Egypt
Egypt president to visit Iran, a first in decades
Search Results for: Iran
Afghanistan
Iranian Currency Flows Into Afghanistan Markets
Israel
Hezbollah’s leader warned Israel not to attack Lebanon or Iran, saying it could kill “tens of thousands” of Israelis with precision missiles. Iran’s President Ahmadinejad said there was no place for Israel in a future Middle East.
Israel
Israel said a possible war with Iran could last up to 30 days. US Defense Secretary Panetta said he did not believe an Israeli attack on Iran was imminent.
Syria
The US confirmed that Iranian “pilgrims” captured by rebels included active duty members of Iran’s Republican Guards. UN investigators concluded government forces were responsible for the massacre of civilians in Houla. Rebels claimed responsibility for a massive bomb blast in Damascus.
Germany
Police arrested four men suspected of violating the Iranian arms embargo by arranging to ship millions of dollars’ worth of nuclear equipment to Iran. One of the suspects is a German and the other three are German-Iranians. The identity of a fifth suspect has not yet been disclosed.
The rise of a ‘German Salafist colony’ in Egypt
Al Qaeda supporter Muhammad Mahmoud has recruited German and Austrian Salafists to set up a “colony” in Egypt.
United States
Secretary of Defense Panetta said Iran’s Revolutionary Guards are forming a militia in Syria to defend the Assad regime. The UK’s Standard Chartered bank will pay $340 billion to settle with New York State for laundering $250 billion in Iranian funds at the bank’s New York branch.
Azerbaijan
Why Azerbaijan is closer to Israel than Iran
‘Brigades of Osama bin Laden’ forms in the West Bank
The new jihadist group is the latest to spring up in the Palestinian Territories and the neighboring Egyptian Sinai.
Taliban suicide assault team kills 36 Afghans in western city
The attack took place in Zaranj, the provincial capital of Nimroz. The Taliban have launched several high-profile attacks in western Afghanistan this year.
Israel
Israeli’s deputy foreign minister called for the international community to declare that the diplomatic effort to halt Iran’s nuclear program was a failure. He also demanded an ultimatum be issued.
Iraq
“Gunmen” killed seven Shia as they were swimming in a lake in the village of Amerili near Tuz Khormato. Iraq has surpassed Iran to become the second largest OPEC oil producer.
United States
The New York State Department of Financial Services charged that the British bank Standard Chartered laundered $250 billion for the Iranian government between 2001 and 2010, using its New York branch as a front for the prohibited transactions. When the New York branch warned in 2006 of potential liability, the bank’s UK leadership responded that […]
‘Global jihadists’ overrun Egyptian Army outpost on Israeli border
More than 10 Egyptian soldiers were killed as an al Qaeda-linked terror group overran an outpost, seized two armored personnel carriers, and crossed into Israel. Israeli troops destroyed one of the APCs, and killed six terrorists. In a separate operation, the Israeli Air Force targeted a Mujahideen Shura Council “terrorist squad” that was plotting future attacks.
Syria
Fighting intensified in Aleppo and Damascus. Government forces numbering 20,000 massed around Aleppo and warned of a full-scale assault within days. Rebels abducted 47 Iranians visiting a Shiite shrine; the rebels said the men were members of the Iranian Republican Guard.
Hamas frees al Qaeda-linked jihadist leader in Gaza
Abu al Walid al Maqdisi, the leader of the Tawhid and Jihad Group in Jerusalem, was freed after more than a year in prison. His release was announced by Masada al Mujahideen, one of six major jihadist groups operating in Gaza.
Iraq
A court has blocked the extradition of Ali Mussa Daqduq, a senior Hezbollah operative who was transferred from US custody to Iraqi custody at the end of 2011. Daqduq helped Iran establish Shia terror groups in Iraq and was involved in the murder of five US soldiers in 2007.
Egypt requests release of al Qaeda explosives expert
The Egyptian government has requested the release of Tariq Mahmoud Ahmed al Sawah from Guantanamo. Al Sawah was a top al Qaeda explosives expert before his capture, and designed the prototype of the shoe bomb used by Richard Reid, as well as magnetized limpet mines. He was originally a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, and the leaked JTF-GTMO file for his case notes that the US government has been spying on the Brotherhood.
CNN interviews Mohamed al Zawahiri
CNN interviewed the brother of al Qaeda emir Ayman al Zawahiri. Mohamed al Zawahiri is just one of many known and suspected terrorists to be freed from Egyptian prisons since the fall of Hosni Mubarak’s regime.
United States
A federal magistrate judge in New York determined that al Qaeda, the Taliban, and Iran owe relatives of 9/11 victims $6 billion in payment of damages in a suit brought by the families of 47 victims. Shaker Masri, from Chicago, pled guilty to charges that he tried to join Shabaab.
Army of Islam fighter from Gaza killed in Syria
The Palestinian jihadist was detained for several years by Hamas in Gaza before leaving to fight with “his monotheist brothers” in Syria. Currently 7 jihadist groups are known to be operating in Syria.
NCTC director: ‘We remain at war with al Qaeda’
During testimony before the House Committee on Homeland Security on July 25, National Counterterrorism Center director Matthew Olsen provided his organization’s view of the ongoing fight against al Qaeda and its affiliates.
United States
The head of the National Security Agency and the US Cyber Command said computer attacks on US infrastructure increased 17 fold between 2009 and 2011. He assessed that the current level of preparedness for the increasing number of foreign cyberattacks on critical US infrastructure is 3 on a scale of 10. The Air Force said […]
Syria
Fighting intensified in Aleppo as both the rebels and the government massed their forces around the city. A senior defector from the Assad regime offered to unite opposition factions and provide a road map for the transfer of power. Iran said it would stand by its ally.
Al Qaeda in Iraq claims nationwide attacks that killed more than 100 Iraqis
The Islamic State of Iraq said the offensive was launched “in application of the directives of Sheikh Mujahid Abu Bakr al Baghdadi,” the terror group’s emir.
Slain Syrian official supported al Qaeda in Iraq
Assef Shawkat, a top Syrian official killed in a bomb blast last week, was a key ally of al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI). Leaked State Department cables show that General David Petraeus repeatedly warned of the collusion between Syrian officials, including Shawkat, and AQI’s top foreign fighter facilitator.
Bulgaria
Prime Minister Boyko Borisov said the team that carried out last week’s suicide bombing was “extremely experienced” and appeared to have arrived in Bulgaria a month before the attack. The European Union denied Israel’s request to list Hezbollah as a terrorist organization; Israel blames Iran and its proxy, Hezbollah, for the bombing.
Cyprus
A Lebanese Swede who is suspected of plotting attacks against Israeli interests was detained pending further investigation. Israel believes the suspect’s modus operandi is similar to that of the recent suicide bombing in Bulgaria that has been linked to Hezbollah and Iran.
Yemen
Several Iranian diplomats were reportedly deported for spying and providing support to al Qaeda. The commander of an air force brigade in Hadramout was wounded in an IED attack near his home.