Eye on Extremism
August 30, 2022
Reuters: Ahead Of Parole, Indonesian Militant Regrets Role In 2002 Bali Bombing - Media
“An Indonesian militant has expressed regret for his role in the deadly 2002 Bali bombings, media reported on Monday, as news of his impending release sparks outrage in Australia. Umar Patek was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2012 for his involvement in bombings that ripped through two Bali nightclubs, killing 202 people, including 88 Australians. He became eligible for parole this month after a series of remissions for good behaviour. The exact date of his release, the final signoff for which rests with Indonesia's justice minister, remains unclear. Citing a rare video shot in the Porong prison where Bali bomb-maker Patek is being held, Australian broadcaster ABC News reported he also hopes to warn young Indonesians about the dangers of religious extremism upon his expected release. Reuters was unable to review the video of Umar Patek. It has been removed from Porong prison's official YouTube channel as it had not been authorised by the justice ministry, said the prison head, Jalu Yuswa Panjang. News of Patek's impending parole has sparked concern in Australia, with PM Anthony Albanese saying his release would have a “devastating impact on the families of victims.”
Associated Press: Clashes Leave At Least 15 Dead After Influential Iraqi Shiite Cleric Announces Plan To Resign From Politics
“An influential Shiite cleric announced Monday that he would resign from Iraqi politics, prompting hundreds of his angry followers to storm the government palace and sparking clashes with security forces. At least 15 protesters were killed. Protesters loyal to cleric Muqtada al-Sadr pulled down the cement barriers outside the government palace with ropes and breached the palace gates. Many rushed into the lavish salons and marbled halls of the palace, a key meeting place for Iraqi heads of state and foreign dignitaries. Iraq’s military announced a nationwide curfew, and the caretaker premier suspended Cabinet sessions in response to the violence. Medical officials said dozens of protesters were wounded by gunfire and tear gas and physical altercations with riot police. As night fell, Saraya Salam, a militia aligned with al-Sadr clashed with the Popular Mobilization Forces security group. A small force from the special forces division and Iraqi Army’s 9th Division also joined to contain the militants as the clashes continued for hours inside the Green Zone, the seat of Iraq’s government. At least one soldier from the special forces division, which is responsible for security in the Green Zone, was killed. Many others, including a civilian woman, were wounded, two security officials said.”
Iraq
Associated Press: Iraqi Cleric Tells Loyalists To Leave Streets After Clashes
“An influential Iraqi cleric called on his supporters to withdraw Tuesday from the capital’s government quarter, where they have traded heavy fire with security forces in a serious escalation of a monthslong political crisis gripping the nation. In a televised speech, Muqtada al-Sadr gave his supporters an hour to leave — and minutes later some could be seen abandoning their positions on live television. Iraq’s military announced an end to a curfew, further raising hopes that there might be a halt to the street violence. The unrest began Monday, when al-Sadr announced he would resign from politics and his supporters stormed the Green Zone, once the stronghold of the U.S. military that’s now home to Iraqi government offices and foreign embassies. At least 30 people have been killed, officials said. “This is not a revolution,” al-Sadr said in a televised address, which followed pleas for restraint and peace from several Iraqi officials and the United Nations.”
Kurdistan 24: Suspected ISIS Militants Kill Kurdish Shepherd In Kirkuk
“A Kurdish shepherd was killed in southeast Kirkuk on Sunday by suspected ISIS militants, a security source told Kurdistan 24. The attack took place near Rokhana lake in the southeastern Laylan subdistrict in the province, according to the police source. At least four Kurdish shepherds were attacked by two suspected ISIS militants, whose offensive was later repelled by the herders, the source added. As a result of the clashes, Zirak Zahir, a Kurdish shepherd, and a militant were killed, he said. The other assailant fled the scene. Previously, Kurdish shepherds have faced kidnapping by the members of the terror group in the disputed territories between Erbil and Baghdad. Once they are abducted, their families are asked to pay a ransom in exchange for the shepherds’ release. An amount of about $25,000 is usually demanded by the abductors. In June, an Arab shepherd was similarly kidnapped in Kirkuk. Two months earlier, four more shepherds were abducted in the same area. Following the ISIS territorial defeat of the group in 2017, the radical militants have resumed kidnapping as a form of income-generating business for the group, according to security experts and officials. Lack of cooperation between Kurdish and Iraqi forces is usually cited as a factor behind the rise in attacks.”
Saudi Arabia
Reuters: Saudi Arabia Seeks Extradition From Lebanon Of Man Who Threatened Embassy
“Saudi Arabia's ambassador to Lebanon Walid al-Bukhari said the kingdom is seeking the arrest and extradition from Lebanon of a Saudi man who threatened the kingdom's embassy in Beirut last week. "We call upon the competent Lebanese authorities to undertake the necessary legal procedures regarding the terrorist threats," Bukhari said following a meeting with Lebanon's interior minister. Lebanese and Saudi authorities say the person behind the recorded threats was a Saudi man named Ali Hashem. Reuters could not independently confirm the information and was not able to contact the man. Lebanese Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi last week asked security forces to probe the recorded death threats out of "concern for Lebanon's interest and security and good relations with brotherly nations, especially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia." Some Lebanese officials have tried to improve ties with Saudi Arabia, once a major donor, after years of tension over the growing influence in Lebanon of Hezbollah, which is classified by both Riyadh and the United States as a terrorist group.”
Lebanon
Asharq Al-Awsat: Official Close To Hezbollah Assassinated In Damascus Countryside
“Unknown individuals assassinated the commander of the Baath Brigades, a close figure to the Lebanese Hezbollah party, in the countryside of Damascus, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported on Monday. The official was assassinated in recent Israeli shelling in the Damascus countryside, said the Observatory.”
Middle East
Associated Press: Palestinian Toll Mounts As Israel Steps Up West Bank Raids
“At least 85 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank this year as Israeli forces have carried out nightly raids in cities, towns and villages, making it the deadliest in the occupied territory since 2016. The military says the vast majority were militants or stone-throwers who endangered the soldiers. The tally, from the Palestinian Health Ministry, includes Palestinians who carried out deadly attacks inside Israel. But it also includes several civilians, including a veteran journalist and a lawyer who apparently drove unwittingly into a battle zone, as well as local youths who took to the streets in response to the invasion of their neighborhoods. The length and frequency of the raids has pulled into focus Israel’s tactics in the West Bank, where nearly 3 million Palestinians live under a decades-long occupation and Palestinians view the military’s presence as a humiliation and a threat. Israeli troops have regularly operated across the West Bank since Israel captured the territory in 1967. Israel says it is dismantling militant networks that threaten its citizens, and that it makes every effort to avoid harming civilians. Palestinians say the raids are aimed at maintaining Israel’s 55-year military rule over territories they want for a future state — a dream that appears as remote as ever, with no serious peace negotiations held in over a decade.”
The Washington Times: History As It Happens: Ayman Al-Zawahiri And The Future Of Al Qaeda
“One year after the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan ended America’s nation-building project in the “graveyard of empires,” the Taliban-led country faces mass starvation and state collapse. Amidst that cauldron of human misery is what remains of al Qaeda, the terrorist group whose jihadist violence led the U.S. into Afghanistan way back in October 2001. President Biden announced Aug. 1 that the U.S. had dealt al Qaeda another blow to its leadership. A drone strike assassinated Ayman al-Zawahiri, whom the president referred to as a key planner in several major terrorist attacks going back to the 1990s. In this episode of History As It Happens, Peter Bergen, an expert on international terrorism at New America, debunks the notion that al-Zawahiri was an important figure in al Qaeda’s history even though he helmed the organization after Osama bin Laden’s death in 2011. “While bin Laden was building up al Qaeda beginning in ‘96 and going public with his calls for attacks against the United States, Zawahiri was in a Russian jail languishing and looking to resuscitate his career. And then he came back to Afghanistan after he got released from jail, and he was a penniless supplicant at that point. He had almost no followers. His organization was in tatters.”
Somalia
All Africa: Africa: Somalia, AU Discuss The Fight Against Al-Shabaab
“The Prime Minister of Somalia, Hamsa Abdi Barre, who is in Tunis, Tunisia, is holding meetings with the various leaders who participated in the African Development Conference that was concluded in the country. Prime Minister Hamse Abdi Barre met in Tunis with the Chairman of the African Union Commission, Mr. Moussa Faki Mahamat, to discuss the relationship and cooperation between Somalia and the African Union. The two officials also discussed how to strengthen cooperation between the government of Somalia and the African Union, especially in the areas of security and politics and fighting Al-Shabaab. Some of the African Union countries have a large number of troops in Somalia operating under the name ATMIS, which are supporting the government forces in their fight against Al-Shabaab.”
Australia
Gloucester Advocate: Neo-Nazis, Far-Right Extremism On The Rise
“Neo-nazism and other far-right extremist ideologies are a growing threat in Victoria, putting marginalised groups at risk of violence, a new report has found. Declining mental health, social isolation and economic insecurity brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic stoked far-right extremism across the state, according to Victorian Parliament's Legal and Social Issues Committee. The Greens-led inquiry tabled its final report on Tuesday. Other factors such as misinformation, conspiracy theories peddled on social media and the normalisation of anti-immigration rhetoric in mainstream media have put vulnerable people at risk of radicalisation and made them more susceptible to racist narratives. Multicultural groups, women and LGBTQI members were identified as common targets of far-right extremists. The term “far-right extremism” refers to people or organisations who promote exclusionary nationalism, oppose democratic principles and processes, and favour authoritarianism, and includes groups who consider violence as a legitimate way to achieve ideological goals. It has always existed but re-emerged from about 2015, and then was exacerbated during the COVID-19 pandemic, Greens leader Samantha Ratnam said.”
Europe
AFP: Swiss Woman Shows No Remorse In 'Is' Knife Attack Trial
“A Swiss woman undergoing psychiatric treatment showed no remorse on Monday when she went on trial accused of trying to murder two women in the name of the Islamic State group. The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is accused of committing a “terrorist act” on November 24, 2020 -- a knife attack in the plush Manor department store in Lugano, in southern Switzerland's Italian-speaking Ticino region. One of the two victims -- who was attending the trial -- suffered a serious neck injury. The second sustained wounds on one hand and managed, with others, to control the assailant until the police arrived. “If I could go back, I would do it better... with accomplices,” the 29-year-old told Switzerland's Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona, also in Ticino. Having discovered the Islamic State jihadist group on social media, she said she had planned for “months, years” to “do something” for IS and show that she was “capable of carrying out a terrorist act”. A photograph of the neck injury was shown to the court. “It didn't go as deeply as I thought,” the accused woman observed, before repeating: “It has no effect on me.” Dressed in black, in accordance with court rules, the accused wore a long tunic, tights, a black face mask and a hoodie. She wanted to keep her head covered, saying: “I'm Muslim”, before agreeing to lower the hood to comply with court rules.”
Technology
Bloomberg: YouTube Went To War Against Terrorists, Just Not White Nationalists
“Unlike many of her colleagues at YouTube, Tala Bardan doesn’t remember the company retreat in June 2017 as a nice long weekend. YouTube employees stayed at the Westin hotel in downtown Los Angeles, enjoyed a private Snoop Dogg performance, and took day trips to a nearby Harry Potter theme park. They drank free drinks. As the partying began that Friday morning, though, Bardan was one of about a dozen unlucky workers that Chief Executive Officer Susan Wojcicki pulled into the hotel’s basement for a sobering meeting about the video site’s problem with terrorists. Discussions about terrorists were nothing new to Bardan, who worked in a relatively junior position overseas watching violent videos in Arabic for the YouTube division that screened footage categorized as “VE,” company shorthand for violent extremism. (Tala Bardan is a pseudonym used to protect her identity, given her sensitive work.) In the meeting, a top engineer explained that YouTube had decided it would try to eliminate from its site the entire ideology that had given rise to groups such as Islamic State, the Sunni Muslim militant organization. The company would recode YouTube’s promotional algorithm to bury “inflammatory religious and supremacist content.” Policy staff would devise a list of 14 incendiary figures, all Muslim men, who would be banned no matter what they posted.”
i News: Deepfaked Interviews Of Politicians, As Depicted In BBC Drama, Is Genuine Threat, Experts Warn
“… Hany Farid, professor in digital forensics at the University of California, Berkeley, said of the fake Zelensky video: “The next time the president goes on television, some people might think, ‘Wait a minute – is this real?’ I suspect it’s the tip of the iceberg.” “What is really dramatic about this technology is that we have democratised access to what used to be in the hands of Hollywood studios and state-sponsored actors, now anybody can generate this,” Farid told US National Public Radio. “And that’s a very different threat factor in terms of disinformation campaigns meant to sow civil unrest, interfere with democratic elections. Every few months, we see more and more advances.” The second season of The Capture, a hit when it first aired in 2019, explores the use of facial recognition software, technology currently employed by the Met and other police forces to target criminals. “Yes it can help solve crimes but what are the human rights implications?,” Chanan asked. “It could also be used to identify people from ethnic groups.” The series echoes concerns raised by former Conservative leadership candidate Tom Tugendhat, who chairs the Foreign Affairs Select Committee and warned of “Chinese tech giants… developing ethnic-labelling technology” to support a “brutal assault on the Uighur population”.”
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