Yemen
The Yemeni military said it killed Turki al Asiri, who was described as al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula’s emir for Lahj province, and captured another AQAP operative. The UN sanctioned former president Ali Saleh and two Houthi leaders.
Category Archives: Today In …
Somalia
A UN report stated that the killing of Shabaab leader Ahmed Godane will not end the group or its capabilities, and warned of pending attacks. The UAE has signed a military cooperation agreement to help train and equip the Somali Army.
Nigeria
At least 16 civilians and potentially “dozens of militants” were killed when Boko Haram attacked and eventually took Malam Fatori in northeast Nigeria; the group also killed two people and razed churches in Whitambaya village, also in Borno state. Boko Haram renamed the captured town of Gwoza to Darul Hikma (House of Wisdom). The governor […]
Libya
The US is considering sanctions on warring parties in Libya to discourage the conflict. The Libyan parliament has rejected the supreme court’s ruling dissolving it. Pro-government and Islamist forces continue to battle in Banghazi; a pro-government spokesman claims that Islamist militias “are now surrounded in the fish market and the port areas.”
Tunisia
A fifth Tunisian soldier died after the terrorist attack on a bus on Nov. 5. Caretaker president Moncef Marzouki declared a national day of mourning.
United States
The US military conducted airstrikes in Syria’s Idlib province near the Turkish border against the so-called Khorasan group, an al Qaeda cell within the Al Nusrah Front that “was plotting to attack in Europe or the homeland.” The five targets of the strikes included an Al Nusrah headquarters and an Ahrar al Sham compound. President […]
Iraq
The Iraqi military claimed it killed 105 Islamic State fighters during operations in Baiji, Baghdad, and Tikrit. The Islamic State killed six Awakening fighters north of Abu Ghraib.
Yemen
The US killed Shawki Ali Ahmed al Badani, a wanted al Qaeda operative involved in the US embassies plot in 2013, and Nabil al Dhahab, AQAP’s emir for Baydah, in a drone strike on Nov. 4. Tribesmen in Marib province bombed the main oil export pipeline.
Syria
The US widened airstrikes to target Ahrar al Sham and the Al Nusrah Front in Syria; highly-sought French bomb maker David Drugeon is reported to have been killed by a drone attack. Jihadists are using cruise lines to get to Syria. Iran is working to organize Shiite militias fighting in Syria. The Islamic State remains […]
Egypt
Four people were killed, including two policemen, and nine others were injured in a bomb attack by suspected jihadists on a train near Cairo. A bomb blast near the presidential palace wounded one person. Israel granted an Egyptian request to deploy two additional infantry battalions and attack helicopters to combat Islamist militants in the demilitarized […]
Nigeria
Over 2,000 prisoners have escaped jails in the country over the past five years, primarily as a result of jailbreaks conducted by Boko Haram. The jihadist group has renamed the recently captured town of Mubi as Madinatul Islam (City of Islam). Boko Haram raided a cement plant in northeastern Nigeria and stole truckloads of dynamite.
Somalia
The National Security and Intelligence Agency detained 82 terrorism suspects and seized a cache of weapons in Mogadishu on Nov. 5. Twenty-two of the suspects are believed to be members of Shabaab, according to a government spokesman.
Libya
Almost 400 people have been killed in the past three weeks of fighting in Benghazi, in Kikla near Tripoli and in southern Libya. New fighting between Islamists and pro-government forces in Benghazi killed 30 in the past three days. The El Sharara oil field was seized by an armed group. The Libyan supreme court declared […]
Tunisia
Suspected jihadist gunmen attacked a minibus ferrying Tunisian soldiers and their families near the northwest border with Algeria, killing four and wounding 11. Despite successful democratic elections, the country has a “problem with homegrown jihadism.”
Mali
Touareg rebel groups formed a joint military command in northern Mali. A spokesman stated that the aim is “to help secure Azawad against the various criminal, smuggling and terrorism gangs which destabilise the region.”
Norway
After the PST warned of an increased likelihood of terrorist attacks on police and military forces as well as political figures in Norway, security was stepped up. The PST said the Islamic State’s call for attacks on coalition countries must be viewed “in the context of changes to the modus operandi of extreme Islamist terror […]
New Zealand
Prime Minister Key said New Zealand will not send combat troops to the Middle East to fight the Islamic State, but that his country may send military trainers. New Zealand authorities are monitoring 30 to 40 extremists, of whom some have fought in Syria, some have been involved in terrorist financing, and some have had […]
United States
Fawzi al Odah, 37, a Kuwaiti man held at Guantanamo for nearly 13 years on suspicion of links to al Qaeda leaders, was released to Kuwait. Following the Republican Party’s taking control of the Senate as well as the House in yesterday’s election, President Obama said he will work with Congress to develop a new […]
Syria
Mortar rounds crashed into a school in the rebel-held town of Qaboun, killing at least 11 children. Some ethnic Kurds are aiding the Islamic State near Kobane, according to Kurdish officials. Islamic State fighters have vowed to continue fighting in Kobane, as the outcome of the battle remains uncertain. US strategy in Syria is in […]
United Kingdom
The Defence Ministry said UK military trainers will be deployed to Iraq to help Iraqi forces in the battle against the Islamic State. A passenger bus caught fire and exploded in south London; the cause has not been established. A Bangladeshi man arrested yesterday in Cornwall on suspicion of terrorism was released on bail.
Iraq
The Iraqi military said it killed 33 Islamic State fighters near Tikrit, Mosul, and Latafiyah. Iraqi intelligence captured an Islamic State judge and three aides in Ninewa. The Islamic State is reported to be advancing on the town of Kuwayr just south of Irbil.
Yemen
The US killed 20 al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula fighters in a drone strike in Radaa in Baydah province. The strike took place as AQAP is battling Iranian-supported Shia Houthi rebels. The US may place sanctions on former President Saleh and two Houthi leaders for fomenting unrest in Yemen.
United States
Representatives of the US, Britain, and France have asked the United Nations to add Ansar al Sharia in Libya to the global terrorist sanctions list. Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno said no further troop reductions in Europe are on the horizon. Irek Hamidullin, a Taliban commander who was captured in Afghanistan in 2009 […]
Egypt
Ansar Bayt al Maqdis, a Sinai-based jihadist group, has sworn allegiance to the Islamic State. Egypt is investigating 600 citizens who traveled to Iraq and Syria for connections to the Islamic State. Egyptian officials are discussing an agreement with Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the UAE to combat regional jihadist groups.
Tunisia
The country’s presidential campaign began on Nov. 1 in the wake of the secularists’ victory in parliamentary elections. Tunisia has been labeled the largest source of manpower for jihadist groups in Iraq and Syria.
Libya
Dozens of residents have fled, a ship was damaged, and at least 13 people were killed as fighting between Islamist militias and pro-government forces in Benghazi continued near the city’s port. A Libyan National Army airstrike targeting an Islamist convoy heading to Benghazi from Sirte killed an unknown number of militants and destroyed “weapons and […]
Nigeria
A suicide bomber targeting an Ashoura procession of Shiites killed at least 29 people in northeast Yobe state. In central Kogi state, 132 inmates are at large after militants blew their way into the prison with explosives; one inmate died, eight were recaptured, and four surrendered. Boko Haram is suspected in both attacks. Upcoming elections […]
United Kingdom
A Bangladeshi man was arrested in Cornwall on suspicion of Syria-related terrorist activity. The head of Britain’s GCHQ warned that US-based Internet services “have become the command-and-control networks of choice for terrorists and criminals,” and said the GCHQ, MI5, and the Secret Intelligence Service will need more cooperation from the private sector. A government audit […]
Philippines
President Aquino urged the armed forces to crush the extremist group Abu Sayyaf and bring its members to justice; he estimated that the group consists of 200 members and at least 200 additional followers. Abu Sayyaf fighters ambushed Philippine troops who were guarding a road project yesterday in Basilan, killing six of them and reportedly […]
United States
Prosecutors revealed that Mohammed Hamzah Khan, 19, of suburban Chicago, had tried to take his 17-year-old sister and his 16-year-old brother with him to join the Islamic State in the Middle East. The head of US forces in Europe said more rotational troops are needed to address security challenges in Eastern Europe. The US is […]