Yemen
Protests against President Saleh continue throughout Yemen as 21 activists remain in prison. President Saleh announced a raise and increased benefits for police and military personnel.
Author Archives: Bill Roggio
Somalia
A Somali warlord who served as a minister of defense and was once a member of the Islamic Courts refused to disarm his militia. A district commissioner in Mogadishu called for African Union forces to withdraw from the capital. Security forces detained 40 people in Mogadishu.
35 killed in suicide attack at Moscow airport
The suicide attack took place at an international arrival terminal at Domodedovo International Airport. The al Qaeda-linked Islamic Caucasus Emirate is the prime suspect in the attack.
Foreign fighters in the Afghan north
Syed Saleem Shahzad’s ‘Northern Lights’ series in the Asia Times on the Taliban’s strategy and operations in northern Afghanistan is a must read (click for part 1, for part 2, and for part 3). Below is an extended excerpt from part 3 that highlights the activities of al Qaeda and other “foreign fighters” in the […]
Pakistan
US Predators killed 13 “militants” in three strikes in North Waziristan. The Taliban killed three people in an attack on the former mayor of Hangu.
Afghanistan
The Taliban killed three children in attacks in Badghis and Helmand. Security forces killed 13 Taliban fighters in Nangarhar and detained 11 more in Khost and Farah.
The Taliban
The Taliban executed Sultan Amir Tarar, who is better known as Colonel Imam, in North Waziristan. Tarar is called the godfather of the Taliban for advising and training the group during its rise to power in the 1990s.
Iraq
Insurgents killed six Iraqi civilians and wounded 29 more in five car bombings in and around Baghdad. Security forces detained three wanted terrorists in Al Kut.
Egypt
The interior minister blamed the Gaza-based, al Qaeda-linked Army of Islam for carrying out the New Years Day suicide bombing at a Coptic church in Alexandria that killed 23 people. An Army of Islam spokesman denied the charge but said “we praise those who did it.”
US Predators strike 3 times in al Qaeda haven of North Waziristan
Thirteen “militants” were reported killed in today’s strike in North Waziristan. Also, a former senior Pakistani intelligence officer was found dead in the tribal agency.
Canada
The Canadian government served deportation papers to Mohamed Harkat, an Algerian who entered the country in 1995 on a forged Saudi passport. Harkat is accused of operating an al Qaeda guesthouse in Pakistan.
Norway
Mullah Krekar, the founder of the Iraqi terror group Ansar al Islam, is considering returning to northern Iraq after 20 years in exile in Norway. “Nothing would please us more,” said Norway’s foreign minister.
Pakistan
The Taliban killed two paramilitary troops and a civilian in an IED attack in Arakzai. President Zardari and Prime Minister Gilani authorized a “decisive operation” to take out those carrying out assassinations in Karachi.
Afghanistan
President Karzai agreed to allow the parliament to meet. The Taliban killed seven civilians in Ghazni, two ISAF soldiers in the east, and a policeman in Helmand. Security forces killed 20 Taliban fighters in Helmand, Khost, and Laghman, and detained several more in Ghazni, Zabul, and Logar.
Iraq
Muqtada al Sadr has again left Iraq and has returned to Qom, Iran, where he spent three years in exile. Security forces detained 28 wanted men in Diyala, and an Awakening leader and a fighter in Karbala.
Yemen
Thousands of protesters gathered at the University of Sanaa to call for the ouster of President Saleh. The government sent security forces to Shabwa province to battle 45 al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula fighters.
Shabaab
Somalia: Justice according to al Shabaab
Somalia
Twenty-two people were killed during fighting in Mogadishu and central Somalia. Malaysian commandos freed a ship and captured seven pirates. The state of Puntland blocked Somali government officials from visiting.
Tunisia
A group of students may form a Hezbollah-styled party. “The progressive example of Hezbollah in Lebanon can bring light and hope for the Tunisian people,” a student leader said.
Iran
The US and the European Union are “disappointed” over the latest round of failed nuclear talks with Iran. Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator said there is no need for direct talks with the US.
ISAF targets Quetta military shura leader in southern Afghanistan
The Taliban commander, who was not named, is “a current member” of the Quetta regional military shura and the former shadow governor of the Panjwai district.
Afghanistan
The Taliban killed nine civilians in IED attacks in Kandahar and Uruzgan. Security forces killed and captured dozens of Taliban fighters in Zabul, Kandahar, Helmand, and Laghman.
Somalia
Three people were killed in fighting in Mogadishu. Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, the former leader of the disbanded Hizbul Islam, urged Somalis not to accept “foreign food packages carrying messages aiming to Christianize our community.” UN funds to pay African Union and Somali troops are running low.
More on the death of Bekkay Harrach
Bekkay Harrach, who is also known as Al Hafidh Abu Talha al Almani, in an al Qaeda propaganda video. In the Comments section of the LWJ report on the death of al Qaeda/Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan leader Bekkay Harrach, some readers speculated that the IMU is being deliberately misleading about how he died (the IMU […]
Al Qaeda
In an audiotape sent to Al Jazeera, Osama bin Laden threatened to kill French hostages in Niger if France did not withdraw from Afghanistan. “President Nicolas Sarkozy’s refusal to remove his forces from Afghanistan is nothing but a green light for killing the French hostages,” he said.
Yemen
The government said 178 security personnel were killed and 872 were wounded in fighting against al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and the Southern Separatist Movement during 2010. Tarek al Fadhli, a former aide to Osama bin Laden, burned Yemeni and US flags to protest US airstrikes in the country.
Taliban deny Mullah Omar treated in Pakistani hospital
Mullah Mohammed Omar, the Amir al Mumineen (“commander of the faithful”) of the Afghan and Pakistani Taliban. The Taliban are categorically denying the recent report that Mullah Mohammed Omar, the leader of the Taliban, was hospitalized for a heart condition. Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban’s “spokesman,” calls the rumor a product of “the American State Department […]
Pakistan
The Taliban killed five Frontier Corps personnel and two civilians in an attack on a oil facility in Kohat; two engineers were kidnapped. Police arrested four sons of TNSM chief Sufi Mohammed.
Afghanistan
Afghanistan – UAVs keep eyes on troops
Afghanistan
The Taliban killed three civilians in Kandahar and an ISAF soldier in the south. Security forces killed and captured dozens of Taliban fighters in Zabul, Paktia, and Faryab. An Afghan soldier killed an Italian soldier. Ten Taliban fighters surrendered in Kunduz.