Eye on Extremism - July 2, 2021

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Eye on Extremism - July 2, 2021
By: Counter Extremism Project - 07-02-21
Re: info@counterextremism.com

**NOTE: CEP’s Eye On Extremism will be suspended on Monday, July 5 in observance of Independence Day. It will resume Tuesday, July 6.**

The Punch Nigeria: Troops Kill 37 Terrorists In Yobe

“Troops have killed at least 37 ISWAP-Boko Haram terrorists in Bula Yobe, Jabullam, Yobe State, in a joint military operation by the air task force and ground troops of the Nigerian military. Similarly, airstrikes by the Nigerian Air Force attack jets destroyed dozens of terrorists’ camps in the Abadam area and the Sambisa forest. PRNigeria reported that accurate airstrikes coordinated by the Air Task Force Command destroyed the hideouts of ISWAP terrorists in Jabullam and Yauma Wango in the Abadam Local Government Area of the state and Parisu in the Sambisa forest on Wednesday. Intelligence sources said the air raids were launched after a series of aerial surveillance missions indicated massive convergence of the terrorists in standby to stage attacks. The NAF spokesman, Air Commodore Edward Gabkwet, said in a statement, “The Nigerian Air Force jets dispatched by the ATF Command scored accurate hits on the targeted locations, obliterating and killing scores of the terrorists in the general areas. Several gun trucks and armoury of the terrorists were destroyed, while a ground assessment by sources revealed that a number of ISWAP high-value fighters were eliminated.”

The National: Far-Right Paramilitary Forces Pose Emerging Threat To Western European Nations

“The rise of paramilitary far-right groups to a position of dominance in Western European countries is “not unthinkable”, terrorism experts say. A report by the Counter Extremism Project (CEP) think tank urges officials to be “concerned” about the risk of Western far-right extremists connecting with paramilitaries in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). Last year it was revealed German extremist Tobias Rathjen received training in Slovakia before he went on a shooting spree, killing 10 people. The report, “Looks Can Be Deceiving: Extremism Meets Paramilitarism In Central And Eastern Europe”, identifies two potential developments which it says should concern policymakers and security authorities. The first is the risk of Western far-right extremists connecting with CEE paramilitaries and the second is the potential for them to make a “more concerted use of the sprawling paramilitary infrastructure in Ukraine.” “The possibility of a truly transnational and paramilitary extreme right-wing arch stretching from Moscow via CEE into the heart of Western Europe is not unthinkable”, it says. Protestors in Hanau call for more action after a far-right extremist murdered 10 people.”

United States

CNN: Facebook Tests Prompts That Ask Users If They're Worried A Friend Is 'Becoming An Extremist'

“Some Facebook (FB) users in the United States are being served a prompt that asks if they are worried that someone they know might be becoming an extremist. Others are being notified that they may have been exposed to extremist content. It is all part of a test the social media company is running that stems from its Redirect Initiative, which aims to combat violent extremism, Andy Stone, a Facebook spokesperson, told CNN. Screen shots of the alerts surfaced on social media Thursday. “This test is part of our larger work to assess ways to provide resources and support to people on Facebook who may have engaged with or were exposed to extremist content, or may know someone who is at risk,” Stone said. “We are partnering with NGOs and academic experts in this space and hope to have more to share in the future,” Stone added. One of the alerts, a screen grab of which made the rounds on social media Thursday, asks users, “Are you concerned that someone you know is becoming an extremist?” “We care about preventing extremism on Facebook,” explained that alert, according to a screen grab posted on social media. “Others in your situation have received confidential support.”

Reuters: Panelists Vow Comprehensive Probe Of Jan. 6 Attack On Capitol

“U.S. lawmakers tapped to serve on the congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol on Thursday vowed to release a comprehensive report of their findings, citing their oath to the U.S. Constitution. Representative Benny Thompson, the head of the Homeland Security panel who will lead the new U.S. House of Representatives select panel, said the parameters of the probe have not yet been decided, including possible witnesses, and that no hearing dates have yet been set.”

Arab News: US Focused On Regional, Global Defeat Of Daesh, Says Washington Envoy

“Daesh remains active in Iraq and Syria, where it is focussed on regaining territorial control, John Godfrey, acting US envoy for the Global Coalition to Defeat Daesh and acting coordinator for counterterrorism, said on Thursday. Speaking during a press briefing attended by Arab News, Godfrey said the number of Daesh branches and networks outside Iraq and Syria that are orchestrating attacks is increasing. Godfrey concluded a trip to the Iraqi Kurdistan region and northeast Syria last week. He then joined US Secretary of State Antony Blinken for the Global Coalition to Defeat Daesh ministerial meeting in the Italian capital, Rome, on Monday. “It was very important to see the situation on the ground ahead of the ministerial meeting in Rome, which is the first one that we had held in a couple of years thanks to the challenges of COVID-19,” he said. “While the anti-ISIS coalition has achieved extraordinary success in the fight against ISIS, including ending ISIS as a fraudulent territorial caliphate, it is clear that we still have more work to do,” he added, referring to an alternative acronym for Daesh. He said that Daesh remains active in northern Iraq, exploiting the spaces between areas controlled by federal Iraqi security forces and those controlled by Kurdistan Regional Government security forces.”

Iraq

Al Monitor: Islamic State Exploits Economic Downturn In Iraq, Syria, US Envoy Says

“The Islamic State (IS) is trying to take advantage of deteriorating economic conditions in Iraq and Syria to reconstitute itself, said the State Department’s envoy to the US-led coalition battling the group. “One thing I heard consistently in both Iraq and Syria is that poverty, inequality and perceived injustice continue to drive many young people to join terrorist groups, including [IS],” John Godfrey, acting US Special Envoy for the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS, told reporters on Thursday. “The combination of a severe drought and a weak harvest that will be about half of what is normal has created a significant economic downturn that impacts the revenues of local partners and also contributes to unemployment,” Godfrey said. Godfrey, who recently returned from a visit to Iraq and Syria, cited local partners who say the terrorist group is “actively seeking to exploit that economic situation to reconstitute presence, or to try to reconstitute presence, in areas hardest hit by the economic downturn.” Iraq declared victory over the Sunni terrorist group in December 2017, but the group is still waging a low-level insurgency in the rural, mountainous parts of northern and western Iraq. The group is also suspected of several bombings in Baghdad this year. IS is also territorially defeated in Syria but has carried out small-scale attacks on regime forces or areas held by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).”

Afghanistan

The Washington Post: Scarred By May School Bombing, Afghanistan’s Hazaras Fear What Awaits Them As Taliban Gains Ground

“The pair of bloodstained girls' sneakers, painted on a wall in downtown Kabul, serves as a grim reminder of the terror wrought here. Late one afternoon in May, a triple bombing outside a large city high school in West Kabul killed 85 people and wounded over 140. Many were teenage girls who had just finished their afternoon classes. The first blast was so fierce that some bodies were burned or maimed beyond recognition. All that remained of one girl was a single sneakered foot. Seven weeks later, the impact of the blast near Syed al-Shahda High School is still being felt across the working-class community that is home to several hundred thousand ethnic Hazaras and Shiite Muslims. Afghanistan is about 90 percent Sunni Muslim and 10 percent Shiite; almost all the Shiites are Hazara. It wasn’t only the deadly toll of the attack that reverberated so strongly, or even the fact that so many of the victims were schoolgirls. It was the cumulative burden of fear, of a message being sent repeatedly by shadowy forces who residents and community leaders say want to violently crush their aspirations to prosper. Now, as Taliban forces press hard for a military victory and U.S. forces withdraw, Hazara leaders fear their lightly policed communities will be especially vulnerable to extremist vengeance.”

CNN: Talks With Taliban Are Making 'Very Little Progress' As Militant Group Gains Momentum, Says Afghan Official

“As US President Joe Biden prepares for the formal withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan, the man responsible for peace talks between the rampant Taliban and the official Afghan government is not entirely optimistic about the country's future. Abdullah Abdullah, an Afghan official who leads the High Council for National Reconciliation, told CNN in an exclusive interview that talks between the two parties had made “very little progress” and were happening at a “very slow pace”. Speaking from his residence in Kabul, the Afghan capital, Abdullah acknowledged that the Taliban has “gained momentum” following weeks of the militants releasing propaganda videos from military bases, claiming that Afghan forces had fled. The Taliban has accused the Afghan government of not engaging with the intra-Afghan peace negotiations in Doha. “Our intention was to make some progress, but the opposite side was not interested in the peace talks,” Taliban political office spokesman Mohammad Naeem said in a video statement on the intra-Afghan negotiations, which was released yesterday and obtained by CNN. Naeem accused the Afghan government's negotiating team of being incomplete during May's peace talks in Doha, due to some of its members being “physically present in the battlefield” and “busy in war.”

Air Force Magazine: ISIS In Afghanistan Remains A ‘Serious Threat,’ Special Envoy Warns

“As the U.S. military’s withdrawal from Afghanistan reaches its final stages, the Islamic State’s Khorasan branch in the country remains a “serious threat,” warned John T. Godfrey, the acting U.S. Special Envoy for the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS. Speaking with reporters on a call July 1, Godfrey echoed other recent warnings from American officials and generals that the Islamic State group’s presence in Afghanistan, thought to be severely diminished just a few years ago, is far from completely eradicated. “Regarding the ISIS-Khorasan branch in Afghanistan, it is a group that we have been focused on for some time. We assess that it constitutes a serious threat. It’s one that we’ve certainly been focused on,” said Godfrey, who also serves as acting coordinator of counterterrorism in the State Department. “And I think that the assessment … by U.S. military leadership of the potential for that group to reconstitute capability within two years is consistent with what we’ve heard from other quarters of the U.S. government, so I think we would echo that.” Concerns over the stability of the Afghan government have increased significantly as the U.S. drawdown there continues. More than 50 percent of U.S. troops are now out of the country, the Defense Department has said, and reports from Reuters and CNN indicate the formal withdrawal could be complete in a matter of days.”

Egypt

Asharq Al-Awsat: Sisi Lauds Army, Police Efforts In Defeating Terrorism In Egypt

“Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi praised the role of the army and police in combating terrorism and foiling attempts to sow chaos in the period after the Muslim Brotherhood was toppled eight years ago. Sisi gave a speech commemorating the June 30 revolution that removed former president Mohamed Morsi. The president reiterated that the revolution “embodied precious meanings and values, the most important of which is the people’s ability to overcome unbeatable challenges through their unity.” The state faced these challenges with all its tools and forces, including the army and police which succeeded in defeating terrorism, according to the president. He pointed to a series of national projects, in addition to mobilizing efforts to improve the living conditions of all citizens across the country. Sisi called for doubling efforts to overcome the challenges imposed in light of the coronavirus pandemic. Meanwhile, the President inspected equipment, vehicles, and engineering machinery participating in the “Decent Life” initiative and called upon agricultural landowners to preserve the remaining land. Sisi announced that the government has allocated EGP600 billion to implement a “Decent Life” national project to develop Egyptian rural villages within three years.”

Nigeria

France 24: Thirteen Boko Haram Fighters, Four Civilians Killed In Niger, Says Military

“Thirteen Boko Haram fighters have been killed in clashes in southeast Niger while four civilians have been executed by the jihadists, a mixed African military force said Thursday. Boko Haram fighters aboard ten vehicles sprang an ambush on soldiers on Tuesday evening along the road between Diffa and Maine Soroa, the Mixed Multinational Force (FMM) said in a statement. “This attack was foiled thanks to the bravery of our ground and air forces,” said the FMM, which is made up of soldiers from Nigeria, Chad, Niger and Cameroon. Before the attack, the assailants intercepted a bus transporting passengers and attacked “peaceful villagers,” it said. “Four civilians were executed by the enemy,” including the bus driver, two villagers and a village chief, the MMF said. It added that six soldiers and two female civilians were wounded. “On the enemy's side, thirteen terrorists were neutralised,” it said, using a term indicating they were killed. The force seized one enemy vehicle, four AK-47 rifles and large quantities of munitions. Jihadists in Niger have since May increased attacks in the region bordering Lake Chad and against Diffa, its large city. Rated the poorest country in the world under the UN's Human Development Index, Niger is battling jihadist insurgences on its southwestern flank with Mali and on its southeastern border with Nigeria.”

Voice Of America: Nigerian Women Lead Reintegration Of Ex-Boko Haram Militants

“The Nigerian government's efforts to reintegrate former Boko Haram militants has seen hundreds of fighters go through rehabilitation. But it also gets pushback from the conflict's victims, who want the militants to be held accountable. At a conference in the capital, women from the conflict-affected areas are getting support to head up reconciliation between the former terrorists and their communities. Some 45 women from Nigeria's northeastern states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe file in for a two-day conference in Abuja. They're here to discuss a sensitive subject - the reconciliation and reintegration of ex-Boko Haram fighters into their communities. The conference is a joint initiative by the non-profit Center for Humanitarian Dialogue in Switzerland, U.N. Women and the International Organization for Migration (IOM). It’s designed to promote women-led community peacekeeping in the northeast, said Millicent Lewis-Ojumu, director at Center for Humanitarian Dialogue. “We know and from experience have seen that when the women are involved in the conversations, peace building, in helping to resolve issues relating to how to reintegrate and rehabilitate former combatants or person's associated with Boko Haram, that they are very effective,” said Lewis-Ojumu.”

All Africa: Nigeria: UN Decries Continued Violent Extremism In Lake Chad Region

“The United Nations has stated that despite efforts made to address violent extremism and root causes of conflicts in the Lake Chad region, the problem has continued to persist, blocking progress in the region. The Director of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) Regional Office for Central Africa, Salah Khaled, lamented that the consequences of the violent extremism largely perpetrated by the Boko Haram terrorists are alarming with over nearly two and a half million people displaced, ecosystems degraded and livelihood of communities threatened. He said this on Thursday in Abuja at a high-level launch of the civil society organisation (CSO), Network for Inclusive Rehabilitation and Reintegration, Lake Chad Basin Chapter co-hosted by Neem Foundation and the Elman Peace Centre as a leading African peace building organisation with the support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Khaled noted that the Lake Chad Basin is the front line in the fight against climate change, insecurity and poverty, insisting that collaboration between governments and CSOs is key in addressing the problems. He said: “Through our joint efforts, we have the potential to be a laboratory of ideas and chain of hope to address these problems.”

Africa

Reuters: At Least 10 Killed In Overnight Attack On Eastern Congo City Of Beni

“At least 10 people were killed overnight in a raid on the city of Beni in eastern Congo, witnesses said, and a civil society group and a monitoring body said Islamist militants were suspected of being behind the attack. Residents said a group of attackers had set several houses on fire in the middle of the night in the city's Beu district, firing upon people as they exited the buildings and attacking some with machetes. The raid took place just four days after the city, home to thousands of displaced people who fled surrounding areas because of violence, was hit by two blasts, which officials also blamed on the Islamists. Hundreds of people took to Beni's streets on Thursday morning to protest against the government's failure to protect the city. Some people built makeshift barricades while others burned tyres. “So far we have seen ten bodies ourselves and have just transported a body on a cart to the morgue,” said protestor Kathembo Ngeleza, who was woken up by gunfire during the night after attending a party celebrating Congo's Independence Day. “We don't know what our authorities are doing. The idea is to protect the inhabitants, but here we are again ... We are really angry,” he added.”

Germany

PBS: Germany’s Laws On Hate Speech, Nazi Propaganda & Holocaust Denial: An Explainer

“A troubled history is alive in Germany — both in a resurgence of far-right ideology and in new changes to the laws designed to combat that extremism. The FRONTLINE documentary Germany’s Neo-Nazis & the Far Right tracks the recent growth of far-right violence in the country, investigating how neo-Nazi groups are using internet platforms to recruit and to organize. To address this resurgence, German authorities look to a system of hate speech laws passed by the Bundestag, Germany’s federal legislature, over the 76 years since Adolf Hitler was defeated and that are still evolving today. The German penal code prohibits publicly denying the Holocaust and disseminating Nazi propaganda, both off- and online. This includes sharing images such as swastikas, wearing an SS uniform and making statements in support of Hitler. It also places strict rules on how social media companies must moderate and report hate speech and threats. These hate-speech laws were tightened last year, after three far-right terror attacks in 2019 and early 2020 prompted German authorities to warn of increasing extremism.”

Russia

Associated Press: Russian Agency Says It Exposed Terror Plot, Killed 1 Suspect

“Russia’s domestic security agency said Thursday it has discovered a plot by followers of the Islamic State group to conduct terror attacks in Moscow and southern Russia, and killed one suspected conspirator. The Federal Security Service, the main KGB successor agency known by its Russian acronym FSB, said that two Russian nationals were plotting the attacks with firearms and knives in crowded areas in Moscow and the southern city of Astrakhan under the IS leaders’ guidance. The agency said that one of the suspects was killed when he resisted arrest in the Astrakhan region. Another suspected plotter was arrested in Moscow, it said.”

Southeast Asia

Reuters: Hong Kong Policeman Was Stabbed In “Lone Wolf” Attack- Security Chief

“The 50-year-old man who stabbed a Hong Kong policeman on the anniversary of the city's return to Chinese rule on Thursday was a “lone wolf” who committed a terrorist act, Secretary for Security Chris Tang said. Police said late on Thursday they were investigating an attempted murder and suicide after a man attacked a police officer from behind at 10.05 p.m. (1405 GMT), then stabbed himself in the chest with the knife. The man was sent to the hospital, where he died about an hour later. The policeman, 28, sustained a 10 centimetres wound on his back and a punctured lung and underwent surgery, police said. Speaking to reporters early on Friday, Tang said the stabbing was a “local lone wolf terrorist attack.” He said police searched the home of the 50-year-old, whom he did not identify, and said materials on his computer showed he was “radicalised,” without providing further detail. Security was tight in Hong Kong on Thursday, with thousands of police officers, as well as water cannon trucks and armoured vehicles deployed across the city. The handover anniversary is when tens of thousands traditionally rally to protest anything from Beijing's grip on the city to unaffordable housing. Police had banned gatherings this year, citing the coronavirus.”