Eye on Extremism
August 8, 2022
Associated Press: In A First, Somalia-Based Al-Shabab Is Attacking In Ethiopia
“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
“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
“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
“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
“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
“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
“…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
“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
“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
“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
“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
“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
“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)
“…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
"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
“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
“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
“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
“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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