Kenya – Armed men threw grenades and fired rounds at a club in the north-eastern Kenyan town of Wajir it was reported on the 1 Dec 14 in what appears to be the latest of attacks on soft targets in Kenya. There were numerous injuries and possibly one death reported at the incident of which witnesses stated that they heard three blasts and gunshots. It was thought that al-Shabaab had carried out the attack as it has been responsible for other attacks in the area in the past. Gunmen appeared to have targeted a bar popular with workers from outside the majority Muslim town.
Somali militants killed 36 non-Muslim quarry workers near the north Kenyan town of Mandera it was reported on the 2 Dec 14. The attackers from the al-Shabaab group shot the non-Muslims dead after separating them from Muslims. There is growing concern in Kenya about security in regions bordering Somalia after a spate of attacks. The attack on the quarry workers took place around midnight on the 1/2 Dec 14. The victims were caught after midnight, while sleeping in their tents at the quarry in Kormey, 15km (nine miles) from Mandera town. Most of the victims appeared to have been lined up, and shot in the head, at close range. He said four were beheaded inside their tents, while three appeared to have escaped to Mandera town. Al-Shabab said it carried out the attack, blaming the involvement of Kenyan forces in Somalia.
Kenya 361 COMMENT: It would appear that the terrorist group has in fact increasing its terrorist campaign. However, rather than attack serious targets such as military and police who have the ability to fight back the group is concentrating its efforts on soft targets who do not have the ability to retaliate. The attacks that are currently occurring just show the cowardly acts that terrorists claim to carry out on behalf of their supporters and in the name of some mindless group. They must be suffering from the attacks that have happened against them and feel that their only means of hitting back is to kill innocents and claim that atrocities have been carried out against themselves. COMMENT ENDS
Libya – 4 Dec 14 newspapers claimed that the Islamic State has set up terror training camps in Libya after the U.S. admitted that more than one hundred militants have gathered in the country. As is well known ISIS has already overran large areas of Iraq and Syria and a top US general confirmed that the Islamic extremists had set up in eastern Libya with the American military monitoring the situation closely. Western countries have been increasingly worried that Libya's political turmoil could provide fertile ground for Islamic extremists, but General David Rodriguez ruled out military action on the 'nascent' camps in the immediate future. 'ISIS has begun its efforts over in the east out there to introduce some people over there. 'But we'll have to just continue to monitor and watch that carefully in the future to see what happens or whether it grows on unabated.' He described the IS activity in eastern Libya as 'very small' but added that there were 'around a couple hundred' militants present at the camps. The training locations of ISIS were not thought to be immediate targets for air-strikes. The four-star general said it appeared the ISIS militants in Libya were not volunteers coming from outside the country but militia members who had shifted their loyalty to the jihadist group. Experts have warned that ISIS has gained a foothold in the eastern town of Derna, exploiting the chaos that has engulfed the North African state. Analysts say a number of factions in Derna have pledged loyalty to the group, but it remains unclear how much support they enjoy. While largely based in Iraq and Syria, the IS organization has also attracted pledges of allegiance from militant groups in Egypt, with the Ansar Beit al-Maqdis (Partisans of Jerusalem) group last month vowing support for the group. 361 COMMENT: Although the four star general is privy to more information than is out in the domain it must be a little disconcerting that the IS is apparently attempting to set up elsewhere. It maybe that the terrorist group are attempting to export their type of terrorism in Libya for the supportive group; on the other hand it maybe that the terrorist group are either expanding or they are looking for a new location once they can no longer operate in Iraq. When observing other countries in the Middle East and North Africa two countries stick out because of unrest. One is Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula and the other is Libya with the unrest, lack of security, no clear government and a number of militias all vying for top position. Along with this is the huge oil industry that it has can only be the first place to go if the IS is toppled in Iraq and with no clear function elsewhere. The country is huge with a vast interior which would be difficult for the west or a coalition of countries to fight the militant group or gather intelligence on. The other worrying point regarding this matter is that IS are not that far from southern Europe which they have stated they will reclaim! COMMENT ENDS
Nigeria – At least four people were killed and seven injured in a double attack by female suicide bombers near a market in Kano, northern Nigeria. State police commissioner Adenrele Shinaba said the attacks had been carried out by "two young girls in hijab" They came by the market and asked to be directed to a public convenience. The bombs detonated, killing them and four others," he said. Female suicide bombers have featured in previous Boko Haram attacks. 361 COMMENT: Are or has Boko Haram set up its own female suicide wing? COMMENT ENDS
Tunisia – Islamist militants beheaded a Tunisian policeman after he was kidnapped near the Algerian border late on the 30 Nov 14 reports claimed on the 1 Dec 14. The government has tightened security as it prepares for a presidential election runoff this month between incumbent Moncef Marzouki and veteran politician Beji Caid Essebsi, the leader of secular Party Nida Tounes. Tunisia is struggling to subdue hard-line Islamists and jihadists opposed to the transition to democracy following the uprising four years ago against the former president, Zine el- Abidine Ben Ali. Interior Ministry spokesman Mohamed Ali Laroui said the policeman was seized along with his brother by 10 militants who attacked the car they were travelling in. The brother was released, but beheaded Hassan Solatani in Touirif District in the city of El Kef. Security units launched an operations to hunt down the Islamists in the area, where in Nov 14 five officers were also killed in an ambush a bus carrying soldiers. Among the militant groups operating in Tunisia is Ansar al Sharia, which the United States considers a terrorist organisation and accuses of orchestrating the storming of the U.S. embassy in Tunis in 2012.
Somali militants killed 36 non-Muslim quarry workers near the north Kenyan town of Mandera it was reported on the 2 Dec 14. The attackers from the al-Shabaab group shot the non-Muslims dead after separating them from Muslims. There is growing concern in Kenya about security in regions bordering Somalia after a spate of attacks. The attack on the quarry workers took place around midnight on the 1/2 Dec 14. The victims were caught after midnight, while sleeping in their tents at the quarry in Kormey, 15km (nine miles) from Mandera town. Most of the victims appeared to have been lined up, and shot in the head, at close range. He said four were beheaded inside their tents, while three appeared to have escaped to Mandera town. Al-Shabab said it carried out the attack, blaming the involvement of Kenyan forces in Somalia.
Kenya 361 COMMENT: It would appear that the terrorist group has in fact increasing its terrorist campaign. However, rather than attack serious targets such as military and police who have the ability to fight back the group is concentrating its efforts on soft targets who do not have the ability to retaliate. The attacks that are currently occurring just show the cowardly acts that terrorists claim to carry out on behalf of their supporters and in the name of some mindless group. They must be suffering from the attacks that have happened against them and feel that their only means of hitting back is to kill innocents and claim that atrocities have been carried out against themselves. COMMENT ENDS
Libya – 4 Dec 14 newspapers claimed that the Islamic State has set up terror training camps in Libya after the U.S. admitted that more than one hundred militants have gathered in the country. As is well known ISIS has already overran large areas of Iraq and Syria and a top US general confirmed that the Islamic extremists had set up in eastern Libya with the American military monitoring the situation closely. Western countries have been increasingly worried that Libya's political turmoil could provide fertile ground for Islamic extremists, but General David Rodriguez ruled out military action on the 'nascent' camps in the immediate future. 'ISIS has begun its efforts over in the east out there to introduce some people over there. 'But we'll have to just continue to monitor and watch that carefully in the future to see what happens or whether it grows on unabated.' He described the IS activity in eastern Libya as 'very small' but added that there were 'around a couple hundred' militants present at the camps. The training locations of ISIS were not thought to be immediate targets for air-strikes. The four-star general said it appeared the ISIS militants in Libya were not volunteers coming from outside the country but militia members who had shifted their loyalty to the jihadist group. Experts have warned that ISIS has gained a foothold in the eastern town of Derna, exploiting the chaos that has engulfed the North African state. Analysts say a number of factions in Derna have pledged loyalty to the group, but it remains unclear how much support they enjoy. While largely based in Iraq and Syria, the IS organization has also attracted pledges of allegiance from militant groups in Egypt, with the Ansar Beit al-Maqdis (Partisans of Jerusalem) group last month vowing support for the group. 361 COMMENT: Although the four star general is privy to more information than is out in the domain it must be a little disconcerting that the IS is apparently attempting to set up elsewhere. It maybe that the terrorist group are attempting to export their type of terrorism in Libya for the supportive group; on the other hand it maybe that the terrorist group are either expanding or they are looking for a new location once they can no longer operate in Iraq. When observing other countries in the Middle East and North Africa two countries stick out because of unrest. One is Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula and the other is Libya with the unrest, lack of security, no clear government and a number of militias all vying for top position. Along with this is the huge oil industry that it has can only be the first place to go if the IS is toppled in Iraq and with no clear function elsewhere. The country is huge with a vast interior which would be difficult for the west or a coalition of countries to fight the militant group or gather intelligence on. The other worrying point regarding this matter is that IS are not that far from southern Europe which they have stated they will reclaim! COMMENT ENDS
Nigeria – At least four people were killed and seven injured in a double attack by female suicide bombers near a market in Kano, northern Nigeria. State police commissioner Adenrele Shinaba said the attacks had been carried out by "two young girls in hijab" They came by the market and asked to be directed to a public convenience. The bombs detonated, killing them and four others," he said. Female suicide bombers have featured in previous Boko Haram attacks. 361 COMMENT: Are or has Boko Haram set up its own female suicide wing? COMMENT ENDS
Tunisia – Islamist militants beheaded a Tunisian policeman after he was kidnapped near the Algerian border late on the 30 Nov 14 reports claimed on the 1 Dec 14. The government has tightened security as it prepares for a presidential election runoff this month between incumbent Moncef Marzouki and veteran politician Beji Caid Essebsi, the leader of secular Party Nida Tounes. Tunisia is struggling to subdue hard-line Islamists and jihadists opposed to the transition to democracy following the uprising four years ago against the former president, Zine el- Abidine Ben Ali. Interior Ministry spokesman Mohamed Ali Laroui said the policeman was seized along with his brother by 10 militants who attacked the car they were travelling in. The brother was released, but beheaded Hassan Solatani in Touirif District in the city of El Kef. Security units launched an operations to hunt down the Islamists in the area, where in Nov 14 five officers were also killed in an ambush a bus carrying soldiers. Among the militant groups operating in Tunisia is Ansar al Sharia, which the United States considers a terrorist organisation and accuses of orchestrating the storming of the U.S. embassy in Tunis in 2012.
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