https://www.voanews.com/z/4885 Extremism Watch https://www.voanews.com/Content/responsive/VOA/en-US/img/logo.png https://www.voanews.com/z/4885 en 2026 - VOA 60 Fri, 10 Apr 2026 17:10:10 -0400 Pangea CMS – VOA WASHINGTON — Security forces in Somalia say they killed all six attackers who laid siege to a hotel in the central town of Beledweyne and later killed at least 50 al-Shabab militants in airstrikes. Speaking to reporters, Beledweyne District Commissioner Omar Osman Alasow confirmed that the hotel siege ended early Wednesday. “Our security forces successfully got rid of six militants who attacked a hotel where traditional elders and security officials were meeting,” he said. Al-Shabab, a U.S.-designated terrorist group, claimed responsibility for the hotel attack on Tuesday. Alasow said the government soldiers backed by African Union troops worked through the night to rescue elders, military officers and civilians trapped inside the hotel. “During 18 hours of siege, our brave soldiers shot dead two militants, and four of them desperately blew themselves up when they realized that they could not escape,” he said. “Seven other people, including government security officials and two prominent traditional elders, were killed.” Since August 2022, when Somalian President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud called for a “total war” against al-Shabab, Beledweyne, a town near Somalia’s border with Ethiopia in Hirshabelle state, about 300 kilometers north of Mogadishu, has been the center of a local community mobilization against al-Shabab. The city has suffered more terrorist attacks than any other in Somalia except Mogadishu. Since 2009, hundreds of people have been killed in suicide attacks and car bombs on hotels, restaurants and government bases. The single biggest attack, in 2009, killed at least 25 people and injured 60 others. Airstrikes kill 50 militants Hours after ending this week’s hotel siege, Somalia’s National Intelligence and Security Agency, or NISA, said the country’s security forces killed dozens of al-Shabab members elsewhere in Hirshabelle. “Coordinated airstrikes by the Somali army and international partners in the Middle Shabelle region have killed at least 50 al-Shabab militants, including senior leader in charge of the coordination of the group’s combat vehicles,” the NISA statement said. NISA said the airstrikes targeted the Damasha and Shabeelow areas and killed Mansoor Tima-Weeyne, a senior al-Shabab leader who masterminded the preparation and use of combat vehicles for terrorist attacks. In a separate statement, the Somali Military Command said, “The operation was a significant blow to the group's combat capabilities and part of ongoing efforts to weaken terrorism in the region.” Media outlets closed On another counterterrorism front, NISA said Wednesday that it closed 12 media outlets and websites linked to the Khawarij, a derogatory term referring to al-Shabab that loosely translates as “those who deviate from the Islamic faith.” This latest announcement followed another crackdown on over 30 al-Shabab-related websites. “The operation targeted platforms spreading extremist ideologies, inciting violence, and disseminating false information. During the operation the government seized critical data and identified individuals involved,” said a statement posted by the government’s National News Agency. This story originated in VOA's Somali Service. https://www.voanews.com/a/somali-forces-kill-50-militants-in-airstrikes-after-ending-hotel-siege/8008152.html https://www.voanews.com/a/somali-forces-kill-50-militants-in-airstrikes-after-ending-hotel-siege/8008152.html Wed, 12 Mar 2025 11:42:56 -0400 AfricaExtremism Watchwebdesk@voanews.com (Mohamed Olad Hassan) PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI — Haiti is facing a "humanitarian catastrophe" as it reels from a surge in violence that is forcing people from their homes and pushing overstretched health facilities to the brink, Doctors Without Borders said Thursday. The crisis-torn Caribbean nation has seen new unrest in recent weeks as gangs battle police for territory, leading United Nations agencies and humanitarian groups to warn last month of a "wave of extreme brutality" sweeping the country. The fighting has left civilians trapped in the crossfire, overwhelmed hospitals and raised fears of a new cholera epidemic in a nation devastated by the disease in the 2010s, said Doctors Without Borders, which is also known by its French initialism, RSF. Last week, the medical aid group's teams treated 90 victims of violence — double the usual number — at its emergency center in the Turgeau neighborhood of the capital, Port-au-Prince, it said. Haiti, the poorest nation in the Americas, was plunged into fresh unrest last year when gangs launched coordinated attacks in Port-au-Prince to force then-Prime Minister Ariel Henry to resign. The interim government and a Kenya-led U.N. force have struggled to restore order. Armed groups control 85% of the capital, according to UNICEF. With an estimated 1 million people forced from their homes by violence, there are fears of disease outbreaks in makeshift camps for the displaced. "The scale of this crisis far exceeds what MSF can respond to alone," the group's mission chief in Haiti, Christophe Garnier, said in a statement. With the rainy season approaching, sanitation conditions are worsening, MSF said. "Without urgent action, the situation will turn into a humanitarian catastrophe," said Garnier. https://www.voanews.com/a/racked-by-violence-haiti-faces-humanitarian-catastrophe-aid-group-says/8001329.html https://www.voanews.com/a/racked-by-violence-haiti-faces-humanitarian-catastrophe-aid-group-says/8001329.html Thu, 06 Mar 2025 13:13:33 -0500 AmericasExtremism Watchwebdesk@voanews.com (Agence France-Presse) WASHINGTON — One month ago, on the morning of Feb. 4, forces from Somalia’s Puntland region attacked Islamic State terror group fighters, who responded with drones, suicide attacks and infantry charges. Regional officials said 15 soldiers were killed in the fighting near the village of Qurac. But hours later, the terrorist fighters were forced to vacate their positions, leaving behind at least 57 of their dead. The following week, the Islamic State, also known as IS, ISIS or Daesh, carried out a major counterattack, sending multiple suicide bombers and a wave of fighters against Somali forces in the Togjaceel valley, in Puntland’s Cal Miskaad mountains. Regional officials say the gun battle resulted in some 100 fatalities — 28 soldiers and more than 70 militants. But again, IS fighters had to retreat, and soon lost three bases to the Puntland forces. The battles are part of a recent offensive against Islamic State fighters holed up in the mountains of semi-autonomous Puntland. Observers say the success, while most certainly welcome, came somewhat as a surprise. Military commanders had expected that as they got closer to the area’s main IS strongholds of Shebaab, Dhaadaar and Dhasaan, that the terror group would fight hard and launch frequent counterattacks. But that has not been the case. The Puntland forces have been capturing caves and small villages one after the other, and they have routed IS from the strategic 40-kilometer-long Togjaceel Valley, from Turmasaale to Dhasaan. Somali officials told VOA it appears that the IS fighters, rather than trying to hold their positions, have fled, breaking into three groups, all headed in different directions. About 100 IS fighters, along with some family members, have sought to escape to Karinka Qandala, another mountainous area to the north of the group’s former stronghold in the Togjaceel Valley. Two larger groups fled to Tog Miraale and Tog Curaar, to the west and northwest. The group that went northwest, according to officials, was hit by airstrikes in the vicinity of Miraale Village. “Intelligence assessments indicate a high likelihood of attempts to establish new safe havens following their retreat,” according to Brigadier General Ahmed Abdullahi Sheikh, the former commander of Somalia’s U.S.-trained Danab forces. “The offensive, though appearing conventional, has consistently involved guerilla tactics,” said Sheikh, who has been closely following the offensive in his home region. “The Togjaceel Valley defeat will likely drive ISIS to intensify asymmetric warfare, launching an attempt on irregular campaign against Puntland.” Sheikh said he believes Puntland’s counterterrorism force has the numbers and the resources to carry out a protracted conflict with IS. The United Arab Emirates has been providing air support, including airstrikes against the militants. The United States also carried out two rounds of airstrikes targeting IS last month. The U.S. strikes are thought to have killed 16 militants, including Ahmed Maeleninine, described by U.S. officials as a “recruiter, financier and external operations leader responsible for the deployment of jihadists into the United States and across Europe.” The Pentagon declined comment when asked about the apparent IS retreat. But a U.S. defense official, speaking on the condition of anonymity in order to discuss an ongoing operation, indicated Washington is prepared to potentially lend additional help. “The Department remains committed to supporting our partners in our shared efforts to disrupt, degrade and defeat terrorist organizations in the Horn of Africa,” the official told VOA. Other observers said the “persistent” pressure by the Somali forces, along with help from the U.S. and UAE, appears to be paying off. “Indications [are] that the Puntland forces are making real progress against ISIS in Somalia’s hideouts,” a former senior Western counterterrorism official told VOA, requesting anonymity to discuss the ongoing developments. “The question is whether they [the Puntland forces] will be able to continue to hold the captured hideouts, or whether ISIS will be able to return in the coming weeks and months,” the official said. If the Somali forces are able to hold the captured territory, though, the damage to the terror group could extend well beyond Somalia’s borders. “Given the central role of the al-Karrar office in financing the wider ISIS network, there could be some knock-on impact,” said the former Western counterterrorism official. Al-Karrar is one of nine regional Islamic State offices established to help sustain the terror group’s capabilities. Since 2022, the office has been a key cog in the terror group’s financial network, funneling money to affiliates in Afghanistan and elsewhere in Africa. Concerns, however, remain. Regional security analysts warn IS could regroup if Puntland’s counterterrorism forces are unable to maintain their pursuit. “Their mobile special forces have been the pointed end of the spear,” said Samira Gaid, a Horn of Africa security analyst. “For the moment, it appears that the Puntland forces are committed and well resourced,” she told VOA. “However, much will depend on the Puntland forces then securing and manning the territories it will liberate to ensure the group does not make a comeback.” As for IS, the terror group is “attempting to melt into the population, though this is difficult,” said Gaid. “It’s the natural progression when faced by a force that is superior.” The tactic also may have bought IS time to hide some of its most prominent and most important leaders. Somali forces have found no trace of Abdul Qadir Mumin, thought to lead not just IS-Somalia but the entire IS terror operation. IS-Somalia operational commander Abdirahman Fahiye Isse and IS-Somalia finance chief Abdiweli Mohamed Yusuf are also in hiding. Somali officials have nonetheless appealed to them, and to Fahiye in particular, to surrender. “The people whom you think will give you a sanctuary are guiding the army,” Puntland military commander General Adan Abdihashi said after capturing Mumin’s headquarters on March 1. “Don’t put young people in harm’s way,” Abdihashi said. “I swear to God, you will get the punishment you deserve.” Said Abdullahi Deni, Puntland region’s leader, has also offered IS members in Somalia, including women and children, a chance to surrender and for foreign fighters to possibly even return to their countries of origin. “They [IS] envisioned it as a place where they cannot be seen, strategically a tough place, and gives them access to the Indian Ocean and Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Gulf,” he said. But he has warned Puntland’s forces are prepared to hunt and eliminate remnants of the terror group “until all terrorists, their movement and their bases are eliminated.” Various estimates from Somali and Western counterterrorism officials put the number of IS fighters in Somalia at up to 1,600, bolstered by an influx of fighters from Ethiopia, Morocco, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania and Yemen. Experts such as Samira Gaid said IS-Somalia’s growing numbers combined with the difficult terrain in Puntland’s mountains may have led to overconfidence. “The miscalculation to face the Puntland forces seemed to have been their folly,” she said, adding that about 500 IS fighters have been killed in the recent fighting. IS-Somalia has suffered “grave losses,” Gaid said, “and will most likely not be recovering in the short to medium term.” This story is a collaboration between VOA’s Africa Division and the News Center. https://www.voanews.com/a/islamic-state-in-retreat-after-offensive-in-somalia-puntland/7999111.html https://www.voanews.com/a/islamic-state-in-retreat-after-offensive-in-somalia-puntland/7999111.html Wed, 05 Mar 2025 15:06:59 -0500 AfricaUSAExtremism Watchwebdesk@voanews.com (Harun Maruf, Jeff Seldin) WASHINGTON — The United States imposed sanctions on Wednesday on seven senior members of Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement, the Treasury Department said. The men smuggled military-grade items and weapon systems into Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen and negotiated buying weapons from Russia, the Treasury Department said in a statement. It also designated Abdulwali Abdoh Hasan Al-Jabri and his company Al-Jabri General Trading and Investment Company for recruiting Yemenis to fight in Ukraine on behalf of Russia and raising money to support Houthi military operations. “The U.S. government is committed to holding the Houthis accountable for acquiring weapons and weapons components from suppliers in Russia, China and Iran to threaten Red Sea security,” State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said in a statement. On Tuesday, the State Department said it was implementing the designation of the Houthi movement as a “foreign terrorist organization” after President Donald Trump called for the move earlier this year. The move, however, triggered concerns it could affect regional security and worsen Yemen's humanitarian crisis because importers fear being hit with U.S. sanctions if supplies fall into Houthi hands. https://www.voanews.com/a/us-issues-new-houthi-related-sanctions/7998778.html https://www.voanews.com/a/us-issues-new-houthi-related-sanctions/7998778.html Wed, 05 Mar 2025 11:36:12 -0500 Middle EastUSAExtremism Watchwebdesk@voanews.com (Reuters) ISLAMABAD   — Five soldiers and at least 13 civilians, including women and children, were killed in a twin suicide bombing Tuesday that targeted a military compound in northwestern Pakistan, according to the military.    The attack in Bannu district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province injured at least 32 others, the military’s media wing, Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR), said in a statement Wednesday.  “The assailants sought to breach the cantonment’s security,” the ISPR said. “The attackers rammed two explosive-laden vehicles into the perimeter wall,” after the security forces responded to the intrusion.  The military said five soldiers died in the ensuing gun battle that killed 12 militants. Four suicide bombers were also killed.  Most of the civilian casualties occurred as buildings, including a mosque and a residential compound, collapsed with the force of the blasts.  “The multiple suicide blasts resulted in the partial collapse of the perimeter wall, causing damage to the adjacent infrastructure,” ISPR said.  The Associated Press reported that a relatively lesser-known militant group, Jaish Al-Fursan, claimed responsibility for the attack.   The military said Afghan nationals were involved in the attack. It said ring leaders of the Khawarij, an Arabic term the military uses to describe fighters of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Taliban, planned and executed the attack from Afghanistan.  The U.S. and U.N. both list Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan as a terrorist organization.  The military again urged the Afghan Taliban to take action against anti-Pakistan militants.  “Pakistan expects the Interim Afghan government to uphold its responsibilities and deny its soil for terrorist activities against Pakistan,” ISPR said.  The Afghan Taliban deny providing sanctuary to regional militants.    Militants have targeted Bannu several times. Last November, a suicide car bomb killed 12 troops and wounded several others at a security post.  In July, a suicide bomber detonated his explosives-laden vehicle and other militants opened fire near the outer wall of the military facility.   Pakistan has seen a surge in militant attacks in recent years with the proscribed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and its affiliates frequently targeting security personnel in the northwestern province.   The country also saw a sharp increase in civilian casualties from militant violence in February 2025, according to the Islamabad-based Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies, or PICSS.   At least 55 civilians and 47 security personnel died in 79 militant attacks across the country. At least 44 of those attacks occurred in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.    February marked the first month since August 2024 when civilian fatalities surpassed those of security forces, PICSS reported.   At least 156 militants were killed last month in security operations.    Close to 1,200 people, including almost 1,000 civilians and security personnel, were killed in militant attacks across Pakistan in 2024 — a 40% increase in militant attacks compared to 2023, according to data compiled by the think tank.   The Associated Press provided some information for this report. https://www.voanews.com/a/suicide-bombings-at-pakistan-military-base-kill-at-least-9/7997305.html https://www.voanews.com/a/suicide-bombings-at-pakistan-military-base-kill-at-least-9/7997305.html Tue, 04 Mar 2025 13:50:02 -0500 South & Central AsiaExtremism Watchwebdesk@voanews.com (Sarah Zaman) WASHINGTON — The U.S. State Department on Tuesday reinstated the "foreign terrorist organization" designation for Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi group, fulfilling an order announced by President Donald Trump shortly after he took office. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the department had restored the designation, which carries with it sanctions and penalties for anyone providing "material support" for the group. "Since 2023, the Houthis have launched hundreds of attacks against commercial vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, as well as U.S. service members defending freedom of navigation and our regional partners," Rubio said in a statement. "Most recently, the Houthis spared Chinese-flagged ships while targeting American and allied vessels." The Houthis have targeted more than 100 merchant vessels in the critical trade corridor with missiles and drones since the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip started in October 2023. In January, the group signaled that it would limit its attacks in the Red Sea corridor to only Israeli-affiliated ships after a ceasefire began in the Gaza Strip but warned that wider assaults could resume if needed. Trump's first Republican administration had similarly designated the Houthis in its waning days, but the designation had been revoked by President Joe Biden's Democratic administration over concerns it would badly affect the delivery of aid to Yemen, which was facing one of the world's worst humanitarian crises. The United Nations said last month that it suspended its humanitarian operations in the stronghold of Yemen's Houthi rebels after they detained eight more U.N. staffers. The rebels in recent months have detained dozens of U.N. staffers, as well as people associated with aid groups, civil society and the once-open U.S. Embassy in Sanaa, Yemen's capital. None of the U.N. staffers have been released. The Iranian-backed Houthis have been fighting Yemen's internationally recognized government, which is backed by a Saudi-led coalition, since 2014, when they descended from their stronghold in Saada and took control of Sanaa and most of the north. https://www.voanews.com/a/trump-administration-again-labels-houthis-terrorist-organization-/7997241.html https://www.voanews.com/a/trump-administration-again-labels-houthis-terrorist-organization-/7997241.html Tue, 04 Mar 2025 11:15:15 -0500 Middle EastUSAExtremism WatchIranwebdesk@voanews.com (Associated Press) JERUSALEM — Israel's defense ministry said Saturday the military has been instructed to prepare to defend a Druze settlement in the suburbs of Damascus, asserting that the minority it has vowed to protect was "under attack" by Syrian forces.  The statement, citing an order from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz, follows an Israeli warning last weekend that the forces of neighboring Syria's new government and the insurgent group that led last year's ouster of former President Bashar al-Assad should not enter the area south of Damascus.  Saturday's statement indicates that Israeli forces could push farther into Syria as its new authorities try to consolidate control after more than a decade of civil war. Israeli forces recently set up posts in a buffer zone and on strategic Mount Hermon nearby. There have been no major clashes between Israeli troops and Syria's new forces.  "We will not allow the terrorist regime of radical Islam in Syria to harm the Druze. If the regime harms the Druze, it will be harmed by us," the statement said.  There was no immediate response from Syria's government.  The Druze are a religious minority who live in southern Syria and in Israel's Golan Heights, where they navigate their historically Syrian identity while living under Israeli rule.  Israel's statement followed the outbreak of unrest Friday in the Druze settlement of Jaramana, when a member of the security forces entered and started shooting in the air, leading to an exchange of fire with local gunmen that left him dead.  On Saturday, gunmen came from the Damascus suburb of Mleiha to Jaramana, where they clashed with Druze gunmen. That left one Druze fighter dead and nine other people wounded, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor.  The Israeli warning last Sunday to Syrian forces and Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the main former rebel group, made clear that Israeli forces would stay in parts of southern Syria for an indefinite period.  "We demand the complete demilitarization of southern Syria in the provinces of Quneitra, Daraa and Sweida from the forces of the new regime," that earlier statement said. "Likewise, we will not tolerate any threat to the Druze community in southern Syria."  After the fall of Assad in December, Israel seized the U.N.-patrolled buffer zone on Syrian territory. The zone was set up under a 1974 ceasefire agreement. Syria's new authorities and U.N. officials have called for Israel to withdraw.  Meanwhile, Netanyahu's government has been under pressure to protect Israelis living near border areas in the north as it tries to return residents of the north to their homes.  https://www.voanews.com/a/israel-s-military-prepares-to-defend-druze-community-near-damascus-/7993854.html https://www.voanews.com/a/israel-s-military-prepares-to-defend-druze-community-near-damascus-/7993854.html Sat, 01 Mar 2025 18:13:13 -0500 Middle EastExtremism Watchwebdesk@voanews.com (Associated Press) WASHINGTON — The U.S. Army said Saturday it had killed a top military leader of Hurras al-Din, a Syrian branch of Al-Qaida that announced its dissolution in January. The U.S. Central Command, or CENTCOM, which oversees American forces in the Middle East, said in a statement that its forces on Feb. 23 "conducted a precision airstrike in Northwest Syria, targeting and killing Muhammed Yusuf Ziya Talay, the senior military leader of the terrorist organization Hurras al-Din." "As we have said in the past, we will continue to relentlessly pursue these terrorists in order to defend our homeland, and U.S., allied, and partner personnel in the region," said General Michael Erik Kurilla, CENTCOM commander. Since Hurras al-Din announced in late January that it was dissolving itself, U.S. airstrikes have killed several of the group's leaders, according to CENTCOM. On Feb. 22, it said a "precision airstrike" had killed Wasim Tahsin Bayraqdar, a leader of the group, which the U.S. classifies as a terrorist organization. American forces are in Syria as part of an international coalition created in 2014 to fight the jihadis of the Islamic State group. After a rebel alliance led by radical Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham toppled President Bashar al-Assad and took power in Damascus on Dec. 8, Hurras al-Din said it no longer needed to exist. The group, including foreign jihadis, was based in mountainous northwestern Syria. Some information in this report is from Reuters. https://www.voanews.com/a/us-says-it-killed-military-leader-of-syrian-al-qaida-affiliate/7993770.html https://www.voanews.com/a/us-says-it-killed-military-leader-of-syrian-al-qaida-affiliate/7993770.html Sat, 01 Mar 2025 13:51:57 -0500 Middle EastUSAExtremism Watchwebdesk@voanews.com (Agence France-Presse) BUKAVU, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO — At least 11 people were killed and scores injured Thursday when explosions in the eastern Congo city of Bukavu struck a rally held by leaders of the M23 rebel group, which took control of the city earlier this month. Rebel leaders blamed the bombing on the Democratic Republic of Congo's government and said attackers were among those killed in the blasts, with conflicting reports among rebels and local officials about the number of attackers and victims. Congo’s president blamed the attack on unspecified “foreign” forces. “The attack caused 11 deaths and verifications are underway. The author of the attack is among the victims,” said Corneille Nangaa, leader of the Congo River Alliance, or AFC, which includes the M23. “There are 65 injured, six of whom are seriously injured and are currently being treated in the operating room.” He told reporters that “following today’s unfortunate incident, we are obliged to react.” Leaders of the M23 rebel group, including Nangaa, were meeting residents when the explosions occurred in the central part of Bukavu. Video and photos shared on social media showed a crowd fleeing the mass rally in Bukavu and bloodied bodies on the ground. M23 accused the Congolese authorities of orchestrating the attack. “We are accusing and condemning vigorously the criminal regime of Kinshasa, which … just implemented its plan of exterminating civilian populations,” AFC said in a statement. “This attack caused several deaths, including a few terrorists from Kinshasa and some injured. Two of them were immediately apprehended by our services. “This cowardly and barbaric act will not be without consequences,” it said. ‘Change and development’ President Felix Tshisekedi called the attack “a heinous terrorist act that was perpetrated by a foreign army illegally present on Congolese soil.” The rebels are supported by about 4,000 troops from neighboring Rwanda, according to U.N. experts, and at times have vowed to march as far as Congo’s capital, Kinshasa, over 1,600 kilometers away. Jean Samy, deputy president of the civil society Forces Vives of South Kivu, told The Associated Press that the attack was “a sabotage.” “Until now, we do not know where these grenades came from," he said by phone. “We have already recorded more than 13 deaths and serious injuries who will have to have their hands and legs amputated. The perpetrators of this act are still unknown.” Nangaa was among leaders leaving the podium when two blasts rocked the scene, according to a journalist present at the rally. Nangaa had earlier told the rally that M23 was bringing “change and development” to their city. Three-week offensive Rwandan-backed M23 rebels have swept through the region seizing key cities and killing some 3,000 people in the most significant escalation of conflict in over a decade.  In a lightning three-week offensive, the M23 took control of eastern Congo’s main city, Goma, and seized the second-largest city, Bukavu. The region is rich in gold and coltan, a key mineral for the production of capacitors used in most consumer electronics such as laptops and smartphones. Rwanda has accused Congo of enlisting ethnic Hutu fighters responsible for the 1994 genocide in Rwanda of minority Tutsis and moderate Hutus. M23 says it is fighting to protect Tutsis and Congolese of Rwandan origin from discrimination and wants to transform Congo from a failed state to a modern one. Analysts have called those pretexts for Rwanda’s involvement. https://www.voanews.com/a/at-least-11-dead-in-drc-after-blasts-at-m23-rally-rebels-say/7990556.html https://www.voanews.com/a/at-least-11-dead-in-drc-after-blasts-at-m23-rally-rebels-say/7990556.html Thu, 27 Feb 2025 14:32:04 -0500 AfricaExtremism Watchwebdesk@voanews.com (Associated Press) ABUJA, NIGERIA — Nigeria's National Counter Terrorism Center (NCTC) warns that terrorist groups are getting more sophisticated — using new technologies and exploiting political and economic grievances to expand their operations. In response, authorities have launched a review of the national anti-terrorism strategy to address emerging threats. The official anti-terror strategy document was first developed in 2014 and revised two years later. Authorities say this latest revision is necessary to reflect evolving security threats and ensure counterterrorism measures remain effective. "The tactics used by non-state actors keep evolving and have become highly unpredictable," said Major General Adamu Garba Laka, the national coordinator of the Counter Terrorism Center. "Nigeria is grappling with the challenges of insecurity, thanks to the efforts made by personnel and agencies in charge of securing the lives of citizens, which has ensured the decline in the number of such incidences." The review comes three months after Nigerian authorities warned that a new terror group, Lakurawa, has emerged in the northwest region. Authorities say terrorist organizations are increasingly using advanced technology — such as encrypted messaging apps, social media recruitment campaigns and drones — to enhance their operations. They also exploit poverty, political grievances and weak law enforcement in remote areas to recruit fighters and spread their ideology. Laka said the updated strategy will redefine the roles of government agencies involved in counterterrorism efforts. For well over a decade, Nigeria has struggled to curb violence from terrorist groups, including Boko Haram and its offshoot, the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP). Since 2009, more than 35,000 people have been killed, and at least 2 million have been displaced. Although the overall number of terrorism-related deaths has declined in recent years, threats persist because of persistent poverty and poor governance. Security analyst Chidi Omeje said the increasing sophistication of terror groups is not surprising. "I don't see it as something that we didn't expect. That's the reality of emerging security," said Omeje. "They have these links with terror networks, so they'll naturally grow in these proficiencies. So, it's up to us to devise ways to counter those technologies they're using." Last month, terrorists attacked a military base near Nigeria's border with Niger, killing 20 soldiers. Security analyst Ebenezer Oyetakin argues that beyond reviewing counterterrorism strategies, authorities need to uncover terrorism financiers. "When you take a look at the operation of al-Qaida, you compare it with ISIS — the way they move in their convoy — and then you compare it with Boko Haram, you'll see the semblance, which means they're too dynamic, they're not just a bunch of illiterates that are trying to make ends meet," said Oyetakin. "We should look for those behind them rather than contending with policies that are not sincerely being implemented." Africa has become the global epicenter of terrorism, accounting for the highest number of terror-related deaths in 2023. Last April, Nigeria hosted the African Counter-Terrorism Summit, bringing together hundreds of experts and policymakers to develop a continent-wide strategy against terror groups. But for now, Nigerian authorities say their focus remains on strengthening the country's resilience against terrorism. https://www.voanews.com/a/nigeria-s-counterterrorism-center-warns-of-threats-launches-review-of-strategy-/7989743.html https://www.voanews.com/a/nigeria-s-counterterrorism-center-warns-of-threats-launches-review-of-strategy-/7989743.html Wed, 26 Feb 2025 21:53:14 -0500 AfricaExtremism Watchwebdesk@voanews.com (Timothy Obiezu) MULHOUSE, FRANCE — A man who went on a stabbing rampage in France, killing one and wounding several others in what President Emmanuel Macron called an "Islamist terrorist act," was on a terrorism watchlist and subject to deportation orders, according to authorities. The knife-wielding suspect, later identified by prosecutors as a 37-year-old Algerian-born man, was arrested at the site of Saturday's attack in the eastern city of Mulhouse. Local prosecutor Nicolas Heitz said the suspect, whom he did not name, was registered on France's terrorist watchlist. Speaking at the police station, Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau said the man had "a schizophrenic profile" and his act had "a psychiatric dimension." Retailleau said France had repeatedly attempted to expel him from the country, but Algeria refused to cooperate. The rampage occurred around 4 p.m. near a busy market in Mulhouse, a city of around 110,000 people near the German border. At the time, demonstrators were rallying in support of the Democratic Republic of Congo. A 69-year-old Portuguese man was fatally wounded while parking attendants and police were also hurt. Two officers were seriously wounded, with one sustaining an injury to a carotid artery, and the other to the upper body, prosecutor Heitz told AFP, adding that the latter officer was able to leave the hospital. Three other officers suffered minor injuries, prosecutors said. During the attack, the suspect was heard shouting "Allahu Akbar" (God is great), according to the national antiterror prosecutors unit, PNAT. Witnesses also told AFP they heard the suspect shouting the words several times. Macron later said there was "no doubt" that the incident was "a terrorist act," specifically "an Islamist terrorist act." The government was determined to continue doing "everything to eradicate terrorism on our soil," he added. Speaking during a visit to France's agriculture fair, Macron offered condolences to the family of the victim and said the "solidarity of the nation" was behind them. PNAT said it was investigating the attack for murder and attempted murder "in connection with a terrorist enterprise." Failed expulsions The terrorist watchlist, called FSPRT, compiles data from various authorities on individuals with the aim of preventing "terrorist" radicalization. It was launched in 2015 following deadly attacks on satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo's offices and on a Jewish supermarket. Retailleau told French broadcaster TF1 that France had tried to expel him 10 times, with Algeria refusing each time to accept him. "Once again, it is Islamist terrorism that has struck," he said. And, once again, he added, problems of migration were "at the origin of this terrorist act." There was no immediate comment from Algeria's presidency or foreign ministry. As night fell, several members of the forensic police were still working under the glow of a spotlight outside the covered market in Mulhouse. The perimeter was guarded by military personnel. Prime Minister Francois Bayrou said that "fanaticism has struck again, and we are in mourning." Muhoulse Mayor Michele Lutz wrote on Facebook that "horror has just seized our city." France has recently experienced a string of stabbings deemed acts of terror. In January, a 32-year-old knife-wielding man wounded a person in a supermarket in Apt, in the south of France. He was charged and jailed for attempted murder in connection with a terrorist undertaking. In December 2023, a man suspected of stabbing a German tourist to death near the Eiffel Tower was charged with carrying out a terror attack. https://www.voanews.com/a/dead-several-police-officers-wounded-in-knife-attack-in-france/7984606.html https://www.voanews.com/a/dead-several-police-officers-wounded-in-knife-attack-in-france/7984606.html Sat, 22 Feb 2025 13:44:04 -0500 EuropeExtremism Watchwebdesk@voanews.com (Agence France-Presse) BEIRUT — Nearly five months after Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an Israeli airstrike, thousands of supporters of the longtime leader of Lebanon's militant Hezbollah group have flown into Beirut for his funeral on Sunday. Nasrallah was killed on Sept. 27 when Israel's air force dropped more than 80 bombs on Hezbollah's main operations room in southern Beirut. It was the biggest and most consequential of Israel's targeted killings in years. The death of Nasrallah, one of the Iran-backed Shiite group's founders and the organization’s leader of more than 30 years, was a huge blow to the group he had transformed into a potent force in the Middle East. Hezbollah, which the United States and some of its allies have designated a terrorist organization, has suffered significant losses in the latest war with Israel, including the killing of several of its most senior military and political figures. Nasrallah's cousin and successor, Hashem Safieddine, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike on a Beirut suburb a few days later, will be laid to rest in his hometown in southern Lebanon. The two had temporarily been buried in secret locations. Hezbollah earlier this month announced plans for their official funerals. Crowds are expected to gather Sunday at Beirut's main sports stadium for a funeral ceremony before Nasrallah's interment. Flights from Iraq, where Hezbollah has a huge following among Iraqi Shiites, have been full for days. According to an Iraqi Transportation Ministry official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the flights, up to 6,000 people have flown to Beirut recently. Nasrallah, idolized by his supporters and with large followings among the Shiites and the Islamic world, also held the title of sayyid, an honorific meant to signify the Shiite cleric's lineage dating back to the Prophet Muhammad, the founder of Islam. However, Lebanese authorities revoked permission for a passenger plane from Iran, leaving dozens who had wanted to attend the funeral stranded in Tehran and triggering protests by Hezbollah supporters in Lebanon. The ban came after the Israeli army accused Iran of smuggling cash to Hezbollah by way of civilian flights, leading some in Lebanon to allege that their government had caved in the face of a threat from Israel. Some of those who were expected to fly in from Iran were now coming to Lebanon via Iraq. Also, members of Iran-backed groups in the region also were traveling to Beirut to attend Nasrallah's funeral. Kazim al-Fartousi, spokesperson for the Iran-backed Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada group in Iraq, arrived on Friday. He said Nasrallah was "the father, commander and the book that we read every day to learn about freedom." Republican U.S. Representative Joe Wilson criticized Lebanese politicians who were planning to attend the funeral. "Any Lebanese politician who attends the funeral of the murderous terrorist Hasan Nasrallah is standing with the Iranian Regime," Wilson said on X. https://www.voanews.com/a/thousands-fly-to-lebanon-for-funeral-of-hezbollah-s-slain-leader/7983886.html https://www.voanews.com/a/thousands-fly-to-lebanon-for-funeral-of-hezbollah-s-slain-leader/7983886.html Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:01:18 -0500 Middle EastExtremism WatchIranwebdesk@voanews.com (Associated Press) ISLAMABAD — U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio suggested late Thursday there are ungoverned regions in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan that provide opportunities for extremist groups to operate. The comments came in an interview with former CBS correspondent Catherine Herridge on X, where Rubio was asked if intelligence indicates that al-Qaida and Islamic State had set up safe havens in Afghanistan, posing a threat comparable to the one preceding the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. “I wouldn’t say it’s the pre-9/11 landscape, but I think anytime you have governing spaces that are contested that you don’t have a government that has full control of every part of their territory, it creates the opportunity for these groups,” Rubio said. “The difference between today and 10 years ago is that we don’t have American elements on the ground to target and go after them,” the top U.S. diplomat noted. Rubio added that in some cases, the Taliban has been cooperative when “told that ISIS or al-Qaida is operating in this part of your country” and to go after them. Not so much in other cases, he said. “So, I would say that I wouldn’t compare it to pre-9/11, but it’s certainly far more uncertain — and it’s not just limited to Afghanistan,” Rubio said. The Taliban did not immediately respond to Rubio’s remarks, but they have persistently claimed to be in control of the entire country and rejected that any foreign terrorist organizations are on Afghan soil. Rubio’s comments came just days after the United Nations reported that al-Qaida operatives continued to find shelter across Afghanistan under the protection of the Taliban's intelligence agency. “The Taliban maintained a permissive environment allowing al-Qaida to consolidate, with the presence of safe houses and training camps scattered across Afghanistan,” read the report. It also described an Afghan-based Islamic State affiliate, the Islamic State-Khorasan, or IS-K, as “the greatest extra-regional terrorist threat.” The U.N. assessment highlighted that in addition to attacks on Taliban authorities and Afghan religious minorities, IS-K supporters conducted strikes as far away as Europe, and that the group “was actively seeking to recruit from among Central Asian states” bordering Afghanistan. The Taliban militarily swept back to power in August 2021 when the then-Afghan government collapsed as all U.S.-led NATO allied troops withdrew from the country after a nearly two-decade-long presence. https://www.voanews.com/a/rubio-highlights-emerging-terror-threat-in-afghanistan/7983365.html https://www.voanews.com/a/rubio-highlights-emerging-terror-threat-in-afghanistan/7983365.html Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:03:28 -0500 South & Central AsiaUSAExtremism Watchwebdesk@voanews.com (Ayaz Gul) VIENNA — Austria arrested a 14-year-old on Feb. 10 on suspicion of planning a militant attack on a Vienna train station, the Interior Ministry said Wednesday, calling the suspect an Islamic State supporter who became radicalized online. The announcement follows a knife attack in the southern town of Villach on Saturday in which a 23-year-old Syrian refugee is suspected of killing a teenager and wounding five people. That man was rapidly radicalized after watching Islamist videos on TikTok, Austrian authorities have said. “Domestic intelligence and the police have prevented a terrorist attack in Vienna," the ministry said in a statement. “The suspect is 14 years old, an Austrian citizen with Turkish roots, and he became radicalized on the internet.” The ministry said he had been planning an attack on the Westbahnhof station, a striking mid-20th century building that is the departure point for lines that include a private train company's service to cities such as Salzburg and Innsbruck. A search of the suspect’s home found numerous Islamist books as well as two knives, handwritten instructions for producing explosives to be used as a detonator for a bomb, as well as material including aluminum pipes that were intended to be used for bomb-making, the ministry said. “The Directorate for State Security and Intelligence received information that an initially unknown supporter of a terrorist organization was spreading stories and videos with Islamist ideas on several TikTok profiles,” the ministry said, describing how the investigation started. “After an intensive investigation the DSN was able to establish the identity of the IS supporter,” it said, without naming him. https://www.voanews.com/a/austria-arrests-teen-over-foiled-plot-to-attack-vienna-station/7980578.html https://www.voanews.com/a/austria-arrests-teen-over-foiled-plot-to-attack-vienna-station/7980578.html Wed, 19 Feb 2025 11:27:42 -0500 EuropeExtremism Watchwebdesk@voanews.com (Reuters) WASHINGTON — A Yazidi woman who survived rape and enslavement by Islamic State and was rescued from Gaza last October in a U.S.-led operation arrived in Germany on Tuesday, February 18. Fawzia Amin Saydo, 21, was kidnapped by IS militants from her hometown of Sinjar, northern Iraq, in August 2014, just a month before her 11th birthday. She endured a decade of suffering, including rape, enslavement and forced marriage to a Palestinian IS fighter in Syria before being sent to Gaza to live with her captor's mother. She was rescued from Gaza on October 1, 2024, during a secret U.S.-led operation that involved cooperation among human rights activists, as well as Israeli, Jordanian, Iraqi and United Nations officials. Saydo arrived about 5 p.m. local time at Hannover Airport in Langenhagen, Germany, where she was received by her lawyer, Kareba Hagemann, a group of relatives and human rights activists. "She has arrived in Germany safely, and she is very relieved," Hagemann told VOA. "The first thing Fawzia said upon her arrival was, 'Please make sure my family can also come join me and live here with me.'" The German consulate in Baghdad on February 10 issued Saydo a visa on a humanitarian basis. Her mother, grandmother and five siblings are still in Iraq. "Her family, except her two sisters, wanted to go as well, but the German government made it clear that they will only agree to take in Fawzia," Hagemann said. "There is no legal obligation to take her, but it is an act of humanity, which is why I was thankful to them to agree to take Fawzia at least." According to the United Nations Refugee Agency, Germany is the third-largest refugee-hosting country in the world and the largest in the European Union, with 2.5 million refugees from all over the world, including more than 1 million refugees from Ukraine. Since the 2014 Yazidi genocide carried out by Islamic State in northern Iraq, the number of Yazidi asylum-seekers in Germany has risen to more than 200,000. The ongoing debate within German society about deporting refugees, however, has put many asylum-seekers from the religious minority at risk of deportation. This is particularly due to some politicians arguing that the defeat of IS in 2017 has ended group-specific persecution in Iraq — a claim contested by human rights organizations. On Monday, German authorities announced the deportation of 47 Iraqis whose asylum applications had been denied. Among the more than 300,000 Iraqi refugees and migrants living in Germany, refugee organizations estimate that nearly 700 Iraqis were deported in 2024 alone, with about 10,000 currently facing the risk of deportation. Hagemann, who is also a Yazidi, told VOA the uncertainty has taken a psychological toll on many Yazidi asylum-seekers who fled Iraq due to persecution. While the exact number of deported Yazidis remains unclear, she estimated that at least five have been sent back to Iraq and the Kurdistan region. "Those Yazidis want to build their new life and integrate, even though some of them find it hard to learn a new language because of their trauma," Hagemann said. "Unfortunately, most of them are not as lucky as Fawzia to be supported, and [they] decide to come to Germany illegally, where they face deportation and have been held in captivity for years." In January 2023, the German Bundestag [parliament] passed a resolution that recognized Islamic State's crimes against Yazidis as genocide. Since then, the federal states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Schleswig-Holstein have enacted laws to protect Yazidi asylum-seekers from deportation. Hagemann argued that allowing Yazidi survivors, particularly those who have been victims of rape, to remain in Germany would provide them with a chance to heal — an opportunity, she said, they cannot find in Iraq. "We have been able to schedule a therapy session for Fawzia on Thursday, just two days after her arrival in Germany, to enable her start a self-determining life again," Hagemann said. Rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch, have reported that Yazidi survivors do not get adequate psychological support upon their return to Iraq. Activists from the Montreal-based Liberation of Christian and Yazidi Children of Iraq (CYCI), who assisted Saydo in relocating to Germany, stated that her return from Gaza to Iraq only marked a minor improvement in her life, as she continued to endure neglect and targeting from militants in her hometown of Sinjar. "She kept saying, 'I have been brought from one hell to another,'" said human rights activist and CYCI member Dawood Jajju, describing Saydo's dire situation in Iraq. Activists say Saydo and her family were threatened by Iraqi militants three weeks after her return to Sinjar after she appeared in a news article in which she praised Israel for its role in taking her out of Hamas-controlled Gaza. Iraqi officials tasked to work on her case were not available to comment. Steve Maman, founder of CYCI, told VOA that Saydo was summoned several times by Iraqi authorities "who mistakenly believe she is a Zionist and an Israeli-trained agent." "Fawzia did not receive any therapy at all. The country has not made any effort or gesture to help her. It seems that Yazidis are second-class citizens in their own country," Maman said. When Islamic State attacked the Sinjar region in 2014, the group killed nearly 10,000 Yazidis and enslaved more than 6,000 of women and children. Data from the Iraqi government and the Kurdistan Region show that some 3,500 Yazidis have been rescued or freed, with some 2,600 still missing. https://www.voanews.com/a/yazidi-woman-enslaved-by-islamic-state-relocates-to-germany-months-after-rescue/7979829.html https://www.voanews.com/a/yazidi-woman-enslaved-by-islamic-state-relocates-to-germany-months-after-rescue/7979829.html Tue, 18 Feb 2025 20:29:29 -0500 Middle EastEuropeExtremism Watchwebdesk@voanews.com (Rikar Hussein) ISLAMABAD — Authorities in Pakistan reported late on Tuesday that "terrorists" intercepted a bus on a main highway in the southwestern Balochistan province and killed at least seven passengers. The victims were traveling from the provincial capital of Quetta to the central province of Punjab when their bus was ambushed in the Barkhan district. Area police and survivors said that the attackers fatally shot seven passengers after confirming their ethnic Punjabi identity. The Baloch Liberation Army, the biggest of several ethnic armed groups battling the central government, claimed responsibility for the attack, saying the victims were all working for the military and its intelligence wing. The separatist group frequently conducts deadly attacks on security forces and civilians from other regions of Pakistan working in resources-rich Balochistan. Sarfaraz Bugti, the provincial chief minister, condemned the killing of bus passengers as a "cowardly act." He wrote on the X social media platform that Pakistani paramilitary forces and police "are actively pursuing the terrorists to bring them to justice." The attack prompted authorities in Balochistan to order other passenger vehicles to temporarily stop their journeys. The violence came just hours after Pakistan's military reported that it killed 30 Islamist insurgents during clashes in a volatile northwestern district bordering Afghanistan. A military statement attributed the casualties to an overnight “intelligence-based” operation against a militant location in the tribal district of South Waziristan. The slain people were referred to as “khwarij,” a local term employed by the government to identify members of the banned Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, militant group. The TTP has not commented on the reported clashes, and it is not possible to verify government claims through independent sources in the violence-hit district. The Waziristan region and nearby districts along the Afghan border face almost daily militant raids targeting Pakistani troops, police officers and various government entities, with the TTP claiming responsibility for most of it. The violence has killed dozens of Pakistani security personnel within the first two months of 2025 alone. Military officials claim that retaliatory counterinsurgency operations have killed scores of TTP operatives, including key militant commanders, in recent days. Islamabad alleges that the TTP, listed as a global terrorist organization by the United Nations, uses havens and training camps in Afghanistan to carry out cross-border terrorist attacks. The Taliban government in Kabul, which is not recognized by any country, rejects Pakistani allegations. The latest report by the U.N. Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team, released last week, highlighted Pakistan's concerns, stating that the TTP has "significantly increased” its attacks in the country and from Afghan territory. The report noted that Kabul “continued to provide the TTP with logistical and operational space and financial support.” It added that the militant group "established new training centers" in the Afghan provinces of Kunar, Nangarhar, Khost and Paktika, "while enhancing recruitment within TTP cadres, including from the Afghan Taliban.” The Taliban government dismissed the U.N. findings as “inaccurate” and contrary to reality. Information from Reuters was used in this report. https://www.voanews.com/a/pakistan-claims-30-militants-killed-near-afghan-border/7979417.html https://www.voanews.com/a/pakistan-claims-30-militants-killed-near-afghan-border/7979417.html Tue, 18 Feb 2025 13:24:47 -0500 South & Central AsiaExtremism Watchwebdesk@voanews.com (Ayaz Gul) WASHINGTON — A senior U.S. counterterrorism official is cautioning that the threat from global jihadists has expanded significantly, although the resources to counter them have declined. Sebastian Gorka, deputy assistant to President Donald Trump and senior director for counterterrorism, on Feb. 11 told a Washington conference organized by the American Foreign Policy Council that he based the current threat assessment on several factors. “Number one, jihadist groups are more geographically dispersed than ever before, with networks extending across the Sahel, Central and East Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia,” he said. “To cite just one example, West African countries like Benin and Togo, that once had little exposure to jihadi threats, are now seeing jihadi Sunni actors in their territory and elsewhere, affecting their national sovereignty.” Benin and Togo have reported attacks by al-Qaida, an expansion of the violence the terror group is carrying out in Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso. Gorka said militant groups are increasingly capable and using new forms of technology to execute their deadly missions. Gorka said that militants “remain highly adaptive entities.” “If you look at their use of social media, especially encrypted apps to communicate, these individuals have acclimatized to the new technological environment,” he said. One of Trump’s main campaign promises in last year’s election was to tighten security along the U.S. border and deport migrants without legal status. He signed an executive order declaring a national emergency at the border. Gorka argued that border vulnerabilities give militants an advantage. “The global jihadi actors are poised to capitalize on global security vulnerabilities, especially the fact that, for four years, we have had no southern border,” Gorka said. Former President Joe Biden defended his immigration policies during the 2024 presidential election campaign and blamed the Republicans for walking back on a bipartisan immigration bill. Biden said Trump was involved in sinking the bill. The Middle East Gorka said militant groups in the Middle East, including Hezbollah and Hamas, which the United States, Britain and other Western nations have designated as terrorist groups, have been severely marginalized. “Let's just be blunt — since the heinous, tragic massacre of more Jews than have ever been killed since the end of the Shoah [Holocaust] in 1945, since Oct. 7, our friends in Israel have literally redrawn the map of the region,” he said. The war in Gaza was triggered by the October 2023 Hamas terror attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people and led to the capture of 250 hostages. Israel’s counteroffensive has killed more than 48,200 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza health authorities. Israel says the death toll includes 17,000 militants it has killed. “As a result, groups like Hezbollah and Hamas have been radically degraded,” Gorka said. This has paved the way for what? The collapse of the [Bashar al-] Assad regime in Syria, which together represent devastating blows to the greatest global sponsor of terrorism as a nation-state — Iran's capability to hurt our interests and the interests of our friends and partners.” US airstrikes in Somalia Gorka also gave more details about the airstrikes on Feb. 1 that targeted Islamic State group militants in Somalia’s northeastern region of Puntland. The strikes were carried out by the U.S. Africa Command and authorized by Trump and coordinated with Somalia. “We told the president, ‘There is a cave complex in northern Somalia full of ISIS,” he said, using an acronym for the Islamic State group. “We have been surveilling it for years, but the last administration refused to take action.” According to the Africa Command, 14 militants were killed, including Ahmed Maeleninine, who was described as a "recruiter, financier and external operations leader responsible for the deployment of jihadists into the United States and across Europe." Somali officials said he is from Oman, although the U.S. has not commented on his nationality. “The person you saw in the footage is not just a foot soldier,” Gorka said as video of the airstrike was played. “He is a recruiter, trainer and financier for ISIS, one of the guys who is hard to replace. We had been surveilling him for months.” The strikes were carried out by fighter jets launched from the USS Harry S. Truman, which was in the Red Sea at the time. Trump confirmed ordering a precision military airstrikes on the same day. Somali forces in Puntland this week reported success against the militants. Scores were killed after Puntland forces repelled a complex attack from the militants in the early hours of Feb. 11. The U.S. has been training elite Somali forces known as Danab, which means “lightning.” So far, there has been no publicly known change of US security support to Somalia. VOA’s Farsi Service contributed to this report. https://www.voanews.com/a/us-counterterror-official-warns-of-growing-global-threat/7976386.html https://www.voanews.com/a/us-counterterror-official-warns-of-growing-global-threat/7976386.html Sat, 15 Feb 2025 14:03:20 -0500 USAMiddle EastAfricaExtremism Watchwebdesk@voanews.com (Harun Maruf, Salem Solomon) ISLAMABAD — Pakistan said Saturday that counterterrorism operations in two volatile northwestern districts resulted in the deaths of four soldiers, including an officer, and 15 insurgents during the ensuing clashes. A military statement said the deadly violence erupted when its forces carried out “intelligence-based” raids on militant locations in Dera Ismail Khan and North Waziristan, which borders Afghanistan. The statement identified the slain militants as “khwarij,” a term employed by the government for individuals affiliated with the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, a globally recognized terrorist organization. Local security sources reported that the soldier fatalities occurred during clashes in the Waziristan area. The official claims about militant casualties could not be verified by independent sources. The TTP did not comment on the reported clashes in the districts, where the militant group routinely attacks security forces and their installations. Pakistan maintains that TTP leaders and fighters use sanctuaries in Afghanistan to orchestrate cross-border terrorism with the help of the neighboring country’s Taliban government, which has not yet received official recognition from any country. The allegations have strained Islamabad's relationship with de facto Afghan leaders in Kabul, who consistently have denied the presence of the TTP or any other foreign terrorist organizations within their territory. “One of the key issues bedeviling our relations remains the sanctuaries enjoyed by terrorists belonging to the TTP on Afghan territory,” Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan told a weekly news conference on Friday.   “We continue to remain engaged with Afghanistan and also make them realize that the long-term potential of the region, the bilateral cooperation and what it can bring for the benefit or welfare of the two countries will remain unmet unless this problem is resolved.” UN backing The latest report by the United Nations Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team, released earlier this week, highlights Islamabad’s concerns, stating that the TTP has "significantly increased” its attacks in Pakistan and from Afghan territory. The report stated that Taliban authorities in Afghanistan “continued to provide the TTP with logistical and operational space and financial support.” It added that the group "established new training centers" in the Afghan provinces of Kunar, Nangarhar, Khost and Paktika "while enhancing recruitment within TTP cadres, including from the Afghan Taliban." The U.N. assessment also emphasized the growing terrorism threat from al-Qaida and the regional Islamic State affiliate operating in Afghanistan since the Taliban retook control of the country in 2021. “The Taliban maintained a permissive environment allowing al-Qaida to consolidate, with the presence of safe houses and training camps scattered across Afghanistan,” the report said. It stated that Afghanistan “remained the main hub” for the regional Islamic State affiliate, known as Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K), primarily “for its recruitment and facilitation.” The spokesperson for the Taliban government dismissed U.N. findings on Friday as “inaccurate” and contrary to reality. "The Islamic Emirate [Taliban government] does not allow any foreign, rogue group to operate in Afghanistan, and such groups are not present here,” Zabihullah Mujahid told the local TOLO news channel. “Unfortunately, some countries and intelligence circles, through organizations like the United Nations and the Security Council, are tarnishing public opinion and waging propaganda and campaigns against Afghanistan,” Mujahid stated, without elaborating. https://www.voanews.com/a/pakistan-clashes-result-in-4-dead-soldiers-15-militants/7976188.html https://www.voanews.com/a/pakistan-clashes-result-in-4-dead-soldiers-15-militants/7976188.html Sat, 15 Feb 2025 09:47:55 -0500 South & Central AsiaExtremism Watchwebdesk@voanews.com (Ayaz Gul) WASHINGTON — The main target in a series of U.S. airstrikes against the Islamic State terror group in Somalia earlier this month is dead, according to the most recent assessment by military officials. U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) announced late Tuesday that Islamic State attack planner Ahmed Maeleninine was killed along with 13 other high-ranking operatives in the Feb. 1 operation, run in coordination with the Somali government. In a statement, AFRICOM described Maeleninine as a "recruiter, financier, and external operations leader responsible for the deployment of jihadists into the United States and across Europe." Officials did not provide additional information on Maeleninine's exploits. Assessing the success of the U.S. strikes was delayed due to the location of the targets and the terrain — a series of cave complexes in the Cal Miskaad area of Somalia's Golis Mountains. At the time, a Somalia commander told VOA the U.S. strikes had targeted at least 10 locations. Residents in Qandala, a small town in the Bari region of Puntland not far from the site, told VOA that they could see plumes of smoke and flames, and that they heard at least seven explosions. Islamic State, also known as IS or Daesh, has increasingly played a key role in the terror group's operations in Africa and beyond. Since 2022, Somalia has been home to al-Karrar, one of nine regional Islamic State offices established to help sustain the terror group's capabilities. As a result, IS-Somalia has become a key cog in the IS financial network, funneling money to affiliates in Afghanistan and elsewhere in Africa. IS-Somalia has simultaneously become more influential under the leadership of Abdulkadir Mumin, a former militant with al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab, who is thought to now head IS's directorate of provinces, overseeing the terror group's affiliates in Africa. Some U.S. officials worry Mumin has risen even higher, perhaps acting as Islamic State's top emir. Others disagree, but there is consensus that Mumin is nonetheless a pivotal figure. The U.S. previously targeted Mumin in May 2024. Recent intelligence assessments have further warned IS-Somalia has more than doubled in size over the past year and may now have as many as 1,600 fighters, bolstered by an influx of fighters from Ethiopia, Morocco, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania and Yemen. U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth earlier on Tuesday warned that Washington would not hesitate to take action against IS in Somalia and beyond. "Where we see those growing, plotting or planning with increased capabilities, we will strike," he said during a visit to AFRICOM headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany. He also said the U.S. is open to keeping in place about 500 special operation forces currently stationed in Somalia. "I want to listen to the commanders on the ground, first and foremost," Hegseth said. "The president, he's charged me with, give me your best advice but also keep your ear to the ground of what's most effective." U.S. President Donald Trump, toward the end of his first term in office in January 2021, withdrew U.S. forces from Somalia. Former President Joe Biden reversed the decision in May 2022, sending about 500 U.S. special operation forces to help Somali forces counter IS and al-Shabab. Harun Maruf, Mohamed Olad contributed to this report. https://www.voanews.com/a/key-islamic-state-planner-killed-in-airstrike-us-says-/7971509.html https://www.voanews.com/a/key-islamic-state-planner-killed-in-airstrike-us-says-/7971509.html Tue, 11 Feb 2025 19:27:05 -0500 AfricaExtremism Watchwebdesk@voanews.com (Jeff Seldin) Nearly 100 people were killed and up to 60 others wounded when members of the Islamic State terror group launched a deadly attack on a military base belonging to security forces from Somalia’s Puntland region, officials said Tuesday. At least 27 Puntland soldiers and more than 70 militants were slain in the fierce fighting around the Togga Jacel area of the Cal Miskaad mountains in Puntland’s Bari region, Puntland security officials told VOA. In an interview Tuesday with VOA’s Somali Service, a spokesperson for Puntland security operations, Brigadier General Mohamud Mohamed Ahmed — known as  Fadhigo — said the militants waged suicide attacks on the military base late Monday. “We have confirmed that at least 27 Puntland soldiers and 70 Islamic State militants, were killed during the attack and subsequent gun battle,” Ahmed said. Ahmed said it was the deadliest attack since Puntland launched an offensive last month against Islamic State groups that have hideouts in the mountains. He said the death toll from the attack could be substantially higher than official figures. “The death toll, especially that of the militants, could be significantly higher than the number we have provided because they were killed in caves. They were hiding, and we are still assessing,” Ahmed said. According to Puntland security officials, the militants using car bombs and suicide motorbikes launched attacks on the Puntland security base before a fierce gunbattle ensued. “We knew they were coming as we had prior intelligence tip. They attacked us with car bombs and explosives-laden motorbikes, and then dozens of them engaged in a fierce gunbattle with our soldiers,” Ahmed said. A statement from the Puntland forces said their troops repulsed the attack aimed at taking control of the base. “Puntland security forces have successfully repelled the enemy attack, and they still remain in their base in Togga Jecel, dealing a significant blow to the extremist group,” the statement said. On Wednesday last week, nearly 70 people were killed, and up to 50 others were wounded, during 24 hours of fighting between the two sides. This latest attack is the deadliest the Islamic State militants have waged on Puntland soldiers. Earlier this month, U.S. warplanes targeted the Islamic State affiliate in Somalia, hitting what officials described as high-ranking operatives in the terror group's mountainous stronghold. U.S. President Donald Trump announced the airstrike on social media, describing the main target as a "Senior ISIS Attack Planner and other terrorists he recruited and led." Puntland began a major offensive against Islamic State in December and claims to have since killed nearly 200 Islamic State fighters, dozens of them foreign fighters, and captured villages and bases in the mountainous area controlled by IS. This story originated in VOA's Somali Service. Fadumo Yasin Jama contributed to the report. https://www.voanews.com/a/scores-dead-as-islamic-state-attacks-military-base-in-somalia/7970838.html https://www.voanews.com/a/scores-dead-as-islamic-state-attacks-military-base-in-somalia/7970838.html Tue, 11 Feb 2025 11:24:13 -0500 AfricaExtremism Watchwebdesk@voanews.com (Mohamed Olad Hassan)