Gatestone Institute The Real Winners of the Afghan Election: The Taliban by Con Coughlin  Of the country's 9.6 million registered voters (among a total population of 37 million), a total of just 1.82 million votes were counted. Of these, Mr Ghani achieved his victory by winning a paltry 923,592 votes, which can hardly be described as a commanding mandate. The result should serve as a warning to US officials as they enter a crucial phase in peace talks with the Taliban about the organisation's true motives. Far from having an interest in achieving a negotiated settlement of the long-running Afghan conflict, the Taliban's ultimate goal is to persuade the Trump administration to end its military presence in the country so that it can once again seize control of the country and turn it into a safe haven from which Islamist terrorists can again plot their devastating attacks against the West....

New York Post ‘Bike Path Terrorist’ Sayfullo Saipov Threatened To Decapitate Corrections Officer: Court Papers by Gabrielle Fonrouge Accused bike path terrorist Sayfullo Saipov threatened to decapitate a federal corrections officer for repeatedly waking him while he’s locked up at the Metropolitan Correctional Center, a new court filing detailing a trove of the government’s evidence against him alleges.Saipov, who’s accused of killing eight people during his 2017 Halloween terror attack on the West Side Highway, allegedly threatened the officer on Dec. 17 last year for repeatedly slamming a door at night, making it hard for the ISIS follower to sleep, the filing states.“During the course of this confrontation, the defendant threatened to kill the Officer. Indeed, as the defendant later admitted to the MCC’s disciplinary committee (the ‘Committee’), he told the Officer that if the Officer dared to open the defendant’s cell, in two minutes ‘other guys will be picking...

UNIAN Oleksiy Danilov, Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, has agreed with Ambassador Nathan A. Sales, coordinator for counterterrorism with the U.S. State Department, on enhancing counterterrorism cooperation between the two countries.Danilov thanked the United States for its continued strong support, according to the NSDC press service,"We are grateful to the American people for their sincere assistance and support to Ukraine in these difficult times of war with the Russian aggressor," the NSDC secretary said.The NSDC secretary has stressed that countering terrorist threats is one of Ukraine's key tasks."We understand how insidious terrorists are, while the fight against terrorism is one of our main challenges. At the same time, it's cyberterrorism that comes to the fore today," he said. Read more: https://www.unian.info/politics/amp-10880957-ukraine-u-s-to-intensify-cooperation-on-counterterrorism.html  ...

The Defense Post Turkey Arrests Suspected Former ISIS Executioner In Bursa ISTANBUL, Turkey (AFP) – Turkish police have arrested a suspected former executioner for Islamic State in Syria, who became a gas repairman when he returned to civilian life in Turkey, local media reported on Tuesday, February 18.The 50-year-old Syrian, known by his nickname “Abu Taki al-Shami,” was arrested at a construction site on Monday in the Bursa province of northwest Turkey, state news agency Anadolu said.The agency described him as an executioner for a senior ISIS leader in the Deir Ezzor region of eastern Syria, a former stronghold of the extremist group.A video of his arrest showed him in work clothes and closely shaved. Read more: https://thedefensepost.com/2020/02/18/turkey-arrests-suspected-former-isis-executioner-busra/...

In Homeland Security U.S. Government Issues Powerful Cyberattack Warning As Gas Pipeline Forced Into Two Day Shut DownA major cyberattack has hit a gas compression facility, forcing it to shut it down for two days as it struggled to recover, according to an alert from the U.S. government.The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency (CISA) said it had responded to the ransomware attack on a natural gas facility, but it did not reveal when the incident took place, or the identity of the victim organization.The attack happened because the adversary was able to hop from the gas compression facility’s IT network onto the operational technology (OT) network when an employee mistakenly clicked on a malicious email link.Once in, the attacker deployed the data-encrypting malware, ransomware, on both networks. What is operational technology?Defined by analyst Gartner as “hardware and software that detects or causes a change through the direct monitoring and/or control of...

MEMRI TV Former Hamas minister Ismail Radwan said in a February 10, 2020 interview on the Arabic-language Al-Alam TV (Iran) that he salutes Iran on the anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, especially in light of the death of Qasem Soleimani and of the recently-released Deal of the Century, which he referred to as the "Deal of Shame." He expressed appreciation for Iran's support of the Palestinian cause and its resistance, and he said that that Hamas is "in the same trench" with Iran, Hizbullah, and all the resistance forces in the region. In addition, Radwan said that the resistance forces are working to thwart the Deal of the Century and that the assassinations of Islamic Jihad official Muhammad Al-Ata, PMU Deputy Chairman Abu Mahdi Al-Muhandis, and Qasem Soleimani "open the door" for the resistance to settle the score with Israel and the Trump administration. He said that the American administration...

US says it has seized large cache of Iranian-made missiles in the Arabian Sea By COREY DICKSTEIN | STARS AND STRIPES WASHINGTON — The Navy on Sunday captured a cache of illegal, Iranian-made weapons, including about 150 anti-tank missiles, from a small sailing vessel in the Arabian Sea, U.S. Central Command announced Thursday.The supply of weapons captured was nearly identical to another cache seized in November, which was assessed to be a shipment from Iran on the way to Houthi fighters in Yemen, CENTCOM said in a statement. Defense officials said Thursday that they had not determined definitively where this most recent supply of weapons was being delivered.The weapons seized by sailors aboard the USS Normandy, a Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser, included about 150 “Dehlavieh” anti-tank guided missiles — Iranian-made versions of the Russian Kornet anti-tank missile. Also seized from the dhow sailing vessel were Iranian-built surface-to-air missiles, thermal imaging weapon...

All Africa Somalia: Alarm As Al-Shabaab Infiltrates State Institutions By Aggrey MutamboAbshir Gaarane Ahmed was a lead singer in a government band in Benadir, the region that covers the capital Mogadishu in Somalia.The public knew him as the man who belted out patriotic songs about his country. His trimmed beard and smooth voice suited a youthful artiste.Then on January 21, the National Intelligence and Security Agency of Somalia (Nisa) paraded him as a terrorist.Side by side, Nisa published videos of him singing about his beloved Somalia as well as a confession: he had worked as an Al-Shabaab "accountant".Nisa did not indicate for how long he had been Shabaab's financial manager. But it only confirmed stories that emerged from last year that the Somalia-based militant group was planting its agents inside government departments. Read more: https://allafrica.com/stories/202002170016.html...

NBC News Rocket Attack Strikes Near U.S. Embassy In Iraq The incident remains under investigation, a U.S. military official told NBC News. By Yuliya Talmazan and Associated PressA rocket attack struck near the U.S. Embassy in Iraq early Sunday, a U.S. military and Iraqi officials have confirmed."The attack did not injure any personnel, and the coalition remains committed to supporting the government of Iraq to defeat ISIS remits," Col. Myles Caggins, a spokesman for the U.S. military operation in Iraq, told NBC News.He added that they were not able to identify who was behind the attack, and the incident remains under investigation.Three Iraqi security officials told the Associated Press that two of the rockets fell inside the U.S. Embassy compound, while another hit near the coalition base. The Iraqi officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media. Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/rocket-attack-strikes-near-u-s-embassy-iraq-n1137496...

Cleveland Fourth of July Terrorism Suspect Sentenced to 14 Years in Federal Prison Homeland Security TodayA man accused by the FBI of planning a 2018 attack on a downtown Cleveland park during a popular Independence Day celebration was sentenced Tuesday to spend 14 years in federal prison.Demetrius Pitts, who has roots in Cincinnati and Philadelphia, pleaded guilty in November to attempting to provide material support to the terrorist group al-Qaida, as well as making threats against President Donald Trump and his children. His plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office called for the 14-year sentence.Read more: https://www.hstoday.us/subject-matter-areas/counterterrorism/cleveland-fourth-of-july-terrorism-suspect-sentenced-to-14-years-in-federal-prison/...

New Delhi Times Terrorism: The rising use of CBRN weapons By Dr. Ankit Srivastava, Edito-in-Chief Chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) terrorism is a form of terrorism involving the use of weapons of mass destruction (WMD). Chemical weapons make use of chemical nerve agents (e.g. sarin), blister agents (sulphur mustard) and choking agents (chlorine). The definition does not cover riot control agents or herbicides. Biological weapons release or disseminate biological agents, such as bacteria (e.g. anthrax, plague or salmonella), viruses (smallpox), or toxins (botulinum toxin). Radiological weapons, also known as radiological dispersion devices, injure or kill by spreading radioactive materials. They include the so-called ‘dirty bombs’ which that use conventional explosives. Nuclear weapons derive their destructive power from nuclear reactions.Terrorist networks in Europe have been making use of CBRN weapons. According to a report published on June 27, 2019, by the EU Terrorism Situation and Trend Report 2019, three incidents...

BBC News Hafiz Saeed: Will Pakistan's 'Terror Cleric' Stay In Jail? The man accused of masterminding the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks that killed 161 people is to serve two five-and-a-half prison terms concurrently.Saeed has been wanted by India for years, and is designated as a global terrorist by both the UN and the US, which has a $10m bounty on his head. He's the founder of one of Pakistan's largest militant groups, Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).So why has it taken so long to put him behind bars - and will he stay there? The answer is complicated, not least by the fact that Saeed is widely known to have close links with the Pakistani military. Why punish him now?The answer may lie in Pakistan's growing international isolation since the mid-2000s, its worsening economic woes and more recently a threat of being blacklisted by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the international terror...

Reuters Syrian To Be Tried For Plotting Attack On U.S. Embassy In Lebanon: Agency BEIRUT (Reuters) - A Syrian man held on suspicion of plotting an attack on the U.S. Embassy in Lebanon was referred to trial on Thursday along with 20 other people, the Lebanese state news agency NNA said.NNA said a Lebanese military judge had issued an indictment against the man on charges of belonging to the Islamic State militant group and planning the operation on its behalf.It said the man was suspected of having prepared explosives and of seeking to buy a drone for the attack. The agency gave no further details and did not spell out the allegations against the 20 others. Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-lebanon-security-usa/syrian-to-be-tried-for-plotting-attack-on-us-embassy-in-lebanon-agency-idUSKBN2071RK...

KCCI 8 Law enforcement detail 'significant' gang investigation DES MOINES, Iowa — The U.S. Attorney’s Office and Des Moines police hosted a news conference Friday morning to announce the results of a “significant Des Moines law enforcement gang investigation.”U.S. Attorney Marc Krickbaum and Des Moines Police Chief Dana Wingert talked about the federal conviction of a man they call the “most violent and most dangerous gang members. Twenty-two-year-old Xzavier Clark, who Krickbaum said is a member of the "C-Block" gang, will spend the next 10 years in federal prison for being a drug user in possession of a firearm.“I think one of the key messages is that this is the beginning, and this is a small part of what we are doing. I want people to understand and hear the feds are taking gun cases. And if you are a user of an illegal drug and have a gun, you...

Washington Examiner Ignominious Distinction: Taliban Surpasses ISIS As 'World’s Deadliest' Nonstate Armed Group by Jamie McIntyre A new analysis from Jane’s Terrorism and Insurgency Centre says the Afghanistan-based Taliban has surpassed the Islamic State to become the world’s deadliest nonstate armed group.The group reported that while terrorist attacks decreased 10% to 14,009 in 2019, the lowest level since 2011, Taliban attacks increased by almost 90%, resulting in a 60% increase in deaths.The data shows that the Taliban accounted for more deaths than the next nine deadliest groups combined.The ignominious distinction comes as President Trump reportedly has given conditional approval to a peace deal with the Taliban that could mark the beginning of the end of America’s longest war, according to Afghan and U.S. officials.“But the deal will only be signed if the Taliban prove their commitment to a durable reduction of violence over a test period of about seven days...

Kurdistan 24 Iraq Launches Anti-ISIS Operation To Secure Western Border ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Iraqi military announced on Wednesday that it had launched a new anti-Islamic State operation named “Iraqi Heroes” as part of ongoing efforts to secure the nation's often porous western borders with Syria and Jordan.“With God’s blessing, phase one of 'Iraqi Heroes' was launched at dawn today, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2020, with the participation of the Ground Forces Command, the Baghdad Operations Command, and the Border Guard Command and entities attached to it,” said Deputy Commander of Joint Operations Command Abdul Amir Rashid Yarallah in a statement.He added, “The process is to search and clear Anbar Province and surrounding areas in the Iraqi-Syrian-Jordanian borders... with the Middle Euphrates Command and Baghdad Operations Command to eliminate the remnants of terrorism, impose security, and enhance stability.”The military operation will be conducted from five axes with the full support...

Military Times After decades focused on terrorism, special operations is broadening its horizons by Meghann Myers and Shawn Snow With clear marching orders from the Defense Department to turn focus to competitors like China and Russia, the U.S. special operations community is at an inflection point. Kicking down doors in Afghanistan and Iraq will give way to more missions like training partners in Europe and Asia, and U.S. Special Operations Command could see a shift in its funding and oversight.But that re-focus should not mean that special operations forces will take a back seat to traditional air, land and sea power, according to a report released Wednesday, as competitors are already using proxy forces and misinformation campaigns, both of which are right in the SOF wheelhouse.“A successful U.S. national security strategy will require more from SOF and their partner nation forces—not less,” according to the Imperatives 2020 report from the...

Washington Examiner Suffering repeated attacks by convicted terrorists, Britain strengthens laws by Tom Rogan After two recent attacks by released terrorists, Prime Minister Boris Johnson's government is moving to strengthen detention policies for convicted terrorists.The reforms would end the automatic release of convicted terrorists at the halfway point of their custodial sentences. Convicted terrorists would instead have to be approved for early release by a parole board. The hope is that this reform will reduce the risk of reoffending and better protect the public.Still, there's a major political effort to get this legislation passed quickly.That effort is a response to rising public fears over two recent terrorist stabbing rampages in London. The first was a November 2019 attack by a recently paroled terrorist convict, which killed two innocent people. The second was a February 2020 attack by a recently released terrorist. The terrorists were shot dead by police in both...

The Clarion Project Top UFC Manager: A Tale of Espionage & Terrorism A Hollywood-like spy story has been brewing beneath the surface in the world of Mixed Martial Arts surrounding the biggest manager in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).UFC manager Ali Abdelaziz, used to be in a terror-tied cult known as Jammat ul-Fuqra. Abdelaziz manages some of the most high-profile fighters, including UFC Lightweight Champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, Frankie Edgar, Renzo Gracie, Henry Cejudo and Rashad Evans.Fuqra, known more commonly as Muslims of the Americas (MOA), is most known for claiming to have 22 “Islamic villages” in the U.S., including its 70-acre “Islamberg” headquarters in upstate New York. Read more: https://clarionproject.org/ufc-manager-espionage-terrorism/...

Pakistan Court Convicts Hafiz Saeed For 5 Years in Terror Financing Cases The terror financing cases against Saeed were filed by the Counter-Terrorism Department's (CTD) Lahore and Gujranwala chapters.By India.com News Desk The development comes after the anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Lahore on Tuesday adjourned the hearing of two terror financing cases against Saeed till February 18. Saeed is the leader of the banned Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) who was the mastermind of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack. The two-member bench, headed by Justice Qasim Khan, which was supposed to initially announce its verdict against the JuD chief on February 8, will now hear the case on February 18.Nominated in about 29 cases related to terror financing, money laundering, the verdict was reserved against Saeed on February 6.As per updates, the ATC on February 8 delayed its verdict in the terror financing cases and had decided to hear arguments on February 11.Read...