Eye on Extremism January 10, 2017

Eye on Extremism January 10, 2017 CBS News: Elite U.S. Troops Swoop Into ISIS Stronghold, Reportedly Kill Dozens “A U.S.-led special forces raid on Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants in eastern Syria has reportedly left two dozen of the jihadist fighters dead. The U.S. military command in Baghdad confirmed American forces’ involvement in the raid, which took place on Sunday, without elaborating. Omar Abou Leila, a Syrian activist who runs the Deir Ezzor 24 group, said four helicopters landed in the desert between the ISIS-held cities of Deir el-Zour and Raqqa on Sunday. Commandos set up checkpoints and intercepted a vehicle carrying several ISIS militants, killing all of them and flying off with the bodies, he said.” Voice Of America: Iraqi Forces Punch To Tigris, As Is Mounts Attacks Elsewhere In Iraq “Iraqi leaders say they doubt their forces will oust Islamic State fighters from Mosul — the terror group’s last major urban stronghold in Iraq — before Easter, despite a spurt of progress in recent days that saw the troops reach the Tigris River for the first time in the battle for the city. The jihadists have not only mounted stubborn resistance, but expanded attacks elsewhere in the country — from a wave of suicide bombings in the suburbs of Baghdad and southern Iraq to launching disconcerting raids in Anbar and Salahuddin, provinces that fell to government forces weeks ago.” The New York Times: Militants Attack Police Checkpoint In Sinai, And ISIS Is Suspected “Gunmen assaulted a police checkpoint in the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt on Monday, killing at least nine people and wounding 12, an Egyptian police spokesman said, and Islamic State militants were suspected to be behind it. The complex attack, which the police said involved rocket-propelled grenades and rifle fire as well as a failed attempt to ram the checkpoint with a truck bomb, was one of the largest in Sinai in recent months. The attack came a month after the bombing of a Cairo church that killed at least 28 worshipers. Islamist militants, most affiliated with the Islamic State, have been pressing a twin-pronged war in Egypt, attacking the security forces in remote Sinai while striking civilian and police targets in major cities.” The Jerusalem Post: Hamas Holds Rally In Gaza To Celebrate Terrorist Ramming That Killed 4 Israelis Thousands of Hamas activists and supporters took to the streets of Jabalya refugee camp in Gaza on Sunday night to rally against Israel and praise the terrorist ramming attack in Jerusalem which killed four Israelis. Earlier on Sunday, a Palestinian rammed his truck into a group of Israeli soldiers on a popular promenade in Jerusalem, killing four of them in an attack which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said had likely been inspired by Islamic State. Chanting anti-Israeli slogans the protesters marched to the rally where sweets were handed out in celebration. ‘The message of our Islamic party Hamas is a message of encouragement and support for every jihadi who carries out an attack that puts an end to the acts of the Zionist enemy,’ Hamas leader Fathi Hamad, who led the rally, told Reuters.” Reuters: U.S. Navy Ship Fired Warning Shots At Iranian Vessels “A U.S. Navy destroyer fired three warning shots at four Iranian fast-attack vessels near the Strait of Hormuz after they closed in at high speed and disregarded repeated requests to slow down, U.S. officials said on Monday. The incident, which occurred on Sunday and was first reported by Reuters, comes as U.S. President-elect Donald Trump prepares to take office on Jan. 20. In September, Trump vowed that any Iranian vessels that harassed the U.S. Navy in the Gulf would be ‘shot out of the water.’ ‘This was an unsafe and unprofessional interaction, and that is due to the fact that they were approaching at a high level of speed with weapons manned and disregarding repeated warnings,’ Captain Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, said in a briefing.” CBS News: U.S. Marines Headed Back To Taliban Hotspot 2 Years After Pull-Out “The United States will send some 300 Marines back into Afghanistan’s southern Helmand province for the first time since the end of America’s combat mission in 2014. CBS Radio News correspondent Cami McCormick reports the Marines’ mission will be to train and advise Afghan national security forces, who have struggled to drive Taliban insurgents out of the opium-rich region. The Marines’ commander, Brigadier General Roger Turner, admitted to CBS News, however, that it is a high-risk mission and the American troops will encounter the full spectrum threat from the Taliban insurgency.” New York Post: Brussels Attack Victim’s Wife Sues Twitter For Being ‘Weapon Of Terror’ “The wife of a New York man who died in last year’s terror attack in Brussels is suing Twitter in a new lawsuit that calls the social media giant a “tool and a weapon of terrorism.” The wife of Alexander Pinczowski, who died in the March attack along with his sister Sascha Pinczowski, accused Twitter of aiding and abetting ISIS by acting as the terrorist organization’s communication, recruiting and marketing arm. “ISIS has also used Twitter’s Direct Messaging capabilities for fundraising and operational purposes,” said the lawsuit by Pinczowski’s wife, Anne Cameron Cain.” Associated Press: US Adds 2 Members Of Hezbollah To Terrorism Sanctions List “The Obama administration says it has added two senior members of Hezbollah to its terrorism sanctions list. The State Department said Monday that Ali Damush and Mustafa Mughniyeh have been named Specially Designated Global Terrorists. Mughniyeh is a Hezbollah commander with extensive family links to the Lebanon-based militant group. He's the nephew of Hezbollah's previous military commander, Mustafa Badreddine, who was killed in an explosion near the Syrian capital in last year, and the son of military commander Imad Mughniyeh, who was killed in a 2008 car bombing in Damascus that Hezbollah blamed on Israel.” Fox News: Turkey's Bloody 2016 Puts West's Portal To Middle East In Jeopardy “Once the West’s safe, stable and fiercely secular portal into the Middle East, Turkey’s bloody 2016 showed the perils of its position between two worlds. A dramatic coup attempt, 100 terror attacks that killed more than 500 people, the brazen assassination of a Russian diplomat and a shocking nightclub attack that left 39 dead in Istanbul on the final day of the year underscored the precarious status of the key Muslim nation and NATO member. Turkey’s descent into violence was driven by jihadists and refugees passing each other on their way to and from the killing fields of Syria and Iraq, an increasingly Islamist and authoritarian President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and terrorists domestic and foreign.” Deutsche Welle: Hundreds Of Neo-Nazis In Germany Have Gone Underground “German police are hunting for hundreds of neo-Nazis. The Interior Ministry says there was a significant jump in outstanding arrest warrants in 2016. Experts believe that right-wing terrorist networks pose a threat. Chancellor Angela Merkel said just a few days ago in her New Year address that the most difficult test Germany faces is Islamist terrorism. But terrorism in Germany is not exclusively Islamist. It can also come from the political left or - as the National Socialist Underground (NSU) has recently demonstrated - from the right. The interior ministry said in a December response to a parliamentary interpellation from representatives of the Left Party that just under 600 arrest warrants for neo-Nazis were still outstanding.” Washington Post: Fort Lauderdale Shooting Suspect Appears In Court, Ordered Held Without Bond “While investigators explore the background of Esteban Santiago, the man accused of killing five people last week in a shooting rampage at the Fort Lauderdale, Fla., international airport, he appeared in court Monday for his first appearance on federal charges. Santiago was ordered held without bond until a detention hearing can be held next week, officials said. The FBI says that Santiago, a 26-year-old Iraq War veteran who had previously said he thought the government was trying to control his mind, flew from Alaska to Florida specifically to carry out the shooting. According to the FBI, Santiago’s only checked baggage for the flight was a box with three items: a Walther 9mm semi-automatic handgun and two magazines.” United States NBC News: U.S. Bombed Iraq, Syria, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Libya, Yemen, Somalia In 2016 “The U.S. dropped an average of 72 bombs every day — the equivalent of three an hour — in 2016, according to an analysis of American strikes around the world. The report from the Council of Foreign Relations comes as Barack Obama finishes up his presidency — one that began with promises to withdraw from international conflicts. According to the New York City-based think tank, 26,171 bombs were dropped on Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Libya, Yemen, Somalia and Pakistan during the year. CFR warned that its estimates were ‘undoubtedly low, considering reliable data is only available for airstrikes in Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia, and Libya, and a single 'strike,' according to the Pentagon's definition, can involve multiple bombs or munitions.’” The Washington Post: U.S. Troops Carry Out Ground Raid Against ISIS In Syria “U.S. Special Operations troops carried out a ground operation in eastern Syria aimed at capturing an Islamic State militant, U.S. officials said Monday. The raid took place Sunday near a small town along the Euphrates River valley, in the vicinity of the city of Deir al-Zour and deep in the heart of Islamic State territory, according to the officials and Syrian activist groups. The troops, who landed on helicopters, spent about 90 minutes in the area, then left carrying Islamic State captives and bodies, according to witnesses quoted by the website Deir al-Zour 24, which monitors Islamic State activity in that province.” The Wall Street Journal: U.S. Pilots See Close Calls With Russian Jets Over Syria “One night this past fall, a U.S. radar plane flying a routine pattern over Syria picked up a signal from an incoming Russian fighter jet. The American crew radioed repeated warnings on a frequency universally used for distress signals. The Russian pilot didn’t respond. Instead, as the U.S. plane began a wide sweep to the south, the Russian fighter, an advanced Su-35 Flanker, turned north and east across the American plane’s nose, churned up a wave of turbulent air in its path and briefly disrupted its sensitive electronics. ‘We assessed that guy to be within one-eighth of a mile—a few hundred feet away—and unaware of it,’ said U.S. Air Force Col. Paul Birch, commander of the 380th Expeditionary Operations Group, a unit based in the Persian Gulf.” The Washington Post: U.S. Increases Support For Turkish Military Operations In Syria “U.S. aircraft have begun regular aerial intelligence surveillance in support of Turkey’s offensive against the Islamic State in northwestern Syria, in anticipation of increased U.S. support for the flailing Turkish military operation around the town of al-Bab. The increased support comes after weeks of U.S. military and diplomatic talks with Turkish counterparts, and Russian airstrikes backing the Turkish offensive. U.S. support to ground troops, including airstrikes and equipment in addition to surveillance, would be similar to what the United States now provides to Syrian groups battling the militants, potentially including assistance from Special Operations advisers whose participation in the offensive has thus far been limited to an area inside the Syrian border about 10 miles north of al-Bab, according to administration and defense officials.” Iraq Reuters: Iraq Special Forces Advance In East Mosul, Close To Linking With Army “Iraqi special forces made further advances against Islamic State in Mosul on Monday, pushing militants from another eastern district and edging closer to army units nearby, officers in the city said. The Counter Terrorism Service (CTS) said it was working to seize areas overlooking Mosul University in the city's northeast, after taking over a nearby district. The ground troops and a U.S.-led coalition backing them launched rockets and air strikes against the militants, who responded with mortars and sniper fire. Residents trickled out of the conflict zone but many also returned to their homes in areas retaken from Islamic State in recent days.” Reuters: Iraq Forces Advance In Mosul But Civilian Toll Mounts: Spokesman, U.N. “Iraqi forces have fought their way into two more southeastern districts of Mosul but their advances are being slowed by Islamic State's tactic of using civilians for cover, a military spokesman said on Tuesday. The United Nations said civilian casualties had streamed into nearby hospitals in the last two weeks as fighting intensified in the jihadist militia's last major stronghold in Iraq. Advances by elite forces in the city's east and northeast have picked up speed in a new push since the turn of the year, and U.S.-backed forces have for the first time reached the Tigris river, which bisects the city.” Turkey Radio Free Europe: Alleged Istanbul Nightclub Attacker Identified As Uzbek IS Militant “Turkish police have identified the alleged New Year's Eve nightclub attacker in Istanbul as a citizen of Uzbekistan named Abdulkadir Masharipov. Media reports quoted Istanbul police during the weekend as saying that Masharipov, known by the nickname ‘Abu Muhammed Horasani,’ had links with the Islamic State (IS) extremist group in Syria and Iraq. Masharipov's current whereabouts remains unknown as Turkish security forces and police continue to search for him and possible accomplices. Masharipov, who was living in Turkey since 2011, is suspected to be the gunman who burst into Istanbul's waterfront Reina nightclub with an automatic weapon and began shooting partygoers early on January 1.” The Washington Post: The Islamic State Is Pulling Turkey Into A Vortex “Sometimes a tragedy can unite a family — or a nation. Across Europe, the citizens of various countries that have been hit by Islamic State terrorism displayed a heartfelt solidarity in their moment of  national grief. There were candlelight vigils, outpourings of sorrow on social media, a general sense of ‘We are in this together’ across the political spectrum. This is not happening here in Turkey. Each and every terrorist attack over the past year — and there have been at least a dozen — pulled us further apart as a country, threatening identities and lifestyles, triggering dormant fault lines and getting us at each others’ throats. It has also caused Turkey to pivot toward Russia and away from the West.” Reuters: Turkish Army Says 48 Islamic State Militants Killed In Syria On Sunday “Turkish-led air and ground operations in Syria killed 48 Islamic State militants on Sunday while Turkish warplanes destroyed 23 buildings and shelters used by the jihadists, Turkey's armed forces said in a statement on Monday. Turkey launched the 'Euphrates Shield' operation in support of Syrian rebels more than four months ago to drive Islamic State from the border and in recent weeks they have been besieging the Islamic State-controlled town of al-Bab.” Daily Caller: Turkey, A NATO Ally, Continues To Accuse The U.S. Of Supporting ISIS “Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the leader of a NATO ally, has repeatedly accused the United States of supporting the Islamic State. Erdogan previously has said United States of supports terror, but in that context it was regarding the U.S. arming Syrian Kurds. However, the Turkish president said on Dec. 27 that the U.S. gives support to terrorist groups including the Islamic State. ‘It’s very clear. We have confirmed evidence, with pictures, photos and videos,’ the Turkish president added.” Yemen The Guardian: Medics In Yemen: As We Fight To Help The Sick And Injured, Delays Can Cost Lives “For a country that carries the deep scars of years of vicious conflict, where events can develop by the minute, it is often easy to feel that nothing changes very fast. The celebration of Mouloud brings rare moments of joy, celebration and a vivid and vibrant green to the streets of Sana’a. Banners, flags and vehicles are daubed in the intense colour, marking the birthday of the prophet Muhammad and providing a tangible milestone for the passing of time. We nose our vehicle towards the first checkpoint on our journey south out of Sana’a on a road that will take us to Aden – a routine journey in order to monitor the work of International Medical Corps teams across the region. The state of the country makes such trips both tense and dangerous but also laborious and dogged by administrative hurdles – a bizarre combination, and one that makes travelling so very slow." Middle East Associated Press: Israel Says Palestinians Smuggled Cameras To Gaza For Hamas “Israeli authorities have charged two Palestinians with helping to smuggle hundreds of cameras to the Gaza Strip for the Islamic militant group Hamas and others. The Shin Bet security agency says authorities arrested the suspected smugglers last month. It says cameras, model airplanes, communications cables and other goods were smuggled by a West Bank merchant through Israel's border crossing into Gaza, hidden in televisions, washing machines and refrigerators. Israel and Egypt imposed a blockade on Gaza in 2007 after Hamas seized power from forces loyal to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Israel checks goods passing its border into Gaza, and halts what it calls ‘dual-use materials,’ which could be used by Hamas for military purposes.” The Times Of Israel: 5 Hamas Members Arrested In Raids Across West Bank “Israeli troops rounded up five members of the Hamas terror group in raids across the West Bank late Sunday and early Monday, a day after officials vowed to crack down on terror in the wake of a deadly attack in Jerusalem. Three Hamas members in Jenin were arrested and another two in the al-Aroub refugee camp south of Jerusalem, the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement. On Sunday, an East Jerusalem man drove his truck into a group of soldiers at the Armon Hanatziv promenade overlooking the capital. Three officers cadets and one officer was killed and another 16 soldiers were injured in the attack.” Reuters: Unclear Whether Truck Attack In Israel Inspired By Islamic State “Israel's government has been quick to suggest a Palestinian who rammed a truck into a group of Israeli soldiers at the weekend was inspired by Islamic State, raising questions over how it came to that conclusion. Hours after the attack on Sunday, which killed four soldiers and wounded 17, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the assailant showed all the signs of being a supporter of the ultra-hardline Sunni movement. He did not give details and on Monday, an obscure Palestinian group claimed responsibility, saying it had no outside links and had acted on political motives. Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman had also pointed to Islamic State, citing parallels with Islamic State-inspired attacks on crowds using trucks in Germany and France last year.” The New York Times: Mourning For Slain Soldiers, A Somber Ritual In Israel, Is Marred By Discord “One loved horse riding; another was the oldest of four sisters; a third had fought to enlist in the army despite medical problems that allowed him to defer the draft. The fourth was the 300th graduate of her Haifa high school to have died while serving as a soldier. Israel buried its latest terrorism victims on Monday, the day after they were run down by a Palestinian man in a truck, enveloping them in the country’s familiar outpouring of love for its service members. But this time, the usually unifying ritual was marred by discord. Israelis called it the ‘Azaria effect,’ referring to Sgt. Elor Azaria, the soldier who was convicted last week of manslaughter for shooting a wounded and incapacitated Palestinian assailant in the head.” United Kingdom Daily Mail: Religious Extremists Are Infiltrating Other Schools In The Same Way As In The Trojan Horse Scandal, Integration Tsar Louise Casey Warns MPs “Religious extremists are still infiltrating British schools in the same way as happened in the Trojan Horse scandal in Birmingham, MPs have been warned. Government integration tsar Dame Louise Casey published a major review on community integration across Britain last month, revealing a shocking picture of 'ghettos' in some British towns.  Her investigation found segregation and social exclusion are at 'worrying levels' and are fuelling inequality in some areas of Britain. In evidence to the communities committee, Dame Louise today told MPs it had been 'easy' during her probe to find troubling examples in schools.” BBC: Cyber Attacks: Mps And Peers To Examine UK 'Vulnerabilities' “MPs and peers are to investigate the threat posed to the UK by cyber attacks from other states, including Russia. A committee headed by former foreign secretary Margaret Beckett will look at the range and origin of threats as part of a review of the government's new national cyber security strategy. She said hostile actions by foreign governments ‘for political purposes’ were among challenges facing the UK. Ministers say a ‘small number’ of foreign actors present a danger. The government has identified cyber warfare as a tier one threat to the UK alongside international terrorism although it has publicly refrained from naming Russia - which is widely thought to have engaged in cyber warfare for a decade - or any other state.” International Business Times: Will British Police Carry Guns? Officers Asked If They Want Arms “London's top police association announced Monday it will ask its officers if they want to carry firearms because of heightened security fears. Police in the U.K. are not routinely armed, however, recent terrorist attacks in Europe, such as the truck attack inspired by the Islamic State group, also known as ISIS, that killed 12 last month in Berlin, have raised concerns about similar attacks in the U.K. The Metropolitan Police Federation, which serves over 30,000 officers in the Greater London region, released a press statement saying it would begin asking officers Monday if they wished to wield a gun, carry a taser or if they outright opposed the idea of the force issuing firearms.” Germany RT: Terrorist Suspects Should Wear Ankle Monitors Even Before Conviction – German Justice Minister “Germany’s justice minister is pushing for suspected terrorists to be tracked with ankle monitors even before they are convicted, saying that such precautions shouldn’t be considered ‘taboo.’ Heiko Maas told DPA news agency on Sunday that suspects thought to be capable of committing terrorist attacks should be electronically tracked. ‘We must do all we can so that those who pose a risk are kept in sight as much as possible, including before a potential conviction,’ he said, as quoted by The Local. ‘As part of that, electronic ankle monitors should not be a taboo,’ he continued. Security authorities consider that, at present, around 550 people in Germany pose a potential terrorism risk, according to Der Spiegel.” Europe Sputnik News: Europe Is In Crisis' Verhofstadt Admits Amid Terror, Migrant Turmoil “The ex-prime minister of Belgium and leader of the Liberals and Democrats group in the European Parliament has admitted that ‘Europe is in crisis’ days after announcing his bid for the presidency of the union's parliament, promising there will be no ‘European superstate.’ Guy Verhofstadt has long had ambitions to take over one of the major roles of the European Union — the presidency of the European Parliament. His bid is significant in that it comes at a time of enormous crisis within the EU, with immigration and terrorism dominating the agenda.” Reuters: Austria Police Investigate Afghans Over New Year's Sexual Assaults “Austrian police are investigating six Afghan refugees over sexual attacks on 18 women during New Year's Eve celebrations in the western province of Tyrol, a police officer involved with the case said on Monday. One man has confessed and apologized but the other five deny the accusations, Ernst Kranebitter of the Tyrol police force said, adding that police had made no arrests yet pending the end of their investigation. The women reported that assailants had groped and tried to kiss them that evening as they stood in or near a crowded central square in the city of Innsbruck for a concert and fireworks display. Some women said they had been clasped by a man from behind while others groped their breasts and genitals, said Kranebitter.” Counter-Terrorism Bwabtk: Egyptian Expert Proposes Dialogue With Captured Terrorists To Learn Their New Philosophy “Sameh Eid, a dissident Brotherhood leader and expert on the affairs of Islamist movements, stated that Egypt has long been contending with terrorism, stressing that the terrorists' numbers have increased, as have their capabilities against security forces. He claimed that the state must enter into dialogue with those arrested terrorists to learn more about their new philosophy. He urged authorities to focus on rehabilitation centers and efforts for ideological modification. Eid stressed that the state is required to use research centers to obtain full and complete information about those released from prison, while fostering dialogue with those who are currently in jail, to appraise the situation and understand their supportive environment.” ISIS Erem News: A New Book On The Sources Of ISIS Funding   “The armed attack on a nightclub in Turkey on the eve of the New Year focused the spotlight once again on the issue of funding for ISIS's terror operations. In this context, a new book was recently released about ISIS's funding sources. In it, the authors raised the question of how the militant group obtains money to finance its gunmen in Syria, Iraq and the organization's attacks across Europe and Africa. The authors stress that the most important source of financing is Middle East petroleum. They noted that while this information is well known to some, political analysts tend to underestimate it. According to the authors 160 wells, which pumped oil in Syria for ISIS during 2015, generated an estimated daily income of 1.4 million Euros for the militant group.” Muslim Brotherhood Dakahliya News Agency: Egypt: Meet Ghamr Prosecution Decides To Review Complaint Re: Muslim Brotherhood's Towers And Real Estate Properties “Councilor Ahmed Issa, Head of the Prosecution in Bandar Meet Ghamr, situated in Dakahliya Governorate, decided to review a complaint {against the Brotherhood}. Complaint no.160 of {the year} 2017, submitted by lawyers Khaled Elbery and Ahmed Elbaqry, deals with Muslim Brotherhood's towers and real estate properties and alleged money laundering activities intended to harm the national economy. Issa decided to open a judicial inquiry concerning the real estate properties and called for investigations of the National Security and authorities tasked with combating money laundering. He also called for the formation of a committee representing the Ministry of Finance to examine what has been done to this end.” Houthi Ababiil.Net: Yemeni Government Thwarts Attempt By Houthis To Issue Sukuk “Banking sources in Yemen disclosed that the government foiled an attempt by the Houthis to issue Sukuk worth 250 billion riyals ($1 billion) at the beginning of this year. It was supposed to have been carried out by the Central Bank's branch in Sana'a. The sources were quoted as saying, "The Houthi group was plotting to sell the Sukuk to local banks, but the government had earlier issued strict directives to banks not to deal with the Unit of Sukuk at the Central Bank's Sana'a Branch, which is under the control of Houthis.” Al-Qaeda Elmihwar: Sources Of Funding For Al-Qaeda In Maghreb Terror Organization “A study by Marc Mémier, a French expert on security issues in sub-Saharan Africa, revealed that the main funding sources for activities of al Qaeda in the Maghreb (AQIM) come from the Middle East. The funds are obtained through various ways and mechanisms. This is contrary to what many believe; i.e., that their money is obtained through arms smuggling, ransom and protection-fees from drug traffickers. The French specialist, in his study published Friday, emphasized that it is difficult to trace the funding means and ways of channeling funds to the Maghreb branch of the global al-Qaeda network. He stressed that funds pass through many middlemen and certain officials, as well as through the cover of humanitarian organizations, religious institutions, mosques and other ways to conceal the delivery of money to the Sahel and the Maghreb to finance the activities of the organization.”