Afghanistan
As Afghan War closes, allies see broader American pullback
Author Archives: Lisa Lundquist
United States
Congress cut the US military and development aid budget for Afghanistan for this year to $1.1 billion, down from last year’s $2.1 billion, in the wake of President Karzai’s refusal to sign a bilateral security agreement and reports of waste and fraud in Afghanistan. The Karzai government has released an inflammatory report making false claims […]
Cuba
The government enacted a law that allows authorities to freeze bank accounts of persons or entities linked to al Qaeda or the Taliban. The US considers Cuba a state sponsor of terrorism. In 2011, Spanish authorities arrested, but later released, Cuban national Jose Ernesto Feliu Mora a.k.a. Khalid Siyf Allahu Almaslul for suspected links to […]
Lebanon
The Marwan Hadid Brigades, an affiliate of the Abdullah Azzam Brigades, and the Al Nusrah Front in Lebanon fired several rockets from Syria into Hermel. Al Nusrah and the Abdullah Azzam Brigades issued a joint statement crediting the Marwan Hadid Brigades for the rocket attacks, and warned of further attacks in both Syria and Lebanon […]
Syria
The Assad regime and the Syrian opposition failed to reach any agreements in their first face-to-face meeting. Rebels and regime forces clashed south of Damascus, and the Al Nusrah Front and Islamic battalions battled regime forces in Deir Izzour. The Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham reportedly arrested a man in Raqqah city because […]
Libya
Five Egyptian diplomats were kidnapped in Tripoli, reportedly in retaliation for the arrest of Libyan Revolutionaries Operation Room head Shaaban Masoud Khalifa a.k.a. Abu Obaida Al-Zawy, who was detained last night in Alexandria, Egypt, on suspicion of links to al Qaeda. During a Benghazi special forces raid on a militant Islamist cell, four militants were […]
IAEA
UN nuclear chief: Long way to go on Iran nuclear deal
Russia
Vilayat Dagestan, a North Caucasus militant Islamist group that has claimed two recent bombings in Volgograd, issued a statement calling on Russians to “decapitate [the] hydra” of the Kremlin or face further attacks. Magomed Magomedov, a deputy in the Daghestani parliament, was arrested on charges of organizing a criminal group; his brother, Ruslan Magomedov, was […]
Philippines
The government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front signed the final part of the Annex on Normalization, a 2012 peace plan, setting the stage for an agreement that allows the rebels to establish an autonomous state of Bangsamoro on the island of Mindanao in exchange for decommissioning their weapons. Jun Jalal Akilan, a.k.a. Temeng, an […]
Hizb ut-Tahrir
Hundreds of Islamists rally against new Tunisia charter
India
India – Dead, jailed terrorists still CBI’s most wanted
Iran
Pakistan security concerns: Pilgrimage route suspended
Afghanistan
Afghanistan – Sharp rise in kidnappings worries Nangarharis
Afghanistan
US General Predicts More Violence in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
US Cuts Afghan Development Aid By Half
Iran
Foreign Minister Zarif urged all foreign fighters to leave Syria and called on foreign forces to stop “stop funneling funds, money and arms” into Syria. The UN’s nuclear watchdog agency asked for funds so it can nearly double the number of personnel working to verify Iran’s compliance with the recent agreement on its nuclear program.
Lebanon
Regional wave of Sunni extremism reaches Lebanon
Syria
The Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham has taken over Darkoush in Idlib after clashes with an Islamic battalion and rebels. Former Saudi intelligence chief Prince Turki al-Faisal said the US should get a resolution from the UN Security Council authorizing a force to stop the fighting in Syria, and that foreign Shiite fighters […]
Lebanon
The Al Nusrah Front in Lebanon, which claimed a suicide bombing in Beirut on Jan. 21, warned Sunnis in Lebanon to avoid areas where Hezbollah operates as the group’s bases will be targeted for attacks. Both the Army and Hezbollah set up checkpoints in Beirut after rumors surfaced that two suicide bombers were planning attacks […]
Qatar
State Dept. Learned in November of Photos Said to Show Torture in Syria
Iraq
UN Sounds Alarm as Iraqis Flee Violence
Libya
An armed group attacked the Sarir oil field with heavy weapons and cut the main power line that provides electricity from the Sarir power plant to Benghazi and other towns, including Kufra and Jalo. In Benghazi, two civilians were murdered and a businessman who had been kidnapped was found dead with marks of torture on […]
Mali
In an operation north of Timbuktu that involved aircraft and over 100 troops, French forces killed 11 suspected Islamist militants and seized large quantities of weapons and ammunition, as well as equipment, including mobile phones. The commander of Malian military forces in the region said al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb and the Movement for […]
Afghanistan
In lieu of Afghan security pact, NATO must remain flexible, defense chiefs say
United States
A three-year Pentagon study has found that US intelligence agencies are not sufficiently able to detect the development or proliferation of nuclear weapons by foreign powers. Defense Secretary Hagel ordered thorough reviews of the US nuclear force. The US is seeking to expand by 50% its 500-Marine Africa crisis response team based in Morón, Spain.
Al Qaeda
US Embassy plot reveals Israel’s growing Al Qaeda problem
Syria
Syria talks to proceed, but with limited agenda
Jordan
Arms smuggling attempt foiled on Jordanian-Syrian border
Syria
Al Qaeda emir Ayman al Zawahiri issued an audio statement urging jihadist groups in Syria to avoid “partisan fanaticism” and focus on their common enemies, to submit themselves to a shared sharia court with enforcement powers, and to feel free to name a leader for themselves. An opposition activist group claimed that 1,400 people have […]
Lebanon
Security forces killed Ibrahim Abdul-Moti Abu Muaileq, a Palestinian Abdullah Azzam Brigades operative known as Abu Jaafar, in a shootout after he tried to elude arrest at a checkpoint in the Bekaa valley. Muaileq was accused of coordinating with the emir of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham on the movement of suicide […]