Eye on Extremism - 01-25-21

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Eye on Extremism - January 25, 2021
By: Counter Extremism Project News
Re: info@counterextremism.com

As of January 25, 2021:

Voice Of America: Ugandan Airstrikes In Somalia Kill 189 Al-Shabab Fighters

“Somali officials and the Uganda People’s Defense Forces (UPDF) claimed killing 189 al-Shabab fighters late Friday and in the early hours of Saturday in an operation in southern Somalia. Talking to VOA Somali Service by phone, Lower Shabelle Governor Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur Siidi said Ugandan soldiers under the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), using attack helicopter gunships, have killed nearly 200 al-Shabab militants. Earlier, the Ugandan army’s deputy spokesman, Lt. Col. Deo Akiki, said, “Their soldiers killed at least 189 al-Shabab fighters in the operation and destroyed two mounted weapons and motorbikes in separate fire strikes.”Siidi said the strikes, along with ground assaults by the joint troops, occurred Friday and early Saturday in a string of villages between the Qoryoley and Janaale districts in the southern Somali region of Lower Shabelle. “The militias were struck in their hideouts in the villages of Sigaale, Adimole and Kayitoy, just over 100 kilometers southwest of the capital, Mogadishu,” Nur said. A statement from the Ugandan Army said that during the operation, “a large number of military hardware and items used by the terrorist were also destroyed.” “The UPDF also disrupted an al-Shabab meeting, injuring several terrorists in Donca-daafeedow, which is seven kilometers from the Janaale town,” the statement added.”

CNN: Biden Admin Launches Review Of Trump Decision To Designate Yemen's Houthis As Foreign Terrorist Organization

“The State Department has initiated a review of the Trump administration's decision to designate Yemen's Houthi rebels as a foreign terrorist organization (FTO), a spokesperson told CNN Friday. It is a swift move by the newly installed Biden administration to examine one of the most consequential 11th hour actions taken by former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo who announced the decision less than two weeks before leaving, with the designation going into effect just a day before the inauguration on Wednesday. “As noted by Secretary-Designate (Antony) Blinken, the State Department has initiated a review of Ansarallah's terrorist designations,” the spokesperson said. Blinken, President Joe Biden's pick for secretary of state, said at his nomination hearing Tuesday that his “deep concern about the designation that was made is that at least on its surface it seems to achieve nothing particularly practical in advancing the efforts against the Houthis and to bring them back to the negotiating table, while making it even more difficult than it already is to provide humanitarian assistance to people who desperately need it.”

United States

The Washington Post: After Capitol Riot, Police Chiefs Work To Root Out Officers With Ties To Extremist Groups

“The revelation that the Capitol mob — covered in emblems of extremist groups — included off-duty law enforcement officers possibly assisted by working police is escalating pressure on sheriffs and police chiefs nationwide to root out staff with ties to white supremacist and far-right armed groups. Law enforcement leaders have faced criticism in the past for failing to police their own officers’ involvement with extremist groups. However, the selfie photos that off-duty officers took inside the Capitol during the violent siege, which left one police officer dead and dozens of others injured, were a wake-up call for many who have long denied the extent of the problem within policing. National Sheriffs’ Association President David Mahoney said many police leaders have treated officers with extremist beliefs as outliers and have underestimated the damage they can inflict on the profession and the nation. “We saw the anti-government, anti-equality and racist comments coming out during the Obama administration. Shame on us for representing it as freedom of speech and for not recognizing it was chiseling away at our democracy,” Mahoney said in an interview. “As we move forward, we need to make sure we are teaching our current staff members that they must have the courage to speak out when they know about another deputy’s or officer’s involvement. There should be no reference to the thin blue line.”

Voice Of America: White House Focuses On Fight Against Domestic Terrorism

“Fears that an untold number of Americans are being radicalized is prompting the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden to take a closer look at efforts to counter domestic extremism and at whether enough is being done. White House press secretary Jen Psaki announced the overhaul of the country’s approach to domestic terrorism Friday, citing the January 6 siege of the U.S. Capitol. “The tragic deaths and destruction that occurred underscored what we have long known — the rise of domestic violent extremism is a serious and growing national security threat,” Psaki told reporters, calling the new effort “really the first step.” “The Biden administration will confront this threat with the necessary resources and resolve,” she added … New research also suggests that extremist movements in the United States are increasingly connected to similar movements in other countries, including Finland, France, Germany, Sweden and Britain. "During the last few years, a new leaderless, transnational, apocalyptic and violent extreme right-wing movement has emerged," said Hans-Jakob Schindler, senior director of the Counter Extremism Project. "The extreme right-wing movement is connected to frequent international travel, to music and mixed martial arts events, as well as marches and rallies," Schindler said Friday during a webinar about the latest research.”

Syria

Voice Of America: UN Security Concerns Rise Following Killings In Syria's Al-Hol Camp

“U.N. officials are expressing alarm over worsening security at Northeast Syria’s al-Hol refugee camp after multiple killings between January 1 and 16. Fears for the safety and protection of camp residents and humanitarian workers are growing following the killings of 12 Syrian and Iraqi residents, including one female Iraqi refugee. Another person was critically injured during a violent attack. Al-Hol, which is controlled by U.S.-backed Kurdish forces, is the largest camp for refugees and Syrians who have fled their homes, with nearly 62,000 residents. Most are women and children of Syrian and Iraqi origin. They fled to the camp after a U.S.-led coalition ousted Islamic State militants from their stronghold in the northern city of Raqqa in 2018. The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs laments the tragic loss of life in al- Hol. OCHA spokesman Jens Laerke says the recent rise in violence also threatens the security and the ability of aid workers to provide crucial assistance to the residents. “What they are delivering is primary health care, water, shelter, nonfood items, food and hygiene distribution, nutrition and protection. All of that delivery is being thrown into jeopardy when the level of insecurity rises to what we have seen now,” he said.”

Iraq

BBC News: Islamic State Tries To Shore Up Relevance With Iraq Carnage

“The Islamic State group (IS) has not gone away. The twin suicide bombing in Baghdad on Thursday was a hideous reminder that the group which once controlled a vast swathe of territory across Syria and Iraq is still capable of mounting high casualty attacks in the heart of a city. In this case its target was the Shia community, whom Sunni jihadists refer to dismissively as rafidain - rejectionists. “Suicide bombings in major cities have always been a major part of IS strategy of creating sectarian tension and provoking retribution against Sunni populations,” says Peter Neumann, professor of security studies at King's College London. “IS needs sectarian conflict, in which it can portray itself as a provider of order,” he adds. The market square that was hit was a target of convenience, the primary aim of the planners being to try to show they are still a force to be reckoned with after the loss of their physical territory in 2019. The attackers took advantage of the inherent good nature of Iraqis who crowded round to help a man who said he was unwell. He waited until enough people had gathered and then triggered his bomb.”

Asharq Al-Awsat: 11 Iraqi PMF Fighters Killed In ISIS Attack

“At least 11 fighters from Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces were killed in an ambush by ISIS north of the capital on Saturday, PMF security sources said. The militants used light weapons and the cover of darkness to target the PMF east of Tikrit, the capital of Iraq's Salahaddin province, two days after a twin suicide attack claimed by the group killed 32 people in Baghdad. “ISIS launched an attack on PMF's Brigade 22,” said one of the unit's officers Abu Ali al-Maliki. Maliki told AFP the brigade commander was among those killed before reinforcements from the federal police came to the unit's aid. PMF security sources said the total toll was 11 dead and 10 wounded. There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but security sources interviewed by AFP blamed ISIS. Iraq declared the group territorially defeated in late 2017, but has continued to battle extremist sleeper cells, mostly in the country's mountainous and desert areas. Local troops have been aided by a US-led coalition, which first intervened to help fight ISIS in 2014 and continues to provide training, surveillance and airstrikes in support of anti-militant operations. The coalition has significantly drawn down its troop numbers over the past year, with the US shrinking its force from 5,200 to 2,500.”

Agence France-Presse: Fears Of Iraq Execution Spree After IS Attack

“Rights defenders fear Iraq may give the green light to a spree of executions of convicted jihadists in a show of strength, days after a deadly suicide attack in Baghdad. On Sunday, an official from Iraq's presidency told AFP more than 340 execution orders “for terrorism or criminal acts” were ready to be carried out. “We are continuing to sign off on more,” said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity. The orders were disclosed to AFP after twin suicide attacks claimed by the Islamic State group on Thursday killed at least 32 people in a crowded open-air Baghdad market. The blasts were a jolting reminder of the persistent threat posed by the jihadists, despite the government declaring victory over them in late 2017. The official, along with judicial sources contacted by AFP, could not provide additional details on when the executions may take place or if they included foreigners convicted of belonging to IS. A 2005 law carries the death penalty for anyone convicted of “terrorism,” which can include membership of an extremist group even if they are not convicted of any specific acts. Rights groups have warned that executions were being used for political reasons. “Leaders resort to announcements of mass executions simply to signal to the public that they're taking... (these issues) seriously,” said Belkis Wille, senior crisis and conflict researcher at Human Rights Watch.”

Kurdistan 24: Coalition Airstrikes Kill 7 ISIS Militants On Outskirts Of Kirkuk, Erbil

“The Iraqi army announced on Saturday that seven Islamic State members were killed in two airstrikes by the US-led Coalition to defeat the extremist group in Kirkuk and Erbil province's Makhmour district. A statement released by the military's Security Media Cell pointed out that, “in coordination with the Joint Operations Command, the international coalition carried out two airstrikes,” the first in the “Qarachough Mountain and the other in the Kirkuk sector.” It added that the two strikes “resulted in the killing of seven ISIS elements and the destruction of 4 tunnels used by the terrorist group’s militants.” Makhmour district is located between the four provinces of Erbil, Kirkuk, Nineveh, and Salahuddin, and is considered part of the disputed territories between Erbil and Baghdad and is claimed as part of Erbil province by the autonomous Kurdistan Region. The vast majority of the town's population is Kurdish, but there are also ethnic Arabs living there. These are just the latest strikes by the Coalition after a series of others in areas that included Diyala province. A source in the Peshmerga forces told Kurdistan 24 that the most recent strikes in Kirkuk province destroyed Islamic State hideouts at Ghara Mountain, between the towns of Kifri and Tuz-Khurmatu.”

Turkey

Daily Sabah: 15 Daesh Terrorists, 1 With Links To Turkey Emir, Detained

“Turkish security forces detained at least 15 foreign nationals, including one with links to the Daesh terrorist group’s so-called Turkey emir Mahmut Özden, in simultaneous counterterrorism raids conducted in several provinces on Friday. Police in southern Osmaniye province detained terrorist C.A., upon receiving intelligence that there was a Daesh sleeper-cell and he had connections to Özden. The suspected terrorist was arrested by the court and transferred to prison. Police squads in the Black Sea province of Samsun launched simultaneous operations at 13 addresses in Ilkadım, Canik and Çarşamba districts, according to a security source, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media. During the operation, four Syrian and 10 Iraqi nationals, who were active within the terrorist group, were detained. Digital materials were also seized from the suspects' addresses. In 2013, Turkey became one of the first countries to declare Daesh a terrorist group. The country has since been attacked by Daesh terrorists multiple times, with at least 10 suicide bombings, seven bomb attacks and four armed attacks that killed 315 people and injured hundreds more. In response, Turkey launched anti-terror operations at home and abroad to prevent further assaults.”

Afghanistan

France 24: White House To Review Landmark US-Taliban Deal For Peace Talks With Kabul

“Top Afghan officials on Saturday welcomed the decision of US President Joe Biden's administration to review a landmark US deal with the Taliban and focus on whether the insurgents have reduced attacks in Afghanistan in keeping with the agreement. Washington struck a deal with the Taliban in Qatar last year to begin withdrawing its troops in return for security guarantees from the militants and a commitment to kick-start peace talks with the Afghan government. But Biden administration officials are to re-evaluate the pact after violence across Afghanistan has surged in recent weeks, despite the Taliban and Afghan government continuing talks since September. Afghanistan's Acting Minister for Peace Abdullah Khenjani said the outcome of the review should be a truce to end attacks in the war-ravaged country. Khenjani said the review should lead to “an immediate stop to violence and achieving permanent peace” in a video statement on Saturday. President Joe Biden's newly appointed national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, spoke with his Afghan counterpart Hamdullah Mohib and “made clear the United States' intention to review” the deal, said National Security Council spokeswoman Emily Horne late Friday.”

Lebanon

Arab News: Hezbollah Should Have No Role In Lebanon’s Future, Says Bahaa Hariri, Son Of Rafik Hariri

“Bahaa Hariri, the eldest son of slain Lebanese statesman Rafik Hariri, is calling for a broad alliance — a “supermajority” — to coalesce around a plan to agree on the way forward for Lebanon as it faces multiple crises. Such an alliance is needed to implement the unfinished business of the Taif Agreement, the peace deal brokered by Saudi Arabia 30 years ago, Bahaa said as he gave a candid assessment of Lebanon’s situation on Frankly Speaking, the televised interview in which senior Middle East policymakers are questioned on their views about the most important issues of the day. “We have to make sure that across the sectarian divide, the forces of moderation go hand in hand to put (together) a complete comprehensive plan — whether it’s an economic plan, a COVID-19 plan, a constitutional plan, a judiciary plan, or a security plan,” he said, noting that Lebanese was “at the precipice.” Bahaa, a billionaire Lebanese businessman, added: “We seek the full support of Saudi Arabia to make sure of the full implementation of the Taif Accord. It is key for us that Saudi Arabia helps us out and supports us in this. That's the key.”

Egypt

Al Monitor: Islamic State Kills 1, Wounds 3 In Sinai

“The Islamic State claimed responsibility for an attack that Egyptian security forces said killed one security officer and wounded three other people in the Sinai Peninsula early Thursday. IS’ local franchise claimed to have detonated roadside bombs in two separate attacks on the Egyptian army Thursday, one targeting a tank near the coastal town of Sheikh Zuweid and the other a bulldozer at a village near Egypt’s border with Gaza. Egypt’s government under President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has struggled to tamp down the insurgency. Last month, a pair of roadside bombs killed three soldiers near Sheikh Zuweid. In February 2018 the Egyptian military announced a major nationwide sweep against Islamist terrorists mainly focused on the peninsula just a few months after IS gunmen mowed down more than 230 civilians attending Friday prayers at a Sufi-affiliated mosque near el-Arish. North Sinai emerged as the insurgency’s epicenter following the popular ouster of former President Hosni Mubarak in 2011 and the subsequent military coup against President Mohammed Morsi led by then-Defense Minister Sisi two years later.”

Nigeria

Sahara Reporters: Boko Haram Fighters Kill Nine Soldiers In Nasarawa

“Boko Haram fighters have killed nine soldiers in the Doma area of Nasarawa State. The soldiers were sent on a rescue operation in a forest along Mararaba-Udege road in the state, linking Otukpo Oweto in Benue State. The slain soldiers were led to the forest by an officer Felix Kura, an indigene of Benue State. According to TheNation, the slain officers were on a mission to dislodge the Boko Haram terrorists from the forest who kidnapped some indigenes of the state and held them captive. The operation led to about five Boko Haram terrorists' death before they were overpowered by the terrorists whose weapons, it was gathered, were more sophisticated than those used by the soldiers. According to reports, the slain soldiers were from the 177 Guards Battalion, Shitu Barracks in Keffi, Nasarawa State. “As soon as they ran into the ambush and they realised they were being overpowered, Kura was said to have told his colleagues to escape. “The authorities of the 117 Guards Battalion have informed the families of the slain soldiers of their fate, and a signal has been sent to the headquarters,” a source said. A source in the barracks said, “We lost nine soldiers in that mission and not seven, it is quite unfortunate but that is the supreme price of a military officer.”

Mali

Al Jazeera: Six Malian Soldiers Killed In ‘Complex And Simultaneous’ Attacks

“At least six Malian soldiers have been killed in two “complex and simultaneous” attacks in Mali’s conflict-wracked centre, according to the military. The coordinated assault took place at about 3am (03:00 GMT) on Sunday in the villages of Boulkessi and Mondoro in the Mopti region, near the country’s border with Burkina Faso. “The provisional toll is six dead and 18 wounded” among the soldiers, the army said in a statement, adding that the attacks prompted a military response which left “around 30 dead on the terrorist side”. Some 40 motorcycles and a large amount of military gear were seized from the attackers, it added. It was not immediately clear who was behind the attacks. Mali’s crisis was triggered in 2012 when ethnic Taureg separatists, allied with fighters from an al-Qaeda offshoot, launched a rebellion that took control of Mali’s north. But the armed group fighters swiftly pushed over the Tuareg rebels and seized key northern cities until they were driven out in early 2013 by French troops, together with Malian forces and soldiers from other African countries.”

Africa

Deutsche Welle: Burkina Faso: Theater Squeezed By Terrorism And Coronavirus

“Soldiers start shooting in the middle of Burkina Faso's capital, Ouagadougou. People scream. They take cover, waiting in fear to see what will happen next. Will the soldiers keep firing their weapons? Are innocent civilians about to die? Or are the bullets aimed at an insurgent planning to blow up the whole town? It's a scene that has been replayed many times in the past years in Burkina Faso, where violent attacks have caused more than one million Burkinabe out of a population of 20 million to flee their homes. Fortunately, today the violence is taking place on stage at the open-air Carrefour International Theater of Ouagadougou, or CITO for short. It's a scene from the play “La Patrie ou la Mort” (“Fatherland or Death”) by Burkinabe playwright and actor Mahamadou Tindano. You can't ignore the topic of violence, Tindano says: “As artists, we must react”. Tindano had started out writing short pieces about the increasing terrorist activity in Burkina Faso and what it means for his country. Then CITO commissioned him to write “La Patrie ou la Mort”. Tindano made a deliberate decision to not to locate the play specifically in Burkina Faso to make it relevant for others in West Africa's volatile Sahel region. “Terror can just as well happen in Niger or Mali. Wherever you find terror, you find stigmatization. And so, my play can be performed anywhere,” Tindano says.”

The Africa Report: Is Algeria Once Again Confronted With The Threat Of Terrorism?

“Across Algeria, a growing number of attacks, arrests and weapons have come to light, indicating a possible resurgence in jihadist activity in the country; a chapter from the 1990s that many hoped would stay closed. At dawn on 14 January, a group of hunters from the town of Bir El Ater, in the province of Tébessa, set off towards their hunting area in a pick-up truck. Their vehicle drove over a home-made bomb operated from a distance. The resulting explosion killed five people and caused a stir among the town’s residents, who have long suffered from terrorism. This is not the first time that hunters or hikers have been victims of mines in the region, usually abandoned bombs from the 1990s. However, it is the first time a civilian vehicle has been deliberately targeted by terrorists since the end of the dark decade. A few hours later and about 30km away, in the province of Khenchela, the army shot down a terrorist who had taken refuge in a cave. The equipment found in his possession – binoculars, a machine gun and a radio – indicate that he was in charge of monitoring this strategic area for armed groups. A week earlier, on 7 January, an operator of the 104th operational manoeuvre regiment – an elite anti-terrorist unit of the Algerian army – had uncovered the long tube of a portable Russian Strela-2 anti-aircraft missile."

United Kingdom

BBC News: Schoolboys In Court Charged With Terrorism Offences

“Two boys accused of being members of a far-right extremist group have appeared in court on terrorism charges. The pair, aged 15 and 16, are alleged to have been part of a Telegram chat group found to contain images of Adolf Hitler and the white supremacist behind the 2019 Christchurch massacre. The boys appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Friday but did not enter pleas. They are due to appear at the same court on 26 February. The younger boy, from South Derbyshire, is accused of possessing a terrorist publication, namely the Anarchy Cookbook Version 2000 on or before 22 September. He is also charged with disseminating a terrorist publication on 18 September and has been remanded in custody. The other teenager, from Kent, is accused of providing an electronic link that allowed others to access a terrorist publication, namely the “white resistance manual”. It is alleged he did so with the intention it would encourage others to commit a terrorist act. He is also charged with the dissemination of a terrorist publication on 28 August. The boy was granted conditional bail with restrictions on his internet use and a curfew ordering him to remain at home between 20:00 and 06:00 GMT.”

The Guardian: Terrorism Watchdog To Open Inquiry Into Radicalisation In Prison

“An inquiry into the way prisons deal with convicted terrorists is being launched by the independent terror watchdog amid concerns of growing radicalisation behind bars. Jonathan Hall QC said there had been a succession of terror attacks on prison officers while other inmates were coming under the influence of “high status” terrorist prisoners. Hall, the government’s independent reviewer of terrorism legislation, said that if terrorist activity was taking place in jails then it had to be dealt with. “There has been a steady drumbeat over recent years of terrorist attacks against prison officers, and an increasing number of individuals who may well have formed their terrorist intent in prison under the influence of high status terrorist prisoners,” he told the Times. “If terrorism exists (in prison) then it ought to be dealt with. We need scrutiny of how prisons operate to either contain, or worse encourage, terrorism.” His comments followed a series of high-profile cases, including the 2019 London Bridge attack when Usman Khan, a terrorist prisoner out on licence, stabbed two people to death. Khairi Saadallah, who was given a whole life sentence earlier this month for murdering three men in a terror attack in a Reading park, had been befriended by a radical preacher while serving an earlier prison term.”

Technology

Gizmodo: FBI Says Far-Right Militia Used Facebook Messenger To Coordinate Attack On Capitol Building

“Parler, a veritable breeding ground of far-right extremists, has arguably come under the most fire for its part in the Capitol riots, but let’s not forget that the internet is a big place, and violent radicalization on the scale we saw on Jan. 6 doesn’t develop in a bubble. Case in point: The Federal Bureau of Investigation said this week that a group of far-right militia members used Facebook Messenger to coordinate their actions during the siege on the Capitol Building. According to the FBI, Thomas Edward Caldwell, a ranking member of the self-described paramilitary group known as the Oath Keepers, appeared to lead the group’s efforts to track down legislators during the attack. Screenshots of Facebook messages between Caldwell and other rioters show him bragging about “storming the castle” on Jan. 6 and receiving updates about the specific whereabouts of lawmakers as they fled from the flood of violent insurgents raiding the building, per federal court documents shared by the George Washington University Program on Extremism. While storming the Capitol building—which he stupidly bragged about online in real-time, as did scores of other idiots—Caldwell is said to have received several disturbing Facebook messages goading him on to hunt down lawmakers.”