Eye on Extremism
March 3, 2023
AFP News: US Offers Up To $5 Mn Reward For Leader Of DR Congo ADF Militia
“The United States announced a reward of up to $5 million on Thursday for information leading to the capture of the leader of the ADF militia, which is primarily active in DR Congo. The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) is one of the deadliest armed groups in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, a volatile region that has been plagued by violence for decades. The militia -- which the Islamic State group claims as its central African affiliate -- has been accused of slaughtering thousands of Congolese civilians and carrying out bomb attacks in Uganda. On Thursday, the US embassy in Kinshasa said it was offering up to $5 million for information leading to the reward of ADF leader Seka Musa Baluku.”
Bloomberg: Plot To Bomb California Democratic Headquarters Sends Two To Prison
“Two California men were sentenced to prison for plotting to firebomb the Democratic headquarters in the state’s capital following the 2020 presidential election. Ian Benjamin Rogers, 46, was ordered to serve a nine-year term and Jarrod Copeland, 39, got 4 1/2 years Thursday at a court hearing in San Francisco, federal prosecutors said in a statement. Both men pleaded guilty in May to conspiring to destroy the John L. Burton Democratic Headquarters in Sacramento, according to the US Attorney’s Office in San Francisco. US District Judge Charles Breyer said the plan amounted to ‘an act of terrorism,’ according to the statement. ‘The evidence that was obtained certainly shows that there was a plan, a design, an opportunity and ability to carry out the firebombing,’ Breyer said.”
United States
Yahoo News: Ohio Law Enforcement Links Erin Brockovich To Potential For 'Special Interest Terrorism' Threat In East Palestine
“Ohio law enforcement issued a report late last month warning that events planned in East Palestine by the environmental activist Erin Brockovich could prompt a terrorist threat from violent extremists, according to an intelligence bulletin obtained by Yahoo News. Dated Feb. 24 and distributed to law enforcement agencies by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Ohio Statewide Terrorism Analysis & Crime Center Terrorism Analysis Unit Situational Awareness [STACC TAU] report obtained by Yahoo News ‘assesses that special interest extremist groups will continue to call for changes in governmental policy, which may lead to protests in/around East Palestine and/or at the Statehouse in Columbus.’ The report then singles out the reaction by Brockovich, a whistleblower who helped build a successful lawsuit against the California utility company Pacific Gas and Electric in a case involving contaminated groundwater, to the Feb. 3 train derailment and release of toxic chemicals in East Palestine. ‘On 24 February, environmental activist Erin BrockovichUSPER [United States person] is scheduled to be in East Palestine to explain residents’ legal rights. Brokovich has urged the community to use common sense and ask questions. Brockovich is also placing blame solely on Norfolk Southern.The STACC TAU assess this event could potentially increase tensions within the community.’”
Voice Of America News: US Attorney General Says He Would Not Object To Designating Wagner A Foreign Terrorist Organization
“U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland says he would not ‘object’ to designating Russia's Wagner mercenary group as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, calling its founder, Yevgeny Prigozhin, a ‘war criminal.’ In testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, Garland was asked by Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a staunch supporter of Ukraine, if he agreed that the Wagner group ‘should be a Foreign Terrorist Organization under U.S. law.’ ‘I think they're an organization that is committing war crimes, an organization that's damaging the United States,’ Garland said, noting that the designation is made by the State Department. Graham, along with a bipartisan group of senators, is sponsoring legislation that would direct the secretary of state to designate Wagner as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.”
The Times Of Israel: Pro-Palestinian Activist Went Looking To Beat Jews At NYC Israel Rally – Prosecutors
“A pro-Palestinian activist who committed a series of attacks on Jews in New York City in 2021 and 2022 discussed bringing firebombs to a pro-Israel rally, bragged about antisemitic assaults and plotted how to evade law enforcement, according to federal prosecutors. Saadah Masoud pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit hate crimes in federal court in November as part of a plea agreement. His sentencing for separate attacks on three Jews will be held on Friday in the Southern District Court of New York. He faces up to two years in prison.”
Syria
AFP News: UN Chief Urges Nations To Repatriate Citizens From Syria Camp
“UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday called for the swift repatriation of foreigners held in Syria's infamous Al-Hol camp which houses relatives of jihadists. The sprawling and overcrowded Kurdish-run Al-Hol camp in northern Syria is home to more than 50,000 people, including family members of suspected Islamic State group militants as well as displaced Syrians and Iraqi refugees. Nearly half of the camp's population is under the age of 12 and residents are ‘deprived of their rights, vulnerable, and marginalised’, Guterres said in a statement during a visit to Iraq. ‘They are trapped in a desperate situation with no end in sight,’ he said at the Jadaa camp, which Iraqi authorities describe as a ‘rehabilitation’ centre for those returning from Syria.”
Iran
The Jewish Chronicle: Iran-Run School Exposed By JC Referred To Extremism Unit
“The London school whose children sang in an Iranian propaganda video that alluded to a myth about massacring Jews has been referred to the Department for Education (DfE) Counter-Extremism Division, the JC has learnt. It follows a damning report on the school published last month by education watchdog Ofsted that rated it as ‘inadequate’, adding that its safeguarding policies and practice were ‘not effective’. The JC revealed in November that children at the Islamic Republic of Iran Primary School in northwest London, a short walk from numerous synagogues, had been filmed singing a propaganda song called Hello Commander. In the film, they pledged to join a mythical band of 313 warriors in an apocalyptic conflict against the infidels, when, according to the Iranian regime’s ideology, a great leader known as the Mahdi will return to Earth after a 1,200-year absence and Israel will be obliterated and Jews killed. The song has been highly praised by Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. His government owns the school and it is understood that most of its 110 pupils are the children of Iranian diplomats and regime officials.”
Iraq
Daily Sabah: MIT Eliminates Senior Member Of Terrorist Group In Iraq's Sinjar
“The National Intelligence Organization (MIT) has eliminated a senior member of the PKK terrorist group responsible for Iraq’s northern Sinjar region. According to security sources quoted by Anadolu Agency (AA) on Friday, the terrorist Saad Ali Bedel, code-named ‘Ceko Pir,’ had participated in attacks against the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) while also organizing acts against MIT in the Sinjar region. Bedel was followed by a special MIT team and it was found that he hid among the Yazidi people. After receiving intelligence that Bedel was planning a new attack on the TSK's Bashika base in Mosul, MIT eliminated the terrorist in an operation while paying the utmost attention not to harm civilians that Bedel was using as a shield. TSK regularly conducts cross-border operations in northern Iraq, a region where PKK terrorists have hideouts and bases from which to carry out attacks against Türkiye.”
TRT World: Senior PKK/KCK Terrorist 'Neutralised' By Turkish Intelligence In N. Iraq
“A senior PKK/KCK terrorist was ‘neutralised’ by Turkish intelligence in northern Iraq, according to security sources. The Turkish intelligence neutralised the terrorist in Sinjar, and showed high-level sensitivity not to harm the civilian population used by the terrorist as a shield, the sources said on Friday. Saad Ali Bedel, codenamed Ceko Pir, who was determined to have participated in actions against Turkish bases, was the ringleader of the terrorist activities against the Turkish intelligence agency in the Sinjar region, according to the sources. The agency, which assigned a special team to monitor Bedel's activities in Sinjar, determined that the terrorist was living with the Ezidi people, a religious minority group.”
Turkey
Daily Sabah: Türkiye Slams US Terrorism Report Over ‘Twisted’ Claims
“Türkiye’s Foreign Ministry has lambasted the United States for ‘purposefully twisting’ the country’s fight against terrorist organizations that directly threaten its national security. ‘We are calling on the U.S. to show solidarity with Türkiye and display a principled, consistent, determined and effective attitude in the spirit of alliance,’ Foreign Ministry spokesperson and Ambassador Tanju Bilgiç said Thursday in a written response to the U.S.' 2021 Country Reports on Terrorism. Türkiye conducts its war on terrorist organizations like the PKK and its Syrian branch YPG, the Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party/Front (DHKP-C), the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ) and Daesh without discrimination in line with the law and actively contributes to international efforts on this front, Bilgiç underlined. ‘Referring to the YPG, the extension of the PKK, as a partner of the U.S. in the fight against Daesh demonstrates the fact that U.S. authorities are still unable to comprehend the fallacy of using a terrorist organization in combatting another terrorist organization,’ he said.”
Afghanistan
Atalayar: Afghanistan's International Isolation Cracks Taliban Leadership: "Infighting Is Probable"
“…The Haqqani network is also an internal current of the Taliban movement, founded by his late father Jalaluddin Haqqani in the 1970s, which came to prominence during the anti-Soviet jihad in Afghanistan a decade later. ‘It is considered a branch of the Afghan Taliban but operates independently and has a more diffuse command structure,’ reports The Counter Extremism Project. ‘After the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan, Jalaluddin Haqqani formed an alliance with the Taliban and supported the growth of al-Qaeda. Even before Osama bin Laden moved his base of operations to Afghanistan, Haqqani took the extraordinary step of issuing communiqués and appeals for alliance with al-Qaeda affiliates across Africa.’”
Pakistan
Dawn: ‘Militants’ Killed, Nadra Office Attacked In Kech
“Two alleged militants were killed in an exchange of fire with security forces in Shapok and Sammi areas of Kech district on Thursday. Officials said security forces had launched a search operation on a tip-off about the presence of suspected militants in the mountainous area of Kech district. The alleged militants were identified as Shoaib and Yahya who belonged to a banned outfit, according to officials. In another incident, unknown attackers ransacked the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) office in the Bal-Nagor area of Kech district.”
Samaa: Around 70 Most-Wanted ‘Terrorists’ Of Daesh, Al-Qaeda Held From Across Punjab
“In a major breakthrough, the counter-terrorism authorities have arrested over 170 most-wanted terrorists in a series of covert operations spanning over 11 months across the country’s largest province of Punjab. Samaa’s Investigation Unit gained access to official documents, which revealed that the Punjab Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) launched covert operations against operatives of the Islamic State (IS), Al-Qaeda, Islamic State-Khorasan and other local militant groups last year. Several terrorists were gunned down in these operations, revealed the CTD officials. As per the documents, 22 Al-Qaeda members were arrested in south Punjab in 40 operations. The authorities also nabbed 41 terrorists of the IS in 35 operations, while intelligence-based operations also resulted in the arrest of four operators of the IS-Khorasan group. The CTD teams also arrested 89 operatives of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) during these operations conducted in different cities of Punjab.”
Saudi Arabia
Asharq Al-Awsat: Saudi FM Calls For Combating Cybercrime As Part Of Fight Against Terrorism
“Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah stressed on Thursday that combating terrorism also demands fighting cybercrimes through international cooperation and effective legislations. Addressing the second session of the G20 foreign ministers' meeting in New Delhi, India, he stressed that Saudi Arabia had adopted several local initiatives within the National Cybersecurity Authority (NCA). Moreover, he highlighted the Kingdom’s pioneering role in proposing invaluable initiatives, such as the establishment of the Global Center for Combating Extremist Ideology (Etidal). He underlined the Kingdom's membership in the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to combat money laundering and financing of terrorism, as well as the Kingdom's membership in the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS.”
Middle East
The Jerusalem Post: Syrian Hezbollah Agent Indicted For Spying, Terrorism After Capture In Israel
“A Syrian Hezbollah agent was indicted for espionage and terrorism, the Attorney-General’s Office announced, after the suspect was caught in an IDF ambush when he infiltrated Israeli territory on January 27. Ayat Abdullah and another man, Abed al-Rahman, were recruited and paid to observe and report on troop strength, vehicle types and amount, operational hours and routes of IDF forces by a Hezbollah operative who initially posed as a Syrian state security officer. The duo would spy on IDF forces along the fence, and meet with their handler bimonthly for reports and payment. According to the announcement, Rahman was killed in an explosion in May 2022, which Hezbollah claimed was caused by an Israeli missile assassination.”
Israel National News: Terrorist Prisoners Preparing For Hunger Strike During Ramadan
“The Palestinian Arab committee representing terrorist imprisoned in Israel is sending a warning to the Israeli government following the approval in a preliminary reading of the death penalty for terrorists bill. In a statement on Thursday, the committee stated that ‘our enemy will regret the moment of the final approval of this law.’ ‘Today we enter the seventeenth day of our move against the measures of he who is known as Ben Gvir, who threatens us with further measures of revenge and heavy handedness, and it is now clear that he and the people around him did not receive our message, and they do not understand the stubborn character of the Palestinian, who will not back down from his right and we will continue our rebellion and our activity until our victory [is achieved] and the prison guard is defeated,’ the statement said. ‘The only demand of the strike is the freedom of the prisoners, and this matter requires the support of all our people to stand against the blatant aggression against us,’ it continued. The committee called on the Palestinian Arab public to turn every Friday into a day of support for the terrorist prisoners.”
Nigeria
Reuters: Nigeria's Buhari Opens Emergency Power Plant In Troubled Northeast
“Nigeria's outgoing President Muhammadu Buhari opened an emergency gas-fired power plant in the northeastern city of Maiduguri on Thursday, where Islamist insurgents have wreaked havoc with attacks on the electricity network. The 50-megawatt plant is meant to bring temporary relief to the Borno state capital, the locus of Nigeria's 12-year battle against Islamist militants, who last year cut the city's power by blowing up transmission lines. No city in Nigeria, Africa's leading energy producer, is spared electricity shortages -- the whirr of diesel generators is ubiquitous -- but most major cities at least have intermittent grid power. Maiduguri has been without power since the attack in January 2021.”
The East African: Nigerian Troops Killed 133 Extremists Over Election Period
“The Nigerian military attacked identified territories of Boko Haram and Islamic State West African Province (Iswap) militias, killing 133 in a proactive operation meant to weaken the extremists and prevent them from disrupting the just concluded elections. The troops also recovered heavy ammunition including AK-47 rifles and Nato Dane guns, attack trucks, motorcycles, desert camouflage and medical supplies from enclaves of the terrorists who have been troubling the northern Nigeria region since 2009. The ongoing operation was carried out to enable Nigeria conduct peaceful presidential and national assembly elections held on February 25, 2023. Director of Nigerian Army Public Relations Brigadier General Onyema Nwachukwu on Thursday said in Abuja that apart from the Northeast Nigeria operation, troops also curtailed the bandits in north central and north west as well as crippling violent secessionist activities in the south east.”
Somalia
The National: US Cautiously Optimistic About Somalia's Anti-Al Shabab Military Campaign
“The head of the US military's Africa Command, Gen Michael Langley, said he is ‘very cautiously optimistic’ about Somalia's fight against Al Shabab militants. Speaking after the international African Chiefs of Defence Conference on Thursday, Gen Langley expressed confidence in Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud's ‘whole of government approach’ to addressing both the militant presence in Somalia, as well as persistent famine plaguing much of the population. Al Shabab militants have been trying to overthrow Somalia's central government for almost 15 years. Mr Mohamud has publicly stated that he prioritises economic reform, social and political reconciliation, and religious tolerance in the fight against international terrorism.”
Africa
Voice Of America News: Somalia's Neighbors To Send Additional Troops To Fight Al-Shabab
“The three neighboring countries of Somalia are to send new troops to support Somali forces against al-Shabab in the next phase of military operations, the national security adviser for the Somali president said. In an interview with VOA's Somali Service on Wednesday, Hussein Sheikh-Ali said Djibouti, Ethiopia and Kenya will be sending troops in addition to the soldiers they already have serving as part of the African Transitional Mission in Somalia, or ATMIS. He said the new troops will not be part of the ATMIS mission. ‘It is their plan to be coming inside Somalia within eight weeks,’ he said. Ali declined to give specific number of the incoming troops, citing ‘operational purposes.’”
United Kingdom
Express Co: Manchester Arena Bomber Was Not Radicalised Overnight, Says LIAM DUFFY
“What could drive a young man, born and raised in Manchester, to transform his own body into an explosive weapon with which to take the lives of twenty-two innocents - many of them children? It’s a question both implicit and explicit in much of the coverage since the night of 22nd May 2017. It’s a question explored by Sir John Saunders in his Manchester Arena bombing inquiry, published yesterday. The conventional answer is that suicide bomber, Salman Abedi, was radicalised. But what if he wasn’t radicalised – at least not in the way we understand?”
CNN: MI5 Missed Opportunity To Prevent Manchester Arena Bombing, Inquiry Finds
“MI5, the United Kingdom’s domestic spy agency, missed an opportunity to prevent the Manchester Arena bombing, an inquiry into the terror attack has found according to a report in British news agency PA Media. At least 22 people were killed in the attack at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, England, on Monday, May 22, 2017. The final report of a public inquiry led by chairman John Saunders and released Thursday found that the attack might have been prevented if MI5 had acted on two key pieces of information regarding bomber Salman Abedi. The information was assessed by MI5 and not found to be terrorism-related, but an officer has admitted that they did consider one detail to contain a potentially urgent national security concern. However, the issue was not immediately addressed with other colleagues.”
Jewish News Syndicate: Frontrunner For Scottish Leadership Met With Senior Hamas Member
“Humza Yousaf, the favorite to become Scotland’s first minister, met with a former senior Hamas commander, the U.K’s Jewish Chronicle reported Thursday. Yousaf, 37, currently Scottish health secretary for the Scottish National Party, arranged the high-level meeting with Hamas leader Mohammad Sawalha, whose nom de guerre is Abu Obada. Yousaf, then 22, was working as a parliamentary assistant for Scotland’s first Muslim Scottish member of Parliament, Bashir Ahmad. At the same time, Yousef, along with his cousin Osama Saeed, was running the Scottish Islamic Foundation (SIF). Sawalha’s history was public knowledge, the Jewish news site reported. The BBC in 2006 identified him as having ‘masterminded much of Hamas’ political and military strategy.’”
France
Alaska Commons: French Court Seeks 14-Year Sentence For Ex-ISIS Member Douha Mounib
“The trial of Douha Mounib, a trained midwife who had twice joined the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria between 2013 and 2017, began with the Advocate General requesting 14 years in prison and a two-thirds security period. The magistrate questioned the genuineness of her repentance, citing her minimization of the facts, her extreme determination, and her attempt to escape justice. She also highlighted the humanitarian role Mounib had in the Islamic State, which was essential to the settlement and training of future combatants. The Advocate General concluded that, for the interests of the society, she would take the bet not to believe Mounib’s change. The trial continues as the court examines the evidence.”
India
Maktoob: UP: Two Muslim Men Arrested Over “Al-Qaeda Module” Gets Bail After 597 Days
“Allahabad High Court Thursday has granted bail to two Muslim men, Mohd Mustaqeem and Mohammad Shakeel, who were arrested in connection with a pressure cooker bomb case in Lucknow. They had been held in custody for 597 days prior to being granted bail. The two Muslim men were arrested by Uttar Pradesh Police Anti Terrorism Squad on 14 July 2021 and they were later handed over to National Investigation Agency. The bail was granted on the condition that the individuals would cooperate with the investigation.”
Australia
Mint: Quad Announces Formation Of Working Group On Counter-Terrorism
“Quad Group on Friday announced the establishment of a Working Group on Counter-Terrorism in sharpening its focus to combat terror. A joint statement of the Quad leaders, comprising the US, Japan, Australia, and India, was issued in New Delhi today, according to the news agency ANI. The statement denounced the use of terrorist proxies and committed to promoting accountability for terrorist attacks including the 26/11 attack in Mumbai, ‘which claimed lives of citizens from all Quad countries’. Heavily-armed terrorists from Pakistan struck Mumbai on November 26, 2008, in which at least 174 people, including 26 foreign nationals, were killed and over 300 people injured.”
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