Libya
Rebel forces have pushed Gaddafi loyalists back to the oil terminal in Ras Lanuf. US Secretary of State Clinton said she is concerned Libya will become the next Somalia.
Author Archives: Bill Roggio
Somalia
Somali soldiers have used the Kenyan town of Mandera as a base to attack Shabaab in the south. Madagascar security forces captured a Somali pirate mothership. The government closed Radio-Kulmiye for interviewing disgruntled former Shabaab fighters.
Nigeria
Nigerian diplomats serving in Saudi Arabia said that large numbers of Nigerians are being trained at al Qaeda camps in Yemen. The diplomats said the collapse of the Yemeni government would pose a threat to Nigeria’s security.
Yemen
Opposition leaders said President Saleh is working on a plan to transition power in the next year. A pro-al Qaeda tribal leader has pledged support to anti-government protesters.
Taliban suicide bomber kills 9 in Hangu; 6 police killed in ambush in Khyber
The attacks are the latest in the Taliban’s renewed offensive in the central regions of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and the tribal agencies.
Suicide bomber kills 10 Iraqis in Haditha
Eight Iraqi soldiers were among those killed in the latest suicide attack in Anbar province. Haditha was once a seat of power for al Qaeda in Iraq.
‘Devout Muslim’ kills two US airmen in Germany
According to The Associated Press, a “devout Muslim” man shot and killed two US airmen today at an airport terminal in Frankfurt, Germany. The gunman, who appears to be named Arid Uka and was born in either Kosovo or Germany, boarded a bus that carried a group of airmen who had just arrived at the […]
Afghanistan
General Petraeus apologized for US forces that accidentally killed nine boys who were collecting firewood in Kunar. The British Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee urged the US to negotiate directly with the Taliban.
ISAF apologizes for civilian deaths in Kunar
ISAF, and General Petraeus, have apologized for a March 1 helicopter strike in Kunar province that killed nine boys who were collecting firewood. The statement, in full, is below: Preliminary findings from a Joint Incident Assessment Team indicate that International Security Assistance Forces accidentally killed nine civilians in Darah-Ye Pech district, Kunar province yesterday. The […]
Iraq
Insurgents killed two Iraqis in bombings in Baghdad and Mosul. Security forces arrested more than 50 members of the “religious extremist” group Naqshabandiya during raids in Kirkuk.
Jemaah Islamiyah
Wanted Jemaah Islamiyah operative Umar Patek has been spotted in Yemen. Patek may be recruiting some of the more than 2,000 Indonesian students studying Islam in Yemen.
Yemen
Security forces killed two civilians in Lahj and arrested dozens of Southern Movement members in Aden. President Saleh apologized for blaming the protests in Yemen on the US.
United Kingdom
A British court convicted Rajib Karim, a British Airways employee, of plotting to carry out terrorist attacks. Karim, who was associated with Jamaat ul Mujahideen Bangladesh, plotted with Anwar al Awlaki, the wanted al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula leader.
Germany
Arif Uka, a Kosovo citizen from the town of Mitrovica, killed two US airmen and seriously wounded two others in an attack on a bus at a terminal in Frankfurt. US authorities believe it was a terrorist attack.
Somalia
Shabaab beat 47 people in Masagawa for violating its strict code of sharia. Shabaab’s leader threatened Burundi troops and called for them to withdraw from Mogadishu. Kenya closed its border with Somalia.
Libya
Forces loyal to President Gaddafi and rebels are battling in the port town of Marsa El Brega. Rebels took control of the towns of Gharyan and Sabrath. Rebels have asked the UN to carry out airstrikes on foreign mercenaries fighting for Gaddafi.
Tunisia
The Tunisian government has removed the ban on Ennahdha, an Islamist political party that has been outlawed for more than 20 years. Rached Ghannouch, the leader of Ennahdha, returned from exile last month and is expected to run for president.
Punjabi Taliban, al Qaeda assassinate Pakistan’s Christian minorities minister
Shahbaz Bhatti was gunned down after leaving his mother’s home in Islamabad. He was killed for opposing Pakistan’s repressive blasphemy laws.
Pakistan
The Taliban executed four “US spies” in North Waziristan and killed three people in IED attacks in Mohmand. The Taliban also wounded 15 schoolgirls in an attack at a campus in Mardan. The Taliban torched a NATO fuel tanker in Wah.
Afghanistan
Security forces captured a Taliban commander in Helmand and six fighters in Kandahar. The Taliban killed an ISAF soldier in the south. Afghan officials claimed an ISAF airstrike killed nine civilians in Kunar.
Somalia
Thirty-six people were killed during fighting between Somali forces and Shabaab fighters in Bula Hawo. Top Shabaab leaders Muktar Robow and Sheikh Fu’ad Shongole are attempting to recruit former Somali army officers to join Shabaab’s ranks.
Yemen
President Saleh accused the US and Israel of stoking unrest in Yemen and the wider Arab world. “There’s an operations room in Tel Aviv with the aim of destabilizing the Arab world,” he said. Saleh sent military reinforcements to Aden to deal with spreading protests.
Taliban execute 4 tribesmen ‘spying for America’ in North Waziristan
“We killed them because they were spying for America, anyone who acts like this will face the same fate,” the Taliban statement read. The men were shot in the face multiple times.
HIG media emir’s capture leads to capture of 5 other commanders
Farid, the captured HIG media emir, was directly under the command of senior Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid.
Pakistan
Pakistan playing cynical game with CIA contractor, says official
ISAF statement on the withdrawal from Pech Valley
US Army Sergeant David M. Pooler, of 1st Platoon, Able Company, 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, scans the area across the Kunar River as he provides security in the Noorgal district of Kunar province, Afghanistan, May 1, 2010 as part of a community development council meeting. US Army photo by […]
Pakistan attempts to trade CIA contractor for convicted al Qaeda operative Aafia Siddiqui
ABC News reported today that Pakistan attempted to exchange CIA contractor Raymond Davis for convicted al Qaeda operative Aafia Siddiqui. This should come as no surprise, as speculation about a possible prisoner exchange first appeared in the Pakistani press just days after Davis’ arrest. ABC News reports: The government of Pakistan offered to trade a […]
Pakistan
Police arrested 45 people whose phone numbers were on Raymond Davis’ cell phone. Pakistan attempted to trade Davis for convicted al Qaeda operative Aafia Siddiqui.
Afghanistan
The Taliban killed four ISAF soldiers in attacks in the south, east, and west, and executed two Afghan contractors in Kandahar. Security forces captured a Taliban commander in Kandahar.
Somalia
The Burundian military claimed that 80 Shabaab fighters and seven Burundian troops have been killed over the past several days during fighting in Mogadishu. Shabaab established an immigration and customs office in Baidoa.