Violence and Security

Taliban Training Camps Offer Propaganda for Jihadi Recruits

January 03, 2019

The Taliban released new video posts of commandos training in camps across the Afghanistan-Pakistan territory, using diverse social-media outlets to trumpet the group's sustainability and to attract new recruits to the jihadis' long war to impose sharia regimes in Southwest Asia.
IS Excesses Nearly Erase Iraqi Christians

January 03, 2019

The Islamic State's (IS) excesses of violence, expulsion, and enslavement targeting Christian communities, along with IS's systematic campaign of destruction of Christian religious sites, ensured there were almost no Christians remaining to celebrate Christmas this year in the historically Christian lands of Iraq.
Taliban’s Strength Stokes Afghan Government Shakeup

January 03, 2019

Afghanistan’s President highlighted his concerns over the Taliban’s military resurgence by shaking up his government with the appointment of new Ministers of Defense and Interior both known for their hardline views against compromise with the Islamist extremist group fighting to make Afghanistan a sharia state.
Australia Faces Terrorism Threat from Returning IS Fighters

January 03, 2019

Government officials in Australia acknowledge that the country’s security situation has become increasingly complicated by the return from Iraq and Syria of Australian fighters who traveled to the Mideast to fight for the Islamic State (IS).
Moroccan Police Link Murder of Hikers to Terrorism

January 03, 2019

Moroccan police fear the chilling effects of Islamist terrorism on the country’s tourism industry after the murder in the Atlas Mountains of two Scandinavian hikers, one of whom was beheaded, by suspects with links to Islamist terrorist networks.
IS Resilience Sparks Concerns Regarding US Troop Withdrawal

January 03, 2019

America’s allies in the US-led international coalition to defeat the Islamic State (IS) in its core Syrian and Iraqi territories have expressed serious concerns about the group’s continuing resilience in Syria and global jihadist activities in the wake of US President Donald Trump’s announcement of immediate US troop withdrawal from the region.
Islamist Terrorism Threatens Burkina Faso

January 03, 2019

Islamist terror groups operating in Africa’s Sahel region are increasing their destabilizing activity in Burkina Faso, creating no-go zones and a deteriorating security environment in parts of the country.
Strasbourg Terrorist’s Death Highlights Danger of Islamic Extremism in France

January 03, 2019

The inclusion of the name of the terrorist identified as the perpetrator of last week’s Strasbourg market attack - confirmed by French officials to have been killed during his arrest by police - on the French National Security Watchlist underscores the systemic threat of militant Islamism in a core EU member state.
Turkey Threatens US-Backed Anti-IS Coalition

January 03, 2019

Addressing the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Turkey’s Islamist President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan threatened military action against America’s anti-Islamic State (IS) coalition, which has gained control over the critical area of northeastern Syria where Kurds and Christians are concentrated.
Al Shabaab Presence Looms Over Somalia's Upcoming Elections

January 03, 2019

The presence of Islamist extremist group al Shabaab is looming over upcoming elections for regional president in Somalia, as the country's Ministry of Internal Security arrested a former Shabaab leader-turned-candidate on suspicion of weapons trafficking and as the jihadist group continues operations aimed at capturing control in the country.