Iraq
Insurgents killed five people, including a soldier, in IED attacks in Taji and Baghdad. Al Qaeda in Iraq claimed credit for a series of attacks last week, including a jailbreak in Tikrit.
Author Archives: Bill Roggio
Yemen
Yemeni troops foiled a suicide attack on the Al Anad Airbase in Lahj, where the US bases drones and military advisors. President Hadi accused Iran of backing a secessionist movement in southern Yemen.
Al Nusrah Front released photos of execution of Syrian soldiers
Al Nusrah’s tactics, operations, and propaganda are nearly identical to those of al Qaeda in Iraq.
Yemeni troops foil attack on base used by US drones
US Reaper drones are known to fly out of the Al Anad airbase in Lahj province.
Somalia
Somali and Kenyan forces killed five suspected Shabaab fighters in Kismayo. The African Union guaranteed the safety of Shabaab fighters who surrendered. The African Union said it captured several men suspected of being behind the murder of journalists in Mogadishu.
Kenya
Prime Minister Raila Odinga lashed out at Western nations for failing to provide manpower in the fight against Shabaab in Somalia. Odinga said the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu, in which 18 US soldiers were killed, has made the US “reluctant to offer personnel to assist in Somalia.”
Libya
The staff at the Jalaa hospital in Benghazi want al Qaeda-linked Ansar al Sharia to return and provide security for the facility. The military and militias have gathered outside of Bani Walid and are prepared to launch an offensive.
Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb
Abou Dedjana, the emir of al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb’s El Forkane Brigade, surrendered to Algerian authorities. Dedjana was a member of the Armed Islamic Group, the predecessor of GSPC and AQIM, and fought in the Tizi Ouzou region of Algeria.
Haqqani Network is part of the Taliban — Siraj Haqqani
The al Qaeda-linked leader of the Haqqani Network reiterated his allegiance to Mullah Omar. The Haqqanis and the Taliban have consistently stated that both groups are united.
Afghanistan
Security forces killed five Taliban commanders and 25 fighters during operations in Wardak, and detained a suicide bomber and two others planning an attack on Bagram. The Taliban executed two kidnappers in Herat.
Iraq
An Iraqi court sentenced Omar Rashad Khalil, an American citizen, to death for his role in financing and executing terrorist attacks in Baghdad. The government said it would separate terrorists from criminals and place the former in special prisons.
Yemen
US drones killed four al Qaeda fighters in an airstrike on a vehicle in Shabwa province. The military claimed that five Yemeni officers captured by the Al Nusrah Front in Syria have been released.
Somalia
Several Somali members of parliament denounced Kenya’s invasion of Kismayo. Security forces have launched an operation in Kismayo. The government said it foiled suicide attacks in Beledweyne.
Nigeria
The deputy registrar at Federal Polytechnic Mubi, who also serves as the security chief, said he saw no evidence that Sunday’s attack that killed 40 people was related to an election at the campus. Some officials believe Boko Haram carried out the attack.
US drone strike kills 4 al Qaeda ‘militants’ in southern Yemen
The strike is the first recorded in Yemen in nearly a month, and took place just six days after President Hadi praised the US’s drone program.
Afghanistan
Security forces killed three Taliban leaders and three more fighters in Laghman and Herat, and foiled a suicide attack on Kandahar’s chief of police. The Taliban killed two children in a bombing in Farah.
Al Nusrah Front claims 2 suicide, 2 car bombings in Aleppo
More than 50 people are said to have been killed in the coordinated attacks, which included a complex suicide assault. The terror group has now claimed credit for 26 of the 33 suicide attacks that have taken place in Syria since December 2011.
Yemen
Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula killed two soldiers in an attack on a military outpost in Lahj. Tribesmen in Marib cut the power to Sana’a to protest the death sentence of an AQAP fighter.
Somalia
Security forces detained 100 suspected Shabaab fighters during raids in Kismayo. Two people were killed after Shabaab detonated five bombs in Kismayo yesterday.
Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb
The US military claims to have “disrupted” al Qaeda’s network in North Africa. “We have bitten into their leadership,” the Pentagon’s spokesman said.
US officials give up on prospects for peace deal with Taliban
As reported numerous times at The Long War Journal, the Western desire for a negotiated settlement with the Taliban conflicts with the reality of the situation in Afghanistan.
Ansar al Sharia
U.S. had early indications Libya attack tied to organized militants
Afghanistan
The Taliban killed a US soldier in the south. The governor of Paktia requested that ISAF end the “irresponsible” night raids. ISAF denied that the Taliban shot down a helicopter in Zabul.
Yemen
Security forces killed three “key” al Qaeda leaders in Aden. Two Yemeni American doctors were killed in Aden. Defense Minister Ahmed dodged an IED attack in Sana’a.
Somalia
Somali and African Union troops have reportedly withdrawn from Kismayo. Shabaab claimed credit for a series of bomb blasts in the southern port city.
Nigeria
“Gunmen” killed 26 people at a university in Mubi. Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau said the group would begin targeting government officials in the north. Police detained a bomber in Jos.
Mali
AFRICOM commander General Ham said the US military would not intervene against Islamist groups in northern Mali and that the crisis could be resolved with political and diplomatic efforts. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned against military intervention in Mali.
ISAF captures another senior IMU leader in Kunduz
Special operations forces have conducted 30 raids agains the al Qaeda-linked Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan in Afghanistan so far this year; 12 raids have taken place in Kunduz.
Afghanistan
A Taliban suicide bomber killed 3 ISAF soldiers, four policemen, and seven civilians in an attack on a convoy in Khost. The Taliban killed two civilians in a bombing in Uruzgan.
Somalia
Somali and Kenyan forces have begun to patrol in the former Shabaab stronghold of Kismayo. Somalia’s new president and the speaker of parliament visited Baidoa, which was under Shabaab control until February 2012.