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Brussels saw a big win four days ago when the key suspect behind the 2015 Paris terror attacks, Salah Abdeslam, was caught after a four-month-long manhunt. But that victory has been eclipsed by the devastating explosions that hit the city’s airport and metro transit Tuesday. The Islamic State has claimed credit for these fresh attacks, which have killed at least 32 people and injured around 200.
Here’s Rita Katz, of the terrorist monitoring agency SITE Intelligence Group:
Brussels was by no means a surprising target, as my colleague Feargus O’Sullivan explains; and it’s also not the only one. Sites in Syria and Iraq, where ISIS is active, experience routineviolence. But apart from these places, there are eight other cities that have been touched by terrorism in the past month.
Here is a Google map of those locations, followed by a timeline of the attacks:
March 21: Bamako, Mali
Unidentified gunmen opened fire at a hotel here, where a European Union mission of almost 600 peoplewas headquartered, Reuters reports. The mission’s purpose was to train Malian forces to combat Islamist militant groups active in the region.
One attacker was killed and two others arrested, and E.U. officials came out of the incident unharmed:
It’s not immediately clear which terrorist group the gunmen were affiliated with, although it’s likely linked to the Al Qaeda affiliate in North Africa—the same group that took responsibility for a previous attack on a Bamako hotelback in November. Around 170 people were taken hostage in that attack, and 27 were killed, according to the BBC.
Turkey’s interior minister later linked the attack to the Islamic State; via Al Jazeera:
"We have determined that Mehmet Ozturk, born in 1992 in Gaziantep, has carried out the heinous attack on Saturday in Istanbul," Ala said in a news conference broadcast live on television.
"It has been established that he is a member of Daesh [the Arabic acronym for ISIL]," he added.
I often think of Istiklal as a body part: it is a heart, a backbone, a nerve. On Saturday Istilkal was an artery. Isis wanted it cut.
I read about the bombing and became sick. I texted my friends to see if they were safe, and reflected on how frequent this ritual of checking in after a bombing has become.
March 16: Maiduguri, Nigeria
Two female suicide bombers blew themselves up at a mosque in the outskirts of Maiduguri, a city in the Northeastern region of Nigeria, during morning prayers. The blasts killed 24 worshippers, according to The New York Times.
Boko Haram, an Islamist extremist group based in that region has often deployed female suicide bombers to target civilians in Maiduguri, and is likely behind this attack as well. Here’s a bit more context about the city, via The Guardian:
Maiduguri has a population of about a million, and currently hosts almost as many displaced people. About 2.5 million people have been forced to flee their homes during Boko Haram’s six-year uprising. About 20,000 people have been killed in Nigeria and hundreds more elsewhere as the insurgents have carried out attacks in Cameroon, Niger and Chad.
March 16: Peshawar, Pakistan
A blast killed at least 15 and injured around 30 people traveling by bus in Peshawar, a northwestern city of Pakistan that’s routinely targeted by Taliban militants, the BBC reports.
According to Reuters, Lashkar-e-Islam, an ally of the Pakistani Taliban, planted an improvised explosive device under the bus, which was transporting around 50 government officials to their offices in the city.
March 13: Ankara, Turkey
Militants from an insurgent group, Kurdistan Freedom Hawks, set off a car bomb in Kizilay Square at the heart of Turkey’s capital, killing at least 37. The attack was retribution for the government’s military operations in the southeastern region, the BBC reports; and tensions between the Kurdish militants and the Turkish government forces have only escalated since it occurred.
March 13: Grand-Bassam, Ivory Coast
At a resort outside the Ivory Coast city of Abidjan, gunmen belonging to the North African affiliate of Al Qaeda opened fire at people enjoying a leisurely day at the beach, the New York Times reports:
The attack, on the first sunny Sunday in weeks, took place in Grand-Bassam, a popular palm tree-lined getaway for Ivorians and foreigners. Fourteen civilians and two members of the country’s special forces were killed, as well as six gunmen, according to a spokeswoman for the president.
The aftermath of the Ivory Coast beach hotel attacks:
Ivorians have taken to social media to dispel fear and express support for the families affected by the attack. But worries about the lasting damage the attack will inflict on the country’s key tourism industry remain.
March 7: Shabqadar, Pakistan
Around 10 people were killed and 30 injured by a suicide bomb in the small town of Shabqadar, in a northwestern province where the ethnic Pashtun community resides. Via Dawn:
According to police, a policeman tried to stop and search the suicide bomber but he forced his way through the main entrance of the sub-district courts and detonated his vest when another constable pounced on him before he could proceed towards the more crowded family court.
The attack, carried out by the Taliban's Jamaat-ur-Ahrar bloc, was revenge for the execution of the man convicted of killing a liberal governor of Punjab in 2011 who had wanted to change the country’s blasphemy laws.
In the wake of the attacks in Brussels, people have been recalling many of the above attacks on Twitter to highlight that terrorism is not just a Western issue, but a global one:
Coalition to include members from across the Middle East, Africa and Asia
Saudi Arabia has called it a bid to 'save international peace and security'
The group includes powerful gulf states Egypt and Turkey – but not Iran
Saudi Arabia has formed an alliance of 34 Muslim nations to fight ISIS and tackle 'the Islamic world's problem with terrorism'.
The Saudi-led coalition, which will be based in Riyadh, includes powerful gulf states Egypt and Turkey but excludes Iran.
Alliance members from the Middle East, Africa and Asia will work from the capital 'to coordinate and support military operations to fight terrorism', according to the SPA state news agency.
Saudi Arabia has formed a coalition of 34 countries to fight terrorism including powerful Gulf states, Egypt and Turkey but excluding Iran (file picture)
Saudi defence minister and crown prince Mohammad bin Salman Al Saud said the aim was to tackle 'the Islamic world's problem with terrorism and will be a partner in the worldwide fight against this scourge.'
Arrangements would be made for 'coordination with friendly peace-loving nations and international bodies for the sake of supporting international efforts to combat terrorism and to save international peace and security', SPA added.
More than 10 other 'Islamic countries' had expressed support for the coalition, including Indonesia, it said.
The United States has called for broader international participation in the fight against ISIS in Iraq and Syria.
It said Turkey needed to do more to control its borders with Syria, and Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states had been distracted by the conflict in Yemen.
The announcement said the alliance is being established because terrorism 'should be fought by all means and collaboration should be made to eliminate it.'
The United States has called for broader international participation in the fight against ISIS in Iraq and Syria (file picture)
The statement said Islam forbids 'corruption and destruction in the world' and that terrorism constitutes 'a serious violation of human dignity and rights, especially the right to life and the right to security.'
The new counterterrorism coalition includes nations with large and established armies such as Pakistan, Turkey and Egypt as well as war-torn countries with embattled militaries such as Libya and Yemen.
African nations that have suffered terrorist attacks such as Mali, Chad, Somalia and Nigeria are also members.
Saudi Arabia's regional rival, Shiite Iran, is not part of the coalition. Saudi Arabia and Iran support opposite sides of in the wars raging in Syria and Yemen.
Saudi Arabia is currently leading a military intervention in Yemen against Shiite Houthi rebels and is part of the U.S.-led coalition bombing ISIS in Iraq and Syria.
'Currently, every Muslim country is fighting terrorism individually … so coordinating efforts is very important,' the Saudi Deputy Crown Prince said.
Smaller member-states included in the coalition are the archipelago of the Maldives and the island-nation of Bahrain.
Other Gulf Arab countries such as Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates are also in the coalition, though notably absent from the list is Saudi Arabia's neighbor Oman.
But Iraq and Syria whose forces are battling to regain territory taken by ISIS and whose governments are allied with Iran are not in the coalition.
Benin, while it does not have a majority Muslim population, is also a member of this new counterterrorism coalition.
All the group's members are also part of the larger Organization of Islamic Cooperation, which is headquartered in Saudi Arabia.
Arpaio calls on 250K armed citizens to stop terrorism and mass shootings
Posted: Dec 01, 2015 10:02 PM ESTUpdated: Dec 02, 2015 5:46 PM EST
(Source: KPHO/KTVK)
(Source: KPHO/KTVK)
Draw your weapons.
That's what Sheriff Joe Arpaio is urging nearly a quarter-million Arizona gun owners to do to fight terrorism and mass shooters.
On Tuesday, the so-called "Toughest Sheriff in America" said he cannot guarantee the public's safety and called on them to take matters into their own hands if necessary.
"I'm just talking about the areas where you have large crowds and someone pulls out the gun and starts shooting. Maybe somebody with a concealed weapon takes the guy down," Arpaio said.
Specifically, Arpaio was looking to the 250,000 Arizonans who carry concealed weapons permits to help keep the peace.
But there are some in law enforcement who are calling this a bad idea.
Steve Henry, chief deputy of the Pinal County Sheriff's Office, said untrained gun owners could add to chaotic situations at big events, increasing the risk to innocent bystanders.
"Sometimes it's not proper to pull the trigger because the collateral damage is not worth it," Henry said. "We don't want to walk into a gun fight between anybody, much less a gun fight where people are untrained."
Arpaio's comments came in the wake of terrorist attacks in Paris, Beirut and Mali.
As such, the percentage of Americans who think a terrorist strike is somewhat or very likely to occur in the homeland in the next few months has skyrocketed.
According to a CBS poll, 69 percent of Americans believe an attack is imminent.
Arpaio referred to the terrorist group ISIS, or ISIL, as a reason gun owners should be on the lookout. He also spoke about the Colorado man accused of killing three people at the Planned Parenthood last week.
Had someone been armed, the sheriff said, maybe he or she could have stopped the shooter.
"I'm concerned about what's going on. Just think about Colorado. If there was someone in there with a concealed weapon that guy would have been shot down," he said.
Arpaio is not the first politician to call for more guns after a tragedy.
Three years ago, Texas Rep. Louie Gohmert proposed arming more citizens after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Connecticut where 20 school children and six adult staff members were killed.
At the time, Gohmert said: "I wish to God she had had an M-4 in her office," referring to the school’s principal.
There have been some cases where an armed civilian stopped a mass killer.
In 1997, an assistant principal in Pearl, MS, fatally shot an armed student after he had killed two other students and injured several others.
Still, it appears to be a rare occurrence. Regardless, Arpiao believes armed citizens is one way to keep the public safe.
"All I'm saying is if it's controversial, then OK, let it be controversial, but we have to protect the public," he said.
Update 2 p.m. EST: A U.N. official said, based on initial reports from the field, that 27 people were killed in the attack on the Radisson hotel in Mali’s capital.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity because the operation is still ongoing, said 12 bodies were found in the basement and 15 bodies were found on the second floor. The official stressed that the building had yet to be totally cleared.
Another U.N. official, Olivier Salgado, said two extremists were killed.
Update 10:40 a.m. ET: An extremist group that two years ago split from al-Qaida’s North Africa branch and led by Moktar Belmoktar claimed responsibility for the attack, in a recorded statement carried by Al-Jazeera. The group said it wanted fighters freed from Mali’s prisons and for attacks against northern Malians to stop.
The group, known as the Mourabitounes, was formed in 2013 after Belmoktar left al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb and fused with a Malian militant group. The statement issued Friday said the Mourabitounes had attacked in coordination with the “Sahara Emirate” affiliated with al-Qaida.
Reuters reported that as least 27 were killed in the hostage siege.
—
Update 10:35 a.m. EST: U.S. special forces troops were assisting Malian forces in hostage rescue efforts, said Col. Mark Cheadle of the U.S. Army’s Africa Command.
At least six Americans were among those evacuated from the Radisson Blu hotel where armed Islamic extremists took 170 people hostage earlier Friday.
In this image made available by Malikahere.com security personnel, right, attend close to the scene of an attack on a hotel in Bamako, Mali Friday Nov. 20, 2015. Men shouting “God is great” and armed with guns and throwing grenades stormed into the Radisson Blu Hotel in Mali’s capital Friday morning. (Malikahere.com via AP)
Cheadle, a spokesman for the U.S. Africa Command, said the U.S. military hasn’t received any other requests for help responding to the attack, but that the United States will continue assisting the French with intelligence and surveillance in Mali.
Hours after the assault began, 125 guests and 13 employees were still in the hotel, Malian army commander Modibo Nama Traore told the Associated Press.
Update 8:25 a.m. EST: Authorities updated the number of people freed from the hotel in Mali that was under attack by Islamic extremists Friday to 80.
U.S. President Barack Obama said he was monitoring the situation, making brief comment about the hotel attack after a meeting in Kuala Lumpur with Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak. He didn’t offer any additional details.
French President Francois Hollande said France is ready to help Mali with all means necessary in the wake of the attack in the capital.
He asked all French citizens in Mali to make contact with the French Embassy there “in order that everything is made to offer them protection.”
In Belgium, Foreign Minister Didier Reynders said there were four Belgians registered at the attacked hotel but it’s unclear if they were taken hostage by the gunmen or not.
Reynders also said there are “15 hostages who have been freed after an intervention” but didn’t provide more details.
Citing Chinese diplomats in Mali, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported that about 10 Chinese citizens were sheltering inside their hotel rooms. The embassy was in phone contact with them and all were reported safe, according to the report. All are employees of Chinese companies working in Mali.
The website of the official China Daily newspaper also cited an unidentified witness as saying one Chinese citizen had been rescued.
Five Turkish Airlines personnel were among the freed hostages, Turkey’s state-run news agency said.
Update 7:35 a.m. EST: Malian special forces freed hostages “floor by floor,” Malian army commander Modibo Nama Traore told The Associated Press Friday after armed Islamic extremists stormed a hotel in Bamako, taking 170 people hostage.
At least three people were killed by the gunmen at the Radisson Blu Hotel, according to authorities, and at least 30 people have been freed.
Malian security forces were trying to make contact with the assailants, Traore said.
He said at least one guest earlier reported that the attackers instructed him to recite verses from the Quran before he was allowed to leave the hotel.
It was not immediately clear which Muslim extremist groups might be behind the attack, which unfolded one week after the attacks on Paris that killed 129 people. A handful of jihadi groups seized the northern half of Mali – a former French colony – in 2012 and were ousted from cities and towns by a French military intervention.
Original story follows below. —
BAMAKO, Mali (TheBlaze/AP) — The company that runs the Radisson Blu Hotel in Mali’s capital says assailants have taken 170 hostages in a brazen assault involving grenades.
The Brussels-based Rezidor Hotel group said the assailants had “locked in” 140 guests and 30 employees.
Security force personnel escort people fleeing from the Radisson Blu Hotel in Bamako, Mali, Friday, Nov. 20, 2015. (AP/Harouna Traore)
Malian army commander Modibo Nama Traore said 10 gunmen stormed the hotel Friday morning shouting “Allahu Akbar” or “God is great” in Arabic before firing on the guards and taking hostages.
People run to flee from the Radisson Blu Hotel in Bamako, Mali, Friday, Nov. 20, 2015. The company that runs the Radisson Blu Hotel in Mali’s capital says assailants have takenhostages in a brazen assault involving grenades. (AP/Harouna Traore)
The U.S. and French embassies asked their citizens to take shelter where they are in Bamako.
AFP later tweeted that security forces were on the scene and beginning to rescue some people from the hotel.
CNN interviewed a restaurant owner about what he witnessed from outside the hotel. Watch the clip:
Following a military coup in 2012, Islamic extremists took control of northern Mali, prompting a French-led military intervention in early 2013. The extremists were scattered from northern towns and cities, though the north remains insecure and militant attacks have extended south this year.
This is a developing story. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Just eight days after a terrorist attack in the city of Kunming dubbed “China’s September 11th,” a Malaysia Airlines flight carrying mostly Chinese passengers disappeared over the South China Sea.
While the international probe is in its early stages and questions are being raised about the prospect of terrorism, investigators would be wise to thoroughly examine the possibility of a missile attack in light of recent information about the global proliferation of such projectiles capable of downing civilian airliners.
Further, China has issued a series of warnings about North Korean missiles, including one that crossed paths with a Chinese airliner carrying 220 people just last week.
On Friday, China complained to North Korea when one of its missiles crossed paths with a civilian jet last Tuesday that had departed Tokyo’s Narita airport en route to the northeastern Chinese city of Shenyang.
One day earlier, South Korea’s defense ministry released a statement saying the Chinese civilian plane had “passed as the ballistic missile (from North Korea) was in the course of descending.”
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang told reporters, “On this issue, we have already contacted the North Korean side to convey our deep concern.”
“If any country is to hold training or exercises, it should take measures in accordance with international practice to ensure the safety of civil [facilities] in relevant airspace and maritime space,” said Qin.
Qin said the jet was flying over international waters at an altitude of 10,000 meters, or 32,800 feet.
“The rocket could have hit the plane on its way down,” he said. “North Korea had not given any warning. It was an unexpected and immoral act that goes against international norms.”
In January, former CIA Director David Petraeus warned of a “nightmare” scenario in which the proliferation of missiles could provide terrorists the ability to shoot down passenger airplanes.
The largest terrorist looting of Man-Portable-Air-Defense-Systems, or MANPADS, reportedly took place immediately after the U.S.-NATO military campaign that helped to end Moammar Gadhafi’s rule in Libya.
Gadhafi had hoarded Africa’s biggest known reserve of MANPADS, with his stock said to number between 15,000 and 20,000. Many of the missiles were stolen by militias fighting in Libya, including those backed by the U.S. their anti-Gadhafi efforts.
Last week, there were unverified claims some MANPADS went missing in Ukraine.
Last April, the United Nations released a report revealing that weapons from Libya to extremists were proliferating at an “alarming rate,” fueling conflicts in Mali, Syria, Gaza and elsewhere.
Most MANPADS are designed to down a low-flying aircraft. Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, however, reportedly disappeared from radar while flying at cruising altitude in fine weather.
The details surrounding the fate of the Malaysia Airlines flight could take months or even years to fully emerge. While it is too early to jump to conclusions and the possibilities will evolve along with the investigation, some reports about the flight are technically consistent with a potential missile strike.
Reuters has exclusively quoted a senior source inside the probe saying they were narrowing the focus of the investigation to the possibility the aircraft disintegrated mid-flight.
Malaysia Airlines CEO Ahmad Jauhari Yahya told reporters the airline had no indication of any distress signal from the pilot, with CBS News reporting this suggested “that whatever happened to the plane occurred quickly and possibly catastrophically.”
Other reports say radar tracking the flight indicated the pilot may have turned back from its path to Beijing before disappearing. It was unclear how quickly the airplane did an about face or why the pilot may have decided to reverse course.
Meanwhile, international intelligence agencies have joined the investigation amid news that two passengers boarded the jet using stolen passports, raising terrorism concerns.
‘Nightmare’ threat targets passenger aircraft
At a conference in Tel Aviv in January, Petraeus warned of a “nightmare” scenario in which missile proliferation could provide terrorists the capability to shoot down a civilian airliner.
Petraeus was speaking at the annual conference of the Institute for National Security Studies, a think-tank at Tel Aviv University.
He referred to a video posted on YouTube by the Sinai-based Ansar Jerusalem jihadist group, which claimed it had fired a surface-to-air missile at an Egyptian helicopter.
“I mean, shooting down a helicopter with an apparent shoulder-fired missile is a big deal,” Petraeus said.
“As you know, that was always our worst nightmare, that a civilian airliner would be shot down by one. Which is why we were so concerned when they moved around,” he said.
The MANPADS didn’t just move around. Thousands were looted when Gadhafi’s reserves were unprotected following the NATO campaign there in 2011.
At the time, CBS News reported the U.S. was unable to secure “thousands” of MANPADS.
CBS quoted a “well-placed source” divulging that hundreds of missiles were tracked going to the group Al Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, AQIM, the al-Qaida franchise based in Algeria that is now considered to be one of the gravest threats to the U.S.
Saudi Arabia has formed a coalition of 34 countries to fight terrorism including powerful Gulf states, Egypt and Turkey but excluding Iran (file picture)
The United States has called for broader international participation in the fight against ISIS in Iraq and Syria (file picture)
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