Afghanistan – A suicide bombing outside the governor's house in Afghanistan's eastern Khost province killed at least 20 people it was reported on the 2 Apr 15. At least 36 people protesting the governor were also wounded in the attack including Humayoun Humayoun, a well-known member of parliament from Khost. Demonstrators in Khost have called for the ouster of the acting governor of the province Abduljabar Naeemi, whom they accuse of rampant corruption and land grabbing. Protests have been staged outside his residence for nearly a week. The Taliban denied responsibility for the blast, spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said on the group's official Twitter account. 361 COMMENT: With the country coming out from winter there will be more attacks as the weather warms up. The announcement of a Spring/Summer offensive will probably be announced soon. COMMENT ENDS
On the 8 Apr 15 it was reported that an Afghan soldier opened fire on US troops in eastern Afghanistan killing one and injuring several more. The insider or green-on-blue attack, where a member of the Afghan security forces kills Coalition personnel, is the second of its kind recorded this year. Today’s insider attack took place in Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar province, as NATO officials and four governors from eastern Afghanistan met at the government center. At least one Afghan soldier opened fire on the US soldiers assigned to Operation Resolute Support, the NATO mission in Afghanistan. US troops returned fire, killing the attacker and wounding another Afghan soldier.
Bomb attacks in Afghanistan have killed 16 people in two separate attacks in the country's eastern provinces it was reported on the 10 Apr 15. The Taliban claimed responsibility for a suicide attack on the 10 Apr on a convoy carrying US troops near a military base not far from Jalalabad airport. The explosion killed four Afghan civilians. In a separate incident also on the 10 Apr 15 12 people were killed in Ghazni province when the minivan they were travelling on was hit by a roadside bomb. The attack happened outside the gates of the base, as a convoy was returning from a patrol. Zabihullah Mujahid, Taliban spokesperson, says the armed group was behind the attack. As the weather warms up, attacks from fighters moving into Afghanistan across the mountains that border Pakistan are expected to intensify.
Gunmen dressed in military uniforms stormed the office of the attorney general in the northern Afghan city of Mazar-e-Sharif, killing at least 10 people and injuring more than 65 it was reported on the 9 Apr 15. Four attackers were seen entering the office, followed by heavy gunfire and several explosions. Five security officers - including a police chief - were among the dead and 26 government officials among the hurt. A spokesman for the Taliban said they carried out the attack. The siege ended seven hours after it began and all four gunmen were killed by the Afghan National Security Forces which had surrounded the area. The Taliban has targeted Afghanistan's legal system in the past. In June 2013, the group detonated a car bomb in front of the compound of Afghanistan's Supreme Court, killing 17 and wounding 39. And in December of 2014, Atiqullah Raufi, the chief of the secretariat of Afghanistan's Supreme Court, was assassinated by Taliban gunmen in the west of Kabul.
Afghanistan/Pakistan – Amid a series of government denials from Pakistan and Afghanistan regarding the presence of the Islamic State militant group in these countries and its ongoing outreach activities there, its expansion was corroborated by none other than the Islamic State’s spokesperson, Abu Muhammad al-Adnani, on January 26, 2015 (The Nation [Lahore] September 5, 2014; Dawn [Karachi], November 11, 2014; Pajhwok, February 5). Al-Adnani, who is believed to be in Iraq or Syria, formally announced the establishment of Wilayat Khurasan (literally Khurasan Province, hereafter IS Khurasan), a reference to a historical region broadly centering on Afghanistan and Pakistan. This claim was made, in an audio statement entitled “Say, ‘Die In Your Rage,’” which was released by al-Furqan media foundation, one of the Islamic State’s media arms. He also endorsed a former Taliban commander, Hafiz Saeed Khan, as its governor (wali) in the same speech. Khan had previously pledged allegiance to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the self-proclaimed caliph of the Islamic State, along with a network of other disgruntled Taliban commanders and foot soldiers.
Iran/Yemen – Iran has been operating a major scam in order to help Houthi rebels in Yemen, without prejudicing the discussions with the West over its nuclear program, Israel’s Channel 2 revealed on the 1 Apr 15. In order to bypass US sanctions on Iranian airlines sending arms to Syria and elsewhere through the Islamic Republic’s Revolutionary Guards Corps, reports indicate that the Iranians are using front companies to hide the fact that IRGC Air Force planes are carrying weapons to their proxies. In one example, an Iranian Air Force plane was painted with the logo and identification number of a new civilian cargo company called “Pooyah.” This company officially worked through the Red Crescent in order to carry out humanitarian missions, but in reality it was used to transfer weapons to Houthi fighters in Yemen, according to the report. A similar strategy was employed using the cargo planes of Iran’s “Maan Air” and “Yas Air.” “Pooyah” is indeed a new company, but all of the departures and arrivals of its planes go via IRGC controlled airports. Because of this, it has proven difficult for Iran to hide the fact that these airlines are operating in the service of the regime, Channel 2 said. Another problematic issue is a tourism agreement between Iran and Yemen which has facilitated 14 weekly flights from Tehran to Sana’a. It can easily be assumed that there aren’t many Iranian tourists wishing to visit Yemen at this point in time, given the fighting raging on in the country. It is therefore safe to say that the aircraft were not carrying tourists or humanitarian aid, but weapons, Channel 2 alleged. According to the report, intelligence officials are sure that the Iranians have been transferring advanced missiles to Yemen, capable of targeting ships and other targets.
Malaysia – Seventeen people, including two who returned from Syria recently, were arrested in the capital of Malaysia on the 5 Apr 15 on suspicion of plotting terror attacks , official sources said. No other details about the arrested could, however, be received. Malaysian police authorities said 120 people were arrested in Jan 15 for having suspected links with the Islamic State and detained many who sought to travel to Syria and Iraq where the IS have exerted influence. Authorities in Malaysia have expressed concern over the threat of Muslim militancy in the wake of the IS’s blood-spilling jihad in Syria and Iraq.
Pakistan/Iran – Pakistan has asked Iran to share information on the killing of eight Iranian border guards by militants so it can ensure they do not flee across the porous border. Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency reported that gunmen killed the guards in Iran’s volatile southeast Sistan-Baluchistan province on the 6 Apr 15. It said the Jeish al-Adl group, which is believed to be inspired by al-Qaida, claimed responsibility and had targeted the guards after crossing in from Pakistan. On the 8 Apr 15 Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said authorities were investigating the incident and requested Tehran share its findings. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif is expected in Islamabad on the 8 Apr to discuss the conflict in Yemen, where a Saudi-led air campaign supported by Pakistan is battling Iranian-supported Shiite rebels.
Jaish ul-Adl (Army of Justice) is a Sunni insurgent group based in Pakistan, responsible for several cross-border attacks against civilians and military personnel in Iran. The group was founded in 2012 by members of Jundallah, a Sunni militant group that had been weakened following Iran's capture and execution of its leader, Abdul Malik Rigi, in 2010. Its first major attack occurred in October 2013. Jaish ul-Adl is a designated terrorist organization by Iran. It is thought that their ideology is that of Salafist jihadism and anti-Islamic Republic of Iran. The groups head quarters are in Balochistan, Pakistan and their strength is thought to be at approximately 100+. Allies are thought to be Harakat Ansar Iran, Saudi Arabia (alleged) and Pakistan (alleged).
Jaish ul-Adl Logo consists of two crossed swords. Weapons can be used in different combinations, or presented in different ways, to evoke more complex sentiments. One of these methods is the “crossed” motif. It is employed by various groups throughout the Muslim world and is usually done with swords, rifles and RPG’s. While the motif evokes all the meanings associated with each weapon used it is also used more generally to suggest a group’s participation in or espousal of the contemporary jihad movement; the commitment to Jihad and the use of violence. In some cases such as HAMAS the crossed swords in their logo with meaning that these pre-modern weapons evoke notions of nobility and purity associated with the first generation of Muslims. The Muslim Brotherhood also uses the crossed swords and uses them for “be prepared” in reference to fight the “enemy of Allah.” The scales imply justice. The colour blue has multiple, diverse and complicated meanings in Islamic tradition. In jihadi imagery, blue is often used to evoke a sense of hope and heavenly paradise. Blue can be used as a graphic image or as a realistic background. The open book symbolizes the Koran, further emphasising the group’s Islamic ideology. The open Koran symbolises historic Islam and a declaration of faith.
(Sources: https://www.ctc.usma.edu and ‘Branding Terror’ by Artur Beifuss and Francesco Trivini Bellini)
Turkey – A woman armed with guns and hand grenades was shot dead as she tried to attack Istanbul's police headquarters on the 1 Apr 15 just a day after a deadly hostage situation in the city. A picture of the red-haired woman lying on the ground with a rifle strapped to her body and a handgun by her side has emerged and television footage showed police sealing off the street in the central Aksaray neighbourhood. The Istanbul police headquarters on Vatan street was targeted by rifle fire and a female terrorist was killed in the clash. The woman was carrying a rifle, two hand grenades and one pistol, it said. Local media said a man had also been detained. Separately on the same day, police detained a gunman who entered an Istanbul branch of the ruling AK Party and hung from its window a Turkish flag with the emblem of a sword added. It is not immediately clear whether any of the attacks are linked. Turkish authorities on the 21 Apr 15 detained 22 suspected members of the DHKP-C terrorist group in the southern city of Antalya after receiving a tip-off they were planning further attacks. Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu warned of the risk of 'provocations' and attempts to cause chaos ahead of June's national election
Who is the Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party/Front (DHKP/C)?
The DHKP/C (Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party/Front) is a Marxist, anti-Western splinter group of the Turkish terrorist group Devrimci Sol (Dev Sol). Dev Sol originated as a splinter group of Devrimci Yol (Dev Yol) which was itself a splinter group of the Turkish People's Liberation Party-Front (THKP/C). The THKP/C was an offshoot of the broader Revolutionary Youth movement (Dev Genc) within Turkey.
In the early 1990s, infighting within Dev Sol resulted in the emergence of two factions. Dursun Karatas, who founded Dev Sol by combining splintered factions of Turkish radical leftist groups in 1978, changed the group's name to DHKP/C in 1994. Bedri Yagan, also a founding member of Dev Sol, broke from the Karatas faction and created a new faction, THKP/C (not to be confused with the original THKP/C). Confusingly, the Yagan faction of DHKP/C is still often referred to as Dev Sol.
DHKP/C’s ideology is similar to that of other radical Turkish leftists. The group believes that the Turkish government is a fascist regime, controlled by the domineering, imperialist forces of the West, especially the United States and NATO. The group seeks to destroy these Western influences through violence and Marxist revolution. In its early years, when it was still known as Dev Sol, the group focused largely on political assassinations. A crackdown by Turkish authorities in the early 1980s forced the group to restrict its activities, though in the late 1980s Dev Sol was able to increase its attacks against Turkish military targets.
Despite internal troubles, the DHKP/C has managed to retain the ideology and goals of the original Dev Sol movement. The group has continued to conduct violent attacks against Turkish government targets as well as against Western interests in Turkey. The group has also sought to bring attention to its imprisoned members by staging hunger protests. In the past, the group has been intensely outspoken against US military operations in Afghanistan and in Iraq. DHKP/C believes that these operations are proof of the imperialist intentions of the United States.
In communist imagery the red symbolises unity of all elements of a socialist (workers, intellectuals, soldiers and youth) and symbolising revolution. The gold (yellow) elements symbolise justice, power and perfection. The hammer and sickle representing the worker and the five pointed star represents the five continents. (Source: ‘Branding Terror’ by Artur Beifuss and Francesco Trivini Bellini)
On the 8 Apr 15 it was reported that an Afghan soldier opened fire on US troops in eastern Afghanistan killing one and injuring several more. The insider or green-on-blue attack, where a member of the Afghan security forces kills Coalition personnel, is the second of its kind recorded this year. Today’s insider attack took place in Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar province, as NATO officials and four governors from eastern Afghanistan met at the government center. At least one Afghan soldier opened fire on the US soldiers assigned to Operation Resolute Support, the NATO mission in Afghanistan. US troops returned fire, killing the attacker and wounding another Afghan soldier.
Bomb attacks in Afghanistan have killed 16 people in two separate attacks in the country's eastern provinces it was reported on the 10 Apr 15. The Taliban claimed responsibility for a suicide attack on the 10 Apr on a convoy carrying US troops near a military base not far from Jalalabad airport. The explosion killed four Afghan civilians. In a separate incident also on the 10 Apr 15 12 people were killed in Ghazni province when the minivan they were travelling on was hit by a roadside bomb. The attack happened outside the gates of the base, as a convoy was returning from a patrol. Zabihullah Mujahid, Taliban spokesperson, says the armed group was behind the attack. As the weather warms up, attacks from fighters moving into Afghanistan across the mountains that border Pakistan are expected to intensify.
Gunmen dressed in military uniforms stormed the office of the attorney general in the northern Afghan city of Mazar-e-Sharif, killing at least 10 people and injuring more than 65 it was reported on the 9 Apr 15. Four attackers were seen entering the office, followed by heavy gunfire and several explosions. Five security officers - including a police chief - were among the dead and 26 government officials among the hurt. A spokesman for the Taliban said they carried out the attack. The siege ended seven hours after it began and all four gunmen were killed by the Afghan National Security Forces which had surrounded the area. The Taliban has targeted Afghanistan's legal system in the past. In June 2013, the group detonated a car bomb in front of the compound of Afghanistan's Supreme Court, killing 17 and wounding 39. And in December of 2014, Atiqullah Raufi, the chief of the secretariat of Afghanistan's Supreme Court, was assassinated by Taliban gunmen in the west of Kabul.
Afghanistan/Pakistan – Amid a series of government denials from Pakistan and Afghanistan regarding the presence of the Islamic State militant group in these countries and its ongoing outreach activities there, its expansion was corroborated by none other than the Islamic State’s spokesperson, Abu Muhammad al-Adnani, on January 26, 2015 (The Nation [Lahore] September 5, 2014; Dawn [Karachi], November 11, 2014; Pajhwok, February 5). Al-Adnani, who is believed to be in Iraq or Syria, formally announced the establishment of Wilayat Khurasan (literally Khurasan Province, hereafter IS Khurasan), a reference to a historical region broadly centering on Afghanistan and Pakistan. This claim was made, in an audio statement entitled “Say, ‘Die In Your Rage,’” which was released by al-Furqan media foundation, one of the Islamic State’s media arms. He also endorsed a former Taliban commander, Hafiz Saeed Khan, as its governor (wali) in the same speech. Khan had previously pledged allegiance to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the self-proclaimed caliph of the Islamic State, along with a network of other disgruntled Taliban commanders and foot soldiers.
Iran/Yemen – Iran has been operating a major scam in order to help Houthi rebels in Yemen, without prejudicing the discussions with the West over its nuclear program, Israel’s Channel 2 revealed on the 1 Apr 15. In order to bypass US sanctions on Iranian airlines sending arms to Syria and elsewhere through the Islamic Republic’s Revolutionary Guards Corps, reports indicate that the Iranians are using front companies to hide the fact that IRGC Air Force planes are carrying weapons to their proxies. In one example, an Iranian Air Force plane was painted with the logo and identification number of a new civilian cargo company called “Pooyah.” This company officially worked through the Red Crescent in order to carry out humanitarian missions, but in reality it was used to transfer weapons to Houthi fighters in Yemen, according to the report. A similar strategy was employed using the cargo planes of Iran’s “Maan Air” and “Yas Air.” “Pooyah” is indeed a new company, but all of the departures and arrivals of its planes go via IRGC controlled airports. Because of this, it has proven difficult for Iran to hide the fact that these airlines are operating in the service of the regime, Channel 2 said. Another problematic issue is a tourism agreement between Iran and Yemen which has facilitated 14 weekly flights from Tehran to Sana’a. It can easily be assumed that there aren’t many Iranian tourists wishing to visit Yemen at this point in time, given the fighting raging on in the country. It is therefore safe to say that the aircraft were not carrying tourists or humanitarian aid, but weapons, Channel 2 alleged. According to the report, intelligence officials are sure that the Iranians have been transferring advanced missiles to Yemen, capable of targeting ships and other targets.
Malaysia – Seventeen people, including two who returned from Syria recently, were arrested in the capital of Malaysia on the 5 Apr 15 on suspicion of plotting terror attacks , official sources said. No other details about the arrested could, however, be received. Malaysian police authorities said 120 people were arrested in Jan 15 for having suspected links with the Islamic State and detained many who sought to travel to Syria and Iraq where the IS have exerted influence. Authorities in Malaysia have expressed concern over the threat of Muslim militancy in the wake of the IS’s blood-spilling jihad in Syria and Iraq.
Pakistan/Iran – Pakistan has asked Iran to share information on the killing of eight Iranian border guards by militants so it can ensure they do not flee across the porous border. Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency reported that gunmen killed the guards in Iran’s volatile southeast Sistan-Baluchistan province on the 6 Apr 15. It said the Jeish al-Adl group, which is believed to be inspired by al-Qaida, claimed responsibility and had targeted the guards after crossing in from Pakistan. On the 8 Apr 15 Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said authorities were investigating the incident and requested Tehran share its findings. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif is expected in Islamabad on the 8 Apr to discuss the conflict in Yemen, where a Saudi-led air campaign supported by Pakistan is battling Iranian-supported Shiite rebels.
Jaish ul-Adl (Army of Justice) is a Sunni insurgent group based in Pakistan, responsible for several cross-border attacks against civilians and military personnel in Iran. The group was founded in 2012 by members of Jundallah, a Sunni militant group that had been weakened following Iran's capture and execution of its leader, Abdul Malik Rigi, in 2010. Its first major attack occurred in October 2013. Jaish ul-Adl is a designated terrorist organization by Iran. It is thought that their ideology is that of Salafist jihadism and anti-Islamic Republic of Iran. The groups head quarters are in Balochistan, Pakistan and their strength is thought to be at approximately 100+. Allies are thought to be Harakat Ansar Iran, Saudi Arabia (alleged) and Pakistan (alleged).
Jaish ul-Adl Logo consists of two crossed swords. Weapons can be used in different combinations, or presented in different ways, to evoke more complex sentiments. One of these methods is the “crossed” motif. It is employed by various groups throughout the Muslim world and is usually done with swords, rifles and RPG’s. While the motif evokes all the meanings associated with each weapon used it is also used more generally to suggest a group’s participation in or espousal of the contemporary jihad movement; the commitment to Jihad and the use of violence. In some cases such as HAMAS the crossed swords in their logo with meaning that these pre-modern weapons evoke notions of nobility and purity associated with the first generation of Muslims. The Muslim Brotherhood also uses the crossed swords and uses them for “be prepared” in reference to fight the “enemy of Allah.” The scales imply justice. The colour blue has multiple, diverse and complicated meanings in Islamic tradition. In jihadi imagery, blue is often used to evoke a sense of hope and heavenly paradise. Blue can be used as a graphic image or as a realistic background. The open book symbolizes the Koran, further emphasising the group’s Islamic ideology. The open Koran symbolises historic Islam and a declaration of faith.
(Sources: https://www.ctc.usma.edu and ‘Branding Terror’ by Artur Beifuss and Francesco Trivini Bellini)
Turkey – A woman armed with guns and hand grenades was shot dead as she tried to attack Istanbul's police headquarters on the 1 Apr 15 just a day after a deadly hostage situation in the city. A picture of the red-haired woman lying on the ground with a rifle strapped to her body and a handgun by her side has emerged and television footage showed police sealing off the street in the central Aksaray neighbourhood. The Istanbul police headquarters on Vatan street was targeted by rifle fire and a female terrorist was killed in the clash. The woman was carrying a rifle, two hand grenades and one pistol, it said. Local media said a man had also been detained. Separately on the same day, police detained a gunman who entered an Istanbul branch of the ruling AK Party and hung from its window a Turkish flag with the emblem of a sword added. It is not immediately clear whether any of the attacks are linked. Turkish authorities on the 21 Apr 15 detained 22 suspected members of the DHKP-C terrorist group in the southern city of Antalya after receiving a tip-off they were planning further attacks. Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu warned of the risk of 'provocations' and attempts to cause chaos ahead of June's national election
Who is the Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party/Front (DHKP/C)?
The DHKP/C (Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party/Front) is a Marxist, anti-Western splinter group of the Turkish terrorist group Devrimci Sol (Dev Sol). Dev Sol originated as a splinter group of Devrimci Yol (Dev Yol) which was itself a splinter group of the Turkish People's Liberation Party-Front (THKP/C). The THKP/C was an offshoot of the broader Revolutionary Youth movement (Dev Genc) within Turkey.
In the early 1990s, infighting within Dev Sol resulted in the emergence of two factions. Dursun Karatas, who founded Dev Sol by combining splintered factions of Turkish radical leftist groups in 1978, changed the group's name to DHKP/C in 1994. Bedri Yagan, also a founding member of Dev Sol, broke from the Karatas faction and created a new faction, THKP/C (not to be confused with the original THKP/C). Confusingly, the Yagan faction of DHKP/C is still often referred to as Dev Sol.
DHKP/C’s ideology is similar to that of other radical Turkish leftists. The group believes that the Turkish government is a fascist regime, controlled by the domineering, imperialist forces of the West, especially the United States and NATO. The group seeks to destroy these Western influences through violence and Marxist revolution. In its early years, when it was still known as Dev Sol, the group focused largely on political assassinations. A crackdown by Turkish authorities in the early 1980s forced the group to restrict its activities, though in the late 1980s Dev Sol was able to increase its attacks against Turkish military targets.
Despite internal troubles, the DHKP/C has managed to retain the ideology and goals of the original Dev Sol movement. The group has continued to conduct violent attacks against Turkish government targets as well as against Western interests in Turkey. The group has also sought to bring attention to its imprisoned members by staging hunger protests. In the past, the group has been intensely outspoken against US military operations in Afghanistan and in Iraq. DHKP/C believes that these operations are proof of the imperialist intentions of the United States.
In communist imagery the red symbolises unity of all elements of a socialist (workers, intellectuals, soldiers and youth) and symbolising revolution. The gold (yellow) elements symbolise justice, power and perfection. The hammer and sickle representing the worker and the five pointed star represents the five continents. (Source: ‘Branding Terror’ by Artur Beifuss and Francesco Trivini Bellini)
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