Violence and Security

Islamist Sectarianism Produces Humanitarian Crisis in Yemen

December 13, 2018

Almost four years of a Saudi-Iran war for control over Yemen has produced what the world’s worst humanitarian catastrophe since the end of the Cold War, with nearly three-quarters of Yemen’s 22 million people suffering from the effects of the two Islamist theocracies’ war crimes that are causing famine, cholera, and massive loss of life.
“Father of Taliban” Murdered Amid Escalating Religious Tensions in Pakistan

December 13, 2018

Unknown assailants have murdered the Islamic cleric known as “the Father of the Taliban” for his role in founding the Afghani-Pakistani Islamist extremist group who had moved progressively to support religious reform and politics over violence in Pakistan.
IS-Egypt Attacks Christian Pilgrims in Egyptian Sinai

December 13, 2018

Militants loyal to Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula Islamic State (IS) branch staged a lethal attack on Coptic Orthodox Christians on a pilgrimage to a monastery south of Cairo, continuing their targeting of Christians in Egypt with impunity.
Australian Lawmaker Seeks Terrorist Designation for Hizb ut-Tahrih

December 13, 2018

A leading lawmaker from Australia’s Liberal Party is calling on the country’s federal government to designate Hizb ut-Tahrih as a terrorist group under the Australian National Security List, based on the global Islamist group’s support for imposition of sharia law, anti-Semitism, and execution of Muslims who change their religion.
Philippines, Islamist Militants Remain Locked in Struggle

December 13, 2018

One year since the Philippines Armed Forces won a months-long siege against Islamic State (IS)-affiliated militants on the Muslim-majority island of Mindanao, state military and intelligence forces remain locked in a struggle aimed at defeating the recruitment, radicalization, and operational capabilities of the country’s diverse jihadist groups.
Boko Haram, IS Target Female Aid Workers

December 13, 2018

An Islamic State (IS)-affiliated branch of Boko Haram, the Islamist extremist group fighting to impose sharia law in Nigeria under the moniker “Western education is a sin,” is targeting female workers from international humanitarian aid organizations for kidnapping, ransom, and murder.
UN Office Verifies over 200 Mass Graves in Former IS Territory

December 12, 2018

The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has issued a report detailing the war crimes of Islamic State (IS) forces in the Iraqi portion of the former Islamist caliphate territories, verifying the existence of more than 200 mass graves whose victims number at least 6,000 and possibly exceed 12,000.
Last Stage of Fight Against IS in Syria Underscores Resilience

December 12, 2018

The protracted, high-casualty, final stage of the US-backed coalition to rout the Islamic State (IS) from its remaining strongholds in Syria is underscoring the resilience of the IS fighting forces, while data seized from IS locations is revealing the ongoing threat from the globalization of the Islamist caliphate idea and operational cells.
Final Effort to Oust IS from Northeastern Syria Faces Pushback

December 10, 2018

Syrian Kurdish Special Forces and the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are facing strong pushback from Islamic State (IS) fighters in northeastern Syria, one of the few remaining holdout areas from the territorial caliphate in Iraq and Syria.
IS Continues Jihadist Activities in Libya

December 10, 2018

Islamic State (IS) cells are active in Libya, with members of the caliphate group suspected in a combined killing-kidnapping incident in a town in the central part of the country, only weeks after Libyan security forces apprehended a local IS operative in the same town.