The Patriot Files Forums  

Go Back   The Patriot Files Forums > International > Terrorism

Post New Thread  Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old 10-16-2018, 07:06 AM
Boats's Avatar
Boats Boats is offline
Senior Member
 

Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Sauk Village, IL
Posts: 21,784
Arrow Eye on Extremism: October 16, 2018

Eye on Extremism: October 16, 2018
RE: https://www.counterextremism.com/rou...ctober-16-2018

Eye on Extremism: October 16, 2018
Voice of America: US Designates Hezbollah, 4 Other Groups As Top Threats

“U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Monday designated five groups, including the Lebanese Hezbollah and the Central American street gang MS-13, as “top transnational organized crime threats,” targeting them for stepped up prosecutions by the Justice Department. Sessions identified the other three groups as Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion, a Mexican criminal group; the Sinaloa Cartel, an international organized crime syndicate based in Mexico; and Clan del Golfo, a Colombian drug cartel, Sessions said. Speaking to a group of law enforcement officials in Washington, Sessions described the designations as “our next steps to carry out President [Donald] Trump’s order to take MS-13 and other [transnational criminal organizations] off of our streets.” “Taking on transnational criminal groups like the cartels is a priority for this president and for his administration,” Sessions said. “The same day I was sworn in as Attorney General, President Trump ordered me to disrupt and dismantle these groups.” Session said the five organizations had been identified by the FBI, DEA, the Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), and the Justice Department’s criminal division. A task force of prosecutors organized into five committees has been created to “coordinate our efforts and develop a plan to take each of these groups off of our streets for good,” he added. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein will head up the task force.”

NBC News: German Police Investigating Hostage Situation At A Train Station As Possible Terror Attack

“A teenage girl was injured and a woman was taken hostage on Monday at a train station in Germany in what police say may have been a foiled terrorist attack. Investigators said the incident began just before 6:45 a.m. ET when a man carrying several Molotov cocktails entered a McDonald's near Cologne's main train station and ignited one, which injured a 14-year-old girl. The attacker then fled to a pharmacy at Breslauer Platz, near the back side of the train station, taking a woman hostage, police said at a press conference. He "massively threatened" the hostage, police said, and at one point tried to set her on fire. Authorities said they believe the hostage taker had a weapon and fired multiple shots at him when they stormed the pharmacy around 9 a.m. ET, taking him down. He was seriously injured during his arrest and transported to the hospital for surgery, according to the Agence France-Presse. His current condition remains unclear. The woman held hostage was treated for minor injuries, police said earlier Monday.”

Foreign Policy: Islamic State Fighters Are Back, And This Time They’re Taking Up Arms With Shiite Militias

“The war in Iraq continues to bring together strange partners, and the latest odd couple may be the oddest of all. Particularly in Iraqi territory near Kurdish-held lands, the Popular Mobilization Forces—or the PMF, a collection of mostly Shiite militias—have started to join forces with some ex-Islamic State fighters. The idea of these former foes partnering may seem strange, but there are real benefits for both sides. Factions of the PMF, for their part, get to expand their footprint into Sunni areas. Islamic State fighters, meanwhile, can re-enter Iraqi society. Whatever the end result, it is likely to be bad for Iraq. The PMF was a key player in the war against the Islamic State that started in 2014. Made up exclusively of Shiite warriors and often fighting under Shiite religious flags, some PMF militias came to be seen as Iranian proxies. That made it difficult for them to work in Sunni-majority areas, and it made the Iraqi government’s international partners, including the United States, suspicious of including them in their own war-fighting efforts. Even so, the PMF endured. Today, it is in charge of security in some of the towns the Islamic State used to command, and it constitutes a major political force in the country. In the most recent national election, for example, a conglomeration of PMF groups called the Fatah Alliance won 48 seats in the 329-seat Iraqi parliament.”

The Guardian: Nigeria: Boko Haram Militants Kill Kidnapped Aid Worker

“Islamist extremists in Nigeria have killed a medical aid worker held hostage since March. Hauwa Mohammed Liman, 24, was killed by militants from a faction of Boko Haram after a deadline expired, authorities have said. Liman, a Nigerian who worked in a hospital supported by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), was one of three aid workers kidnapped by extremists during a raid on the town of Rann in the restive north-eastern Borno state. A second aid worker, an ICRC midwife, was killed in September. The surviving hostage worked as a nurse in a centre supported by Unicef. Boko Haram, which has also been known as Islamic State in West Africa, has been waging a deadly campaign in north-eastern Nigeria for almost a decade. The militants said in a video posted online last month that they would kill at least one hostage once a deadline due to elapse on Monday had passed. It is unclear what demands, if any, the extremists made for the release of the hostages.”

The Telegraph: Hate Preacher Anjem Choudary Is Banned From Speaking To Children On Jail Release

“Anjem Choudary, the notorious Islamist hate preacher, will be banned from talking to children when he is released from jail on Friday, The Telegraph can disclose. Prison authorities are so fearful of Choudary’s powers to radicalise boys and young men they have put in place the ban among 25 strict living conditions imposed on him. Choudary, 51, will also be barred from using the internet or meeting or talking to other Islamist extremists under the terms of his licence. He will also be prevented from giving interviews to the media to remove any possible platform for his extremism.”

The New York Times: A Genocide Incited On Facebook, With Posts From Myanmar’s Military

“They posed as fans of pop stars and national heroes as they flooded Facebook with their hatred. One said Islam was a global threat to Buddhism. Another shared a false story about the rape of a Buddhist woman by a Muslim man. The Facebook posts were not from everyday internet users. Instead, they were from Myanmar military personnel who turned the social network into a tool for ethnic cleansing, according to former military officials, researchers and civilian officials in the country. Members of the Myanmar military were the prime operatives behind a systematic campaign on Facebook that stretched back half a decade and that targeted the country’s mostly Muslim Rohingya minority group, the people said. The military exploited Facebook’s wide reach in Myanmar, where it is so broadly used that many of the country’s 18 million internet users confuse the Silicon Valley social media platform with the internet. Human rights groups blame the anti-Rohingya propaganda for inciting murders, rapes and the largest forced human migration in recent history.”

United States
The Hill: Americans Are Safer From Terrorism, But New Threats Are Arising

“Just how safe are we? The question has not left the minds of most of us for very long, at least not since 2001. With today’s breathless coverage of often vile news, I think many Americans viewed last month’s anniversary of the 9/11 attacks as an opportunity to commemorate and to reflect. For me, there were memories of putting the National Security Agency on a war footing as reports trickled in of a plane hitting the second tower in New York. I thought of Tim Maude with whom I had served in Germany, who was later head of Army personnel and was killed as American Airlines flight 77 plunged into the southwestern wedge of the Pentagon. That basic question — are we safer now than we were then? — was never far from mind. FBI Director Christopher Wray gave a rather somber assessment on the anniversary of that day: “People think of the 9/11 threat, they think New York, they think DC. Today’s terrorism threat is everywhere, coast to coast, north, south, east, west. It’s not just big cities.” He added that today’s threats come not just from Al Qaeda but from other terror groups, sleeper cells, and “homegrown” extremists.”

Associated Press: Extradition Hearing Ordered For Islamic State Terror Suspect In Sacramento

“A judge in Sacramento ordered an extradition hearing Monday for an Iraqi man suspected of being a terrorist and wanted in his homeland for allegedly shooting a police officer. U.S. Magistrate Judge Edmund F. Brennan ordered the hearing to begin Feb. 25 to determine whether Omar Ameen should be sent back to Iraq to face trial on murder charges there. The order is somewhat of a victory for both sides in the case. Prosecutors wanted an extradition hearing set to get the case moving forward, while Ameen’s attorneys argued that they need more time to investigate the case to try and show that Ameen was not in Iraq at the time of the slaying. Chief Assistant Federal Defender Ben Galloway said his office’s efforts include hiring translators to go through Iraqi and Turkish documents and finding an investigator who can go to the region to investigate the case. “We’re all here to make the right decision, do the right thing” Galloway said. “I have no doubt of that. But this takes time.” Prosecutors had been asking for an extradition hearing to be set for December, noting that the United States would want a speedy response from Iraq if they were seeking to extradite someone from that country.”

Syria
Kurdistan 24: Syrian Kurdish Leader: Anybody Who Attacks Our Areas Will Face Same Fate As Islamic State

“Anybody who tries to attack our liberated areas will suffer the same fate as the so-called Islamic State (IS), a Syrian Kurdish political leader said on Monday. Salih Muslim, a senior member of the ruling council of Syria’s northeast Kurdish areas, made the comments following a statement by Syria’s Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem who said areas in the country’s north “had to return to Syrian sovereignty.” “After Idlib, our target is east of the Euphrates,” Muallem said, referring to the territory the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) control. Responding to the Syrian foreign minister, Muslim tweeted: “Anybody try to attack our liberated areas will face the same fate as DAESH [sic].” Following a meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Moscow in August, Muallem said he is unaware of what rights the Kurds would have in Syria’s new constitution. Kurdistan 24 correspondent Khoshawi Mohammed asked Muallem whether the Syrian government would consider the rights of the Kurdish people in the country’s new constitution and whether there would be autonomy for the Kurdish people in the north. “First of all, I’d like to say, I do not directly deal with the issues of formulating the constitution, this is up to the constitutional committee,” Muallem responded. “I want to emphasize that Kurdish brothers are citizens like everyone else in Syria,” he continued. “Also, I do not know what rights will be included in the new constitution.”

The New York Times: Syria Reopens Border Link To Jordan, As Assad Reasserts Control

“The Syrian government celebrated the reopening on Monday of a vital border crossing with Jordan as a new sign of President Bashar al-Assad’s reestablished control over much of the country and of progress in his efforts to normalize relations with other Arab states. The civil war that has torn apart Syria since 2011 has ravaged the country’s economy and severed many of its regional relationships, and Mr. Assad, along with his Russian and Iranian allies, is now hoping that he can undo the damage. The Nasib border crossing, along Syria’s southern border with Jordan, was closed for three years because the territory on the Syrian side was controlled by mix of armed rebels and jihadist fighters. The Syrian government seized the area this summer with the help of Russian airstrikes, allowing the crossing to reopen. The Nasib crossing is a vital economic artery for the two countries, and its opening allows Syria to export produce and other goods to Jordan and send it on to other Arab countries.”

The Wall Street Journal: Extremists Hold Out In Syria As Russia Tries To Avoid More Fighting

“A plan to avert an offensive by the Assad government against the last major rebel-held area in Syria stumbled Monday when the main extremist group failed to leave a proposed buffer zone as part of a deal to demilitarize the region. However, Russia may still prevent Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad from launching an assault to retake Idlib, a province in northwestern Syria, as Moscow now appears eager to avoid a fight and instead find a political settlement to end the Syrian war and cement its growing role as a power broker in the Middle East. Russia and Turkey—which fears an attack on Idlib will send hundreds of thousands of civilians fleeing toward Turkish territory—agreed last month to create a roughly 10-mile buffer zone between territory controlled by opposition and government forces in Idlib. Thousands of rebels have fled to the province as Mr. Assad has gradually retaken a large portion of the country.”

The Straits Times: The Man Who Has Held Out Through Years Of Syria's War

“The Yarmouk district in Damascus has switched hands many times in Syria's war: from rebels, to Islamic State militants, and back to government forces. But Abu Nimr did not budge. He has remained in his family home with his dog through bombs, siege, and fierce battles for more than seven years, raising pigeons on his roof even as people fled in droves. Since the army clawed back the enclave around five months ago, he has helped clear heaps of rubble from the streets and repair abandoned houses. "My siblings and I lived in this building. They're all married. They left so their kids could go to school," Abu Nimr told Reuters in the Yarmouk Palestinian camp in the Syrian capital. "I thought I'd stay here alone, keep an eye on the family property, and hoped things would be resolved within days. But seven years passed, God kept me patient." Abu Nimr, who is originally Palestinian, owned a shop selling sweets like baklawa before the conflict.”

Iran
Voice Of America: Iran's Growing Influence In Syria Sparks Concern

“While Russian and Iranian-backed Bashar al-Assad's regime is consolidating its grip on most areas once controlled by various rebel groups in Syria, Iran's involvement and military footprints in the country have some experts and U.S. lawmakers concerned that Tehran might be in the process of establishing long-term presence in Syria in an effort to project regional power in the long term. "These countries [Russia and Iran] are digging into Syria preparing for the long haul, and the implications for the U.S. interests and those of our partners are still coming into focus," Republican Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida, Chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, said during a recent congressional hearing on U.S policy in Syria. Lehtinen added that U.S. needs a "coherent" and "comprehensive" strategy to prevent Iran's growing influence in the region.”

Human Rights Watch: Iran: Arrests, Harassment Of Baha’is

“Iranian intelligence officials have increased the arrests of the country’s Baha’i religious minority over the past two months, with no clear charges, Human Rights Watch said today. In August and September 2018, authorities arrested more than 20 Baha’i citizens, as well as a city council member who a colleague said offered support for those arrested. Those arrested included 12 people in the city of Shiraz, 4 of whom remain detained in an Intelligence Ministry detention center. On September 25, the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) reported that between August 23 and September 23, authorities arrested 11 more Baha’is in Isfahan and Karaj provinces and transferred them to the Shiraz detention center. The source who spoke to Human Rights Watch did not know about the charges brought against the detainees. Authorities also detained Mehdi Hajati, a member of Shiraz City Council, for 10 days after he said he was trying to secure the release of the Baha’is.”

The Express: World War 3: Iranian Embassy In Turkey On HIGH ALERT After ISIS Suicide Bomb Threat

“Turkish media claimed the Iranian envoy to Turkey was evacuated after the threat was made. However, the Iranian ambassador called these claims false and a complete fabrication. Ambassador Mohammed Ebrahim Teherian Fard said: “The suicide attack against the embassy was only a threat. “Nothing significant has happened and things are under control.” According to Iranian state media IRNA, Mr Fard said: “The threat was made by someone who introduced himself as linked to Daesh.” Iran’s Foreign Ministry posted a statement on their website in response to the claims. It said: “Such a claim is a sheer lie, and the personnel at our embassy are present at their workplace in full health and security.” The DHA news agency said on Monday that the Iranian embassy was sent intelligence revealing that there was a potential suicide bomb threat. Soon afterwards, roads leading to the embassy were closed off and police searched cars in the area. In response to the intelligence, Ambassador Fard said that Turkish police had “intensified security measures” around the embassy. In 2015 and 2016, there were multiple terrorist attacks in Turkey. All of these attacks were blamed on Kurdish militants and ISIS fighters.”

Iraq
Christian Science Monitor: Children Of ISIS Fighters Struggle For Survival In Iraq

“Some of the most invisible victims of the Islamic State's caliphate are children of the fighters themselves. Traumatized, alone, and stigmatized by the actions of their parents, their lives reveal the long road of recovery ahead in sectarian-ridden Iraq. family of six lost children lives quietly in a small apartment among strangers in this northern Iraqi city. The "man of the house," an 18-year-old, heads out each morning looking for day labor jobs to pay the rent. His 12-year-old sister acts as the mother, cooking meals, cleaning, and caring for her young siblings. Their home village is less than an hour's drive away, but they can't go back – Shiite militiamen burned down their house because their father belonged to the Islamic State group. And they fear retaliation by their former neighbors, so deep is the anger at the militants who once ruled this area.”

Afghanistan
Associated Press: Afghan Official: Taliban Kill 7 Policemen In Country's North

“An Afghan official says a Taliban attack on a security outpost in northern Samangan province has killed seven policemen, including a deputy provincial police chief. The provincial governor, Abdul Latif Ibrahimi, says the attack occurred late on Monday in Dari Suf district. Ibrahimi told The Associated Press on Tuesday that another five policemen were wounded in the attack. He says the attackers made away with two armored personnel carriers, a police vehicle and an ambulance. There was no immediate claim of responsibility but in recent months, the Taliban have staged near-daily attacks on Afghan forces across the country. On Saturday night, the Taliban attacked an army base in western Afghanistan, killing 17 Afghan soldiers and abducting 11. They also overran two checkpoints near the base, seizing weapons and ammunition.”

The Express Tribune: US Officials, Taliban To Discuss Withdrawal Of Troops From Afghanistan

“The United States has agreed to discuss the withdrawal of troops stationed in Afghanistan during a meeting with the Taliban officials in Qatar, Al Jazeera reported on Sunday. Saturday’s discussion between the Taliban leaders and US Envoy Zalmay Khalilzad circled around the Taliban’s conditions to bring an end to the 17-year conflict in the war-torn country, two Taliban officials told Al Jazeera. “Six US officials arrived in Doha to have a meeting with our leaders,” the Taliban officials said and added that it was a preliminary meeting and all issues were discussed in general, but not in great detail. In addition to the withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan, the Taliban’s conditions include the lifting of sanctions on its leaders, the release of their fighters imprisoned in Afghanistan, and the establishment of an official political office. Taliban leaders will continue to meet for discussions with the newly appointed US special envoy for peace efforts in Afghanistan, the Taliban said on Saturday. “Both sides spoke (about) an end to the occupation and a peaceful solution to the Afghan issue … Both sides agreed to continue meeting in the future,” Taliban spokesperson Zabiullah Mujahid said in a statement.”

Pakistan
NDTV: Widow Of Pakistani Politician Killed In Taliban Attack Wins His Seat

“The wife of a Pakistani politician killed in a Taliban suicide attack during campaigning won her husband's provincial seat in by-elections as the ruling party of new Prime Minister Imran Khan retained its slim majority in parliament. Samar Bilour on Sunday won the provincial assembly seat in northwestern Khyber Pakthunkhwa province that her husband Haroon Bilour, a member of the anti-Taliban Awani National Party, had been scheduled to contest in July. Haroon Bilour was killed along with 19 others in a suicide attack in Peshawar, the provincial capital, claimed by the Pakistani Taliban weeks before the July 25 polls. The attack prompted a delay in voting for that seat. His father, senior ANP leader Bashir Bilour, was killed in a suicide bombing in the run-up to Pakistan's last election in 2013. Sunday's by-elections were for 24 seats across the four provincial assemblies and 11 in the National Assembly.”

Yemen
Al Arabiya: Houthi Militias Recruit 23,000 Children, Deprive Over 4 Mln From Education

“The Houthi militias’ military recruitment of children has increased after many of their members have been killed and many others refuse to fight on their frontlines and on behalf of Iran. The Houthis have so far recruited more than 23,000 children in a stark violation of international agreements and laws that protect children’s rights. Of those, 2,500 children have been recruited since the beginning of 2018. The children are trained to use light, medium and heavy weapons and then deployed on battlefronts. The Houthis thus deprive them of an education after pressuring their parents and guardians to send the children to battlefields. The Houthi militias have also pushed more than two million children to work as a result of the war. More than 4.5 million children have been deprived of an education, and in the past two years alone, 1.6 million children could not enroll in schools. The Houthis have also shelled and partially or completely destroyed 2,372 schools and used more than 1,500 other schools as prisons and military barracks. King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center has rehabilitated several Yemeni children who were recruited by the Houthis and involved in the fighting. The center is working with the Yemeni Wethaq Foundation for Civil Orientation to implement a program that is executed by a team of doctors, psychologists, social workers and educators in order to help the children recover.”

Gulf News: Yemeni Army Closes In On Al Houthi Founder Home

“Yemeni government forces, supported by an Arab coalition, have pushed deeper into a northern stronghold of Al Houthis, coming closer to the house of the militant group’s founder, a senior army commander said on Monday. “The National Army troops have made major advances against Al Houthis across the Maran mountains,” chief of the army’s Third Brigade Abdul Karim Al Sadai told news portal September Net. Maran in the province of Saada is the hometown of several Al Houthi leaders. Al Sadai added that his troops are now positioned about six kilometres away from the house of Hussain Al Houthi, the founder of the Iran-allied extremist group. “Al Houthi militia sustained during the battles heavy casualties,” he said. Al Houthis have plunged Yemen into strife after they deposed the internationally recognised government and seized the capital Sana’a in late 2014. The Arab coalition, led by Saudi Arabia and the UAE, is fighting to restore the Yemeni government. The war has worsened the humanitarian situation in poor Yemen. A tropical storm has lashed Yemen’s eastern province of Mahra and caused heavy damage, prompting local authorities on Monday to declare it a devastated zone.”

Al Arabiya: Children Injured In Houthi Mortar Attack On Civilian Neighborhood In Hodeidah

“Civilians, including children, were seriously injured following a Houthi mortar attack on their neighborhood in Hodeidah, Yemen on Monday, according to Saba News Agency. Eye witnesses said that the Houthi attack caused the destruction of several houses and the injury of dozens of the neighborhood’s residents, including children. The reported serious injuries were in the victims’ heads and other different parts of their bodies.”

Nigeria
Associated Press: Nigeria: IS-Linked Extremists Kill Abducted Health Worker

“Islamic State-linked extremists in Nigeria have killed another abducted health worker despite an urgent plea from the International Committee of the Red Cross to spare her life, Nigeria’s government said late Monday. The government identified her as Hauwa Mohammed Liman, who had been working in a hospital supported by the ICRC. It comes a month after a health worker abducted with her was killed by the same group, the Islamic State West Africa Province, the largest IS-linked extremist group in Africa. The ICRC in a statement early Tuesday noted the “devastating reports” and said that “at this stage, we don’t have confirmation this is true. We desperately hope not.” The ICRC, which does not pay ransoms, has said it was not directly involved in discussions on the extremists’ demands. On Sunday it issued a plea saying “we urge you for mercy” and noted that a 24-hour deadline was counting down. The statement by Nigeria’s information minister said “the federal government did all within its powers to save her life” and had kept the “line of negotiations” open since the abductions. The government was “shocked and saddened” and would continue to work for the safe release of other captives, the statement said.”

Somalia
Voice Of America: US Military Airstrike in Somalia Kills 4 al-Shabab Fighters

“The U.S. military says it has conducted an airstrike that killed four al-Shabab extremists after “partner forces came under small arms fire.” The U.S. Africa Command says Sunday's airstrike was carried out near the community of Araara in Lower Juba region in the south. The statement says no U.S. service members were on the ground during the Somali-led operation and that according to its assessment no civilians were injured or killed in the airstrike. The U.S. military has carried out more than two dozen airstrikes, including drone strikes, this year against the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab, the deadliest Islamic extremist group in sub-Saharan Africa. Somalia on Sunday marked the first anniversary of al-Shabab's deadliest attack, a truck bombing in the capital, Mogadishu, that killed well over 500 people.”

China
Associated Press: China Says Internment Camps Are ‘Free Vocational Training’

“China is saving Muslim ethnic minorities from the lure of religious extremism by teaching them to speak Mandarin and accept modern science, a senior Chinese official said in a report Tuesday, Beijing’s latest propaganda effort to defend its internment of Muslims against mounting criticism. The ruling Communist Party’s resistance to Western pressure over the camps highlights China’s growing confidence under President Xi Jinping, the country’s most powerful leader in decades, who has offered Beijing’s system of authoritarianism and economic growth as a model for other countries. The report published by the official Xinhua News Agency indicated that key to the party’s vision in the far west Xinjiang region is the assimilation of the indigenous Central Asian ethnic groups into Chinese language, culture and history — and in turn, a “modern” way of life.”

Russia
The Telegraph: Amnesty International Activist Abducted, Beaten And Faced Mock-Execution In Russia

“An Amnesty International researcher has said he was abducted, stripped, beaten and mock-executed by masked men who said they were police while observing protests in the Russian region of Ingushetia. Oleg Kozlovsky, 34, who suffered a fractured rib in the ordeal, filed a complaint to Russia's investigative committee last Tuesday. He has fled the country with his family. “I've been engaged in social work for more than 18 years and lots of various strange, unpleasant and absurd things have happened to me,” Mr Kozlovsky wrote in a Facebook post on Monday. “I've been conscripted into the army from the street, my door has been broken down, I've been detained as a suspect in a double murder, I've been chased in a car and so on and so forth. But what happened a week ago in Ingushetia was so wild it exceeds everything else.”

United Kingdom
Daily Mail: Taxpayers Will Fund £2million-A-Year Bill To Protect And Monitor Islamist Hate Preacher Anjem Choudary, 51, When He Is Released From Prison This Week

“Taxpayers will be hit with a £2million-a-year bill to protect notorious hate preacher Anjem Choudary. The 51-year-old could be released on Wednesday this week from the maximum-security Frankland Prison in County Durham after serving less than half of his five-and-a-half-year sentence. He was jailed in 2016 for publicly supporting the Islamic State terror group. But taxpayers will be stuck with the bill for funding the huge security operation needed to keep tabs on the Islamist, according to The Sunday Telegraph. Choudary will be forced to abide by 25 separate conditions while out on licence, and the costs for keeping him safe are likely to exceed £2million a year. The limits on his movement are thought to include an evening curfew, the wearing of a GPS electronic tag and a ban on visiting specific venues such as Regent’s Park Mosque in Central London, where he used to worship.”

The Telegraph: Police 'Not Ruling Out Terrorism' After Man Fire Bombs Mcdonald's And Takes Hostage In Cologne Train Station

“Aman threw a Molotov cocktail into a crowded McDonald’s restaurant before taking a woman hostage in the German city of Cologne's main railway station in what police said may have been a failed terror attack. A 14-year-old girl suffered burns to her legs when the man claiming to be a member of Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Isil) attacked the restaurant. Police said the could not rule out terrorism. He then took a second woman hostage in a pharmacy inside the station complex while onlookers fled. Witnesses described him as shouting that he was acting for Isil. Police special forces stormed the station and freed the hostage, who suffered moderate injuries according to emergency services. The suspect was shot in the stomach by police marksmen and was said to be in critical condition last night (MON).”

Germany
BBC News: Mounir Al-Motassadek: Germany Releases 9/11 Accomplice

“Germany will on Monday deport an accomplice of the 11 September 2001 terror attacks on the United States, Moroccan native Mounir al-Motassadek. Motassadek has spent almost 15 years in prison for his part in the deaths of passengers aboard the highjacked aeroplanes used in the attacks. He has served almost his entire sentence, and is being sent to Morocco. He has always denied being involved in the 9/11 plot, but admitted to being friends with those who did. German authorities are transporting him under heavy guard. Photographs taken on Monday showed Motassadek wearing a blindfold and with his hands bound, being taken from prison by helicopter. Motassadek was the first person convicted in connection with the 11 September attacks against the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon, in which nearly 3,000 people died.”

Technology
CNBC: Former Facebook President Sean Parker On Consumer Internet: 'You're Spending A Lot Of Time Trying To Make Your Products As Addictive As Possible'

“Sean Parker, founder of Napster and the first president of Facebook, pivoted to medical technology because he worried about how his social media and consumer internet products were impacting society. “You’re not 100 percent sure if you’re having a totally positive or totally negative impact in the world when you’re working in consumer internet,” Parker explained at the Wired25 conference in San Francisco on Monday. “You’re spending a lot of time trying to make your products as addictive as possible. Transitioning to life sciences is incredibly refreshing, because you really feel as though the energy and time you are putting into it are helping people. It’s about saving lives, really changing people’s lives, advancing medicine.” Parker said he could never have predicted the impact Facebook would have on today’s world, pointing out the move to mobile made it “ubiquitous” and “rewire(d) the fabric of society.” In 2016, he started the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy (PICI) to develop better cancer treatments.”

Counter Extremism
Al-Ain: Egypt: Conference Outlines Role Of Culture In Countering Extremism And Terrorism

“Addressing the 21st Conference of Arab Culture Ministers in Cairo on Sunday, the Egyptian Culture Minister, Enas Abdel-Dayem, stated that Arab culture is currently facing serious challenges. The foremost of these challenges are terrorism and radical ideology, which threaten the future of the next generations, the minister stressed. She highlighted the difficulty in finding the proper balance between the need to preserve cultural identity and the need to keep pace with sustainable development. The minister went on to say that the challenges facing Arab culture are being intensified for two reasons: (1) the widening gap between {traditional} thought and {modern} development, and (2) the destructive role of terrorist groups in shaping ‘the new Arab person’. Additionally, Abdel-Dayem endorsed the joint project which the present conference aims to achieve. This project is intended primarily to combat extremism and attain cultural integrity and openness by promoting the translation of foreign books and publications into Arabic. The Egyptian minister reiterated that culture plays a pivotal role in achieving development and in supporting such cultural enterprises as fine art, theater and cinema.”

ISIS
Alarabiya: Expert: ISIS Increasingly Relies On Self-Financing

“As the first anniversary of the Iraqi forces’ victory over ISIS approaches, the remnants of the terror organization seek to exploit the security holes in some areas near the capital Baghdad. In this context, the expert on armed groups, Dr. Hisham al-Hashemi, stated that ISIS adopted a new military tactic after its defeat in October last year, and the official {Iraqi} announcement of military victory in December of the same year. He asserted that many changes have taken place in the way ISIS now manages its organization. As for economic activity and finance, al-Hashemi explained that the terror group has begun relying on self-financing from theft, kidnapping and extortion. The expert pointed out that this means ISIS has lost its ability to access the external financing it {traditionally} obtained from the sale of oil. According to observers, ISIS has smuggled nearly $400 million out of Iraq and Syria, and the terror organization seeks to maximize its resources through money laundering.”

Muslim Brotherhood
Almesryoon: Researcher: Financial Crisis Inside Muslim Brotherhood Impacts Younger Members Rather Than Its Senior Leaders

“Sameh Eid, a dissident Brotherhood leader and present-day independent researcher on Islamic movements, attributed the internal rifts and disputes inside the Muslim Brotherhood abroad to financial discrimination against part of the group's members. The researcher added that the senior leaders of the outlawed organization overseas enjoy a lavish lifestyle thanks to the millions of dollars they receive from their financiers. One example of this is the journalists who work for pro-Muslim Brotherhood media outlets, such as Al-Sharq and Mekameleen TV channels. On the other hand, the "less-known" younger members of the banned Islamist movement, who receive only a small pittance, face severe financial hardship. This has forced them to leave their media jobs and {relocate} to work in the private sector in Turkey, including restaurants and shops, Eid noted. Many of these young Muslim Brotherhood members have expressed their desire to return to Egypt, and some of them have already hired a prominent Islamist lawyer in Egypt to amend their legal status.”

Seventh Day: Expert: Muslim Brotherhood Allocates Millions Of Dollars To International Lawyers To File Lawsuits Against Egypt

“Hafez Abu Saada, Secretary General of the Egyptian Organization for Human Rights (EOHR), claimed that the blacklisted Muslim Brotherhood allots millions of dollars to international law firms to sue the Egyptian state. The group has tasked these lawyers, some of whom come from France and the UK, with filing lawsuits against Egypt based on false allegations and fabricated documents. The banned Islamist group in Egypt employs overseas organizations to present bogus reports and fake news against Egypt, the Egyptian human rights activist added.”

Houthi
Almasdar Online: Houthi Group Controls Administrative Decisions Within Yemen Airways

“Dozens of employees of Yemeni Airways (Yemenia) in Sana’a held a sit-in Monday to protest the Houthis’ control of the administrative decisions within the company. Sources said that the employees carried out the protest inside the company’s headquarters in Sana'a, in protest of the Houthis' domination, as well as their attempt to divide the company into two parts, between Sana’a and Aden. The vigil came after the Houthi group overturned decisions issued by Yemenia's Board Chairman, Captain Ahmed Al-Alwani, whether concerning changes within the company or with regard to Yemenia's funds and assets {on deposit} at Yemen International Bank.”
__________________
Boats

O Almighty Lord God, who neither slumberest nor sleepest; Protect and assist, we beseech thee, all those who at home or abroad, by land, by sea, or in the air, are serving this country, that they, being armed with thy defence, may be preserved evermore in all perils; and being filled with wisdom and girded with strength, may do their duty to thy honour and glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

"IN GOD WE TRUST"
sendpm.gif Reply With Quote
Sponsored Links
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is On

All times are GMT -7. The time now is 09:55 PM.


Powered by vBulletin, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.