Yemen
The military killed six al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula fighters in air and artillery strikes in Abyan and Marib. Counterterrorism forces captured four AQAP fighters involved in assassinations.
Author Archives: Bill Roggio
Syrian jihadists form ‘Supporters of the Khilafah’ Brigade
Five units in Western Aleppo that are linked to the Al Nusrah Front vowed “to establish the Islamic Khilafah state, and to use it to end decades of colonization and enslavement.”
Al Qaeda’s affiliate in Syria claims another suicide attack
The Al Nusrah Front for the People of the Levant said two of its suicide bombers attacked the Interior Ministry yesterday.
Iraq
The central government and the Kurdistan Regional Government agreed on a plan to deescalate the situation in Kirkuk. A suicide bomber killed himself and two prisoners at an entrance to a prison in Baghdad. Security forces raided an al Qaeda media center in Mosul.
Algeria
A leader from Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb’s El Moulethemine Brigade reportedly turned himself in to authorities last week. The unnamed commander is reportedly wanted by INTERPOL.
Iraq
Security forces captured an al Qaeda commander near Mosul, four al Qaeda fighters in Fallujah, and three Ansar al Sunnah fighters in Kirkuk. A court sentenced three al Qaeda commanders and four fighters to death for kidnapping and executing 26 men in Anbar.
Yemen
Three al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula fighters and a pro-government tribesman were killed during a clash in Marib province. A counterterrorism officer escaped an assassination attempt in Sana’a on Monday.
Syrian National Coalition urges US to drop Al Nusrah terrorism designation
“We can have ideological and political differences with certain parties,” the head of the Syrian National Coalition said, referring to al Qaeda’s branch in Syria.
Syrian jihadists, including al Qaeda’s Al Nusrah Front, form Mujahideen Shura Council
The establishment of the Mujahideen Shura Council in Deir al-Zour is a step in the unification of jihadist groups in Syria. Syrian opposition groups rally around the Al Nusrah Front after the terrorist designation by the US.
Pakistan
Security forces detained two “terrorists” and seized suicide vests during a raid in Lahore. “Militants” bombed a cell phone tower in the tribal agency of Mohmand.
Afghanistan
Security forces killed a Taliban commander and several fighters in Baghlan, and detained six suicide bombers, including three Pakistanis, in Paktika. President Karzai said the suicide attack that wounded the NDS chief was plotted in Quetta, and the government will provide evidence to prove it.
Syria
The US government added the Al Nusrah Front for the People of the Levant and two of its senior leaders to the list of global terrorists and entities. The US said Al Nusrah was formed and is commanded by al Qaeda in Iraq and its emir, Abu Du’a. Rebel groups across Syria rejected the US […]
Muslim Brotherhood
Anger and an Arrest as a Leader of the Muslim Brotherhood Visits Brooklyn
Yemen
The deputy intelligence officer in Hadramout province was gunned down outside of his home in Mukalla. The military launched an offensive against al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula fighters in Marib.
Somalia
Puntland security forces plan on attacking Shabaab strongholds in the Galgala mountains. Coca-Cola is reopening its factory in Mogadishu six years after closing due to insecurity.
US adds Al Nusrah Front, 2 leaders to terrorism list
The US government called the Al Nusrah Front “a new alias” for al Qaeda in Iraq, and said Al Nusrah is under the direct control of the emir of the Iraqi terror group.
Pakistan
A Taliban suicide assault team killed three policemen, two civilians, and a soldier in an attack on a police station in Bannu. The Taliban said the attack was launched to avenge the death of Baitullah Mehsud’s nephew.
Taliban suicide assault team attacks Pakistani police station
The Taliban said the attack was executed to avenge the death of Ibrahim Mehsud, the nephew of Baitullah Mehsud, the former emir of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan.
Afghanistan
The police chief in Nimroz and the acting head of women’s affairs for Laghman were assassinated in separate attacks. The Taliban killed an ISAF soldier in the south. A US Navy SEAL was killed in the Dec. 8 raid in Kabul that freed a kidnapped US doctor.
Iraq
Security forces destroyed an al Qaeda in Iraq camp in the Al Jazeera desert in Ninewa province. A joint Army and police force captured a top al Qaeda judicial figure in Mosul.
Yemen
Seventeen Yemeni soldiers, including the chief of staff for Yemen’s central military region, were killed in last week’s ambush in Marib province by al Qaeda. A senior Yemeni general claimed that al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula has only 700 to 800 fighters in the country.
Somalia
Shabaab released a statement from its emir, Sheikh Abu Zubayr, which addressed Taliban leader Mullah Omar and al Qaeda leader Ayman al Zawahiri, and praised Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. In the message, Shabaab vowed to continue its fight and said the US has been defeated.
Tunisia
A policeman was killed in a gunfight in Kasserine after “five suspicious bearded men” were seen in the area. Two days prior, two men from the Salafist stronghold of Jendouba near Kasserine were detained.
Nigeria
Security forces killed three Boko Haram fighters after the terror group launched an attack on a police headquarters in Potiskum. One policeman was killed in the attack.
Al Nusrah Front, foreign jihadists seize key Syrian base in Aleppo
Foreign fighters, including an Uzbek commander, played a key role in taking the Sheikh Suleiman base outside of Aleppo. The base is thought to be involved in Syria’s chemical weapons program.
Afghanistan
ISAF killed three Taliban fighters in an airstrike in Helmand. A US soldier died in eastern Afghanistan. Hundreds of Afghans angry over the execution of countrymen in Iran attacked the Iranian consulate in Herat.
Iraq
Al Qaeda fighters killed the Awakening’s military commander for Mahmoudiyah and his wife; four suspects have been detained. Security forces detained two al Qaeda fighters in Baghdad.
Yemen
The Yemeni Air Force killed four al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula members, including Said bin Muaily, a senior commander, in an airstrike in Marib province. “Gunmen” killed a prison guard in an ambush in Sana’a.
Somalia
Somali and Afghan Union forces took control of Johwar after Shabaab abandoned the town without a fight. Somali and Djibouti forces launched a security sweep in Beledweyne.
US drone strike kills another al Qaeda commander in North Waziristan
Mohammad Ahmed al Mansoor, a midlevel Pakistani al Qaeda commander, is reported to have been killed in the attack. He is the fourth mid-to-senior-level al Qaeda leader reported killed since the US stepped up strikes since the end of November.