Malaysia
Security forces arrested 50 people for suspected links to a militant Filipino group that has occupied areas of Sabah province. Clashes between Malaysian security forces and the “Sulu Royal Army” continued in the province.
Monthly Archives: March 2013
Pakistan
Security forces killed 11 Taliban fighters in operations in Arakzai and Khyber. Eleven Taliban and Ansarul Islam fighters were killed in clashes in Khyber’s Tirah Valley. The US said Pakistan may face sanctions if it completes a gas pipeline with Iran.
Afghanistan
‘Hardliners tighten grip on Nangarhar University’
Afghanistan
Three Afghan soldiers attacked a US military base in Kapisa province, and killed a civilian contractor. The three Afghan soldiers were killed. US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel made his first trip to Afghanistan.
Hezbollah
Israel prepares for next war with Hezbollah
Britain
West training Syrian rebels in Jordan
North Korea
North Korea vows end to nonaggression pacts after UN vote
Lashkar-e-Jhangvi
Amid Pakistan sectarian violence, Sunnis saved Shiites
Pakistan
Women pedal for ‘girl power’ in Pakistan
Syria
Syrian Kurdish Militia Takes Over Oil Fields
Indonesia
Indonesia mulls over criminalising unmarried cohabiting couples
Afghanistan
Long Way Ahead in Fight for Afghan Women
India
India PM Tells Pakistan to Control Terror
Sweden
Muslim discrimination ‘too common’ in Sweden
Iraq
Two al Qaeda fighters and an Iraqi soldier were killed in a clash in Ramadi; another al Qaeda fighter was detained. Security forces captured five al Qaeda fighters near Mosul. The Agriculture Minister resigned after a protester was killed in Ninewa.
Syria
Rebels consolidated their hold on the city of Raqqa. Government aircraft continued to bombard the city, sending thousands of refugees fleeing to Turkey. UN vehicles attempted to retrieve 21 UN peacekeepers seized by rebels near the Golan Heights but were stopped by Syrian army shelling.
Mauritania
Mauritanian ulema confront extremism
Australia
Qantas caught in Iran plot
Syria
West training Syrian rebels in Jordan
Al Nusrah Front seizes control of Syrian city of Raqqah
Al Qaeda’s affiliate in Syria teamed up with the jihadist Ahrar al Sham Brigade to take control of the provincial capital. The jihadist alliance effectively controls most the Euphrates River Valley in Syria all the way to the Iraqi border. The Al Nusrah Front also carried out two suicide attacks in Homs.
Israel
A coalition government is expected to be announced early next week. Palestinians and Israeli security forces clashed near the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Eight UN peacekeepers stationed in a buffer zone between Israel and Syria fled their posts and retreated to Israel.
Afghan security forces attack US base in Kapisa
Afghan troops using an Afghan Army Humvee drove onto a US military base today, opened fire on US soldiers and civilians, and killed a civilian contractor.
Egypt
The US Embassy in Cairo warned American citizens to avoid the downtown area of the capital and Port Said this weekend. Egyptian security forces clashed with gunmen in Sinai whose car contained ammunition for automatic weapons and explosive devices. Members of the police tasked with guarding the Muslim Brotherhood’s headquarters in Cairo withdrew from their […]
India
India set to halt Iran oil imports over insurance
Libya
“Several hundred gunmen,” some in military uniforms, attacked a TV station in Tripoli, kidnapping the station’s manager, its CEO, and three staff members. The group of attackers, which included Islamists, accused the station of “causing discord” and of ties to former NTC head Mahmoud Jibril. The attackers may be linked to the siege of the […]
Mali
French Defense Minister LeDrian said in a visit to Mali that the mission is not over as it still needed to “restore Mali’s territorial integrity.” The Malian government created a 33-member “reconciliation and dialogue commission” to help restore peace and to investigate “cases of human rights violations committed in the country since the beginning of […]
Tunisia
Prime Minister Larayedh announced the formation of a new coalition government led by the Islamist Ennahda party, which will serve until elections by the end of the year. Rachid Sabbagh was named defense minister; his predecessor, Abdelkarim Zbidi, had been trying to resign since the September 2012 attack on the US Embassy in Tunis.
Algeria
Of the roughly 400 al Qaeda militants said to be active in eastern Algeria’s Kabylie region, an estimated 280 are in Bouira, 73 in Boumerdès, and 50 in Tizi Ouzou, the key strongholds of AQIM. Terrorists attacked a Tizi Ouzou City checkpoint on March 3, and killed a soldier in the Yakouren forest on March […]
France
Security officials arrested two young men, both French citizens, at a house near Marseille on suspicion of plotting attacks, making explosives, and engaging in online terrorist activity. The pair had been under surveillance since they sent a threatening letter to US President Obama in November 2012.
United States
Shortly after being released by Turkey, bin Laden spokesman Abu Ghaith was captured by the CIA as he passed from Jordan to Kuwait, and has been extradited to the US. A Pakistani US citizen in Portland, Ore., was indicted for supporting an al Qaeda suicide bomber. John Brennan was confirmed as CIA Director. The US […]