boungou site and will
also stop supplying services at an operation of Nord Gold SE,
according to a regulatory filing on Monday.”
United Kingdom
The
Guardian: Prisons Put Terrorists On Waiting List To Receive Help To
Deradicalise
“Convicted terrorists are having to be put on waiting lists for the
main government-backed programme that will turn them away from violent
extremism, an expert has revealed. Prof Andrew Silke has studied the
efforts to deradicalise those jailed for terrorism offences and his
claim comes as debate rages following Friday’s attack at London Bridge
in which two people were killed. The fallout from the attack by Usman
Khan has triggered investigations by counter-terrorism investigators
and a series of searches by police at properties linked to the
attacker in Stafford and Stoke. Those searches which began after
Friday’s attack have now ended, police said, as the investigation into
Khan, released half way through a conviction for a terrorist plot,
continues. The attack at an event on prisoner rehabilitation has also
refocused attention on whether those convicted of terrorism offences
can be safely released. Silke, professor of terrorism, risk and
resilience at Cranfield University in Bedfordshire, has been into
prisons to study deradicalisation and is one of the UK’s leading
experts in the field.”
ABC
News: Vigils Held For Victims Of London Bridge Terror
Attack
“Dozens of people gathered in central London on Monday morning to
pay tribute to the victims of a terror attack that unfolded near
London Bridge on Friday. Jack Merritt, 25, of Cottenham,
Cambridgeshire, and Saskia Jones, 23, of Stratford-upon-Avon,
Warwickshire, were stabbed to death while attending a prisoner
rehabilitation conference on Friday afternoon, according to London's
Metropolitan Police Service. Merritt and Jones were both graduates of
the University of Cambridge and were involved in the school's Learning
Together program, which had organized the conference. Flowers and
letters have been placed at the scene of the attack near the iconic
bridge, with one note reading, “I love you forever. I am so proud of
you.” Merritt's family described him as a “beautiful, talented boy”
who “died doing what he loved, surrounded by people he loved and who
loved him.” “Jack lived his principles; he believed in redemption and
rehabilitation, not revenge, and he always took the side of the
underdog,” his family said in a statement Sunday. “Jack was an
intelligent, thoughtful and empathetic person who was looking forward
to building a future with his girlfriend, Leanne, and making a career
helping people in the criminal justice system.”
USA
Today: British Leaders Mourn Victims, Clash Over Terrorism Ahead Of
Trump Visit
“A vigil honoring victims of a London Bridge terror attack that
killed two people drew thousands of mourners Monday amid controversy
over a criminal justice system drawing blame for the carnage. The
vigil in the British capital took place the same day President Donald
Trump and other world leaders flew to the city for a NATO summit that
opens Tuesday. Authorities, however, have revealed no link between
Friday's knife attack and the summit being hosted by British Prime
Minister Boris Johnson. The 28-year-old attacker also wounded three
people before being fatally shot by police. He was an extremist
convicted in 2012 for his part in a failed, al Qaeda-inspired plot to
bomb the U.S. Embassy in London along with the London Stock Exchange
and Britain's Parliament. He was released a year ago. Killed Friday
were Jack Merritt, 25, and Saskia Jones, 23, graduates of the
University of Cambridge who were taking part in a criminal justice
system educational program. The attack brought back grim memories from
2017, when three militants crashed a van into pedestrians along London
Bridge, then attacked bystanders. Eight people were killed and dozens
injured. “The best way to defeat this hatred is not by turning on one
another, but it's by focusing on the values that bind us,” London
Mayor Sadiq Khan told the crowd.”
Washington
Examiner: ISIS Associate Of London Bridge Attacker
Arrested
“An associate of the man who killed two people in a brutal
terrorist knife attack on the London Bridge was arrested on Saturday
to prevent an apparent copycat attack. Nazam Hussain, 34, was involved
in a terrorist Islamic State cell along with Usam Khan, whose Friday
knife attack ended in his death by police gunfire. Both men were
jailed along with others in 2012 after being charged with plotting to
attack several high-profile targets in London, including the stock
exchange and Westminster Abbey. Both men faced long sentences for
their crimes, though they were released early as part of a policy in
the United Kingdom for prisoners. Khan was part of a post-release
prison education seminar the same day he violently and suddenly
attacked pedestrians on the London Bridge. Police in Stoke-on-Trent in
the West Midlands arrested Hussain after a search of his home left
them suspicious that he was planning a similar attack to that of
Khan's. Police asserted, however, that there was no indication Hussain
was involved in the planning or execution of Khan's attack. Six of the
nine members of the terrorist cell that Khan and Hussain were involved
in have been released from prison after being convicted in 2012. Prime
Minister Boris Johnson said that 74 convicted terrorists have been
given early release following the removal of the Extended Sentence for
Public Protection.”
France
New
Europe: France To Put 20 Suspects On Trial For 2015 Paris Terror
Attacks
“French prosecutors formally charged 20 suspects over the massacre
of 131 people in Paris, four years ago, when 10 heavily armed gunmen
and suicide bombers attacked during a football match at the Stade de
France, the Bataclan concern hall and bars and restaurants across the
city. In a 562-page indictment released on November 29, the office of
the national anti-terror prosecutor (PNAT) requested that 14 people
currently in prison or under judicial supervision and other six who
are currently targeted by arrest warrants, stand trial for their
involvement in the November 15 assaults. Among those charged are Salah
Abdeslam, the only surviving suspect believed to have actively taken
part in the attacks and Fabien and Jean-Michel Clain, propagandists
for the Islamic State armed group, which claimed responsibility for
the killings, while the rest cited in the indictment are accused of
helping organise or fund the attacks. Since 2015, France has suffered
a vast wave of jihadist terror strikes that have cost the lives of
over 250 people. In 2017, French President Emmanuel Macron turned some
provisions of the state of emergency into permanent laws, to provide
the national police with enhanced powers in matters of Islamist terror
threats.”
Germany
YNet
News: Report: Hezbollah Uses Germany As Operational Hub For Sponsoring
Terror
“Hezbollah is using Germany as a major hub for its activities in
Europe, Tagesspiegel newspaper reported Friday, citing security
sources. The German news outlet said that Hezbollah's operations in
Europe included drug trafficking, with the ports of Rotterdam, Antwerp
and Hamburg serving as key entry points in the EU. The group also
allegedly engages in money laundering, recruitment and fundraising,
the newspaper says, with the revenues directed to Lebanon to fund
attacks and arms procurement. Overall, some 1050 Hezbollah members and
supporters are known to reside in Germany, the report says, with
around 250 of them living in Berlin. About 30 mosques and cultural
centers in the country are known to have ties with the group, it adds.
While Hezbollah's military wing is banned in Germany as a terrorist
organization, a complete ban on the group, a player in Lebanon's
parliament is now only under consideration.”
Daily
Mail: Germany Rocked After Elite Military Unit Officer Is Suspended
For Being A Neo-Nazi And Two More Are
Investigated
“A lieutenant colonel from Germany's elite military unit has been
suspended from service on suspicion of far-right extremism.
Germany's defence minister has subsequently vowed to take 'decisive
action' against any cases of radicalism in the army. 'We have drawn
the first consequences in this case and we will continue to act with
the same severity and impose the same consequences in every case,'
Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said during a visit to Kosovo on Sunday.
Bild am Sonntag newspaper said the army has been covertly
investigating the special forces officer and two other soldiers and
was prompted to take action against the man after its probe leaked.
The lieutenant colonel, known as Daniel K., is accused of making
right-wing extremist posts on social media and has received a service
and uniform ban. He is reportedly being investigated by the military's
counterintelligence service MAD. Of the other two suspects, one has
been stripped of the right to wear a German army uniform while the
other has been classed as a suspicious case. Both had allegedly made
the banned Hitler salute during a private party hosted by the suspect
who is to be suspended next week, according to the newspaper.”
Europe
Bloomberg:
Why Is Europe Bailing Out Iran’s Regime
Now?
“Iranians have been protesting their regime since last month. Only
in the last few days, however, has the world begun to learn the full
scope of the repression they face. There are the videos posted to
social media and aggregated by news sites that show security forces
firing on demonstrators. There are statements from leading Iranian
opposition figures such as Mir Hossein Mousavi, one of the leaders of
the 2009 uprising who has been under house arrest since 2011. There
are headlines reading, “With Brutal Crackdown, Iran Is Convulsed by
Worst Unrest in 40 Years.” There is the report from Amnesty
International saying that at least 208 people have been killed. So
it’s puzzling that America’s European allies chose last weekend to
announce that six more countries are joining a bartering system, known
as Instex, designed to evade the U.S. sanctions on Iranian oil.
Belgium, Denmark, Finland, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden
announced Saturday they were joining France, Germany and the U.K.. “Do
they think we don’t see what is happening in Iran?” asked Alireza
Nader, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies
who is closely tracking the unrest. “To push Instex at this moment
reveals a remarkable lack of attention to human rights. I hope they
come to their senses.”
Technology
CNN:
Google And Facebook Run Into More Trouble Over Data In
Europe
“Europe's top antitrust regulator is probing how Google and
Facebook use data, putting the companies' huge advertising businesses
in the spotlight once again. The European Commission said Monday that
it has launched preliminary investigations into how Google (GOOGL) and
Facebook (FB) gather, process, use and monetize data for advertising
purposes. Both companies have used what they know about people to
build advertising businesses that generate hundreds of billions of
dollars in revenue. But how they use that data is becoming a major
focus for regulators on both sides of the Atlantic. Margrethe
Vestager, the European commissioner for competition, has been
particularly aggressive, voicing concerns that big tech companies may
use their huge data stores to strangle upstart rivals. Vestager, who
was given an expanded portfolio as EU digital czar in September, has
already opened an investigation into whether Amazon's (AMZN) use of
data from independent sellers violates competition rules.”
The
New York Times: Sex Trafficking Via Facebook Sets Off A Lawyer’s Novel
Crusade
“Tech has led to a lot of trouble lately: hate speech, financial
scams, undermined elections. Yet tech companies have largely avoided
legal consequences, thanks to a landmark 1996 law that protects them
from lawsuits. Now that federal law, Section 230 of the Communications
Decency Act, has a new threat: Annie McAdams, a personal-injury lawyer
in Houston. Ms. McAdams is waging a legal assault against Facebook and
other tech companies, accusing them of facilitating the sex
trafficking of minors. In a series of lawsuits in California, Georgia,
Missouri and Texas, she is using a novel argument to challenge the
1996 law, and finding some early success. This year, a Texas judge has
repeatedly denied Facebook’s motions to dismiss her lawsuits. Section
230 states that internet companies are not liable for what their users
post. Ms. McAdams argues that, in the case of pimps using Facebook and
Instagram to lure children into prostitution, separate laws require
Facebook to warn users of that risk and do more to prevent it. “If you
sell a lawn mower and the blade flies off and chops someone in the
leg, you have the responsibility to fix it and warn people,” she said.
“Nowhere else has an industry been afforded this luxury of protection
from being held accountable for anything that they’ve caused.”
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