{{
`${userDetail.user.displayName}${userDetail.user.cachedBungieGlobalDisplayNameCode ? `#${standardizeBungieGlobalCode(userDetail.user.cachedBungieGlobalDisplayNameCode)}` : ""}`}}
{{getUserClans()}}
originally posted in:Sapphire
Edited by Mags:
3/14/2014 3:31:33 AM
57
Africa-related stuff will be stored in this sub-thread.
[spoiler]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Qaeda_in_the_Islamic_Maghreb
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Shabaab_(militant_group)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boko_Haram
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ansaru
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ansar_Dine
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Movement_for_Oneness_and_Jihad_in_West_Africa
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Mourabitoun_(jihadist_group)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ansar_al-Sharia_(Benghazi)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ansar_al-Sharia_(Tunisia)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ansar_al-Sharia_(Derna,_Libya)
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2013/10/215171.htm (Muhammad Jamal Network)[/spoiler]
English
-
Mass abduction of school girls in Nigeria.
-
88 killed over 200 injured in Abuja bombing [quote]ABUJA – A total of 88 people were Monday killed when a car laden with improvised explosive devices (IEDS) went off at the Nyanya Motor Park at about 6.55am with about 200 others sustaining injuries. At the Maitama General hospital where scores were rushed to, the Chief Medical Director, Dr. Adetoun Sotimehin confirmed to reporters that 14 dead bodies including women, men and youth were in the mortuary, two persons were on danger list (critical condition) while 27 others who sustained injuries were receiving treatment.[/quote]
-
Security downturn in Mogadishu [quote]MOGADISHU, 9 April 2014 (IRIN) - Three years after Al-Shabab insurgents withdrew from the city, security in Mogadishu remains a serious problem for residents and aid workers, with threats from Al-Shabab incursions, criminals and militia. Often-deadly attacks attributed to Al Shabab or its sympathizers involving mortar rounds, rocket propelled grenades and improvised explosive devices occur with great frequency in the capital.[/quote]
-
Edited by Mags: 4/13/2014 5:29:01 PMAl Nusrah Front fighter arrested for planning attacks in Egypt [quote]Egyptian state-run media today announced that authorities have arrested an Egyptian citizen who had returned from fighting with al Qaeda's Al Nusrah Front in Syria. Egypt has arrested a veteran of the Syrian civil war on suspicion of planning terrorist acts inside Egypt, the state news agency reported on Sunday. The Egyptian prosecutor's office in Suez City ordered the arrest of Wael Ahmed Abdel Fattah for 15 days, MENA reported, adding that he was suspected of working with Islamist militant groups. MENA said Abdel Fattah, a former oil company employee, battled in Syria alongside the Nusra Front, seen as the most effective rebel group fighting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.[/quote]To me, this could mean two things: 1. Nusra is expanding their activities elsewhere 2. Nusra is trying to establish ties with other affiliates and allies for the purpose of resource sharing. These aren't mutually exclusive.
-
Nigerian senator: '135 civilians killed' in attacks [quote]Gunmen have killed 135 civilians in north east Nigeria since Wednesday, a senior official from the region has told the BBC. Borno state senator Ahmed Zannah said the killings took place in at least three separate attacks in the state. The attackers are suspected to be from the Islamist Boko Haram movement.[/quote]
-
http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2014/04/ansar_jerusalem_rele_1.php [quote]The Sinai-based jihadist group Ansar Jerusalem (Ansar Bayt al Maqdis) today released a video about its Dec. 24, 2013 suicide car bombing attack outside the Daqahliya security directorate in Mansoura. The group, which was designated yesterday as a foreign terrorist organization by the US, had previously claimed responsibility for the Mansoura attack, in a statement released on Dec. 25, 2013. In the video, Abu Maryam, the suicide bomber in the attack, is described by Ansar Jerusalem as a "heroic martyr," according to a translation by Oren Adaki of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. "He had many intrepid braveries against the apostates in Egypt," the jihadist group says. In addition, he was "wounded by gunfire during the Ramses incidents," likely a reference to August 2013 clashes between Egyptian security forces and Islamists in Cairo's Ramses Square.[/quote] Above is the video. Nothing graphic is shown. By be posting this video, I am in no way supporting the group, its ideals, or its tactics. This is an educational thread meant to inform the public about the issue of terrorism and political violence in the world.
-
State Dept designates Ansar Jerusalem (Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis) as a terrorist organization. The article does a good job of explaining how the group fits into the AQ network.
-
Al-Shabaab’s Insurgency in Somalia: a Data-Based Snapshot [quote]Some analysts believed that the attack was sign of weakness. Ken Menkhaus, a respected Somalia specialist in Davidson College’s political science department,described the attack as “an act of desperation by a jihadi group beset by internal power struggles and plummeting support.” Other observers viewed the Westgate attack as a sign of al-Shabaab’s strength; Scott F. Mann wrote in Small Wars Journal that al-Shabaab had “proven its resilience and ambition, as well as the tremendous growth in its capabilities.” Here, we analyze what can be discerned about the current shape of al-Shabaab’s insurgency from data about all al-Shabaab-related attacks that have been conducted between the group’s loss of its Kismayo stronghold and the end of February 2014. We draw from a Foundation for Defense of Democracies database that attempts to chronicle every reported al-Shabaab-linked attack carried out since al-Shabaab was encircled in Kismayo and stood on the verge of losing the city; the database draws from both the English-language and also the Somali-language press.[/quote]Very, very informative report on Shabaab. It includes several graphs measuring it's size, scope and amount of their attacks. I highly recommend reading this. The report also links some other really great reports on Shabaab.
-
France: southern Libya now a ‘viper’s nest’ for Islamist militants [quote]Southern Libya has become a “viper’s nest” for Islamist militants and the only way to tackle it is with a strong collective response from neighboring countries, France’s defense minister said in remarks published on Monday. “We are increasingly worried. It’s a viper’s nest in which jihadists are returning, acquiring weapons and recruiting,” Jean-Yves Le Drian said in an transcript of an interview provided by the ministry. “It is dangerous and the conditions are not in place to find a solution.” [/quote]Thoughts on this?
-
Is Derna becoming an Islamist emirate? [quote]A group calling itself the "Shura Council of Islamist Youth in Derna" says it plans to impose Sharia law in the eastern Libyan town. The jihadist group paraded through the coastal city on Friday (April 4th), AFP reported. Photos on the group's Facebook page show dozens of pickup trucks with heavily armed men in uniforms, their faces obscured by masks. With the absence of state institutions, the region is fertile ground for extremist organisations looking to grow and thrive.[/quote]
-
[quote]Two foreign United Nations workers – a Briton and a Frenchman – have been shot dead on arrival at an airport in Galkayo, central Somalia, officials said. A UN source confirmed the pair were international staff members with the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). A statement issued by the government of the northern breakaway state of Puntland in Somalia identified the two victims as Briton Simon Davis and Frenchman Clement Gorrissen.[/quote] http://www.aawsat.net/2014/04/article55330898 Al-Qaeda flags raised in Eastern Libya [quote]Cairo, Asharq Al-Awsat—Libyan militiamen raised the flags of Al-Qaeda in the town of Derna, eastern Libya, in a display of force in defiance of the central government on Saturday. An organization called the Islamic Youth Shura Council—based in Derna, a stronghold of extremist Islamist groups in Libya—announced its intention to deploy patrols at the eastern and western entrances to the town, and declared it would open the door for volunteers from the town to join its forces.[/quote]Islamic Youth Shura Council could be another name for AQ in Libya.
-
Video of this.
-
1,800 Tunisians Fighting in Syria, Says Ministry of Interior [quote]A Ministry of Interior official said that 1,800 Tunisians are fighting in Syria, but that those who have not killed anyone may be eligible for amnesty procedures. Ridha Sfar, a deputy minister in the Ministry of Interior, spoke of the difficulties the country has in preventing its citizens from traveling to Syria through other countries. “You cannot prevent someone who has a visa from travelling. Tunisians travel to Syria through Libya or through Europe,” Sfar told radio station Mosaique FM. He said that “nearly 1,800 Tunisians are in Syria.”[/quote]This poses a huge security problem for not just Tunisia, but all of North Africa.
-
Edited by Mags: 4/7/2014 8:54:53 PMZawahiri deputy arrested in Egypt. Dude was apparently an operational planner for AQ, as well as a trainer of militants in Libya. He worked in Baghdad up until 2002/3, when he relocated to Iran. US intelligence has been tracking him for years.
-
Edited by Mags: 4/7/2014 1:12:06 AMLibyan rebels, government agree to gradually reopen occupied oil ports [quote](Reuters) - Libyan rebels occupying four eastern oil ports agreed with the government on Sunday to gradually end their eight-month petroleum blockade, which has cost the North African state billions in lost revenues. Zueitina and Hariga ports, held by federalist rebels demanding more autonomy from Tripoli, will open immediately while the larger ports, Ras Lanuf and Es Sider, will be freed in two to four weeks after more talks, the government said.[/quote]The agreement has finally been formalized. This is great news for Libya!
-
[quote]Armed Libyans have abducted 150 Egyptian drivers who were on their way home, along with their trucksaccording to Egypt's state-run Al Ahram newspaper. Saturday's kidnapping was to protest against a life sentence passed by Egyptian authorities to a Libyan smuggler, the newspaper reported.[/quote] http://allafrica.com/stories/201404050034.html [quote]Officials in Italy say suspected Boko Haram gunmen have kidnapped two Italian priests and a Canadian nun in northern Cameroon. Authorities say the abduction happened during the night between Friday and Saturday near the Nigerian border[/quote]This could also be the work of the Boko Haram offshoot, Ansaru.
-
Edited by Mags: 4/3/2014 5:06:07 PM[quote]ALGIERS (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Thursday Washington was looking to increase its security assistance to Algeria to help it tackle militancy in the vast Sahel region to its south, home to one of the world's most active branches of al Qaeda. Algeria, a major gas supplier to Europe, is already a key partner in Washington's campaign against Islamist fighters who have tried to spread across the Maghreb after the French military drove them out of Mali last year.[/quote]Good. http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/?articleID=2000108521&story_title=kenyan-forces-will-not-pull-out-of-somalia-says-omamo [quote]Nairobi, Kenya: The Government has no immediate plans of pulling out the Kenya Defence Forces from Somalia, Defence Cabinet Secretary Raychelle Omamo has announced. Omamo, who described 2014 as a decisive year in the fight against the Al-Shabaab, maintained that it is not yet time to discuss the exit of KDF from the war-torn nation.[/quote]Also good.
-
Libya rebels 'agree to end oil port blockade' [quote]The leader of a rebel group in eastern Libya has agreed to end its seizure of several oil-exporting ports within days, raising hopes of ending an eight-month stalemate with the government in Tripoli, according to reports. The group's leader Ibrahim Jathran told a rebel television channel his group had reached a solution benefiting "all honourable Libyans" and the people of Cyrenaica, the east's historic name. "This agreement will upset all those who don't want the good for Libya and its people but it will make happy all national thinking Libyans. That's important for us. That's what we strive for," Jathran said.[/quote]
-
EU launches Central Africa military operation [quote]The European Union officially launched its delayed military mission to the Central African Republic on Tuesday, seeking to bolster French and African forces that have failed to end months of Christian-Muslim violence. The 1,000-strong force, dubbed EUFOR RCA, will work to restore security to the capital Bangui during a six-month mission, with a view to handing over to a United Nations peacekeeping operation or African troops, the EU said.[/quote]
-
Above is VICE News' look inside Libya's militias, which as linked below are holding Libya hostage. It is a very good report for only being 12 minutes long. It gives a lot of good information on the current happenings in Libya and what the future might have in store for them. The video is safe for work.
-
Edited by Mags: 4/1/2014 4:28:01 AMDeath toll in Boko Haram attacks 'reach 1,500' [quote]Amnesty International says 1,500 people have been killed in north-east Nigeria this year in attacks by Islamist militants. As well as attacks on schools, the militant group known as Boko Haram, has hit military installations such as the main barracks in the city of Maiduguri.[/quote]The article includes a nice little report on Boko Haram and their fighting in Nigeria. This is incredibly sad, really. About a quarter of the way into the year and 1500 people have already been killed by Boko Haram.
-
Six Killed in Explosions in Nairobi. [quote]Six people have been killed in explosions in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, officials say. Several people were wounded in the attack, which took place in the Eastleigh suburb of the city. Eastleigh is known as "Little Mogadishu" because of its large Somali population.[/quote]I'm gonna go ahead and say Shabaab was behind this.
-
Armed militias hold Libya hostage [quote]When a militia holding Libya's eastern ports loaded a North Korean-flagged tanker with oil earlier this month, the Libyan parliament sacked its own prime minister and turned to U.S. commandos to bring its cargo back. For days the government had threatened to blow up the tanker, called Morning Glory, if it left port. When it sailed off, pro-government militiamen even gave chase on boats carrying jeeps mounted with anti-aircraft and cannons. But that failed, and when the tanker reached international waters Libya's parliament fired Prime Minister Ali Zeidan, who fled to Europe. A few days later, U.S. Navy SEALS boarded the tanker to end the debacle.[/quote]
-
Trends observed this week in Somalia [quote]3- Shabab continues to lose key towns in southern and central Somalia. It appears the main force behind these military pressures is Ethiopia. It is true Somalia’s armed forces and other other AMISOM forces are playing no small role. Many Somalis welcome the end of Shebab, but they are concerned that Ethiopia may use its military victories to advance its strategic interests by playing key role in the current political struggle, support some and oppose others. This is a legitimate concern. Somalia’s government, citizens and others ought to make sure Ethiopia limits its role in defeating Shebab, and operates only within the confines of AMISOM mandate. This requires work. [/quote] This is true. Shabaab has lost a lot of ground this week thanks to the US-backed AMISOM mission. Hopefully this keeps up.
-
Libya poised to retake oil ports from rebels in move that could split country [quote]Libyan government forces are poised to attack rebels blockading key oil ports this weekend in an offensive that risks splitting the country apart. A deadline for rebels in the eastern province of Cyrenaica to hand over the ports, blockaded since last summer, has passed with the opposition still in control and vowing to form a breakaway state if attacked. Rebel militias are dug in along Red Wadi, a valley preventing access along Libya's coastal highway to three blockaded ports. "The deadline is already over," said Osama Buera, a spokesman for the rebel Cyrenaica Political Bureau. "The central authorities in Tripoli are in a weak position. We still encourage a serious dialogue, otherwise we will just break away declaring the independence of new Cyrenaica."[/quote]
