Pakistan
The Taliban claimed credit for bombings in Bannu and Mardan that killed three people. A policemen was killed in a suicide attack in Mardan, while two people were killed in an IED attack at a political rally in Bannu.
Author Archives: Bill Roggio
Somalia
The Ras Kamboni militia arrested the senior security chief in Kismayo. The African Union Mission in Somalia denied that it will replace Kenyan troops with soldiers from Sierra Leone.
Iraq
Al Qaeda in Iraq fighters gunned down the deputy director of the counterterrorism agency in Tikrit. Police dismantled two car bombs in Mosul. China will soon be drilling one-third of Iraq’s oil.
Afghanistan
At least nine Taliban fighters and a child were killed in an ISAF airstrike in Ghazni. US Special Forces have withdrawn from the Nirkh district in Wardak province.
Free Syrian Army commander praises Al Nusrah Front as ‘brothers’
Colonel Riyad al Assad, the founder of the Free Syrian Army and a top commander, called al Qaeda’s affiliate in Syria “our brothers in Islam,” and commended the terror group for its prowess on the battlefield.
Iraq
Al Qaeda in Iraq killed at least 23 people in a string of five bombings at Shia mosques in Baghdad and Kirkuk. Police arrested four “gunmen” south of Kirkuk.
Somalia
A military court convicted a Shabaab operative of executing a Somalia journalist who worked for Radio Maanta in Mogadishu. Shabaab welcomed “our brothers” from al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb who recently opened a Twitter account.
Taliban suicide bomber kills 12 in Peshawar
Meanwhile, the Pakistani government continues to claim it has “broken [the] Taliban’s back.”
American who fought for Al Nusrah Front arrested in US
The FBI arrested Eric Harroun two days ago at Dulles International Airport in Washington, DC. Harroun admitted to fighting with al Qaeda’s affiliate in Syria.
Afghanistan
Security forces killed a Taliban district chief and six fighters in Faryab, 11 fighters in Badakhshan, and six more in Herat. Two policemen were also killed in Badakhshan. Three teachers were gunned down in Balkh. A concert in Ghazni was canceled after provincial officials declared that music is haram.
Somalia
The African Union Mission in Somalia announced that the nearly 1,000 troops being deployed by Sierra Leone will be sent to bases in Kismayo, Baidoa, and Beledweyn. The cities have served as major Shabaab strongholds in the past.
Nigeria
The Joint Task Force raided a “militant” compound in Kano and uncovered a massive weapons cache; the “chief armorer” was killed and another militant was captured. A British national who was kidnapped in Lagos last week has been freed.
Chechen commander forms ‘Army of Emigrants,’ integrates Syrian groups
Omar al Chechen has formed Jaish al-Muhajireen wa Ansar, or Army of the Emigrants and Helpers, and merged his Muhajireen Brigade with several Syrian jihadist groups.
Pakistan
Security forces killed three Taliban fighters as they attacked an outpost in Bajaur. Two security personnel were killed in a bombing in Bajaur. Pakistani security officials claimed that 9,000, including more than 3,000 security personnel, people have been killed in terrorist attacks in the past five years.
Afghanistan
Afghan and Coalition forces claimed they killed 23 Taliban fighters in Logar, but reports from the province indicate that five civilians, including four children, were killed. Afghan officials said that another 29 Taliban fighters were killed during raids throughout the country.
Yemen
Two al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula fighters and two pro-government militiamen were killed during clashes in Jaar in Abyan province. Former President Saleh said that the “Arab Spring has started to devour its own children.”
Somalia
Sierra Leone is deploying 850 soldiers to serve with the African Union Mission in Somalia. Shabaab urged “Muslims around the world to help their oppressed Muslim brothers & sisters in Myanmar in whatever way they can.”
Nigeria
“Gunmen” killed 28 people, including a police officer, in Plateau. The director of Defense information said Boko Haram is “fighting their last battle.”
Suicide attack reported in Damascus
Today’s suicide attack is the second in the Syrian capital in five days.
Afghanistan
Five policemen and eight Taliban fighters were killed after the Taliban launched a suicide assault on a police headquarters in Jalalabad. The government freed 26 inmates from Bagram Prison just one day after the US transferred control of the prison. Australia will withdraw 1,000 of its 1,500 troops from Afghanistan by the end of the […]
Iraq
Insurgents killed five people in attacks in Iraq. In one attack, in Tuz Khormato, the head of a local council and a council member were killed. Two policemen and a civilian were killed in attacks in Baghdad.
Yemen
A court sentenced 10 al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula fighters to terms of four to 10 years in prison for plotting attacks; five had already been freed for time served. “Gunmen” wounded a Russian Red Cross worker in the capital of Sana’a.
Somalia
Somalia’s intelligence chief was dismissed after being accused of “extrajudicial killings” of Somali men. Elders from the Hawiye clan accused the military of committing human rights violations. Shabaab claimed it attacked militia bases in Afmadow.
Ethiopia
Intelligence officials said they foiled a Shabaab plot to kidnap UN aid workers from a refuge camp in Dolo Ado and take them to Somalia to hold them for ransom. Eight suspected Shabaab fighters were detained.
Nigeria
Boko Haram fighters killed a policeman and torched a police station and communications towers in Bara in Yobe state. Police raided a suspected hideout for Chadian and Malian “terrorists” in Lagos.
Taliban suicide assault team strikes police HQ in eastern Afghanistan
Five policemen and eight Taliban fighters were killed after the suicide assault team penetrated security at the Quick Reaction Force headquarters in Jalalabad.
Pakistani Taliban threaten former President Musharraf with ‘death squad’
Adnan Rasheed, who escaped from a Pakistani prison during a Taliban jailbreak one year ago, is shown with his “death squad,” which is split up in groups of “fedayeen, sniper team, special assault team, and close combat team.”
Somalia
Ethiopian and Somali forces claimed to have retaken Hudur, the provincial capital of Bakool, from Shabaab. A female journalist was gunned down in Mogadishu. Two large blasts were heard at the Presidential Palace in Kismayo.
Al Nusrah Front, allies seize border area across the Golan Heights
Al Qaeda’s affiliate in Syria teamed up with several rebel groups to overrun an air force base and several checkpoints in Dara’a province. The operation put Al Nusrah and its allies in effective control of an area that borders both Israel and Jordan.
Iraq
Insurgents killed five soldiers in two separate attacks in Mosul and a politician in Baghdad. US Secretary of State John Kerry accused Iraq of aiding the Syrian government by permitting weapons to pass through its border.