Libya
US options to ‘capture or kill’ Benghazi suspects
Monthly Archives: May 2013
Hamas
Alleged Hezbollah, Hamas men in NY smuggling ring
Satellite imagery of Israeli airstrike at Damascus airport released
Israeli TV has released satellite imagery from the aftermath of an Israeli airstrike at Damascus International Airport earlier in May.
Al Qaeda
Global impact to Sahel terror
Germany
Berlin Sees Chemical Weapons As Trigger for Intervention in Syria
European Union
EU to block arming of Syrian rebels
Egypt
Tunneling KFC to Gazans Craving the World Outside
Syria
The Al Nusrah Front, al Qaeda’s Syrian affiliate, released a video showing the terror group executing 11 captured Syrian troops. The US State Department intends to add Al Nusrah’s emir, Sheikh Abu Muhammad al Julani, to the list of global terrorists. Russia has not abandoned efforts to broker a diplomatic solution to the conflict. A […]
Fallujah Awakens: Marines, Sheikhs and the Battle Against al Qaeda
The story of the tribal “Awakening” and counterinsurgency campaign in the famous battleground.
Hizb-i-Islami Gulbuddin suicide bomber in Kabul kills 6 Americans, 9 Afghans
The Taliban’s spring offensive promised a renewed focus on suicide attacks targeting ISAF forces. Today’s suicide bombing in a residential area also injured 39 Afghan civilians.
Al Nusrah Front’s emir to be added to US terrorism list
Sheikh Abu Muhammad al Julani, the emir of al Qaeda’s affiliate in Syria, swore allegiance to al Qaeda’s leader just over one month ago.
Egypt
Islamist gunmen kidnapped seven security personnel in the Sinai and demanded the release of imprisoned Islamists. In response to the kidnapping, Hamas increased its state of alert along Gaza’s border with Egypt, while Egyptian authorities destroyed a number of smuggling tunnels.
Nigeria
Fighter jets flew over Adamawa state, mobile phone service was cut off in Borno state, and troops poured into the northeastern region as the Nigerian military offensive gathered momentum against Boko Haram and other Islamist terror groups. Troops raided terrorist camps in the Sambisa Game Reserve in Borno state, where more than 2,000 soldiers have […]
United States
The White House released emails relating to the attack on the Benghazi consulate; they show revisions of talking points to delete references to al Qaeda, Islamic extremists, and FBI warnings. Seven people were caught trespassing at a reservoir that supplies water to Boston and 40 other communities. The trespassers, who are from Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, […]
Afghanistan
Afghanistan imposes $1b illegitimate taxes on US-funded projects
Afghanistan
Afghanistan – Zahir Qadir Must Provide Capital Legitimizing Documents: Analysts
Iraq
Insurgents killed 35 Iraqis in a string of bombings, including a suicide attack, in Baghdad, Mosul, and Kirkuk. Al Qaeda fighters killed two Awakening members near Abu Ghraib. Security forces captured an al Qaeda leader in Fallujah.
Yemen
Oman reportedly paid a $50 million ransom for the release of an Austrian and two Finnish nationals. The European hostages were being held by al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. Four million dollars was paid to “tribal negotiators/intermediaries.”
Egypt
The state news agency MENA said an al Qaeda-linked plot disrupted over the weekend had targeted the embassies of the US and France in Cairo. The motive given for the planned attack on the French embassy was the French military intervention in Mali. Three suspects have been arrested; the three Egyptians had escaped from prison […]
Another look at a green-on-blue attack
A deeper examination of just one of the 76 insider attacks on Coalition forces in Afghanistan since January 2008 suggests that the role of Taliban infiltration and motivation in these attacks has been underreported.
Syria
Rebels detonated two car bombs simultaneously outside the central prison in Aleppo, attempting to free inmates, including al Qaeda members. The Free Syrian Army vowed to punish a member of the Farouq Brigade who was videotaped mutilating corpses. The UK and France have asked the UN to designate the Al Nusrah Front a terrorist organization. […]
Mali
At the first international conference on Mali since the French-led intervention in January, donors have pledged $4 billion to help rebuild the country’s government, military, and infrastructure; organize presidential elections; stimulate the economy; and establish dialogue with rebel groups in the north. Among the pledges is $673 million from the European Union. The aid agency […]
Algeria
Interpol warned that some of the funds from Algeria’s 1.5 billion-euro illegal trading, which includes counterfeiting, black market transactions, and tax evasion, are being used to fund international terrorism. Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb issued a statement claiming five attacks in the past six weeks, in Bouira, Boumerdes, and Tizi Ouzou provinces.
Afghanistan
US Special Operations Step Up in Afghanistan
Syria
As violence spills into Turkey, Syrian refugees once again draw the short straw
Nigeria
A large number of government troops deployed to northeastern Nigeria to root out Boko Haram and other Islamist militants after the declaration of a state of emergency in the region. Militants are said to control at least 10 districts in Borno state, to maintain links with other Islamist groups in Africa, and to operate across […]
France
Gilles Le Guen, a jihadist and former French Marine believed to have joined al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, was flown to Paris and handed over to French intelligence for questioning. He was captured by French forces in Timbuktu, Mali, earlier this year.
Tensions continue to escalate in Tunisia
The Tunisian government has interfered in Ansar al Sharia Tunisia’s events and may refuse to grant the group permission to hold its third annual congress. Ansar al Sharia’s leaders have responded with statements condemning the Ennahda regime.
United States
A judge handed down sentences to several Somali men associated with the al Qaeda-linked Shabaab. Yesterday Kamal Said Hassan, who participated in an ambush of Ethiopian troops, was sentenced to 10 years in prison; and Mahamud Said Omar, a key Shabaab recruiter, to 20 years in prison. Today Abdifatah Yusuf Isse and Salah Osman Ahmed, […]
Ansar al Sharia Tunisia member: ‘Rome shall be conquered’
In a video posted online on April 30, Sheik Kamel Zarouq, a member of Ansar al Sharia Tunisia, endorsed al Qaeda’s global jihad.