Eye on Extremism
March 21, 2023
Garowe Online: Somalia To Start Second Phase Of Al-Shabaab Crackdown During Ramadan
“The Somali National Army [SNA] will commence the second and perhaps the final phase of the Al-Shabaab crackdown during the Holy month of Ramadan, a senior security advisor has said, as the country makes serious progress in the fight against the group which controls parts of Somalia. According to Kamal Dahir Hassan Gutale, the national security adviser to Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre, the new operation will commence immediately just days after the army solidified bases which had been liberated from the militants, paving way for civilian rule. It is estimated that over 600 people have been killed since the offensive started in July last year just immediately after Hassan Sheikh took over with several towns also liberated in the process. The Somali National Army has been getting support from US Africa Command, the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia and the local militia.”
The Straits Times: Exposure To Online Extremist Content Common Factor Among Youth Detained Under ISA
“One thing in common among extremist youth detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA) is their exposure to online extremist content. ‘Terrorist groups have capitalised on the developmental issues experienced by youth in their adolescence, such as their search for a sense of belonging and identity, and their proclivity for sensation-seeking and risk-taking,’ said Minister of State for Home Affairs Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim in Parliament on Monday. He was responding to a question filed by Nominated MP Mark Chay. Mr Chay had asked if there were any sociological factors shared among cases of detained extremist teens, such as broken homes or single-parent households, and what the Ministry of Home Affairs is doing to proactively address the threat of radicalisation among those with such shared factors. In reply, Associate Professor Faishal said common sociological factors among cases of detained extremist teens have not been observed.”
United States
Bowling Green Daily News: 2024 Trial Date Set For BG Man In Federal Terror Case
“A Bowling Green man accused of joining the terror group ISIS is scheduled to face trial next year on federal criminal charges. Mirsad Ramic, 33, is under indictment on charges of providing material support and resources to ISIS, conspiring to provide material support to ISIS and receiving military-type training from ISIS, a designated foreign terrorist organization. Federal prosecutors allege that Ramic traveled to Turkey in 2014 with two Saudi Arabian nationals who attended Western Kentucky University, then bought plane tickets to a Turkish border city and traveled from there in to Syria to join the Islamic State of Iraq. During a pretrial conference earlier this month, U.S. District Court Senior Judge Greg Stivers set Ramic’s case for trial on Jan. 9, 2024, court records show. A final in-person pretrial conference is set for Nov. 21, and attorneys will have until Oct. 30 to file pretrial motions.”
Syria
Associated Press: 3 Kurds Reportedly Shot Dead Celebrating New Year In Syria
“Turkey-backed opposition fighters in Syria fatally shot at least three ethnic Kurds who were celebrating a holiday late Monday by lighting fires, Syrian opposition activists and pro-government media said. The shooting near the northwestern town of Jinderis, which suffered substantial damage during last month’s earthquake, underlined the high tensions between Turkey-backed opposition fighters and the Kurdish community in Syria. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition war monitor, said the shooting was carried out by members of the Ahrar Sharqiya group, an armed opposition group backed by Turkey. The observatory said members of the group got into an argument with some Kurds after mocking them for lighting a fire in honor of the Kurdish new year celebration. Members of the Ahrar Sharqiya group shot and killed three Kurds and wounded four others, the observatory said. It said all those killed were from the same family.”
Iraq
Anadolu Agency: NATO To Continue To Work With Iraq In Fight Against Terrorism: Stoltenberg
“NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Monday that the military alliance will continue to work with Iraq in promoting stability and fighting terrorism. Speaking in Brussels ahead of a meeting with Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein, Stoltenberg said NATO attaches great importance to its training mission in Iraq, adding that NATO trainers work together with Iraq's Defense Ministry and Office of the National Security Advisor. ‘And of course, everything we do in Iraq is in full respect of Iraq’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. ‘It's based on your wish, your demand. But we are glad that we can continue to work together because we know that the fight against terrorism is something that matters for you,’ he added.”
Turkey
Anadolu Agency: 2 Daesh/ISIS Suspects Arrested In Central Türkiye
“Turkish security forces arrested two people suspected of having links to the Daesh/ISIS terror group, security sources said on Tuesday. Prosecutors in the central Konya province issued arrest warrants for Ercan T. and Sibel U., said the sources on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media. Ercan, 41, was a senior member of the organization. Sibel was sentenced to 6 years and three months in prison. Provincial anti-terror police detained the suspects and they were transferred to the courthouse after their procedures at the police station.”
TRT World: Türkiye Expects Sweden To Prevent Terrorist Fundraising, Propaganda
“Türkiye expects Sweden to prevent fundraising, recruitment, and propaganda by terrorist groups on its soil, the Turkish foreign minister has said. ‘We welcome positive steps taken by Sweden but it still falls short,’ Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Monday at a joint press conference with senior EU and Swedish officials following an international donors' conference to support the victims of last month's earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria. Responding to a question on Sweden’s NATO bid, Cavusoglu said Türkiye had no issues with Finland's accession but that both NATO and the Nordic countries wanted to treat Sweden and Finland equally. ‘We have demonstrated our goodwill, now the parliament has the power to ratify their membership,’ Cavusoglu told reporters alongside EU Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi and Sweden's Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Tr ade Johan Forssell. He also reiterated that Türkiye supports NATO's open-door policy.”
Middle East
Jewish News Syndicate: IDF: Terrorist Bomber Did Not Infiltrate From Lebanon Via A Tunnel
“The terrorist from Lebanon responsible for the March 13 roadside bombing in northern Israel did not infiltrate the border via a tunnel, the Israel Defense Forces said on Monday. The military did not elaborate or explain how the border was penetrated, saying only that the incident was still being investigated. ‘The IDF continues to study and investigate the incident in order to draw the necessary operational conclusions,’ it said in a statement. The bomb, which was placed behind a barrier on Route 65 near Megiddo Junction some 18 miles southeast of Haifa and 37 miles from the Lebanese border, detonated at around 6 a.m., seriously wounding Shareef ad-Din, 21, a resident of the Israeli Arab town of Salem.”
AFP News: Israeli Shot In Tel Aviv Attack Dies Of Wounds
“An Israeli man shot by a Palestinian militant in a Tel Aviv attack earlier this month has died of his wounds, the hospital treating him said Monday. He is the latest victim in worsening Israeli-Palestinian violence which has now claimed 101 lives this year. Ichilov hospital announced ‘the death of Or Eshkar, who was critically wounded in the attack on Dizengoff Street,’ a statement from the hospital said. Eshkar, 32, was one of three Israelis shot by Mutaz Khawaja, 23, a member of the armed wing of the Palestinian group Hamas, who opened fire outside a restaurant in the centre of Tel Aviv on March 9. Security forces shot Khawaja dead at the scene.”
The Jerusalem Post: Shin Bet Thwarts Terror Attack Planned For Coming Days In Jerusalem
“The Shin Bet thwarted a West Bank terrorist cell organized by Palestinians from the Gaza Strip which aimed to carry out a shooting attack in Jerusalem in the coming days, the agency announced on Tuesday. According to the Shin Bet, two operatives from the Resistance Committees terrorist organization in the Gaza Strip headed the establishment of the cell: Iman Youssef Khalil Zakot and Zabri Mohammad Zabri Aram, both from Rafah. The Shin Bet was monitoring the cell from the moment the Gaza terrorists began planning it and revealed it once it came close to carrying out attacks.”
Africa
AFP News: French Journalist, US Aid Worker Kidnapped In Sahel Are Freed
“A French journalist and a US aid worker who had been kidnapped by jihadists in the Sahel have been released, an AFP journalist saw Monday. French freelancer Olivier Dubois and American aid worker Jeffery Woodke emerged from a plane that landed at an airport in Niamey, the capital of Niger. Dubois, 48, had been kidnapped in Mali in 2021 while Woodke went missing in Niger in 2016. ‘I feel tired, but I'm fine,’ said Dubois, smiling but visibly overwhelmed, dressed in a white shirt, T-shirt and beige trousers. ‘It's amazing for me to be here, to be free,’ he said, speaking to a small group of journalists. ‘I want to pay tribute to Niger for its skills in this delicate mission and pay tribute to France, to all those who have helped me to be here today.’”
United Kingdom
BBC: Ex-Spy Says MI5 Did Not Want Real IRA Leader Arrested
“A US trucker who spied on a dissident Irish republican group says the security service MI5 did not want its leader arrested. David Rupert infiltrated the Real IRA, the group behind the 1998 Omagh bomb atrocity, for the FBI and MI5. His undercover evidence was used in 2003 to prosecute Michael McKevitt, the leader of the Real IRA, for directing terrorism. Rupert told BBC Spotlight MI5 wanted to keep gathering intelligence. The programme put this to MI5 but they did not respond.”
Europe
Associated Press: Belarus Tightens Border With Poland After ‘Terrorist’ Shot
“Belarus has stepped up security along its border with Poland after security forces killed a foreigner in the region who allegedly was planning a terrorist attack, the Belarusian human rights group Viasna said Monday. The Belarusian KGB security agency said the alleged terrorist was killed in a shootout on Sunday in the city of Grodno, just east of the Polish border. It did not identify the suspect’s nationality or give other details, but said its officers along with police and border guards were conducting ‘special operations’ in the city on Monday. Viasna released what it said was a video of the Sunday incident in which dozens of officers could be seen storming the entrance of a five-story apartment building. Sappers and explosives-seeking dogs were called to the residence of the regional governor, Viasna said.”
The Jerusalem Post: Hezbollah Terrorists Who Killed Israelis In Bulgaria Bus Blast Get Life In Prison
“The Supreme Court of Bulgaria announced in early March that the life prison sentences in absentia for two Hezbollah terrorists were confirmed for their role in blowing up an Israeli tour bus in the seaside resort of town of Burgas, killing five Israelis and their Bulgarian Muslim bus driver in 2012. According to the Bulgarian news outlet Sofia Globe, Bulgarian Prosecutor-General Ivan Geshev said on March 7 that the sentences have been confirmed by the Supreme Court of Cassation. The two convicted Hezbollah terrorists Meliad Farah, a Lebanese-Australian citizen, and Hassan El Hajj Hassan, a Lebanese-Canadian citizen, fled to Lebanon after the bombing. The Jerusalem Post previously reported that Bulgaria urged Lebanon to extradite the terrorists but Lebanon’s government, where Hezbollah plays a dominant role, rebuffed the Bulgarian authorities.”
India
Greater Kashmir: SIU Raids LeT Terrorist’s House In Pulwama
“The Special Investigation Unit (SIU) of J&K Police conducted searches in the Kakapora area of south Kashmir’s Pulwama district on Monday. Quoting official sources, a local news gathering agency GNS reported that searches were conducted at the Kakapora residence of Abdul Aziz Dar, son of Ghulam Muhammad Dar. Aziz is the father of active LeT terrorist Reyaz Ahmad Dar, who has been active for eight years and is believed to be one of the oldest surviving terrorists. The official sources said that the searches were conducted in connection with case FIR No 239/2022 of Police Station Pulwama.”
Southeast Asia
Nikkei Asia: Islamic Extremists Infiltrate ASEAN, Eyeing Indonesia's 2024 Polls
“Four years after the fall of the Islamic State caliphate in Syria where it lost territories and followers, the extremist group's ideology remains entrenched in Southeast Asia, particularly in Indonesia and the Philippines, where risks of attacks are looming. In Indonesia, a counterterrorism expert warned that IS supporters are working together with former terrorism convicts to form a group to carry out attacks in the run-up to, during and possibly after the country's presidential elections due in 2024. Muh Taufiqurrohman, a senior researcher at the Jakarta-based Center for Radicalism and Deradicalization Studies (PAKAR), told Nikkei Asia this group of IS supporters is targeting polling stations, police and non-Muslims, viewing them as enemies of IS that must be destroyed. ‘The Indonesian government should watch out for former and current Jemaah Ansharut Daulah (JAD) members, ex-convicted terrorists and supporters of Islamic caliphate who are gathering to form an interorganizational group to carry out attacks in 2024,’ said Taufiqurrohman. This group is working with former terrorism convicts because they have ‘military skills and access to weapons.’”
Technology
BBC: Man Retweeted Praise Of Terrorist For More Followers, Jury Told
“A man who retweeted praise of a terrorist on Twitter told a jury he only did it ‘to have more followers’. Ajmal Shahpal said he did not believe the killer of a French teacher was ‘as brave as a lion’. Prosecutors say he encouraged others to carry out terror attacks and posted an image of a victim's severed head on his social media account. The 41-year-old, of Birkin Avenue in Radford, Nottingham, is on trial at Birmingham Crown Court. He denies two counts of encouraging others to commit, prepare, or instigate acts of terrorism and two alternative charges of the same offence being reckless as to whether such acts would be encouraged.”
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