Malaysia
Police in Johor arrested Fadli Sadama, a courier for slain Jemaah Islamiyah and al Qaeda leader Noordin Mohammad Top. Sadama was believed to be plotting to attack an Indonesia prison.
Author Archives: Bill Roggio
Afghanistan
Coalition and Afghan forces killed and captured dozens of Taliban commanders and fighters in Kandahar, Helmand, Ghazni, Wardak, and Khost. The Taliban killed an ISAF soldier in an attack in the south. President Obama visited Kabul but did not meet President Karzai,
Pakistan
The US added Amanullah Afrid, the top leader of the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi; Matiur Rehman, LeJ’s operations chief; and Abdul Rauf Azhar, senior leader in Jaish-e-Mohammed, to its list of global terrorists. The Taliban killed a NATO truck driver and torched his truck in Mardan,
US designates Pakistan-based leaders of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, Jaish-e-Mohammed as terrorists
Amanullah Afrid, the top leader of the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi; Matiur Rehman, LeJ’s operations chief; and Abdul Rauf Azhar, senior leader in Jaish-e-Mohammed, have been added to the US’ list of terrorists.
Afghanistan
Coalition and Afghan forces killed and captured several Taliban commanders and fighters in Kandahar, Uruzgan, Helmand, and Ghazni. President Karzai said ISAF killed an innocent former local government official in Helmand. The Taliban killed two ISAF soldiers in attacks in the south and the east. A Dutch NGO worker and his Afghan driver kidnapped in […]
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Afghanistan and the culture of military leadership
Iraq
Security forces killed three terrorists and detained a Moroccan in Mosul, and arrested a senior al Qaeda leader in al-Furat al-Aswat and 17 wanted men in Kirkuk. The interior ministry claimed al Qaeda’s network in Anbar has been rolled up. Insurgents killed an Army officer in Jalawlaa and a civilian in Mosul.
Somalia
Twenty people were killed during fighting between Shabaab fighters and Somali and African Union troops in Mogadishu. Six Islamist commanders were among 15 people killed during clashes between Shabaab and Hizbul Islam forces in Burhakaba. Shabaab accused Somaliland of opening Christian schools.
Uganda
A Ugandan court acquitted 18 men accused of involvement in the July 2010 double suicide bombing in Kampala, which killed 74 people. Seventeen others have been remanded to custody for trial.
Yemen
The Yemeni government claimed WikiLeaks “is lying and publishing totally untrue documents.” Vice President Hadi insisted that the US only provides logistical and technical support to the Yemeni military.
Saudi Arabia
Former Gitmo detainee and al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula leader Mohammed al Awfi appeared on Saudi television and denounced al Qaeda. He also inferred that Yemeni security forces used al Qaeda to conduct attacks. “I have found there are those who … use the mujahid (holy fighter) as a political tool,” Awfi said.
Lebanon
The al Qaeda-linked Abdullah Azzam Brigades called on Sunnis in Lebanon to rise up against Hezbollah and accused the Lebanese Army of cooperating with the Shia terror group. The statement was made by Saleh bin Abdullah al Qaraawi, the group’s military commander, and released on the Internet.
Pakistan
Security forces killed two Taliban fighters in Swat. The Taliban torched a NATO fuel tanker in Khudzar. Prime Minister Gilani said the government made the decision to take action on North Waziristan, and the timing of an operation is in the Army’s hands.
US Special Forces teams deployed with Pakistani Army
Small teams have been secretly deployed to Pakistani military headquarters in the tribal areas to provide intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance support to units fighting the Taliban in Bajaur and in North and South Waziristan.
Al Qaeda in Iraq’s security minister captured in Anbar
Hazem Abdul Razzaq Al Zawi, the security minister of the Islamic State of Iraq, has disclosed the real names of al Qaeda’s top leaders in the country.
Afghanistan
Coalition and Afghan forces killed and captured scores of Taliban and Haqqani Network commanders and fighters in Kandahar, Helmand, Zabul, Khost, and Kunduz. Twelve of 16 deminers who were kidnapped in Nangarhar have been released.
Iraq
Insurgents killed two policemen in a bombing in Anbar and tortured and executed three young men kidnapped in in Balad. Security forces captured a car bomb maker in Mosul.
Somalia
Shabaab’s governor in Kismayo ordered the city’s men to wage jihad against Somali and African Union forces in Mogadishu. The UN Security Council approves the expansion of the number of African Union troops in Somalia from 8,000 to 12,000.
Spain
Police arrested seven Pakistanis in Barcelona and the surrounding area. The Pakistanis are thought to be members of a support cell linked to al Qaeda and the Lashkar-e-Taiba.
Pakistan
A suicide bomber killed a policeman and five civilians in Bannu. Three Taliban fighters blew themselves up after being surrounded by police in Buner. Police arrested four Taliban fighters in Karachi. A Jaish-e-Mohammed member was killed in Karachi.
Afghanistan
Coalition and Afghan forces killed and captured scores of Taliban and Haqqani Network commanders and fighters in Helmand, Kunar, Khost, Paktika, and Paktia. The Taliban killed an ISAF soldier in the east and captured nine security guards in Kabul. President Karzai has been pardoning hundreds of Taliban leaders and fighters.
Iraq
Insurgents killed a soldier and two civilians in attacks in Mosul, Baghdad, and Balad. Security forces detained 10 wanted men and discovered a bomb factory in Mosul.
Somalia
Fifteen more people were killed during clashes between Shabaab fighters and Somali and African Union forces in Mogadishu. Puntland blamed Shabaab for the assassination of a court official in Bosaso. A US court sentenced a Somali pirate to 30 years in prison.
Yemen
Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula fighters wounded two soldiers in an IED attack in Lauder. Houthi rebels established checkpoints to find AQAP fighters in the north. A court adjourned the trial of a journalist accused of working with AQAP.
Pakistan
The Taliban threatened to kill Hamid Saeed Kazmi, Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Religious Affairs, if he didn’t resign. Kazmi was the target of a suicide attack in September 2009. The Taliban kidnapped four truckers and torched three trucks in Mohmand.
ISAF targets another Iran-based commander in western Afghanistan
ISAF continues to target what is clearly a major al Qaeda and Qods Force-linked Taliban cell that operates in Farah province in western Afghanistan. From the latest ISAF press release: Afghan and coalition forces in Farah province detained several suspected insurgents as they targeted a Taliban leader during a joint security operation yesterday. The forces […]
Iraq
Security forces detained a senior Ansar al Sunnah leader in Kirkuk and 50 wanted men in Amarah. Insurgents killed two civilians in Baqubah and a railway employee in Anbar.
Afghanistan
A policeman killed six ISAF troops in the east. The Taliban killed two children in an IED attack in Kandahar. Security forces killed and captured several Taliban commanders and fighters in Kandahar, Farah, Khost, Paktia, Logar, and Wardak. Admiral Mullen said the US drawdown will begin in July 2011.
US targeted Zawahiri during past raids in Pakistan
Ayman al Zawahiri. The Associated Press reports on three US attempts to kill or capture Ayman al Zawahiri, al Qaeda’s second-in-command. All three near-misses took place in northwestern Pakistan: the first in the city of Peshawar in 2003, the second in the tribal agencies of South Waziristan in 2004, and the third in Bajaur in […]
Kyrgyzstan
A Kyrgyzstan special operations team killed four suspected members of a banned Islamist group during a raid in Osh. Three of the men, thought to belong to the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan or the Hizb-ut-Tahir, were shot, and the fourth detonated a hand grenade, killing himself.