Eye on Extremism - 02-28-22

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Eye on Extremism - February 28, 2022
By: Counter Extremsm Project - 02-28-22
Re: https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?og...HStNFkhXkkxwxC

Eye on Extremism - as of February 28, 2022:

The Washington Post: Telecom Giant Ericsson Continued Doing Business In Areas That Fell To ISIS, Internal Report Finds

“It was one of the largest fines ever for corporate fraud, a billion-dollar penalty that telecommunications giant Ericsson paid to avoid U.S. prosecution for corrupt schemes in foreign markets from China to East Africa. But even as it signed that 2019 settlement, the Swedish company was withholding knowledge from the public about another corruption scandal, one in which workers’ lives had been imperiled. Executives were confronting an internal investigation that documented “a range of misconduct perpetrated by Ericsson employees and third parties” in Iraq over nearly a decade, according to findings that have not previously been disclosed. The internal report identifies wrongdoing including “bribes and kickbacks,” “fraud and embezzlement,” and the use of smuggling routes to bypass official Iraqi customs authorities. It describes an enterprise so out of control that auditors couldn’t figure out who pocketed payments totaling as much as $10.5 million, fake purchase orders used in creating an “uncontrolled slush fund” and a dubious donation to a purported charity run by a ruling clan in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. Investigators also uncovered disturbing details about Ericsson’s decisions to send workers into territory overrun by Islamic State fighters, the handling of a worker’s kidnapping by terrorists, and transportation contracts that likely involved paying cash to militants — money that Ericsson feared had made its way into the Islamic State’s war chest.”

Bloomberg: Militants Increasing Attacks In Mozambique Gas Region, UN Says

“Islamic State-linked insurgents in Mozambique’s gas-rich northeast are increasing their attacks on government forces and civilians, despite the presence of thousands of regional troops in the area. The number of attacks by the militants grew between January and February and forced more than 12,000 people to flee their homes, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Cabo Delgado province said in a report Thursday. The insurgency in Cabo Delgado has killed more than 3,500 people and displaced 700,000 others. It’s also suspended the development of a $20 billion liquid-natural-gas project by TotalEnergies SE, which has demanded that the security situation be stabilized before the company resumes work. The latest attacks didn’t take place near the TotalEnergies development site, UNOCHA said, without providing more information. Security experts say attacks in Cabo Delgado will continue because of intelligence failures and as the insurgents adapt to the presence of foreign forces. The Southern African Development Community, a regional economic bloc, and Rwanda have deployed more than 3,000 foreign troops to help the government fight the militants. “The insecurity situation in Cabo Delgado has not been restored yet and the insurgency will continue for much longer,” Colonel Luis Bernardino, a professor at the Centre for International Studies at the Instituto Universitário de Lisboa, said in an interview.”

United States:

Seacoastonline: Preston Xanthopoulos: Neo-Nazis Not Welcome In Hampton

“…According to the “Counter Extremism Project," members of the NSC are stockpiling weapons in preparation for a war they intend to fight, in the name of white supremacy. Their rhetoric is dangerous. Their intentions are violent. They have no home in Hampton. They should have no home anywhere. The rise in extremism is frightening. From antifa to Q’Anon to groups like the one that showed up in Hampton, extremism is dangerous. However, it is all practiced and believed by a very small, yet very loud, group of people. Maybe it’s time we, the majority, the non-extremists, got louder. There is one title or label I think that we all can unite under and stand for regardless of race or religion or ethnicity to show support for each other, for acceptance, for all of us, together. Our banners can be simple and we already have a flag for it: #American.”

Syria

Voice Of America: Free From Islamic State, Many Syrians Leave Raqqa

“Raqqa, the former capital of the Islamic State (IS) and home to about 300,000 people, is now free. Yet many of its people want to leave. Those with property are trying to sell it to save up for the journey to Turkey. Those without money struggle to get by. At least 3,000 people left Raqqa for Turkey in 2021, said the city’s civil council co-chair Mohammed Nour. In some ways, the city’s recovery from IS rule is clear. Cafes and restaurants are full of people. Kurdish-led forces stand guard on major streets. But poverty is widespread. People line up for basics such as bread. Unemployed young men sit around. Water and electricity are limited. Many live among bombed-out ruins. Local officials say at least 30 percent of the city is destroyed. Poverty and unemployment drive young men into the arms of IS. Kurdish investigators say new IS recruits captured last month had been drawn in by money. At the same time, the Kurdish-led city government received applications from 27,000 job seekers last year, but had no jobs. Milhem Daher, a 35-year-old engineer, is in the process of selling his home, businesses and properties to pay a smuggler to take him and his family of eight to Turkey, a key route for Syrians trying to get to Europe.”

Turkey

Daily Mail: Australian ISIS Terrorist Is Released From Jail And Thrown In Immigration Detention While Turkey Figures Out Where To Deport Him To - But NO Country Will Take Him

“An Australian-born Islamic State terrorist has been released from jail in Turkey but is stuck in immigration detention while he waits to see if any country will accept him. Melbourne-born Neil Prakash, who was raised a Buddhist, was sentenced to seven-and-a-half years in prison in March 2019. He was captured by Turkish border guards in October 2016 as he tried to enter the country from Syria, and spent five years in a maximum-security prison in the city of Gaziantep. Prakash appeared in several propaganda videos for ISIS - encouraging attacks on Melbourne and Sydney - and took up arms for the terror group in Syria. The former rap singer was also linked to a failed Melbourne plot to behead a police officer and had connections to a number of Australian jihadis. He was stripped of his Australian citizenship and had his passport cancelled on December 21, 2018. This action was taken after the Turkish courts refused to extradite him to Australia to face trial. If he had been sent to Australia, he would have faced charges related to fighting for a foreign country, a crime that could have led to a sentence of life in prison. The Australian government said it was able to do cancel his citizenship as Prakash was entitled to Fijian citizenship through his father, who was born there, so he would not become stateless.”

Afghanistan

The Washington Post: Taliban Launches Sweeping House-To-House Raids Across Kabul In Search Of Weapons

“Guns drawn, half a dozen Taliban fighters crowded into the house of a Kabul laborer Saturday. As a commander watched, his men took knives to the cushions that lined the family’s sitting room, splitting them open and dumping the stuffing onto the floor. Others pulled family photos off shelves and tossed clothing out of closets. “They said they were looking for weapons,” said the laborer’s wife, who listened to the exchange from a room in the back of the house. “They said, ‘We know you had relations with the former regime.’ But my husband never worked for the government.” The wife, like others in this report, spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals. After finding nothing, the fighters beat the laborer’s adolescent son and confiscated a family car. Such raids, part of a massive search operation launched in Kabul and surrounding districts Friday, according to the ministry of interior, mark a significant shift in how the group enforces security. When raids occurred in the past, they were generally not announced and largely conducted at night to reduce visibility. This operation is being carried out in broad daylight. The searches began in northern Kabul, but by Saturday thousands of armed Taliban fighters fanned out into the city center, according to the spokesman for the city’s police chief, Khalid Zadran.”

AFP: Taliban Say No More Evacuations Until Life Improves For Afghans Abroad

“The Taliban will not allow any more Afghans to be evacuated until the situation improves abroad for those who have already left, their spokesman said Sunday. Families wanting to leave in future would also need a good excuse for doing so, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told a news conference, adding a promise to allow anyone to go abroad was not “continuous”. More than 120,000 Afghans and dual nationals were evacuated up to August 31 when the last US-led troops withdrew, two weeks after the hardline Islamists seized Kabul. Hundreds more were allowed to leave on flights after that, but the last official evacuation by air was on December 1. Mujahid said the Taliban had received reports of thousands of Afghans “living in very bad conditions” in Qatar and Turkey. “The government has the responsibility to protect the people so this will be stopped until we get the assurance that their lives will not be endangered,” he said. He was responding to a question about reports circulating on social media that border officials had been told not to allow anyone to be evacuated -- including by road. After seizing power the Taliban promised Afghans would be allowed to come and go as they pleased -- as long as they had passports and visas for their destinations.”

The National: UN’s Counter-Terror Committee Warns ISIS Is Expanding And Exploiting Afghanistan

“The UN’s counter-terror committee has said the threat posed by ISIS still exists and that the terror group is “expanding and exploiting” Afghanistan. In its latest report to the UN Security Council on ISIS, the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) says the group needs to be “closely monitored” following the death of its leader, Muhammad Al Mawla, also known as Abu Ibrahim Al Hashimi Al Qurayshi.Al Qurayshi was killed in February when he detonated a bomb in the third-storey apartment he and his family shared in Atmeh village in north-western Syria as US forces closed in. The warning comes as the head of Britain's domestic intelligence service, Ken McCallum, said that Afghanistan is becoming a hotbed for terrorism. He says the service has evidence of terrorist groups gathering in Afghanistan and recruits are travelling to join them. Weixiong Chen, the acting executive director of CTED, says ISIS is expanding. “The threat of ISIS persists, as the group and its affiliates continue to recalibrate their strategic and operational approaches,” he said. “ISIS has become more decentralised, with supporters notably emerging and expanding their operations in battlefields of West, East, Southern and Central Africa. and is also seeking to exploit recent developments in Afghanistan.”

Washington Examiner: Six Months On, Biden Administration Won't Identify Kabul Airport Bomber

“The U.S. government is refusing to identify the bomber who six months ago perpetrated a deadly Islamic State suicide bombing at the airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, despite numerous reports of anonymous officials naming the attacker as Abdul Rehman al Logari. The attacker’s alleged identity is something of an open secret in national security circles and on Capitol Hill, but the Biden administration has refused to openly confirm that Logari, who had been freed from a prison at Bagram Air Base in August of last year when the Taliban took it over, was indeed the bomber who killed and wounded 58 U.S. troops. The Aug. 26 attack killed 13 U.S. service members and nearly 200 Afghans while wounding dozens more as the United States led evacuation operations at the airport with the Taliban providing security outside. When asked about Logari’s identity, a CIA spokesperson referred the Washington Examiner to the Pentagon. A Pentagon public affairs officer, Army Maj. Rob Lodewick, told the Washington Examiner that “DoD has not confirmed this. I’d have to refer you to the FBI’s investigation on the matter.” A spokesperson for the State Department also referred the Washington Examiner to the FBI. But an FBI spokesperson said the bureau “has no comment.” The Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the Justice Department, the National Security Council, and the White House did not provide comment.”

Pakistan

Associated Press: Pakistan: Forces Kill Militant In Raid In Northwest

“Pakistani security forces raided a militant hideout in the country’s northwest, triggering a firefight that killed one militant, the military said Saturday. The raid took place in the Spinwam area of the North Waziristan tribal district that long served as a safe haven for Islamic militants. The raid was part of a continuing operation to rid the tribal belt of militants. The military said the dead militant was involved in attacks on security forces in recent months and that arms and ammunition were seized from the hideout. North Waziristan and other tribal regions bordering Afghanistan had been a sanctuary for militants until massive military operations began after the 2014 militant attack on an army-run school in Peshawar. More than 150 people were killed, mostly school children.”

Nigeria

Sahara Reporters: Boko Haram, ISWAP Fighters Attack Borno Community, Kill 13 Persons

“At least 13 people were reportedly killed by fighters from the Islamic State for West African Province, ISWAP, within 48 hours in Borno State, Northeast Nigeria. ISWAP on Sunday reportedly attacked Sabongari village, a few kilometres from Damboa town in the Damboa Local Government Area of the state. “The attackers left seven people dead,” local vigilantes told Daily Post on Sunday. This comes barely 24 hours after an attack was reported in Mandaragirau and Ghuma villages in the Biu Local Government Area. It was also less than 48 hours after the insurgents attacked Kautikari village in Chibok, leaving several persons dead. Locals in Mandaragirau village said this is the second time the insurgents will be attacking their village in February. According to them, the first time, they abducted some young men from the village, who are still in captivity. The attack in Mandaragirau village left three persons dead with scores injured, according to locals from the area. “In Ghuma village, they abducted two girls and looted food items. They also razed down shops and took some livestock with them,” a witness, Umar Audu, said.”

Premium Times Nigeria: 466 Terrorists Surrendered In Two Weeks, Scores Killed – Official

“Troops of Operation Hadin Kai have continued to record successes as 466 terrorists surrendered while scores were killed in different operations within two weeks in the North-east , Defence Headquarters says. The Director, Defence Media Operations, Bernard Onyeuko, said this while giving updates of military operations across the country from February 10 to 24 on Thursday in Abuja. Mr Onyeuko said the sustained land and air raids by the troops led to the surrendering of 466 Boko Haram and Islamic State’s West Africa Province (ISWAP) terrorists comprising 120 adult males, 137 adult females and 209 children. He said the surrendered terrorists claimed that they had lost interest in the Boko Haram terrorists’ ideology. He added that the air interdiction by the air component on February 11, around Marte area of Borno led to the killing of one of the leaders of ISWAP terrorists known as Mohammed Yusuf and his fighters. “Cumulatively, troops eliminated six terrorists, arrested 26 and recovered cache of different calibres of arms and ammunition and four gun trucks. “Also, 20 abducted civilian victims were rescued by the troops. “The surrendered terrorists and arrested criminals have been properly documented and handed over to the appropriate security agencies for necessary action,” he said.”

Somalia

All Africa: Somalia: Al-Shabaab Strikes Amid Polls Deadlock

“The long-delayed electoral process is fuelling attacks by the armed extremist group, Al-Shabaab, in Somalia. In the latest attack, at least 15 people were killed by a suicide bomb in the central Beledweyne. It targeted a restaurant popular with local officials and politicians. Al-Shabaab has taken responsibility for the attack. The attack was the latest in a recent surge of violence led by the group, including attacks on police stations and government checkpoints in the capital of Mogadishu earlier in February. The Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect (GCR2P) blamed the surge on the divisive electoral process. Presidential elections are set to be completed by this week. This month elections were postponed later than initially planned due to political infighting and a volatile security situation. On February 10, Al-Shabaab targeted a minibus full of electoral delegates in the capital, Mogadishu, killing at least six civilians. Among those killed was a candidate in the parliamentary vote. James Swan, the United Nations Special Representative on Somalia, warned that political divisions and election delays had allowed insurgent forces to make some recent gains. The UN Mission in Somalia continues to documenting killings, attacks on schools and hospitals, recruitment of child soldiers, abductions, rape and sexual violence. “These acts may amount to war crimes,” Swan said.”

Africa

Associated Press: Armed Men Kidnap 5 MSF Workers In Northern Cameroon

“Armed men have kidnapped five people working for Medecins Sans Frontieres in Cameroon’s Far North, the organization’s local branch said Friday. Overnight Thursday into Friday, armed men broke into the organization’s base in Fotokol and abducted five people, MSF Cameroon said. Neither the identity nor the motives of the perpetrators are known at this time, it said. Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province are known to launch attacks in the region that lies between Nigeria and Chad.”

United Kingdom

The Independent: Ukraine War: British Volunteers Who Travel To Fight Russia Could Violate Terror Laws But Prosecutions Unlikely

“Britons fighting against Russia alongside Ukrainian forces could fall under the UK’s definition of terrorism, a watchdog has said after the foreign secretary backed volunteers. Liz Truss said she would “absolutely” support British nationals who travel to the warzone following an invitation by president Volodymyr Zelensky to international combatants. A statement issued by Ukraine’s defence ministry on Sunday announced the formation of an international legion and said people could enlist through embassies in their home countries. “Anyone who wants to join the defence of Ukraine, Europe and the world can come and fight side by side with the Ukrainians against the Russian war criminals,” it added. Asked on the BBC's Sunday Morning programme if she would support UK citizens who chose to answer the call, Ms Truss said: “That is something people can make their own decisions about. “The people of Ukraine are fighting for freedom and democracy, not just for Ukraine but for the whole of Europe. “Absolutely, if people want to support that struggle I would support them in doing that.” But fighting overseas has previously been prosecuted under terrorism laws, which saw charges against people who joined UK-backed Kurdish groups to defeat Isis.”

France

RFI: Epic Paris Terror Trial Reaches Half-Way Stage With More Questions Than Answers

“Despite the ravages provoked by Covid-19, which have already led to three weeks of suspensions, the Paris terror trial has reached the end of its second major stage: the examination of the activities and religious attitudes of the accused up to the summer of 2015, before the detailed planning of the Paris attacks began. The crucial questions have concerned “radicalisation” and the Islamic State project in Syria-Iraq. It's hard to say where we are. This trial opened last September and probably won't end before July. So we're roughly half way through. But it doesn’t feel like that. Each survivor, each bereaved family member, got one brief moment to say what it feels like to lose a beloved child, husband, friend in a terrorist attack. And then they left and went back to the business of dealing with their grief, their anger, their incomprehension. The accused are there all the time. For them, 13 November 2015 marks either the end of a complicated process intended to advance the cause of an extreme form of Islam, or the beginning of a judicial nightmare which they hope this trial will dispel. There are 20 accused in total, 14 of them actually before the Paris court, one in jail in Turkey, the five others are presumed dead in the Syrian war zone.”

Europe

The Washington Post: Ukrainians Return Home To Fight Russia: ‘I Have To Go’

“…For years, the combatants crossing Ukraine’s borders to pick up arms were joining the pro-Russian forces that had taken control of a territory in eastern Ukraine. Since 2014, more than 17,000 fighters from more than 50 countries have joined the Russian-backed forces there, according to the Counter Extremism Project, a monitoring group. Last week, Ukraine’s military said another detachment of foreign mercenaries had arrived in the east, part of what Kyiv says is a plan to stage provocations to justify Russia’s invasion. Few of the volunteers have guns, instead hoping to pick them up from the state armory on their arrival. Igor Tokar, a 53-year-old truck driver working in Poland, was counting on grabbing his Beretta hunting shotgun from his village home en route. Truck drivers, he said, had been organizing among themselves. “I know so many other truck drivers from Lithuania who are coming, and they haven’t even made it here yet,” he said, waiting to drive across the border. Two cars behind him, another truck driver waiting to cross said he knew of 10 friends planning to come. Sergei Libanski, another volunteer who arrived at the border Sunday, said he knew of 20. “A lot of us were here in Europe, working,” said Mr. Libanski, a 42-year-old trucker. “Now we’re going home to fight.’”

The New York Times: Far-Right Militias In Europe Plan To Confront Russian Forces, A Research Group Says.

“The Russian attack on Ukraine has prompted a flurry of activity among far-right European militia leaders, who have taken to the internet to raise funds, recruit fighters and plan travel to the front lines to confront the country’s invaders, according to a research group. In recent days, militia leaders in France, Finland and Ukraine have posted declarations urging their supporters to join in the fight to defend Ukraine against a Russian invasion. The posts have been located and translated by the SITE Intelligence Group, a private organization that specializes in tracking extremist groups. Rita Katz, the director of SITE, said that numerous far-right white nationalist and neo-Nazi groups throughout Europe and North America had expressed an outpouring of support for Ukraine, including by seeking to join paramilitary units in battling Russia. The motivation to travel to Ukraine, she said, was to gain combat training. It was also ideologically-driven, she added, since these far right groups viewed the fight against Russia as a fight against communism, clinging to World War II historical narratives, and associating modern-day Russia and its president, Vladimir V. Putin, with the former Soviet Union.”