ISIS Claims Responsibility For Melbourne Attack
On November 9, 2018, the Islamic State (ISIS) via its A’maq news agency claimed responsibility for that day’s “vehicular” and stabbing attack in Melbourne, Australia.
EXCLUSIVE: ISIS Supporter Launches New Group For Hacking And Spreading Propaganda
On November 6, 2018, an Islamic State (ISIS) supporter announced the launch of a new online group named “The Caliphate Corps.” The objective of the new group is to hack its rivals’ social media accounts and post ISIS propaganda (known as “raiding” in ISIS parlance).
Al-Shabab Video Features Group’s Officials Urging Somalis To Support Mujahideen, Documenting Attacks Against Burundian Forces
On November 7, 2018, Al-Kataib, the media arm of the pro-Al-Qaeda Somalia-based jihadi group Al-Shabab, released the second part of a video that featured jihadi figures and tribal leaders discussing the history of jihad in the Muslim world, particularly in Somalia, urged Somalis to support the mujahideen, and documented attacks against Burundian troops (by memri org.)

ISIS Supporters Justify Attack On Egyptian Christians And Threaten More To Come
On November 2, 2018, A’maq, the news agency of the Islamic State (ISIS), reported that the gunmen who attacked a bus carrying Coptic Christians in Minya, Egypt today were “fighters of the Islamic State.”
Pro-ISIS Media Outlet Urges Supporters In The West To Perpetrate Lone Wolf Attacks
On October 18, 2018, a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) media group published an article urging supporters in the West to carry out lone wolf attacks. The article, titled “In the Very Homes of the Crusaders,” appeared in poster form on Telegram and as an article on Telegraph.
Report: Increased Militant Activity In Areas Of Kashmir Declared ‘Militancy-Free’ In 2015
According to an Indian media report, militant activity has increased recently in areas of the Kashmir Valley that were declared “militancy-free” in 2015.
Slain Kashmiri Jihadi In Audio Recording: Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Of Pakistan Dictates What To Say In Jihadi Videos
An audio recording of slain Kashmiri jihadi Abu Hamas has emerged in which he explains the internal rifts in the jihadi movement in Kashmir and why he distanced himself from Zakir Musa, the emir of Ansar Ghazwatul Hind (AGH) who was formerly associated with the Pakistani intelligence-backed jihadi group Hizbul Mujahideen (by memri org.)

EXCLUSIVE: Al-Muhajireen Foundation Responds To Accusations From ISIS Supporters That It Is Associated With Intelligence Agencies
Al-Muhajireen Foundation is a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) media outlet which directs its content to foreign fighters in the organization, particularly those in Syria. The foundation publishes security warnings for ISIS fighters in Syria, as well as eulogies for foreign fighters.
ISIS Claims Its Fighter Infiltrated NATO Military Camp In Afghanistan, Killed ‘Crusaders,’ Including Americans
On November 1, 2018, the Islamic State (ISIS) released a new issue of its weekly newspaper Al-Naba’, which includes an “exclusive” report claiming that an ISIS fighter had infiltrated a NATO special forces military camp in Herat province in Afghanistan and killed and wounded crusaders, including Americans (by memri.org).

Pro-Al-Qaeda Group In Mali Says Attack On International Forces In Timbuktu Is Warning For Burkina Faso And Countries In Region
On October 30, 2018, the pro-Al-Qaeda Mali-based Group For The Support Of Islam And Muslims (GSIM) released a video saying that its fighters, including two “martyrdom” seekers, had attacked a camp of the international forces in the Bir area of Timbuktu, Mali. The video was posted on the official Telegram channel of the pro-Al-Qaeda media group the Global Islamic Media Front (GIMF).
Afghan Taliban Allege Ulterior Motives In Afghan President’s Opposition To Blackwater
On October 14, 2018, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (the Taliban organization) issued a statement alleging ulterior motives behind Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s reported opposition to the deployment of private security firm Blackwater in Afghanistan (by memri org.)

A Kurdish-led force backed by a US-led anti-Daesh coalition said on Sunday that it was resuming its offensive against the Daesh group in eastern Syria.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an Arab-Kurdish alliance, had announced it was suspending its operation on Oct.31 after Turkey shelled Kurdish militia posts in northern Syria. Read the rest of this entry »

Iraqi troops destroyed 10 hotbeds of Islamic State during a wide-scale military operation in Diyala province, a security source said on Tuesday.

Speaking to Baghdad Today website, the source said that a military operation was launched on Monday to hunt down the remnants of the Islamic State extremist militants in Hamrin Basin, 55 kilometers northeast of Baqubah. Read the rest of this entry »

Iraq’s Ministry of Interior (MoI) said on Tuesday that they had arrested a high-ranking leader of the Islamic State (IS) known as “Abu Ammar” southeast of Kirkuk Province amid the terrorist organization’s continued sporadic attacks in the country.

“Through field follow-up, the Intelligence Divisions of the Federal Police… were able to capture one of the leaders of the Da’esh (IS) terrorist organization,” MoI Spokesman Maj. Gen. Sa’ad Ma’an said in a statement. Read the rest of this entry »

Arab League (AL) Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit urged on Sunday Libyan parties to reach a consensus on political, constitutional and electoral steps aspired by the Libyan people.

Aboul-Gheit called on the Libyan political parties to overcome the current political impasse and division in the war-torn Arab country, AL spokesman Mahmoud Afifi said in a statement. Read the rest of this entry »

The European Union and Algeria on Monday vowed to reinforce mutual dialogue to maintain regional and international peace and security.

The remarks came during the 2nd High-Level Dialogue on Regional Security and Counterterrorism wich was held in Algiers.

The dialogue was co-chaired by Algerian Foreign Minister Abdelkader Messahel and EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini. Read the rest of this entry »

The death toll from a string of car bombings near a popular hotel in the Somali capital Mogadishu has jumped to at least 41, police said on Saturday.

Friday’s attack was the latest in a wave of bombings by al-Shabaab, an Al-Qaeda affiliate which has been fighting to overthrow the internationally-backed Somali government for over a decade. Read the rest of this entry »

Libya strongman Khalifa Haftar will not attend roundtable talks at a Palermo conference aimed at stabilising the north African nation but will meet regional leaders on the sidelines, his office said on Tuesday. Read the rest of this entry »

The US military in Afghanistan has halted most face-to-face contacts with the Afghan security forces and has temporarily withdrawn troops from Afghan security facilities after recent “insider” shootings, US media reported on Thursday. Read the rest of this entry »

The Iraqi Joint Operations Command has indicated readiness to face dangers of Islamic State on the borders with Syria.

In a statement, Brig. Gen. Yahia Rasool, the spokesperson for the command, said, “The Iraqi-Syrian borders are protected by the joint troops of army and al-Hashd al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilization Forces) as well as the border guards. Read the rest of this entry »

Boko Haram jihadists launched a large assault on a military base in Nigeria’s remote northeast region and killed one soldier, defence officials said Sunday.

The attack on 145 Battalion in Gashigar, Borno State, began on Saturday and continued into early Sunday morning, said Nigerian air force spokesman Ibikunle Daramola.

“BHTs (Boko Haram terrorists) in 13 gun trucks…advanced towards the camp from two different directions,” Daramola said in a statement. Read the rest of this entry »

Neglected by rival authorities in Tripoli and the country’s east, Libya’s southern desert has increasingly become a hideout for foreign rebel groups that stand accused of stoking growing insecurity.

“Kidnapping, theft and banditry have multiplied” in the region, said Ali Akri Molia, commander of a unit responsible for protecting oil installations in the Oubari area of southern Libya. Read the rest of this entry »

Nigeria’s main Shiite Muslim movement says Nigerian troops shot and killed at least 27 of its members during a procession to the capital of Abuja.

Islamic Movement of Nigeria spokesperson Ibrahim Musa said six people were killed on Saturday and another 21 on Monday. Read the rest of this entry »

 Turkey, pursuing its own Islamist agenda and trying to rival Saudi influence in the Sunni world, is just too happy to have discredited the Wahhabi royals.
 Turkey’s message to the Western world was: See the difference between our peaceful Islamism and rogue-state Islamism? Stop discrediting us for our democratic deficit — also, presumably, for “only” imprisoning more than 100 journalists there.
…The Khashoggi murder has already gone beyond a simple spy thriller. Apparently, the Saudis wanted to embarrass Turkey by choosing Istanbul as the crime scene. They also wanted to tell Saudi dissidents across the world that they are not safe in whichever country they may live…Turkey, pursuing its own Islamist agenda and trying to rival Saudi influence in the Sunni world, is just too happy to have discredited the Wahhabi royals. Turkey’s message to the Western world was: See the difference between our peaceful Islamism and rogue-state Islamism? Stop discrediting us for our democratic deficit — also, presumably, for “only” imprisoning more than 100 journalists there.
It will not work. Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Bahrain, Yemen, Lebanon, the Palestinian Authority and the Arab League have all declared their support for Saudi Arabia in the “Khashoggi Affair.”
What that should tell Turkish President Erdoğan is that his neo-Ottoman aspiration for Turkish leadership in the Islamic world has once again hit the walls of Middle Eastern reality. All the same, it is fun to watch a Muslim country, the world’s biggest jailer of journalists, condemning another Muslim country for the murder of a journalist. (by gatestoneinstitute.org).

 As Mahmoud Abbas was busy praising the Saudis for their “fairness, values and principles,” the London-based Action Group for Palestinians of Syria issued a statement in which it accused the Saudi authorities of preventing Palestinian refugees from entering the kingdom.
 Many Arabs and Muslims can hardly afford to alienate a country as rich as Saudi Arabia. This is a good example of “money talks.” However, this does not mean that the Saudi money will ever change the hearts and minds of Palestinians, especially regarding a peace agreement with Israel.
 The mistreatment of Palestinians at the hands of their Arab brethren has never been of concern to Abbas and his leadership. They are silent when Palestinians are killed and expelled from their homes in Syria. They are silent when Palestinians face discrimination and apartheid laws in Lebanon.
…In a statement issued by his office on October 14, Abbas, who described himself as the “President of the State of Palestine,” said he “appreciated the positions of Saudi Arabia, a country that has always stood, and continued to do so, on the side of our just cause and the rights of our people.” The statement quoted Abbas as expressing “absolute confidence” in the Saudi monarch and his son and said that “Palestine has always stood next to Saudi Arabia, and will continue to do so.”
This announcement of blind support for the Saudi king and crown prince came as the international community was still demanding answers from the Saudi government concerning the disappearance of Khashoggi.
No one knows on what basis Abbas decided to voice, on behalf of all Palestinians, “absolute confidence” in the Saudi leaders at a time when the Saudis were still denying responsibility for the disappearance and murder of the columnist.
Abbas’s support for Saudi Arabia could be directed against Qatar, which he believes is backing his rivals in Hamas…On the same day the Saudis finally admitted that Khashoggi had been killed inside their consulate, Abbas released yet another statement in which he again expressed full support for Saudi Arabia. This time, Abbas went a step further by publishing the statement on behalf of the “State of Palestine.” (by gatestonesinstitute.org.)

The United States said Tuesday it was revoking visas of Saudis involved in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, as President Donald Trump ridiculed the kingdom’s response as “one of the worst cover-ups” in history.

A new European Union mechanism to facilitate payments for Iranian exports should be legally in place by Nov. 4, when the next phase of U.S. sanctions hit, but it will not be operational until early next year, three diplomats said.The mechanism, a so-called special purpose vehicle (SPV), is designed to circumvent the sanctions, under which Washington can cut off any bank that facilitates oil transactions with Iran.

La Turquie va révéler “toute la vérité” sur le meurtre du journaliste saoudien Jamal Khashoggi à Istanbul, a promis dimanche son président Recep Tayyip Erdogan. De son côté, Ryad a assuré ignorer le “détail” des circonstances de sa mort, comme l’endroit où se trouve son corps.

Saudi Arabia on Saturday, finally admitted that journalist, Jamal Khashoggi died in a fight inside its Istanbul consulate and that it fired two senior officials over his death.

Foreigners sold a net 4.01 billion riyals ($1.07 billion) in Saudi stocks in the week ending Oct. 18, exchange data showed on Sunday – one of the biggest selloffs since the market opened to direct foreign buying in mid-2015.

EXCLUSIVE: Malhama Tactical – A Jihadi Private Military Contractor Operating In Syria, Comprising Former Russian Soldiers – Trains Fighters From Al-Qaeda Affiliated HTS, TIP, Fundraises Using Bitcoin And Selling Merchandise Online, Is Active On Social Media
The jihadi private military contractor Malhama Tactical (MT), which operates in Syria, has worked with Jabhat Fath Al-Sham (formerly Jabhat Al-Nusra, the Al-Qaeda affiliate in Syria), as well as Ahrar Al-Sham.
EXCLUSIVE: Pro-Al-Qaeda Telegram Channel Criticizes Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), Other Rebel Factions And Their Online Supporters Who Are Allegedly Writing From The ‘Heart Of Europe’ In The Netherlands
On October 5, 2018, an English-language pro-Al-Qaeda Telegram channel posted a long message criticizing other rebel factions including Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), and in the process sharing alleged personal information about the online supporters of those groups.
Report: Belgian ISIS Commander Killed In Syria
On October 13, 2018, Syrian websites reported the death of a senior commander in the Islamic State (ISIS) organization, identified as Abu Hajar Al-Beljiki.(by memri org.)

 “I believe we are underestimating the potency and danger of the radicalizers who don’t carry knives, guns and overtly plot terrorist attacks but who pollute the minds of young Muslim men.” — Richard Walton, former head of Scotland Yard’s counter-terrorism command.
 “I asked the guy who spoke to him if the de-radicalization program had worked and he said, ‘No, he’s got worse. He’s hardened. He speaks in the mind-set of the victim. He sees himself as a martyr the state tried to silence.’” — Fiyaz Mughal, head of the anti-extremist group Faith Matters.
 Choudary is now considering mounting a legal challenge to the strict conditions of his release, according to the Telegraph. It reported that he has applied for legal aid funding, at taxpayer expense, to bring his action against government ministers, and arguing the parole conditions breach his human rights.(by gatestoneinstitute.org).

 To execute the IPO of Saudi Aramco in a successful and timely way, the Saudi government needs to deal appropriately with definite issues.
 These include claims that Saudi Aramco has been overvalued by Saudis; “concerns about minority shareholder rights, the transparency of oil reserves,” and “how the Saudi government will balance national interests and its duty to shareholders” ; meeting the New York Stock Exchange’s stringent transparency standards; and the possibility that a New York listing places the IPO at risk of being seized in lawsuits claiming Saudi Arabia’s involvement in 9/11 attacks.
Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, the strategic plan of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) to boost the kingdom’s economy, is facing a major challenge. Its cornerstone — the opening up of the state-owned oil company Saudi Aramco to outside investors — is possibly being postponed by at least a year, to 2021. (by gatestoneinstitute.org)

 The policy of multiculturalism, which emphasizes the benefits of cultural diversity for society and the state, is an example of the exploitation of others based on a fantasy of virtue. Those at whom the sweet talk of multiculturalism is aimed, can see that it has done nothing to improve their lot, and are now realizing that their future is bleak.
 If we bring in highly qualified immigrants to our workforce, we would be taking away from poorer countries the best they have to offer, and the situation in those countries will further deteriorate. The result will be an even greater flow of unskilled migrants escaping those countries.
 The proponents of the new multiculturalism want to share their welfare states with masses of refugees who — through no fault of their own — will be unable to participate in financing themselves for a long time to come.
… the nature of multiculturalism has changed. It has become a means to exert fierce psychological pressure primarily on the middle- and lower-income sectors in Europe. One form this pressure has taken is the equating of the plight of the current refugees to emigrants escaping to the West from behind the Iron Curtain. The comparison, however, does not really apply. The Eastern European at that time emigrants did not aspire to achieve “multicultural status”. Their goal was to integrate — to adapt to a society that was so generous as to have accepted them.
In short, mass waves of migrants represent statistically significantly greater risks than opportunities. They do not serve to boost prosperity. Our insurance systems, which were founded by, and developed for, the nation states whose populations they were meant to serve, were simply never designed to cover them.
The proponents of the new multiculturalism want to share their welfare states with masses of refugees who — through no fault of their own — will be unable to participate in financing themselves for a long time to come.(by gatestoneinstitute.org)

Le ministre français de l’Économie, Bruno Le Maire, a annoncé le 18 octobre qu’il ne se rendrait pas à Riyad, où il devait assister au sommet économique prévu du 23 au 25 octobre, en raison de la disparition du journaliste saoudien Jamal Khashoggi.

• Columnist ‘Abd Al-Hamid Al-Ansari, An Unconventional Voice In The Qatari Press: Defeating Terror Requires Not Only Military Action But A Comprehensive Ideological, Cultural, Educational And Religious Campaign
• Detained ISIS Commander Abu Abd Al-Haq Al-Iraqi: Disputes Among ISIS Leaders, Unqualified Field Commanders, And Abuse Of Local Population Led To ISIS Defeat (by memri org).

 One is amazed by the audacity wherewith those foreign interveners who have caused the most destruction in Syria call upon the rest of the world to foot the bill for rebuilding what they themselves have demolished. So the First Clause of the Responsibility Principle is that those foreign countries which intervened in Syria to pursue their own political aims – primarily Iran, the Russian Federation and Turkey – should pay up to rebuild everything that they destroyed.
 The Second Clause of the Responsibility Principle is that any other country or international factor should condition any further financial assistance upon the replacement of the current Syrian regime with a plausible alternative, be it through free elections or the installation of a temporary international regime, followed by Nuremberg-type trials of the chief criminals of the current regime and the repatriation and resettlement of all refugees without any form of discrimination. The Russian Federation has the military power to keep Assad the titular president of Syria forever, but it cannot expect the rest of the world to pay for such a Syria.
…The biggest question, however, is the conditions under which the world at large, including countries that played no role whatsoever in the Syrian tragedy, can be expected to finance reconstruction. These conditions must be drastic.
To begin with, there can be no question of using international finance to reconstruct the prewar Syrian regime…Thus the first condition for international finance must be the replacement of the Syrian regime…If free elections cannot soon be organized, there may be a need for temporary international mandate to govern Syria…The second condition is to bring the chief criminals of the Assad regime to trial… The third condition is that all the Syrians displaced by the war, whether within the country, in neighboring countries or further afield, must be enabled to return to their homes. (by gatestoneinstitute.org).

EXCLUSIVE: Pakistani Cleric Samiul Haq: America Is Backing ISIS In Afghanistan; ‘Only Solution To The Problem Is An American Exit [From Afghanistan]‘
Maulana Samiul Haq, the leader of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-S) party in Pakistan, has offered to mediate peace negotiations with the Afghan Taliban, according to an Urdu daily. Haq is also the chairman of Difa-e-Pakistan Council, an alliance of radical religious and jihadi groups in Pakistan.
In Video, Al-Qaeda Leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri Lashes Out ‎At Islamic Political Parties, Muslim Brotherhood, For ‎Failing To Advocate For Shari’a Rule, Succumbing To ‎Democracy
On October 11, 2018, Al-Qaeda media wing Al-Sahab released a seven-minute video of the group’s leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri in which he criticizes the various Islamic political parties for failing to advocate for the implementation of shari’a and for succumbing to secular democratic political processes.
Letter By Pro-Al-Qaeda Media Group Lashes Out At Sochi ‎Agreement, Suggests Ways To Thwart It, Including ‎Attacking Turkish Tourism Industry, Russian Bases in Syria
On September 26, 2018, the pro-Al-Qaeda Bayan Foundation for Islamic Media published a letter by Al-Qaeda supporter Adnan Hadid titled “Sochi – The Conspiracy in Its Decisive Moments,” which issues a dire warning to rebels and residents alike in Idlib against accepting the recently signed Sochi agreement.
(by memri.org).

EXCLUSIVE: Jihadi ‘Charity’ Group On Telegram Fundraises For Mujahideen And Foreign Fighters In Syria – Including Australians, Swedes, Other Europeans – And For Purchasing Drones And Other Equipment, Via Telegram And WhatsApp And Using Bitcoin Address
A jihadi “charity organization” maintains a Telegram channel that it uses primarily for raising funds for the mujahideen in Syria.
EXCLUSIVE: Profile Of French ISIS Media Operative And Preacher Abu Oussama
Since the declaration of the Islamic State (ISIS) Caliphate, the group has chosen a select few media operatives to deliver the group’s official messages in various languages through its central radio station Al-Bayan. One of these ISIS radio voices was that of French operative Adrien Guihal aka Abu Oussama aka Hamza, a French citizen from the Paris area born in 1983. Guihal was arrested in Syria in May 2018 by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and is currently in their custody in Syria. The SDF communique reporting his arrest stated: “Abu Osama is considered one of the most dangerous terrorists in ISIS ranks and had a role in launching the terrorist attacks” in France.(by memri.org).

An Italian appeal court has rejected a lawsuit by the U.S. that called for the seizure of $5 billion worth of Iranian assets in Italy, in a second win for Tehran in its legal battle against the U.S. this month, IFP news reported.

Gholamali Khoshroo, Iran’s ambassador to the UN, said on Tuesday the U.S. unilateralism is a “serious threat” to the world and suggested that a “swift” and “robust” reaction is needed by the international community to counter this policy.

 Alarmingly, three of New York City’s grant recipients are linked to Islamic extremism — the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), the Muslim American Society (MAS) and the Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA).
 It seems that ICNA, in particular, plans to use the money not for civic improvement but for religious proselytizing.
 To pay for prayer services with a government grant is a blatant violation of constitutional law, and all the more so when it is for a proselytizing purpose.
 If New Yorkers want to help Muslim communities, giving money to CAIR, ICNA and MAS should be the last thing they do.
On August 21, the New York City Council announced $250,000 in grants made to 14 Muslim community organizations, in collaboration with the New York Immigration Coalition. Alarmingly, three of the grant recipients are linked to Islamic extremism — the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), the Muslim American Society (MAS) and the Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA).
Worse, it seems that ICNA, in particular, plans to use the money not for civic improvement but for religious proselytizing.
The grant announcement was made at ICNA’s headquarters in Jamaica, Queens, after the jumu’ah prayer service. Present were the young speaker of the city council, Corey Johnson, and Councilman Daneek Miller, the sole Muslim member of the council.
Councilman Miller is no stranger to ICNA; his campaign website prominently features a photo of him speaking at the ICNA mosque.(by gatestoneinstitute.org).