Nigeria
The death toll in yesterday’s suicide attack near a Christian church in Kaduna rose to 36; a suicide bomber carried out the attack. the The Joint Military Task Force defused a car bomb in Kano.
Author Archives: Bill Roggio
Special operations forces kill newly appointed IMU leader for Afghanistan
Osmani Sahib led the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan’s operations for only 12 days before being killed during a combined Afghan and Coalition special operations raid in Faryab province. His predecessor, Makhdum Nusrat, was killed on March 26.
Pakistan
Pakistani helicopter gunships killed 14 Taliban fighters in Arakzai. The Pakistani military is still searching for 135 soldiers who are trapped after an avalanche on the Siachen Glacier.
Afghanistan
The US and Afghanistan signed an agreement with respect to night raids; Afghanistan has been given veto authority. Security forces killed and captured dozens of Taliban commanders and fighters during raids. The Taliban killed three civilians in an IED attack in Paktiya.
Iraq
Security forces dismantled a 25-member Anasr al Islam cell that conducted robbers and attacks in Baghdad; Ansar al Islam is allied with al Qaeda in Iraq. Former Saddam deputy Izzat Ibrahim al Douri appeared on a video and urged Baathists to fight the government.
Yemen
US drones killed eight AQAP fighters in Shabwa; Yemeni aircraft killed 16 AQAP fighters in Al Koud. The international airport in Sana’a was reopened one day after the former chief of the air force shut it down in protest for being dismissed.
Somalia
One of Prime Minister Ali Abdiweli’s advisers and a member of parliament were among those killed in the April 4 suicide attack at a theater in Mogadishu. Ten people were killed during clashes between Shabaab and a government-backed militia near El Bur.
Nigeria
Boko Haram killed more than 20 people and wounded dozens more in several bombings outside of a church in Kaduna on Easter day. A suicide bomber appears to have been deployed as part of the attack.
Boko Haram kills 20 Christians in Easter Day bombings
Boko Haram has previously stated it seeks “to eradicate Christians” from areas in Nigeria and has attacked churches on religious holidays.
US drones kill 8 AQAP fighters in southern Yemen
Three foreign “Arabs” and five Yemeni members of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula are said to have been killed in the strike in Shabwa province.
Yemen
Forces loyal to the former commander of Yemen’s air force, the brother-in-law of former President Saleh who was dismssed on Friday by President Hadi, shut down the airport in Sana’a. The capital was plunged into darkness as forces loyal to Saleh attacked power lines from Marib.
Somalia
Shabaab claimed that African Union forces “have lost the initiative” in Mogadishu after the terror group conducted a “tactical withdrawal” last summer. The Somaliland government detained two journalists in Los Anod.
Mali
The Tuareg rebel National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad’s representative in Paris said the group “has clearly stated its demarcation from al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb” and said it is prepared to “act within the framework of a mobilization of all countries concerned by this curse.”
‘We do jihad,’ says Lashkar-e-Taiba emir Hafiz Saeed
Saeed’s sermon calling for jihad against the US was delivered the same day Pakistani officials claimed that Saeed was involved with “de-radicalization and rehabilitation of former jihadis” in Pakistan’s Punjab province.
ISAF captures IMU suicide attack facilitator, financier in raids in Afghan north
One raid took place in the remote province of Badakhshan, which has seen an uptick in activity by the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. The other took place in Faryab, where the IMU’s top leader in Afghanistan was killed more than a week ago.
Pakistan
A Pakistani intelligence official claimed Lashkar-e-Taiba emir Hafiz Saeed is involved in de-radicalizing jihadists in Punjab. Security forces detained 12 terrorists and seized suicide vests in Peshawar. The Taliban bombed a girls’ school in Mohmand.
Afghanistan
The Taliban killed the head of Kunar’s peace council in a suicide attack, four policemen in separate attacks in Helmand, and an ISAF soldier in the east. The foreign minister said US drone attacks would no longer be launched from Afghanistan after 2014.
Yemen
An al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula suicide bomber killed himself in a premature detonation while attempting to assassinate an intelligence official in Aden. President Hadi fired the chief of the air force, who is also former President Saleh’s half brother.
Somalia
Ethiopian and Somali forces took control of two more towns in Bay province. “Gunmen” killed a Somali journalist outside of his home in Beledweyne. Somaliland security forces detained three men and a woman with French passports.
Nigeria
A prominent Shia sheikh said the US and the CIA are behind the bombings in northern Nigeria. The US and the United Kingdom issued travel advisories for citizens visiting Nigeria.
Hafiz Saeed involved in ‘de-radicalization and rehabilitation’ of jihadis, says Pakistani CT official
A Pakistani counterterrorism official wants you to believe the Lashkar-e-Taiba emir is on the side of the angels. Seriously.
Suicide bomber kills chief of Kunar’s peace council
The Taliban have carried out three major suicide attacks in the past week in northern and western Afghanistan.
Pakistan
A suicide bomber killed three people in an attack in Karachi. The Foreign Office said Pakistan would not accede to US pressure to turn over Lashkar-e-Taiba leader Hafiz Saeed.
Taliban kill Afghan Local Police in attacks in west and north
The ALP have been the target of attacks and infiltration in the past week.
Yemen
Yemeni warplanes killed 10 al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula fighters in Abyan. AQAP claimed credit for the bombing of gas pipelines in Shabwa.
Somalia
One hundred African Union troops from Uganda and Burundi deployed to Baidoa. Shabaab spokesman Sheikh Ali Dhere vowed to step up suicide attacks in Mogadishu. Heavy fighting between Somali and Shabaab forces was reported near Bardera.
Nigeria
Boko Haram fighters opened fire at a crowded market in Maiduguri, killing seven people. The State Security Services arrested four people and seized 60 IEDs in Gombe.
Mali
Tuareg rebels from the MNLA declared a ceasefire and announced the establishment of their Azawad state in northern Mali. The Ansar Dine, which has allied with the MNLA, has called for the establishment of a sharia state in Mali.
Turkish jihadist group has agreement to train with Afghan Taliban
Abu Bara’a Turki , the emir of the Cemaat-ul-Islam, said his group “is affiliated with the Afghan Taliban” and “is authorized by the Taliban to provide training to the mujahideen.”
Kenyan military official falsely claims Shabaab spokesman fled Somalia
Shabaab spokesman Dhere granted an interview from Mogadishu while the KDF claimed Dhere had fled Somalia and denounced his emir.