“The al-Shabab extremist group has exploited Ethiopia’s internal turmoil to
cross the border from neighboring Somalia in unprecedented attacks in rece











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Eye on Extremism


August 8, 2022



Associated Press: In A First, Somalia-Based Al-Shabab Is Attacking In Ethiopia
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“The al-Shabab extremist group has exploited Ethiopia’s internal turmoil to
cross the border from neighboring Somalia in unprecedented attacks in recent
weeks that a top U.S. military commander has warned could continue. The deadly
incursions into Ethiopia, Africa’s second most populous country and long seen
as an anchor of security in the Horn of Africa, are the latest sign of how
deeply the recent war in the northern Tigray region and other ethnic fighting
have made the country more vulnerable. Ethiopia has long resisted such
cross-border attacks by the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab, in part by deploying
troops inside Somalia, where the extremist group controls large rural parts of
the country’s southern and central regions. But the government of Prime
Minister Abiy Ahmed and its security forces have struggled with unrest at home
especially since the Tigray conflict began in late 2020. Experts say al-Shabab,
also emboldened by instability under Somalia’s previous administration, is
seizing the chance to expand its footprint and claim the killing of scores of
Ethiopian security forces. But the group is also feeling the pressure of a
renewed push by Somalia’s new government and the return of U.S. forces to the
country after their withdrawal by former President Donald Trump.”



The Wall Street Journal: Ericsson Sued By U.S. Terror Victims Over Alleged
Iraq Bribe Payments
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“Ericsson is being sued by hundreds of Americans who say the company’s
alleged payment of bribes to al Qaeda and Islamic State—protection money meant
to let it operate in Iraq—also helped fund acts of terror. The Stockholm-based
telecommunications company, which was sued Friday in federal court in
Washington D.C., faces claims from more than 500 U.S. service members and
civilians who were victims of terrorist attacks and hostage takings from 2005
to 2021, along with the families of those killed in attacks. They brought their
claims under the Antiterrorism Act of 1990, which allows victims of terrorism
to seek damages in U.S. courts, including against companies and individuals
that aid and abet terrorism. Ericsson said it would “zealously defend against”
the suit. “Any effort to connect Ericsson to the actions described in the
complaint will fail on the merits,” the company said. The terror victims
accused Ericsson of paying money to terrorist factions that controlled swaths
of Iraq, in a bid to stop them from hampering its business. The financing
ultimately aided a campaign of kidnapping, torture, bombing and murder, they
said. The company and its U.S. subsidiary “funded the terrorists to leave them
alone,” the victims said in their legal complaint.”



United States



CNN: The Oak Creek Massacre Signaled The Rise Of White Supremacist Violence.
But The Warnings Went Unheeded
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“No one in the Sikh community in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, could ever have
imagined the horror that would unfold on August 5, 2012. But when Pardeep Singh
Kaleka looks back on that tragedy, in which a White supremacist gunman killed
his father and six others at a Sikh gurdwara, he wonders if they should have
seen it coming. “There was a certain understanding that it could happen in
life, it could happen in the streets, and it could happen in different places
-- but not at a faith site while people pray on a Sunday,” he told CNN. “At the
same time, especially around the surrounding Milwaukee areas, there was a
heightened sense of political tension with the changing demographics.” When
Kaleka's family moved to Wisconsin from Punjab, India, in the '80s, they got
curious looks and questions about their turbans. Despite occasionally being
subjected to hate, Kaleka says, they mostly felt welcomed. After 9/11, that
curiosity turned to suspicion and prejudice and brown people across the country
were being targeted in racist attacks. Tensions simmered as more immigrants
moved in, and the gulf between Republicans and Democrats grew wider. The Oak
Creek shooting was a wake-up call -- a harbinger of the racist, extremist
violence that would again rear its head in other places like Charleston, South
Carolina; Pittsburgh; El Paso, Texas and Buffalo, New York.”



The Buffalo News: On Fringe Social Media Sites, Buffalo Mass Shooting Becomes
Rallying Call For White Supremacists
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“While most of the world reacted with horror to the racist May 14 massacre at
a Buffalo supermarket, one shadowy corner of the internet – the corner
frequented by the accused gunman in the lead-up to his attack – continues to
celebrate the murder of 10 Black people and goad each other to similar acts.
One meme, a mock-up of the front page of the New York Daily News, shows a photo
of Payton Gendron beside a series of bold-faced headlines, including “the mass
shooter we’ve been waiting for” and “could you be next?” Another image imposes
jokes over a still frame from the gunman's livestream of the attack, showing
the moment one woman was shot in the head. According to his online diary,
Payton Gendron and Cory Clark – the customer service lead for the Iowa-based
body armor manufacturer RMA Armament – interacted over a period of months on
both the public social media site Reddit and in a private chatroom for hardcore
weapons enthusiasts. The reaction does not surprise counterterrorism
researchers, who have repeatedly warned that a network of anonymous message
boards and encrypted messaging channels are incubating the next generation of
white supremacist terror. But the challenge, they say, is interrupting these
networks before they can inspire the next shooter.”



Syria



Reuters: Turkey-Russia To Act In Cooperation Against Terrorism In Syria
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“Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan
confirmed determination to act in cooperation against terror organisations in
Syria, according to a joint statement following their bilateral meeting. During
the four-hour meeting at the Black Sea resort of Sochi on Friday, the leaders
agreed to take steps to increase trade volumes and meet both parties'
expectations over economic and energy issues, according to the joint statement.”



Asharq Al-Awsat: ISIS Network Of Tunnels Found In Syria's Al-Hol Camp
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“The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (Rojava) has found a
network of trenches and tunnels under al-Hol camp, east of al-Hasakah. The
security sources said these trenches and tunnels were used by sleeper cells
loyal to the ISIS terrorist organization to smuggle persons and carry out
murders and assassination attempts. The ongoing investigations revealed that
the tunnel connects one of the camp sectors to the outer wall and from there to
the surrounding areas. A day earlier, the Rojava security forces thwarted a
mass escape through a truck designated for transporting construction materials.
The truck was transporting 39 children and 17 women from 56 ISIS families. The
camp witnessed 728 escape attempts since March 2020. A video recording inside
the camp showed how tunnels were dug with primitive tools, covered with metal
and wooden panels for camouflage, amid a group of tents inhabited by displaced
Syrians and Iraqi refugees. Escaping Incidents are on the rise in the camp,
which houses about 56,000, most of whom are displaced Syrians and Iraqi
refugees. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
records, 90 percent of the residents of al-Hol camp are women and children.”



Iran



Weekly Blitz: Al Qaeda Next Leader Saif Al-Adel Has Deep Ties To Iran
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“…Hans-Jakob Schindler, a senior director at the Counter Extremism Project,
which tracks jihadi groups, noted that Saif Al-Adel “has become very high
value” since Ayman Al-Zawahiri was killed, “and the Iranians usually take
advantage of such situations”. While Joe Biden and members of his
administration has been showing extreme softness towards Iran and even had
released billions of dollars of Iranian frozen cash, with Al Qaeda top dog Saif
Al-Adel’s presence in Iran, Biden may now need to reboot his Iran policy and in
addition to his nuclear negotiation with Tehran, he would need to ask Iran to
dismantle the massive base of Al Qaeda in that country. Although it is
anticipated that Iran will not pay heed to what Biden says or wants. Iran is
going to emerge as the new “home” to Al Qaeda activities.”



Afghanistan



The Washington Post: ISIS Targets Shiites In Afghanistan, Further Roiling
Taliban Rule
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“Rustam Haidery, 22, was watching a TikTok video in his bedroom Wednesday
morning when a bullet smashed into the window ledge above his head. Leaping up,
he saw uniformed Taliban forces setting up barricades in the street below. From
a 12-story apartment building on the next block, he thought he heard someone
crying for help. Soon, heavily armed men were knocking on neighbors’ doors,
charging up stairs, and taking up positions on nearby balconies and rooftops.
Gunfire was coming from several directions. Haidery and his family decided to
flee and soon found themselves in a stream of residents hurrying away from the
danger. “The children were scared, but the police escorted us out of the area
until we could find a car,” Haidery said Thursday morning, soon after the
family returned home. He recalled hearing as a child that the Taliban
extremists, who held power from 1996 to 2001, were bullies and killers. This
time, he said, they seemed different. “They are in charge of the government,
and they know they have to protect people.” The battle raging that day, which
would stretch to more than seven hours, was a high-stakes confrontation between
Taliban forces and a group of commandos from the Islamic State, a rival Sunni
Muslim militia that views Shiites as apostates.”



CNN: Despite Al-Zawahiri Strike, US Officials Are Concerned About Tracking
Terrorism Threats In Afghanistan
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“Shortly before the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Defense Department
created a task force responsible for handling counterterrorism strikes inside
the country after American troops had left -- a so-called “over the horizon”
strategy that officials promised would keep Afghanistan from once again
becoming a safe haven for terror groups like al Qaeda and ISIS to flourish.
More than a year after the creation of that task force, sources say it hasn't
sent a single proposed target to the Pentagon for approval -- largely because
without a presence on the ground, it hasn't been able to build enough
intelligence on targets to meet the administration's standards for avoiding
civilian casualties. The White House has hailed the CIA operation that killed
al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in Kabul on Saturday as evidence that using
over the horizon counterterrorism capabilities in Afghanistan has been
effective. Current and former officials say the successful Zawahiri strike
certainly proves that with the right intelligence, the US is perfectly capable
of tackling a specific target from afar -- but those same sources also said
that Zawahiri, a single, high-value target long in the CIA's crosshairs, was a
special case that doesn't alone prove the effectiveness of the strategy.”



Voice Of America: Islamic State Bombing Kills 8 Afghan Shiite Mourners In Kabul

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“A powerful bomb exploded Friday near a Shiite Muslim religious gathering in
Kabul, Afghanistan, killing at least eight civilians and wounding 18 others.
The regional branch of the self-proclaimed Islamic State terrorist group took
responsibility for the attack. Eyewitnesses said members of the minority group,
including women and children, were busy with annual mourning rituals in a
Shiite-dominated western neighborhood of the Afghan capital when the blast
struck. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid on Twitter confirmed the casualty
toll, saying the bomb was planted in a pushcart and all of the victims were
“innocent civilians.” The government “strongly condemns this cowardly act,”
Mujahid said, adding that the attack was the work of “the enemies of Islam” and
Afghanistan. He did not elaborate. The Afghan branch of Islamic State, known as
Islamic State Khorasan Province or ISIS-K, claimed credit for plotting the
deadly bombing and said it had killed and wounded 20 people. On Wednesday,
Taliban security forces raided an “important” ISIS-K cell in the Afghan
capital, killing four militants and capturing another alive in the ensuing
gunfight. Mujahid said in a post-raid statement that the militants were
“planning to attack our Shiite compatriots during ongoing Muharram rituals.”



Pakistan



Associated Press: Gunmen Kill 4 In Attack Targeting Lawmaker In NW Pakistan
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“Gunmen shot dead four people including two police in northwestern Pakistan
in an attack targeting a provincial lawmaker from former Prime Minister Imran
Khan's political party, police said. Lawmaker Malik Liaqat Khan — no relation
to Imran Khan — of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party was wounded in the attack
late Saturday along with three others and was hospitalized in the provincial
capital of Peshawar, police said. No one immediately claimed responsibility for
the attack. The assault took place in the Maidan area of the Lower Dir district
of conservative Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which is governed by Khan’s party.
Police officer Zar Badshah said among those killed were the nephew and brother
of the PTI lawmaker, who was returning home after attending a funeral late
Saturday. The area has been a stronghold of late religious leader Sufi
Mohammad, who preached a strict version of Islam in the 1990s and later led his
followers in fighting in Afghanistan against the U.S. and allied forces. It
remained under the influence of the Pakistani Taliban until 2009.”



Middle East



Reuters: Palestinian Islamic Jihad Group Confirms Killing Of A Senior
Commander In Gaza
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“The Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement (PIJ) on Sunday confirmed the killing
of one of its senior armed commanders in an Israeli air strike on the Gaza
Strip. “Al-Quds Brigades (Jerusalem Brigades) mourns the leader Khaled Mansour,
member of the security council and the commander of the southern region (of
Gaza Strip) who was martyred as a result of an Israeli air strike yesterday
(Saturday),” the group said in a statement. Al-Quds Brigades is the armed wing
of the group.”



CBS News: Ceasefire Begins Between Israel And Palestinian Militants After
3-Day Conflict
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“A cease-fire between Israel and Palestinian militants took effect late
Sunday in a bid to end nearly three days of violence that killed dozens of
Palestinians and disrupted the lives of hundreds of thousands of Israelis. The
flare-up was the worst fighting between Israel and Gaza militant groups since
Israel and Hamas fought an 11-day war last year, and adds to the destruction
and misery that have plagued blockaded Gaza for years. The Egyptian-brokered
cease-fire took effect at 11:30 p.m. (2030 GMT; 4:30 p.m. ET). Israeli strikes
and militant rockets continued in the minutes leading up to the beginning of
the truce, and Israel said it would “respond strongly” if the cease-fire was
violated. Israeli aircraft have pummeled targets in Gaza since Friday, while
the Iran-backed Palestinian Jihad militant group has fired hundreds of rockets
at Israel in response. The risk of the cross-border fighting turning into a
full-fledged war remained as long as no truce was reached. Israel says some of
the dead were killed by misfired rockets. Rockets are launched from Gaza
towards Israel, over Gaza City, Sunday, Aug. 7, 2022. Israel said Sunday it
killed a senior Islamic Jihad commander in a crowded Gaza refugee camp, the
second such targeted attack since launching its high-stakes military offensive
against the militant group just before the weekend.”



Israel 365: With Al-Zawahiri’s Assassination, It’s Groundhog Day For America
(Again)
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“…According to Dr. Hans-Jakob Schindler, senior director of the Counter
Extremism Project and former coordinator of the United Nations Security
Council’s ISIL, Al-Qaeda and Taliban Sanctions Monitoring Team, al Zawahiri is
most likely to be succeeded by a potentially even bolder operative, Saif al
Adel, who is currently being harbored by Iran and can easily move to
Afghanistan. The United States has now returned to the point at which it all
started: the axis between the Taliban and Al-Qaeda that led to 9/11 and put
troops into Afghanistan in the first place. Yet the Americans still don’t see
it. Batting away concerns that Al-Qaeda was now back in Afghanistan, the
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby insisted that the terrorist
group’s leaders would now “think again” about hiding out in Kabul.”



As The Dust Settles On Ayman Al-Zawahiri’s Killing In Kabul, al-Qa’ida Are
More Dangerous Than Ever | Independent.ie
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"We should not be lulled into celebratory complacency. A week on from the
killing of Ayman al-Zawahiri, al-Qa’ida’s erstwhile leader and operational
mastermind, the group is likely to prove a more imminent threat than at any
point in the decade of his tenure in charge. Much attention has focused on
al-Zawahiri’s likely successor and current al-Qa’ida military chief Saif
al-Adl. He is a younger, bolder and more operationally focused terrorist
operative, whose experience as an intelligence and security leader will make
him an extremely dangerous emir."



Nigeria



AFP: Gunmen Kill Five In Central Nigeria: Police
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“Gunmen have killed five people, including one Indian, in Nigeria's Kogi
state, police said Saturday, with the region wracked by jihadist and gang
violence. The attackers opened fire on a bus in the industrial town of Ajaokuta
late Friday, killing one Indian, two drivers and two police escorts, state
police spokesman William Ovye Aya said in a statement. “One expatriate, two
company drivers and two police inspectors died in the exchange of fire,” Aya
said, adding that the foreigner was an Indian employee of a ceramics company in
the town. Aya had earlier said six people, including two Indians were killed in
the incident. He described the gunmen as “hoodlums”, a term used by the police
for criminals and jihadists. They fled before police reinforcements arrived on
the scene, but police were on their trail, he said. Security had been stepped
up to “restore normalcy in the area”. No group has claimed responsibility for
the attack, but Kogi has seen an uptick in violence in recent months. Last
month, gunmen killed three policemen and five vigilantes in an ambush in the
central state's Ajaokuta area, prompting the state governor to suspend a local
chief and question the district's political administrator.”



Africa



Associated Press: Sudan Accuses Chad Of Cross-Border Attack It Says Killed 18
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“Sudan has accused neighboring Chad of a cross-border attack earlier this
week that a top commander says killed at least 18 nomads in Sudan’s western
Darfur region. According to Sudan’s ruling sovereign council, armed Chadian
assailants crossed into West Darfur province and attacked a group of nomads
staying in an open area near the border towns of Beir Saliba and Ardeiba last
Thursday. Apart from those killed, several nomads were also wounded in the
attack and their livestock was looted and taken to Chad, the council said
Friday. There was no immediate comment from Chad on the accusations. A Sudanese
outlet, Darfur 24 news, reported a minor clash Friday between Chadian and
Sudanese forces in the area, saying three Sudanese troops were wounded. Senior
Sudanese Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, the deputy head of the sovereign council,
had travelled to Chad before the attack for a previously scheduled meeting
Thursday with Chad’s acting president and head of the country’s ruling
transitional military council, Mahamat Idriss Deby. He then returned to Darfur
where he has resided for weeks to help defuse tribal tensions and violence that
has rocked the troubled region in recent months.”



Reuters: Suspected Islamists Kill 20 In East Congo Village Attacks
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“Suspected Islamist militants killed around 20 people in attacks on two
villages in eastern Congo over the weekend, the army and a local human rights
group said on Sunday. Fighters believed to be from the Allied Democratic Forces
(ADF) killed residents and burned down houses in Kandoyi and Bandiboli villages
in Ituri province late on Friday and early on Saturday, said Christophe
Munyanderu, coordinator of the local group Convention for the Respect of Human
Rights (CRDH). The Congolese army spokesperson in Ituri, Jules Ngongo,
confirmed about 20 deaths, and said Congolese forces were in pursuit of the
assailants. “It's too hard for me - when I saw the bodies, their throats had
been cut,” said Alice Kyanga, whose parents were among those killed at their
homes on Saturday. The ADF is a Ugandan militia that moved to eastern Congo in
the 1990s. The group was responsible for 1,050 violent deaths in 2021, up from
599 in 2020, according to data from Kivu Security Tracker, which maps violence
in the area. Security has deteriorated in Ituri and neighbouring North Kivu
province since the government placed them under military rule last year, U.N.
experts said in June. The government declared a state of siege in the provinces
in April 2021 in response to escalating attacks by militias, including repeated
massacres by the ADF, which has links to Islamic State.”



Reuters: Militants Kill 13 In Attack On Burkina Faso Counter-Terrorism
Operation
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“Islamist militants killed four soldiers and nine civilian army volunteers
when they ambushed a counter-terrorist operation in northern Burkina Faso on
Thursday, the army said in a statement. The troops, who were attacked in the
centre-north province of Bam, fired back in retaliation and killed at least 34
assailants, it added. Burkina Faso has been battling Islamist militants active
in northern regions, some with links to al Qaeda and Islamic State, since 2015.
The fighting has displaced more than 1.85 million people in the West African
country alone and killed thousands across the Sahel, where militant activity
that took root in Mali has spread over the past decade. Army officers angry
about the escalating attacks overthrew Burkina Faso's president in January and
vowed to improve security, but levels of violence have remained high.
Authorities in June ordered civilians to evacuate two large areas in its
northern and southeastern regions ahead of anticipated operations against
Islamist militants. The army this month said it had accidentally killed
civilians during a counter-terrorist operation near the evacuated zones.”



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