-
United States
The US added two new terrorism charges against Osama bin Laden son-in-law Abu Ghaith. Balwinder Singh, of Reno, Nev., was arrested and charged with providing support to two terrorist organizations, Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) and Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF), which aim to establish an independent Sikh state in India. A federal judge ruled that Terry Lee Loewen, who is suspected of plotting a terrorist bombing of a Wichita airport, must stay in jail until his trial. US ambassador to the UN Samantha Power said the US will send military liaisons to the Central African Republic to help train African Union…
-
Egypt
The Sinai of All Fears
-
Afghanistan
Alarm rises for Afghan women prisoners after Western troops leave
-
Syria
Amnesty International released a report alleging that the Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham operates seven detention centers in Raqqah and Aleppo where civilians, including children, are flogged, tortured, and murdered. The rights group also called on Turkey to “prevent its territory being used by ISIS to bring in arms and recruits to Syria.” A suicide bomber detonated in Deir Izzour, and gunmen killed a Kurdish intervention force commander in the Dulab al-Uweis area. The UK offered to help destroy Syria’s chemical weapons.
-
Syria
Syria most dangerous country for media in 2013, 126 dead worldwide: INSI
-
Iraq
The Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham killed 14 people in IED attacks and shootings in Hawijah and Tuz Khurmatu. Yesterday, the ISIS killed three soldiers in an IED attack in Akashat in Anbar province. Security forces captured three Al Nusrah Front fighters in Ninewa as they crossed the border from Syria.
-
Syria
Syria’s Civil War Forces Doctors to Choose the Rebels or the Regime
-
Yemen
Yemeni officials said that the Dec. 12 US drone strike that reportedly killed 15 civilians targeted Shawqi Ali Ahmad al Badani, a wanted mid-level leader in al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula commander. Al Badani is said to be linked to the al Qaeda plot that resulted in the shut of US embassies and diplomatic facilities worldwide.
-
Egypt
Egyptian security forces raided the village of al Mahdiya in North Sinai after a tip indicated that Ansar Jerusalem leaders were in the area. Major clashes ensued and at least two soldiers were killed along with three militants, according to the army spokesman. Sources said recently arrested Sinai militants had been found with weapons with markings from Hamas’ al Qassam Brigades. Security forces clashed with Muslim Brotherhood supporters in Cairo.
-
Kenya
Suspected Shabaab militants killed two people and wounded four in Wajir. The wife of Shabaab-linked cleric Sheikh Aboud Rogo has told a court that police killed her husband.
-
Ethiopia
Ethiopian authorities arrested five more suspects accused of plotting the failed Shabaab bomb attack during the country’s World Cup qualifying match against Nigeria in October. All of those arrested were Somali nationals.
-
Boko Haram attacks another base in Borno
Boko Haram has attacked another military base in Borno, this time in the city of Bama.
-
Nigeria
Kabiru Umar, who plotted Boko Haram’s 2011 Christmas Day attack on a Catholic church in Niger state, was sentenced to life imprisonment. Boko Haram attacked another military base in Borno, this time in the town of Bama.
-
Boko Haram Christmas Day bomber sentenced to life
High-ranking Boko Haram member Kabiru Umar has been found guilty of masterminding the 2011 Christmas Day bombing of a Catholic church in Nigeria.
-
Egypt
Fear and Loathing in the Sinai
-
United Kingdom
Abdul-Hakim Belhaj, the former leader of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group, lost his case against British officials whom he had accused of colluding in his rendition to Libya; now in Tripoli, he vowed to appeal. The BBC was criticized for giving lengthy air time to hate preacher Anjem Choudhary to discuss the verdict in the case of the killing of a British soldier in Woolwich; Choudhary refused to condemn the murder, which he blamed on the UK government. Siblings Mohammed Zahir Nawaz and Nabelia Nawaz, of east London, were charged in a terrorism case involving the arrest of four UK…
-
Taliban eulogize Qari Hussain, chief of suicide and international operations
Qari Hussain is thought to have been been killed in a US drone strike in January 2012. He served as the Taliban’s “teacher of suicide bombers” and was involved in the Times Square plot and the suicide attack on the CIA in Afghanistan.
-
Hamas
Hamas is alive and kicking in the West Bank – but in remote control
-
Free Syrian Army
US caution over Syria talks prompts opposition doubts
-
Kenya
White widow terror cell helped Rigby killer
-
United States
The US transferred two Sudanese detainees, Noor Uthman Muhammed and Ibrahim Othman Ibrahim Idris, from Guantanamo to Sudan. Both men are linked to al Qaeda; Idris, who swore allegiance to Osama bin Laden in the 1990s, was one of the first detainees at Guantanamo. The White House warned that President Obama would veto proposed new sanctions on Iran.
-
Iraq
The Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham killed 46 people in suicide bombings and attacks throughout the country; in Yousifiyah a suicide bomber killed eight Shia pilgrims, and in Latifiyah, another suicide bomber killed 10 more Shia. In Abu Ghraib, ISIS fighters stormed the home of an Awakening leader, killing him and his family.
-
Syria
In what was said to be his first-ever media interview, Abu Mohammed al Julani, the leader of the Al Nusrah Front, claimed that his fighters have now won 70 percent of the battle, and that the conflict will soon be over. Julani said the group was fighting to establish an Islamic state under sharia in Syria. He also said that Al Nusrah “rebuke[s] those who go to extremes in declaring takfir of people,” distancing the group from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham, and claimed that the Syrian National Coalition has “no presence on the ground.” Syria’s deputy…
-
Egypt
An suicide bomber reportedly blew himself up near Cairo as he was trying to escape arrest. A police recruit was killed in Port Said when unidentified gunmen opened fire on security forces. At least six Sinai Bedouin have been killed by unidentified gunmen in the past two days. A militant recently killed in Ismailia was said to be a member of the al Furqan Brigades. The Muslim Brotherhood denounced charges that former president Mohammed Morsi conspired with foreign groups to conduct terror attacks in Egypt. Members of the Nasr City terror cell threatened to kill national security officers during their…
-
Israel
Israeli officials said Egyptian military operations in North Sinai will continue for at least the next several months. Two Palestinians were killed during overnight clashes with Israeli forces in the West Bank. President Peres said the world must continue to pressure Iran. Foreign Minister Lieberman said Israel is serious about reaching an agreement with the Palestinians.
-
Palestinian Territories
Hamas’ Ismail Haniyeh invited Mahmoud Abbas to a meeting to discuss the formation of a unity government. Abbas reportedly sent President Obama a personal letter noting his displeasure with the current status of negotiations with Israel. In response to recent Israeli raids in the West Bank, Palestinian Islamic Jihad warned that its fighters would not stand idly by.
-
Somalia
At least two people were killed in Bay during clashes between Shabaab and government forces. Shabaab’s new radio station in Dinsor is unpopular with locals. In Lower Shabelle, Shabaab has mediated a disagreement between two clans.
-
South Sudan
The UN fears casualties after it was confirmed that fighting took place at its base in Jonglei state. At least 500 people have been killed across the country as ethnic-based violence has spread.
-
Nigeria
The military killed 12 Boko Haram fighters in Adamawa state. Nigeria has unveiled a locally produced UAV aimed to bolster domestic defense. One Greek and one Ukrainian were kidnapped when their oil tanker was seized by pirates.
-
Al Nusrah Front
Syrian conflict said to fuel sectarian tensions in Persian Gulf
