The US Treasury Department and several Gulf States announced today that eight jihadists in Yemen have been designated as terrorists. The newly-sanctioned terrorists serve either the Islamic State’s Yemeni branch, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, or both.
Omar Khalid Khurasani, who was reported to have died on Oct. 19 after a US drone strike, is alive. However, he confirmed the death of Khalifa Umar Mansour, the group’s military leader who was killed in a US airstrike back in Afghanistan in July 2016.
Afghan forces suffered 97 percent casualties during the suicide assault. The attack is the latest in the southern province, where the Taliban has stepped up its attacks on Afghan military outposts.
Taliban suicide teams hit the police headquarters and a training center in the provincial capital of Gardez City. Twenty-two policemen and 20 civilians were killed and scores more were wounded.
The strike took place just days after Pakistan freed two westerners and their children from Taliban custody in the same tribal agency.
The commander, who went by the alias Abu “Khalid,” or Shahid Showkat, was highly sought by Indian security forces for his role in orchestrating attacks targeting Indian military positions and personnel.
In a new message, Ayman al Zawahiri holds up the Taliban-al Qaeda relationship as a model for jihadists around the globe. He also critiques the jihadists and Islamists in Egypt and Syria who think they can “deceive” America and achieve power by placating the US.
Mattis and Dunford placed all of the blame for Pakistan’s support of terrorist groups on the ISI, and essentially absolved Pakistan’s government and the military of any responsibility for incubating and supporting regional and global jihadist organizations.
US Africa Command launched airstrikes against the Islamic State in Libya for the first time in eight months. AFRICOM also revealed to FDD’s Long War Journal that an estimated 800 to 900 Islamic State fighters were killed during Operation Odyssey Lightning’s air campaign in Sirte last year.
Pakistani Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif accused the United States of creating jihadist groups such as the Haqqani Network and Lashkar-e-Taiba, and supporting them to this day.
As the United States enters a new phase of its war in Afghanistan, FDD’s Long War Journal presents a renewed assessment of the Taliban’s strength and disposition, with new interactive features.
The US military has stepped up its campaign against AQAP, but has not been forthcoming about its targeting of the group as it has in Somalia.
The US is likely to step up drone strikes in Pakistan after President Trump accused Pakistan of harboring and supporting jihadist groups last month.
In a new message, Hamza bin Laden praises the jihadists fighting to establish an “Islamic government” in Syria. But he warns that their enemies seek to “divide” their “ranks.”
AFRICOM has stepped up operations against al Qaeda’s branch in East Africa. The US military has now targeted Shabaab forces five times and killed 10 fighters over the past week.
The US military has stepped up its attacks on al Qaeda’s branch in East Africa after the jihadist outfit has regained ground over the past two years. AFRICOM has targeted Shabaab 10 times since the beginning of June.
The blow comes just two weeks after President Trump called out Pakistan for providing “safe haven” for terrorist groups operating in the region and advocated for closer ties with India.
On Aug. 31, Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind’s leader, Zakir Musa, released an audio message in which he criticized the Pakistani government for supposedly betraying the jihad in Kashmir. Musa’s critique is consistent with al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent’s “code of conduct.”
The Taliban released a statement attributed to its emir, Hibatullah Akhundzada, who says that “peace” is only possible if the “occupation” is ended. The statement is entirely self-serving and contains absurd claims. For example, Akhundzada writes that the Taliban wants a “free, independent and progressive Afghanistan,” which is completely inconsistent with the group’s ideology and history.
For decades the country has permitted a number of jihadist groups to openly operate under its aegis. A map highlights the more prominent groups openly operating inside Pakistan.
Pakistan’s denial of harboring terrorist groups that conduct attacks outside of its borders falls flat on its face when looking at Lashkar-e-Taiba, which not only supports al Qaeda and the Taliban, but has executed numerous attacks inside of Pakistan’s neighbor and enemy, India, as well as in Afghanistan.
Taliban spokesman Zahibullah Mujahid denounced Trump’s decision to remain engaged in Afghanistan and said that Taliban fighters will “sustain our Jihad.” Additionally he repeated the canard that the Taliban does not pose a threat to foreign countries.
With words unprecedented for a US president, Trump called out Pakistan for harboring and supporting terrorist groups that target and kill US citizens and said there would be a radical change in policy toward the South Asian nation. Trump indicated the US would work to increase ties with India, Pakistan’s neighbor and greatest enemy, a move sure to both enrage as well as frighten Pakistani elites.
A complete US withdrawal from Afghanistan would have been disastrous. The US government needs to drastically reassess America’s jihadist enemies and avoid the policy pitfalls of the past.
The Taliban, which continues to make inroads in Kandahar province, released a video flaunting a bounty of weapons, ammunition and military equipment after it overran bases and outposts in Khakrez and Shah Wali Kot.
US Africa Command (AFRICOM) announced three more strikes on Shabaab, al Qaeda’s branch in Somalia and East Africa, over the past two days. All three took place in Shabaab-held territory.
The brief designation omitted Hizbul Mujahideen’s support for al Qaeda in the past, as well as its relations with other jihadist groups in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and India, such as Lashkar-e-Taiba. Hizbul Mujahideen’s emir was officially listed as a global terrorist in June 2017.
The Taliban has released an “open letter” to President Trump urging him to “adopt the strategy of a complete withdrawal from Afghanistan instead of a troops increase.” The propaganda letter contains several erroneous or misleading claims. It is also disingenuous with respect to the jihadist threat emanating out of Afghanistan.
US Africa Command launched two “kinetic strikes” against Shabaab, al Qaeda’s branch in Somalia and East Africa, today. The US military has targeted Shabaab three times over the past two weeks.
Jani Khel in Paktia province has changed hands three times over the past two weeks. The loss of Jani Khel to the Taliban demonstrates the difficulties Afghan forces face in holding onto remote contested districts.