Iraqi security forces captured an Ansar al Sunnah leader and 10 fighters in Kirkuk and four Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham operatives near Samarra, and destroyed an ISIS military camp near Rawah. The ISIS killed a child in an IED attack at the home of a policeman.
A top commander in the Iraqi Abou Fadl el-Abbas brigade, which is fighting in support of the Assad regime, was killed in clashes with rebel forces outside Damascus. After fierce fighting with the Al Nusrah Front, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham, Maghaweer Baba Amr, al-Khadra’ battalion, and rebels, regime forces took over […]
Authorities are investigating reports that vehicles stolen in Turkey are being used for illegal activities in Syria or the transport of illicit materials into Syria. The military claimed that Kurdistan Workers Party militants fired at a military convoy in Mardin near the Syrian border; there were no reported casualties. Deputy Prime Minister Arınç indicated that […]
Clashes between militiamen and Tripoli residents left at least 27 dead and over 235 wounded; the head of Tripoli’s Local Council had called for a peaceful protest by residents demanding that armed militias leave the city. A Benghazi special forces officer was shot dead at a checkpoint in Benghazi. Prime Minister Zeidan refused to reveal […]
Hours after Nigeria’s ambassador to the US claimed Nigeria was opposed to the recent Foreign Terrorist Organization designation of Boko Haram, as “Nigeria is safe and capable of curtailing the group,” a Boko Haram raid killed 26 civilians and razed 40 houses in Borno state. In Abuja, a Boko Haram member was sentenced to life […]
North Korea denied supplying war equipment or pilots to its ally Syria to aid the Assad regime. Various foreign media reports over the past few months have alleged that North Korea has sent helicopter pilots and military advisers as well as gas masks and small arms to the war-torn country.
A suicide bomber killed two policemen in an attack on a checkpoint in Ghazni. The Taliban killed two more civilians in an IED attack in Helmand. Jalaluddin Haqqani eulogized his son, Nasiruddin. The US canceled a purchase of Russian helicopters for the Afghan Air Force.
The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant killed 41 Iraqis in a series of attacks throughout the country. In one attack, a suicide bomber killed 32 Shia worshippers in the town of Saadiyah. In another, a sniper killed the mayor of Fallujah. Security forces captured “three important al Qaeda elements” in Ninewa.
In response to rocket fire from the Gaza Strip, the IAF struck to “terror sites” in the Gaza Strip. Israel’s chief negotiator with the Palestinians denounced her counterparts for resigning. The Shin Bet announced that two Palestinians admitted to killing an IDF reserve colonel in October “as a gift to the Palestinian people.” Two Palestinians […]
Hamas held another military demonstration in Gaza to commemorate the one-year anniversary of Operation Pillar of Defense. During the rally, Hamas showcased its locally produced M75 rocket. A member of Hamas’ al Qassam Brigades died during an operation in Gaza. The lead Palestinian negotiators confirmed their resignation, while the PLO said negotiations with Israel would […]
Army Chief General Abdel Fattah el Sisi met with Russian officials to discuss potential cooperation. The Electricity Ministry announced plans to issue an international tender related to the construction of its first nuclear power plant. The Interior Minister said authorities are aware of a Muslim Brotherhood plot to bring “violence and sabotage” to Egypt on […]
A regime airstrike in Aleppo killed Youssef al-Abbas, commander of the Qatari-backed al-Tawhid Brigades. Hassan Nazrallah, the head of Hezbollah, said the group would not withdraw from Syria so long as the Assad regime needed it. The Jaish al Islam, a rebel coalition linked to Saudi Arabia, issued a call for foreign fighters; a jihadist […]
Shabaab has retaken the town of Kudhaa without meeting any resistance. A Shabaab commander confirmed local reports that Kenyan forces and the Raskamboni militia withdrew before their arrival. The reversal comes hours after the UN approved additional troops for Somalia and an AU official acknowledged that progress made against Shabaab was starting to recede.
Ansar al Sharia released photos of its members patrolling in Benghazi, and complained that its Facebook account was shut down for the 10th time. An imam who was a former top security official was killed by a car bomb in Benghazi. A number of embassies in Tripoli are said to be “extremely upset” by last […]
French and Malian authorities are searching for Baye Ag Bakabo, a Tuareg rebel and drug trafficker linked to al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, who is suspected in the murders of two French journalists in Kidal. No arrests have been made so far. French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said militants from the Nigerian jihadist group […]
Five terrorists were killed in a clash with security forces near Debdeb on Nov. 12, and two terrorists from a Malian cell of Mokhtar Belmokhtar’s group were arrested in Borj Baji Mokhtar on Nov. 1 on their way to northern Mali. Algeria reaffirmed its commitment to a border security plan made in March 2012 in […]
A French priest was kidnapped by gunmen in Koza, near the Nigerian border. The suspected Boko Haram militants burst into the church, then marched the priest through the village and took him away with them on motorbikes in the direction of Nigeria.
The State Department designated the Nigerian jihadist group Boko Haram and its splinter group Ansaru as global terrorist organizations. The White House is trying to thwart Congress’ plans to impose new Iran sanctions, in the hopes of securing a deal on the Iranian nuclear program. An appellate court upheld the terrorism convictions of Tarek Mehanna, […]
The Taliban killed three students in a bombing in Farah and an ISAF soldier in an IED attack in the south. The US transferred FOB Salerno in Khost to Afghan forces. The UN said the poppy harvest has increased by 36% since last year.
The head of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party claimed that Kurdish militias have killed some 3,000 Salafists. The Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham issued a call for all Muslims and factions to come to the front as the group lost many fighters in recent clashes in Aleppo, and threatened to disarm or take […]
Iran signed a pact yesterday with the IAEA giving it “managed access” to some of the country’s nuclear facilities, but not to its most sensitive sites, including the Parchin complex. President Rouhani transferred the work of the “modesty project,” which attempts to enforce Islamic dress codes on women, from the police to the Ministry of […]
In a rare public appearance, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah warned in Beirut that the failure to reach an agreement on the Iranian nuclear program would result in “war in the region.” A prosecutor denied defendant Ali Eid’s request to drop charges of aiding a car bombing suspect. Recent sectarian tensions in Tripoli have led to […]
The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant killed 19 people in attacks near Tikrit and in Baqubah. In one attack, in Al Alam near Tikrit, a suicide bomber killed 10 people, including two policemen, at a checkpoint.
Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula vowed to back Salafists in the north who are battling Shia Houthi rebels, who are supported by Iran. A government-brokered cease fire between the Houthis and Salafists collapsed just one day after it was signed.
The army arrested 11 extremists wanted in connection with recent attacks in the Sinai. The army announced the destruction and discovery of more smuggling tunnels near Rafah. Shootings by unidentified gunmen were reported in el Arish and Sheikh Zuweid. The Commander of the Second Field Army ordered the release of 120 people detained on suspicion […]
An IDF soldier was stabbed to death by a Palestinian on a bus in the northern Israeli city of Afula. An Israeli minister warned that proposed sanctions relief for Iran could be worth up to $40 billion. Prime Minister Netanyahu said that a bad deal over Iran’s nuclear program could lead to war.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said the PA has evidence of Hamas involvement in the Sinai’s ongoing security situation. With regard to peace talks with Israel, Abbas announced that his negotiating team had resigned. An NGO accused Hamas of arresting and torturing Palestinians on political grounds in recent weeks. Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad conducted […]
Two Americans kidnapped in the Gulf of Guinea have been freed and taken ashore in Nigeria. The pair were abducted from an American-flagged oil industry vessel off the Nigerian coast in October.
Ethiopian troops will join Kenyan and Ugandan troops in the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). The Somali government welcomed the move and stressed the need for collaboration between the two neighboring countries.
Turkey asked NATO to extend the deployment of Patriot missiles along the Syrian border for another year, due to an ongoing “serious” threat. Six missile batteries, sent by Germany, the Netherlands, and the US, were installed early this year to protect against a possible attack from Syria.