Iraq
Security forces have rounded up 615 Baathists during sweeps over the past several days. Iraqi troops detained four members of an al Qaeda cell, including the cell leader, in Baghdad.
Author Archives: Bill Roggio
Yemen
Sanaa International Airport has been closed after four blasts destroyed two Yemeni fighter aircraft; the cause of the explosions has not been determined. Four people were killed when government forces shelled villages in Arhab.
Pakistan
US has no permission to launch drone strikes in Pakistan: PM Gilani
Somalia
Shabaab claimed that an American known as Cabdi Salaam al Muhajir was one of two suicide bombers who attacked an African Union base in Mogadishu yesterday. Twelve Shabaab fighters were killed in Kenyan airstrikes in Jilib. Security forces detained 20 Shabaab fighters in Gedo.
Morocco
A court sentenced nine men for their roles in the bombing at a Marrakesh cafe that killed 17 people. The cell leader was sentenced to death, his deputy was given a life sentence, and seven others received jail terms ranging from three to four years.
Caucasus
How Suicide Bombers Are Trained in North Caucasus
IMU claims Panjshir attack carried out ‘in cooperation’ with the Taliban
One Uzbek and four Afghans were part of the group that attacked the Provincial Reconstruction Team base on Oct. 15.
US drones kill 6 ‘militants’ in al Qaeda hub of Datta Khel
The attack in North Waziristan is the fourth in Pakistan’s tribal areas in five days.
Shabaab claims American involved in Mogadishu suicide assault
Shabaab released an audiotape from Cabdi Salaam al Muhajir, who they claimed is an American citizen. Al Muhajir is one of two suicide bombers who attacked an African Union base in Mogadishu.
Afghanistan
A suicide bomber killed eight civilian trainers, four US troops, a Canadian soldier, three Afghan civilians, and a policeman in an attack on an armored bus in Kabul. An Afghan soldier killed three Australian soldiers and an interpreter in Kandahar. A female suicide bomber wounded five Afghan intelligence officials in Kunar.
Yemen
Four soldiers were wounded in a bombing outside a security headquarters in Aden. The attack follows another in Aden on Friday, which killed a senior anti-terror security official.
Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula
Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula claimed that Ibrahim al Bana was not killed in a Predator strike in southern Yemen two weeks ago that killed Anwar al Awlaki’s son. Bana is a media emir for AQAP.
Saudi Arabia
A court sentenced Haila Al Qusayyer to 15 years in prison and an additional 15-year travel ban upon her release. She financed, recruited, and fought for al Qaeda for years. Qusayyer is known as Madam al Qaeda as she was married to two of the terror group’s senior leaders.
AQAP claims media emir is alive
Ansar al Sharia, al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula’s political front, said that Ibrahim al Bana was not killed in the strike that killed Anwar al Awlaki’s son.
Somalia
African Union troops beat back a Shabaab suicide assault on a base in Mogadishu; two suicide bombers dressed as Somali troops were killed. Kenya’s top military leader said his country would stay in southern Somalia until the threat from Shabaab is gone.
Kenya
Three Kenyan security officers were wounded in an IED attack in Garrisa. Security forces arrested 20 people thought to be connected to a bombing in Mandera.
Suicide bomber kills 17 in Kabul, including 5 ISAF troops
A suicide bomber flipped an up-armored Rhino in the capital; the Taliban claimed credit for the attack. Three Australian soldiers were killed in Kandahar, and a female suicide bomber attacked Afghan intelligence officials in Kunar.
Pakistan
US Predators killed 13 Taliban fighters in a strike in South Waziristan on Oct. 26. A suicide bomber killed an anti-Taliban militia leader and his aide in Nowshera. The military successfully tested a nuclear warhead-capable cruise missile.
‘Safe havens in Pakistan remain the insurgency’s greatest enabler’: DoD report
The DoD seeks to work with Pakistan while that country continues to support the Haqqani Network; al Qaeda remains connected to the Taliban, but the IMU doesn’t get a mention.
Afghanistan
Security forces killed 30 Taliban fighters in Nangarhar and detained several Taliban commanders and fighters in Ghazni, Khost, Logar, and Nangarhar. The Taliban killed four civilians in a bombing in Nangarhar. Four Taliban fighters and an Afghan solider were killed during yesterday’s fighting at the Kandahar PRT.
Iraq
A US audit said that most of the $6.6 billion in reconstruction funds that was thought to have been missing for Iraq has been accounted for. Iraq’s central bank said it is not responsible for the funds.
Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula
A senior police commander was killed in a car bombing in the southern port city of Aden. Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula has stepped up attacks in the city, which is said to be under siege.
Somalia
Nine Shabaab fighters were killed as they ambushed Kenyan troops moving to Beles Qooqani. Shabaab claimed to have killed several Kenyan troops near Dhobley.
Kenya
A court sentenced a Kenyan man to life in prison for carrying out grenade attacks in Nairobi. The prisoner, Elgiva Bwire Oliacha, admitted to being a member of Shabaab.
Tunisia
The Ennahda party, a branch of the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood, has won 90 of the 217 available seats in parliament, and will form a government and vote on the country’s new constitution. The next largest party won only 30 seats. Violence has broken out over the election results.
US Predator strike kills 13 Pakistani Taliban fighters in South Waziristan
Taj Gul Mehsud, a deputy of Hakeemullah Mehsud, may have been killed in a previously unreported strike on Oct. 26 in South Waziristan.
2 senior al Qaeda leaders killed in recent drone strikes in Pakistan
Abu Miqdad al Masri and Abd al Rahman al Yemeni both were involved in al Qaeda’s external operations. Al Masri was also a member of al Qaeda’s Shura Majlis.
Pakistan
US Predators killed five Taliban commanders, including Mullah Nazir’s brother, in South Waziristan, and six “militants” in North Waziristan. The Taliban praised JUI-F leader Maulana Abdul Ghani, who was killed in a car accident.
Afghanistan
Pakistan allows insurgent fire on US troops: general
Taliban praise dead Pakistani political leader
Maulana Abdul Ghani and his political party, the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl, have openly supported the Taliban for years.