Eye on Extremism - 10-21-21

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Eye on Extremism - October 21, 2021
By: Counter Extremism Project
Re: https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?og...rqLPCnvrJVHQjx

As of October 21, 2021:

The New York Times: Bombing Of Military Bus In Syrian Capital Kills 14

“A brazen attack on a military bus driving through the Syrian capital, Damascus, killed 14 people on Wednesday, according to state news media, a reminder that President Bashar al-Assad’s grip on power remains tenuous even in a major government stronghold with no active rebel presence. No organization immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, which the government called a “terrorist bombing.” While rebel groups operated in and near the capital earlier in the war, and jihadists linked to the Islamic State and Al Qaeda often staged deadly suicide bombings, they were mostly defeated and driven out years ago. But the blast suggested that militants opposed to Mr. al-Assad still maintained some ability to operate in the capital. A decade of war involving rebels, jihadists, Syrian government forces and their allies from Russia and Iran has killed more than half a million people, sent millions of refugees fleeing abroad and left many Syrian cities heavily damaged. Mr. al-Assad has largely managed to defeat those who sought to remove him from power and is gradually restoring ties with his neighbors.”

The Wall Street Journal: Taliban Commander Who Launched Bombings In Kabul Is Now A Police Chief In Charge Of Security

“Mawlawi Zubair Mutmaeen used to run Taliban suicide-bombing squads in Kabul. On a recent day, in his new role as police chief for one of the Afghan capital’s districts, he was busy mediating a marital dispute. A woman clad in a burqa complained she could no longer live with her interfering mother-in-law. Clearly used to being in command, Mr. Mutmaeen lectured the husband that under Islamic law he must provide his wife with “shelter and other basic necessities.” Mr. Mutmaeen’s solution was to have the mother relocate to the home of her other son. After some persuading, the husband reluctantly agreed. His face framed by a black turban and black beard, Mr. Mutmaeen didn’t see the jarring change from his previous occupation as remarkable. In the past, Americans and locals who worked with them were legitimate targets as the Taliban sought to create a true Islamic order, he said. Today, he reasoned, community policing serves the same goal. “Previously I was serving Islam, and now I’m also serving Islam. There is no difference,” Mr. Mutmaeen, 39, said. The Taliban-turned-cops under Mr. Mutmaeen’s command aren’t being paid, and they haven’t received training in actual police work. It isn’t clear what laws they are enforcing, other than their understanding of the Islamic Shariah.”

United States

NJ.com: Bill Named For N.J. Man Killed By Rental Truck Used In 2017 NYC Terror Attack Passes U.S. House

“The U.S. House on Tuesday passed legislation designed to make it harder for terrorists to rent cars and trucks to use to carry out attacks. The bill, which passed, 379-51, is named for Darren Drake of New Milford, one of eight people were killed in a 2017 terrorist attack in New York City. Officials said Sayfullo Saipov, an Uzbek national who gave a Paterson address to authorities, used a rented truck to mow down people on a Manhattan bike path. It would require the Department of Homeland Security Department to develop guidelines to help car rental agencies and automotive dealerships to help identify people who might want the vehicle to commit a terrorist attack, and to require the companies to report suspicious behavior. “This crucial legislation will provide rental companies and car dealers with the vital information they need to flag and stop potential terrorist threats in their tracks,” said the bill’s chief sponsor, Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-5th Dist., when the bill was debated last month.(The actual vote was postponed until Tuesday night). “We can take no chances when it comes to terrorism, which is why this bill will help ensure all rental companies report suspicious behavior at every point of sale,” the New Jersey Democrat said.”

Afghanistan

The Wall Street Journal: Taliban Face Pressure Over New Afghan Government At Russia Conference

“Taliban representatives attended their first international conference since the movement took power in Afghanistan in August, gathering with senior officials from Russia, China and other countries in Moscow, where they came under pressure to form a more inclusive government and pursue a friendly policy toward the country’s neighbors. In a statement issued following Wednesday’s talks, the participants expressed concern over the manifestation of activities by banned terrorist organizations in Afghanistan, but called for establishing engagement with the country regardless of whether the international community recognizes the Taliban as the new Afghan government. “Further practical interaction with Afghanistan must be built taking into account the new reality—the coming to power of the Taliban movement in this country,” the statement said. The conference participants—which also included senior officials from Pakistan, Iran, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan—urged the international community to mobilize efforts to provide urgent economic and humanitarian aid to the conflict-ridden, cash-strapped nation. Amir Khan Muttaqi, Afghanistan’s interim foreign minister, said the Taliban was committed to forming an inclusive government and this would become clear in the near future.”

Pakistan

Associated Press: Bomb Hits Security Vehicle In Northwest Pakistan, Killing 4

“A roadside bomb struck a vehicle carrying security forces in a former stronghold of local militants in northwest Pakistan on Wednesday, killing four, police said. The attack happened in Bajur, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan. The area served as a base for the Pakistani Taliban until a few years ago, when the army said it cleared the region of insurgents. But the violence has continued there. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the latest attack. Senior police officer Abdul Samad Khan said two police officers and two soldiers were killed in the attack. He said troops launched a search operation in the region to find those who orchestrated the attack. Khan refused to speculate on who could be behind the attack. But suspicion fell of Pakistan’s own Taliban who have been emboldened by the return to power of the Taliban in Afghanistan, where thousands of Pakistani militants are still believed to be hiding. Pakistan and Afghanistan share a 2,400-kilometer (1,500-mile) internationally recognized border known as the Durand Line, which was drawn in the 19th century when the British dominated South Asia. Kabul has never recognized the boundary.”

Reuters: Four Militants, One Soldier Killed In Kashmir After Attacks On Civilians

“Four militants and a soldier were killed in two separate gun battles in Indian Kashmir on Wednesday, a police officer said, as violence in the disputed region continued following a spate of attacks on civilians. More than 30 people have been killed after a rise in violence in Kashmir in recent weeks, including targeted killings of minority Hindus, Sikhs and migrant workers in the Muslim-dominated valley. Kashmir valley's police chief, Vijay Kumar, said three militants killed were involved in the recent target killing of migrant workers, while two Indian soldiers were injured and one died. He said militants belonging to The Resistance Front, which Indian authorities believe is backed by Pakistan, have been behind the attacks on civilians. Pakistan denies the charge that it supports the insurgency in Kashmir, saying it only provides diplomatic and moral support for the Kashmiri people. Indian authorities have moved thousands of migrant workers in Kashmir to safer locations, while hundreds have fled the Himalayan valley after a wave of targeted killings. The Himalayan region is claimed in full but ruled only in part by nuclear-armed neighbours India and Muslim-majority Pakistan.”

Mali

The Independent: British Troops Shoot Isis Jihadis In Mali — First Killings By Regular UK Forces Since 2014

“British troops have shot dead jihadists, believed to be Isis fighters, after coming under attack while on a UN mission in Mali – a country facing a fierce insurgency and political upheaval drawing-in rival international powers. The killings of the two gunmen were the first by regular UK forces since Afghanistan in 2014, and highlighted the dangers in a conflict which has spread across states in the Sahel. The UN mission, described as the most dangerous peacekeeping operation taking place at present, is carrying on alongside a counter-insurgency operation led by France. The clash between British forces and the Islamists took place in a remote area in the east of the country where troops from the Queen’s Dragoon Guards were on an operation to find alternative routes to ones which have come under repeated roadside bombings. The gunmen, carrying a Russian made PKN machine-gun and a Kalashnikov AK-47 assault rifle opened fire on the troops in Jackal armoured vehicles on a track between the towns of Indelimone, where a Malian army base had been overrun by Islamists and Menaka, a regional centre. The British troops from the Long Range Reconnaissance Group chased the two gunmen into an undergrowth before returning fire with a GPMG (general purpose machine gun) and 40 mm grenade machine gun in a 20 minute exchange, which began at a distance of 10m, on Wednesday morning.”

The National Interest: Mali Contemplates Negotiating With Al Qaeda

“The government of Mali has announced that the country’s religious authorities have been asked to open negotiations with the local affiliate branch of Al-Qaeda in an effort to bring peace to the unstable country. The Malian religious affairs ministry made the announcement on Tuesday, following a pattern of quiet discussions with the group at the lower level. The group tasked with undertaking the negotiations is Mali’s High Islamic Council, or HCI. While a number of jihadist groups are active in Mali, the largest and most prominent remains Jama’a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin, or JNIM, Al Qaeda’s affiliate in Mali. JNIM’s leader, Iyad Ag Ghali, is one of the most notorious jihadist leaders in West Africa; nicknamed “the strategist” for his planning abilities, he played a major role in the creation of Ansar Dine, a jihadist group formed in the aftermath of the 2012 uprising by ethnic Tuaregs in northern Mali. While the proto-state the Tuaregs created, Azawad, eventually ceased to function, the jihadist groups formed in connection with it spread across the Sahel, requiring a multinational effort to contain. France, Mali’s main ally, helped to contain the spreading terror threat through a military intervention in 2013, but violence has continued.”

Africa

AFP: Prosecutors Appeal Terrorism Judgement Against 'Hotel Rwanda' Hero

“Rwandan prosecutors said Wednesday they have filed an appeal against a court ruling that sentenced “Hotel Rwanda” hero Paul Rusesabagina to 25 years in prison on terrorism charges. The National Public Prosecution Authority is appealing the rulings against Rusesabagina, a staunch critic of President Paul Kagame, and 20 co-defendants, spokesman Faustin Nkusi told AFP. Rusesabagina, 67, and his fellow accused were convicted and sentenced on September 20 after a trial that rights groups and his supporters had branded a sham. At the time, chief prosecutor Aimable Havugiyaremye told reporters the prosecution was “not happy with the verdict because all the accused got lesser sentences than what the prosecutors had prescribed”. Prosecutors had sought a sentence of life in prison for Rusesabagina, the former hotel manager who was accused of backing a rebel group blamed for a spate of attacks in Rwanda in 2018 and 2019.”

Daily Monitor: Uganda: Thirteen Arrested Over Links To ADF Terrorists

“A joint Uganda security team has arrested 13 suspects it alleges are members or linked to the Allied Democratic Force (ADF), a designated terrorist group which the Islamic State in Central Africa Province (ISCAP) confirmed as an affiliate in 2019. Among those taken into custody are a pastor and an engineer. The men were apprehended in various sting operations in Paidha Town in Zombo District and in Kasese Municipality, which both straddle the border with the DR Congo (DRC), as well as in Njeru near the eastern Jinja City. Many had been under surveillance, security officials told journalists at a press conference at Uganda Police Forces headquarters in Naguru, a Kampala suburb, and undercover operatives closed in on them after the United Kingdom last week said a terror attack on Uganda was “very likely”. “Terrorists are very likely to try to carry out attacks in Uganda. Attacks could be indiscriminate, including in places visited by foreigners. UK Counter-Terrorism Policing has information and advice on staying safe abroad and what to do in the event of a terrorist attack,” the UK government statement noted in the advisory principally for its citizens. In Kampala, security forces officially had a muted response, noting that Uganda would not raise the threat level despite the alert.”

United Kingdom

Reuters: Terrorism Threat To UK Lawmakers Substantial After Colleague Murder -Patel

“British interior minister Priti Patel said on Wednesday that the terrorism threat level to members of parliament was now deemed substantial, days after lawmaker David Amess was stabbed to death at a public meeting in his constituency. It means the direct threat to politicians is the same as the overall national threat level, which means an attack is considered likely. “The Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre (JTAC) has conducted an independent review on the risk facing members of parliament,” Patel told parliament. “While we do not see any information or intelligence which points to any credible, specific or imminent threat, I must update the House (of Commons) that the threat level facing members of this house is now deemed to be substantial.” Amess, 69, was killed at a church on Friday in Leigh-on-Sea, east of London, as he met voters in his constituency. He was the second British lawmaker to be killed in five years prompting calls for better security for politicians. A 25-year-old man, arrested at the scene, is being questioned over Amess's murder by detectives who are treating it as a possible terrorist attack linked to Islamist extremism.”

Daily Mail: Calls To Overhaul Prevent As It Is Revealed 'Divisive Groups Who DON'T Believe In Counter-Terror Strategy Help Decide If Individuals Need To Be Deradicalised' - After Islamists Behind Four Recent Attacks Were ALL Referred To Scheme

“…Ian Acheson, a former prison governor and senior adviser at the Counter Extremism Project, said the official narrative that the far-right is the fastest growing threat is a 'comfort blanket' obscuring the 'patently more potent threat of Islamist extremism'. 'The body count does not lie,' he said. Ali Harbi Ali, 25, the suspected terrorist accused of murdering Tory MP David Amess on Friday, was referred to the programme seven years ago but his case was not deemed enough of a risk to be passed on to MI5. In 2017, right-wing terrorist Darren Osborne drove a van into Finsbury Park Mosque in north London, killing one person. From the start of 2017 to today 36 people have been killed by Islamist terrorists. A significant number of these terrorists had been referred to Prevent before going on to commit atrocities. Khairi Saadallah, 27, fatally stabbed friends James Furlong, 36, Dr David Wails, 49, and Joseph Ritchie-Bennett, 39, in a Reading park in June 2020. Prevent officials were warned he could carry out a 'London Bridge-style attack', but he was assessed and found to have 'no fixed ideology', the Independent reported. Another terrorist referred to Prevent was Sudesh Amman, who stabbed two people in Streatham, south London, last February.”

Germany

Associated Press: German Police Seize Weapons In Raid Of Far-Right Group

“Authorities in Germany say police have searched 14 premises across the country in connection with a suspected far-right extremist group whose members had discussed preparing for an armed revolt. Berlin police said officers searched premises in the capital and three other states Wednesday linked to 15 suspects belonging to a group that called itself “Berserker Clan.” Police said they seized firearms, ammunition and other weapons, as well as electronic storage device, drugs and doping substances. The suspects are accused of forming or being members in a criminal organization. There was no immediate word about arrests.”

BBC News: Ex-German Soldiers Arrested Over Alleged Terror Plot In Yemen's War

“Two former German soldiers have been arrested on suspicion of trying to form a terrorist mercenary force to fight in Yemen's civil war, prosecutors say. Arend-Adolf G and Achim A face terrorism charges after police raids in southern Germany on Wednesday. They allegedly planned to recruit up to 150 men for a private army made up of former police officers and soldiers. They wanted to offer their services to Saudi Arabia's government for illegal missions in Yemen, prosecutors said. Yemen has been racked by a civil war between the Saudi Arabia-backed internationally recognised government and the armed Houthi movement since 2014. Saudi Arabia entered the civil war in 2015 shortly after the capture of the capital, Sanaa, by the Houthis, who are supported by Iran. The accused former soldiers wanted Saudi Arabia to finance their private operations in Yemen, prosecutors in Germany said. The men tried to approach Saudi Arabian government agencies but the received no response and their efforts were unsuccessful. In a statement, federal prosecutors outlined extensive and serious allegations against the two “ringleaders”, who had “military knowledge and skills.”

Australia

The Age: Extremist Sought Global Headlines In Jailhouse Terror Attack, Court Told

“A “soldier of Islamic State” jailed for 42 years for a frenzied stabbing attack faces more jail time after she attacked a Canadian fellow inmate with garden shears in the hope of generating international headlines. Momena Shoma was less than three years into her term at Melbourne’s Dame Phyllis Frost prison when, on October 30 last year, she pounced on an unattended pair of shears. Later that day she tried to stab an inmate in the neck. But the Supreme Court heard on Wednesday, the victim saw the shears, raised her arms, ducked out of the way and suffered a cut thumb. Shoma, 28, was jailed in 2019 for stabbing Roger Singaravelu in the neck in his Mill Park home in February 2018, and must serve 31 years before being elligible for parole. She was staying with Mr Singaravelu and his family in a homestay arrangement after travelling from her native Bangladesh under the pretence of studying at La Trobe University. Instead, her motive was to kill in Islamic State’s name, and she has remained devoted to that cause in prison. When she saw an inmate leave the shears unattended at lunchtime Shoma concealed them in a newspaper and headscarf, prosecutor Brett Sonnet told the court. Shoma then approached her target because that woman was from Canada and, Mr Sonnet said, the Bangladeshi terrorist planned to kill her in the hope the attack would be reported by international media.”

Technology

Los Alamos Daily Post: Luján Introduces Bill To Hold Tech Platforms Accountable For Algorithmic Promotion Of Extremist Content

“…The legislation is supported by a number of leading organizations, including the Anti-Defamation League, the Center for Countering Digital Hate, Counter Extremism Project, American Jewish Committee, Consumer Reports, Common Sense Media, and News Media Alliance. “Social media’s problematic business model puts profits over people by optimizing for engagement at any cost—even if that means amplifying and promoting hate, harassment, and violence on their platforms. These companies track us, collect our data, and then deploy personalized algorithms to keep us engaged on social media for as long as possible so they can sell as many advertisements as possible. The byproduct? Elevating and amplifying hateful, divisive, antisemitic, and conspiracy content that too often leads to tangible harm. We applaud efforts like the Protecting Americans from Dangerous Algorithms Act and the leadership of Sen. Luján and Representatives Malinowski and Eshoo in working to fight dangerous algorithmic amplification and give victims tools to seek redress,” Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League said.”