“The United States is increasing its military assistance to Somalia as the
country sees success in battling what the U.S. calls ‘the largest and most
deadly al-Qaida network in the world.’ Sixty-one tons of weapons and ammunition
arrived Tuesday in Mogadishu, the U.S. said in a statement of support for a
historic Somalia-led military offensive against al-Shabab extremists that has
recaptured dozens of communities since August. In a separate joint statement
with other leading security partners Qatar, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates
and Britain, the U.S. said they will support Somalia’s efforts to manage
weapons and ammunition that could allow the United Nations Security Council to
lift its arms embargo on the country. ‘A very productive meeting,’ Somalia’s
national security adviser, Hussein Sheikh-Ali, tweeted after the Washington
gathering. The government of Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud declared
‘total war’ last year on the thousands of al-Shabab extremists who for more
than a decade have controlled parts of the country and carried out devastating
attacks while exploiting clan divisions and extorting millions of dollars a
year in their quest to impose an Islamic state.”











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Eye on Extremism



March 1, 2023



Associated Press: US Increases Military Support For Somalia Against Al-Shabab
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“The United States is increasing its military assistance to Somalia as the
country sees success in battling what the U.S. calls ‘the largest and most
deadly al-Qaida network in the world.’ Sixty-one tons of weapons and ammunition
arrived Tuesday in Mogadishu, the U.S. said in a statement of support for a
historic Somalia-led military offensive against al-Shabab extremists that has
recaptured dozens of communities since August. In a separate joint statement
with other leading security partners Qatar, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates
and Britain, the U.S. said they will support Somalia’s efforts to manage
weapons and ammunition that could allow the United Nations Security Council to
lift its arms embargo on the country. ‘A very productive meeting,’ Somalia’s
national security adviser, Hussein Sheikh-Ali, tweeted after the Washington
gathering. The government of Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud declared
‘total war’ last year on the thousands of al-Shabab extremists who for more
than a decade have controlled parts of the country and carried out devastating
attacks while exploiting clan divisions and extorting millions of dollars a
year in their quest to impose an Islamic state.”



AFP News: Top Al-Qaeda Figure Killed In Yemen Air Strike: Sources
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“A senior Al-Qaeda figure was killed in a suspected US air strike in war-torn
Yemen, security and local government sources told AFP on Wednesday. Hamad bin
Hamoud al-Tamimi, a top leader of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP),
which Washington regards as among the global jihadist network's most dangerous
branches, died in the strike along with a bodyguard, a security official said,
requesting anonymity. The air strike, targeting a house in the northern
province of Marib that al-Tamimi had recently rented, was ‘apparently
American’, the official said. A Marib government official, also speaking
anonymously, confirmed the deaths. Tamimi, a Saudi also known as Abdel Aziz
al-Adnani, headed up AQAP's leadership council and acted as the militant
group's ‘judge’, the sources said.”



United States



Vice News: A Neo-Nazi Troll Network Is Making Money Abusing Jews
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“Joshua Fisher-Birch, an analyst with the Counter Extremism Project,
described the network as an “extremely antisemitic street theater troupe,"
whose primary goal is generating as much attention as possible, no matter the
damage to their targets. "They need to have this churn of content that they put
out there to keep their audience interested and to keep eyes on them," said
Fisher-Birch. "They're doing stuff constantly.""



The Mirror: EXCLUSIVE: ISIS 'Beatle' Alexanda Kotey Back Behind Bars Months
After Going Missing From Jail
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“Kotey’s disappearance sparked outrage among the families of those murdered
by the ISIS terror group. Relatives of British volunteers David Haines and Alan
Henning, who were beheaded by the Beatles in Syria, were left in the dark, with
US officials refusing to reveal why the convicted terrorist was no longer in
prison. A source told the Mirror: “Kotey is back where he belongs - behind
bars. ‘For months, he was allowed out to help US intelligence.’ ‘As part of his
deal with prosecutors, he agreed to turn on his ISIS brothers and provide
information intelligence agents hope will help them in the war on terrorism.’
‘Kotey was kept from his cell for so long as he knows so much.’ ‘He was sent
back to his cell a few days ago.’”



ABC7Chicago: Domestic Terrorism-Related Cases Increased By More Than 350% Over
8 Years: Watchdog
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“Domestic terrorism-related cases increased 357% from 2013 to 2021, according
to the Government Accountability Office, which urged the FBI and Department of
Homeland Security to do more to combat the issue. In 2013, there were 1,981
open domestic terrorism cases compared to the 9,049 open cases in 2021,
according to statistics provided by the FBI to the GAO. ‘From calendar year[s]
2010 to 2021, [DHS Intelligence and Analysis] tracked a total of 231 domestic
terrorism incidents, with racially or ethnically motivated violent extremists
committing the most violent incidents during the time period,’ the GAO report
says. ‘More specifically, from 2013 to 2016, the total number of open domestic
terrorism-related cases declined by over 400 (about 23%) but then increased by
over 7,000 (about 490%) from fiscal years 2016 through 2021.’”



8 News Now: Man Faces Terrorism Charge For Allegedly Threatening Mass Shooting
At Las Vegas Convenience Store
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“Jason Schlientz, 39, is accused of making the threat on Feb. 21, 2023, after
he entered the store at Lamb and Charleston boulevards shortly after 8 a.m.
According to the arrest report, a 911 caller told police, Schlientz claimed to
have just shot someone and would ‘shoot everyone’ in the store. The report also
mentioned that it was believed Schlientz has a firearm in his waistband. The
customers and employees inside the store headed outside after Schlientz yelled
out something to the effect he would ‘shoot the place up,’ the report said.”



Syria



Caspian News: Azerbaijan Detains Citizens Recruited By ISIS In Syria
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“The State Security Service of Azerbaijan has detained Azerbaijani citizens
who were recruited by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) terrorist
organization. The operational and investigative measures carried out by the
Service, which found that Mirjavad Salahov was affiliated with the ISIS, led to
his detainment on February 24 on suspicion of committing criminal acts related
to the financing of terrorism. Baku-based Caliber.Az news service reports that
Mirjavad Salahov has joined the ranks of ISIS in the Syrian city of Raqqa,
where he later attended a special training camp. Salahov was later promoted to
be accountant in the terrorist organization and oversaw the transfer of monthly
funds and food to the terrorists and their families who participated in armed
conflicts.”



Turkey



Daily Sabah: Top Daesh Terrorist Caught In Istanbul
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“A joint operation by Turkish police and National Intelligence Organization
(MIT) in Istanbul led to the capture of M.B., a senior figure from the
terrorist group Daesh, authorities announced on Wednesday. M.B., a 36-year-old
Tunisian national who used the code name Abu Huzaifah, served as a so-called
“qadi” or judge for the terrorist group in Tal Abyad, Manbij and Raqqa in Syria
between 2014 and 2018, security sources said. Acting upon intelligence that he
secretly came to Istanbul, security forces located him in the city. They raided
his residence on Feb. 24. Interrogated terrorists revealed his ongoing ties to
Daesh cadres in Syria and his contacts in Türkiye. An Istanbul court ordered
his arrest, and he was sent to prison.”



Afghanistan



TRT World: Taliban Confirms Killing Of Two Senior Daesh Members In Afghanistan
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“Two senior regional members of Daesh have been killed in Afghanistan in
recent weeks in separate operations by the Taliban security forces, a Taliban
spokesman has announced. Taliban forces killed Qari Fateh, the regional Daesh
intelligence and operations chief, during a raid in Kabul over the weekend,
Zabihullah Mujahid, the main spokesman for the Taliban government, said in a
statement. A news outlet allied with Daesh on Tuesday posted confirmation of
Fateh's death on an Daesh-run Telegram chat. Fateh previously served in
different positions, including as military leader, of the terrorist group in
Afghanistan. Mujahid said that Fateh was the mastermind of attacks on
diplomatic missions, mosques, and other targets in Kabul.”



Pakistan



Firstpost: Pak Taliban Plans To 'Liberate' Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Establish
Sharia Rule
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“In the wake of rising terror activities across Pakistan, the outlawed
Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) is planning to throw the Shehbaz Sharif-led
government out of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and establish Sharia by
waging a terrorist campaign against the military and state, according to a US
State Department report. As per the 2021 Country Reports on Terrorism, the
terrorist group is using the tribal belt along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border
to train and deploy its operatives, Dawn reported. As per the report, TTP
receives ideological guidance from al-Qaeda, and some al-Qaeda members use TTP
as a ‘safe haven’ in the Pashtun region near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border.
‘This arrangement has given TTP access to both AQ’s global terrorist network
and its members’ operational expertise,’ it stated.”



The Economic Times: 118 Terrorists Of Doda Based In Pok, 10 Most Active In
J-K: Police
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“As many as 118 terrorists of Jammu and Kashmir's Doda are based in Pakistan
and PoK, of whom 10 are most active and are attempting to spread terrorism in
the region by recruiting the youth, a top police officer said on Wednesday. The
police said the two terrorists have been declared as 'Individual' (those
indulging in lone-wolf attacks) terrorists while two others as 'Proclaimed
Offenders' (PO). SSP Doda Abdul Qayoom said the police have also seized the
properties of one of the POs and are preparing a dossier against those
attempting to revive terrorism in the district. ‘118 militants of Doda are
based in Pakistan and PoK at the moment, of whom 10 are most active…’”


Dawn: 14 ‘Militants’ Held In Operation On Swabi Mountain
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“The police arrested 14 suspected militants during an operation conducted on
the Karamar Mountain here on Tuesday. District police officer Najamul Husnain
told mediapersons that drone technology was used to locate the movement of
suspected persons on the mountain. He said since surge in militant activities
in the district the police had kept the Karamar Mountain under tight watch. He
said personnel of Elite Force, Rapid Response Force, bomb disposal squad,
police’s security branch and lady constables participated in the operation. He
said the mountain stood at the junction of Buner and Mardan districts.”



Middle East



Middle East Monitor: Israel Extremist Minister Calls To Assassinate
Palestinian Faction Leaders
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“The Israeli National Security Minister, Itamar Ben Gvir of the far-right
Otzma Yehudit party called, Monday, for a return to the policy of
assassinations and the ‘elimination’ of the Palestinian factions' leaders who,
according to him, ‘incite against Israel’. This came during a visit to an
illegal outpost built on Palestinian land in Beita village near the city of
Nablus, in the northern Occupied West Bank, before completing its evacuation
process. ‘Time has come to stop the policy of containment,’ Ben Gvir said to
members of his party and settlers who returned for the outpost. ‘The enemy on
the other side understands the opposite of the message. The terrorists need to
be crushed, and time has come for that,’ Ben Gvir said.”



Somalia



Garowe Online: US Offers $5 Million For The Capture Of Al-Shabaab Spokesperson
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“For the first time, the US Department of State has offered a reward for any
leads that would help capture Al-Shabaab spokesperson Sheikh Ali Mohamed Rage
alias Dhere, a vocal senior figure in the group who issues press releases and
frequent updates on the team's activities. The rewards for the Justice team of
the State Department noted that whoever gives clear leads will get up to $5
million from the US. Since 2009, Rage, also known as Ali Dheere, has been the
de facto spokesperson of the group and is said to be sitting in the Supreme
Council where policies and directions are issued. Reports indicate that Rage
was born in the Hawlwadag district of Mogadishu, Somalia in 1966 and has been
involved in the planning of attacks in Kenya and Somalia. He usually gives
updates whenever the group wages an attack anywhere across the Horn of Africa
nation.”



Africa



AFP News: Militants Kidnap 25 Youths In Northern Dr Congo
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“Unidentified militants have kidnapped 25 young people in northern Democratic
Republic of Congo, an administrative official said on Tuesday, during attacks
on several villages in the region. Gunmen raided three villages in the Banda
area of Bas-Uele province in the early hours of Tuesday morning, said Marcellin
Mazale Lekabusiya, a local government administrator. Details about the attack
are hazy, but Lekabusiya said the militants kidnapped 25 people aged between 12
and 18 years old. Seven of those abducted were girls. In a telephone interview,
the administrator also explained that the gunmen had released adults they had
captured. AFP was unable to independently confirm the account.”



Associated Press: Activists Call On Trinidad To Repatriate Citizens In Syria
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“Human Rights Watch on Tuesday called on Trinidad & Tobago to repatriate more
than 90 of its citizens who have been detained as Islamic State suspects and
family members in war-torn Syria, noting that at least 56 of them are children.
Some of them were whisked to Syria as children by relatives, while others said
they erroneously thought they were going to visit a Muslim utopia. ‘These
children never chose to live under ISIS, yet they are suffering because of
their parents’ decisions,’ said Jo Becker, the Human Rights Watch child
advocacy director. Most of the Trinidadians were detained in late 2018 and
early 2019 by U.S.-backed Syrian forces fighting the Islamic State group in
northeast Syria and are currently held in makeshift camps that activists say
are dangerous and lack food, water, medical care and education.”



Fox News: ISIS-Affiliated Moroccan Jailed For Beheading European Hikers Kills
Himself In Prison
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“A Moroccan convicted of belonging to an Islamic State-affiliated ring and
sentenced to death for the beheadings of two Scandinavian tourists has killed
himself in prison, Moroccan officials said. The facility where he was held in
the eastern city of Oujda said in a statement that staff found his body early
Tuesday. The prisoner was among convicted ring members jailed in 2019 over the
gruesome killings of two young Scandinavian women, Louisa Vesterager Jespersen
from Denmark and Maren Ueland from Norway. They were killed in December 2018
while on a backpacking trip in the Atlas Mountains, near the city of Marrakech.”



United Kingdom



BBC: Oxford Woman Charged With Publishing Terrorist Materials
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“A woman has been charged with disseminating materials relating to terrorism.
Roma Iqbal, 23, of Kestrel Crescent, Oxford, is accused of three counts
relating to content published online in December 2021. The charges concern
Islamist publications, Counter Terrorism Policing South East said. Ms Iqbal has
been bailed to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Monday.”



Europe



Reuters: Danish-Bosnian Woman Gets Four-Year Sentence For Aiding Islamic State
In Syria
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“A Danish-Bosnian woman evacuated from a Syrian detention camp in 2021 was
sentenced by a Danish district court on Tuesday to four years in prison and
stripped of her Danish citizenship for aiding Islamic State militants. The
38-year-old traveled to Syria with her husband and their children in February
2015 and worked as a housewife in the Islamic State stronghold Raqqa. Elmina
Aljic, who still holds a Bosnian citizenship, admitted to the court that she
aided the militant group by working as a housewife, according to her lawyer.
She has yet to decide whether to appeal the sentence, the lawyer added.”



India



Al Arabiya: India Detains Man With Suspected Links To Pakistan’s ISI, History
In China
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“Indian authorities have detained a man with links to Pakistan’s
Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and a history of residence in China and Hong
Kong. Police in the city of Indore detained the 40-year-old on Tuesday after
Mumbai police were placed on high alert to trace the man supposedly trained in
Pakistan, The New Indian Express reported. ‘This person has worked in China and
Hong Kong between 2005 and 2018. During interrogation, the man in his defense
said his case of divorce with a Chinese woman was underway in China and that
her lawyer had made a false complaint against him to the Indian intelligence
agencies,’ TNIE quoted an official as saying. An investigation is underway in
coordination with central and state agencies, the report said. The suspect has
been identified as Sarfaraz Memon.”



The Tribune: 7 ISIS Operatives Get Death In Train Blast Case
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“A special NIA court here on Tuesday awarded death penalty to seven ISIS
operatives in the Bhopal-Ujjain passenger train blast case in which nine
persons had got seriously injured. Another accused in the 2017 case was awarded
life imprisonment. Those who were awarded death sentence included convicts Mohd
Faisal, Gaus Mohd Khan, Mohd Azhar, Atiq Muzaffer, Mohd Danish, Mohd Sayyed
Meer Hussain and Asif Iqbal alias Rokey. Mohd Atif, alias Asif Irani, was given
life imprisonment.”



The Tribune: Properties Of 168 Terrorists To Be Attached, Say Police
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“The police have started the process to attach properties of nearly 168
terrorists who belong to different districts of the UT but have been operating
from Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied J&K (PoJK). The Ministry of Home Affairs
had recently directed the J&K Police to initiate action against such
terrorists, including 118 from Doda, 36 from Kishtwar and 14 from Rajouri and
Poonch districts. The action was sought after attacks on the Hindu community in
different parts of J&K. Most of the attacks in Jammu division were handled by
the terrorists who belong to J&K but based in different cities of Pakistan and
PoJK.”



Bangladesh



New Age Bangladesh: 44 Extremists Sent To Jail, 5 KNF Members Remanded
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“A Rangamati court on Tuesday sent 44 suspected members of extremists outfit
Jama'atul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya, who were arrested in different
anti-militant drives in the district, to jail in separate cases. The court also
put five members of the armed separatist group Kuki-Chin National Front (KNF)
on a five-day remand. Rangamati Senior Judicial Magistrate Swarna Komol passed
the order when police produced 49 members of Jamatul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya
and Kuki-Chin National Front (KNF) before the court. Earlier in the day, the
militants were taken to the court amid tight security. Law enforcers conducted
separate drives in the hilly areas of Rangamati and Bandarban districts and
arrested 50 militants Jamatul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya and KNF members
recently.”



New Age Bangladesh: Four Extremist Suspects Arrested In Chattogram
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“The Rapid Action Battalion on Wednesday said that they had arrested four
members of a new extremist outfit Jamaatul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharaqqiya from
Patiya area in Chattogram on Tuesday night. The arrestees are Hossain Ahmed,
22, of Dasmina area in Patuakhali, Nihal Abdullah, 19, of Sadar area in
Cumilla, Al Amin, 22, of Sadar area in Cumilla, and Al Amin alias Partha Kumar
Das, 21, of Dumuria area in Khulna. RAB media wing director Khandker Al Moin
informed this while addressing a press briefing in RAB-7's Chandgoan camp on
Wednesday noon. 'We arrested the four at Patiya Bypass while they had been
coming to Chattogram city from Bandarban by a CNG-run auto-rickshaw,' he said.”



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