Eye on Extremism
December 6, 2019
The
New York Times: Portrait Of London Bridge Killer, In His Own
Words
“I have learnt that many of my past beliefs came from my
misinterpretations of Islam,” the young man wrote to his probation
officers. “There were many gaps in my knowledge but now I am on new
path and am learning to become a good Muslim. I would like a chance to
prove to you that I will not cause harm to nobody in our society.”
Last Friday, the man who wrote those words, 28-year-old Usman Khan,
traveled unsupervised from his probation hostel in England’s West
Midlands to London, where he carried out a deadly terrorist attack
after having participated in a conference on prison rehabilitation. A
week after the attack, questions remain about why he was allowed to
travel by himself to the conference and, more broadly, about Britain’s
rehabilitation system and the process of releasing convicted
terrorists back into society. On Sunday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson
said that 74 people who had been jailed for terrorism offenses and
released early would have their license conditions reviewed, and he
vowed that serious offenders would no longer obtain early release. But
interviews with people familiar with Mr. Khan’s history — and copies
of letters and reports on his progress written by Mr. Khan and
obtained from officials with the government’s counterterrorism Prevent
Program and the probation service — show that the problems of
rehabilitating radical jihadis are complex, and do not always lend
themselves to simple solutions like longer prison terms.”
CBS
News: U.S. Says Iran "Could Have Murdered Over A Thousand" Citizens
During Protests
“After receiving 32,000 videos of the recent protests in Iran, the
United States said Thursday that the government there has committed
"gross human rights violations" that may have left over a thousand
citizens dead and thousands more imprisoned since the unrest began in
mid-November. Iran's government has admitted to only a handful of
deaths. "As the truth is trickling out of Iran, it appears the regime
could have murdered over a thousand citizens," including at least a
dozen children, said Brian Hook, the State Department's special
representative for Iran. At least 7,000 protesters have been detained
in prison. But, he said, "we cannot be certain because the regime
blocks information."
The
Independent: Isis ‘Not Defeated’ And Terrorism Threat Growing, Warns
Head Of UK Military
“Isis and its ideology of violence “has absolutely not been
defeated” and the threat of terrorism continues to proliferate with
lethal effect, the head of Britain’s military has warned. General Sir
Nick Carter pointed to last week’s attack at London Bridge by freed
Islamist terrorist Usman Khan as an example of the grave danger being
faced by the public, and stressed that “conditions in parts of the
world are not conductive to reducing the growth of extremism”. In fact
the security situation is getting worse, the chief of the Defence
Staff held in his annual lecture at the Royal United Services
Institute (RUSI) in London. He reminded the audience of his message
last year that “instability was the defining condition with threats to
our nation diversifying, proliferating and intensifying very rapidly”.
Speaking on Thursday evening, he continued: “So what’s changed? If
anything, events over the past 12 months suggest the [situation] has
become even less stable.” Gen Carter’s caution against writing off
Isis – a view echoed by other British, American and other western
military commanders and politicians – is in marked contrast to Donald
Trump’s declarations that “Isis has been 100 per cent
defeated.”
The
Sun: WEB OF HATE YouTube STILL Hosting More Than 100 Videos By Hate
Preacher Who Inspired London Bridge Attacker Years After Being
Told
“Lectures by an Islamist hate preacher who helped radicalise London
Bridge terrorist Usman Khan have been found on YouTube years after
experts warned they fuel extremism. Anwar al-Awlaki, who was killed by
a US drone strike in Yemen eight years ago, has inspired dozens of
jihadi terrorists in the West. The Counter Extremism Project (CEP),
which aims to tackle online radicalisation and extremism, previously
said it found evidence of 90 cases to terrorists who attacked targets
in the West after being influenced by Awlaki material online. The Sun
Online today found videos where Awlaki calls for Islam to be 'spread
by the sword' among non-believers who resist Islam. Ian Acheson, a
senior adviser at the CEP, said: "Try searching for porn on Facebook,
you can’t do it. Upload copyright material to YouTube and it’s down
within seconds. But it’s not the same for these clips promoting
hateful ideologies. The next government must get the Online Harms
White Paper into law."
Vice
News: Neo-Nazi Terror Group Harbouring Missing
Ex-Soldier
“According to information VICE has learned from confidential
sources, a U.S.-based neo-Nazi terrorist group is currently harboring
a missing ex-soldier from Canada. The information suggests members of
The Base are hiding Patrik Mathews, 26, whose whereabouts have been
the focus of much speculation. Joshua Fisher-Birch, a research analyst
specializing in white nationalist terrorism at the Counter Extremism
Project, said that if Mathews was an ISIS member the significance of
his alleged, illegal entry into the U.S. and his training of other
members would have likely garnered a more extreme response from
authorities. "Had Mathews pledged his allegiance to ISIS, instead of
joining the Base, there is a high likelihood that more resources would
have been spent to try and locate him," he said. "The operation to
move and protect Mathews endangers public safety and it’s particularly
significant because of his military training and experience and the
fact that he crossed an international border. Mathews’ weapons and
explosives training from his time in Canada’s armed forces, and that
he is passing these skills on to his fellow neo-Nazis is particularly
dangerous."
U.S.
News & World Report: Man Accused Of Supporting ISIS Through
Bomb-Making Video
“A man who moved from Florida to Virginia earlier this year was
indicted Thursday on a charge of attempting to support the Islamic
State terrorist group by posting a video online for making explosives.
Romeo Xavier Langhorne, 30, was formally charged in Jacksonville
federal court. He faces up to 20 years in prison, according to federal
court records. Langhorne was arrested last month in Roanoke, Virginia,
where he moved in April. Langhorne has been a follower of ISIS since
2014 and has recently publicly reaffirmed his support for ISIS,
according to a criminal complaint. Investigators said Langhorne was
living in St. Augustine, Florida, in February when he began
communicating with an undercover FBI employee who was posing as an
ISIS member. Langhorne told the FBI employee about his plans to create
and disseminate an instructional video on making a deadly explosive,
triacetone triperoxide, the complaint said. Langhorne told the
undercover employee that the purpose in making and distributing the
video was to arm ISIS supporters and others with knowledge of how to
make the explosive and use it for terrorism-related purposes,
authorities said.”
United States
The
Wall Street Journal: Trump Vs. Macron On ISIS
Fighters
“Would you like some nice ISIS fighters?” President Trump asked
French President Emmanuel Macron at the NATO summit this week. Mr.
Macron replied, “Let’s be serious.” But Mr. Trump was making a crucial
point—granted, in his undiplomatic way—about European irresponsibility
in the fight against Islamic State. The President was referring to the
Continent’s refusal to repatriate ISIS fighters and family members
with European passports detained in Syria. Mr. Macron said this week
that European ISIS fighters represent only “a tiny minority of the
overall problem.” He’s right on the numbers, but the 2015 Paris
terrorist attacks showed it doesn’t take many ISIS veterans to turn
Europe into a battlefield. Some 40,000 foreigners joined ISIS. France
contributed the most fighters among some 5,000 Europeans. Thousands
died in battle or slipped away, but the Syrian Democratic Forces today
have more than 2,000 foreign fighters in custody. The fighters’ wives
and children, many of them as radical as their husbands and fathers,
can’t stay in SDF-controlled refugee camps forever. The U.S. has been
pushing Western Europeans to bring their citizens home to face justice
or rehabilitation.”
Foreign
Policy: Will Trump Label Mexican Cartels Terrorist
Groups?
“U.S. Attorney General William Barr is in Mexico City today to
discuss the security situation in the country, as President Donald
Trump considers officially designating Mexican drug cartels terrorist
groups. Barr has meetings scheduled with Mexican President Andrés
Manuel López Obrador, Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard, and other top
law enforcement officials. Barr’s visit comes after an increase in
cartel violence in Mexico, where nine dual U.S. citizens were killed
last month. The Trump administration has continued to put pressure on
López Obrador to rein in the cartels and curb the country’s rising
homicide rate—which has set a record this year, even as the
president’s approval ratings remain strong. What would naming the
cartels as terrorists mean? The Trump administration will make a
decision about the terrorist group designation on Friday, Bloomberg
reports. If it goes forward, the cartels would fall under the State
Department’s Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) category, along with
the Islamic State and al Qaeda. The designation is usually intended to
disrupt groups’ financing. The suggestion has alarmed Mexico, which
called it “interventionism.”
Military
Times: US Offering $15 Million For Info On Iranian Planner Of 2007
Karbala Attack That Killed 5 US Troops
“The U.S. State Department announced Thursday it was offering $15
million for information related to an Islamic Revolutionary Guard
Commander who planned one of the most sophisticated attacks against
coalition troops in Iraq, killing five soldiers in 2007. Brian Hook,
the U.S. special representative on Iran , told reporters Thursday
during a press briefing that the $15 million reward was for
information on financial activities, networks and associates of
Yemen-based IRGC-Qods Force commander Abdul Reza Shahlai. The bounty
is not for Shalai’s death or capture. Iran’s Qods force conducts
irregular war and intelligence collection activities and is tasked
with exporting the 1979 revolution. The group has wreaked havoc in
conflicts across the Middle East from Yemen to Syria, training proxy
forces and carrying out attacks on Western and U.S. interests in the
region. Shahlai has a “long history of attacks against Americans and
our allies globally,” Hook said. “He planned multiple assassinations
of coalition forces in Iraq.”
Syria
The
Washington Post: Turkey Says 2 Killed In Car Bomb Attack In Northeast
Syria
“Turkey’s Defense Ministry says a car bomb explosion in a
Turkish-controlled area of northeastern Syria has killed two
civilians. In a statement posted on Twitter, the ministry said at
least 10 other people were wounded in the attack in the city of Ras
al-Ayn on Thursday. The attack was the latest in a string of deadly
car bomb attacks in northeast Syria since Turkish troops and allied
Syrian opposition fighters captured Ras al-Ayn and other areas in
October to drive Syrian Kurdish fighters away from its border. The
ministry blamed the attack on Syrian Kurdish fighters. Turkey
considers the Kurdish fighters as terrorists because of their links to
a Kurdish insurgency inside Turkey. The fighters had however,
partnered with the U.S. against the Islamic State group.”
Al
Monitor: US Pushes To Reintegrate Militants After Islamic State
Fight
“The Donald Trump administration is struggling to help Middle
Eastern and African countries reintegrate thousands of fighters who
joined the Islamic State (IS) and Iran-backed Houthis, a senior
administration official said Dec. 5. Speaking at an Al-Monitor Middle
East Mornings breakfast, Denise Natali, the State Department’s
assistant secretary for conflict and stabilization operations, said
the agency is looking to develop mechanisms to help foreign officials
identify whether former Islamic State and Shiite militia fighters are
a risk to commit crimes once they return to their communities. “What
do we do with tens of thousands of militia, non-state armed groups
that won’t reintegrate into national armies, won’t give up their arms
and are having a difficult time reintegrating?” Natali asked. In
Europe, where West Balkan states have taken back around 100 Islamic
State fighters from Syria, “There’s an easier or more willing path to
reintegrate than it is from Boko Haram, Al-Shabab,” she added. The
challenge of detaining more than 10,000 foreign IS fighters who remain
in Syria has been a key point of contention between Trump and European
leaders, as the United States slimmed its presence to around 600
troops in the war-torn country this month.”
Daily
Mail: ISIS Has NOT Been Defeated And Syria Is A 'Tinder Box' That
Could Easily Ignite, Head Of Britain's Armed Forces
Warns
“The terrorism threat has 'proliferated' and migration is set to
rise significantly, the head of the Armed Forces warned last night.
General Sir Nick Carter said Islamic State and extremism had
'absolutely not been defeated' – as shown by last week's London Bridge
terror attack. In his annual speech at the Royal United Services
Institute, the 60-year-old also said Syria had become a 'tinder box'
that could very easily ignite. He warned of conflicts between
different armed groups, such as Russian mercenaries in the war zone.
He said: 'Daesh [IS], and the extremist ideas it represents, has
absolutely not been defeated – indeed the threat from terrorism has
proliferated – as was sadly demonstrated once again in last Friday's
attack at London Bridge.' Convicted Islamist terrorist Usman Khan
stabbed two Cambridge graduates to death at Fishmongers' Hall in the
capital. Speaking in London, General Carter warned of a new age of
'political warfare' where Britain's enemies deploy fake news, spies
and intimidation to threaten democracy. In this new age,
authoritarian opponents are attacking Britain's 'way of life and our
freedom in a manner that is remarkably difficult to defeat without
undermining the very freedoms we want to protect.’”
Iran
The
Wall Street Journal: Iran Faces Tougher Stance From Europe Over
Nuclear Deal Violations
“France, Britain and Germany will ratchet up pressure on Iran in
coming weeks by triggering a dispute mechanism if Tehran continues its
prohibited moves away from the 2015 nuclear deal, diplomats say. The
warning leaves the two sides heading for a major clash in early
January, when Iran has said it will further escalate its nuclear
program. Advancing with the dispute mechanism, part of the 2015
nuclear deal, has prompted Iranian threats of abandoning the deal and
could lead to the reimposition of international sanctions on Tehran
within two months. The European warning comes as senior Iranian,
European, Russian and Chinese officials meet in Vienna on Friday to
discuss the threats to the 2015 deal. The U.S. withdrew from the
accord in May 2018 and has since imposed withering sanctions on
Tehran. Iran’s breaches of the accord came in response to those
decisions and the failure of Europe to cushion the Iranian economy
from the impact of U.S. sanctions.”
Associated
Press: Russia Suspends Project With Iran Due To Uranium
Enrichment
“A Russian state company suspended a research project with Iran
because of its decision to resume enriching uranium, a move a senior
official said Thursday was necessary after the U.S. canceled a waiver
to allow the joint venture. The TVEL company said in a statement that
Iran’s decision to resume uranium enrichment at the Fordo facility
makes it impossible to convert the facility to produce radioactive
isotopes for medical purposes. Iran agreed to stop uranium enrichment
under a 2015 deal with world powers to prevent it from building a
bomb, but it has resumed such activities after the U.S. pulled out of
the pact last year and imposed new sanctions. TVEL’s suspension
apparently reflects Moscow’s attempt to distance itself from the
Iranian nuclear activities that violate the 2015 agreement to avoid
the U.S. penalties. It comes after a U.S. announcement last month that
the waiver allowing foreign companies to work at Fordo will end Dec.
15.”
Voice
Of America: US Official: Iran Protest Deaths May Have Topped
1,000
“A senior U.S. official said Thursday Iranian forces may have
killed more than 1,000 people in three weeks of protests sparked by
the government's sudden and dramatic increase in fuel prices. "It
appears the regime could have murdered over a thousand Iranian
citizens since the protests began," said State Department special
representative for Iran, Brian Hook. Hook said the State Department
received 32,000 videos, including footage taken in southern Iran,
where elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps allegedly pursued a
group of protesters and opened fire, killing as many 100 people. Hook
said Iranian forces also wounded "many thousands" and arrested at
least 7,000 others. Hook acknowledges that the death toll figures were
difficult to confirm, but declared, "We know for certain it is many,
many hundreds."
The
Financial Times: Voices From Iran: Protesters Describe Unrest And
Crackdown
“For Ahmad, an unemployed 24 year-old who grew up near the vast oil
wells that have for decades sustained the Islamic republic of Iran and
the elite he perceives as corrupt, the decision to increase petrol
prices by half was the last straw. He had never protested before but
he and dozens of his friends decided to block the main roads around
Omidiyeh, an oil town in south-western Iran, with burning tyres. They
cut off the resource-rich province of Khuzestan from the port city of
Bushehr. “There is no injustice bigger than sitting on an ocean of oil
and gas and even seeing oil wells from your houses but struggling
with . . . unemployment,” said Ahmad, who did not want his real name
to be published. Despite his qualifications, he has struggled to get
work in the state-run oil companies that are the main source of jobs
in his hometown. “Petrol [price increase] was only an excuse for us to
help get rid of the fire in our hearts and instead set fire to the
unjust establishment.”
Iraq
Kurdistan
24: Five Years After ISIS Pushed From Disputed Iraqi Area, Residents
Still Can't Return
“Thousands of families from the Jalawla and Saadia sub-districts of
Iraq's Diyala province who were displaced by the Islamic State have
spent the past five years in displacement camps and continue to be
unwilling or unable to return to their homes. The two areas, in the
Khanaqin district, were liberated from the Islamic State's brutal rule
in November 2014, but residents have still not returned. “Our house
has been demolished. We are not sure if it was by ISIS or other armed
groups, but we received no compensation and cannot go back,” said
Yousef Mohammed, a displaced person there now living in Alwan Camp.
The main obstacles preventing the people from going back, according to
many of them, are lack of job opportunities, tribal disputes,
difficulty receiving government security clearances that are often
arbitrarily issued, and fear for their safety because of common
insurgent attacks in villages carried out by the Islamic State and
other unknown armed groups. In the past five days, the Islamic State
conducted eight attacks on the Iraqi and Kurdish security forces
around Khanaqin, killing three Peshmerga fighters, three Iraqi police
officers, and eight other Iraqi forces. They also injured at least
25.”
The
Wall Street Journal: Iraqi Families Search For Protesters Left Missing
In Crackdown
“On walls and lampposts in the heart of Iraq’s capital, vying for
attention alongside banners calling for the government’s downfall, are
images of the missing. The posters appeal for information about young
men who have disappeared during two months of antigovernment protests
and a security crackdown that has shocked many Iraqis inured to years
of war and violence. The crackdown has left nearly 400 people dead and
many more in the hands of any of a number of factions of the country’s
fragmented security forces. For some, it recalled the reign of Saddam
Hussein, when dissent was ruthlessly repressed. But under today’s
divided Iraqi leadership, the use of force has stoked dissent. “I hold
the government responsible—not only for my son’s fate, but for the
fate of all the young men,” said Umm Hassanain, whose 16-year-old son
has been missing since Oct. 25, when he left home for Tahrir Square,
the center of protests in Baghdad. “Even though my son is lost and my
heart is broken, I am proud,” she said. “The young men will go down in
history as warriors.”
Turkey
Radio
Free Europe: Erdogan Says NATO Allies Must Back Turkey's Fight Against
Terrorism
“Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has confirmed that Ankara
dropped its objection to a NATO plan to bolster the defense of Poland
and the Baltic states, adding that it now expected the allies' support
in its fight against terrorism. “They all called us and asked us for
support on this. After talks with my colleagues, we said yes to this,
but you must not abandon us in the fight against terrorism,” Erdogan
told Turkish reporters in London on December 5. Turkey had threatened
not to endorse the plan for Poland and Baltic states if the alliance
did not support Turkey over its fight against Kurdish groups in Syria
it considers terrorists. But NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg
said at the end of a London summit of the 29-member alliance on
December 4 that Turkey had lifted its block on the plan. Turkey has
faced criticism from other NATO members over its military operation in
Syria to drive Syrian Kurdish fighters away from the Turkish-Syria
border. Kurdish-led forces drove fighters of the Islamic State
extremist group out of eastern Syria with the help of a multinational
coalition led by the United States. Also on December 5, Erdogan said
he would meet the leaders of France, Germany, and Britain in Istanbul
in February.”
Afghanistan
Xinhua:
Airstrikes Kills 15 Militants In Southern Afghanistan
“At least 15 Taliban militants were killed as fighting planes
pounded the hideouts of the Taliban fighters in the southern Kandahar
and Helmand provinces on Thursday, said an army statement released on
Friday. The air operations, according to the statement, struck the
armed outfit's hideouts in Nesh district of Kandahar province Thursday
afternoon, killing nine insurgents, while six more armed fighters were
killed in the restive Nahr-e-Saraj district of the neighboring Helmand
province on the same day. According to the statement, the security
forces would continue to target the militants in the country. Taliban
militants who are active in both the Kandahar and its neighboring
Helmand province have yet to make comment on the report.”
Pakistan
The
Washington Post: 2 Pakistani Soldiers, 2 Militants Killed In Shootout
In NW
“Pakistan’s military says its troops have raided a militant hideout
in a former tribal region bordering Afghanistan, triggering a shootout
that killed two soldiers and two militants. In a statement, it said
Thursday’s shootout took place near the village of Boya in the North
Waziristan district. The military provided no further details, but the
Pakistani Taliban in recent months have stepped up attacks on security
forces in the region, which has been a sanctuary for Islamic
militants. The army claims it cleared the area. Militants have been
trying to regroup in North Waziristan, raising fears among residents
because of army operations against the insurgents.”
Voice
Of America: Minorities In Pakistan Wait As Hard-Line Islamic Cleric
Indicted
“Minorities in Pakistan are anxiously awaiting the final court
ruling against a hardline cleric who was indicted last month on
charges of sedition and terrorism for inciting nationwide protests in
Pakistan. An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in Pakistan's Punjab province
formally charged Khadim Hussain Rizvi, the leader of Tehreek-e-Labbaik
Pakistan (TLP), an extremist political party, but has not yet given a
date for its final ruling. Analysts predict that it will take some
time, given the sensitivity of blasphemy laws in Pakistan. ATC was
established in 1998 as a separate court, under former Prime Minister
Nawaz Sharif's government to address crimes related to terror in a
speedy manner. The latest indictment against Rizvi comes a year after
Pakistan's Supreme Court's decision in 2018 in which Asia Bibi, a
Christian woman accused of committing blasphemy, was acquitted of the
charges. Rizvi's party took issue with the ruling, demanding that the
court proceed with the initial charges and sentence Bibi to death for
insulting the prophet of Islam. After spearheading large protests in
the country that blocked several cities, the government last year took
measures, cracked down on TLP's members, and arrested its leader,
Rizvi after he openly urged his supporters to target the Supreme Court
judges for their decision in Asia's case.”
Yemen
Xinhua:
5 Al-Qaida Members Captured In S. Yemen
“Five members of the Yemen-based al-Qaida branch were seized on
Thursday by the newly-recruited security forces in the southern Yemeni
province Abyan, a local military official told Xinhua. The al-Qaida
members were captured at a checkpoint set up near the town of Jaar by
the forces loyal to the Southern Transitional Council (STC), the
official in Abyan said on condition of anonymity. “The seized al-Qaida
elements were driving their car loaded with hidden weapons and
ammunition and attempted to enter Jaar secretly,” the source said. The
capture of the al-Qaida members coincided with the continuing military
mobilization of the forces loyal to the Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated
Islah party which seeks to advance towards Aden.Elsewhere in Abyan,
local residents confirmed to Xinhua that sporadic clashes erupted
between the STC's security forces and unknown gunmen near the Ahwar
district. Heavy security forces were dispatched recently from the
neighboring province of Aden to support the STC's security units in
combating terrorism in the turbulent province. The Yemen-based
al-Qaida branch, seen as the global terror network's most dangerous
group, has exploited years of deadly conflict between Yemen's
government and Houthi rebels to expand its presence, especially in
Shabwa and Abyan provinces.”
Lebanon
The
Daily Star: U.S. Says Hezbollah Efforts To Blame It For Protests Have
Failed
“Hezbollah and Russia’s efforts to blame Washington for
“instigating” the nationwide anti-government protests have fallen
short, a U.S. official said this week.”
Middle East
Associated
Press: Palestinians Outraged Over ICC Report Into War
Crimes
“Palestinian officials expressed “great concern” Thursday over a
report by the International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor that
includes a warning that Palestinian stipends to attackers and their
families could constitute a war crime. Palestinian Foreign Affairs
Minister Riad Malki said the prosecutor’s office’s report was “based
on misleading narratives of a political nature ... rather than an
objective and accurate description of the relevant facts.” The
Palestinians have long sought redress with international bodies such
as the ICC for what they consider Israeli crimes. President Mahmoud
Abbas’s government appeared to have been caught off guard by the
language of the criticism found in the report. The Palestinians have
long paid stipends to the families of people killed or imprisoned as a
result of fighting with Israel. The Palestinians say these payments
are a national duty to families affected by decades of violence. But
Israel argues the fund encourages violence by paying the families of
attackers.”
Asharq
Al-Awsat: Palestinians In Jerusalem Accused Of Plotting With
ISIS
“Israeli police said Wednesday they had arrested two Arabs from
eastern Jerusalem suspected of plotting with the ISIS group to attack
Jerusalem. Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld told AFP that Ahmed
Jaabis, 21, and Bassel Abidat, 19, were charged on Sunday with
membership in ISIS. He said they planned to carry out an attack in
Jerusalem on Israeli independence day - which falls in April next year
- when there are large public gatherings of Jews. A police statement
said “concrete intelligence” directed undercover officers disguised as
Arabs to homes in the Jabel Mukaber neighborhood Jerusalem where they
arrested the men. The raid took place in October but was only
publicized on Wednesday. “The accused are members of the ISIS terror
organization,” said the police statement, quoting from the charge
sheet. “The accused discussed the possibility of carrying out
murderous terror attacks at various sites in the city of Jerusalem or
at army bases in the Jordan Valley area with the aim of killing as
many Jews as possible in the name of ISIS,” it added. They allegedly
discussed acquiring firearms or, if that could not be done, of
carrying out stabbings.”
Egypt
Xinhua:
3 Terrorists Killed In Egypt's Sinai: Ministry
“Three “terrorist elements” were killed during a raid in the North
Sinai province in northeastern Egypt, the Interior Ministry said
Thursday. The three belong to a group of terrorists who have been
plotting to carry out attacks on security forces in North Sinai, the
ministry said in a statement. “Three of the terrorist elements were
spotted while riding a motorbike to carry out a terrorist operation.
When they felt besieged, they started opening fire at the forces who
fired back, which led to killing the three of them,” the statement
said. The security forces found two machine guns, two bombs and
ammunition in their possession, according to the statement. Egypt has
been fighting a wave of terrorism that killed hundreds of policemen,
soldiers and civilians since the ouster of former Islamist President
Mohamed Morsi in July 2013 and the massive crackdown on his Muslim
Brotherhood group, which is currently blacklisted as a terrorist
organization. Most of the attacks were claimed by a Sinai-based
terrorist group loyal to the regional terror group Islamic State.”
Nigeria
Yahoo
News: Nigeria Militants Kidnap 14, Including Two Red Cross Workers:
Sources
“Armed militants in northeast Nigeria have kidnapped 14 people,
including two Red Cross workers and an army sergeant, security sources
said on Thursday. The group were intercepted by fighters from the
Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) on Wednesday night in Borno
state, two Nigerian security sources said. “Terrorists from ISWAP set
up a roadblock on a road between Maiduguri and Damaturu yesterday...
and took 14 people,” said one security source said. “Among the kidnap
victims are an army sergeant and his family and two Red Cross staff
who were also taken.” A second security source confirmed the
kidnapping of the soldier and the Red Cross workers. The two are the
latest aid workers snatched by militants in northern Nigeria, where
the army has been fighting a Boko Haram jihadist insurgency for a
decade. ISWAP is a Boko Haram splinter faction that swore allegiance
to Islamic State in 2016. It has carried out numerous attacks on
civilians. ISWAP claimed in a statement, which AFP was not immediately
able to verify, that six Nigerian soldiers and eight civilians,
including two Red Cross workers, were among those kidnapped.”
Africa
News
24: Sudan Says It Captured Six Boko Haram
Suspects
“Sudan's army said on Thursday it had caught six Chadians accused
of belonging to Boko Haram, in the country's first such arrests of
suspected members of the jihadist group which originated in Nigeria.
“Sudanese army intelligence captured six members of the Boko Horam
terrorist group inside Sudanese territory,” the army said in a
statement. “They are Chadian nationals and since there is a security
agreement between the two countries, Sudanese authorities handed them
to Chadian authorities.” It did not specify when the alleged jihadists
were arrested or handed over. It is the first time that Sudanese
authorities have reported the arrest of suspected Boko Haram jihadists
inside the country. Chad, a vast and mostly desert nation with more
than 200 ethnic groups, shares a long border with Sudan. Under
President Idriss Deby, a former head of the armed forces, Chad has
taken a leading role in the fight against jihadism in the Sahel
region. It is part of a West African coalition fighting the Boko Haram
insurgency, and a member of the French-backed G5 Sahel anti-terror
alliance, which also includes Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania, and
Niger.”
Asharq
Al-Awsat: Sudan’s PM Sees Progress On Terror List
Removal
“Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok said Thursday he saw
progress on removing his nation from a US blacklist of state sponsors
of terrorism as he paid a landmark visit to Washington. Hamdok, who
has embarked on ambitious reforms and peace initiatives since his
transitional government took over in August after decades of military
rule, is the first leader of Sudan to visit Washington since 1985.
Washington agreed Wednesday to restore full diplomatic relations after
more than two decades but still classifies Sudan as a state sponsor of
terrorism. “Over the last two to three days here in Washington, the
elephant in the room is the issue of the delisting of Sudan from the
state sponsors of terrorism,” Hamdok said at the Atlantic Council, a
think tank. Hamdok said the blacklist had an impact not only on
investment but on efforts to relieve Sudan's debt and to usher in a
broader “opening” of the country. He said the discussions were
“progressing very well.” “We're making progress on this, and we hope
we'll be able to reach a conclusion,” he said. US officials, while
voicing support for Hamdok, say that removal from the list is a legal
process that requires a formal review over a six-month period.”
United Kingdom
BBC
News: Alleged Neo-Nazi Andrew Dymock In Court Over Terror
Charges
“An alleged neo-Nazi, who is accused of quoting Joseph Goebbels to
call for “total war”, has appeared in court charged with 12 terror
offences. Andrew Dymock, 22, of Weymouth Street, Bath, was arrested on
Wednesday morning by counter-terrorism officers. The charges relate to
alleged online activity by British neo-Nazi groups. Mr Dymock - a
student at the time of the alleged offences - indicated not guilty
pleas to all counts at Westminster Magistrates' Court. Prosecutors say
the defendant, who appeared in the dock wearing a Hawaiian shirt over
a rainbow t-shirt, was a member of the extremist groups System
Resistance Network and Sonnenkrieg Division. The chief magistrate,
Emma Arbuthnot, granted him conditional bail ahead of a hearing at the
Old Bailey on 20 December. It is alleged that he used the System
Resistance Network (SRN) website - which later became a site for the
Sonnenkrieg Division - to upload articles that directly encouraged
terrorist violence, with one post said to call for the extermination
of Jewish people. He is also accused of using the SRN Twitter account
to quote Goebbels, Adolf Hitler's propaganda chief, and ask that
readers “join your local Nazis”. Another post allegedly stated: “Death
to the System. Hail the new order!”
BBC
News: Man Accused Of Plotting Fife Mosque Attack
“A man has appeared in court accused of preparing acts of terror,
including planning an attack on an Islamic centre in Fife. Sam Imrie,
22, is also said to have made social media posts “glorifying terrorist
acts” committed by others, including Anders Brevik. The offences are
alleged to have taken place between June 2018 and July 2019. Mr Imrie,
who denied the charges at the High Court in Glasgow, is due to stand
trial in June 2020. Prosecutors also allege that the accused was
offensive towards Muslim and Jewish communities as well as
“encouraging acts of violence and threats”. Sam Imrie faces
accusations that he made online statements that he “intended to stream
live footage of an incident” and that he was going to “carry out an
attack on the Fife Islamic Centre” in Glenrothes. The accused is said
to have turned up there with a petrol can, carried out “observations”,
made recordings on his mobile phone and repeatedly attempted to get
in. He is further accused of having weapons which he called his
“arsenal” including nunchucks, a hammer, knives and a rifle scope. It
is claimed he also compiled details of “terrorist attacks on places of
worship.”
The
Telegraph: Up 180 People Jailed For Islamist Terrorist Offences Have
Been Released Early, Study Shows
“Up to 180 convicted Islamist terrorists have been released early
from jail in the past two decades, according to a think tank analysis.
Court records show that 187 of the 264 Islamist terrorists jailed up
to 2015 were eligible for early release, according to the Henry
Jackson Society. Some 180 have so far been freed under licence with a
further seven still in prison, of which three are due to be released
within the next three months including a British jihadi jailed for
five years four months after attempting to join Isil in Syria. A
further 33 received life sentences and an additional 38 were handed
indeterminate and extended jail terms - known as imprisonment for
public protection (IPP) - where...”
Germany
Deutsche
Welle: Germany: Dangerous Criminals To Be Deported To
Syria?
“Interior ministers from Germany's 16 federal states agreed at
their annual meeting Thursday to relax a moratorium on deportations to
Syria. The chairman of the "Innenministerkonferenz" (interior
ministers' conference), Hans-Joachim Grote said there was cross-party
consensus. "The ban on deportations to Syria would stay, except for
dangerous criminals," he said. "I don't think we could convey to
people here that someone who commits a serious crime can still enjoy
refugee protection. At some point, we have to take away those rights."
Grote said. However, he acknowledged there would be "practical
problems" in implementing the plans. "We do not have a contact person
in Syria at the moment," he said. "But there is a desire to deport
Syrian felons, as is the case with Afghanistan." And there is a
further stumbling block. The Foreign Ministry says that there is no
region in Syria where refugees can return without risk. "Those who are
known to be from the opposition or dissident — or deemed as such —
face sanctions and repression [in Syria]," according to a ministry
report made public at the start of the month.”
Europe
Voice
Of America: World Powers Meeting In Vienna To Save Iran Nuclear Deal
Face New Setback
“Five world powers trying to save their 2015 nuclear deal with Iran
from U.S. efforts to overturn it are grappling with a new setback as
they meet with Iranian officials in Vienna Friday. A day before
Britain, France, Germany, China and Russia were to hold talks with
Iran in the Austrian capital, Moscow said it was suspending its work
to reconfigure Iran’s underground Fordow nuclear facility for civilian
medical research. The Trump administration had warned last month that
it would revoke a waiver shielding Moscow from U.S. sanctions against
the Fordow project starting Dec. 15. TVEL, a unit of Russian
state-owned nuclear energy company Rosatom, had been working on the
Fordow project since 2017. The project had been one of several that
Iran agreed to undertake with international companies to modify
various Iranian nuclear sites in ways that would ensure their
peaceful, civilian uses, rather than military ones.”
BBC
News: Migrant Children's Centre In Madrid 'Targeted In Grenade
Attack'
“A bomb squad in Madrid has safely destroyed a grenade that police
believe was thrown over the wall of a migrant centre for children. The
grenade was found on Wednesday morning on the patio of the centre, in
the Hortaleza area of Spain's capital. Police said it was a training
grenade that contained a small amount of explosives. The centre was
evacuated while experts carried out a controlled explosion. No
injuries were reported. Dozens of unaccompanied minors, many of them
immigrants, are reported to be housed at the residential centre.
Spanish authorities are investigating the incident but police are yet
to identify any suspects or establish a motive. The suspected attack
has been widely condemned by Spanish politicians and human rights
campaigners, with many linking it to anti-immigrant rhetoric. “This is
what hate speech brings,” Adriana Lastra, spokeswoman for the ruling
Socialist party, wrote on Twitter (in Spanish). “It needs to be fought
online, on the streets and in our institutions.” The centre has been
subjected to repeated attacks, most notably in October, when around
thirty youths tried to storm in.”
Southeast Asia
The
Diplomat: Why A War On Extremism In Indonesia May Create More Problems
Than It Solves
“President Joko Widodo wasted no time in beginning to make inroads
on key priorities after the October inauguration of his second term in
Indonesia. While his rhetoric has typically focused on slashing red
tape and reforming the bloated bureaucracy, a major announcement in
the tail end of November on ideology within the ranks marks a
seriousness in deeper reform. The execution of this approach, however,
may produce more problems than it solves. Cabinet choices showed a
clear focus on a renewed war against extremist ideology, despite
rhetoric focusing still on infrastructure and economic growth. The
naming of retired general Fachrul Razi as minister for religion, the
first former military man to head the post since Suharto, and former
national police chief Tito Karnavian as home minister, set a tone for
programs since announced. The civil service, known as ASN, and
Indonesia’s mammoth bureaucracy, is the first explicit target for
rooting out extremist ideology. As noted by ANU’s Liam Gammon for
Inside Story shortly after the naming of the cabinet, moderates have
showed fear that broad organizations have been “colonized by
sympathizers of radical groups like the now-banned Hizbut Tahrir
Indonesia or the mainstream Islamist party PKS.”
Australia
The
National: Far-Right Australian Convicted Of Plotting Terror
Attacks
“An Australian man who said he would put Muslims “in ovens” has
been found guilty of planning and preparing a terrorist act. Phillip
Galea, 35, was on trial in Melbourne after being arrested in August
2016. He planned to bomb Melbourne’s Trades Hall – the headquarters of
the union movement, a socialist youth centre and the Melbourne
Anarchist Club. During the trial it emerged that Galea believed that
the Australian left was responsible for what he referred to as the
“Islamisation of Australia”. The court heard a transcript of a phone
call in which Galea said “eventually we’ll put [the left-wingers] all
in ovens … with the Muslims”. “It’s like killing a snake with these
people, cut off the head and the body dies,” he said. It was also
revealed that Galea once met with a local imam because, in his words,
“you have to know your enemy”. Galea also spoke in his phone calls of
“cutting throats” in central Melbourne and leaving “a line of dead
lefties around”. In addition to being convicted for “acts in
preparation for, or planning a terrorist act”, Galea was also found
guilty of attempting to make a document likely to facilitate a
terrorist act.”
Technology
The
Washington Post: Telegram Has Finally Cracked Down On Islamist
Terrorism. Will It Do The Same For The Far-Right?
“It was a big deal when accounts for the Islamic State and al-Qaeda
started disappearing from the Telegram messaging app over the past
month. For years, the platform has served as the central medium for
extremist groups to radicalize and recruit members. But through some
new sense of determination, Telegram has finally kicked Islamist
militants off their main hub, marking a level of disruption for the
extremist groups never seen before. This raises a new question: Will
Telegram apply the same determination to the equally dangerous
far-right terrorists on its platform? Telegram, launched in 2013 by
self-described libertarian Pavel Durov, was designed to offer
encrypted communication with an emphasis on protecting privacy and
avoiding censorship. That has made it popular in autocratic countries
such as Russia, pulling in hundreds of millions of active users. But
it has also attracted bad actors who want to organize in the shadows.
And unlike platforms such as Twitter and Facebook, Telegram has long
resisted cracking down on extremist groups using its services. That
changed most dramatically in mid-November when, with the help of
European law enforcement, Telegram began targeting individual users
and administrators, hitting everyone from the Islamic State’s central
media workers to its supporters distributing its content.”
The
Guardian: Inside The Hate Factory: How Facebook Fuels Far-Right
Profit
“The message from Israel arrived on an otherwise unremarkable
afternoon for 36-year-old Beau Villereal. At his family’s sprawling
42-acre property outside Live Oak in Florida’s rural north, Villereal
sat alone in his bedroom trawling for news about Donald Trump to share
on the rightwing Facebook page he runs with his mother and father. The
messenger, who gave her name as Rochale, asked Villereal to make her
an editor of Pissed off Deplorables, a self-described “pro-America
page” that feeds its thousands of followers a steady diet of
pro-Trump, anti-Islam content. “I totally understand you,” she wrote.
“I’m from Israel and this is ... really important to me to share the
truth. “Please give me a chance for a day.”
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