Eye on Extremism
January 8, 2020
The
New York Times: Iran Strikes U.S. Forces At 2 Bases In Iraq, Saying
‘Fierce Revenge’ Has Begun
“Iran attacked two bases in Iraq where Americans operate with a
barrage of missiles early Wednesday, Iranian official news media and
United States officials said, the start of what Tehran had promised
would be retaliation for the killing of a top Iranian commander. “The
fierce revenge by the Revolutionary Guards has begun,” the Islamic
Revolutionary Guards Corps said in a statement on a Telegram messaging
app channel. American officials in Washington said that Iran had fired
more than a dozen ballistic missiles at two military bases in Iraq
where American troops are stationed. The Pentagon said it was
assessing whether any American troops had been killed or injured in
the strikes. There were no immediate reports of American casualties.
After the strikes, President Trump, who has vowed a strong response to
any Iranian attack on American targets, met at the White House with
his top national security advisers, including Defense Secretary Mark
T. Esper and Gen. Mark A. Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff, to discuss retaliatory options.”
CBS
News: Iran's Parliament Approves Bill Designating All U.S. Military
Forces As Terrorists
“The Iranian parliament approved bill on Tuesday that designates
United States military forces as terrorists, days after American
airstrikes killed top Iranian military leader General Qassem Soleimani
in Iraq. The bill is similar to the action the U.S. took last year
when the Trump administration designated Iran's Islamic Revolutionary
Guard Corps (IRGC) as a foreign terrorist organization. Members of
parliament passed the bill declaring the U.S. military and the
Pentagon terrorist entities, according to Iranian state media. Under
the bill, the Iranian government will also provide $220 million to the
IRGC to “reinforce its defense power in vengeance for General
Soleimani's assassination,” the news agency reported, as tensions
between the U.S. and Iran rise. A senior U.S. official told CBS News
national security correspondent David Martin that Iran's Supreme
Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has ordered a direct attack on American
interests in retaliation for the airstrike that killed Soleimani, his
top military commander and friend. The official said the U.S. military
was “extremely concerned” that the retaliation could come
quickly.”
The
National: Nigeria Bridge Bomb Kills 30
“At least 30 people were killed in the north-east Nigerian state of
Borno after an improvised explosive device detonated on a bridge. The
bomb detonated at roughly 5 pm local time on Monday on a crowded
bridge in the market town of Gamboru that leads into neighbouring
Cameroon. Witnesses in the market town said more than 35 injured
people were taken to the local hospital following the attack. “It is
an unfortunate day for us to witness this frustrating and devastating
incident in our community,” eyewitness Modu Ali Said told Reuters. “I
just heard a loud sound of explosions, before I realized I saw many of
our friends and colleagues were killed,” Said added. Two sources with
the Civilian Joint Task Force, a group of citizens formed to fight
Boko Haram, confirmed the attack and the early death toll estimates.
No group immediately took responsibility. Both Boko Haram and the
regional offshoot of ISIS, known as ISWAP, are active in the area.
Militant groups have targeted Gamboru numerous times since 2014 when
Boko Haram seized the town and nearby Ngala. But, the Nigerian
military were able to recapture the city after a long siege with the
help of soldiers from Chad. The Boko Haram insurgency has killed more
than 35,000 people and displaced more than 2 million in the
area.”
United States
The
Washington Post: How Anti-Terrorism Laws Equip Law Enforcement To
Crack Down On Iranian Americans
“That the killing of Iranian Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani will reorder
the Middle East is obvious — Iraq’s parliamentary vote to expel U.S.
forces, along with Iran’s declared restarting of its nuclear arms
program with “no limitations,” offers proof enough. But that the
killing will have repercussions within the United States, rattling the
lives and liberties of many U.S. citizens and residents, is also a
strong possibility — one that’s no less ominous. Already, there are
harbingers of a potential crackdown on Iranian Americans. On Sunday,
U.S. citizens of Iranian origin returning to the United States from
Canada via the Peace Arch Border Crossing in Blaine, Wash., were
detained and questioned for up to 10 hours. Asked why, one was told by
a border official, “This is a bad time to be an Iranian,” according to
an official with the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) who
had talked with the travelers. How “bad” might it get if hostilities
with Iran accelerate? The legal foundations for punitive action
against Iranian Americans already exist. Since 2001, the executive
branch has stockpiled arguments for abrogating the liberties of
“suspect” populations. In response, Congress and the courts have
competed over which can be more quiescent.”
KXAN:
Gov. Abbott Convenes Domestic Terrorism Task Force For Second
Time
“Gov. Greg Abbott’s task force focusing on domestic terrorism in
Texas convened for the second time on Tuesday. The group was formed in
the wake of the mass-shooting in El Paso, but Gov. Abbott said the
task force has broader implications. “One thing that was a catalyst
for the creation of this organization, was the horrific shooting and
terrorism that took place in El Paso” Abbott said Tuesday. “But we all
need to understand that terrorism evolves.” The main goals of the task
force are to analyze current and emerging threats in the state, as
well as finding ways to increase inter-agency cooperation. While the
task force focuses on terrorism at home, state leaders recognized
those evolving threats could be born overseas. The Texas Department of
Information Resources reported 10,000 attempted cyber attacks per
minute in the last two days, which have been geographically traced to
within Iran’s borders, according to the agency’s executive director.
“We have noticed that there has been some sort of increase in activity
from that region,” Texas DIR Executive Director Amanda Crawford said,
adding that none of those scans had been successful. Crawford
explained the agency sees “literally billions of probes” from around
the globe, but the spike in Middle Eastern activity garnered attention
from agency leaders.”
Iran
The
New York Times: Killing Of Iran General Risks US Gains Against Islamic
State
“President Donald Trump's national security team knew that killing
Iran's most powerful general could hurt efforts to mop up and head off
any revival of the Islamic State militant group — and that is just
what has happened. Two days after Gen. Qassem Soleimani was killed in
a U.S. drone strike in Baghdad, the U.S. troops in Iraq to fight the
Islamic State are now focused on their own defense, guarding American
bases and the U.S. Embassy from an expected Iranian response. The
fight against the militants is now on hold, and a Trump foreign policy
achievement is in doubt. “When we looked at this operation we knew
there would be consequences,” said Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the
Joint Chiefs of Staff. “We knew there'd be risk.” But he said the
threat of attack on U.S. interests was too great to not act. The
Islamic State evolved in Syria after U.S. troops withdrew from Iraq in
2011; its fighters swept back across the border in 2014, captured wide
swaths of western and northern Iraq and imposed brutal rule over a
self-declared “caliphate.” A U.S.-led coalition finally ousted the
group from the last of its territory in Syria in March 2019, but
thousands of fighters scattered throughout the region and continue to
pose a threat.”
Washington
Examiner: Iran Threatens To 'Unleash Hezbollah' In Israel And
Dubai
“Iran has threatened to unleash a third wave of attacks in Haifa,
Israel, and Dubai, United Arab Emirates, if the United States
retaliates after ballistic missiles hit an Iraqi-U.S. coalition
military base in western Iraq. “Iran is warning that if there is
retaliation for the two waves of attacks they launched their 3rd wave
will destroy Dubai and Haifa,” tweeted NBC News Tehran bureau chief
Ali Arouzi. “Iran making threats of mass escalation,” wrote NBC
foreign chief correspondent Richard Engel. “To attack more bases in
Iraq. To unleash Hezbollah. To unleash shiite militias in Iraq. To
attack Israel and Dubai. Making it clear it is ready for a
[widespread] campaign if this escalates further with a US response.”
Iran claimed responsibility for the attacks in a statement that read:
“The brave soldiers of IRGC's aerospace unit have launched a
successful attack with tens of ballistic missiles on Al Assad military
base in the name of martyr Gen. Qassem Soleimani.” Iran's Supreme
Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed “revenge” for the death of
Soleimani, a top Iranian military general, and Iraqi militia leader
Abu Mahdi al Muhandis, who were killed in an airstrike ordered by
President Trump days after the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad was encircled
by Iran-backed militants chanting “Death to America.”
Iraq
The
Washington Post: Europeans Shift Troops From Iraq, Warn Fight Against
Islamic State Is Imperiled Because Of U.S. Actions
“U.S. allies said Tuesday that they were reducing and repositioning
troops inside Iraq amid fears that Iran will retaliate for the killing
of Qasem Soleimani, one of its most senior military officials, in a
U.S. airstrike. Some European diplomats expressed fears that the
shifting of troops would diminish their ability to fight the Islamic
State. Militants “would be the only winners” of a full-blown war as a
result of U.S.-Iran tensions, British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab
said Tuesday, singling out the Islamic State as having the most to
gain. Germany ordered 35 service members out of Iraq, according to a
German military spokesman, while an international NATO training force
moved more than half of its international group of 500 personnel away
from the Baghdad area to safer sites inside Iraq and in neighboring
countries, said a senior NATO diplomat, speaking on the condition of
anonymity to discuss confidential troop movements. NATO Secretary
General Jens Stoltenberg spoke Tuesday to Iraqi Prime Minister Adel
Abdul Mahdi, according to NATO spokesman Piers Cazalet.”
Yahoo
News: U.S. Pullout From Iraq Would Benefit Iran — And ISIS — Experts
Warn
“As the Iraqi and U.S. governments sent contradictory messages
Tuesday about whether and when U.S. troops would be pulling out of
Iraq, and the Pentagon reported the launch of “more than a dozen
ballistic missiles” from Iran targeting U.S. forces, retired military
officers familiar with the region said the only winners from an
American withdrawal would be Iran and the Islamic State. The Iraqi
Parliament voted in a nonbinding resolution Sunday to expel U.S.
forces from the country. On Monday, a draft letter from the commander
of U.S. forces in Iraq to the Iraqi government implying that the U.S.
military was preparing to withdraw circulated widely online, forcing
Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Gen. Mark Milley to disavow it as a “mistake.” Esper told CNN Tuesday
that the United States was “not withdrawing from Iraq,” but Iraqi
Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi said he had taken the letter seriously
and that a U.S. withdrawal was now the only option to deescalate the
situation. A few hours later, at around 5:30 p.m. EST, the barrage of
missiles began landing at two coalition military bases. There was no
immediate assessment of casualties or damage.”
Asharq
Al-Awsat: Anti-ISIS Coalition Countries Relocate Troops From Iraq
After Iran Tensions
“Several member states of the anti-ISIS coalition announced Tuesday
that they would be relocating their troops from Iraq following
tensions with Iran over Washington’s killing last week of top Iranian
commander Qassem Soleimani. Tehran has vowed to retaliate. Canada's
top general says his country's military is temporarily relocating some
soldiers from Iraq to Kuwait. Gen. Jonathan Vance made the
announcement Tuesday. Western troops in Iraq have been on high alert
since Soleimani killing by a US drone strike last week in Baghdad.
Canada has about 500 soldiers in Iraq to help fight the ISIS group.
Canada currently leads the NATO training mission in Iraq. Britain's
defense secretary said urgent measures are being taken to protect
British interests in the Middle East. Ben Wallace said that the
British government is looking at the implications of the vote in the
Iraqi parliament that called for foreign troops to pullout of the
country after the US strike against Soleimani. He told lawmakers: “Our
commitment to Iraq's stability and sovereignty is unwavering and we
urge the Iraqi government to ensure the coalition is able to continue
our work countering this shared threat,” he said in reference to
ISIS.”
Afghanistan
Voice
Of America: Afghan Peace Talks At Risk Amid Rising US-Iran
Confrontation
“The escalation between the United States and Iran over the killing
of an Iranian commander now has sparked deep concerns about prospects
for the peace process in Afghanistan, with officials and experts
warning that Iran could collaborate with the Taliban to thwart
American efforts in the war-torn country. U.S. Secretary of State Mike
Pompeo accused Iran Tuesday of attempting to build proxy networks in
Afghanistan, asserting that Iran is trying to coordinate with the
Taliban and its offshoot, the Haqqani network. “Iran has refused to
join the regional and international consensus for peace, and is, in
fact, actively working to undermine the peace process by continuing
its long global effort to support militant groups there,” Pompeo said
during his opening remarks at a rare State Department news conference.
The top U.S. diplomat warned that the “Taliban's entanglement in
Iran's dirty work will only harm the Afghanistan peace process.” VOA
reached out to Afghan officials who declined to comment on Pompeo's
statement, citing the sensitivity of the issue. Experts in both Kabul
and Washington concur that Iran is likely to increase its outreach to
the Taliban as part of its effort to retaliate against the U.S. for
targeting Qassem Soleimani, commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary
Guard Corps-Quds Force (IRGC-QF) in an airstrike last week.”
Xinhua:
Over 100 Afghan Militants Surrender Within 2 Days Amid
Clamp-Down
“More than 100 militants have surrendered to Afghan government
forces over the past two days amid increasing military pressure on the
Taliban, officials said Tuesday. A 20-member group of the Taliban
fighters has laid down arms and surrendered to local authorities in
the eastern Nangarhar province, said a statement of the provincial
government. The former militants who were involved in anti-government
activities in the restive Khogiani, Chaparhar and Momandara districts
over the past couple of years, according to the statement, have handed
over their weapons to local authorities. Welcoming the surrender and
stressing for continued military pressure, Nangarhar's provincial
governor Shah Mahmoud Miakhil called upon other Taliban fighters to
follow the step. Meanwhile, 69 militants have surrendered to Afghan
government forces in the western Ghor province, amid ongoing military
pressure against the armed militants in the mountainous region,
provincial governor Ghulam Nasir Khaze said Tuesday. “The security
forces have besieged some 300 armed militants in Shahrak district over
the past one week and 69 of them surrendered to the security forces on
Monday evening,” Khaze told Xinhua.”
Xinhua:
16 Militants Killed In Afghan Provinces Within A Day:
Gov't
“Sixteen Taliban militants were killed and six others wounded in
five provinces since early Tuesday, the country's defense ministry
confirmed on Wednesday. In southern Helmand province, five militants
were killed after the Afghan Air Force targeted Taliban positions in
Shir Mohammad Khan village of Garmser district and Shir Kali village
in Khanshen district, the ministry said in a statement. In addition,
two Taliban militants were killed and five others wounded in a
responsive attack by the Afghan National Army (ANA) in Sangin district
of Helmand, according to the statement. “Two Taliban terrorists were
killed and one explosive-laden vehicle was destroyed in Khakrez
district of southern Kandahar province following an airstrike by air
force,” the statement added. In western Herat province, an airstrike
killed two Taliban militants and destroyed an explosive depot and a
motorcycle in Chishti Sharif district. Furthermore, five Taliban
militants were killed and one injured following a cleanup operation in
Naw Gholi Paheen village of Almar district of northern Faryab
province, the statement said, adding several villages were cleared of
militants.”
Pakistan
The
New York Times: Bomb Hits Security Forces In SW Pakistan; 2 Dead, 12
Wounded
“A powerful roadside bomb exploded near a vehicle carrying
Pakistani security forces, killing two soldiers in the southwestern
city of Quetta, the capital of the restive Baluchistan province, a
police official said Tuesday. The bombing wounded 12 people, including
security forces, said local police chief Abdul Wali. He said some of
the wounded were in critical condition at local hospitals. Hizbul
Ahrar, an offshoot of the Pakistani Taliban, claimed responsibility
for the attack. Both Sunni and Shiite Muslim militia groups operate in
the area. Sectarian violence, mostly targeting Pakistan’s minority
Shiite Muslims, has left hundreds dead in recent years in Baluchistan.
The province is also the scene of a low-level insurgency by
separatists demanding more autonomy and a greater share in the
region's natural resources such as gas and oil. The province shares a
long border with Afghanistan and Iran. Last May, a bombing at a mosque
in Quetta killed two people, including the prayer leader, and wounded
28 worshipers.”
Yemen
Asharq
Al-Awsat: US-Yemeni Talks Held On Houthi Violations,
Counterterrorism
“Yemeni-US talks focused on Houthis and counterterrorism were held
on Monday with official sources confirming that Yemeni Vice President
Ali Mohsen Al-Ahmar had met US Deputy Chief of Mission for Yemen
Junaid Munir. The two officials, according to sources, have discussed
counterterrorism, Houthi violations and the Riyadh Agreement, which
brings together Yemen’s internationally-backed government and the
Southern Transitional Council (STC). “During the meeting, Ahmar
pointed out major successes achieved in the field of combating
terrorism and how it positively reflects on the stability of Yemen and
the region,” sources said. In the meeting, Ahmar stressed that “the
forceful export of Iranian Khomeinist revolution ideologically,
politically, militarily and culturally, brought about scourges to the
region, created terrorism represented by (ISIS) and (Al Qaeda),
provided justifications for external interventions, and spread ruin
and destruction in the region.” Addressing the Riyadh Agreement, Ahmar
said: “The Yemeni government is keen on uniting all of Yemen’s
political components under the leadership of President Abdrabbuh
Mansur Hadi and focusing the fight against the Houthi-Iranian
terrorist agenda in Yemen.”
Libya
The
New York Times: Libya Rebels Capture Key Coastal City In Threat To
U.N.-Backed Government
“Libyan rebels have seized control of a key coastal city, the
country’s beleaguered government conceded on Tuesday, amid new
criticism that the growing role of foreign powers in the chaotic
conflict has fueled a sudden escalation in fighting. Forces loyal to
the militia leader Khalifa Hifter swept into the city, Surt, on
Monday, days after Turkey announced it was deploying troops to prop up
the weak United Nations-backed government. The fall of Surt is a
significant blow to the government, which has been under siege from
Mr. Hifter’s forces since April. In 2016, American warplanes carried
out hundreds of airstrikes against Islamic State fighters in Surt, in
support of a government force that eventually expelled the group from
the city. Now that the government has relinquished that gain, this
time to Mr. Hifter’s forces, its authority has shrunk to a 250-mile
strip of coastline stretching from either side of the capital,
Tripoli. If Mr. Hifter can hold Surt, analysts say, his forces could
stretch government forces even thinner by drawing fighters away from
the defense of Tripoli. Mr. Hifter, 76, commands his self-styled
Libyan National Army from his stronghold in Benghazi, in eastern
Libyan."
Nigeria
Sahara
Reporters: Boko Haram Insurgents Ambush Operation Lafiya Dole
Commander In Borno
“Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, Major Gen. Olusegun
Adeniyi, survived an ambush by Boko Haram terrorists along
Maiduguri-Damaturu Road on Monday evening, a military source said It
was gathered that Adeniyi was on his way back to Maiduguri, Borno
State, after a visit to troops recently deployed to Jakana to protect
lives and property when the attack happened. The incident occurred few
kilometres away from Jakana around 7:20 pm on Monday in Konduga Local
Government Area of the state. The source said, “As we were coming back
to Maiduguri after we left Jakana, suddenly we started hearing
gunshots all over the place and before we realised what was happening,
they had bombarded us with heavy fire from a different angle.
“Fortunately, we fought through our way and repelled the insurgents
but the theatre commandant’s vehicle was badly damaged.”
Somalia
France
24: Car Bomb Kills At Least Four Near Somalia's Parliament In
Mogadishu
“At least four people were killed and 10 wounded when a car bomb
exploded close to a checkpoint near Somalia's parliament in the
capital Mogadishu on Wednesday, police said. A plume of thick black
smoke was seen over the city and witnesses said a number of vehicles
were on fire. Islamist group al Shabaab claimed the attack, after a
spike in activity in recent days by the al Qaeda linked group which
has seen it inflict mass casualties in Somalia and attack a US
military base in Kenya. “Explosives were packed in a vehicle which the
security forces think was trying to pass through the checkpoint but
because he could not do that, the suicide bomber detonated it,” said
police officer Adan Abdullahi. “Initial reports we have received
indicate four people were killed and more than 10 others were wounded
in the blast.” Abdirahman Mohamed, who was at a nearby grocery store
when the blast occurred, said he saw several dead bodies. “I saw the
dead bodies of several people some of them killed by shrapnel inside
their vehicles. There was chaos...and ambulances reached the scene
soon after the blast,” he said.”
Africa
The
Washington Post: Who Are The Al-Shabaab Militants Plaguing
Kenya?
“The Islamic militant group al-Shabaab, based in Somalia, has
carried out a string of attacks on Kenyan soil. An American soldier
and two U.S. defense contractors were killed in a Jan. 5 assault on a
defense facility Kenya shares with the U.S. One year earlier, the
group claimed responsibility for a coordinated attack on a hotel and
office complex in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, that left 26 people,
including five attackers, dead. Al-Shabaab warns that attacks will
continue as long as Kenya maintains its soldiers in an African Union
force that is helping prop up Somalia’s government. What is
al-Shabaab? It’s an affiliate of al-Qaeda that grew in reaction to
Ethiopia’s 2006 invasion of Somalia, which targeted the Islamic Courts
Union’s brief control of the Somali capital, Mogadishu. The group
swore allegiance to al-Qaeda in 2012 and has vied with Islamic State
for members and support. The group’s most violent operations include a
2015 raid on a university campus that claimed at least 147 lives and
an assault on Nairobi’s Westgate shopping mall in 2013, which killed
67. Besides having staged more than 150 attacks in Kenya since the
country intervened in Somalia, its members have carried out bombings
in Uganda and Djibouti, which have also contributed personnel to the
African mission.”
Chicago
Tribune: Editorial: A Chicago-Area Soldier’s Death In Kenya Reminds Us
Why The U.S. Fights Terrorism
“With the Middle East consuming Americans’ short attention span for
global affairs, it’s easy to lose sight of how vast our U.S. military
presence is, with nearly 800 bases around the world. Henry “Mitch”
Mayfield Jr., a 23-year-old Army specialist from south suburban Hazel
Crest, was stationed at one of those bases — the Manda Bay airfield on
a remote island in Kenya’s Lamu County, about 60 miles down the coast
from the border with Somalia. Mayfield was killed early Sunday in an
attack on the base by al-Shabab, a Somali extremist group affiliated
with al-Qaida. Two unidentified U.S. contractors also were killed, and
two other Americans were injured in the attack on the base, which is
also used by Kenyan forces. The attack came just days after a U.S.
drone strike killed Iranian military commander Maj. Gen. Qassem
Soleimani outside the Baghdad airport, a move that has sparked calls
for retaliation from Iranian authorities and has heightened global
fears that tensions between the U.S. and Iran could lead to war.
Initial jitters that al-Shabab may have targeted the American base in
Kenya as a show of support for Iran have been discounted, though the
group remains a formidable threat on its own.”
The
Africa Report: US Threat To Withdraw From African Security Efforts
Leaves Sahel Vulnerable
“As Iran launches ballistic missiles at US bases in Iraq, the US
looks to draw down force numbers in Africa. Meanwhile, Russia and
China increase their security presence on the continent. United States
Defense Secretary Mark Esper is reportedly evaluating proposals for a
major reduction or even a complete pullout of US forces from West
Africa. According to the New York Times: “The deliberations stem from
a push to reduce post – 9/11 missions battling terrorist groups, and
instead to refocus Pentagon priorities on confronting so-called Great
Powers like Russia and China.” Since 2001 the U.S. has significantly
increased its military footprint in the Middle East and parts of
Africa, as part of a broader effort to combat terror organizations
like Al Qaeda, Al Shabaab, the Taliban, and ISIS. As some terror
groups lost ground in the Middle East, some terrorists moved into
fragile parts of Africa, particularly the Maghreb and the Sahel – a
semi-arid region across West and Central Africa: which emboldened
terrorist groups in the region. Another notable event that emboldened
terror groups in the Sahel is the US-led, NATO regime change campaign
that ousted Muammar Gaddafi of Libya in 2011. NATO’s bombing of Libya
and the death of Muammar Gaddafi led to the total collapse of the
Libyan state.”
United Kingdom
BBC
News: Durham Neo-Nazi Teenager Detained For Terror Attack
Plan
“The youngest person to be convicted of planning a terror attack in
the UK has been detained for more than six years. The now 17-year-old
wrote about an “inevitable race war” in his diary and listed locations
from his home city of Durham in a “guerrilla warfare” manual. A jury
had found the boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, guilty of
preparation of terrorist acts between October 2017 and March 2018. He
was sentenced to six years and eight months at Manchester Crown
Court.Judge David Stockdale QC told the boy: “These are offences of
the utmost seriousness.” He also ordered the detention be followed by
an extension period on licence of five years. The six-week trial heard
he was an adherent of “occult neo-Nazism,” and described himself as a
“natural sadist”. His attack preparations included researching
explosives and trying to obtain the dangerous chemical ammonium
nitrate. He also wrote of planning to carry out an arson spree
targeting synagogues in the Durham area using Molotov cocktails.”
BBC
News: Lincoln Man Arrested Over Right-Wing Terrorism
Offences
“A 19-year-old man from Lincoln has been arrested on suspicion of
right-wing terror offences. East Midlands counter-terrorism officers
detained the man in a pre-planned operation in the Highfields area of
Leicester at 07:00 GMT. Ch Supt Jon McAdam said: “The alleged offences
relate to the encouragement of terrorism and dissemination of a
terrorist publication.” He added: “This relates to extreme right-wing
terrorism.”
Europe
Fox
News: Soleimani Supporter Arrested In Kosovo, Allegedly Incited Terror
Acts
“A woman who criticized the United States on
social media for the killing of a top Iranian general was arrested
Tuesday in Kosovo. Ikballe Berisha Huduti will remain in detention for
48 hours pending a court decision for incitement to commit a terrorist
offense, Reuters reported. Prosecutors said Huduti, the founder of a
now-defunct pro-Islamic group, posted comments on Facebook that were
critical of the Jan. 3 killing of Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the head of
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' elite Quds Force, in a drone
strike in Iraq last week. “By killing the master of the house you have
killed all members of the family, then revenge is obligatory but it
has no border,” Huduti wrote. In one post, Huduti described Solemani
as a “great man,” Radio Free Europe reported. She said she deleted the
posts and that her words were taken out of context. Huduti said she
previously praised American democracy and U.S. support for Kosovo in
1999, during the conflict between ethnic Serbs and Albanians in the
former Yugoslavia. U.S. officials said Soleimani was responsible for
the deaths of hundreds of American troops and was planning attacks
just before his death. Many leaders in Kosovo have expressed support
for the U.S. airstrike.”
|
