Eye on Extremism - 02-10-21

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Eye on Extremism - February 10, 2021
By: Counter Extremism Project
Re: info@counterextremism.com

Eye on Extremism


As of: February 10, 2021

Reuters: Five Killed In Kabul As Attacks Increasingly Target Civilians

“Five government employees were killed in two separate attacks in Afghanistan’s capital on Tuesday, officials said, the latest in a series in which civilians have been targeted. Unknown gunmen opened fire on a vehicle carrying employees of a provincial rural economic development department in southern Kabul, killing four people. The head of the department was among those killed as they headed back to the central province of Maidan Wardak where their department was based, a spokesman for the national rural rehabilitation department said. A foreign affairs ministry vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb in eastern Kabul, killing the driver, the ministry said in a statement. Almost daily deadly attacks with small, magnetic bombs attached to the undercarriages of vehicles, roadside explosive devices and shootings are unnerving Afghan officials, activists and journalists. The attacks are concentrated in urban centres and come as protracted peace talks take place in Doha between Taliban militants, fighting since 2001 to regain power, and Afghan government officials. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told Reuters in a text message that Tuesday’s attacks “had nothing to do with us.”

Asharq Al-Awsat: UN, EU Partnership To Combat Terrorism In Sudan

“A partnership between the United Nations, the European Union and Sudan was launched Monday to combat terrorism through a Capacity-Building Workshop that focuses on countering the financing of terrorism. The two-day workshop, organized by the National Organization for Combating Terrorism in coordination with UNDP and the EU was held at the premises of the Higher Academy for Strategic and Security Studies in Sudan’s Soba. “This program helps Sudan to detect and arrest terrorists, and helps the Commission to curb terrorism, and also to establish capacity-building activities in coordination with the African Union and the IGAD,” Vladimir Voronkov, Under-Secretary-General of the UN Counter-Terrorism Office, told participants in a video message. He said this initiative affirms Sudan’s commitment to work together with the EU and the UN in the combat of terrorism. Voronkov explained that Sudan has started the transition phase, and the project of the National Counter-Terrorism Capacity Building comes at the request of the Sudanese authorities to support it in fighting terrorism and money laundering.”

Syria

Air Force Times: Air War Against ISIS Holds Lessons For Future Battles

“The five-year coalition air campaign to defeat the Islamic State group and roll back its territorial gains in Iraq and Syria saw a “complex and contested” airspace, overstretched enablers, depleted precision guidance munitions stockpiles and more intense bombing than seen for similar periods in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. That’s according to, “The Air War Against the Islamic State,” a recently released 511-page report by the Rand Corporation. The report authors detail the 2014 to 2019 timeline of the Operation Inherent Resolve campaign in phases and case studies. Their analysis paints a picture of an air war that was critical in the defeat of ISIS, but that differed in many ways from recent counterinsurgency operations and brought home key areas that need improvement for future conflicts. A U.S.-led multinational coalition has launched tens of thousands of strikes in Iraq and Syria over the past seven years, weakening the radical group's hold on the region. The authors make specific joint force and Air Force recommendations that zero in on targeting, assets, battlespace management, needed personnel, weapons use and self-defense rules of engagement.”

Iraq

Reuters: Iraq Hangs Five Men Convicted Of Terrorism, Sources Say

“Iraq on Tuesday hanged five people convicted of terrorism charges, local security officials said. All those executed at a prison in the southern Iraqi city of Nassiriya were Iraqi nationals, said one source who attended. A second security source who is part of a team in charge of handing over bodies to their relatives confirmed the details. The sources gave no details of the crimes that the men had been convicted of. Another Iraqi man, convicted of murder, was also hanged on Tuesday, the sources said. Iraq has put hundreds of suspected jihadists on trial and carried out several mass executions since defeating Islamic State fighters in U.S.-backed military campaign in 2014-2017. On Nov. 16, Iraq hanged 21 convicted terrorists and murderers, including people involved in two suicide attacks that killed dozens of people in a northern town. Human rights groups have accused authorities in Baghdad and other Iraqi regions of inconsistencies in the judicial process and flawed trials leading to unfair convictions. Iraq says its trials are fair.”

Turkey

Eurasia Review: Turkey: 39 People Detained For ‘Terrorist Propaganda’ Social Media Posts

“The Turkish Interior Ministry announced on Tuesday that security forces detained 39 social media users in the first week of February for allegedly posting propaganda for terrorist organisations online. It said that a total of 575 offenders have been detected and that detentions continue. “Debates and developments on social media platforms as well as the social media accounts of illegal groups and structures are being followed closely,” the ministry said in a written statement. The detainees are accused of propaganda for organisations which Turkey accepted as terrorist organisations, including the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party, PKK, the so-called Islamic State, extremist leftist groups and the so-called Fethullahist Terrorist Organisation – a name Turkey uses to brand followers of exiled Turkish preacher Fethullah Gulen, who Ankara accuses of orchestrating a failed coup attempt in 2016. The 39 detainees include several students who allegedly run social media accounts to organise the recent series of high-profile protests against the political appointment of a new rector at the prestigious Bogazici University in Istanbul. Riot police staged a major operation to disperse the student protesters last week, with hundreds detained and dozens charged.”

Afghanistan

Voice Of America: Islamic State Poised For Possible Resurgence In Afghanistan, US Officials Warn

“The Islamic State’s affiliate in Afghanistan – seemingly pushed to the brink last year following unrelenting pressure from the U.S. and Afghan militaries, and by multiple Taliban offenses – appears to have recovered and may soon look to strike further afield, according to U.S. military and intelligence officials. The turnaround for IS-Khorasan, as the group’s Afghan affiliate is known, contrasts with its waning fortunes just over a year ago, when U.S. officials estimated it had lost “up to half its force” while suffering a string of defeats in Nangarhar and Kunar provinces. Stripped of its key territories, U.S. intelligence estimates at the time suggested IS-Khorasan was down to as few as 1,000 fighters. So too, there were growing questions about its offensive capabilities. Counterterror and military officials say IS-Khorasan is losing its hold on some rural areas but caution it has been pushed to the brink before and bounced back But more recent intelligence suggests the bleeding has, at least stopped. “New leadership allowed it to stabilize and increase localized and lone wolf attacks throughout the second half of the year [2020],” U.S. Central Command Gen. Kenneth “Frank” McKenzie, who oversees U.S. forces in Afghanistan, told a virtual forum Monday.”

Voice Of America: Violence Still ‘Too High' In Afghanistan, US General Says

“Multiple attacks in Afghanistan Tuesday killed at least 10 police officers and government employees, a day after a top U.S. general warned violence in Afghanistan was “simply too high.” Four of the people killed Tuesday were civilian employees of the Afghan government and were shot in Kabul by unknown gunmen. Another was a driver working for the Afghan Foreign Ministry who died when his car was targeted using a magnetic bomb. Five more men, members of local police called the Afghan Public Protection Force, were killed in two separate explosions in Herat and Badghis provinces. In an online discussion hosted Monday by the Washington-based Middle East Institute, General Kenneth McKenzie, the commander of the U.S. Central Command that covers the Middle East and parts of South and Central Asia, said he was “concerned about the actions the Taliban have taken until this point.” McKenzie was referring to Taliban actions since the group struck a deal with the United States in February of last year. While the Taliban have stopped direct attacks on foreign forces, their attacks on Afghan forces have increased. The Afghan government and Western officials also blame them for a surge in killings.”

Yemen

Asharq Al-Awsat: US, UK Express Concern After Latest Houthi Escalation In Yemen’s Marib

“The United States and Britain expressed their concern over the latest field escalation by the Iran-backed Houthi militias in Yemen’s Marib and al-Jawf provinces. The militias had launched on Sunday rocket and drone attacks on Marib, as well as ground attacks on the neighboring al-Jawf. Yemeni officials blamed the latest spike in attacks on the United States’ decision to revoke the terrorist designation of the Houthis. The move, they added, gave the militias the green light to continue their war on the Yemeni people. “The United States is deeply troubled by continued Houthi attacks,” said a State Department statement on Monday. “We call on the Houthis to immediately cease attacks impacting civilian areas inside Saudi Arabia and to halt any new military offensives inside Yemen, which only bring more suffering to the Yemeni people.” “We urge the Houthis to refrain from destabilizing actions and demonstrate their commitment to constructively engage in UN Special Envoy Griffiths’ efforts to achieve peace. The time is now to find an end to this conflict,” it stressed. British Ambassador to Yemen Michael Aron strongly condemned the attacks on Marib and al-Jawf, urging the Houthis to cease such assaults immediately and prove their commitment to achieve peace by supporting the efforts exerted by the UN envoy.”

Egypt

The Times Of Israel: Islamic State Kills At Least 6 Bedouins In Sinai Ambush

“Members of the Islamic State terror group kill at least six Bedouins in an ambush for their alleged collaboration with the Egyptian military in the country’s restive Sinai Peninsula, Egyptian security officials say. The ambush took place in the mountainous Maghara area in central Sinai when members of a local IS affiliate established a fake checkpoint and opened fire on two vehicles carrying Bedouins, the officials say. They say a seventh Bedouin is missing following the attack. Egypt has been battling militants in the northern part of Sinai Peninsula for years. Violence and instability there intensified after the 2013 military ouster of Mohammed Morsi, an elected but divisive Islamist president amid nationwide protests against his brief rule. The militants carried out numerous attacks, mainly targeting security forces, minority Christians and those they accuse of collaborating with the military and police.”

Nigeria

Sahara Reporters: Nigerian Army Keeps Mum As Boko Haram Terrorists Kill '20 Soldiers’ In Borno

“About 48 hours after Boko Haram/Islamic States West Province (ISWAP) terrorists repelled an attack by the military, killing at least 20 soldiers in Malari, Borno State, the Nigerian army has yet to officially speak on the incident. SaharaReporters gathered that the soldiers were on patrol to clear some Boko Haram elements in the area following credible intelligence when they were ambushed by the insurgents. A senior military officer said the gunmen subsequently engaged the troops with an overwhelming firepower, killing about 20 soldiers. The terrorists also destroyed about three operational vehicles of the Nigerian army. The attack comes few days after six soldiers were killed in an ambush along Goniri-Gorigi Road while returning from a clearance operation. Authorities of the Nigeria army have however been silent on both incidents. “They have contacted their families as usual, they will be buried in a cemetery here in Maiduguri during the week,” a source told SaharaReporters. Boko Haram and its offshoot, Islamic State West Africa Province, have killed thousands and displaced millions in North-Eastern Nigeria. Nigerian army has repeatedly claimed that the insurgency has been largely defeated and frequently underplays any losses.”

Africa

Voice Of America: At Least 10 Dead In New Congo Attack

“At least 10 people have died in an overnight attack on a village in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. The attackers, who invaded a village near the border with Uganda, are believed to be part of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a Ugandan Islamist group. Local authorities confirmed the army has been deployed to the region. Last week, the group committed a similar massacre that killed at least 12 people in the nearby village of Mabule. Active in the region since the 1990s, the ADF has increased its attacks against civilians since 2019, when the Congolese army began an operation against it. In 2020 alone, the group killed over 840 people, according to United Nations data. The Islamic State militant group has claimed responsibility for multiple attacks in the region, although ties between IS and ADF have never been confirmed.”

Africanews: Mozambique Sees Militia Violence Dwindle As Military Gains Steam

“Islamist attacks in Mozambique's remote north have become less frequent and violent in recent weeks, a trend that analysts attribute in part to scaled-up counter-insurgency tactics. Shadowy jihadists affiliated to the so-called Islamic State group have wreaked havoc in the gas-rich but impoverished Cabo Delgado province since 2017. Their attacks rocketed last year, triggering a humanitarian crisis akin to the end of Mozambique's 1977-1992 civil war. More than half of the roughly 800 assaults documented by US conflict tracker ACLED since 2017 took place last year alone, defying government efforts to boost its military presence in the area. At least 2,500 people have been killed and more than half a million displaced in over three years, many of them impoverished villagers, according to ACLED and government figures. But recent figures tentatively suggest intensified ground and air strikes are starting to bear fruit. ACLED only registered around 10 militant strikes in January, down from about 30 in December. “We are seeing a success of the government forces' offensive strategy,” Calton Cadeado, a security researcher at the Joaquim Chissano University in Maputo told AFP.”

Mozambique News Agency: Terrorist Commanders Killed

“The Mozambican defence and security forces have killed six ringleaders of the islamist terrorists operating in the northern province of Cabo Delgado, according to a report in “Noticias de Defesa”, an unofficial website that supports the Mozambican forces. One of those killed was a Tanzanian national, and two were described as “Arabs”. The operations in which they were killed took place in Macomia and Muidumbe districts, where the defence forces are driving terrorists out of their hideouts. The “Noticias de Defesa” source says the terrorists are running short of supplies, and some of their main bases have been dismantled. As a result members of the terrorist groups are now deserting. Three of the young terrorist recruits have abandoned the Cabo Delgado bush and plan to apply for the amnesty promised by President Filipe Nyusi to those who voluntarily leave the terrorist ranks. The three were apparently recruited in the neighbouring province of Nampula, and efforts are being made to return them safely to their home district of Memba. Police sources said that recruits have been attracted to the terrorist cause, not because of any religious or ideological conviction, but because they have been promised large sums of money.”

Agence France-Presse: Growing Desperation Over Al-Shabaab Threat In Kenya's North

“Schools are shut due to an exodus of teachers, travel has become risky because of armed attacks and roadside bombs, and cellphone towers are regularly destroyed. In the vast, arid northern corner of Kenya, bordering Somalia and Ethiopia, frustration is boiling over due to the growing strength of the Al-Qaeda-linked Al-Shabaab jihadist group in the region. Some 1,000 kilometres (620 miles) and a world apart from the bustling capital Nairobi or Kenya's famed beaches and wildlife parks, the county of Mandera is increasingly coming under the control of Al-Shabaab, the area's governor warned recently. In a rare public cry for help, governor Ali Roba published a long letter in January over the “undeterred movements of terror cells within the county”, saying the government was “failing miserably” at stopping them. He cited a recent Al-Shabaab attack on an ambulance carrying a pregnant woman, and the beheading of a local chief in December whose “head was thrown into a bush.” “A police post was attacked ... Mobile phone transmission stations are regularly attacked and masts felled leaving residents cut-off from communication,” the governor wrote in a letter published in The Standard newspaper.”

Agence France-Presse: Senegal Uncovers Jihadist Cell In East Of Country

“Senegalese authorities have foiled a jihadist cell linked to al-Qaeda-affiliated militants in Mali, a leading newspaper in the West African state reported on Monday. Gendarmes arrested four men in late January in the eastern town of Kidira, which lies on the border with Senegal’s war-torn neighbor Mali, according to the Liberation newspaper. A shopkeeper who has been under surveillance for two years was among the men who were arrested, it added. The shopkeeper’s telephone number reportedly appeared on a Whatsapp group linked to the Katiba Macina jihadist group. Although he denies affiliation with the group, he is suspected of acting as a recruiter inside Senegal. Katiba Macina is one of the key armed groups in al-Qaeda-aligned Group to Support Islam and Muslims (GSIM) — which is one of the largest jihadist alliances operating in Mali. Mali has been struggling to contain an Islamist insurgency that first emerged in 2012, killing thousands of soldiers and civilians and displacing hundreds of thousands more. The conflict has since spread to neighboring Burkina Faso and Niger, inflaming ethnic tensions along the way. Senegal has so far been spared jihadist attacks. However, the United Nations Security Council warned in a report this month that GSIM figures “have established themselves in Senegal.”

United Kingdom

The Independent: Isis Fighters’ Brother Bought Sword And Rapped About Lee Rigby ‘While Planning Terror Attack’

“An alleged Isis supporter whose two brothers died fighting for the terrorist group in Syria planned a terror attack in the UK, a court has heard. Sahayb Abu, 27, bought a sword, knife, balaclava and gloves while allegedly making preparations for an act of terrorism. The Old Bailey heard that he sent two of his surviving brothers videos of himself rapping about “sending bombs” and “eliminating foes”. Jurors were told that days before he was arrested, Abu rapped about the 2013 terror attack where Fusilier Lee Rigby was murdered and talked about seeing “many Lee Rigby’s heads rolling on the ground”. He allegedly discussed wanting to conduct homophobic attacks in the UK in an extremist chat group, as well as targeting a Shia Muslim cleric. On the day of his arrest on 9 July, Abu allegedly praised the 9/11 terror attacks and wrote: “We need a 9/11 2.0” Prosecutor John McGuinness QC said Abu had also conducted numerous online searches for terror attacks in the UK, France and Germany. “The kuffar [disbelievers] have felt their share of pain, I just wish it was multiplied a million fold,” he allegedly wrote in a text message to his brothers on 3 July. Two days before, he had ordered an 18in blade from an online shop that described it as a “deadly close-combat design … used by warriors”, and paid extra to have it sharpened before delivery.”