Terrorism Watch

RUSI has significant international expertise in countering violent extremism (CVE) – researching radicalisation, implementing CVE programmes, and understanding what works and what doesn’t.  Threats from terrorism and violent extremism are a top priority for governments and multilateral bodies such as the UN and the EU. There is a growing recognition that counter-terrorism, with its dependence on military, law enforcement and intelligence responses, cannot manage the problem alone. CVE has emerged as a field of theory and practice that seeks to complement counter-terrorism with non-coercive measures, particularly using preventative approaches which seek to address the drivers of terrorism and violent extremism. The Institute’s expertise in countering violent extremism spans research, policy analysis, programme implementation, and training and education. RUSI’s CVE work reaches across the world, with particular emphasis on the UK and Eu

One in ten school students in Gothenburg’s north-eastern suburbs sympathize with religious extremist organizations, according to a survey carried out by Swedish non-profit organization Varken Hora eller Kuvad. "I was completely shocked when I saw the result. I perhaps would have guessed one percent. I’m speechless," Guluzar Tarhan Selvi, acting project manager at Varken Hora eller Kuvad told Swedish newspaper Göteborgs-Posten (GP). The Swedish government’s national coordinator against violent extremism said she was not hugely surprised by the number however. "The study was carried out in some of the areas where we know there are people who have travelled to join Isis in Syria," Hillevi Engström said. And the MP insisted it is good that more facts about support for extremist organizations are coming to light. "You have to put forward all the facts and after that start prevention work early, and speak about everyone’s equal valu

FRANKFURT, Germany — Police conducted simultaneous raids on premises in five German states Tuesday as part of an investigation into Chechen asylum-seekers suspected of involvement in Islamic extremism. A police car stands in front of a building during a anti-terror operation in Jena, eastern Germany, Tuesday Oct. 25, 2016. German police say they searched apartments in five regions as part of an investigation into alleged involvement in terrorism by Chechen asylum seekers. Bodo Schackow/dpa/AP Officers searched 13 dwellings across the country following a yearlong probe of a 28-year-old Russian citizen of Chechen background who is suspected of intending to join the fighting in Syria on behalf of the Islamic State group. The investigation later developed into a probe of 10 further men and three women suspected of financing extremist activity. All were Chechens with Russian citizenship seeking asylum

Sunni extremists are infiltrating the United States with the help of alien smugglers in South America and are crossing U.S. borders with ease, according to a U.S. South Command intelligence report. The Command’s J-2 intelligence directorate reported recently in internal channels that “special interest aliens” are working with a known alien smuggling network in Latin America to reach the United States. The smuggling network was not identified. Army Col. Lisa A. Garcia, a Southcom spokeswoman, did not address the intelligence report directly but said Sunni terrorist infiltration is a security concern. “Networks that specialize in smuggling individuals from regions of terrorist concern, mainly from the Afghanistan-Pakistan region, the Middle East, and East Africa, are indeed a concern for Southcom and other interagency security partners who support our country’s national security,” Garcia told the Washington Free Beacon . “There are major hubs that serve as entry point

In 2015 alone, over 30,000 illegal immigrants from "countries of terrorist concern" entered the United States through the southwestern border with Mexico, Department of Defense Southern Command (Southcom) spokeswoman Army Col. Lisa A. Garcia told the Washington Free Beacon on Monday . "Networks that specialize in smuggling individuals from regions of terrorist concern, mainly from the Afghanistan-Pakistan region, the Middle East, and East Africa, are indeed a concern for Southcom and other interagency security partners who support our country's national security," Garcia said. "There are major hubs that serve as entry points into the region for migrants from those areas of concern attempting to enter the U.S. along our border with Mexico." Garcia reported that in 2015 alone, "we saw a total of 331,000 migrants enter the southwestern border between the U.S. and Mexico, of that we estimate more than 30,000 of these were from countrie

There is a growing sense that by the time Iraqi forces finish wresting control of the key city of Mosul from Islamic State fighters, few if any of the terror group's top leaders will be there. The consensus by a variety of current and former intelligence officials comes despite persistent claims in recent weeks from Iraqi officials that IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is holed up in a bunker or tunnel somewhere in the city. In contrast, U.S. military and intelligence officials have been cautious about discussing the IS leader and his whereabouts. Still, they say it is clear some IS leaders have left Mosul and emphasize a string of strikes in recent months have dealt "significant blows" to the terror group. "The intelligence community has made great strides in developing practices, tradecraft and information to methodically target and eliminate key ISIL figures," a U.S. counterterrorism official told VOA, using an acronym for the terror group.

The use of fake drivers licenses isn’t just limited to teenagers drinking beer, but can be used by terrorists, illegal immigrants and fraudulent voters to go around barriers set up law enforcement. There is a whole unit of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) devoted to document fraud, and yet a quick search on Google yields credible fake ID vendors. Narcotics are accessible on the internet as well, but they require the use of software such as Tor in order to get to the “darknet.” Tor allows you to visit websites that are only accessible on the software’s browser and user’s locations and identities are hidden through the use of thousands of relays. On the other hand, there is a large community on Reddit openly discussing which fake ID websites are credible, offering sales and giving reviews on products. Drivers licenses and student IDs are the main types of fraudulent identifications available on the open internet. For passports one can visit a “dark marketp

MIAMI – A Lebanese national convicted in New York on terrorism-related charges was removed Wednesday by officers with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) in Miami. Maroun Sleiman Saade, 64, departed Miami International Airport Wednesday night, escorted by ERO officers and arrived Thursday at Beirut Hariri International Airport. On Nov. 5, 2014, the U. S. District Court, for the Southern District of New York convicted  Saade of conspiracy to commit narco-terrorism, conspiracy to import cocaine and heroin into the U.S., aiding and abetting material support to foreign terrorist organization and conspiracy to acquire/transfer anti-aircraft missiles. Saade was sentenced to 72 months in federal prison. “Returning individuals like Saade who engage in violating laws critical to the protection of our national security is a priority for our agency,” said Marc J. Moore, field office director for ERO in Miami. “ICE priori

LAGOS: The UN Children's Fund says it has negotiated the release of 876 children detained at a Nigerian army barracks that holds people suspected of helping the Boko Haram extremist group. West Africa director Manuel Fontaine says the agency fears more children are at least temporarily detained. He spoke today following a visit to Maiduguri, the northeastern city that is home to the army's Giwa Barracks. The Associated Press has documented the deaths of thousands of detainees there. Amnesty International this year called for its closure, saying that babies and children are among many detainees dying from disease, hunger, dehydration and untreated gunshot wounds. Fontaine says the children had been living in Boko Haram-held areas and were detained when those areas were liberated. Nigeria's army denies ill-treating detainees.     Source: http://www.newindianexpress.com/world/2016/oct/28/un-gets-release-of-876-children-detained-by-nigeria-military

WASHINGTON —  Somali regional authorities in Puntland are vowing to retake a town captured by pro-Islamic State militants this week. The president of the region, Dr. Abdiweli Mohamed Ali, said his administration would push back against the militants, who faced little opposition when they took over Qandala. “Puntland always defended itself, and is going to defend itself,” he said. “Daesh cannot hold on to Qandala; they will not maintain control. That is a pledge I make to you,” he said, using an Arabic term (Daesh) to refer to the Islamic State group. Military officials in Puntland, an autonomous region in northeastern Somalia, were caught by surprise when the militants seized Qandala, a traditional symbol of staunch resistance to foreign occupation. They are discussing how to respond to the threat by the militant group that apparently was taken lightly by Somali administrations. Qandala, Puntland, Somalia Qandala is 90 kilometers east of Bosaso, Puntland’s mai

The head of an international criminal network behind fraud totaling more than $60m was arrested in Nigeria in June 2016. The 40-year-old Nigerian male was found in Port Harcourt as the result of a global investigation led by Interpol. Such crime “poses a significant and growing threat, with tens of thousands of companies victimised in recent years,” Noboru Nakatani, executive director of the Interpol Global Complex for Innovation, warned in a statement. Now viewed as a more serious security threat than even terrorism, cyber attacks and data breaches are now considered the leading risk to businesses today. Nigeria’s National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) estimates that the local population lost $450 million to digital fraud in 2015. Meanwhile, cyber fraud attempts in the country in the first half of 2016 are reported to have increased by 1,000 times. Nigeria’s cybercrime act was finally voted into law in May 2015, which defined the legal consequenc

Cheer up, Europe, love. Cyberwar might never happen European enterprises are teaming with information security agencies and governments to run a pan-European cyberwar readiness exercise today. Cyber Europe 2016 - which involves thousands of experts from all 28 EU Member States, Switzerland and Norway - is being co-ordinated by European Union security agency ENISA. It's the fourth exercise of its type, and the most complex and wide-ranging to date. Such exercises typically focus on responding to DDoS attacks and malware but Cyber Europe 2016 will encompass a far wider range of threats and ancillary crisis management problems, as a statement by ENISA explains. Cyber Europe 2016 paints a very dark scenario, inspired by events such as the blackout in a European Country over Christmas period 1 and the dependence on technologies manufactured outside the jurisdiction of the European Union. It also features the Internet of Things, drones, cloud computing, innovative

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has warned that Daesh terrorists are leaving the northern Iraqi city of Mosul in droves and heading to neighboring Syria, voicing Moscow’s eagerness to work with the Iraqi government to stop the exodus. “The international anti-Daesh coalition has launched the operation to liberate Mosul.   We are interested in working with our Iraqi colleagues to take measures to prevent terrorists moving from Mosul to Syria with their heavy arms, which of course will seriously worsen the situation in the Syrian republic,” Lavrov said at a joint press conference with his Iranian and Syrian counterparts Mohammad Javad Zarif and Walid al-Muallem respectively in Moscow on Friday. He added, “We think that it is important not to let this happen. We will discuss it with the US and other members of the coalition. We cannot let the terrorists leave Mosul into Syria with the aim to re-directing their activity.” Last week,

By Nathan Lowe, Managing Director of ASI Solutions A hospital staff member, expecting delivery of an online purchase, opens an email claiming to contain details of a parcel delivery. Instead, it delivers a virus. This malware virus is sitting dormant and undetected for months until its creator decides to unleash the terror. Suddenly nurses and doctors are unable to access patient records on the hospital's computer network. In the emergency room and intensive care units, a once-esoteric technology issue poses a problem for the seriously ill where blood work, pathology results, and X-rays now stored online are suddenly unavailable. A message arrives from the creator of the virus. The hospital is held hostage, where a ransom payment will see the return of the patients' information. Welcome to the final frontier of cyber terrorism. Cyber terrorism is the act of Internet terrorism in terrorist activities, including acts of deliberate, large-scale disruption of comp

HYDERABAD: Stating that terrorism and cyber crime are posing a major threat to the nation, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Friday called upon the IPS probationers to prepare themselves to cope with such challenges. Arun Jaitley was the chief guest at the 68 batch Regular Recruits (RR) IPS probationers’ passing out parade at Sardar Vallabhai Patel National Police Academy. Addressing the IPS probationers, Jaitley asked them to maintain the dignity of civil servants. “Terrorism and cyber crime are posing threats to the country. Each one of you who will take charge as IPS officer in districts, towns and cities, have to fight against terrorist activities and cyber crime by introducing new methods,” he said. In her message, NPA director Aruna M Bahuguna asked all IPS probationers to reach the common people by implementing skills learnt at the academy. Jaitley presented the PM’s baton and Home Ministry’s revolver to IPS probationer Sonawane Rishikesh Bhagawan

KIDAPAWAN, Philippines: A Philippine mayor accused of drug trafficking was killed along with nine bodyguards in a shoot-out with police on Friday, authorities said, hours after President Rodrigo Duterte threatened to intensify his crackdown on crime. Samsudin Dimaukom , the mayor of the southern town of Saudi Ampatuan , was one of more than 150 local government officials, judges and police identified by Duterte earlier this year as being involved in the illegal drug trade. The deadly crime war has claimed more than 3,800 lives and drawn criticism from the United States, the United Nations and international rights groups who have accused police of summarily executing suspects. Police spokesperson Superintendent Romeo Galgo said that Dimaukom and his security personnel opened fire after anti-narcotics police stopped their vehicles at a checkpoint on suspicion they were transporting illegal drugs. Officers returned fire, killing the men in th

The allegation that RK was missing came even as security forces from Andhra Pradesh and Odisha scoured the forests of the cut-off area in search of the Maoist leader. The CPI (Maoist) on Friday claimed that Maoist leader G Ramakrishna alias RK was missing since the October 24 encounter in Malkangiri, and that he could be in police custody. The outfit also vowed revenge for the encounter, in which 30 Maoists were killed, and blamed the chief ministers of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha for it. In an audio tape released to the media, CPI (Maoist) East Division Committee secretary Kailash said, “Top Maoist cadre Ramakrishna is missing and he could be in police custody.” In the tape, Kailash said that Maoists had not become weak and would continue to fight. He warned that the SPs of Malkangiri and Visakhapatnam Rural would face dire consequences for the encounter in Malkangiri’s cut-off area. Alleging that some Maoist leaders, including RK, could be in police custody, Kailas

NEW DELHI: An Army jawan was killed in an encounter with terrorists near the Line of Control in Macchil sector of Kupwara district of Jammu and Kashmir on Friday evening. The terrorists mutilated the jawan's body, apparently beheading him, before fleeing back into Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir under the cover of firing provided by the Pakistan Army. "One militant was also killed in the gun-battle. But the despicable act of mutilating the jawan's body reflects the barbarism pervading in official and unofficial organisations in Pakistan," said the Army spokesperson in Srinagar. "The terrorists managed to escape due to the covering fire provided to them from the Pakistan Army posts. The incident will be responded to appropriately," he added. The soldier was identified as Manjeet Singh of 17 Sikh Light Infantry. Sources said the operation seemed to be the handiwork of a BAT (border action team), which typically consists of terroris

Islamist groups have been responsible for murdering a large number of journalists over the past decade without their killers being brought to justice. Those murders feature prominently in the latest edition of the global impunity index compiled by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) . It spotlights countries where journalists are murdered and their killers go unpunished. For the second year in succession, the worst country is Somalia, where Al-Shabaab is suspected of committing the majority of media murders. It is followed by Iraq and Syria, where members of Isis murdered at least six journalists over the past year. Similarly, extremist groups have also repeatedly targeted journalists with impunity in Afghanistan , Bangladesh, Nigeria and Pakistan. They appear on the index for at least the second consecutive year. At the same time, violence perpetrated against journalists by criminal groups and local officials allowed impunity to tighten its grip in Latin Americ