Eye on Extremism - April 20, 2021

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Eye on Extremism - April 20, 2021
By: Counter Extremism Project - 04-21-21
Re: info@counterextremism.com

The National: Britain Plans To Ban US-Based Neo-Nazi Group

“…Researchers from the Counter Extremism Project discovered content on Instagram from the group. "CEP researchers located several pieces of neo-Nazi and white supremacist content on Instagram," it said. "Videos included a clip from an infamous National Action propaganda video on the site for approximately 43 weeks, viewed more than 100 times, and two identical videos containing still images originally from the Atomwaffen Division. "A song praising the Christchurch attacker and using an image glorifying him was also located on the site, uploaded one week ago with more than 220 views, and a recreation of the Christchurch attack in a videogame was on Instagram for six days with 140 views." A neo-Nazi Telegram channel created on April 12 to spread downloadable white supremacist videogames was also found. Four games uploaded in the first three days of operation allowed the player to kill people of different ethnicities and religions. "Extremist games allow groups and individuals to advertise and spread ideology, encourage the dehumanisation of their perceived opponents, portray violence as positive and further spread propaganda," the CEP said.”

The Defense Post: Dozens Killed In Central Mali Jihadist-Hunter Clashes

“About 40 people have been killed in recent clashes between jihadists and traditional hunters, the government of central Mali’s Mopti region said Monday, with the fighting displacing around 1,000 people. The war-torn region’s government said in a statement that clashes began with a dispute between two brothers, one a traditional hunter and the other an alleged jihadist. The fighting between central Mali’s main towns of Mopti and Djenne left about 20 dead on both sides, the statement added. Army reinforcements have been dispatched to the area. A Malian security official who requested anonymity told AFP that the clashes broke out after the hunters decided to “take back” rice that jihadists had collected as taxes. AFP was unable to independently confirm the details. Sidiki Diarra, spokesman for a group of traditional hunters in the area, said the clashes began on April 12. “We lost many hunters (and) the survivors have moved to neighboring villages,” he said. Islamist militants launched an insurgency in northern Mali in 2012, stoking a conflict that has since spread to the center of the country and neighboring Burkina Faso and Niger. The ethnic mosaic of central Mali has become one of the conflict’s hot spots, where fighting between jihadists, traditional hunters, and pastoralists is common.”

United States

The Wall Street Journal: Merrick Garland Highlights Domestic Terror Threat At Oklahoma City Tribute

“The Justice Department is devoting more resources to preventing and prosecuting attacks by domestic extremists, Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a speech commemorating the 26th anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing, one of the first major terrorism cases he oversaw as a senior department official in the 1990s. The attack, which killed 168 people including 19 children, solidified for Mr. Garland the urgency and complexity of the domestic terror threat, he said, and now is driving him as the Justice Department combats a rise in extremist violence. Timothy McVeigh, an antigovernment extremist, was convicted in 1997 and executed in 2001 for using a massive truck bomb to level part of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building on April 19, 1995. “Although many years have passed, the terror perpetrated by people like Timothy McVeigh is still with us,” Mr. Garland told victims’ families and law-enforcement officials gathered on Monday at a memorial to the victims in Oklahoma City, in his first major trip since taking office. “The Department of Justice is pouring its resources into stopping domestic violent extremists before they can attack, prosecuting those who do, and battling the spread of the kind of hate that leads to tragedies like the one we mark here today.”

Syria

Reuters: Russian Air Force Kills Up To 200 Militants In Syria -Ifx

“The Russian air force has hit militants' base northeast of Palmyra in Syria, killing up to 200 militants, Interfax news agency reported on Monday, citing the Defence Ministry. It said the Russian planes also destroyed ammunition, cars and components for manufacturing explosive devises.”

Voice Of America: US-Backed Syrian Forces Hand Over 34 Children Of IS Fighters To Russia

“Authorities in northeast Syria handed over 34 children of Islamic State fighters in Syria to the Russian government, Kurdish officials said Sunday. The handover of the children, between the ages of three and 14, took place after a meeting in the city of Qamishli between local officials and a Russian government delegation. “These were orphaned children whose identities were confirmed through DNA analysis by the Russian side,” said Abdulkarim Omar, co-chair of foreign relations at the Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria (AANES). The AANES is a governing body affiliated with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a Kurdish-led military alliance that has been a key U.S. ally in the fight against terrorism in Syria. The parents of the repatriated children, Russian IS fighters, were killed during various stages of the war against the terror group, Omar told VOA. Russia’s Presidential Commissioner for Children’s Rights, Anna Kuznetsova, said her country will continue efforts to bring back all Russian children held in detention camps in northeast Syria. She spoke during a ceremony held to mark the repatriation of the children. It is not clear how many Russian citizens currently remain in SDF custody, but local news sources estimated the number of Russian children held in Syria at 200.”

Pakistan

Bloomberg: Protests Spur Pakistan To Talk With Extremist Group It Banned

“Pakistan has begun talks with an extremist group it banned last week, in a bid to control religious violence that’s becoming a major challenge for Prime Minister Imran Khan as he struggles to revive the economy. Talks between Khan’s administration and Tehreek Labbaik Pakistan, an Islamic party that’s demanding the expulsion of the French envoy, are ongoing after violent protests in Lahore, Pakistan’s second-largest city, killed at least three people on Sunday, according to a statement by Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed and reports by the local media. Late night, the proscribed group released 11 police officials it had taken hostage earlier in the day, he said. Pakistan cannot afford to expel the French ambassador as it will amount to severing ties with the European Union, Khan said at a televised speech. Such protests will hurt the country economically, he said and added he will start a global campaign against blasphemy. Days of rioting prompted Khan’s government to ban TLP on Thursday but that didn’t stop the protests called to expel the French ambassador over remarks by President Emmanuel Macron last year regarding the publication of cartoons ridiculing Islam’s Prophet Muhammad.”

Deutsche Welle: Pakistan: Islamist Group Releases 11 Police Hostages

“Pakistani officials on Monday said 11 policemen captured by the supporters of a radical Islamist party had been released. Party followers have vented their fury since the leader of the now-banned Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) — who was set to lead anti-France protests — was detained last Monday. What happened to the officers? Followers of the TLP seized the officers as hostages on Sunday during violent protests in the city of Lahore. Pakistani Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said the police had been released early Monday after “negotiations” with the TLP. “Negotiations have been started with TLP; the first round completed successfully,” Rashid said in a video on Twitter. “They have released 11 policemen who were made hostages.” Rashid said a second round of talks would take place later Monday, although anticipated content was unclear. Social media footage had earlier shown some of the officers appearing bloody and bruised, with bandages around their heads. The TLP has led an anti-France campaign for months, including calling for the ambassador to be expelled. In October, Pakistan's Parliament backed a resolution for the expulsion to take place by April 20. The campaign came after France's president defended the Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine for republishing cartoons of Islam's Prophet Muhammad, any act many adherents consider blasphemous.”

Egypt

New York Post: ISIS Affiliate Claims Responsibility For Egypt Beheadings

“Video of a terror group in Egypt with ties to the Islamic State executing one Coptic Christian and two tribesmen is making the rounds online — as the country’s Interior Ministry revealed Monday that it had killed three suspects in the slayings. The 13-minute video, released late Saturday, showed 62-year-old Nabil Habashi Salama being shot in the back of the head with an AK-47 in the middle of what appeared to be the Egyptian desert. Three armed militants with their faces blurred stood behind Habashi Salama, who had helped build the sole Coptic church in the area, as he was murdered. Shortly after, the same three militants took out two tribesmen, whom they accused of fighting with the Egyptian armed forces. The Coptic Orthodox Church represents between 10 and 15 percent of Egypt’s 100 million people. The Christians, along with Egyptian security forces, have been the primary targets of ISIS attacks. “As for you Christians of Egypt, this is the price you are paying for supporting the Egyptian army,” one of the militants said in the video, after Habashi Salama said his church had been cooperating with law enforcement to combat terrorism.”

Nigeria

The Washington Post: For Nigerian Students Living In Fear Of The Next Mass Kidnapping, There Is Only One Defense — To Run

“By night, the boarding school teacher becomes a security guard. He wears a whistle around his neck in case gunmen jump the low-slung fence and break into dormitories where 300 boys sleep. They know to run if they hear the shrill warning — straight to town, toward the police station. Knock on doors until someone hides you. “The students are in dire need of therapy,” said Saminu Haruna, who teaches math in Adamawa state. “They can’t concentrate. They’re afraid.” In a normal year, a few drop out. Since January, 20 seats in his classroom have emptied. Attackers stormed schools in Nigeria’s north three times in the past five months, kidnapping at least 667 children. The abductions have instilled fear in students and teachers, leading to a wave of dropouts. The attacks are chipping away at an already fragile education system. More than 600 schools in the region have shuttered this year — some temporarily, some indefinitely — and 3 million fewer children are in class, government data show. Experts blame a combination of coronavirus pandemic closures, extremism and organized crime. Politicians have pledged to vanquish the kidnapping threat, asserting that security forces will be better prepared next time, but teachers and students at 10 schools told The Washington Post that they haven’t seen meaningful change.”

All Africa: Nigeria: Govt To Recruit More Soldiers To Halt Boko Haram

“The Minister of Defence, Maj. Gen. Bashir Magashi (rtd) has said that more soldiers are to be recruited to end the Boko Haram insurgency in the North-east. According to him, the recruitment of soldiers with professional skills and fighting equipment with strategies could route out remnants of terrorists from hideouts. Magashi disclosed this yesterday while addressing troops at the Military Command and Control Centre, Maiduguri, the Borno State capital. He said the deployment of more soldiers to Sambisa Forest, Lake Chad region and the Mandara Hills, would be inevitable to end the war. While appreciating the efforts of troops at the parade ground yesterday, he said: “It's only you that could perform professionally in the theatre of war. “We count on each and every one of you in the frontlines of the forest and Lake Chad region to end the over decade insurgency,” he said. The minister also tasks the soldiers to fight the insurgents to their knees, until they are completely routed from their hideouts in Borno and Yobe states. While reviewing the counter-terrorism operations, he said: “I'm here today in Maiduguri to assess your fighting spirit, before we could unfold a plan on how to end this war.”

Africa

Voice Of America: Freed Cameroon Captives Says Separatists Chopped Off Their Ears And Fingers

“Cameroon's military has freed nine civilians who say they were held hostage by anglophone separatists for close to two months. Some of the freed hostages say the rebels tortured them, chopping off their ears and fingers. Dozens of people on Monday visited the military camp in the English-speaking town of Bamenda. The visitors said they wanted to find out if their relatives were among the hostages freed by Cameroon’s army on Saturday. The military said the nine former hostages are all males between 16 and 27 years old. Peter Atteh, 24, says he was abducted from the village of Pinyin by armed men on March 23. He says separatists accused him of collaborating with the military when he refused to join their cause. Atteh says while in captivity, he endured the worst moments of his life. “We were sleeping on the bare floor. We had no food to eat,” he told VOA. “They were giving us plastic to defecate in, and later they tell us to go and throw it either in the bush or in the river. Even to urinate, we were given containers. You will urinate in the containers and the worse part of it is that we were being beaten. Beaten with a cutlass [machete].” Atteh said six of his fingers were chopped off with a machete when he made a failed attempt to escape.”

United Kingdom

The Independent: Atomwaffen Division: UK To Ban US-Based Neo-Nazi Group As Terrorist Organisation

“The British government is to ban the US-based Atomwaffen Division neo-Nazi group as a terrorist organisation. The group, formed in 2015, promotes the use of violence to trigger a race war and has been linked to several murders and terror plots in the US. It has links to British terrorist groups including National Action and Sonnenkrieg Division, which have also been proscribed. The Home Office said that Atomwaffen Division claimed to have disbanded in March 2020 following pressure from US law enforcement, but that a successor group called the National Socialist Order then formed. “The government assesses that it is the same group operating under a different name but adhering to the same twisted ideology as it did when it was called Atomwaffen Division,” a spokesperson said. Parliament is expected to proscribe Atomwaffen Division and the National Socialist Order as its alias later this week. The change will make membership a criminal offence punishable by up to 10 years in prison. The maximum term will increase to 14 years when the new Counter-Terrorism and Sentencing Bill receives royal assent.”

The Guardian: Fishmongers’ Hall Terror Attack Witness Describes Holding Dying Victim

“A witness to the Fishmongers’ Hall terror attack in central London has described holding one of the victims in his arms and telling her she was loved as she lay dying. Gareth Evans, a former HMP Grendon inmate, told an inquest into the deaths of Saskia Jones and Jack Merritt that he had comforted Jones after she was stabbed by Usman Khan, a convicted terrorist, at a prisoner education event on 29 November 2019. Evans, giving evidence at the Guildhall in the City of London, said Jones had collapsed as he took hold of her. Appearing to wipe his eyes, he told the jury on Monday: “I was trying to make sure she felt comfortable and safe. I said she was loved and she was beautiful.” He had rushed to her aid after she was stabbed in the neck by Khan, who had been seen chatting to her at the Learning Together anniversary event. Adam Roberts, a prison officer, also described how he tried to stem the bleeding and got Jones, 23, in a protective hug, as an “aggressive” Khan, armed with two knives and wearing what appeared to be a suicide belt, stood feet away. Roberts, who had escorted a prisoner, Steven Gallant, to the event at Fishmongers’ Hall on day release, said he had tried to stem the bleeding with his jacket and tried to shield her.”

Germany

Slate: Germany’s Far Right Is Only Getting More Radical

“Germany. But normal.” That’s the message the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party is taking into this September’s federal election. Hundreds of elected officials and party members met last weekend in Dresden to introduce their new messaging and debate their official party platform. The slogan is as much a statement about the kind of world the AfD pitches to its voters—hearkening back to a simpler, better time before globalization, a wave of refugee arrivals and a pandemic—as it is about how the AfD hopes it and its positions will be perceived in the German political landscape. Meanwhile, the party approved its most radical platform yet: In addition to doubling down on its demand that Germany leave the European Union, AfD delegates voted to end family reunification for refugees, ban the construction of minarets, implement a strict Japan-style immigration system and repeal the current mask mandate, among other positions. “In the end, it’s a contradiction,” Johannes Hillje, a political consultant and expert on the AfD’s rhetorical tactics, told me. “The communication strategy is directed toward the center, but in terms of content they’re moving even further to the right and getting more radical.” Germans will go to the polls in September to elect a new parliament and, by extension, a new chancellor.”

Europe

Reuters: Five People Stabbed In Attack Inside Albania Mosque

“Five people were injured in a stabbing attack in a mosque in the Albanian capital Tirana on Monday following afternoon prayers, police said. They said a 34-year-old man was quickly arrested over the attack and local media said he had been suffering from depression and was wanted by police over another stabbing incident in March. Police had no immediate comment. Police said all those injured in the 2.30 p.m. (1230 GMT) attack in the Dine Hoxha moaque in downtown Tirana had been hospitalised.”

The National: Dutch Bank ABN Amro Fined $574m In Terrorism And Money Laundering Purge

“A Dutch bank was fined $574 million under new laws to tackle terrorism financing and money laundering. Prosecutors accused the state-owned ABN Amro of “serious shortcomings” in tackling illegal activity. The penalty was made up of a €300m ($360.9m) fine and €180m paid to cover “unlawfully obtained gains”, prosecutors said. “The fine reflects that as a result of the serious shortcomings, certain clients that engaged in criminal activities were able to abuse bank accounts and other services of ABN Amro for a longer period of time,” the Dutch Public Prosecution Service said. Prosecutors said on Monday that while the breaches were attributed to the bank, their investigation identified three former members of its board who “presumably are effectively responsible” for the violations. It did not identify the trio and said investigations were continuing into whether there was sufficient evidence to prosecute. However, in Denmark, Danske Bank said its chief executive Chris Vogelzang resigned after being named as one of the suspects. Gerrit Zalm, a former Dutch finance minister and ex-ABN Amro board member, also resigned from Danske Bank's board.”