Following his meeting with Mike Pompeo, Moroccan Minister of Foreign Affairs Nasser Bourita met three US senators in Washington, D.C…The Moroccan official visited the US to discuss means to “end Iran’s support for terrorism and counter its malign influence in the region.”

The trade between Iran and its western neighbor Iraq has grown 30 percent during the first five months of the Iranian calendar year (March 21- August 22, 2018), director of Iran-Iraq Chamber of Commerce Yahya Al-e Es’haq told Mehr news agency in an interview published on Monday.

Ali Akbar Salehi, director of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), said on Monday that “approach of gradualism” adopted by the European Union’s is not a proper way to preserve the 2015 nuclear deal, officially called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.

Iraqi security forces have disbanded a terrorist group in the southern part of the country’s oil-rich northern province of Kirkuk as government troops, backed by allied fighters from Popular Mobilization Units, are trying to purge the war-ravaged Arab country of the remnants of the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group. Read the rest of this entry »

The Iraqi Defense Ministry announced on Sunday that its troops captured three Islamic State militants, including the group’s cook, in Mosul city.

“Military intelligence forces carried out a specific operation in Hamam al-Alil district in Mosul, managing to arrest three militants belonging to Islamic State group,” Sputnik quoted the Iraqi Security Media Center as saying. Read the rest of this entry »

The Head of the Presidential Council, Fayez Al-Sirraj, issued Sunday an order to form a join force to end conflicts and prevail security in Tripoli led by the commander of western military zone Brigadier General Osama Al-Juwaili.

The force, according to Al-Sirraj, will be formed of three infantry brigades and an interior ministry unit to establish security, protect residents, oversee the ceasefire, and communicate with the conflict’s parties by referring them to another will-be formed committee. Read the rest of this entry »

New clashes flared between rival militias south of Libya’s capital Tripoli on Tuesday, causing widespread power outages, the national electricity firm said.

The fighting underscored the fragility of a United Nations-backed ceasefire reached earlier this month after days of deadly violence between armed groups in the capital, beset by turmoil since the fall of dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. Read the rest of this entry »

Pro-ISIS Media Group Warns ISIS Members Not To Leave ‎Group’s Territory In Syria To Join ‘Apostate-Controlled’ ‎Areas
On September 5, 2018, the pro-Islamic State (ISIS) Al-Muhajireen Foundation media outlet published on its Telegram channel a poster warning ISIS fighters not to leave ISIS-controlled territories in Syria to go to “apostate-controlled” areas, that is, areas controlled by other Syrian rebel groups.
Al-Qaeda In The Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) Video Features Group’s Counterintelligence Operations, ‎Confessions Of Saudi-Run Spy Ring, Yemeni-American ‘Spy’ Rasheed Al-Hibshi
On September 4, 2018, Al-Qaeda In The Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) released via its media company Al-Malahim a 40-minute video titled “The Preliminary Introduction To Demolishing The Espionage.”
Afghan Taliban: 877 Afghan Government Officials Joined Taliban In August 2018
In August 2018, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (the Taliban organization) recruited 877 people working in various departments of the Afghan government, according to a report (by memri.org).

EXCLUSIVE: Ansar Al-Shari’a, A New Syria-Based Jihadi Group
On July 29, 2018, a group calling itself Ansar Al-Shari’a opened a Telegram ‎channel and posted its formation ‎charter. The group hints that it was formed in response to the retreat of the mujahideen from their previously ‎held territories in various places in Syria and due to the overall deteriorated state of the mujahideen’s willingness ‎to fight.
EXCLUSIVE: Afghan Taliban On U.S. Lt.-Gen. Austin Scott Miller: ‘Every New General… Vaunts… About Being Able To Reign In Afghanistan And Crushing Jihadi Resistance’
On September 2, 2018, Lt. Gen. Austin Scott Miller replaced Gen. Johan Nicholson as the commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan. On September 11, 2018, the Islamic Emirate (the Taliban organization) issued a statement that was dismissive about yet another such appointment in the 17 years of the Afghan war, which began soon after 9/11(by memri.org)

The European Parliament has voted to pursue unprecedented disciplinary action against Hungary over alleged breaches of the European Union’s “fundamental values.” The EU has accused the Hungarian government of attacks against the media, minorities and the rule of law.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has denied the charges, and said they are a retaliation for his government’s refusal to take in migrants from the Muslim world.
The censure represents another salvo in a showdown between pro- and anti-EU forces over populism and nationalism ahead of European Parliament elections in May 2019.
During a session of the European Parliament in Strasbourg on September 12, MEPs voted 448-to-197 — by a margin of more than two-thirds — to trigger Article 7 against Hungary. It was the first time that such parliamentary action has been taken against an EU member state; the move can ultimately lead to Hungary losing its voting rights in EU institutions…Article 7 is a two-step process that moves from “preventive measures” (Article 7.1) to “punitive measures” (Article 7.2); EU governments will now have to decide whether to impose sanctions. Hungary is likely to escape the most serious sanction of suspending the country’s vote in the bloc because that would require unanimity and Poland, which has had its own run-in with the EU, has pledged to protect Orbán.(by gatestoneinstitute.org)

Turkey’s Naval Forces Command has “submitted a proposal to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stating that Turkey should establish a naval base in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus,” according to Turkey’s strongly pro-Erdogan daily, Yeni Safak, which recently endorsed the proposal for the base in an article entitled, “Why Turkey should establish a naval base in Northern Cyprus.”… Cyprus is strategically important: a naval base there would give Turkey easier access to the Eastern Mediterranean’s international trade routes and greater control over the vast undersea energy resources around Cyprus. In the past, Turkey has blocked foreign vessels from drilling for these resources; in June, Turkey began its own exploration of the island’s waters for gas and oil…Another factor that may be contributing to the Turkish Navy’s desire for a base in Cyprus is Israel. Aside from Ankara’s extremely rocky relations with Jerusalem, Israel and Cyprus have been working to forge an agreement to join their electricity grids and construct a pipeline to link their gas fields to mainland Europe. Although they are in a dispute over development rights of one of these gas fields, Aphrodite, they are invested in reaching a solution that will not damage their increasingly friendly relations.
Erdogan’s considerations should concern NATO, of which Turkey, surprisingly, is still a member, and the rest of the West. (by gatestoneinstitute.org)

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Yukiya Amano verified on Monday that Iran is living up to all its obligations under the 2015 nuclear deal. “Iran is implementing its nuclear-related commitments under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action,” Amano said in his introductory statement to the IAEA’s Board of Governors in Vienna using the nuclear deal’s official name.

Chair of the European parliamentary group for relations with the Islamic Republic has said the European Union is looking to establish an independent financial system for banking relations with Iran. Janusz Lewandowski made the statement with Kazem Jalali, chairman of the Majlis research center, in Brussels on Saturday.

Iran has discussed trade in national currencies with Russia and Turkey in order to reduce the impact of U.S. dollar on the three countries’ trade and economies, ILNA reported on Saturday quoting Central bank of Iran (CBI) Governor Abdolnaser Hemmati.

In a meeting in Tehran on Monday, high-ranking Iranian and Russian officials discussed issues related to the 2015 nuclear deal and ways to keep the internationally-backed agreement alive. The meeting was held between Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi and his Russian counterpart Sergei Ryabkov.

Pro-ISIS Telegram Channel Publishes Manuals For Preparing Homemade Poisons
In recent weeks, a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) media outlet has released a series of manuals on its Telegram channel titled “Kill them Silently,” which explain how to prepare homemade poisons.
ISIS Threatens To Target Sunni Tribes In Iraq For Collaborating With Iraqi Government To Fight ISIS
On August 31, 2018, the Islamic State (ISIS) in Salh Addine, Iraq, released a video threatening Sunni tribes, particularly the Shammar tribe, for taking part in the fight against ISIS. The video also showed the execution of Sunni men accused of being members of the Shammar tribe’s anti-ISIS forces.
(by memri.org).

EXCLUSIVE: ISIS, Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) Battle For Influence In Idlib, Northern Syria
In recent months, tensions have risen between the Islamic State (ISIS) and Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) in Syria’s Idlib area, most of which is controlled by HTS. Both organizations have killed rival fighters and commanders, there have been numerous mutual arrests, executions, and shootings, and each side produces damning propaganda about the other.
ISIS Weekly Al-Naba’ Insists: The Man Who Stabbed Two Family Members In France Was A Soldier Of The Islamic StateIssue 145 of ISIS’s weekly news bulletin Al-Naba’, released on August 31, 2018, reiterates the claim that Kamel Salhi, who stabbed his mother, sister and another woman in Trappes near Paris on August 24, was acting in the name of ISIS and was targeting “crusaders,” although the French authorities have not established that the crime was terror-related. ISIS claimed responsibility for the stabbing on August 23. (by memri.org)

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has reacted strongly to Washington’s announcement that President Donald Trump is going to chair the upcoming UN Security Council and use the opportunity against Iran. “There’s only one UNSC resolution on Iran. .@realDonaldTrump is violating it & bullying others to do same. Now he plans to abuse presidency of SC to divert a session—item devoted to Palestine for 70 yrs— to blame Iran for horrors U.S. & clients have unleashed across M.E. #chutzpah,” Zarif tweeted on Wednesday.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and his Russian and Turkish counterparts, Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan, will discuss various issues related to the Syrian crisis in a summit in Tehran on Friday. The topics of discussion will include provocations with the alleged use of chemical weapons, a Putin adviser said.

France says it has proposed that members of armed groups in Mali delaying implementation of a 2015 peace agreement should be put on a UN sanctions blacklist.

France’s deputy UN ambassador Anne Gueguen told the Security Council on Thursday that the time for warnings is over and France has submitted the names of individuals – whom she did not Read the rest of this entry »

Libya’s UN-backed government has announced a state of emergency in the capital and its outskirts as ongoing fighting has killed at least 39 people including civilians in the past days. Read the rest of this entry »

The death toll from a Boko Haram attack on a Nigerian army post on the border with Niger has risen to 48, military sources said on Monday.

Scores of Boko Haram fighters in trucks stormed the base on Thursday in Zari village in northern Borno state and briefly seized it after a fierce battle. Read the rest of this entry »

Clashes raged on Monday on the outskirts of Libya’s capital Tripoli trapping residents indoors and hampering rescue efforts, as the UN called for talks after more than a week of deadly violence.

Fighting since August 27 between rival militias in the southern suburbs has killed at least 47 people and wounded 129 others, most of them civilians, according to an updated toll put out by the health ministry on Sunday night. Read the rest of this entry »

Senior Iraqi military commanders hosted their Russian, Iranian, and Syrian counterparts in Baghdad on Saturday to discuss security cooperation and information-sharing in the Middle East, where Daesh (ISIL) terrorist group continues to carry out attacks.

“Imposition of sanctions and pressure and Europe’s lack of immediate action to meet obligations under the JCPOA will have serious consequences,” Kharrazi said during a meeting with British Minister of State for the Middle East Alistair Burt in Tehran. Kharrazi noted that there are many grounds for Iran and Britain to expand ties, however, he said cooperation requires “trust building”. For his part, Burt said that the British position on the JCPOA is totally different from that of the U.S.

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Sunday that based on political calculations, there is no military war on horizon for Iran. Ayatollah Khamenei made the statement in a meeting with officials of the Khatam ul-Anbiya Air Defense Base.

Poster On Pro-ISIS Channels Shows ISIS Flag Flying On The Temple Mount In Jerusalem
On August 27, 2018, a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) Telegram channel published a digitally created poster of the Temple Mount depicting an ISIS flag flying from the Dome of the Rock and Israeli flags in flames. ‎
Afghan Taliban Delegation Visits Indonesia, Holds Talks On ‘Bilateral Relations’
On August 17, 2018, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (the Taliban organization) released a statement confirming that a delegation of its leaders visited Indonesia from August 12 to August 15, 2018. According to a statement issued by Muhammad Sohail Shaheen, spokesman for the Political Office of the Islamic Emirate, the delegation that visited Indonesia was led by Sher Muhammad Abbas Stanekzai, head of the Afghan Taliban’s Political Office based in Qatar.(by memri.org).

EXCLUSIVE: Syria-Based Egyptian Jihadi Sheikh: There Are Thousands Of Foreign Fighters In Idlib – Including Americans And Europeans, As Well As Young Girls Who Wish To Carry Out Martyrdom Operations
On July 27, 2018, a jihadi Telegram channel posted a video of a sermon by Syria-based Egyptian jihadi sheikh Abu Al-Yaqthan Al-Masri, in which he said that there are thousands of foreign fighters in Idlib, among them Europeans and Americans, as well as young girls who have expressed a desire to carry out martyrdom operations in Aleppo, Ghouta, and Hamah.
Poster From Pro-ISIS Media Outlet Threatens Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) Leader Al-Joulani, Makes Veiled Threats To U.S.On August 28, 2018, a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) media outlet released a poster depicting Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) leader Abu Muhammad Al-Joulani as a marionette being held over a fire by U.S. President Donald Trump.(by memri.org)

EXCLUSIVE: Report: Palestinian Refugee Fighters Are Returning To ‎Lebanon From Syria
According to an August 20, 2018 report in a London-based daily, an unknown number of Palestinian refugee men, who had fought alongside Syria-based jihadi organization Jabhat Al-Nusra, the predecessor to Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), in Syria, have returned to Lebanon.
Al-Sahab Releases Video Featuring Al-Qaeda Leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri Calling On Muslim Ummah, Mujahideen, And Scholars To Unite Against ‘International Alliance Of Unbelief’
On August 23, 2018, Al-Sahab, the media arm of Al-Qaeda, released a new video featuring the group’s leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri in which he called on the Muslim ummah, the scholars, the mujahideen, and the preachers to unite to fight against the “international alliance of unbelief.”
Al-Qaeda Leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri: Hamas Has Betrayed The Principles Of Its Founders; The Muslim Nation Must Unite Against The Crusader-Zionist Attack And Prevent The U.S. From Living In Security
On August 19, 2018, the Al-Qaeda (AQ) Media Arm, Al-Sahab released an audio message from AQ leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri in which he harshly criticizes the Hamas organization and labels it a traitor. (by memri org.)

Two Syrian Rebel Factions Announce Their Decision To ‎Join Pro-Al-Qaeda Group Hurras Al-Din
On August 20, 2018, pro-Al-Qaeda Telegram account Al-Muhajir Al-Khurasani posted two statements, one by the Jund Al-Sham Brigades and one by the Fursan Al-Iman Brigades, announcing that the groups were joining Syrian pro-Al-Qaeda organization Hurras Al-Din.
HTS Leader Al-Joulani In Eid Al-Adha Address: We Will Neither Surrender Nor Sign Reconciliation Agreements With The Regime
On the occasion of Eid Al-Adha, celebrated this year on August 20-21, telegram channels associated with Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) circulated an address by the organization’s leader, Abu Muhammad Al-Joulani, and photos of him touring the Latakia front. In the 8-minute address, Al-Joulani, seated in at a desk, conveys holiday greetings to his fighters and says that they are preparing well for the “decisive battle” in northern Syria, the rebels’ last stronghold in the country.
The Emir Of The French Brigade In Syria Is Released From HTS Jail Amid Growing Tensions Between Rebel Factions
On August 19, 2018, a French-speaking, Al-Qaeda-aligned jihadi group in Syria posted on Telegram that on August 18, 2018, its leader Omar Diaby a.k.a Omar Omsen was released from a Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) jail where he had been incarcerated.(by memri org.)

ISIS Supporters Launch Online Campaign Calling On Muslims In Morocco, Tunisia, Libya, And Algeria To Start Armed Revolt Against Their Governments
On August 20, 2018, Telegram users who support the Islamic State (ISIS) launched an online campaign urging the “brothers in the Islamic Maghreb” to revolt against their governments, take up arms, and fight for the sake of Allah.”
Pro-ISIS Hacking Group Threatens To ‘Harm’ Hacktivist Group Anonymous, ‘Blacken The Virtual World,’ And ‘Terrorize Unbelievers In Cyberspace’ On August 17
On August 9, 2018, the pro-Islamic State (ISIS) United Cyber Caliphate Islamic State Hackers Division published a post on Telegram condemning the international hacktivist group Anonymous, threatening to “harm” it and vowing to “blacken the virtual world and terrorize the kuffar [unbelievers] in cyberspace.”
Al-Shabab Releases Statement On Occasion Of Eid Al-Adha Urging Muslims To Wage Jihad, Condemning Saudi Government For Controlling Access To Hajj
On August 22, 2018, Al-Kata’ib, the media arm of Somali Al-Qaeda affiliate Harakat Al-Shabab Al-Mujahideen, released a statement on the occasion of Eid Al-Adha condemning the government of Saudi Arabia for “violating people’s rights during Hajj” and urging Muslims to migrate to jihadi fronts and march forth to wage jihad.(by memri org).

Al-Qaeda In The Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) Rejects Associated Press Report Accusing Saudi-Led Military Coalition Of ‘Cutting Secret Deals’ With Group’s Fighters In Yemen
On August 17, 2018, Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) released a statement rejecting the Associated Press’s (AP) August 7, 2018 investigative report accusing the Saudi-led military coalition of “cutting secret deals” with the AQAP fighters in Yemen “to leave key cities and towns and letting others retreat with weapons, equipment, and wads of looted cash.”
EXCLUSIVE: Islamic State In Greater Sahara (ISGS) Commander Sultan Ould Badi Surrenders To Algerian Forces
On August 11, 2018, the Algerian Ministry of National Defense reported that veteran jihadi commander Sultan Ould Badi, from Islamic State in Greater Sahara (ISGS), had surrendered to Algerian forces in the town of Tamanrasset, near the border with Niger.
ISIS In Barqah, Libya, Releases Pictorial Report Of Attack On Military Base Controlled By Gen. Haftar’s Forces, Chadian ID Found On Dead Soldier
On August 10, 2018, the Islamic State (ISIS) in Barqah, Libya, released a pictorial report documenting its raid on a military base and a checkpoint belonging to the forces of Gen. Khalifa Belqasim Haftar, head of the Libyan National Army, and showed a dead soldier with a Chadian identification card found on his body.
EXCLUSIVE: Islamic State Supporter Criticizes Leadership In Series Of Scathing Articles, Decries ‘Iraqization’ Of Leadership And ‘Exclusion’ Of Al-Baghdadi From Decision Making
For a group like the Islamic State (ISIS), which views itself as the sole authority in the Islamic world, and its leader as the only legitimate Muslim leader worldwide, dissent is no small matter.
(by memri org.)

The ‘conditional ceasefire’ starts on Monday and will be in place for around three months, ‘provided the Taliban reciprocate’, said President Ashraf Ghani.

Afghanistan on Sunday declared a “conditional” ceasefire with Taliban militants ahead of the Eid-al-Adha festival this week. The ceasefire starts on Monday and will be in place for around three months, “provided the Taliban reciprocate”, President Ashraf Ghani said. Read the rest of this entry »

US-backed forces have repelled a raid by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group targeting barracks housing American and French troops in eastern Syria, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Aug. 18.

The Syrian Democratic Forces and the US-led coalition supporting them were on high alert after the raid late Aug. 17 at the Omar oil field in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor, the Britain-based war monitor said. Read the rest of this entry »

Security sources confirmed an agreement to reopen Ras Ajdir crossing border between Libya and Tunisia next Sunday.

The sources clarified that a meeting will be held in the city of Zuwara on Sunday, with the participation of the Minister of Local Government Baddad Gansu, and a formal Tunisian delegation to officially announce the reopening of the border and the agreement between the parties. Read the rest of this entry »