January 16, 2020

The Washington Post: 2019 Saw Record U.S. Airstrikes In Somalia. Why Is Al-Shabab Surging? <[link removed]>

“Just as soon as the U.S. military closed out a year in which it struck al-Shabab militants more times than ever — at a pace of just over one airstrike per week — the Somali militant group carried out its most brazen and successful attack on U.S. forces in its history, killing one soldier and two private contractors, and destroying six aircraft at an airstrip in Kenya. It was symbolic of the greater U.S. effort against al-Shabab: Since the Trump administration loosened rules of engagement in Somalia in March 2017, leading to a more aggressive use of airstrikes, the group has staged nearly 900 attacks on civilians alone, not counting hundreds more against U.S., Somali, Kenyan and other armed forces. “The rate of al-Shabab’s attacks, at least against civilians, is higher now than before,” said Hussein Sheikh-Ali, a former national security adviser to the Somali president who took part in discussions with Pentagon officials as they weighed changing their rules of engagement in 2017. Nearly 2,000 Somali civilians have probably been killed by al-Shabab since that change, according to data from the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, or ACLED, a nonprofit research group that aggregates reports of violence.”

The Washington Times: Cryptocurrency A Growing Challenge In Combating Terror, Security Experts Tell Congress <[link removed]>

“A neo-Nazi organization received a donation of nearly 14.88 bitcoins or roughly $60,000 in the days following the 2017 white supremacist riots in Charlottesville, Virginia. Hamas — an Islamist Palestinian group that calls for the death of Jewish people everywhere — set up a website for visitors to make bitcoin donations. Terrorists, both domestic and foreign, are increasingly using bitcoin for illicit transactions because it is nearly impossible to track, law enforcement officials and scholars told a congressional committee Wednesday. The House Committee on Financial Services held the hearing as it mulls legislation to crack down on terrorism financing. “As cryptocurrency becomes more prevalent and the technology becomes easier to adopt and use, we do believe we will see more use of that in the domestic terrorism realm,” said Jared Maples, director of the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security. Cryptocurrencies like bitcoin are favored by criminals because they can be transferred without a central bank or transfer service such as PayPal, which can freeze accounts or report suspicious activities to law enforcement. The transactions are not linked to names, physical addresses or any other identifier. The anonymity has made it difficult for law enforcement to link transactions to users.”

Asharq Al-Awsat: Suspected ISIS Commander Goes On Trial In Germany <[link removed]>

“A 33-year-old Syrian man suspected of commanding a unit of 20 ISIS militants is on trial in the German city of Frankfurt on charges of membership of a terrorist organization. Prosecutors allege that the man served as an “emir” in the Syrian civil war, carrying an assault rifle in the service of ISIS. The accused declined on Wednesday to answer the charges or questions regarding his identity but will participate in the trial during its course, German News Agency (dpa) quoted his defense lawyer as saying. According to the charge sheet, the man joined ISIS in 2013, rising rapidly in the ranks. He is alleged to have organized checkpoints and patrols in and around the city of al-Raqqa in northern Syria, seizing two men as hostages in this capacity. The accused is said to have entered Germany as a refugee in June 2015, living in the western city of Kassel. He has been in custody since November 2018 after a police special unit detained him when details of his role in the Syrian war become known, dpa said.”

The New York Times:U.S. Military Resumes Joint Operations With Iraq <[link removed]>

“The United States military resumed joint operations with Iraq on Wednesday, military officials said, ending a 10-day pause that began after an American airstrike killed a top Iranian military commander in Baghdad. The decision to restart military operations came less than two weeks after Iraq’s Parliament voted to expel all American forces from the country. The government accused the United States of violating Iraqi sovereignty by carrying out airstrikes in Iraq, including one on Jan. 3 that killed the Iranian commander, a leader of Iraqi militia forces and eight other people. Two American military officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak about the missions to reporters, confirmed that the joint operations had restarted. They said the military wanted to resume operations against the Islamic State as soon as possible to blunt any momentum the group might have and to stifle any propaganda victory it might claim because the United States had suspended the operation. It was unclear on Wednesday whether anyone in the Iraqi government approved the resumption of joint missions — it was the Americans who stopped them, not the Iraqis — and Iraqi officials could not be reached for comment.”

Associated Press: Taliban Say They Handed Cease-Fire Offer To US Peace Envoy <[link removed]>

“The Taliban have given the U.S. envoy a document outlining their offer for a temporary cease-fire in Afghanistan that would last between seven and 10 days, Taliban officials familiar with the negotiations said Thursday. The offer is seen as an opportunity to open a window to an eventual peace deal for Afghanistan that would allow the United States to bring home its troops and end the 18-year war, America’s longest conflict. The cease-fire offer was handed to Zalmay Khalilzad, Washington’s envoy for talks with the insurgents, late on Wednesday in Qatar, a Gulf Arab country where the Taliban maintain a political office. Khalilzad has been pressing for a cease-fire but it wasn’t immediately clear whether the Taliban proposal would be enough to allow for the on-again off-again talks between the Taliban and the U.S. to restart, with the aim of eventually signing a peace deal. Previously, Khalilzad said a U.S.-Taliban deal would also include the start of negotiations among Afghans on both sides of the conflict to hammer out a so-called road map to a post-war Afghanistan. That road map would tackle thorny issues such as a permanent cease-fire, women’s and minority rights, and the fate of thousands of Taliban fighters and also militias loyal to Kabul’s warlords.”

United States

San Francisco Chronicle: NJ Expands Terrorism Law In Response To Kosher Market Attack <[link removed]>

“New Jersey Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy signed legislation Wednesday expanding the definition of terrorism under state law in response to last month's fatal attack on a kosher market in Jersey City. Murphy said the new law will make it clear that New Jersey is committed to the elimination of “hate in all its forms.” The legislation passed unanimously in the Democrat-led Legislature on Monday, about a month after the attack that left a Jersey City police detective dead, along with three people inside the market. Authorities have said that the attackers, David Anderson and Francine Graham, who both died in a gunfight with police, had expressed hatred of Jews and law enforcement. The new law says terrorism includes crimes aimed at inciting terror against people based on their religion, race or national origin, among other factors. Previous law said someone was guilty of terrorism if the person committed crimes aimed at promoting terror, terrorizing five or more people, influencing government policy through terror or impairing public transportation, communication, or other public services. Murphy also signed a bill that sets aside $1 million for security grants for nonprofits.”

National Review: Saudi’s Terrorist Massacre At Florida Naval Base Highlights The Weakness Of U.S. Vetting <[link removed]>

“The Justice Department has concluded that the deadly mass-shooting attack at Naval Air Station Pensacola in early December, carried out by a Saudi Air Force trainee, was an act of terrorism. Though Lieutenant Mohamed Saeed al-Shamrani, who was killed during the attack, was determined to have acted alone, the United States is expelling 21 other Saudi military trainees after the FBI’s investigation uncovered jihadist rhetoric and child pornography on their social-media accounts. Attorney General Bill Barr announced the terrorism finding and the expulsions at a Justice Department press conference on Monday afternoon. The attorney general’s remarks demonstrate that longstanding national-security challenges continue to vex U.S. law-enforcement officials. Most significant is the problem of vetting foreigners, including the thousands of foreigners enrolled in training programs run by our armed forces, for anti-American ideology. Such an ideology is sharia supremacism, commonly distinguished from Islam, the religious creed adhered to by over 1.5 billion people globally, through the use of “radical Islam,” “political Islam,” and similar labels. The ideology’s goal is the imposition of a fundamentalist construction of Islamic law (sharia).”

Syria

Al Jazeera: Syria's War: At Least 21 Killed In Attacks On Idlib Market, Shops <[link removed]>

“At least 21 people have been killed in Syria's rebel-held Idlib province as Syrian government forces and their Russian allies intensified an air offensive on the country's northwest, according to rescue workers who operate in opposition-held areas. A new ceasefire agreement between Russia and Turkey, who support opposing sides in Syria's conflict that has lasted over eight years, went into effect on Sunday but violence has continued. The Syrian Civil Defence, also known as the White Helmets, said air raids and barrel bombs on Wednesday struck a vegetable market in the town of Ariha, as well as repair workshops in an industrial area, a few hundred metres away from the market. At least 19 people were killed in the attacks on the market and the nearby shops, including a Civil Defence volunteer, Ahmed Sheikho, a spokesman for the group, told Al Jazeera. A man was also killed in the village of Has as a result of a Syrian government air raid, Sheikho said, while a young girl succumbed to wounds sustained in a previous attack, which took place before the latest ceasefire was implemented. The least 82 people were wounded in the attacks on Wednesday and the death toll is likely to increase, according to the White Helmets.”

The Defense Post: Syria’s Al Hol Camp Sees More Than 500 Deaths In 2019 <[link removed]>

“At least 517 people, mostly children, died in 2019 in an overstretched Syrian camp housing displaced people and relatives of Islamic State fighters, the Kurdish Red Crescent told AFP. The Kurdish-run Al-Hol camp in northeastern Syria is home to around 68,000 people who are reliant on humanitarian assistance, especially during harsh winter month. A Kurdish Red Crescent spokesperson said 371 children are among the 517 people who died in the squalid tent city in 2019. Malnutrition, poor healthcare for newborns, and hypothermia during harsh winter months are among the main causes of death among children, Dalal Ismail told AFP at the camp on Thursday, January 16. “The situation is tragic and the burden is huge,” she said, adding that foreigners were among the children who have died. Syrians and Iraqis form the bulk of the camp’s residents. Al-Hol is also home to thousands of foreigners, mainly relatives of ISIS fighters who are kept in a guarded section of the camp under the watch of security forces. Kurdish authorities say they are holding 12,000 foreigners, including 4,000 women and 8,000 children, in three displacement camps in northeastern Syria. The majority are being held in al-Hol.”

Iraq

Kurdistan 24: Iraqi Air Raids Kill 6 ISIS Members In Salahuddin Desert <[link removed]>

“The Iraqi air force carried out a series of airstrikes on Wednesday, targeting positions held by sleeper cells of the so-called Islamic State in Salahuddin province, a statement from the Iraqi military communications center said. The operation came in coordination with the Salahuddin Operations Command, seeking out members of the terrorist organization hiding in the inhospitable areas of al-Shai Valley in rural Salahuddin, according to the Security Media Cell (SMC). Two separate airstrikes killed six alleged terrorists, an SMC statement said. The attacks also totaled a vehicle and destroyed a tunnel the group used as a hideout. SMC also reported that one officer had been injured during the operation. Shai Valley is comprised of rugged, barren terrain that has been a haven for Islamic State sleeper cells who use it as a base from where they can plan and launch attacks in surrounding settlements and towns. The Iraqi operation comes amid ongoing US-Iran tensions in the region as the terror group took advantage of an escalating situation that raised fears of an all-out war to carry out a series of attacks and continues to attempt to re-establish a foothold in Iraq.”

Turkey

Daily Sabah: Turkey Ready To Cooperate With Int'l Community To Fight Terrorism, Deputy FM Says <[link removed]>

“Turkey is ready to exchange ideas with international foundations on how to fight against terrorism on both a regional and global scale, Deputy Foreign Minister Sedat Önal said Wednesday. Speaking at the first meeting of the Forum for Security Co-operation – one of two main decision making bodies under the umbrella of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) – under Turkey's term as chair in Austria's capital Vienna, Önal evaluated Turkey's priorities, goals and the program as a whole. Önal underlined the importance of increasing the efficiency of the OSCE in the implementation of stability and security in the region. Confirming Turkey's loyalty to OSCE's main principles and goals, Önal said that Turkey can make contributions to this aim. “Turkey has been carrying out a struggle against terrorism for decades and suffered a lot from it. It suffered tens of thousands of casualties due to the terror problem. We can find together the methods and tools of efficient contribution and cooperation under this important agenda,” he said, adding that Turkey can exchange ideas with the OSCE and other international foundations on how to intensify their efforts in the fight against terrorism on both a regional and global scale.”

Egypt Independent: Turkey ‘Coordinated’ With IS: SDF Commander <[link removed]>

“Gen. Mazloum Abdi, the commander of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), said his alliance anticipated a direct Turkish intervention in Syria and claimed that Turkey had ‘coordinated’ with the Islamic State terrorist group, during an interview with the privately owned TeN satellite channel on Sunday. “We were expecting a sectarian and civil war in Syria, and that there would be direct regional interference in Syria, in particular by Turkey. “For that reason, we trained and prepared our youth for this stage, and when the civil war began we were ready for it, and we filled the void that the Syrian government left with its immediate withdrawal from this area,” Abdi said. Abdi argued that the practices of previous regimes, over the past sixty years, has laid the ground work for regional intervention in Syria, with every regional country having made clear its policies in the region, and this has impacted the Syrian state in general and Syrian society in particular. He stressed the importance of a “Syrian national democratic project” that would confront what he called the Turkish and Iranian project in the region.”

Afghanistan

Washington Examiner: 'Into The Arms' Of The Taliban: Inspector General Says US Ties With Corrupt Afghan Warlords Backfired <[link removed]>

“The United States unintentionally aided the resurgence of the Taliban in Afghanistan because of its alliances with corrupt warlords, the government's top Afghanistan watchdog said on Wednesday. John Sopko, the special inspector general for Afghanistan reconstruction, told the House Foreign Affairs Committee the U.S. helped foster corruption that undermined its strategic goals in Afghanistan. His testimony followed the December publication of the Washington Post's Afghanistan Papers, a trove of documents about the war. The U.S. inadvertently helped the Taliban's resurgence in Afghanistan “by forming alliances of convenience with warlords who had been pushed out of power by the Taliban,” Sopko said in his prepared opening statement. “The coalition paid warlords to provide security and, in many cases, to run provincial and district administrations, on the assumption that the United States would eventually hold those warlords to account when they committed acts of corruption or brutality,” he said. “That accounting rarely took place — and the abuses committed by coalition aligned warlords drove many Afghans into the arms of the resurgent Taliban.”

Yemen

Asharq Al-Awsat:Houthis Escalate Violations Amid Forced Haircut Campaigns <[link removed]>

“The Iran-backed Houthi militias have not stopped their repressive acts and violations against people in Sanaa and other areas under their control. This coincided with their celebrations and events organized to commemorate their members killed on battlefronts. Moreover, human rights sources have indicated that the militias have intensified their abductions of civilians, in addition to campaigns to shave the hair of teenagers on the street. The same sources said the militias had kidnapped an entire family in Safia in central Sanaa after armed men, accompanied by female Houthi members, known as the “Zeinabis”, raided their home. The sources also clarified that the Houthis abducted two girls last month along with their father and brother and took them to an unknown location, likely one of their secret prisons. Through media outlets that support them, the militias claimed they had kidnapped the family due to honor-related issues – an excuse they often use to justify abductions. Meanwhile, the militias launched a campaign in Sanaa to shave the hair of male teenagers in the streets as part of their efforts to implement what their leader, Abdul Malik al-Houthi, called “faithful culture”. Videos circulated on social media showed Houthis holding teenage boys against their will as they get a haircut.”

Nigeria

The New York Times: Nigerian Islamist Militants Free Three Aid Workers, Other Civilian Hostages: U.N. <[link removed]>

“Islamist militants released three aid workers and other civilians in northeast Nigeria who had been held hostage since late December, a United Nations official said on Thursday. The people were kidnapped on Dec. 22 by militants posing as soldiers who stopped a convoy of commercial vehicles traveling towards the city of Maiduguri, state capital of the northeastern state of Borno. Islamist militants have waged an insurgency in northeast Nigeria that has killed 36,000 people since 2009 and left 7.1 million people needing humanitarian assistance. Boko Haram, a group seeking a separate state in northeast Nigeria adhering to a strict interpretation of Islamic laws, began the insurgency. “I am deeply relieved that some civilians, including three aid workers, who were abducted by non-state armed groups along the Monguno – Maiduguri road on 22 December 2019 have been released yesterday and are now safe,” said Edward Kallon, the U.N. humanitarian coordinator in Nigeria, in a statement. Kallon said he was concerned about the “increasingly insecure environment that humanitarians are working in.”

Somalia

All Africa: Somalia: Al-Shabaab Attacks Killed 4,000 In Past Decade, Says Data-Gathering Group <[link removed]>

“Somali militant group al-Shabab recently said it does not intentionally target Muslims – but a new report indicates that whatever its intentions, the group has a lot of Muslim blood on its hands. More than 4,000 civilians have been killed in al-Shabab attacks since 2010, according to records compiled by the independent group Armed Conflict, Location and Event Data Project, or ACLED. The majority of the deaths were in Somalia – where the population is almost entirely Muslim – with smaller numbers stemming from attacks in Kenya, Uganda and Djibouti. More than 3,000 of the deaths have occurred since 2015. ACLED says the figure encompasses deaths from shooting attacks, abductions, suicide bombings, and other incidents in which civilians were “determined to be the direct, primary target.” It excludes deaths from battles with the military or other armed groups, and bombing attacks primarily targeting security forces, ACLED says. ACLED also says the death toll is “the most conservative fatality estimate.” The true number may be even higher, according to records from Somali doctors. Medina, the biggest hospital in Mogadishu, has recorded more than 54,000 injuries from gun- and bomb-based attacks since 2007, of which 75 percent are civilians.”

Africa

France 24:Islamic State Replaces Al-Qaeda As Enemy No. 1 In Sahel <[link removed]>

“Brutal attacks that have killed nearly 300 people in less than two months have propelled the Islamic State to the status of the Sahel's most-feared jihadist group, eclipsing al-Qaeda, experts say. The vast fragile region on the southern rim of the Sahara has been battling an escalating insurgency by violent Islamists, beginning in Mali in 2012 and then spreading to Niger and Burkina Faso. Until recently, groups under the banner of al-Qaeda were in the forefront of the bloodshed. But their position has now been overtaken by an Islamic State (IS) affiliate, providing the group with an image of resurgence in West Africa after its decline in Syria and Iraq. “The priority is the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (ISGS),” French President Emmanuel Macron declared on Monday at a summit gathering France and its five Sahel allies -- Chad, Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania and Niger. The ISGS “has emerged as our main enemy, against whom we should focus our struggle,” Burkina President Roch Marc Christian Kabore said on Facebook. “Everyone has probably underestimated the ISGS,” said Mahamoudou Savadogo, a Burkinabe researcher at a Senegal-based think tank, CERADD.”

All Africa: West African Leaders, France Vow New Fight On Terrorism <[link removed]>

“A surge of terrorist violence in Africa’s Sahel region is forcing West African nations to reconsider their strategy and unify military forces. Leaders invited by French President Emmanuel Macron to a G5 summit in the southern French city of Pau on Monday agreed to pursue their engagements with France - and put aside their differences with the former colonial power – to fight against jihadism. Presidents of Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, and Chad joined Monday with French President Emmanuel Macron at a ceremony in Pau commemorating French soldiers killed recently in Mali. Macron’s purpose for inviting members of G5 Sahel was to clarify their position on France’s military presence in the Sahel region at a time when protests are growing in Mali and Burkina-Faso against French military operation Barkhane. Protesters blame Paris for failing to restore stability. Amid growing anti-French sentiment in the region, Macron was looking to boost the legitimacy of France’s presence. He received it from his West African counterparts – who at this meeting – appeared to be on his side. The French leader, at a news conference, said the heads of state of the G5 Sahel wish to pursue their engagements with France and its allies in the region.”

Voice Of America: Kenyans Mark A Year Since The Hotel Attack, For Some The Pain Lingers <[link removed]>

“One year ago, the al-Shabab militant group attacked a hotel and office complex in Nairobi, killing 21 people.  A year has passed, but the memory of that day still haunts those who survived. Juliet will never forget January 15, 2019.  She says early that day, she had planned to call her sister, who worked in Dusit D2 office complex. “On that particular day, I was like, I was going to call her. Because of where I was, I couldn’t call. Once I am done, it’s when I will give her the call.  Little did I know that was not to happen,” she said. Juliet — who asked that we use an alias — tried to call her sister when she learned that gunmen had opened fire inside Dusit D2.  But the call did not go through. She went to the complex and paced nervously through an area near the attack in search of her sister, hoping she was a survivor. Half-past midnight, she feared the worst. “So when we got to Chiromo, the attendant was like we can't allow you to see the bodies now until tomorrow because we need to do few things.  But I said, 'please, I am a sister to one of the maybe the deceased, just let me see whoever is there.' He was hesitant. Some security officers were there, one of them told the guy to let us see if there is someone there who is their (relative) let us see, and they confirmed. So that’s when we were allowed to see.”

United Kingdom

Foreign Policy: Radical Islamists Are Still A Threat Behind Bars <[link removed]>

“In August 2014, a homeless, unemployed petty crook had his plan to behead a British soldier thwarted by the police. A recent convert to Islam from Jehovah’s Witnesses, Brusthom Ziamani appeared to be just another jihadi whose grand plans ultimately ended in failure—until, that is, he ended up in a British jail. Operating among a sea of other radicals in HMP Woodhill, in Milton Keynes, a town 50 miles outside of London, Ziamani staked out a position of importance. According to an ex-prisoner speaking to the Times of London, Ziamani dubbed himself “chief of the Sharia police,” making the rounds in his block to ensure that no Muslim prisoners were breaking the fast during Ramadan. Ziamani would bring wrongdoers to the makeshift sharia court he ran from the confines of a jail cell. The Times  describes how two “accused” appeared before Ziamani for the supposed crime of drinking alcohol. Ziamani decreed the punishment to be a beating, which two of his acolytes quickly—and savagely—delivered to the guilty parties. This was not the only way in which the radicalism Ziamani had adopted outside of prison manifested itself once he was locked up.”

The National: UK Shuts Down Islamic School After Extremism Fears <[link removed]>

“The UK government has shut down a scandal-hit British Islamic school where the head was identified as a “potential risk to pupils” after more than a decade of management failures and concerns over radicalisation. The closure came in a year when the head of Birmingham Muslim School was banned from teaching during an investigation into an alleged failure to promote “fundamental British values” of tolerance and respect. Education officials said they closed down the school in December after “consistent failings” and a series of damning reports by inspectors that criticised the way the school was run and how pupils were taught. The closure comes eight months after The National revealed that the wife of an extremist commander in Syria was in charge of child protection at the school attended by 83 pupils aged four to 11. The charity that runs both the school and relief projects in Syria remains under investigation by regulators because of “serious concerns” about its ability to operate. Problems at the now-shuttered school in Britain’s second largest city have exposed broader concerns about child protection at Islamic establishments in Britain.”

The Independent:British Government Condemned For Offering To Repatriate Children From Syrian Isis Camp But Not Their Mother <[link removed]>

“Human rights campaigners have condemned the British government for reportedly agreeing to repatriate children from Syrian camps on the condition they are separated from their mother. Relatives of Mehak Aslam, who joined Isis with her husband in 2014, want her to sign paperwork that would allow her four children to return to the UK on the condition that she does not come with them. They are currently being held alongside other Isis families at a camp in Syria, while her husband Shahan Choudhury is being held in a prison nearby, ITV News reported. A letter from the Foreign Office to the family said that if Ms Aslam “were to make a fresh request for her children to be repatriated without her, we would urgently investigate the practicalities of doing so”. If the same offer is made to other British detainees, it could provide a route out of Syria for dozens of children. “The UK government has the choice to bring back mothers in northeast Syria together with their children and preserve family unity, something which child rights organisations all agree is in the best interests of the children,” she added. “If the mothers have charges to answer, they can and should be prosecuted here in the UK by our justice system which deals with complicated cases every single day.”

Germany

The Jerusalem Post: Kurds File Criminal Complaint Against Iran Mosque In Germany For Terrorism <[link removed]>

“Ali Ertan Toprak, the chairman of the Kurdish community in Germany, on Tuesday lodged a formal criminal complaint against the Iranian regime-controlled Islamic Center of Hamburg, the owner of the Imam Ali Mosque, for its support of terrorism. According to the complaint, “The Imam Ali Mosque serves as a meeting place and event location for the meetings of this association as well as of individuals in particular, who work as supporters of terrorists, terrorist organizations and various other sponsors of terrorist activities.” The complaint, which was sent to prosecutor Jörg Fröhlich, further stated that “the institution [Islamic Center of Hamburg] in its entirety as well as each board member as an individual and as a community, and also the members…fulfill the act of supporting terrorists as individuals and terrorist associations.” The popular German news and commentary website Tichys Einblick first published the complaint filed with the local prosecutor’s office. The Jerusalem Post reported that a group of 600 pro-Iranian regime Islamists attended a memorial service in early January at the Islamic Center in Hamburg to mourn the death of the EU- and US-designated terrorist Qasem Soleimani.”

Europe

Bloomberg:Norway Government Crisis Brews Over ISIS Prisoner Return <[link removed]>

“Norway’s government risks splitting after a coalition partner threatened to pull its support over the repatriation of a woman who joined Islamic State in Syria. The anti-immigration Progress Party threatened to abandon the Conservative-led administration in the next few weeks if a series of demands aren’t met. The move could topple the center-right coalition led by Erna Solberg, who’s been prime minister since 2013. “We’re not going to stay in government at any price,” Finance Minister and Progress leader Siv Jensen told Dagbladet on Wednesday. She’s giving Solberg a fortnight to respond to her demands. Jensen’s threat follows a government decision to repatriate a Norwegian woman charged with joining a terrorist organization and her two children, one of which is critically ill. Progress was only willing to let the children back into Norway. The conflict echoes similar debates in other European countries over how to handle nationals caught fighting for ISIS. It’s not the first time that a conflict has erupted between Norway’s government parties, which hold different views on key issues such as immigration, climate change and the Nordic country’s vast oil industry.”

Voice Of America: Why Is Kosovo Taking Home Islamic State Members? <[link removed]>

“While most European countries have been reluctant to take back their citizens who joined the Islamic State (IS) terror group in Syria and Iraq, the government of Kosovo has taken a different path by repatriating dozens of its people with plans to reintegrate them into society.  Some experts say Kosovo's proactive approach, supported by a national action plan that addresses key components from detention to counseling to rehabilitation, is a unique example with considerable success in facing the dilemma of IS foreign fighters. “Kosovo is a small country with a very well-established social structure,” said David L. Phillips, director of the Program on Peace-building and Rights at Columbia University's Institute for the Study of Human Rights. “So, there is a system in place for managing their returns. That’s why the government of Kosovo is better suited to accept returns than larger countries in Europe where returnees could simply become absorbed into the local population and commit crimes either in their home countries or go to other battlefields.”  Kosovo is a predominantly Muslim nation in the central Balkan Peninsula with an estimated population of 1.9 million.”

The Local Norway: Norway Repatriates Isis-Linked Woman And Children From Syria <[link removed]>

“Norway said Tuesday it was repatriating from Syria a woman linked to the Islamic State (Isis) group and her two children, one of them reportedly seriously ill, citing humanitarian reasons. Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Søreide, confirming the operation to bring them home, told reporters: “We are doing that for humanitarian reasons because we fear the child is sick.” The government had until now refused calls to bring back the five-year-old, who according to media reports may be suffering from cystic fibrosis, unless his mother let him travel alone. But the right-wing administration relented, allowing the three to travel to Norway from the Kurd-controlled camp at Al-Hol, northeast Syria, where they have been detained since March 2019. Norwegian daily Aftenposten published a photo of the 29-year-old veiled mother, taken they said as she crossed from Syria into Iraq with her two children and two men. All the faces in the photo were blurred out. The mother, who is described as Pakistani, is accused of having travelled to Syria in 2013 and married a Norwegian jihadist who was killed in fighting. She faces arrest when she gets to Norway on suspicion of belonging to a terrorist organisation.”

Technology

Wired: Can This Notorious Troll Turn People Away From Extremism? <[link removed]>

“My overall point,” Dick Masterson says, barely a minute into his conversation with Steven Bonnell, “is that I think you’re kind of a weaselly piece of shit.” “Why do you think I’m weaselly?” Bonnell replies in his slight, entreating lisp. “You argue like a scumbag,” Masterson explains. It’s less than a year into Donald Trump’s presidency and Bonnell is hosting a debate on his Twitch stream with Masterson, a chippy, mustached “Rand Paul Republican” who helms a weekly podcast called The Dick Show. Bonnell, known online as Destiny, has recently made a career of tussling with right-wing figures for the entertainment of his followers, who total about 200,000 on YouTube and more than 500,000 on Twitch. He has already dispatched a number of opponents whose notoriety exceeds Masterson’s. But this debate—this utterly fruitless debate—is where Bonnell’s intervention into the politics of the internet sublimates into its ideal. The disagreement at hand, ostensibly, is whether Trump is racist toward Mexican people, with Bonnell arguing in favor of the motion and Masterson against. For the most part, though, they bicker over the conventions of argumentation itself. Bonnell says that Masterson must cite evidence, not “feelings,” to support his claims; Masterson insists that Bonnell is a “condescending fuck” who uses “stupid arguing tricks.”



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