Afghan Officials: Taliban Leader Mullah Omar Is Dead
Taliban leader Mullah Omar is dead, Afghan officials and a person close to the terrorist group reportedly say.
Tag: ISIS
A Call to Formally Label ISIS Attacks on Christians, Yezidis as Genocide
They buy and sell the women, using them as slaves. They kidnap children, even infants, and detonate them as bombs. As the Islamic State tightens its grip on Syria and Iraq, the horror of its atrocities reaches unimaginable depths. And what remains of Christianity in the Middle East is dying, massacred through the torture, displacement, and murder of an entire population.
‘Largely Symbolic’ NATO Meeting Concludes with ‘Strong Solidarity’ with Turkey
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) issued a statement in “strong solidarity” with Turkey following that nation’s emergency meeting to address a new anti-terrorism campaign against the Islamic State and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which has stretched out of Ankara as far as northern Iraq in less than a week.
UN Meeting in Madrid Addresses Westerners Drawn to ISIS
Security experts gathered in Madrid, Spain, for a United Nations panel to discuss measures to stop jihadists from joining radical Islamic groups like the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL).
Pew Research: Middle East Christian Population Dwindling
Christians living in the Middle East are facing a dire situation in which comparable circumstances have not been observed for over a millennia, a recent study by the Pew Research Center has found, Christianity Today reports. The outlet notes that Christian populations in the Middle East have dwindled from 14 percent to four percent.
Report: ISIS Doc Details Plans to Provoke Armageddon-Like Confrontation With US
The Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) seeks to unite the Pakistani and Afghan Taliban into a single terrorist army, would like to see al-Qaeda join its ranks, and is planning to provoke an Armageddon-like confrontation with the U.S. by attacking India, according to an apparent ISIS recruitment document.
Syrian President Assad Admits Military Manpower Running Low
Australia’s ABC News reports on dictator Bashar al-Assad’s “remarkably frank assessment of the strains affecting the Syrian military.” Assad used his first public address in a year to admit he has lost control of a good deal of his country, and is digging in to defend what his regime has left.
Not Just Syria: Turkey Launches Airstrikes Against Kurdish PKK in Iraq
The Turkish government announced at the end of last week that it would begin an airstrike campaign in Syria, in tandem with the United States, to create an “ISIL-free zone” in the war-torn nation, following an Islamic State bombing within Turkish territory. Turkey has rapidly expanded its operations to focus more on its Kurdish enemies than ISIS, with reports that Turkey is far outside the “ISIL-free zone” bombing Kurdish positions in Iraq.
World View: China Faces Nightmare Political Scenario with Stock Market Plunge
Contents: US military says China is lying about its artificial islands; China state TV shows mock military attack on Taiwan; China faces nightmare political scenario with stock market plunge; Turkey-US ‘ISIS-free zone’ in Syria becomes increasingly controversial
USB Drives Found at ISIS Compound May Link Turkey to ISIS Leadership
A Western official told The Guardian that evidence seized at the compound of Abu Sayyaf, an Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) leader, proved indisputable links between the terrorist group and the Turkish government.
Report: Over 800 Arrested In Anti-Terror Operations Against ISIS, PKK In Turkey
More than 850 suspects have been arrested in anti-terrorist operations across Turkey, launched against members of the outlawed Kurdistan’s Workers Party (PKK) and Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL), Daily Sabah reports.
Reports: Turkey’s ‘Anti-ISIS’ Operation Bombing Kurdish Strongholds in Syria
The Syrian Kurdish YPG/YPJ–or People’s Protection Units–issued a statement on Monday condemning Turkish airstrikes on strategic Kurdish posts. The Turkish government announced a new campaign, accompanied by the United States, against the Islamic State in Syria, but the Kurds and anti-Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL/IS) Syrian militant claim they are the real targets of the campaign.
How ISIS Makes Money from the Black Market
Imagine: you are window-shopping on a quiet street, perhaps in London or Paris or New York. Something remarkable catches your eye: an ancient coin, a gold chain, a tiny figurine. Impulsively, you enter the shop, where the owner explains to you that the sculpture comes originally from Mesopotamia, that the necklace is Byzantine. It isn’t inexpensive, but the shopkeeper has guaranteed its provenance and the price seems fair; and besides, you quite love it. You say yes, and leave the shop with your new treasure tucked safely in a bag.
Iraqi Kurdish Leader Sides with Turkey Against ‘Arrogant’ PKK
The President of Iraq’s Kurdistan Regional Government, Masoud Barzani, has appeared to take the side of the Turkish government regarding recently launched airstrikes against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), calling the U.S.-designated terrorist group “arrogant” and praising Turkey for taking a “positive” role in attempting peace talks with the PKK.
World View: Turkey Invokes NATO Article 4 With ‘Territorial Integrity and Security’ Threatened
Contents: Syria’s Bashar al-Assad admits that regime army is in decline; Al-Assad announces general amnesty for Syria’s army deserters; Turkey invokes Nato article 4 with ‘territorial integrity and security’ threatened
World View: Turkey Bombs ISIS Targets in Northern Syria to Set Up ‘Safe Zone’
Contents: Thousands of pro-Kurd demonstrators march in Paris; Turkey – PKK ‘peace process’ threatened by new Turkish war policy; Turkey bombs ISIS targets in northern Syria to set up ‘safe zone’; Arab News: Turkey is lying about the attack in Suruç
Turkish Planes Bomb ISIS in Syria for First Time
The Turkish government has faced strong criticism, including criticism from its own Kurdish citizens, for not doing enough to fight ISIS and help Kurds in Syria. A massive suicide bombing attributed to ISIS earlier this week greatly exacerbated these tensions.
World View: Commodities and World Trade Volume Plunge as China Pumps Stock Market
Contents: Turkey’s warplanes bomb ISIS and PKK strongholds in Syria; Commodities and world trade plunge, signaling stock market decline; China’s stock market partially ‘recovers’ after destruction
Turkish Muslim Cleric Issues Fatwa Allowing the Killing of ISIS Jihadists
Turkish Muslim televangelist Ahmet Mahmut Ünlü issued a fatwa to kill any militant associated with the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL). “If you run across them, slaughter them like you fight with the people of Ad and İrem [two places destroyed by God],” he wrote. “Those who kill them will be awarded and those who are killed by them will be martyrs.”
ISIS Are So Hip it Hurts, Argues Guardian
One of the Guardian’s house intellectuals – Pankraj Mishra – has written a lengthy apologia for ISIS. Apparently it has very little to do with Islam. It’s more kind of an achingly hip exercise in chin-strokingly cool post-post-modernism. Or something.
Egyptian Army Officer Turned Top Jihadi Calls for ‘Holy War’ Against ‘New Pharoah’ Sisi
A former Egyptian army officer suspected of masterminding the assassination of a top Egyptian prosecutor has released a propaganda video calling for Islamists to declare holy war on President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, calling him a “new pharoah” who has overrun the mostly-Muslim country with “sorcerers” looking to change “our religion.”
Turkey’s ‘Free Press’ Government Briefly Blocks Twitter Access over Images of Terrorist Bombing
The Turkish government briefly blocked Twitter on Wednesday to prevent users from accessing images of Monday’s grizzly suicide terrorist bombing, which left 32 dead and wounded at least 100 other innocent civilians.
World View: In Major Reversal, Turkey Will Let US Use Incirlik to Fight ISIS in Syria
Contents: Turkey’s politics become vitriolic after Suruç massacre; In major reversal, Turkey will let US use Incirlik to fight ISIS in Syria; Turkish soldier killed by ISIS in first gunfight across Syrian border
Family Claims Abdulazeez Not Radical, Religious, or a Terrorist
The family of Chattanooga gunman Mohammad Youssef Abdulazeez and their legal representation are pushing hard on the idea that he was not radical, a terrorist, or even particularly religious. The narrative they are pushing is that his deadly rampage was born of drug abuse and depression.
Tensions Between Turkey and Kurds Escalate After Killing of Turkish Police Officers
On Wednesday, Kurdish militants allegedly shot two Turkish police officers, asleep in a shared residence on the Syrian border, they believed were collaborating with ISIS. The shooting has inflamed already dangerous tensions between Kurds and the Turkish government.
