Eye on Extremism, June 27, 2016

Eye on Extremism

June 27, 2016

Reuters: CIA Weapons For Syrian Rebels Sold To Arms Black Market: NYT
“Weapons shipped into Jordan for Syrian rebels by the Central Intelligence Agency and Saudi Arabia were stolen by Jordanian intelligence operatives and sold to arms merchants on the black market, the New York Times reported, citing American and Jordanian officials. Some of the stolen weapons were used in a shooting in November that killed two Americans and three others at a police training facility in Amman, according to a joint investigation by the New York Times and Al Jazeera. The weapons used in the shooting had originally arrived in Jordan for the Syrian rebel training program, the paper reported, citing American and Jordanian officials. Theft of the weapons, which ended months ago after complaints by the American and Saudi governments, has led to a flood of new weapons available on the arms black market, the New York Times said.”
CNN: UNICEF: Airstrikes In Syria Kill 25 Children
“Health workers pulled little lifeless bodies out from under mounds of rubble after airstrikes reportedly hit and killed 25 children in the eastern part of the Syrian province of Deir Ezzor, a U.N. agency said. Three air attacks targeted heavily crowded areas, including a mosque during prayer time on Saturday, in the town of al-Quriyah, UNICEF said in a statement. Deir Ezzor city, the provincial capital, has been a hotbed of conflict since ISIS militants captured the northern suburbs in January. The city has been a critical junction for ISIS, with roads east and south toward Iraq and west to areas it controls in Homs province, including Palmyra. It is also surrounded by some of ISIS' most valuable oilfields, which have been intensively targeted by both U.S. and Russian airpower in recent months.”
The Wall Street Journal: Iraqi Forces Take Full Control Of Fallujah From Islamic State
“Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said the country’s military wrested full control of Fallujah from Islamic State, paving the way for an offensive to reclaim Mosul, the last major city controlled by the terror group in Iraq. Mr. Abadi, flanked by triumphant senior military officers, spoke in Fallujah’s city center on Sunday evening and called on Iraqis to celebrate in the streets, hailing the victory as a rare moment of national unity. Fallujah, a Sunni Muslim city 40 miles west of the capital Baghdad, was the first major city to fall to Islamic State ahead of a 2014 offensive by the group that saw it take over about a third of the country. The city had been a bastion of Islamic State control and served as a command center from which it has coordinated devastating suicide attacks against civilians in Baghdad. The battle for Fallujah has been seen as a test of preparedness for the larger offensive to come in Mosul.”
BBC: Lebanon Suicide Attack Hits Village Near Syria Border
“At least five people have been killed and 13 others wounded in a suicide bomb attack in a village in eastern Lebanon, reports say. Three bombers blew themselves up in the village of Qaa, close to the Syrian border, the Lebanese Red Cross told AFP news agency. The Hezbollah TV station al-Manar put the death toll at six. It is not clear who carried out the attack or why. Sectarian tensions in Lebanon have been stoked by the civil war in Syria.”
Voice Of America: Lebanon's Hezbollah Vows To Send More Fighters To Syria
“The leader of Lebanon's militant Hezbollah movement said Friday that the group would send more fighters to Syria to support the Damascus government. Hassan Nasrallah declared in a speech that he was sending reinforcements to Aleppo province, where he said the ‘greatest’ battle of the civil war was taking place. ‘We will increase our presence in Aleppo,’ Nasrallah said. ‘Retreat is not permissible.’ In a rare admission of casualties, Nasrallah also said 26 Hezbollah fighters who had arrived in Aleppo earlier were killed this month. Hezbollah has sent thousands of fighters to support Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's troops. Last month, a top militant commander, Mustafa Badreddine, was killed in an explosion in Syria.”
The Wall Street Journal: ‘Brexit’ Vote Complicates Europe’s Terror Fight, Sanctions Approach
“The British vote to leave the European Union could have a profound impact on global security, weakening Europe’s most powerful military and altering the West’s approach to the twin challenges facing the Continent. The prospect of Britain’s exit from Europe’s most important political and economic forum is likely to erode the consensus on sanctions against Russia meant to deter further military action by Moscow, and complicate the U.S. drive to prod European countries to better share intelligence on looming terrorism threats, said current and former European and U.S. officials.”
CNN: At Least 10 Injured -- Some Stabbed -- At California Rally, Authorities Say
“Ten people were injured Sunday after violence broke out between a white supremacist group and counter-protesters, said authorities in Sacramento, California. Two of the injured had critical stab wounds, Sacramento Fire Department spokesman Chris Harvey said. The nine men and one woman were between 19 and 58, the fire department said in a tweet, and all had multiple stab and laceration wounds. One of the injured refused to go to the hospital, Harvey said. It was not clear how many remained hospitalized Sunday night.”
International Business Times: Boko Haram Update: 8 Militants Killed, Over 5,000 Hostages Freed In Operation Lafiya Dole, Nigerian Military Says
“Nigerian troops freed over 5,000 Boko Haram captives in the northeastern Borno state, the country’s army said Sunday. Eight members of the Islamist militant group were also in killed in the operation, which the army has codenamed Lafiya Dole. The operation — whose name translates roughly to ‘peace by all means’ — took place in four villages of Borno state. Weapons, ammunition and transport equipment like motorcycles were recovered from the raided camps around Mafa, a local government headquarter in the state, Col. Sani Usman, spokesman of the Nigerian army, said, according to local news portal Premium Times.”
Ahram Online: Minister Among 11 Killed In Somalia Hotel Attack
“A junior minister was among 11 people killed in an attack by Al-Qaeda-affiliated Shabaab militants on a hotel in the Somali capital, the foreign ministry said Sunday. The body of Buri Mohamed Hamza, minister of state in the prime minister's office for the environment, has been retrieved from the collapsed building of the Naasa Hablood hotel, the ministry added.”
Telegraph: German Cinema Gunman Had No Links To Extremism, Say Police
“A gunman who was shot dead by police in Germany after he tried to take several people hostage in a cinema this week has been named as a German teenager with no known links to extremism. The hostage-taker was named by Bild newspaper as Sabino M, a 19-year-old German citizen of mixed German and Italian heritage. Authorities have said he had no links to terrorism and the investigation is focusing on the likelihood that he was mentally disturbed. He was carrying two highly convicing blank-firing replica guns and a fake hand grenade. Criminal psychologists have suggested his intention may have been to commit ‘suicide by cop’ by provoking police to shoot him in order to protect hostages’ lives.”

United States

Voice Of America: Former US Envoys Urge Obama To Delay Troop Cuts In Afghanistan
“Three former U.S. envoys to Afghanistan called on the Obama administration this week not to cut U.S. troop levels in that country next year, even as the White House indicated that it remains committed to doing just that.  Dan Feldman, James Dobbins and Marc Grossman all served as U.S. special representatives to Afghanistan and Pakistan between 2011 and 2015 and remain influential voices in Washington foreign policy circles.  Along with 10 other former senior diplomats and military commanders who served in Afghanistan, they sent an open letter to President Barack Obama this month, urging him to drop plans to halve the number of American troops in Afghanistan.”
The Hill: How The US Is Working To Defeat ISIS Online
“The Obama administration is ramping up its efforts to fight terrorism online as extremist Islamic groups seek to motivate homegrown attackers. Driving the effort is the recently set up Global Engagement Center, housed at the State Department but led by retired Navy SEAL Cmdr. Michael Lumpkin, a former top Pentagon official. The effort comes late in the administration, and more than two years after the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria began its land-grabbing blitz across Iraq and Syria, prompting criticism from some Republicans in Congress for moving too slowly. It also comes after the State Department set up an earlier effort, the Center for Strategic Counterterrorism Communications, whose government-branded videos have been widely seen as a failure.”

Syria

Voice Of America: Least 45 People Killed In Syria By Russian And Government Planes
“Russian and Syrian government airplanes killed at least 45 people, including children, Saturday in a town in eastern Syria, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The monitoring group said that the strikes hit the town of Qourieh in Deir el-Zour province, which borders Iraq and is mostly controlled by the Islamic State militant group. Meanwhile, the Syria Democratic Forces (SDF) rebel group, a coalition of Kurdish and Arab forces backed by aerial support from the U.S.-led coalition, clashed with IS inside Manbij, a key stronghold of the extremist group. The SDF pushed into the town from the southern edge, after gaining control of a wheat silo complex on its outskirts.”
Business Standard: IS Kills Five Activists In Eastern Syria
“The Islamic State (IS) terror group has killed five media activists in Syria's Deir al-Zour province, officials said on Sunday. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), the IS released an execution video of the five activists -- who had been held captive for nine months -- which showed them being killed in five different ways, EFE news reported. One of the victims was identified as Sami Jawddat al-Rabbah, an activist who worked at SOHR. The IS jihadis killed al-Rabbah by detonating his laptop, to which he was tied. The group said the five victims were accused of acting against IS and releasing information in exchange for money, among other things.”

Iraq

Reuters: Iraqi Commander Declares Defeat Of Islamic State In Falluja
“Iraqi forces on Sunday recaptured the last district of Falluja held by Islamic State militants and the commander of the operation declared the battle over following a month of fighting. Iraqi troops reached the city center, an hour's drive west of Baghdad, last week but militants had holed up in some parts, including Golan district which the military retook on Sunday. The assault is part of a wider offensive against Islamic State, which seized swathes of territory in 2014 but is now being driven back by an array of forces backed by a U.S.-led coalition. Gains in Falluja give fresh momentum to the campaign to retake Mosul, the largest city anywhere in the jihadists' self-proclaimed caliphate spanning Iraq and Syria.”

Turkey

Reuters: Turkey Grants Immunity To Security Forces Fighting Militants
“Turkey's parliament has granted immunity from prosecution to members of the armed forces conducting counter-terrorism operations as security forces battle Kurdish militants in fighting that has killed thousands in the past year. The law, passed late on Thursday, gives expansive powers to the military as it tries to stamp out an insurgency by the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) after last year's collapse of a two-year ceasefire. Before becoming president in 2014, Tayyip Erdogan spent much of his rule as prime minister building up civilian oversight of the military. Critics say the new law undoes some of those reforms. The legislation could make it harder to investigate allegations of rights abuses.”
Radio Free Europe: Turkey Detains 28 Over Alleged Links To Erdogan Foe
“Turkish police have detained 28 people over allegations of funding the movement of U.S.-based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, a foe of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.  In the latest crackdown against Gulen's supporters in Turkey, police carried out simultaneous raids on June 25 in several cities including Istanbul as well as Konya and Kayseri in central Anatolia, the privately-owned Dogan News Agency reported. Police operations have targeted thousands of supporters of the cleric, who has been accused of leading what authorities describe as a ‘Gulenist terror group’ trying to overthrow Erdogan. Gulen rejects the claims.”
The Wall Street Journal: Turkey Boosts Military Powers In Fight Against Kurdish Militants
“Turkey’s parliament has made it harder to prosecute soldiers for alleged human rights abuses committed during counterterrorism operations, a move that strengthens the government’s hand in its fight against Kurdish insurgents. A law passed late Thursday gave expanded powers to the armed forces in a campaign launched in southeastern Turkey last July after the collapse of a two-year cease fire. Hundreds of civilians, police officers, soldiers and Kurdish militants have been killed in some of the deadliest fighting of a 32-year-old conflict.”

Afghanistan

Voice Of America: Taliban Vows Retaliation As US Resumes Afghan Airstrikes
“Afghanistan's Taliban said Saturday that it would strongly retaliate for the resumption of U.S. airstrikes against the insurgent group, and it rejected assertions that bombing operations ever paused. The U.S. military began anti-Taliban air raids in the last week, but it has declined to provide details. The move came just days after President Barack Obama expanded the authorities under which U.S. troops in Afghanistan can attack insurgents; attacks can now proceed as long as they help the Afghan offensive succeed.”
Radio Free Europe: Dozens Of Suspected IS Militants Killed In Afghanistan
“Dozens of suspected Islamic State (IS) militants have been killed in fighting in eastern Afghanistan.  At least 40 suspected IS fighters were killed in clashes with Afghan security forces on June 24 in the eastern province of Nangarhar, located along the volatile border with Pakistan. A statement from the Nangarhar governor's office on June 25 added that eight civilians were also killed, including four children and three women. Two Afghan security force personnel were also killed in the fighting in the Kot district.”
Reuters: Islamic State Militants Launch New Attacks In Eastern Afghanistan
“Heavy fighting between Islamic State militants and government security forces has claimed dozens of lives in eastern Afghanistan, officials said on Sunday. In recent months insurgents claiming allegiance to Islamic State had largely appeared to be bottled up in a mountainous area along the border with Pakistan under threat of U.S. air strikes. The latest attacks indicate the group remains a potent threat to a government already battling an insurgency dominated by the rival Taliban. At least a dozen Afghan security forces and civilians had been killed, with another 18 wounded, Nangarhar province governor Saleem Khan Kunduzi said in a statement. Local officials claimed more than 100 Islamic State fighters had been killed in fighting in Nangarhar over the past three days, although exact figures varied and could not be independently verified.”

Yemen

Associated Press: UN Chief Urges Yemen's Warring Sides To Reach Peace Deal
“U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon urged Yemen's warring factions to keep working toward a comprehensive agreement, warning that ‘time is not on the side of the Yemeni people,’ in remarks Sunday to delegates taking part in peace talks that began in Kuwait two months ago. During his visit to Kuwait, Ban urged the warring sides to release all prisoners, among them journalists, activists and other political detainees, as a goodwill gesture ahead of the Eid holiday next week, a celebration that marks the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan. Both sides have already released a number of detainees in agreed upon swaps.”

Middle East

BBC: Jerusalem Gay Pride Stabbing: Ultra-Orthodox Yishai Schlissel Jailed For Life
“An Israeli court has given a life sentence to a man who killed a teenager and wounded five other marchers at last year's Gay Pride parade in Jerusalem. Yishai Schlissel, 40, an ultra-Orthodox Jew, said he had been doing God's will when he stabbed his victims. He managed to infiltrate the parade three weeks after completing a 10-year sentence for a similar attack in 2005. The court criticised the police, saying they had known the danger Schissel posed but failed to act properly. Shortly after his release, he had lashed out at homosexuality in interviews and said the Jerusalem march needed to be stopped. In anti-gay pamphlets, he asked Jews to ‘risk beatings or imprisonment’ to act against the event.”

Libya

Associated Press: Car Bomb Near Benghazi Hospital Kills 5 In Eastern Libya
“A car bomb has gone off outside a hospital in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi, killing five people and wounding 14, security and hospital officials said. Senior military official Brig-Gen. Abdul-Salam al-Hassi blamed the late Friday attack outside the Jalaa hospital on Islamic militants. Mohammed al-Zawy, an official at the hospital, confirmed that five people were killed and 14 wounded in the blast. He said the explosives-laden car was parked near the hospital's outpatient entrance door. Friday's attack was a grim reminder of the wave of car bombings and assassinations that wracked Benghazi after the nation's 2011 civil war and the chaos and bloodletting that followed. Some 200 people were killed during the violence in Benghazi in 2012 alone.”
USA Today: Italian Coast Guard: 3,500 Migrants Rescued Off Libyan Coast
“The Italian coast guard said it coordinated the rescue of 3,500 migrants Sunday from the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Libya as they attempted the perilous crossing from Africa to Europe. The rescues were conducted by coast guard and Italian navy vessels, as well as ships from humanitarian organizations and the European Union border agency. The Italian coast guard said on Twitter that the ships conducted 27 separate search-and-rescue operations. The migrants were picked up less than 35 miles from the Libyan coast, Agence France-Presse reported.”

Nigeria

Bloomberg: Cameroon Says Boko Haram Group Kills Four Civilians In Attack
“Authorities in Cameroon’s Far North said suspected Boko Haram militants killed at least four civilians in fatal incursions early Friday. The separate attacks happened in the areas of Gouzoudoum and Kaldjiwa, Far North Governor Midjiyawa Bakari said by phone, citing witness accounts. Heavily armed men also ransacked provision stores, carting away foodstuff, livestock and motorcycles. They also torched several homes and wounded two people, he said. Friday’s attacks came after Boko Haram assaults in the region, which shares a border with northeastern Nigeria, had slowed after a month-long lull.”

United Kingdom

Daily Mail: Terror Suspect Dubbed 'The Man In The Hat' After Paris And Brussels Attacks Becomes British Police's First ISIS Supergrass 
“'The man in the hat' linked to terrorist attacks in Paris and Brussels has become the first ISIS Supergrass for British police. Mohamed Abrini, 31, is facing terrorism charges after he was spotted at Brussels Airport with two of the suicide bombers in March. He was also filmed on CCTV travelling to Paris two days before the massacre, which killed 130 people, in November. Abrini, from Belgium, has been helping British officers with intelligence on potential terrorist attacks and jihadists in the UK, according to the Sunday Times. A Supergrass is a police informer who implicates a large number of people, in return for immunity from prosecution, a more lenient sentence or new identity.”

Europe

The Guardian: Russia Passes 'Big Brother' Anti-Terror Laws
“Russia’s parliament has passed harsh anti-terrorism measures that human rights campaigners including the NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden say will roll back personal freedoms and privacy. The lower house of parliament voted 325 to 1 on Friday to adopt the ‘Yarovaya law’, a package of amendments authored by the ruling United Russia party member Irina Yarovaya, who is known for previous legislative crackdowns on protesters and non-governmental organisations. The legislation makes it a crime to not warn the authorities of ‘reliable; information about planned terrorist attacks, armed uprisings, hijacking and several other crimes. Expressing approval of terrorism on the internet will now be punishable with up to seven years in prison.”
Associated Press: Belgian Anti-Terror Police Detain 2 In Overnight Raids
“Belgian anti-terror police have taken two people into custody in raids overnight. Federal prosecutor's office spokesman Eric Van der Sypt said Saturday that the two were picked up in the eastern Belgian town of Verviers and Tournai, in the south. He said that no weapons, explosives or other materials were found, but declined to say why the raids were conducted. Van der Sypt said the raids had no connection to the March 22 attacks in Belgium that killed 32 people or the Paris massacres last November, which claimed 130 victims.”
The Jerusalem Post: Europe’s First Islamophobia Summit Highlights European-Wide Problem
“This week’s UK referendum on European Union membership could tilt the EU toward either greater disintegration or stronger union; Europe finds itself at a vital crossroads. The UK campaign against membership has not been without its controversies; images of Syrian refugees have been used in campaign posters to evoke fears of about an impending demographic invasion of Europe. It is within this increasingly politicized climate of fear, divisiveness and bigotry that the first ever European Islamophobia Summit will be taking place in Sarajevo this week; a gathering of political leaders, journalists, academics and civil society representatives from across Europe and the US.”

Madagascar

Deutsche Welle: Scores Wounded In Deadly Madagascar 'Terror Attack'
“Celebrations for Madagascar's national day were violently brought to a halt by a deadly grenade attack which claimed the lives of at least two people, police said on Sunday. A 16-year-old and an 18-year-old were reportedly killed and 84 others have been injured in the capital Antananarivo, according to the gendarmerie. Madagascar's President Hery Rajaonarimampianina blamed the attack on tensions with political opponents.‘There may be differences of opinion between us, but these acts of destabilization are unacceptable,’ he said in a broadcast on national television, calling the attack ‘not just a destabilizing act but an act of terrorism.’ Asking for calm, he added: ‘We will not respond to violence with violence.’”

Arabic Language Clips

Terrorist Financing

Shorouk News: (Council) Of Arab Interior (Ministers): Drug Trafficking Has Become A Major Part Of The Financing Of Terrorism
Dr. Mohammed bin Ali Kuman, Secretary General of the Council of Arab Interior Ministers, confirmed that drug trafficking has become a major and essential component of criminal and terror financing activities. It also poses a serious obstacle to economic growth. In a statement issued Saturday by the Information Office of the Cairo-based Council of Arab Interior Ministers to mark the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, Dr. Kuman said that drug trafficking works to destabilize countries' economies, threatens their security and stability and infringes on international peace and security.
Al Wafd: Al Sisi Discusses Ways To Block The Sources Of Financing Terrorist Organizations
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi received a delegation yesterday from the US House of Representatives, headed by Republican Rep. Dana Rohrabacher. Following the meeting, spokesman for al-Sisi said that the fight against terrorism was a major topic during the talks. The Egyptian leader stressed the importance of countering terrorism and extremist thinking. He noted that this must be done through a comprehensive perspective which does not stop at the borders of military confrontation zones or security cooperation, but also includes intellectual and cultural aspects. Al Sisi underscored the importance of appropriate religious discourse and purifying the image of Islam, which has been subjected to "impurities completely contrary to the essence of true Islam and true religion." They also discussed the importance of concerted international efforts to block the financing sources of terrorist organizations and extremist groups, and of combating them without selectivity, especially because they all espouse the same extremist ideology.

ISIS

Alkhabar Press: Dangerous … This Is What The Dismantled ISIS Cell In Oujda Plotted After The Attack On Citizens
Moroccan Interior Ministry revealed that the terrorist cell dismantled by the Central Office of Judicial Research in Oujda, had been conspiring to rob a major commercial center using cold weapons, masks and sophisticated communications devices. Their aim was to obtain new resources to finance terrorist schemes in the Kingdom, in line with the agenda of ISIS. The terrorist cell was composed of 10 members, including an Algerian residing illegally in Morocco. Most of them had criminal backgrounds and an affinity for the bloody tactics of ISIS. Cell members held secret meetings in "safe houses" in the city of Oujda. Monitoring of the cell revealed that it was plotting attacks against citizens and seizure of their property.
Akhbar Libya: ISIS Ebbs Financially
A report by the Terrorism Analysis Center, a French research center, indicated that the proceeds raised by ISIS last year fell by 16%. This is the result of the decline in oil and cement production after the terror group lost control of areas in Iraq and Syria, on the one hand, and air strikes that targeted its industrial facilities, on the other hand. According to the report, titled "Financing of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant in 2015", ISIS's revenues fell in 2015 to $2.4 billion, down from $2.9 billion in 2014.

Muslim Brotherhood

The Seventh Day: Helbawi: Britain's Secession From The European Union To Affect The Presence Of The Muslim Brotherhood In London
Dr. Kamal Helbawy, former Muslim Brotherhood leader, said that Britain's secession from the European Union would have a significant impact on Islamists in London, especially the Muslim Brotherhood. He predicted that in the future Britain will take certain security measures towards them. Helbawy claimed that Britain could stop issuing entry visas to any applicant, in contrast to its current policy. In addition, Britain is likely to impose new security measures regarding conferences or seminars held inside the House of Commons or any other research center. All of these are likely to have a significant impact on the presence of the Muslim Brotherhood in Britain, Helbawy stressed.
Gulf Eyes: Organizational Strength Of The Brotherhood In Egypt Does Not Exceed 250,000
Retired Maj. Gen. Abdul Hamid Khairat, former Vice President of the Egyptian State Security operations, maintained that the number of Muslim Brotherhood supporters in Egypt is not as high as claimed by some experts. Khairat, who heads the Egyptian Center for Research and Security Studies, said that the number of members of the Muslim Brotherhood does not exceed 250,000.
Loma News: After Closure Of Brotherhood-Affiliated Medical Centers And Commercial Companies That Operated In Violation Of The Law Of The Brotherhood… (Expert Ahmed) Ban Says: A Comprehensive Settlement Requires Concessions On Both Sides
In a new step to counter violations of the law by the Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt's Brotherhood Asset Freeze Committee seized several medical centers and facilities owned by members of the banned group. They were seized for violating or showing lack of commitment to medical regulations. Political thinker and dissident Muslim Brotherhood member, Ahmed Ban, commented on the latest seizure decisions saying, "I think that this event must be regarded in a judicial context. But if we are working towards a settlement between the state and the Muslim Brotherhood, each side should propose compromises." He stressed that the idea of a comprehensive settlement will only be achieved through concessions between the two sides.
Infirad: Learn Who Are Brotherhood Leaders Facing Possible Expulsion From Britain
Brotherhood leaders and members in Britain are closely following international and local reactions in the aftermath of the UK's "Out" vote from the EU. Reports claim that Brotherhood leaders are in a great state of panic following the decision, fearing their expulsion from the "paradise" of London, which is considered a major and historic haven for the group's leaders. In the event that British policy is changed following the "Brexit", among the most prominent Brotherhood figures predicted to leave London are Brotherhood Deputy Guide Ibrahim Munir and Anas Al-Tikriti, head of the Cordoba Foundation and a leader of the international organization of the Muslim Brotherhood. This is especially true after British banks confiscated the latter's funds in the past.

Hezbollah

Lebanon Files: Nasrallah's Admission Of Iran's Funding Compels The International Community To Review Tehran (Activities)
A source close to the Lebanese "March 14^th Movement" stressed that the admission by the Secretary General of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, that his group obtains full financing from Iran for its war efforts obliges the international community and the United Nations to scrutinize Tehran's activities. The source explained that Hezbollah is regarded by the international community as a terrorist organization. It added that the Lebanese government needs to issue a statement affirming that, as a sovereign government, it is connected in no way to Nasrallah's comments on Hezbollah nor its financing of wars in Syria and other places.

Houthi

Gulf Eyes: Houthis Pocket Police Salaries In Mareb, Al-Jawf While Leader Seizes Taiz Security Salaries
The Houthi militia, which controls the Yemeni Interior Ministry, continues to seize the salaries of employees of the Departments of Public Security in the provinces of Marib and Jawf, which it has been doing since the beginning of 2016. According to sources in the Interior Ministry of Yemen, the person tasked, on behalf of the Houthis, with overseeing the security of these two provinces gave the order to seize the paychecks of police employees. All employees are required to come to the head office of the Interior Ministry to collect their salaries. But one policeman claimed that when he and some other coworkers arrived at the ministry they were dismayed to reveal that their names were not found in the documents listing who was entitled to paychecks. They had been replaced by Houthi militia members, who had been recruited to the police force and given their personal numbers and ranks.