Eye on Extremism - March 11, 2020

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Eye on Extremism
By: Counter Extremism Project - March 11, 2020
Re: info@counterextremism.com

As of March 11, 2020:

ABC News: 2 Americans Killed In Iraq During Anti-ISIS Mission Identified As Marine Raiders

“The Pentagon on Tuesday identified the two U.S. Marine Raiders killed in Iraq on Sunday during an anti-ISIS mission, a deadly reminder of the terror group's ongoing presence there. According to the U.S.-led coalition in Baghdad, the two Marines were “killed by enemy forces while advising and accompanying Iraqi Security Forces during a mission to eliminate an ISIS terrorist stronghold in a mountainous area of north central Iraq,” officials said on Monday. Another four service members were wounded during the mission, a U.S. official told ABC News on Monday. The Pentagon identified the Marine Raiders on Tuesday as Gunnery Sgt. Diego D. Pongo of Simi Valley, California, and Capt. Moises A. Navas of Germantown, Maryland. Both were 34 years old and assigned to 2nd Marine Raider Battalion, Marine Forces Special Operations Command in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. U.S. MarinesCapt. Moises A. Navas, 34, of Germantown, Md., and Gunnery Sgt. Diego D. Pongo, 34, of Simi Valley, Calif., right, were killed on March 8, 2020 in Iraq.Capt. Moises A. Navas, 34, of Germantown, Md., and Gunnery Sgt. Diego D. Pongo, 34, of Simi Valley, Calif., right, were killed on March 8, 2020 in Iraq.”

USA Today: US Starts Pulling Troops From Afghanistan As Part Of Peace Deal With Taliban

“The U.S. military said Tuesday it began withdrawing troops, taking a step forward on a peace deal with the Taliban, and officials praised Afghan President Ashraf Ghani for promising to release Taliban prisoners after he had delayed for more than a week. The U.S.-Taliban deal signed Feb. 29 is part of Washington’s effort to end 18 years of war in Afghanistan. The next crucial step would be intra-Afghan talks in which all factions, including the Taliban, would negotiate a road map for their country’s future. Ghani and his main political rival, Abdullah Abdullah, were each sworn in as president in separate ceremonies Monday. Abdullah and the elections complaints commission charged fraud in last year’s vote. The dueling inaugurations threw plans for talks with the Taliban into chaos, although Ghani said Tuesday that he would put together a negotiating team. The United States has about 8,000 troops helping to train Afghan forces. The disarray in the Afghan government is indicative of the uphill task facing Washington’s peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad as he tries to get Afghanistan’s bickering leadership to come together.”

United States

The Daily Beast: Russia Stoking Black Extremist Violence Ahead Of U.S. Election, Says Report

“The Russian government is trying to provoke racial violence in the U.S. to create a feeling of chaos ahead of the presidential election, according to a report from The New York Times. American officials briefed on recent intelligence reportedly told the newspaper that the Kremlin has adopted new techniques in its attempts to push white-supremacist groups and black extremist groups toward violence. Russia’s news networks are reportedly pushing stories emphasizing racial tension, such as ones involving police abuse and racism against black Americans in the military. Operatives are also reportedly using private Facebook groups, 4chan posts, and closed chat rooms to make their efforts more difficult to detect than during 2016’s election. The officials said Russia’s main goal is to create a sense of chaos ahead of the election, but some said that Russia believes acts of racial violence could boost President Donald Trump’s re-election bid. David Porter, an agent on the FBI’s Foreign Influence Task Force, reportedly explained last month: “To put it simply, in this space, Russia wants to watch us tear ourselves apart.”

Syria

Voice Of America: Syria Cease-Fire Hangs By A Thread

“The cease-fire agreement that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin reached for Syria’s battered Idlib province was hanging by a thread Tuesday. All sides claimed violations of the terms of the deal that legitimized Turkey's extended military presence in Syria's northwest, while enshrining territorial gains by President Bashar al-Assad's Russian-backed army. “Despite the cease-fire, several towns in the southern Idlib countryside and Aleppo's western outskirts are still being bombed daily by artillery shelling,” said Sayeed Mousa Zaidan, spokesman for the area's civilian defense force commonly known as the White Helmets. “Our teams have documented the dropping of 91 artillery shells since the agreement took effect.” On Sunday, the White Helmets rescue teams pulled the body of a 38-year-old man and his teenage son from under the rubble of their home in Sarmin. The town 15 kilometers southeast of Idlib has become a flashpoint in the battle for control between the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army and forces loyal to Assad.”

Iran

Asharq Al-Awsat: Riyadh: Iran Supports Terrorism In Yemen, Lebanon

“Saudi Arabia said Iran’s preoccupation with supporting terrorist groups in Yemen and Lebanon has deprived its citizens of their right to development and the rights of citizens of those countries to enjoy security and stability. During a meeting of the UN’s Human Rights Council on Tuesday in Geneva, third secretary of Saudi Arabia's permanent delegation to the UN Mohammed bin Essam Khashan called on Tehran to comply with the international treaties and covenants to which it has signed up. He also urged it to focus on the development of Iran and providing better lives to its citizens. Khashan said Iran needs to halt its interventions that are leading to human rights violations in neighboring countries. The Kingdom is concerned about violations of the economic, social and cultural rights of minorities in Iran, and the treatment of Kurds, Al-Ahwazi Arabs and Azerbaijani Turks who are being subjected to discrimination in a number of ways that have “a great impact on their basic rights. This includes the right to education, the equitable distribution of national wealth and environmental protection.”

Iraq

Kurdistan 24: ISIS Launches Attack On Iraqi Army, PMF Bases In Iraq’s Diyala: Security

“Remnants of the so-called Islamic State on Sunday night launched an insurgency attack in Iraq’s Diyala province, killing two members of the Iraqi Army and one Shia Hashd al-Shaabi militia, a local security source said. The attack took place in the vicinity of Khanaqin, a disputed Kurdish town, where the Iraqi Army soldiers and Shia militia, known as the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), are stationed. “The attack killed one member from the Iraqi army and another one from the PMF, while injuring two more from both sides,” the security source said on condition of anonymity. The activities of the terror group, including insurgency attacks, ambushes, and kidnappings continue to grow in different parts of Iraq, particularly in the provinces of Diyala, Kirkuk, and Nineveh. Local officials in the Kurdistan Region and Iraq have repeatedly expressed their concerns about the increasing number of the group’s attacks in the country, calling for further military and security cooperation with the international community. The recent Islamic State attacks come at a time where Iraq and the Kurdistan Region are trying to contain the spread of the coronavirus epidemic in the country, officially known as COVID-19.”

Afghanistan

The New York Times: Afghan President Orders Taliban Prisoner Release

“President Ashraf Ghani of Afghanistan on Wednesday ordered the phased release of thousands of imprisoned Taliban fighters, caving in on an earlier refusal that was threatening to derail the next steps of the American negotiated peace plan for the country. Mr. Ghani’s government was furious when — as part of the deal signed last month between the United States and the Taliban laying out the American troop withdrawal from Afghanistan — the Americans had agreed to push for the release of as many as 5,000 Taliban prisoners. Officials for Mr. Ghani repeatedly said that the Afghan government had the sole authority to release the prisoners, and that it would not agree to such a risky move as a precondition for the next step in the peace process: direct talks between the Taliban and Afghan leaders over the political future of the country. In a series of tweets after midnight on Wednesday, Sediq Sediqqi, Mr. Ghani’s spokesman, said 1,500 Taliban prisoners would be released starting on Saturday, at a rate of 100 a day. The remaining 3,500 will be released in batches of 500 every two weeks after the start of direct talks between the Taliban and a negotiating team appointed by the Afghan government. Those releases would be conditioned on a concrete reduction in violence, he said.”

Reuters: U.S. Warns Taliban That Level Of Violence 'Not Conducive' For Peace Process

“The United States warned the Taliban on Tuesday that the current high level of violence by the insurgents was “not conducive to advancing the peace process” as the United Nations Security Council backed a U.S.-led push to end Afghanistan's 18-year war. The United States signed an agreement with the Taliban last month. It calls for a phased withdrawal of U.S.-led foreign forces if the Taliban keeps its commitments and for the start of talks between the insurgents and an Afghan government delegation on a political settlement to end decades of conflict. “We acknowledge the Taliban have taken steps to stop attacks in cities and against major bases,” Deputy U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Cherith Norman Chalet told the U.N. Security Council. “But more needs to be done and we urge them to also reduce violence against Afghan forces in the countryside to give intra-Afghan negotiations and peace the opportunity to succeed,” she said after the 15-member council unanimously adopted a U.S.-drafted resolution on Afghanistan. The U.N. resolution welcomed “the significant steps towards ending the war and opening the door to intra-Afghan negotiations” enabled by separate U.S. agreements with the Taliban and the Afghan government.”

ABC News: US Commander Paints Grim Picture Of US-Taliban Peace Accord

“The top U.S. commander for the Middle East painted a grim picture Tuesday of the peace process with the Taliban in Afghanistan, saying the current level of violence is higher than allowed in the plan and that he will recommend against full withdrawal if that continues. Marine Gen. Frank McKenzie told the House Armed Services Committee that he has plans to cut the number of troops to 8,600 by the summer, but so far the U.S. “has not developed military plans” for the full withdrawal in 14 months that is called for in the peace plan signed Feb. 29. “To date, Taliban attacks are higher than we believe are consistent with an idea to actually carry out this plan,” McKenzie said. “If they're unable to draw down the current level of attacks, then the political leadership will be able to make decisions based on that.” He added that he has no confidence the group will honor its commitments, but said his optimism or pessimism about the future doesn't matter because any decisions will be based on facts and what happens on the ground. President Donald Trump last week touted what he described as a “very good talk” with a Taliban leader, and insisted the group wants to cease violence.”

The Times: Taliban Overtake Isis As Most Deadly Terrorist Group

“The Taliban have overtaken Islamic State as the world’s most lethal terrorists, just as the United States begins its withdrawal from Afghanistan, according to research. The shift is largely caused by a fall in the numbers killed by Isis, despite dire warnings of a resurgence by the group in Iraq and Syria. However, the findings by Jane’s, the defence research group, will be an embarrassment to the Trump administration, which has already come under criticism over its peace deal with the Taliban. Frank McKenzie, head of US forces in the Middle East, told a congressional committee on Monday night that he had no confidence the Taliban would meet their commitments under the deal.”

Egypt

Morning Star: Egyptian Trade Unions Could Be Branded Terror Organisations Under New Law

“Trade unions could be branded terrorist organisations in Egypt following their inclusion in a draft law passed unanimously in the country’s parliament claiming to combat “money-laundering and fighting terrorism.” The regulations extended the definition of “terrorist entity” to new categories including businesses and trade unions as Egypt redefined “the crime of financing terrorism.” The law defines as a terrorist entity any association, organisation, group or gang set up “for the purpose of disturbing the public order, endangering the safety, interests or security of the community or harming national unity by any means.” Under the amendments, trade unions could see their assets, finances and property seized and added to the terrorism list “even if the use of any of the resources mentioned above in financing any terrorist activity has not been proven.” Journalists, opposition parties and public-sector workers are also threatened under the draconian legislation. Egypt’s authoritarian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has moved to crush all dissent in the country. His regime sees independent trade unions as a threat to its grip on the country.”

Nigeria

News 24: 8 Killed In Boko Haram Attack On Army Post In Southeastern Niger

“An attack by Boko Haram jihadists on an army post in the southeastern Niger region of Diffa left eight dead and three missing, state radio said on Monday. Local sources had said on Sunday that a “major” attack had killed soldiers who were hospitalised in Diffa, but they did not give figures. Chetima Wangou came under attack by Boko Haram by around 20 heavily armed vehicles, the radio report said. “On the friends' side there were eight dead, eight wounded, three missing. On the enemy side almost all the assailants were neutralised,” the radio said. The killing of Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in a U.S. raid is a further blow to a jihadist group that once held a swathe of territory in Iraq and Syria, experts said, but the organization and its ideology remain dangerous. It said there were three successive clashes and that vehicles that had managed to cross the border into Nigeria were “almost all neutralised” by air strikes by a joint multinational force of Niger, Nigeria, Chad and Cameroon. The region which abuts Nigeria and Chad has repeatedly suffered attacks by the Boko Haram jihadist group since 2015, but they have subsided since late last year.”

Somalia

The Defense Post: Somalia: AFRICOM Says US Airstrike Kills 5 Militants Near Janaale, Acknowledges Civilian Casualty Reports

“The U.S. conducted an airstrike against al-Shabaab militants near Janaale, Somalia on Tuesday, March 10, U.S. Africa Command said in a press release. AFRICOM assessed the strike killed five al-Shabaab militants and that no civilians were injured as a result of the strike, but said it was aware of reports on social media of civilian casualties. A Somali Federal Government statement said a vehicle was also destroyed in the strike in Janaale, which lies about 70 km (44 miles) southwest of Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu, in the country’s Lower Shabelle region – an al-Shabaab stronghold. “As with any allegation of civilian casualties, U.S. Africa Command will review any information it has about the incident, including any relevant information provided by third parties, and take appropriate action based on the outcome of this review,” the AFRICOM release read. U.S. airstrikes against Shabaab increased precipitously after President Donald Trump eased engagement restrictions in 2017 by declaring southern Somalia an “area of active hostilities,” but AFRICOM has admitted only one incident of civilian casualties in more than 150 airstrikes…”

Africa

ABC News: Terrorist Groups 'On The March' In West Africa And The Sahel, US General Warns

“Terrorist organizations are “on the march” in West Africa and the Sahel with international efforts failing to curb the increase in violence, a four-star American general in charge of U.S. troops in Africa warned on Tuesday. The stark message came as the State Department is ramping up its diplomatic efforts in the region by appointing the first-ever U.S. special envoy. But that high-level engagement may be undermined by a potential cut to the U.S. troop levels on the continent, with the Pentagon still reassessing its force presence there. Lawmakers of both parties and allies including France have warned the Trump administration that a reduction in troops could exacerbate problems and increase the threat of terrorism to the American homeland. In a hearing on Tuesday, Gen. Stephen Townsend, the head of U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), said that in the last year alone there's been a five-fold increase in terrorist activity in the Sahel region -- the stretch of semi-arid land south of the Sahara Desert from Mauritania and Senegal in the west to Sudan and Eritrea in the east. The region has at least five major terrorist organizations, whose members often flow between them and with weapons flowing south from Libya, according to U.S. officials.”

Arab News: Tunisia Arrests 5 Over Attack Near US Embassy

“Five people have been arrested in Tunisia over a double suicide attack that killed a police officer near the US embassy in Tunis last week, the prosecution said Tuesday. Two suicide bombers struck outside the embassy on Friday, wounding six other people and again shaking a city repeatedly hit by extremist violence. The five detainees were arrested on Saturday and are being held at a police station in the capital’s El Gorjani district specializing in anti-terrorism investigations, spokesman Sofiene Sliti told AFP. Tunisian media have reported that the two suicide bombers were men from Tunis who had served their sentences after being found guilty on terror charges in 2014. The attack on Friday at midday rocked the Berges du Lac district hosting the highly fortified embassy, causing panic among pedestrians and motorists. A video shared later on social media shows two men in sports clothes and with caps on their heads riding a scooter up to a police van then pausing for a few seconds before an explosion. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack and authorities have not announced any other advances in their investigations.”

United Kingdom

Daily Mail: Terrorist, 29, Who Admits Hoarding ISIS Propaganda Sent Almost £2,700 To Help 'Fighter Brothers' In Iraq, Court Hears

“A terrorist who admits hoarding pro-Islamic State propaganda helped raise thousands of pounds for 'fighter brothers' in the Middle East, a court heard. Ayub Nurhussein, 29, is charged with entering into a funding arrangement - totalling £2,699.19 for the purposes of terrorism between April 11 and July 11 last year. Jurors at the Old Bailey were told that multiple communications had taken place between the defendant and another man, Said Mohammed, 30, via the private messaging app Telegram. It is claimed that Mohammed was in contact with a third person in Iraq, known as Wassim. Prosecutor Alistair Richardson said multiple messages had been exchanged in which Wassim had asked Mohammed to help raise funds from 'brothers from abroad' to support IS activities. 'The situation is bad, my brother. The situation is bad at all levels in Iraq,' he said. 'If there are brothers...that would still give support, tell them this is a time of seriousness and this is a time when the Mujahedin (fighters) really need you. 'This is a time of vulnerability and this is a time when we need brothers from abroad to help.’”

France

Deutsche Welle: Terrorism Survivor Eases The Pain With Her Pen

“Going back to the Bataclan concert hall is an act of resistance for Catherine Bertrand. The 39-year-old Parisian is a survivor of one of France's worst terror attacks: Three armed gunmen killed 90 people during a performance by the rock band Eagles of Death Metal on November 3, 2015. “I still have a knot in the stomach when I come here,” she said as she stood in front of the venue in northeastern Paris on a cloudy afternoon. “But it's important for me to do this. I started to regularly return in front of the Bataclan a few weeks after the attack as I didn't want to develop a phobia. I love going to concerts and am determined not to give that up. And it's sort of a pilgrimage: I am paying homage to the dead and reminding myself of how lucky I am to have survived.” The massacre was one of several assaults carried out by seven attackers in Paris that night which left 131 people dead. Shootings and suicide bombings also took place at several bars and during a soccer match at the Stade de France national stadium. France will be commemorating the victims of these and other terror attacks on Wednesday, European Remembrance Day for Victims of Terrorism. Over the past five years, more than 250 people have died in terror attacks in France.”

Germany

Deutsche Welle: Does Germany Do Too Little To Remember Victims Of Racist Terror?

“On August 21, 1980, xenophobic terrorists threw three Molotov cocktails through the window of a Hamburg refugee shelter. Eighteen-year-old Do Anh Lan and Nguyen Ngoc Chau, both from Vietnam, were sleeping inside. They suffered severe burns in the attack and died several days later. The racist killers had spray-painted “Foreigners out!” on the wall of the shelter. Do Anh Lan's mother, Do Mui, grieves for her son's death to this day. She has called for an official memorial site to be set up to commemorate his life. “Nobody seems to care,” she told the German weekly Die Zeit. On February 19, 2020, a 43-year-old man killed nine people in the town of Hanau, near Frankfurt, apparently motivated by what some officials and journalists have described as the victims' “foreign roots.” The racist attack shocked Germany. President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Chancellor Angela Merkel later attended the memorial service to pay their respects. Relatives of the victims fear that life will soon return to normal for much of German society — as if nothing had ever happened. “Relatives are telling us they're scared to send their kids to school,” said Robert Erkan, who counsels victims of such crimes. Racist terror, after all, poses a constant danger in Germany, no matter what politicians claim or promise.”

New Zealand

The Guardian: Far-Right Extremists Still Threaten New Zealand, A Year On From The Christchurch Attacks

“In the hours after the Christchurch mosque attacks on March 15 last year, I wrote that I hoped New Zealand would finally stop believing it was immune to far-right extremist violence. A year on, I’m not sure enough has changed. I’ve researched far-right extremism for decades – and I would argue it remains a high-level threat in New Zealand, not just overseas. My assessment is that there are about 60 to 70 groups and somewhere between 150 and 300 core, right-wing activists in New Zealand. This sounds modest alongside the estimated 12,000 to 13,000 violent far-right activists in Germany. But proportionate to population size, the numbers are similar for both countries. And it only takes one activist to act out his extremism. In the past year, there has certainly been greater investment by New Zealand’s security agencies in monitoring extremist groups and activists. There has been more media coverage. The government moved quickly to ban assault weapons and further controls on the use and possession of arms are underway. Other initiatives, including a royal commission of inquiry, are pending. But I also feel there is a tendency to see the Christchurch attacks, which killed 51 people, as a one-off or an aberration – rather than something we still need to guard against.”