Tag Archives: IS

Belgian Suspect Charged in Paris Attacks

On 20 April, Belgian prosecutors announced that a suspect in the 22 March Brussels bombings has been charged with involvement in last year’s attacks in Paris, France. Osama Krayem, a 23-year-old Swedish national, was arrested in Brussels earlier this month. The Belgian judge responsible for the Paris attacks investigation has now charged him with terrorist murder and participating in a terrorist group. According to sources, he is suspected of purchasing the suitcases that were used to carry the Brussels bombs. Krayem was also caught on CCTV with metro bomber Khalid el-Bakraoui shortly before he blew himself up. He is already facing terrorism charges in relation to the Brussels attacks.

According to the Belgian federal prosecutor, Osama Krayem was picked up in Ulm in southern Germany by a hire car that was retuned by key Paris attacks suspect Salah Abdeslam and had travelled to Belgium. The prosecutor disclosed that ‘The investigation showed that (Krayem) could be placed in different safe houses used by the terrorist group,” including a location in Schaerbeek. Krayem grew up in Malmo in southwestern Sweden. According to a relative, her nephew “just disappeared” and later phoned his family to say that he had left to join the so-called Islamic State (IS) group. Last week, his lawyers disclosed that he was co-operating with the authorities.

In March, three suicide bombers killed 32 people at Zaventem airport and the Maelbeek metro station in Brussels, Belgium.   He attacks occurred just days after the arrest in Brussels of Salah Abdeslam, who had been on the run for four months. Officials believe that the attacks in Brussels may have been moved up over concerns that Abdeslam would give critical information about the terrorist cell to authorities.

An Unconventional Warfare – Cyber bombs

A conflict which has lasted over five years; dismounted the infrastructures of a country set the entire surviving population to seek asylum in neighbors’ states: the Syrian civil-war. The perfect stage to allow terrorists and extremists to enforce their plans and gain territories. Syria is not the only battlefield of this unbalanced amorphous and revised war on terror. North Iraq, Southeastern Turkey and on a broader spectrum the whole of Europe remains a potential target. A conflict where superpowers as the US and Russia played a major role leading to a ceasefire and alleged peace talks in Ginevra; a conflict where actors, structures and outcomes are yet to be fully unveiled.

This conflict is another historical landmark for many foreign policies; it reshaped the approach to terrorism and justice; showed the world a climate of desperation and fear; cruelty and loss of lives have filled the daily newspapers. Europe has worked on resolving the collateral effect of migrations and has faced attacks within its capitals; other players have tried to eradicate ISIS. No winners; only an apparent and fragile ceasefire.

From any “problem solving” point of view the first step of the analysis is to acknowledge the problem; identify the causes beginning by minimizing the effects. Who is ISIS?

Before describing the organization we should consider the so widely used term “Terrorism”. Historically the term refers to the unlawful use of violence towards civilian’s targets in a desperate attempt to enforce political goals. The rise of ISIS, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria or Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham began in 2004 as al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI). It was initially an ally of Osama bin Laden’s al Qaeda and both were radical anti-Western militant groups devoted to establishing an independent Islamic state in the region. AQI was weakened in Iraq in 2007 as a result of what is known as the Sunni Awakening, when a large alliance of Iraqi Sunni tribes, supported by the US, fought against the jihadist group. AQI saw an opportunity to regain its power and expand its ranks in the Syrian conflict that started in 2011, moving into Syria from Iraq. By 2013, al-Baghdadi had spread his group’s influence back into Iraq and changed the group’s name to ISIS. It disowned the group in early 2014 proving to be more brutal and more effective at controlling seized territories.

While ISIL has not been able to seize ground in the past several months, that hasn’t precluded them from conducting terrorist attacks, and it hasn’t precluded them from conducting operations that are more akin to guerrilla operations than the conventional operations that we saw when they were seizing territory. The organization understood the value of pushing out content, specifically videos of atrocities, into the world. Therefore, they could recruit very brutal young men to come and join their struggle. As the organization evolved, it made media very central to its ideology and strategy. ISIS had harnessed the power of the “information arena” to propagate its ideology, recruit, move money and coordinate activities. The question arise naturally: “What can be done?”

A top Pentagon official reported that the US is hitting ISIS with “cyber bombs” as part of its new arsenal of tactics being deployed against the terrorist group. The cyber effort is focused primarily on ISIS terrorists in Syria and that the goal is to overload their network so that they cannot function. An attack of this magnitude can interrupt the group’s ability to command and control forces. Similar principle was applied over the power and water disruptions in the middle of a two-week truce between government forces and certain militant groups. Disruption of critical infrastructure was used in order to gain an advantage over the group. Moreover the Islamic State is clearly frightened by the outflow of refugees. A lot of media have been created excoriating those who flee from these territories. By taking advantage of those refugees a powerful tool could be created in order to tell their stories to the world.

The humanitarian issues, the fallout, the civil war, the core issues have not been addressed yet. So far the military intervention and the coalition of multiple air strikes, carried out by Russia and US, have diminished the capabilities of the group; however there is so much more to do and the future remains uncertain. It is highly likely that ISIS will not cease to exist in the near-medium term; their strategy, tactics and objectives are likely to remain unaffected. The struggle in the region and the level of threat to Europe are still primary concerns and subjects of ongoing discussions.

Boko Haram Rejects Suggestions of Surrendering in Latest Video

Boko Haram released a new video on Friday, 1 April denying any suggestions that it would surrender. The latest video comes just over a week after the group’s leader, Abubakar Shekau, appeared in a rare message looking dejected and frail.

Shekau, who was not seen on camera for more than a year, released an unverified video late last month, stating that his time in charge of the Nigerian jihadist group may be coming to an end. If the video indeed depicts Shekau, he appears thin and listless, delivering his message without his trademark fiery rhetoric. While last month’s video prompted speculation from the Nigerian army that the Islamist group was on the verge of collapse in the face of a sustained military counter-insurgency, in Friday’s newly released video, Boko Haram maintained that it was a potent fighting force, with fighters posing with AK-47s in front of Toyota Hilux pick-up trucks and a lorry mounted with a military cannon. In the video, which was posted on YouTube, an unidentified masked man wearing camouflage said in a prepared script in Hausa that “you should know that there is no truce, there is no negotiations, there is no surrender…This war between us will not stop.” The masked man in the video also stated the Shekau was still the head of the “West African wing,” likening Boko Haram to the Islamist insurgencies in Iraq, Libya and Syria. The video, which was markedly better quality than Shekau’s and which included Arabic subtitles, featured nine masked Boko Haram fighters standing on sandy ground in an undisclosed desert location. It remains unclear if the masked people in the video include Boko Haram’s leader.

IS Carries out Major Attack in Brussels Days after Main Fugitive in Paris Attacks is Arrested

At least 31 people have been killed and dozens injured in attacks that targeted Brussels international airport and a metro station in the city. Authorities have warned that the death toll is likely to go up in the coming days as many of the injured are in serious condition. The so-called Islamic State (IS) group issued a statement on the IS-linked Amaq agency claiming responsibility for the attack.

Twin blasts targeted Zaventem international airport at about 08:00 local time (07:00 GMT), killing at least 11 people. The Belgian prosecutor has indicated that “probably a suicide bomber” was involved. The state-owned Belga news agency has reported that shots were fired and shouts in Arabic were heard before the two explosions. Some witnesses indicated that after the first blast, people fled only to get caught in the second blast. Public broadcaster VRT has reported that an assault rifle was found next to a dead attacker, with private broadcaster VTM adding that an unexploded bomb belt had been found. The airport is located 11 kilometres (7 miles) northeast of Brussels and last year, it dealt with more than 23 million passengers.

An hour later, shortly after 08:00 GMT, another explosion occurred at Maelbeek metro station during rush hour. The explosion struck the middle carriage of a three-carriage train while it was moving away from the platform. At least 20 people were killed in that attack. The station is located close to a number of European Union (EU) institutions. The European Commission, which is the EU’s executive arm, has told employees to remain indoors or at home. All meetings at EU institutions have been cancelled.

In the wake of the attacks, Belgium raised its terrorism alert to its highest level. Three days of national mourning have been declared. While the airport and the entire public transport system in Brussels is closed, some train stations are due to reopen shortly. All fights have been diverted. Eurostar has cancelled all trains to and from Brussels while the Thalys France-Benelux rain operator has indicated that the entire network is closed.

Across Europe, countries have also quickly reacted to Tuesday’s attacks. In the United Kingdom, security was increased at Gatwick and Heathrow airports, while the Foreign Office has advised British nationals to avoid crowded areas in Belgium. UK Prime Minister David Cameron also chaired a meeting of the Cobra response committee on Tuesday.

In France, officials have stepped up security, while the cabinet held an emergency meeting. French President Francois Hollande held a brief conference, where he stated that “the terrorists have stuck Belgium but it is Europe that was targeted. And it is the whole world that is concerned with this.”

Interpol on Friday warned that accomplices may try to flee across frontiers now that Salah Abdeslam was in custody.

The bombings come just four days after Salah Abdeslam, the main fugitive in the 13 November 2015 attacks in Paris, was seized during a raid in Brussels.

The 26-year-old French national, born in Belgium, spent four months on the run. It is believed that he fled shortly after the November attacks, returning to the Molenbeek district of Brussels. Investigators believe that he helped with logistics, including renting rooms and driving suicide bombers to the Stade de France. He was arrested 500 m from his home in Molenbeek. His brother, Brahim, was one of the Paris attackers who blew himself up.

Friday’s raid came after Abdeslam’s fingerprints were found in a flat in another Brussels district, Forest, which was raided on Tuesday.

On 20 March, Belgian Foreign minister Didier Reynders suggested that Abdeslam was preparing attacks in Brussels before he was arrested. Paris prosecutor Francois Molins also told reporters on Saturday that Abdeslam had admitted that he wanted to blow himself up during the Paris attacks but then changed his mind. Abdeslam is being interrogated in Belgium following his arrest in Brussels on Friday. Mr Reynders citied information that he said had come to light since Abdeslam’s arrest. He disclosed that Abdeslam “…was ready to restart something in Brussels…And its maybe the reality because we have found a lot of weapons, heavy weapons, in the first investigations and we have found a new network around him in Brussels.” Mr Reynders further disclosed that the number of suspects had risen markedly since the November attacks in Paris, adding “we are sure for the moment we have found more than 30 people involved in the terrorist attacks in Paris, but we are sure there are others.” Belgian authorities have charged Abdeslam with terrorism offenses. He is being held at a high-security jail in the Belgian city of Bruges. Abdeslam is now fighting extradition to France, which could take up to three months.

Another man arrested at the same time as Abdeslam on Friday, Monir Ahmed Alaaj, has also been charged with participation in terrorist murder and the activities of a terrorist group. Prosecutors have disclosed that Alaaj, who was injured during Friday’s arrests, had travelled with Abdeslam to Germany last October, where his fingerprints were taken during an identity check

While European security experts have been braced for another attack for months, such attacks continue to have a huge shock when it actually happens. If Tuesday’s attack in Brussels is what many have termed “revenge” for Friday’s arrest of Salah Abdeslam, it will be a source of great concern of authorities in the country as a functioning terrorist network was able to respond so quickly with such devastating effect. Over the weekend, Abdeslam’s lawyer disclosed that he was cooperating with Belgian authorities. It is therefore possible that a cell linked to Abdeslam brought forward the timing of a future attack in the believe that he might blow their cover. Either way, this attack shows how advanced the planning was in terms of logistics, explosives, weapons and people willing to carry out such attacks on civilian targets. Furthermore, while the priority of Belgian officials will now be to ensure that anyone else who poses an imminent threat to the public is apprehended as soon as possible, it is evident that Brussels is seen as a soft target in a county that continues to have huge gaps in intelligence.

Egypt and France Launch Joint Manoeuvres in the Mediterranean

The Egyptian army has reported that Egypt and France began Sunday joint manoeuvres in the Mediterranean in which French Rafale warplanes, purchased by Cairo last year, are taking part.

According to the Egyptian army, the “Ramses 2016” military and naval exercise is being held off the coast of the Mediterranean city of Alexandria and are expected to last for several days. Paris announced the manoeuvres on Tuesday, stating that the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, which is being used to launch airstrikes on the so-called Islamic State (IS) group in Syria and Iraq, would also take part. At the time, the French Defense Ministry indicated that the drill is aimed at “sharing our expertise with the Egyptian military…one of our main Middle East partners.” Meanwhile the Egyptian army has disclosed that a French multi-mission frigate, which was purchased by Cairo last year, would also take part in the drill along with Rafale combat jets and F-16 warplanes.

In 2015, Cairo signed a multi-billion euro deal in order to purchase from France 24 Rafale fighters, of which six have already been delivered. On 19 December 2015, the Charles de Gaulle carrier took command in the Gulf of the naval continent operating as part of the international coalition fighting IS.

The French-Egyptian manoeuvres are taking place amidst Western concerns over the growing influence of IS in Libya, which borders Egypt.