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Eye on Extremism
September 16, 2016
CNN:
Syrian Airstrikes Kill 23; Russia, US Allege Violations
“At least 23 people, including nine children, were killed during
airstrikes in Syria on Thursday, as the United States and Russia accused
each other of violating a fragile ceasefire. The UK-based Syrian
Observatory for Human Rights said it was unclear which side was behind
four airstrikes in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor, an area not
included in the ceasefire. In addition to the fatalities, 30 people were
injured, some critically. Most of the casualties occurred when a school
being used as a shelter for families displaced by the fighting was hit,
according to SOHR. The town targeted in the raids, Al-Mayadin, is
controlled by ISIS. The ceasefire does not apply to areas held by the
group.”
Newsweek:
French Isis Recruiter Behind Recent Attacks Tells Followers To ‘Send Head
To Élysée Palace’
“The French recruiter for the Islamic State militant group (ISIS) that
authorities believe is behind a spate of attacks and plots on the country’s
soil in recent months has sent a chilling call to his followers to behead
a civilian and send it to the country’s Presidential residence. He made
the morbid demand about Élysée Palace in an audio message posted on his
private Telegram channel to some 300 followers on Tuesday, according to a
report in Dutch-language Belgian newspaper Het Laatste Nieuws. Kassim, a
29-year-old jihadi living in either Iraq or Syria, said: ‘Everything that
needs to be said has been said. You know what to do. Don't wait any
longer.’”
RT:
Hybrid Warfare: Lone-Wolf Attacks Ordered Via Whatsapp Or Facebook,
German Spy Chief Says
“Lone-wolf terrorist attacks in Europe are ordered and orchestrated
through social media platforms like Facebook or WhatsApp, which creates a
type of ‘hybrid warfare,’ chief of German domestic intelligence believes.
Hans-Georg Maassen, head of the Federal Office for the Protection of the
Constitution (BfV), Germany’s domestic intelligence agency, said that
potential attackers presumably receive orders from foreign terrorist
leaders through encrypted instant messaging systems. The details of what
he described as ‘hybrid warfare’ were disclosed at a press conference in
Berlin on Wednesday, according to Deutsche Welle. Attacks are ordered
through social media or messengers such as Facebook, WhatsApp and
Telegram, while ‘perpetrators themselves are safe and not recognized.’”
Reuters:
U.S. Confirms Two More Freed Guantanamo Inmates Rejoined Militant Groups
“In the first six months of 2016, two more militants released from the
U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, have returned to fighting, the
U.S. government said on Wednesday. Washington has confirmed that a total
of nine people freed from Guantanamo have rejoined militant groups since
President Barack Obama took office in 2009, according to a report issued
on Tuesday by the Office of Director of National Intelligence, or ODNI.
The report said the number of militants freed by the Obama administration
whom U.S. agencies "suspect" of having returned to action
dropped to 11 from 12 between January and July.”
War
On The Rocks: The Jihadist Entrepreneur: What The Anjem Choudary Case Can
Teach Us
“Last week, British militant Islamist activist Anjem Choudary was
sentenced to five and a half years in prison for providing support to the
Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). Choudary is best known as a
radical, charismatic, and rabble-rousing Islamist preacher who influenced
and inspired more than 100 Britons to carry out acts of terrorism or
fight abroad. His true influence, however, is even more far-reaching,
extending beyond his role as a source of radicalization of British
Muslims and converts and beyond support for a single terrorist group.
Choudary is a jihadist entrepreneur who has been instrumental in setting
up an international jihadist movement. The so-called “Sharia4” movement
epitomizes how present day terrorist actors cooperate in pursuit of
militant objectives. Such cooperation involves an increasingly diverse
array of actors, ranging from formal organizations to informal networks
as well as terrorist entrepreneurs such as Choudary. Such new
collaborative forms between terrorist actors pose both conceptual and
policy challenges to the counterterrorism community.’
The
Wall Street Journal: Behind Boko Haram's Split: A Leader Too Radical For
Islamic State
“Some people can be too extreme even for Islamic State. The
self-proclaimed caliphate’s biggest and deadliest franchise outside the
Middle East, the ‘West Africa Province’ also known as Boko Haram,
fractured in recent weeks over Islamic State’s decision to replace its
notorious leader, Abubakar Shekau. Mr. Shekau hasn’t recognized the
August appointment of a rival Boko Haram commander, Abu Musab al-Barnawi,
as the group’s new ‘governor.’ The two factions have repeatedly clashed
since then and their followers have accused each other of abandoning the
true faith. This split, while weakening Boko Haram in the immediate term,
could have dramatic consequences for how jihadists continue their
struggle in Nigeria and in neighboring countries. Boko Haram’s areas of
influence were cut down by the recent offensives of regional militaries,
which were aided by U.S., British and French advisers.”
Time:
Moms Of Young Muslims Enlist In The Fight Against ISIS
“The love shared by mother and child is now being used as a weapon to
combat radicalization, in a continent reeling from a wave of ISIS-linked
attacks. A course devised by Edit Schlaffer, an Austrian sociologist, for
troubled regions like Kashmir is now taking off in cities across Europe,
aiming to put mothers on the front line of the battle against Islamic
extremism. On a recent July morning, the first British graduates of the
Mothers Schools, which Schlaffer runs through her Vienna-based NGO, Women
Without Borders, gathered at the town hall in the city of Luton in
England. Over 10 weeks, 45 women had attended sessions on subjects like
monitoring Internet access, better communicating with teenagers and
identifying signs of radicalization in children.”
The
Washington Post: Man Pleads Guilty In D.C. To Supporting Al-Qaeda-Backed
Terrorist Group
“A dual Dutch-Turkish national pleaded guilty Thursday in federal
court in Washington to providing material support to the Islamic Movement
of Uzbekistan, a U.S.-designated terrorist group active in Afghanistan.
Irfan Demirtas, also known as Nasrullah, 58, faces a maximum of 15 years
in prison when he is sentenced Nov. 30. U.S. authorities agreed not to
pursue additional charges in a four-count indictment dated Dec. 8, 2011.
Demirtas admitted that between January 2006 and May 2008, he provided
funds to IMU leader Tahir Yuldashev and was present when he made threats
against Americans, Assistant Federal Defender Mary C. Petras told
District Judge Randolph D. Moss. U.S. authorities alleged that Demirtas
was raising money, recruiting fighters and ‘fomenting terror across
Europe and the Middle East,’ then-acting U.S. attorney for the District
Vincent H. Cohen Jr. said in a statement when Demirtas was extradited to
the United States in July 2015.”
CNN:
75,000 Trapped In Refugee Camp On Jordan-Syria Border, Amnesty Warns
“A clampdown on Syrian refugees entering Jordan has left 75,000 people
stranded in the desert in a no man's land between the countries, cut off
from aid for months, Amnesty International says. The rights group
released satellite images Thursday that show the extent of a makeshift
refugee camp in al-Rukban, an area of desert known as the berm, along
Jordan's northeast border with Syria. It's also near both countries'
borders with Iraq. The camp grew from 368 shelters a year ago to 8,295
this month, Amnesty said. The group also released video footage, obtained
by a tribal council whose activists operate in the area, that it said
showed dozens of makeshift graves of refugees who had perished amid the
desperate conditions.”
Associated
Press: Yemen's Rebels Say They Captured Post Inside Saudi Arabia
“Yemen's Houthi rebels and allied troops have captured a Saudi
military post in the border region of Jizan, according to military
officials from the Shiite movement. They said the Houthi rebels and their
allies attacked the post with artillery, rockets and light arms before
taking it over in a Sept. 11 battle. A Saudi military spokesman has
denied the Houthi claim as ‘lies,’ but a 15-minute video clip posted on
social media networks and aired late Wednesday by the Houthis' al-Masirah
TV purportedly shows the shelling of the hilltop post and the attacking
force examining weapons and ammunition left behind by the Saudi soldiers
who fled. ‘We will fight them with their weapons,’ said one member of the
assailing force.”
Haaretz:
The Palestinian Professor Who Took Students On Auschwitz Trip And Paid A
Heavy Price
“Dajani has devoted most of his time to promoting the study of the
Holocaust within Palestinian society. In March 2011, even before his
first visit to the camps, he and the Jewish-American historian Robert
Satloff published a joint op-ed piece in The New York Times, titled, ‘Why
Palestinians should learn about the Holocaust.’ The article explained why
it was necessary to introduce the subject into the curriculum of the
United Nations schools in the Gaza Strip. ‘Without discussing the
Holocaust, discussing genocide is meaningless,’ the authors wrote. These
efforts reached a peak in March 2014, when Dajani took 27 Palestinian
students on an educational visit to Auschwitz as part of a long-term
cooperative project.”
The
Washington Post: Clashes Between Germans And Refugees Spark New Tensions.
This Is What ISIS Envisioned.
“The city of Bautzen in eastern Germany has been at the center of
tensions between refugees and anti-immigration protesters in recent
months. In February, Germans applauded as a refugee accommodation
burned down, allegedly after an arson attack. But on Wednesday evening,
those tensions reached a new peak when 20 refugees were involved in
violent clashes with 80 German nationals, according to police. The
incident occurred nearly exactly one year after the influx of refugees
into Germany reached its climax, with thousands arriving in the country
every day. There have been attacks on refugee residences nearly every day
since then. But frustration among migrants and newcomers with their
increasingly unwelcoming host nation has also caused stirs, and has
raised worries among counter-terrorism experts and officials.”
United
States
Voice
Of America: US Lawmaker Urges Egypt To Release Dual Citizen
“A northern Virginia congressman is calling on the Egyptian government
to release a prisoner whose arrest two years ago has drawn condemnation
from human rights groups. Aya Hijazi grew up in the Washington
suburb of Falls Church, Virginia, and is a dual citizen of the U.S. and
Egypt. She had been running a foundation in Egypt dedicated to helping
street children when she and her husband were arrested in 2014.
Democratic congressman Don Beyer will meet with Hijazi's family Thursday
on Capitol Hill, to be followed by an afternoon news conference. Fellow
Democratic congressman Gerry Connolly will join him.”
CNBC:
Big US Military Aid Package To Israel Has Strings Attached
“After months of negotiating, the United States and Israel have signed
a huge, $38 billion deal for military aid to the Jewish state — with some
changes from previous pacts between the countries. The 10-year agreement
is the largest in U.S. history, with a significant portion of the money
expected to be used to upgrade Israel's air force to Lockheed Martin's
F-35 fighter aircraft. But while the actual memorandum of understanding
hasn't been officially released by either country, it has a number of
conditions that are different from previous U.S.-Israel aid deals. Most
importantly, it's structured so that more Israeli defense spending goes
to U.S. companies. Israel's long-standing special arrangement for funds
from the United States previously allowed Israel to spend 26 percent of
the money in Israel — on Israeli-made defense products.”
Associated
Press: AP Sources: USTo Shift Military Assets To Syria Under Deal
“The U.S. military will have to shift surveillance aircraft from other
regions and increase the number of intelligence analysts to coordinate
attacks with Russia under the Syria cease-fire deal partly in order to
target militants the U.S. has largely spared, senior officials say.
Senior defense and military officials told The Associated Press that they
are sorting out how the U.S.-Russia military partnership will take shape
and how that will change where U.S. equipment and people will be
deployed. They said, however, that they will need to take assets from
other parts of the world, because U.S. military leaders don't want to
erode the current U.S.-led coalition campaign against the Islamic State
group in Iraq and Syria.”
Reuters:
U.S. Lawmakers Say Afghanistan Corruption Threatens Future Spending
“U.S. senators questioned State Department officials closely on
Thursday about corruption in Afghanistan and said failure to address it
could cause them to rethink the billions of dollars the United States
spends there each year. ‘I don't know what the political will here in the
United States will be to continue to support the Afghans in light of what
is going on there,’ said Democratic Senator Robert Menendez, a senior
member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Menendez described
himself as someone who has been supportive of U.S. Afghanistan policy,
but said he would ‘have a totally different view’ if the government in
Kabul does not act. On Wednesday, the Special Inspector General for
Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) issued a report that strongly
criticized Washington for pouring billions of dollars into Afghanistan
with so little oversight that it fueled corruption and undermined the
U.S. mission.”
Bloomberg:
Top Republicans Seek Delay In Veto Override Of 9/11 Bill
“Two leading Republican voices on national security -- Senators Bob
Corker and Lindsey Graham -- want to postpone a vote on whether to
override President Barack Obama’s promised veto of legislation to let
families of 9/11 terrorist attack victims sue Saudi Arabia. The delay
would give senators more time to consider the likelihood its enactment
would ‘backfire on us’ because ‘once we create the opportunity for U.S.
citizens to sue another government we also open the door for the same
thing to happen to us,’ said Corker, chairman of the Foreign Relations
Committee. Corker and Graham are raising concerns about the foreign
policy ramifications of the legislation even though it sailed through
both chambers and was sent to the president a day after the 15th
anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.”
Syria
Newsweek:
Syria Cease-Fire Faces Deep Skepticism On All Sides
“The Syrian cease-fire agreed to last week by Russia and the United
States has reduced violence in the short term, but there are troubling
signs it may collapse like previous attempts to end the war, now in its
sixth year. The crucial element of the agreement is a ‘cessation of
hostilities’ among all parties involved in the truce. Should the pause in
fighting last for seven days, starting at sundown September 12, the
beginning of the Muslim Eid-al-Adha holiday, joint U.S.-Russian
airstrikes will commence against the Islamic State militant group (ISIS).
The agreement also calls on all signatories to allow for the distribution
of humanitarian aid, along with an end to all sieges and the release of
all detainees, particularly women and children.”
Turkey
Reuters:
British Embassy In Ankara Closed For Security Reasons - Foreign Office
“The British government has shut its embassy in the Turkish capital
Ankara on Friday for security reasons, the Foreign and Commonwealth
Office said on its website, without giving further details. ‘The British
Embassy Ankara will be closed to the public on Friday 16 September for
security reasons,’ the foreign office said late on Thursday. The embassy
had been closed from Monday to Thursday for the Eid al-Adha holiday this
week, one of the two most important festivals of the Islamic calendar.
Turkey has been repeatedly targeted in the past by militants, both
Islamist and Kurdish. A suicide bomber at a wedding in the southeastern
city of Gaziantep last month killed more than 54 people, including 22
children, the deadliest such bombing this year. That attack is believed
to have been carried out by Islamic State militants.”
The
Washington Post: Turkey Plans To Build Dozens Of New Jails After
Post-Coup Crackdown
“Authorities in Turkey plan to construct 174 prisons over the next
five years to ‘meet the unanticipated increase in the number of
convicts,’ according to a Justice Ministry statement. Though not explicitly
stated, the move is most probably linked to the strain
placed on Turkey's penal system amid a nationwide purge launched in
response to a coup attempt on July 15. In the weeks since,
authorities have rounded up and jailed tens of thousands of people suspected to
be connected to a movement led by Fethullah Gulen, a Turkish cleric
living in exile in the United States who Ankara claims was behind
the coup plot.”
Newsweek:
We Are Trying To Prevent Further Chaos In Turkey
“During the past year Turkish politics has fallen into a habit of
replacing each and every adverse political development with an even worse
one. Following the coup attempt on July 15, the Turkish political
institutions, having warded off a major debacle, should have performed gloriously.
However, Turkey isn’t a country where democracy is institutionalized and,
as of now, instead of superseding a coup through stronger democracy it is
in effect superseding the coup attempt with yet another one. It is true
that generals, most fortunately, could not seize the power, and the only
reason they failed was the united opposition by all political parties and
the peoples of Turkey. But today, one part of the society that opposed
the coup is under attack: the Kurds and those associated with the
People’s Democratic Party (HDP).”
Afghanistan
Voice
Of America: Protracted Afghan Political Tensions Worry UN
“Afghan officials say leaders of the beleaguered national unity
government are resolved to overcome internal differences so they can
jointly tackle security and many other challenges facing the war-torn
country. The pledge comes a day after the United Nations declared the
political situation ‘precarious,’stemming from internal disputes between
President Ashraf Ghani and Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah, and called
for a prompt resolution. A political deal, mediated by the United States
to end a protracted election dispute between Ghani and his election rival
Abdullah, enabled the two leaders to establish the national unity government
in September of 2014. The agreement allowed for the creation of a new
chief executive post to share power with the president.”
Yemen
Reuters:
Houthis Study U.S. Truce Proposal For Yemen: Negotiator
“A senior U.S. diplomat has presented a proposal for a comprehensive
ceasefire in Yemen to the country's dominant Houthis at a meeting in
Oman, a member of the Houthi negotiating team said on Thursday.
Negotiators will return to Houthi-controlled Sanaa on Friday carrying the
plan offered by U.S. Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Thomas
Shannon in talks in Muscat, he said. Shannon met the Houthi team,
officials of the allied General People's Congress (GPC) party and an
Omani mediator in Muscat on Sept. 8 and 9 to discuss how to end a war
that has killed over 10,000 people and displaced more than 3 million. In
Washington, U.S. officials said the plan was an ‘extension of the efforts
Secretary (of State John) Kerry initiated in Jeddah.’”
Middle
East
The
Jerusalem Post: Israel Prepares Civilians For Threat Of 230,000 Enemy
Rockets
“The IDF Home Front Command is preparing for the possibility that
Hezbollah will fire thousands of missiles from Lebanon into Israel during
the next war. A national war drill will be held from Sunday to Wednesday,
including a nationwide air raid siren at 7:05 p.m. on Tuesday. The goal
of the exercise is to train civilians how to quickly enter ‘safe zones’
in homes and workplaces, in the event of a mass rocket attack. According
to assessments by the Home Front Command, in any multi-front conflict,
some 95% of enemy rockets would be light-weight and have ranges less than
40 km., and 1% of all incoming projectiles would score direct hits on
buildings.”
Libya
Associated
Press: Libya's East-Based Parliament Promotes Powerful General
“Libya's internationally recognized parliament, which is based in the
far east and effectively runs this part of the country, has promoted a
powerful general. The gesture is likely to rile the U.N.-brokered
government in the capital, Tripoli, which is not recognized by the
east-based parliament. According to an announcement late Wednesday,
Parliament Speaker Agila Saleh promoted Gen. Khalifa Hifter to field-marshal.
The move comes days after Hifter's forces seized three key oil terminals
from a militia linked to the Tripoli government. Hifter enjoys the
support of key Arab nations but is viewed in some Western powers as an
obstacle to peace.”
Voice
Of America: Libya Report Slams British, French Ouster Of Gadhafi
“A group of British lawmakers has strongly criticized the intervention
by Britain and France in 2011 that led to the ouster of Libyan leader
Moammar Gadhafi. The report from the British Parliament's Foreign Affairs
Select Committee said a lack of planning for the aftermath meant that
Libya quickly descended into chaos, with rival militias battling for
power, and the terror group Islamic State gaining an increasing foothold
in the country. In Washington, the State Department echoed that the power
vacuum facilitated the disorder that followed the fall of Gadhafi. The
damning British verdict came exactly five years after then-British Prime
Minister David Cameron and then-French President Nicolas Sarkozy stood
triumphant in Benghazi's Liberty Square in September 2011, cheered by
huge crowds. Their joint campaign of air and missile strikes had swiftly
ousted dictator Gadhafi.”
Bloomberg:
One War Nears An End In Libya. Battle Scars May Prevent Another
“Standing next to a tank, Libyan commander Abdul Hadi Lahwal
picks up his walkie-talkie and speaks with snipers positioned in a
disused school on the frontline of the battle against Islamic State. He
was attempting to recover the bodies of two of his men, killed the day
before. The battle to oust the jihadist group from its last major
stronghold in the North African nation looks to be nearing the end, with
the militants holed up in two small areas in Sirte. When the guns fall
silent, the victory will largely belong to militias from Misrata, whose
predecessors ended the Libyan uprising five years ago by tracking
down Muammar Qaddafi as he hid in a culvert. More than five years on,
they are now fighting under the auspices of the United Nations-backed
unity government seeking to stabilize the holder of Africa’s largest oil
reserves.”
Nigeria
International
Business Times: ISIS At War With Boko Haram? New Islamic State Leader
Creates Conflict Within Nigerian Terrorist Group
“Boko Haram and the Islamic State group, two terrorist organizations
who have been aligned since 2015, may be at war with one another. Earlier
this month, ISIS — a terrorist group that operates primarily out of
Syria but has several affiliated operations throughout the Middle East
and Africa — named a new leader for Boko Haram, replacing Abubakar
Shekau, who was at the helm when the group pledged allegiance to the
foreign group last year. The coronation quickly created a rift in the
Nigerian terror group, leading to bloody clashes between supporters of
both leaders that have killed at least a handful of militants. ISIS
named the new leader, Abu Musab al-Barnawi, in one of the most recent
editions of the purported ISIS news outlet Al-Naba.”
Voice
Of America: Nigeria Army Chief: Boko Haram Capabilities 'Virtually
Eliminated'
“The Nigerian military has made tremendous progress against the Boko
Haram terrorist group, the country’s chief of army staff told VOA
Daybreak Africa. Visiting our Washington studio, Lieutenant General Tukur
Buratai praised the collaboration with troops from neighboring Cameroon,
Chad and Niger. ‘It is interesting to note that the ability of the Boko
Haram terrorist group to move freely as they were doing before, the
ability to hold ground, the ability to take on territories or ransack
large communities and towns has been virtually eliminated,’ he said. Boko
Haram released a video this week that shows hundreds of supporters,
suggesting the group is still potent. Buratai dismissed the video as
propaganda.”
United
Kingdom
Daily
Mail: Defence And Security Chiefs Told David Cameron Bombing Libya Wasn't
In Our National Interest As Damning Verdict Blames Former PM For The Rise
Of ISIS
“Bombing Libya was not in Britain's national interest, defence and
security chiefs said today in a further dent on David Cameron's foreign
policy legacy as Prime Minister. Lord Richards, the former chief of
the defence staff, said he and MI6 chief John Sawers raised doubts over
the Government's plans to intervene in Libya in 2011. He criticised
Mr Cameron for failing to conduct a 'rigorous analysis' of the situation
in the National Security Council. He spoke as a damning report by
MPs warned that Mr Cameron's 'ill-conceived' military campaign in Libya
had fuelled the migrant crisis and spurred the growth of ISIS.”
Germany
Sputnik
News: Terrorist Threat On Rise In Germany, Attacks Possible At Any Time
“Germany may be targeted by jihadists at any time with air, railway transport
as well as crowded places such as fairs, markets and festivals being
especially vulnerable to possible terror attacks, according to secret
governmental report on domestic security. The terrorist threat
in Germany continues to increase and the country could be
targeted any time, a secret governmental report on domestic security
said as cited by a local newspaper Thursday. The paper said
that there is the heightened risk that sympathizers of terrorist
organizations that have no direct links to such groups may commit
their own attacks. According to the report, there is an almost
uncalculated in the long term threat posed by jihadists, who
left for Syria and Iraq and later returned in Germany.”
Deutsche
Welle: Muslim Fashion Shops In Germany Linked To Extremist Salafists
“Hijab stores in Germany have been making headlines recently after
reports that they serve as stepping stones to extremism. Through
clothing, they propagate a subculture that promotes patriarchy and Islamic
extremism. The Hijabi has made the headlines for its alleged links with
Salafists. Earlier this week, Germany's public broadcaster ARD ran a
report on how stores like Hijabi and a similar one in Wuppertal, in the
country's west, helped women integrate into an orthodox Islamic way of
living, eventually assimilating them into Salafism and subsequently,
extremist Islam.”
BBC:
German Restaurant In Islamic Veil Row After Woman Expelled
“A restaurant manager in Bielefeld, northern Germany, triggered a
social media storm after expelling a woman wearing the Islamic full-face
veil (niqab) from his premises. On Facebook, Christian Schulz said
he had to defend his Seekrug restaurant against ‘negative judgments’. So,
he said, he had ‘deleted two of my posts with nearly 800 comments’.
Currently the comments on his page are overwhelmingly supportive. He
strongly denies claims of ‘racism’. His Facebook page displays photos of
him with a Seekrug chef who is apparently African. German media report
that he employs staff from Nigeria, Ghana, Pakistan and Portugal.”
France
The
Jerusalem Post: French Official Visits Israeli Jail In West Bank As Paris
Grapples With Terror
“A French politician and top anti-terrorism expert who has urged his
country to adopt the practice of administrative detention visited
Israel’s Ofer Prison on Thursday morning, to learn more about how Israel
uses the controversial procedure. The Jerusalem Post has learned that the
official, Georges Fenech, the French counter- terrorism ‘czar’ and head
of the country’s inquiries into its failure to block major recent
terrorist attacks and an opposition MP, met with IDF Judea and Samaria
Court President Col. Netanel Benishu during his visit.”
Daily
Caller: France Thinks Would-Be Terrorists Will ‘Volunteer’ To Be
De-Radicalized
“France is planning on opening de-radicalization centers to combat
its growing Islamic terrorist threat, and then hoping jihadis
volunteer to be ‘de-radicalized.’ France plans on building 12 of these
centers, which can only accommodate up to 25 people at one time. French
officials told The Washington Post that the centers were for potential
terrorists ‘looking for way out’ and that the government could not order
citizens to take part. France has 10,000 active suspects on its
highest threat-level terror watch list and less than 5,000 federal agents
to surveil them, chairman of the French Center for the Analysis of
Terrorism told The New York Times in late June, 2016.”
Europe
The
Daily Beast: Europe Stops At Nothing To Hunt Down Terrorists In Refugee
Camps
“There is often a fine line between pity and fear when it comes to the
hundreds of thousands of refugees who have landed on European shores in
the last year. On one hand, it’s difficult not to feel an outpouring of
sympathy over pictures of babies born on perilous rescue missions, or the
bodies of children washed up on the waves. Just as it is almost as
difficult not to feel distrust and anger over news that, yet again,
alleged jihadists have been found hiding among the legitimate
refugees.It’s also the case that while refugees and migrants are living
in camps awaiting word on their status requests, they are often subject
to practices that invade their privacy in ways regularized citizens would
never accept. Counter-terrorism police in Italy, who are part of the
country’s anti-Mafia forces, don’t even try to hide the fact that refugee
phones often are tapped and that there are undercover faux refugees at
most major camps for the sole purpose of spying on them.”
The
Washington Post: Flow Of Foreign Fighters Plummets As Islamic State Loses
Its Edge
“The flow of foreign fighters to the ranks of the Islamic State — once
a mighty current of thousands of radicalized men and women converging on
Syrian and Iraqi battlefields from nations across the globe — has been
cut to a trickle this year as the group’s territory has shrunk and its
ambitions have withered. The decline, officials and experts say, has been
dramatic, prolonged and geographically widespread, with the number of
Europeans, Americans, North Africans and others joining up to fight and
die for the idea of a revived Islamic caliphate falling as precipitously
as the terrorist group’s fortunes. From a peak of 2,000 foreign
recruits crossing the Turkey-Syria border each month, the Islamic State
and other extremist groups operating in Syria are down to as few as 50,
according to U.S. intelligence assessments.”
Bloomberg: U.K.
Diplomat Gets Green Light To Become EU’s Anti-Terror Chief
“Julian King, a British diplomat, won European Parliament support to
become Europe’s counter-terrorism chief after sailing through a
confirmation hearing at which he pledged to act independently of the U.K.
government as it prepares to trigger Brexit negotiations. The European
Union assembly gave the green light on Thursday in Strasbourg, France,
for King to take on the role of ‘commissioner for the security union.’ He
is the new U.K. appointee to the European Commission, the 28-nation EU’s
executive arm, after Jonathan Hill resigned in the wake of the Brexit
referendum in June.”
Technology
Sputnik:
Deception Detecting Technology' To Counter Terrorism, Bad Cops And More
“Word of warning to all the deceptive-types that live amongst us. Tech
has advanced a little further from the comparatively primitive polygraph
devices invented over 100 years ago, monitoring pulse rates or sweat
glands to detect when someone may be lying. Deception, however, can now -
literally - be spotted in the eye of its beholder. EyeDetect is one
of many latest ‘deception detection’ products, that although has
been developed for some time, has been fine-tuned by the team
of scientists and polygraph experts, as well as business
professionals all operating under the umbrella company name
Converus. It prominently targets nervous government officials and
border security teams in the area
of terrorism-linked individuals, potentially infiltrating
rising numbers of global refugee groups due to existing
vetting inadequacies. The placement of eye lie detecting
devices at country borders, the company feels, could enhance
safety concerns.”
Fortune:
What Counterterrorism Gurus Say About Propaganda In The Age Of Social
Media
“They’re trying to get help from technology companies. With terrorists
using social media services and Internet technologies to spread
propaganda and gain recruits, U.S. counterterrorism experts are trying to
get help from the private sector to combat the messaging. That’s one of
the themes discussed by U.S. national security officers about technology
and terrorism during a conference on Thursday in San Francisco hosted by
Internet-security and performance company CloudFlare. Although the
general public might believe that many recent terrorist attacks are
carried out by people who feel isolated from the rest of the world, many
of these attackers ‘feel anything but alone,’ said Jen Easterly, a
special assistant to President Obama and the senior director of counterterrorism
at the national security council.”
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