Monthly Archives: January 2009

Israel

The IDF estimated more than 500 Hamas fighters and leaders were killed in the recent fighting. Fatah’s armed wing, the Al Aqsa Brigades, said it fought Israeli troops and fired 137 missiles into Israel. Fatah claims Hamas is continuing to “torture” Fatah members.



Afghanistan

One teenager was killed and 16 other civilians were wounded in two suicide attacks and an IED attack against police and soldiers in Khost province. A Canadian soldier was seriously wounded in an IED attack during foot patrol in Kandahar’s Panjwaii district.


Iraq

Security forces detained 22 insurgents in Baghdad, 16 terrorists in Baqubah, two gunmen in Kirkuk, and a Special Groups cell leader in Wasit. A man who claimed the People™s Mujahedeen of Iran trained him to become a suicide bomber turned himself in to Iraqi authorities.


Al Qaeda

US sanctions Iran-based al Qaeda; Zawahiri promises fighters to Yemen



Somalia

I’m a successful Somali pirate: Yassin’s story



Lashkar-e-Taiba

Lashkar-e-Taiba’s spokesman said the group supports “the freedom of Kashmir … though peaceful means” and denied the group supports global jihad. He also denied involvement in the November 2008 Mumbai terror assault. A pamphlet produced by Lashkar-e-Taiba advocated the restoration of the Islamic caliphate and jihad against the US and Israel.


Jaish-e-Mohammed

Jaish-e-Mohammed leader Maulana Masood Azhar is sheltering in North Waziristan after the Indians pressured Pakistan to extradite him. Pakistan’s defense minister said Azhar was under house arrest in December 2008. Azhar appointed his younger brother Mufti Abdul Rauf as the acting leader of the group.


Israel

Why Arab states are unmoved by plight of Hamas: most fear Muslim militancy despite their dislike of Israel





Pakistan

Qari Hussain released a Taliban suicide bomber tape to the media in Peshawar. One soldier and 15 Taliban fighters were killed in clashes in Mohmand. Five Taliban fighters and a tribesman were killed in a clash with security forces in Lakki Marwat. One paramilitary troop and two civilians were killed in Swat.


Al Qaeda

Al Qaeda threatened to attack German soldiers for their involvement in Afghanistan. “Your soldiers are safe nowhere,” a masked terrorist said in German on a videotape released on the Internet by As Sahab, al Qaeda’s propaganda outlet.


Iraq

Iraqi forces detained 97 wanted men in Basrah, 35 in Hillah, eight in Khalis, five in Tal Afar, three in Baghdad, and one more in Amarah. The deputy of the Iraqi Front for National Dialogue was killed in a suicide bombing in the Sharqat district in Ninewa province. A US soldier was killed in an […]


Afghanistan

The Taliban claimed control of 70 percent of rural Afghanistan and set up a shadow government with police, courts, and sharia law. The NATO chief Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said the Afghan government is “ineffective” and said officials were almost as much to blame for the insurgency as the Taliban.



Israel

Hamas and Islamic Jihad announced a cease-fire in Gaza starting immediately and have given Israel a week to withdraw from Gaza. Hamas fired 17 rockets into southern Israel just prior to the announcement. Israeli intelligence said Hamas will resume arms smuggling to Gaza within a few months.


Pakistan

Pakistan concedes India has got proof against Pak nationals


Pakistan

Pakistan: 13 Taliban killed in Mohmand Agency clashes


Saudi Arabia

In an effort to stem religious extremism, King Abdullah Bin Abd Al Aziz announced that the government would crack down on “ill-considered” fatwas, or religious edicts, issued by unqualified scholars. Abdullah noted the fatwas are largely promulgated via satellite television channels, the Internet, and other forms of mass communications.


Algeria

Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb members slit the throat of a customs official in near Ain Defla west of Algiers. The official was stopped by a group of 10 terrorists who set up a fake checkpoint. An Algerian was one of six detainees released from the Guantanamo Bay detention facility.




Iran

Iran says jails accused in US-backed plot: report



Somalia

The UN announced that it would support a Somali peacekeeping mission. Shabaab fighters killed three Somalis during attacks on AMISOM bases in Mogadishu. The Puntland president appointed a new cabinet, along with a seven-member military commission.


Iraq

Iraq’s foreign minister said Iranian influence is on the decline. A court in Dhi Qhar is prosecuting 48 Mahdi Army fighters for murder. Iraqi forces detained six insurgents in Basrah, five in eastern Baghdad, and two in Mosul. A policeman and two soldiers were killed in Mosul.