“Israel on Thursday indicted a senior leader of the Iran-backed Islamic Jihad
movement whose arrest led to a brief conflict in Gaza earlier this month











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Eye on Extremism


August 26, 2022



Reuters: Israel Indicts Islamic Jihad Leader Whose Arrest Triggered Gaza
Violence
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“Israel on Thursday indicted a senior leader of the Iran-backed Islamic Jihad
movement whose arrest led to a brief conflict in Gaza earlier this month and
whose detention is likely to fuel tensions. The charges against Bassam
Al-Saadi, who was arrested on Aug. 1 during a raid in the occupied West Bank
city of Jenin, include serving in an illegal organization and incitement,
according to a statement from the Israeli military. Anticipating retaliation to
Al-Saadi's arrest, Israel launched what it called pre-emptive strikes against
his group in the Gaza Strip, where it is based, leading to three days of
Israeli air strikes and Palestinian rockets. He has been held in an Israeli
military prison. Al-Saadi, according to the military, is an “influential senior
official” in Islamic Jihad who it said worked on “core terrorist activities”
that include receiving funds from Gaza. An Islamic Jihad spokesman, Dawood
Shehab, said Israel was fabricating charges based on “misleading and unfounded
accusations”. Shehab said the group would ask Egypt and the United Nations to
intervene, and issued a veiled threat that it could respond with violence if
Al-Saadi was not released. “Reaching a dead end would give us the full right to
use other tracks and other options,” said Shehab.”



Associated Press: US Says Airstrikes In Syria Intended To Send Message To Iran
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“The Pentagon says U.S. military airstrikes in eastern Syria this week were a
message to Iran and Tehran-backed militias that targeted American troops this
month and several other times over the past year. Colin Kahl, the
undersecretary of defense for policy, told reporters on Wednesday that the U.S.
airstrikes overnight on facilities used by militias backed by Iran’s
paramilitary Revolutionary Guard demonstrated that “the United States will not
hesitate to defend itself against Iranian and Iran-backed aggression when it
occurs.” He said the U.S. decision to launch the strikes was based on both the
nature of the militia attacks on Aug. 15 at the al-Tanf Garrison, where U.S.
troops are based in the south, and the fact that, based on recovered drone
parts, “we believe we have Iran dead to rights on attribution.” Hours after the
U.S. strikes, two U.S. military locations in northeastern Syria near large oil
and gas fields were hit with rocket fire.”



Afghanistan



Reuters: Taliban Say They've Not Found Body Of Al Qaeda Leader
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“The Taliban have not found the body of Ayman al-Zawahiri and are continuing
investigations, group spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said on Thursday, after
the United States said they killed the al Qaeda leader in an airstrike in Kabul
last month. The United States killed Zawahiri with a missile fired from a drone
while he stood on a balcony at his hideout in July, U.S. officials said, in the
biggest blow to al Qaeda since U.S. Navy SEALS shot dead Osama bin Laden more
than a decade ago.”



Washington Examiner: Biden Administration Refuses To Identify Kabul Airport
Bomber Who Killed 13 Americans
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“One year after the deadly ISIS-K suicide bombing that killed 13 U.S. service
members at the Kabul airport, the Biden administration has not publicly
identified the bomber — despite numerous reports and anonymous officials saying
the attack was carried out by Abdul Rahman al Logari, who had been freed from
prison at the abandoned Bagram Airfield in August 2021 when the Taliban took
over Afghanistan. The attacker’s alleged identity is something of an open
secret in national security circles and on Capitol Hill, but the Biden
administration has continually refused to confirm that Logari was indeed the
bomber who killed 13 U.S. troops and wounded 45 more. The Aug. 26, 2021, attack
also killed nearly 200 Afghans and wounded dozens more as the United States led
evacuation operations at the Hamid Karzai International Airport with the
Taliban, including Haqqani Taliban faction forces, providing security outside
the airport. Logari is said to have previously been held at Parwan Detention
Facility, next to Bagram Air Base, but was subsequently released by the Taliban
when they took over Afghanistan in mid-August 2021 following a chaotic U.S.
withdrawal. The Taliban, the Haqqani network, and al Qaeda are deeply
intertwined in Afghanistan.”



Reuters: Afghan Female Journalist Struggles For Women 'Heroes' From Exile
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“It was when the Taliban came to arrest her and her brother in October that
Fawzia Saidzada, an Afghan journalist and women's rights activist, finally
decided it was time to flee. The 30-year-old managed to get out the next day
after promising the Taliban she would inform on other journalists and activists
- something she never did. Her brother was held for 15 days. "When the Taliban
came to power, we decided to fight against the Taliban," said Saidzada, who is
raising a 13-year-old son alone. "Our slogan was 'either freedom or death'."
But the episode taught her she would have to carry on her struggle for the
rights of girls and women from abroad. She arrived in Berlin six weeks ago
along with her son, mother, two brothers and one of the brother's families.
"Afghan women are heroes," she told Reuters TV. "Afghan women are courageous,
they are fighters who have faced war in the past four decades but have not lost
hope." Saidzada is one of thousands of Afghans who have settled in Germany
since U.S. President Joe Biden ordered the withdrawal of the U.S.-led forces
that for decades propped up the government in Kabul.”



Lebanon



Arab News: Rights Groups Condemn Hezbollah Threats Against Lebanese Journalists
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“Two leading international press freedom organizations have condemned recent
Hezbollah threats against Lebanese journalists Mohamad Barakat and Dima Sadek.
The Committee to Protect Journalists, and Reporters without Borders (RSF), said
writers in Lebanon should be allowed to express their opinions without their
safety being threatened. Barakat, managing editor of the news website Asas
Media, received threats in mid-August following an interview in which he
criticized a recent speech by Hassan Nasrallah, secretary-general of Hezbollah.
CPJ Middle East and North Africa program coordinator, Sherif Mansour, said:
“Lebanese authorities must ensure that journalists in the country can voice
their opinions and do their work freely, without fear of harassment or
intimidation. “Authorities should ensure the safety of journalist Mohamad
Barakat and employees of Al-Akhbar newspaper and make it clear that members of
the press should not be targeted with threats.” After the Barakat interview, an
anonymous Twitter account accused the journalist of inciting sedition, a post
which was later reshared by the Hezbollah chief’s son Jawad Nasrallah. The
tweet was followed by others describing Barakat as “garbage that needs to be
cleaned” and calling to silence him, saying his mouth needed to be “slammed”
shut.”



Nigeria



Premium Times Nigeria: Analysis: Can Nigeria Finance Its War Against
Insurgents?
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“Nigeria now spends more than it earns just to service its debt – a crisis
that raises serious concerns about the government’s ability to finance public
infrastructure, civil service salaries, education and healthcare. It also has
dire implications for the protracted war against the Boko Haram insurgency. The
finance ministry’s public revenue and expenditure performance report for
January to April 2022, released last month, shows that the federal government’s
retained revenue for that period was insufficient to service its debt.
According to the Economist Intelligence Unit, the 118.9 per cent debt
servicing-to-revenue ratio was the worst in the world. The causes of the
revenue crisis are varied. They include the government’s dependence on oil
exports since production boomed in the 1970s, external shocks such as COVID-19
and the Russia-Ukraine war, corruption and oil theft, and an economic structure
that’s incompatible with its rapidly growing population. Policy choices such as
the ongoing petroleum subsidy have exacerbated the situation. Nigeria has
struggled to overcome the Boko Haram threat since it turned violent in 2011.
Current conflict dynamics are even more worrying, with three active factions,
significant external support, and an expansionist drive that has widened the
geographical scope of the insurgency.”



Voice Of America: Cameroon, Nigeria Reopening Border Markets And Schools With
Boko Haram Threat Diminished
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“Governors from Cameroon and Nigeria plan to re-open markets and rebuild
schools along their shared border after declaring the area free of Boko Haram
militants. Babagana Umara Zulum, governor of Nigeria’s Borno state, said
President Muhammadu Buhari instructed governors of border states affected by
Boko Haram to work with neighboring countries to improve living conditions. He
said governors from Cameroon and Nigeria will reopen border markets and rebuild
schools in towns and villages where Boko Haram has been defeated. “We are doing
everything possible to ensure that the Banki market is reestablished,” Babagana
said. “The bringing of cattle from the Republic of Chad to Cameroon, to Nigeria
had stopped. My humble self and the governor will go and reopen the cattle
route from Gamboru-Ngala. It will improve the economy of Nigeria and improve
the economy of Cameroon. By September, we shall be going to Chad and Niger to
see how we can improve on our bilateral relationships.” Babagana spoke by a
messaging app from Maiduguri, capital of Nigeria's Borno state on Thursday
after meeting a delegation led by Midjiyawa Bakari, governor of Cameroon's Far
North Region.”



Germany



Associated Press: Germany: Man Tried For Grenade Attack On Civilians In Syria
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“A man has gone on trial in Germany accused of firing a rocket-propelled
grenade into a group of civilians in Syria eight years ago, killing at least
seven people. The defendant, identified only as Mouafak Al D. for privacy
reasons, appeared before a Berlin regional court on Thursday charged with war
crimes, seven counts of murder, three counts of attempted murder and three
counts of dangerous bodily harm. Federal prosecutors say the 55-year-old Syrian
fired an RPG at people lining up for food aid in the Yarmouk district of
Damascus, which is home to a large population of Palestinian refugees. In
addition to at least three deaths, the attack in 2014 wounded at least three
people including a 6-year-old child. The suspect is alleged to have been a
member of the Free Palestine Movement, and previously of the Popular Movement
for the Liberation of Palestine General Command. Between July 2013 and April
2015, the groups exerted control of the Yarmouk refugee camp on behalf of the
Syrian government. Prosecutors claim the defendant sought revenge for the
killing of his nephew two days earlier during a gun battle involving members of
the Free Syrian Army rebel group.”



Europe



Barron’s: Woman On Trial Over Rare 'Jihadist' Attack In Switzerland
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“In a rare case of alleged Islamist “terrorism” in Switzerland, a woman will
go on trial next week over a brutal knife attack on two shoppers at an upscale
department store. The woman, who cannot be named, allegedly tried to slit the
throats of two women shopping at the Manor store in Lugano, in Switzerland's
southern, Italian-speaking Ticino region on November 24, 2020. The defendant,
28 at the time, is suspected of committing a “jihadist knife attack” and had
“intended to kill her victims and to commit a terrorist act on behalf of IS”
(the Islamic State group), the attorney general's office said earlier this
year. When her trial opens at the Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona, near
Lugano, on Monday, she will face charges of attempted murder and violating laws
against association with Al-Qaeda, IS and related groups. On the day of the
attack, the woman is accused of having gone to Manor's kitchen supply division
on the fifth floor, picked out a large bread knife, and approached a random
woman standing nearby. Grabbing her from behind, the assailant plunged the
knife at least 10 centimetres (3.9 inches) into her throat, missing her main
carotid artery “by a few millimetres”, the indictment said.”



Australia



Daily Mail: Why An Islamic State Recruiter Who Sent Steamy Jailhouse Letters
To Her Gay Lover Dubbed The 'Tiny Terrorist' Will Be Released Back Into
Australia
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“A terrorist-sympathising woman who tried to recruit extremists to join
Islamic State and exchanged intense letters with her lover - Momena Shoma,
known as the 'tiny terrorist' - will be released from jail this week. Hadashah
Sa'Adat Khan tried to recruit an American teenager to join the terrorist
organisation when she was 18. In June this year she was jailed for
two-and-a-half years, but most of the sentence had already been served. A court
in 2021 heard Khan exchanged steamy jailhouse letters with Shoma, who is known
as the 'tiny terrorist', is serving decades in prison and even tried to stab
another inmate. 'I love you to infinity and beyond, I think about you all the
time,' the court heard she wrote in a letter to Shoma. The accused terror
supporter also referred to Shoma's jail sentence when she allegedly wrote: 'I
cried for you more than myself.' Shoma, 27, was jailed in 2019 for at least 31
years after she plunged a knife 3cm into her homestay host Roger Singaravelu's
neck while he slept alongside his five-year-old daughter in Melbourne on
February 9, 2018. Shoma, who shouted 'Allahu Akbar' - meaning 'God is great' -
during the stabbing, later told officers she travelled to Australia with
ambitions of attacking somebody in the name of ISIS.”



Southeast Asia



AFP: 'I Cannot Accept It': Bali Bomb Survivors Fume After Attacker's Term Cut
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“Almost two decades after the Bali bombings left Thiolina Ferawati Marpaung
with permanent eye injuries, news that one of the masterminds could be released
early has caused fresh trauma. Indonesia's latest reduction to Umar Patek's
prison sentence -- revealed last week by Australian Prime Minister Anthony
Albanese and confirmed by AFP -- means the bomber could be released on parole
before the island marks the 20th anniversary of the attacks in October. That is
a galling prospect for survivors of the attack, which killed 202 people,
including 88 Australians. “It is not that I don't respect other people's
rights, but he has hurt the survivors and families with his evil and inhumane
acts,” Marpaung told AFP by phone from Denpasar, the resort island's biggest
city. The smell of smoke triggers vivid memories of the blasts that sent shards
of broken glass tearing into her eyes, Marpaung said. Patek -- a member of an
Al Qaeda-affiliated group who was captured in the same Pakistani town where
Osama bin Laden was killed -- should be kept locked up, she said. “Please let
him serve what he deserves as a terror convict, not like a chicken thief whom
we can easily forgive,” the 47-year-old said. But Indonesia says Patek is
giving up his extremist beliefs after completing a deradicalisation programme.”



Technology



CBS News: Large Network Of Proud Boys Accounts Taken Down From Facebook,
Instagram
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“Facebook parent Meta says it has removed a network of accounts linked to the
Proud Boys, a far-right extremist group it banned in 2018. Meta said on
Thursday that it recently uncovered and removed about 480 Facebook and
Instagram accounts, pages and groups linked to the Proud Boys. That brought the
total number of Proud Boys assets it has removed to around 750 this year, it
said. Although the group has been banned from Meta's platforms, the company
said it has seen repeated attempts by its members at evading the ban. People
behind the efforts are not identifying themselves as Proud Boys openly,
creating front groups and using Facebook or Instagram to steer people to other,
less moderated platforms, it said. Such tactics are commonly used by extremist
groups and those spreading misinformation as they try to evade social media
companies' crackdowns. While the Proud Boys and other extremist groups have at
times found homes on smaller internet platforms that cater to right-wing
audiences, none come close to the reach of Meta's properties, where they can
recruit members more easily. The former leader of the Proud Boys and other
members of the group were charged this summer with attacking the U.S. Capitol
on Jan. 6, 2021 to stop Congress from certifying President Joe Biden's 2020
electoral victory.”



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