“Al-Qaeda-linked militants attacked four towns near the border between Somalia
and Ethiopia, the first major assault by the Islamist group since Somal











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Eye on Extremism


July 22, 2022



Bloomberg: Islamist Militants Launch Attacks On Towns Near Ethiopian Border
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“Al-Qaeda-linked militants attacked four towns near the border between Somalia
and Ethiopia, the first major assault by the Islamist group since Somalia
appointed a new president in May. Towns including Aato and Yeed were targeted
in the raids by the al-Shabaab group, according to people who declined to be
identified because they’re not authorized to speak to the media. Dozens of
members of an Ethiopian paramilitary police unit, known as the Liyu, were
killed in the raids, according to two of the people. It wasn’t immediately
clear whether any al-Shabaab fighters died. The office of Somali Prime Minister
Hamza Abdi Barre ordered the country’s security forces to swiftly respond to
the situation at the border, though it didn’t provide a death toll for the
attack. Barre on Wednesday met with senior members of an African Union-led
armed force fighting al-Shabaab in Somalia and said he would help launch a new
offensive against the militants in order to reach those in need of humanitarian
assistance. The region is facing its worst drought in four decades. Ethiopian
military spokesman Colonel Getnet Adane didn’t respond to questions about the
attack. SomaliMemo, a pro-al-Shabaab media outlet, also reported the attacks,
claiming the militant group seized ammunition and military equipment.”



Reuters: Hundreds Protest In Baghdad After Deadly Attack On Tourist Resort
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“Hundreds of people protested in Baghdad on Thursday after an attack in
northern Iraq killed nine people including a newly wed husband and a
1-year-old, a strike that Iraq blamed on Turkish forces but which Ankara denied
carrying out. The incident took place on Wednesday at a summer resort near the
northern Iraqi town of Zakho close to the border with Turkey, in a region where
Turkish forces have waged a campaign against Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK)
militants. Iraq accused Turkey of responsibility for the deaths, but has not
provided evidence. Ankara said it had not carried out any attacks aimed at
civilians in the area and said it was ready to hold talks with Iraq to uncover
the facts. “All signals indicate that Turkey is responsible for the assault and
its denial is a 'dark joke,'“ the Iraqi Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
“There is a possibility that Iraq will resort to the economic card,” the
ministry said, without further explanation. In Baghdad, around 500 people
gathered near a building belonging to the Turkish Embassy and scuffles briefly
broke out between police and protesters.”



Syria



Washington Examiner: ‘Perfect Storm Brewing’ For ‘Reemergence Of ISIS’ In
Syria, Graham Warns
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“Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) is imploring his colleagues and the Biden
administration to pay attention to northeast Syria, even as Russia's war in
Ukraine and the threat of China loom large in defense circles. Graham recently
returned from a trip to the al-Hol refugee camp and Hasakah prison, both in
northeast Syria. The refugee camp has a population of roughly 55,000,
consisting mainly of the wives and children of the Islamic State fighters who
are in the prison, both of which are rampant with radicalization. A possible
new generation of radicalized jihadis, in addition to those currently housed in
Hasakah prison, presents a chilling risk to U.S. national security, according
to Graham, who detailed his trip to the Washington Examiner in an interview on
Wednesday. “The reemergence of ISIS as a threat to the American homeland is
increasing by the day,” he stated. “There's a perfect storm brewing in
northeastern Syria, where we have a refugee camp full of ISIS wives and
children mixed in with other populations. That's going to be an ISIS factory.
... The radical elements of the camp are taking over.” Graham stressed the
importance of improving the lives of the people in the camp, which he described
as “a tent city with very draconian living conditions,” and it's an issue he
plans to address on Capitol Hill.”



Iran



Fox News: Belgium's Parliament Passes Iran Treaty That May Lead To Release Of
Convicted Terrorist
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“The Belgian parliament ratified a treaty with Iran that sets the stage for a
prisoner swap that could see a convicted Iranian terrorist walk free. “The
Iranian Resistance strongly condemns the endorsement of the shameful deal with
the clerical regime and considers it the highest incentive for the religious
fascism ruling Iran to step up terrorism and to use hostage-taking as much as
possible,” Maryam Rajavi, the President-elect of the National Council of
Resistance of Iran (NCRI), said in a statement after the vote. The statement
comes after 79 of the 131 Belgian MPs present voted in favor of the treaty that
was approved by the parliament’s foreign affairs committee on July 6, paving
the way for a deal that could see the release of Assadollah Assadi, an Iranian
convicted to 20-years in prison in Belgian courts for a bomb plot that targeted
a rally by opponents of the Iranian regime in France. The deal will also pave
the way for the release of Belgian humanitarian worker Olivier Vandecasteele,
who has been in Iran since February. But some parts of the treaty, which allow
Belgians convicted in Iran to serve their sentences in Belgium and Iranians
convicted in Belgium to serve their sentences in Iran, were more controversial,
most notably a provision that allows each country the ability to grant amnesty
to its prisoners. Assadi, a former Iranian diplomat, is expected to be quickly
set free.”



Afghanistan



AFP: Facebook Removes Afghan Media Pages Controlled By Taliban
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“Facebook has removed the accounts of at least two state-owned media outlets
in Afghanistan, the company confirmed Thursday, saying it was complying with
laws in the United States listing the Taliban as a “terrorist organisation”.
The Taliban have made liberal use of Facebook and Twitter since seizing power
in August last year, and have a firm grip on state-owned media in the country
-- including radio and TV stations, and newspapers. While Facebook parent Meta
did not list the banned media outlets, state broadcaster National Radio
Television Afghanistan (RTA) and the government-owned Bakhtar news agency both
said that they had been blocked. The Facebook pages of privately owned media
houses seemed unaffected. “The Taliban is sanctioned as a terrorist
organisation under U.S. law and they are banned from using our services,” a
Meta spokesperson told AFP in a statement. “We remove accounts maintained by or
on behalf of the Taliban and prohibit praise, support, and representation of
them,” it added. Government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid criticised the
blocking, saying it showed “impatience and intolerance” by the US firm. “The
slogan 'Freedom of expression' is used to deceive other nations,” he tweeted.”



Middle East



The Jerusalem Post: High Court Upholds Law To Revoke Citizenship Of Israeli
Terrorists <[link removed]>



“The High Court of Justice ruled on Thursday that the law permitting the
revocation of the citizenship of terrorists is constitutional, although it also
canceled decisions by former interior ministers to revoke the citizenship of
convicted terrorists Alaa Ziad and Mahmoud Mafarja. Ziad is an Arab-Israeli who
ran over and stabbed two soldiers and two civilians, one of whom was 15 years
old, at Gan Shmuel near Hadera, and was convicted by the Haifa District Court
of four counts of attempted murder. Mafarja planted a bomb on a bus in Tel Aviv
in 2012, wounding 24 people. He was convicted on charges of intent of aiding
the enemy, attempted murder and causing serious bodily harm, and was sentenced
to 25 years in prison. The power to revoke citizenship was first enshrined in
the Citizenship Law in 1952 and has been amended multiple times since then. The
law in its current form allows the interior minister to submit a request to a
court to revoke the Israeli citizenship of a person if they acquired their
citizenship using false information or if they committed an act that
constitutes a “breach of allegiance to the State of Israel.” That means an act
of terrorism, an act that constitutes treason or “serious espionage” or the
acquisition of citizenship or permanent residence in enemy countries (i.e.
Iran, Lebanon or Syria, among others).”



Nigeria



Newsweek: 'My University Was Attacked By Boko Haram Terrorists, It Changed My
Life'
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“When I started my second year of university in 2009, at the age of 19, I
feared the unknown. Unlike most university students, I wasn't just worried
about being away from my parents. I feared the very real threat of the rising
insurgency group, Boko Haram. At the time, the insurgency group was attacking
the outskirts of communities, which led to a lot of tense times for the
students on my campus at the University of Maiduguri in Borno State, Nigeria.
Nobody wanted to stay out late at night, or to travel home alone. Students were
kidnapped on their way to campus. We heard about cases of rape and girls who
were kidnapped and married to the insurgents. Others were shot dead by stray
bullets. There was a time where we found six bodies behind a student hostel.
These attacks often happened in broad daylight. And of course as students, we
knew each other well. So when an incident happened, we would often know the
victim.The feeling I remember most is fear: the fear of who would be next,
where the next attack would happen. As young students, it was always on our
minds. Our parents panicked, too, and they would call to check in and ask,
“what's happening, do you really want to stay there?”



Mali



AFP: Mali Army Says 3 Soldiers, 3 Terrorists Killed In Attacks
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“Mali’s army on Thursday said three soldiers and three “terrorists” died
following simultaneous early morning attacks in several towns in the country’s
centre and west, adding to a growing list of deadly incidents since last week.
In a statement, the military blamed Al-Qaeda-affiliated Macina Katiba jihadists
for the attacks, which it said took place in and around the towns of Douentza,
Koro, Sevare, Bapho, Segou and Kolokani. It said one soldier and three
terrorists were killed after a vehicle exploded in Douentza at 6:30 am (local
and GMT), followed by gunfire. In Kolokani, 120 kilometres (75 miles) north of
the capital Bamako, “complex and simultaneous attacks targeted the detachment
of the Anti-Terrorist Force and the Territorial Brigade of the Gendarmerie” at
around 0530 GMT, killing two Malian soldiers and wounding three others, the
army said. In Koro, a vehicle exploded at around 0515 GMT, leaving no
casualties. Shells were fired at military compounds in Segou and Bapho, causing
no casualties, while another vehicle was found in Mopti near the town of Sevare
packed with explosives but successfully destroyed without causing damage, the
army said. Earlier Thursday, the army announced it had “neutralised” 48
“terrorists” during several operations carried out between July 14 and 18 in
the centre and east of the Sahel country.”



Reuters: Mali Army Says It Repelled 'Terrorist' Attack On Military Base Near
Capital
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“Mali's army said it repelled a "terrorist attack" on Friday against its main
base outside the capital Bamako, which was carried out with car bombs. "The
provisional death toll is two assailants neutralised," it said in a tweet. "The
situation is under control and clearing operations are under way to flush out
the authors and their accomplices."



Africa



Air Force Times: Counterterrorism Still A Pressing Issue For Special
Operations, Africa Command Nominees
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“With the war in Afghanistan in the rear-view mirror, a pressing threat to
Europe from Russia in the foreground and an ongoing competition for influence
and military dominance with China, the generals tapped to lead U.S. Special
Operations and Africa commands are set to have a lot on their plates. At their
confirmation hearing Thursday, senators were eager to hear about how they plan
to counter the ongoing threat of non-state terrorist groups, while balancing
the main priorities in the current national defense strategy. “In general,
lately, I’m concerned that in the current world situation, we’re taking our eye
off the terrorist threat, and it is certainly extremely serious in in Africa,”
Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, told Marine Lt. Gen. Michael Langley, who has been
tapped to lead AFRICOM, during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing. In
addition to local ISIS and al-Qaida affiliates, the continent is home to groups
like Boko Haram and Jama’at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin, an amalgamation of
several predecessor groups that has come together in the Sahel region over the
past five years. “Please share with me your thoughts on that, because it’s so
easy in the time of Ukraine, and the China challenge, to sort of move the focus
away from terrorism, but these people are still there,” King added.”



Voice Of America: L'Afrique, Zone De Croissance Exponentielle Du Groupe Etat
Islamique
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“…Sur l'Est enfin, poursuit Elie Tenenbaum, de l'Institut français des
relations internationales (IFRI), “il y a des Ougandais qui circulent dans
toute l’Afrique australe. Ils passent par le Malawi et ça peut descendre très
au sud”. “Ce sont des lieux de passage mal contrôlés”, précise-t-il, évoquant
des “points de passage de trafic anciens” et des individus qui agissent
“parfois en électron libre”. Mais aussi peu structurée qu'elle soit, la
croissance de l'EI profite, en miroir, de la faiblesse de la lutte
anti-terroriste. Rares sont les actions conjointes entre Etats, comme entre
armées congolaises et ougandaises contre les ADF, ou comme l'intervention
rwandaise face à l'EI au Mozambique. Au Sahel, la France quitte le Mali après
neuf ans d'antiterrorisme et la mission onusienne, la Minusma, est en suspens.
“La coordination va mal”, tranche Hans-Jakob Schindler, directeur de l'ONG
Counter-Extremism Project (CEP) et ex-expert de l'ONU sur le jihadisme. Il
regrette le départ des Français, tant les Etats africains semblent impuissants
face au fléau jihadiste. Et “à part la France, dans l'Union européenne, est-ce
que c'est un sujet prioritaire ? Non ! Nous l'ignorons à notre propre
detriment.”



Europe



AFP: Irish Court To Sentence Ex-Soldier For Joining IS In Syria
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“Dublin's Special Criminal Court was on Friday expected to sentence former
soldier Lisa Smith, who was found guilty of joining the so-called Islamic State
(IS) group in Syria. The 40-year-old mother of one from Dundalk on Ireland's
east coast, was convicted in May of belonging to the terror group between
October 28, 2015 and December 1, 2019. She faces a maximum sentence of eight
years for membership of a proscribed terrorist organisation. Her lawyer said
Smith's offence was at the lower end of the scale and has urged the judges to
consider imposing a suspended sentence. She was acquitted by three judges on a
separate charge of financing terrorism by sending 800 euros ($900) to aid
medical treatment for a Syrian man in Turkey. During her nine-week trial,
prosecutors outlined how Smith -- who was a member of the Irish Defence Forces
from 2001 to 2011 -- travelled to IS territory in 2015 following a conversion
to Islam. In 2012, she went on pilgrimage to the Muslim holy city of Mecca in
Saudi Arabia and expressed a desire on an Islamic Facebook page to live under
Sharia law and to die a martyr. The court was told that she bought a one-way
ticket from Dublin to Turkey, crossed the border into Syria and lived in Raqqa,
the capital of the self-styled IS caliphate.”



Technology



Arab News: Etidal, Telegram Remove 1.9 Million Items Of Extremist Online
Content <[link removed]>



“The Global Center for Combating Extremist Ideology, and messaging platform
Telegram, have together removed around 1.9 million online items of extremist
content since partnering on an initiative earlier this year. And of the total,
an estimated 1.2 million pieces of material and links were taken down between
June 8 and July 12. The center, known as Etidal, has been collaborating with
Telegram on preventing and countering terrorism and violent extremism by
reviewing online content posted in Arabic. Both organizations have agreed to
expand their coordination to detect and remove Arabic material glorifying
terrorism. Among items referred were media files — PDFs, videos, and audio —
uploaded by groups on Telegram and public Telegram channels hosting the
material. The cooperation agreement aims to protect the platform’s users from
extremist content, ideological influences, and attempts to exploit the platform
in trading the content. On Feb. 21, Etidal and Telegram announced a deal to
step up their joint cooperation on tackling the issue.”



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