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Showing posts from November 1, 2015

Spain Wants a Wall to Keep ISIS Out

Source http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/11/07/spain-wants-a-wall-to-keep-isis-out.html MADRID — Terrorists following the lines laid out for them by the so-called Islamic State are setting their sights on Spain. And while there may be many reasons, one is obvious: Spain, at the urging of Washington, is being turned into a strategic base in the war to contain and eventually cut out the metastasized jihad that has spread across the Mediterranean basin. With little fanfare, a base near the town of Morón has been turned into a critical logistics and communication center for operations throughout the region. And, thus, a country that was once a transit point for terrorists is becoming their target. This week three Islamist were arrested in Madrid allegedly planning an attack there, and a statement by Ignacio Cosidó, Director General of Police, put the plot in perspective: “The majority of the operations in recent months were about networks devoted to the identification, recruiting

Chinese hacker arrested for blackmailing online gaming firm

A   Chinese   hacker   allegedly involved in blackmailing an online gaming company has been arrested in east China's   Wuxi city, a media report said on Friday. Police arrested the hacker for attacking the servers of the company and extorting a protection fee. The arrest came after the online games   could not run normally, prompting hundreds of complaints from its users. The hacker attacked the company's 20 servers between July 19 and 21 in 2015, state-run   china.org. cn   reported. After the attack, the hacker contacted the company and admitted that he had hacked its servers.  He then extorted a protection fee of 1880 yuan (around $296) per month from the company, threatening it with repeated attacks if it refused to pay up. On August 12, the hacker attacked the company's servers again and this time asked it to pay the protection fee for December in advance. The company reported the case to the security authorities on July 22 in 2015. A number of US firms have comp

Powerful blast rocks central Stockholm

A deadly explosion was heard in central Stockholm, that was likely to have been caused by a gas leak, according to local media. The blast reportedly occurred at 11:40 am local time in   Brnnkyrkagatan   on Sodermalm, according to the   Independent . Police who arrived at the scene suspected it was a gas leak, reported  RT.  Authorities have blocked off the street where the incident occurred. Earlier reports by local media said the blast was described as "powerful" by witnesses. Police have said the incident is not as big as it was feared and there are "no signs of a crime". A police spokesman has said,"We are there to investigate what happened, but at present it is unclear." Stockholm police investigating the incident, stated on their website, they are "investigating what caused the detonation" and if "it is related to a broken window" at the scene. Police have been in contact with the acute onset apartment owner and have not ye

US federal court indicts India-born brothers for funding al Qaeda

Two India-born brothers and naturalised American citizens have been charged by a US federal court for financing al Qaeda and supporting “violent jihad against the US, the US military in Iraq, Afghanistan, and throughout the world”.  Yahya Farooq Mohammad (37) and Ibrahim Zubair Mohammad (36) were indicted for raising thousands of dollars and making wire transfers to slain al Qaeda leader Anwar al-Awlaki.  The District court of Northern Ohio, which announced the indictment on Thursday, has also two other brothers – Asif Ahmed Salim and Sultane Roome Salim – for providing support to al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) which was led by Awlaki. All four men have been indicted with conspiracy to provide and conceal material support and resources to terrorists.  The Mohammad brothers face additional charge of conspiring to commit bank frauds. Awlaki, an American and Yemeni citizen, was killed by US forces in a drone attack in Yemen in 2011.  Yahya is a IT project manager in

New Charlie Hebdo cartoons on Russian plane crash draw flak

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French Satirical magazine   Charlie Hebdo has drawn the ire of Russians over its cartoon about the latest Russian plane crash in Egypt. The black and white cartoon shows a bearded man with a gun hunched down to save himself from a bomb, with the caption translating to "The Islamic State: Russian Aviation Intensifies Its Bombardments." The second cartoon, in colour, shows a skull amidst gore and debris of a crashed plane with the caption - "The Dangers of Russian Low-Cost Airlines", "I should’ve flown Air Cocaine," reports Huffington Post. View image on Twitter   Follow Deccan Chronicle   ✔ @DeccanChronicle Russia slams Charlie Hebdo cartoons on Egypt crash, calls it 'sacrilege' http://www. deccanchronicle.com/151106/world-e urope/article/russia-slams-charlie-hebdo-cartoons-egypt-crash-calls-it-sacrilege  … 6:55 PM - 6 Nov 2015 The illustrations have provoked outrage in Russia. "This has nothing to do with democ

ISIS militants plant mines, dig trenches to stop advance of U.S.-backedSyrian troops in Hasakah

Source http://aranews.net/2015/11/isis-militants-plant-mines-dig-trenches-to-stop-advance-of-u-s-backed-syrian-troops-in-hasakah/ ARA News  QAMISHLI  – The extremist group of Islamic State (ISIS) has planted dozens of mines in the vicinity of al-Hawl town in the eastern countryside of Hasakah, northeast Syria, in a move to prevent the U.S.-backed troops of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) from advancing towards the group’s positions, military sources reported on Friday. Speaking to ARA News in Hasakah, SDF fighter Farhad Ameen said: “ISIS militants are trying to find ways to prevent our advance towards the strategic town of al-Hawl, through laying dozens of mines across its suburbs.”  The source added that the radical group has been digging trenches around its headquarters in the eastern and southern countryside of Hasakah.  “They also have dug trenches in the villages of Bahrat al-Khatooniya and al-Kahila in the vicinity of al-Hawl,” he said, pointing out “there will

Extremist from ‘fever swamps of the crazed right’

Source http://m.smh.com.au/comment/obituaries/extremist-from-fever-swamps-of-the-crazed-right-20151106-gkt2gd.html WILLIS CARTO 17-7-1926 – 2-11-2015 Anti-Semitic propagandist  Willis Carto raised funds to finance a military dictatorship in the United States, campaigned to persuade blacks to voluntarily return to Africa and, most influentially, started newsletters, a journal, and conferences of academics and others to deny the scale, and even the existence, of the Holocaust. The Anti-Defamation League called him "one of the most influential American anti-Semitic propagandists" and "the mastermind of the hate network." Advertisement Carto used lobbying and publishing to denigrate Jews and other minorities and galvanize the movement to deny the Holocaust. His death, at 89, was announced by  The American Free Press , a newspaper he helped found. His associates included neo-Nazis, Christian vigilantes, John Birch Society members and Ku Klux Klansmen,

ISIS infiltrates into Europe, sets up secret base in the Balkans

Source http://aranews.net/2015/11/isis-infiltrates-into-europe-sets-up-secret-base-in-the-balkans/ ARA News ISTANBUL  – Since the emergence of the extremist Islamic State group (ISIS) in Iraq and Syria, thousands of westerners have joined its ranks. The Western governments expressed fear of the returnee jihadists, who could carry out attacks against European and American interests in their countries.  Dozens of ISIS jihadists have infiltrated into European countries and have recently installed a “secret base” in the Balkans, a Croatian official has said.  The terror group has been able to organize dozens of militants in Kosovo and Bosnia-Herzegovina. According to Croatian intelligence, a group of ISIS foreign militants, who are originally from the Balkans, have returned back to their native countries.  “We have identified an ISIS senior member who most probably organize dozens of Balkan jihadists,” the official said on the condition of anonymity. Since 2012, hundreds

Uzbek authorities arrest Qaeda recruits before heading to Syria

Source http://aranews.net/2015/11/uzbek-authorities-arrest-qaeda-recruits-before-heading-to-syria/ ARA News  GENEVA  – The Uzbek authorities arrested a group of citizens who have been planning to join a jihadi group in Syria, local media reported on Friday.  An official in the Uzbek National Security Service (SNB) told reporters in Uzbekistan’s capital, Tashkent, that the arrested citizens were recruited by radical Islamists to join a jihadi group in Syria.  The SNB security official said in a statement to the state media that the captured jihadi recruits were planning to join the al-Qaedal-linked radical group of Jannat Oshiqlari (Loving Paradise) in Syria.  Jannat Oshiqlari, also known as Tawhid wal-Jihod (TWJ), is an Uzbek-led group based in the northeastern Syrian province of Aleppo.  The group has recently pledged allegiance to al-Qaeda.  The TWJ militants in Uzbekistan have been seeking new recruits to send them to Syria.  The group has launched a propaganda

More than 40 people killed in Russian strikes in Raqqa

Source http://aranews.net/2015/11/more-than-40-people-killed-in-russian-strikes-in-raqqa/ ARA News URFA  – The Russian warplanes launched a new wave of airstrikes on the northeastern Syrian city of Raqqa, killing at least 42 people, including militants of the Islamic State (ISIS), local activists reported on Friday.  At least 27 civilians and 15 ISIS militants were killed in Russian raids that targeted the city of Raqqa.   Speaking to ARA News in Raqqa, media activist Saleh Raqqawi said that the Russian warplanes have destroyed several centers for the radical group and bombed an old bridge on the Euphrates River, beside hitting public institutions in the city.   “The airstrikes have destroyed a part of the National Hospital, at-Talaa Camp and residential buildings near the Kids Park,” Raqqawi added.  In October, a total of 254 civilians were killed in Russian airstrikes, according to a report by the Syrian Network for Human Rights. Russia started its airstrikes in Syria on Sep. 30. The

Vladimir Putin suggests Russia could intervene in LIBYA and YEMEN 'to protect its interest

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Source http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/617664/Vladimir-Putin-Russia-war-Libya-Yemen GETTY Russian President Vladimir Putin holding binoculars The Russian president said his priority was to protect citizens living abroad, regardless of where they were. That could include action to safeguard Russians living in the North African state of Libya, which has been ravaged by violent Islamic extremism since the fall of dictator Colonel Gaddafi. Speaking at the fifth World Congress of Compatriots in Moscow, Mr Putin said: "People who are not in Russia due to various reasons should be firmly sure: we will always protect your interests. "Moreover, in difficult and crisis situations, such as in Libya, Syria or Yemen." Russia has been providing humanitarian aid to Yemen since the outbreak of the civil war in March. REUTERS A Russian cargo plane delivering humanitarian aid to Yemen The Arab state has suffered from internal conflict between Saudi-backed separatists and forces loyal