“The US and Iraq agreed on Saturday to increase security ties in order to
eliminate a potential ISIS comeback. The agreement was announced in a joint











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Eye on Extremism


July 18, 2022



The National: Iraq And US To Boost Security Ties To Prevent ISIS Comeback
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“The US and Iraq agreed on Saturday to increase security ties in order to
eliminate a potential ISIS comeback. The agreement was announced in a joint
statement issued after talks between US President Joe Biden and Iraqi Prime
Minister Mustafa Al Kadhimi in Jeddah, where Saudi Arabia is hosting a summit
that brings together leaders of the US, GCC states, Iraq, Egypt and Jordan.
“The two leaders reaffirmed their shared commitment to the strong bilateral
partnership under the Strategic Framework Agreement and their determination to
continue security coordination to ensure that ISIS can never resurge,” the
statement said. The agreement signed in 2008 outlines the basis of relations
between the US and Iraq, where there are currently about 2,500 American troops
operating alongside several smaller contingents from other countries to train
Iraqi forces in the continuing fight against the remnants of ISIS following the
defeat of the extremist group in 2017. “The leaders agreed that the
relationship between the US and Iraq is based on a shared interest in Iraq’s
sovereignty, territorial integrity, security, and stability and committed to
bolstering the bilateral partnership for the benefit of their two nations,”
said the statement.”



The Washington Post: An Attack On A Military Base In Somalia Shows Al-Shabab’s
Deadly Power
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“In the predawn hours, the militants of al-Shabab attacked the peacekeepers’
base from every direction with lethal precision. Suicide bombers detonated
three cars filled with explosives. Islamist fighters then pounded the facility
with heavy gunfire and rocket-propelled grenades, killing several dozen African
Union peacekeepers from Burundi. Footage posted on social media showed bodies
in military uniforms scattered around the base. “The Burundians were caught
unaware,” said Sadaq Mokhtar Abdulle, a Somali Parliament member representing
the village of El Baraf, where the base was located. “They were killed in cold
blood. And the others fled.” The May 2 assault claimed more than 50 lives,
according to local officials and Western security personnel in Somalia, making
it the deadliest strike on the U.S.-backed peacekeeping mission here in six
years. Its success underscored the resurgence of al-Shabab and the challenges
that African and American troops will face in containing the group. Two weeks
later, President Biden approved the redeployment of some 450 American troops to
Somalia — reversing a 2020 order by the Trump administration to end U.S.
counterterrorism operations in the country after more than a decade. The
militants now control roughly 70 percent of south and central Somalia, a
country nearly the size of Texas.”



United States



The Washington Post: Citing Terrorism, U.S. Seeks 15-Year Prison Sentence In
Jan. 6 Case
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“U.S. prosecutors asked a judge Friday to sentence the first Capitol riot
defendant convicted at trial to 15 years in prison, following through for the
first time on threats to seek enhanced terrorism sentencing penalties for
individuals who reject plea deals in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on Congress. The
request for Guy W. Reffitt, a recruiter for the extremist Three Percenters
movement who led rioters at the Capitol, is roughly one-third longer than the
nine to 11 years recommended under advisory federal guidelines. Reffitt was
convicted March 8 of five felony offenses, including obstruction of Congress’s
meeting to certify the 2020 presidential election, interfering with police and
carrying a firearm to a riot, and threatening his teenage son who turned him in
to the FBI. The defense for Reffitt, a 49-year-old former oil industry rig
manager, asked for a below-guidelines sentence of two years in prison. But
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jeffrey S. Nestler and Risa Berkower sought a
punishment that would be about three times longer than any sentence handed down
to date in a felony Jan. 6 case, calling his case exceptional. “Reffitt sought
not just to stop Congress, but also to physically attack, remove, and replace
the legislators who were serving in Congress,” prosecutors wrote. They called
his conduct “a quintessential example of an intent to both influence and
retaliate against government conduct through intimidation or coercion,” the
statutory definition of terrorist violence subject to harsher punishment.”



The Washington Times: Six Terrorism Suspects Nabbed At Southern Border In June
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“Homeland Security recorded more than 200,000 illegal border jumpers in June,
marking the fourth straight month that the Biden administration has topped that
elevated level of border chaos. Among those were six more arrests of terrorism
suspects at the southern border, according to data released by Customs and
Border Protection late Friday. The total arrests marked a decline compared to
May. Of the 207,416 people encountered, 191,898 were nabbed by Border Patrol
agents as they sneaked across the border between official crossings. The rest
were encountered by CBP officers at the ports of entry. Fewer than half of the
border jumpers were ousted under the pandemic health emergency, or Title 42
powers. More than 72,000 were processed and released directly at the border,
while most of the rest were released after transfer to another federal agency
in the interior. CBP Commissioner Chris Magnus celebrated the lower numbers.
“While fluctuations are normal from month to month, we saw a 14 percent
decrease in encounters compared to the previous month,” he said in announcing
the new data. Digging into the numbers, there were some worrying trends. While
the number of migrants traveling as family units — at least one parent and
minor child — dropped, the number of illegal immigrant children traveling
unaccompanied rose to more than 15,000.”



Syria



NBC News: ISIS Stands To Gain From Potential Turkish Offensive In Syria,
Pentagon Warns
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“Pentagon leaders are increasingly concerned about a possible Turkish
military invasion in northern Syria and have begun planning for how it could
impact the U.S. fight against the Islamic State terrorist group, according to
two senior administration officials and two defense officials. The main concern
is that any Turkish military movement into Syria would draw the U.S. partner,
the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), away from the battle against
ISIS, the officials said. “We strongly oppose any Turkish operation into
northern Syria and have made clear our objections to Turkey,” Dana Stroul,
deputy assistant secretary of defense for the Middle East, said Wednesday
during a discussion at the Middle East Institute, a D.C.-based think tank.
“Such an operation puts at risk U.S. forces’ coalition campaign against ISIS
and will introduce more violence into Syria.” She warned that Turkish military
operations could cause the SDF to focus on moving north to protect their
communities from an air campaign or a ground campaign, leaving a vacuum that
could allow ISIS to regroup. “There’s only so many SDF to go around,” Stroul
said. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was briefed about the possible invasion
earlier this week. He told staff to prepare a U.S. response to Turkish military
action and to provide more information about how it could impact the U.S.
mission in Syria, according to the officials.”



Kurdistan 24: Kurdish Security Forces Kill 3 ISIS Militants In Retaliation For
December Makhmour Attack: KRSC
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“The Kurdistan Region's security forces killed three members of ISIS who
played a role in last December's attack in Makhmour that killed over 10
civilians and Peshmerga forces. In a video statement on Thursday, the Kurdistan
Region Security Council (KRSC) said it “retaliated” for that attack by killing
the three ISIS fighters. They also arrested a taxi driver that supplied the
militants with basic commodities. Without specifying how the extremists were
killed, the KRSC said they were “targeted” in collaboration with Iraqi and
US-led coalition forces on the evening of July 5, according to the statement.
One of those killed in the attack was Salih Mahmood' Atiya Al-Jaboori, known by
his alias “Al-Nuseib”. He was in charge of an ISIS unit on Makhmour's Mount
Qarachokh. Two other members of the group were killed. Having been arrested by
the security forces, the 63-year-old man “confessed” in the video that he had
provided the group with “logistics” for their operations. In early December, a
group of ISIS fighters attacked Khidr Jija village in the Makhmour district.
Villagers resisted the attack, and the ensuing firefight killed three members
of one family, including a minor. While on its way to rescue the embattled
villagers, a unit of Peshmerga forces, consisting of 10 fighters, were ambushed
by ISIS and killed. ISIS later claimed responsibility for the attack.”



Iraq



Al Monitor: Islamic State Continues To Menace Iraqi-Syrian Border
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“Both sides of the border between Iraq and Syria continue to experience
attacks as concerns grow about tens of thousands of women and children in
limbo, many of whom exposed to Islamic State indoctrination, and joblessness
heightens desperation. There is also a generalized distrust from a lack of
reliable information. In late June, IS claimed to have captured and executed a
member of the Jughayfa tribe in Iraq’s northwestern Nineveh province and tribal
fighters on the Syrian side of that border. A statement issued by Iraq’s
Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) on July 13 said an operation carried out at
dawn in the “Sheikh Ibrahim Mountains and the Al-Mahalbia district, southeast
of Tal Afar” had “found dens of terrorist gangs” in Nineveh province. No IS
fighters were reported killed or captured. Across the border in Syria, US
Central Command Forces (CENTCOM) reported July 12 that it had conducted a drone
strike targeting two top IS officials outside Jindayris in northwest Syria. The
report stated that Maher al-Agal, who it called one of IS' top five leaders and
the group's Syria head, “was killed in the strike,” adding, “Al-Agal was
responsible for aggressively pursuing the development of [IS] networks outside
of Iraq and Syria.”



Middle East



Modern Diplomacy: Analyzing Link Between Middle Eastern Politics And The Rise
Of ISIS
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“The vacuum in the politics of Middle East has always provided an opportunity
for external actors to intervene. After the decomposition of Ottoman Empire,
puppet governments were placed to rule the Middle East, in best interest of
imperial powers. It was an indirect imperialism. The puppet politicians always
depended on external forces to consolidate their authority rather than people.
They kept the local population and their security at stake to serve the
imperial powers, in order to maintain their rule. People were considered as a
subject to secure interests of state and the ruling elite. External powers were
given easy access to the resources specifically oil reserves. One of the major
goals of Western interference in Middle East was to merge it in the global
economy. Therefore, people felt endangered, and insecure. Further, it gave rise
to two main social groups, one was ruling elite and the other was subordinate.
Different forms of nationalism developed in both the social groups. The ruling
class developed in it liberal nationalism, wanted independence from Western
influence but keep healthy relations as well. And the other class which was
marginalized with the introduction of capitalist economic system, resisted
centralization of state power and economic integration. External forces backed
the oppressive regimes to suppress the resistance movements.”



Mali



Associated Press: Attack Outside Mali's Capital Kills 6, Wounds Others
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“Gunmen attacked a Malian army checkpoint outside Bamako, killing at least
six people and wounding several others, officials said Friday, raising concerns
as attacks by jihadist groups move closer to the capital. “Last night, the post
of Zantiguila was the target of an attack by unidentified gunmen,” said Amadou
Sangho, spokesman for Mali’s Ministry of Security and Civil Protection. The
post is about 60 kilometers from Bamako. No group has claimed responsibility
for the attack, but it bears the mark of the al-Qaida-linked group known as
JNIM that has carried out several other attacks around Bamako. “The Zantiguila
attack shows how the al-Qaida affiliate Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin
continues to expand its operations outside its traditional strongholds in
northern and central Mali,” said Héni Nsaibia, a senior researcher at The Armed
Conflict Location & Event Data Project. “As in other Sahelian countries such as
Burkina Faso and Niger, although to a lesser extent in the latter, major cities
including the capitals themselves, are increasingly surrounded by a steady
spread of Islamist militancy that poses an ever-increasing risk and challenge
to the security environment.” Mali has struggled to contain an Islamic
extremist insurgency since 2012. Extremist rebels were forced from power in
Mali’s northern cities with the help of a French-led military operation, but
they regrouped in the desert and began attacking the Malian army and its
allies. Insecurity has worsened with attacks in the northern and central
regions.”



Africa



The Washington Post: ‘Islamic State In Africa’ Explores Nine Militant Islamist
Groups
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“For many African countries, violence linked to militant Islamist groups is a
pressing security threat. These armed extremist groups amplify grievances and
intercommunal differences to recruit new members and foster anti-government
sentiments. Civilian communities often bear the brunt of this violence, as
virtually none of these groups enjoy widespread popular support. Militant
Islamist violence in Africa reached new heights in 2021, sustaining a
decade-long trend. But the pattern is not uniform across the continent. In
North Africa, Mozambique and the Lake Chad basin — an area comprising parts of
Nigeria, eastern Niger, Chad and Cameroon — violence declined in 2021. But
militant Islamist violence in the Sahel — comprising parts of Mali, Burkina
Faso and western Niger — nearly doubled. Where are Islamic State groups active?
In “The Islamic State in Africa,” Jason Warner, Ryan O’Farrell, Héni Nsaibia
and Ryan Cummings provide the first comprehensive account of nine African
militant Islamist groups. Each group proclaims ties to the Islamic State. The
authors ask why allegiance to the Islamic State has persisted in Africa despite
the group’s decline in Iraq and Syria, particularly after the 2019 death of
founding leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. To address this puzzle, the authors
investigate the emergence and evolution of Islamic State groups in Africa.”



Eurasia Review: The Role Of Women In Terrorism In Africa – Analysis
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“Africa has been an epicentre of violent extremist activities, for the past
few decades. As per the Global Terrorism Index 2022, 48 per cent of the global
terrorism deaths took place in Sub-Saharan Africa. The Sahel region is ‘home to
the world’s fastest growing and most-deadly terrorist groups’.1 The poor
socio-economic conditions, ideological trends, and weak governance have been
causes for terrorist outfits laying inroads into African countries. Studies
indicate that women play active roles in sustaining and facilitating extremist
activities on the continent. There has also been an increase in the cases of
women being arrested in terror-related incidents. Women play multiple active
and passive roles in carrying out terrorist activities. They are strategic as
well as tactical actors for a terrorist organisation. Each parental
organisation, such as the ISIS, their affiliates, or independent terrorist
organisations, have relied on women to varying capacities to attain their
goals. Women have assumed the roles of propagandists, recruiters, and
participated in combat operations. ISIS, in Kano, Nigeria, has created
all-women morality police units, Hisbah, to ensure other women toe the line on
issues like dress codes, among others.”



United Kingdom



The National: UN Experts Warn Of ‘Alarming’ Trend Of Terrorists Profiting From
Natural Resources
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“The UN Security Council's Counter-Terrorism Committee has raised concerns
over the “alarming” trend of terror groups profiting from natural resources,
from oil to diamonds. The committee held a special webinar highlighting the
tools terror groups are using to finance their activities. Committee director
David Scharia said groups are exploiting natural resources such as oil, timber,
cocoa, fish and diamonds. “This is an important but often overlooked topic of
terrorists benefiting from the trade and exploitation of natural resources,” he
said. “Despite the challenges of ascertaining the amount of profit generated
for terrorist financing, evidence indicates it is a sufficient provider of
regular revenue to some terrorist groups. He gave the example of ISIS in Syria
and Iraq, which worked to produce oil and natural gas, and said that cash
reserves from these activities may still be available to the group. “Cattle
rustling and livestock raiding is used by [western African terror group] Boko
Haram, also timber, cocoa and wildlife trafficking,” he added. “Mining of gold
is increasingly an important source of income for ISIS in Africa.” Mr Scharia
called it “a truly global trend” that needs to be tackled as such. Svetlana
Martynova, the committee's senior legal officer and co-ordinator on countering
the financing of terrorism, has called for more investigations into crimes.”



BBC News: Isle Of Wight Boy, 15, Accused Of Planning Terrorist Attacks
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“A 15-year-old boy from the Isle of Wight has been charged with a terrorism
offence. The teenager, from Cowes, was arrested by officers from Counter
Terrorism Policing South East with help from Hampshire Constabulary last week.
Following questioning, he was charged with the preparation of terrorist acts
under Section 5 of the Terrorism Act 2006. The boy, who cannot be named for
legal reasons, has been remanded in custody. He is due to appear at Westminster
Magistrates' Court on Monday.”



UK Parliament: State Hostage Taking Experts To Give Evidence To Foreign
Affairs Committee
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“On Tuesday 19 July, at 2.30pm the Foreign Affairs Committee will continue
its inquiry into state hostage taking, hearing from non-governmental
organisations REDRESS and the Counter Extremism Project, as well as
international human rights lawyer, Tatyana Eatwell. Rupert Skilbeck, the
Director of REDRESS, and Tatyana Eatwell, Barrister at Doughty Street Chambers,
were both involved in the case of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, amongst other high
profile cases. The session will consider the Foreign, Commonwealth and
Development office’s approach to consular support as well as looking at
possible deterrent measures for those involved in state hostage taking and
wrongful detentions. It will also examine an approach adopted by the German
Government in negotiating the release of detainees in Iran. Questions are
likely to focus on recent cases of state hostage taking and the effectiveness
of the actions of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.”



Germany



Reuters: German Army Officer Sentenced To Jail For Attack Plan
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“A German army officer who posed as a Syrian asylum seeker was sentenced to
five and a half years in prison on Friday for planning to attack one or more
politicians and multiple weapons offenses. The elaborate ploy, uncovered in
2017, shocked Germans and stirred a debate about the depth of right-wing
radicalism in the country's military. The case is particularly sensitive for
Germany, where since World War Two, governments have seen a commitment to human
rights and opposition to extremism as key elements in atoning for the crimes of
Nazi Germany and rebuilding allies' confidence. “The court found that the
defendant had a right-wing extremist, nationalist and racist attitude that had
solidified for years,” it said. Prosecutors said the man, identified as Franco
A., posed under a false identity and planned an attack he hoped would be blamed
on refugees and migrants. They also said Franco A. stole ammunition from the
German military, with former justice minister Heiko Maas or the former
parliament's vice-president Claudia Roth seen as possible targets of an attack.”



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