Afghanistan/Da’esh – Fighters have killed at least 30 civilians, including children, after abducting them in the remote Afghan province of Ghor, according to an Afghan police official. Suspected ISIL fighters killed dozens of civilians on the 25 Oct 16 in the Firozkoh district in revenge for the death of one of their commanders, a provincial official told Reuters news agency on the 26 Oct 16. "Afghan police killed a Da’esh commander in Ghor province during an operation yesterday but Da’esh fighters abducted some 30 civilians from near the provincial capital and shot them all dead in revenge," Abdul Hai Khatibi, a spokesman for the governor, said. Ghor Governor Nasir Khazeh said that the bodies were found by the locals on the morning of the 26 Oct 16. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. However, Abdul Hai Khateby, spokesman for Ghor's governor said that the fighters behind the attacks and abductions were a renegade Taliban group that swore allegiance last year to Afghanistan's ISIL group. Ghor is one of the largest and most isolated provinces in the country. Its mountainous terrain and harsh winters have effectively sheltered it from the worst of the conflict with the Taliban. 361 COMMENT: Whether this atrocity was carried out by Da’esh or an associated group it is probably the worst atrocity carried out in Afghanistan by Da’esh or a group with an alliance to the ideology. Certainly the numbers, the fact that those killed were civilians and that they blamed someone else for their loss fits in with the way Da’esh deals with its losses. The chances are that this type of cowardly act will no doubt be repeated in the future. COMMENT ENDS
Afghanistan/Iran – Mullah Zabihullah, the official spokesman of the “Afghan Taliban” and the second man in the movement revealed the presence of relations and new networks with Iran. “The movement is trying to benefit from all legitimate means to reach a regional agreement as part of the war against the American invasion; therefore, the Imara holds ongoing networks with a large number of regional and neighboring states.” He said to the London based Asharq Al-Awsat in an email 18 months ago, that the movement had received drone planes, which help film suicidal operations it was reported on the 30 Oct 16. However, he refused to reveal the side providing such advanced equipment, but asserted that the “movement is expecting to soon receive more advanced weapons.” Commenting on reports saying that Taliban had appointed a representative in Iran, Zabihullah said: “We heard these reports, but they are untrue.”
India/Pakistan – Seven Pakistani soldiers were killed in retaliatory fire by Indian forces along the disputed Kashmir border, according to Indian officials, but Pakistan refuted those claims. India's Border Security Force (BSF) said Pakistan Rangers targeted Indian positions with sniper fire early on the 21 Oct 16 following a failed overnight attempt by fighters to cross the border near the main city of Jammu in Indian-administered Kashmir. "During intermittent firing of small arms and area weapons, one militant and seven rangers were shot dead," the BSF said in a press statement. Its spokesman, Shubhendu Bhardwaj, said that troops launched an "aggressive offensive" after one of their soldiers was critically wounded by sniper fire from across the border. "There was an infiltration attempt and sniper fire. We retaliated. The bodies are on the other side of the border," said Bhardwaj. However, Lieutenant-General Asim Bajwa, a Pakistani army spokesman, refuted the claim and accused India of unprovoked shooting across the Line of Control (LoC), the de factor border.
India/Maoists – At least 24 Maoist fighters have been killed in a clash with police in eastern India, according to Indian security officials. They said members of Andhra Pradesh state police's elite anti-Maoist force, the Greyhounds, on the 24 Oct 16 attacked a Maoist camp in Odisha state where about 60 fighters had gathered for a meeting. Police acted on a tip-off that about 30 fighters had gathered close to the border with Andhra Pradesh state. "It was a makeshift training camp. Police have recovered 24 dead bodies of the Maoists during the search," Mitrabhanu Mahapatra, the chief of police in Malkangiri district, where the ambush occurred said. One police officer was killed in the gunfight that followed and another injured said Rahul Dev Sharma, superintendent of police in neighbouring Visakhapatnam. The clash was the biggest involving the fighters this year and police claimed it was a setback for left-wing insurgency in the region. In Mar 16 eight Maoist fighters were killed in southern India. Maoist fighters are active in more than a third of India's 626 administrative districts and usually target security personnel and government installations. The Maoists, who reject parliamentary democracy, say their armed campaign is to secure the rights of the poor and marginalised. They accuse the Indian state of plundering the mineral-rich and underdeveloped east and central regions of the country at the expense of the poor and landless, among whom they retain some support. While the level of violence has fallen in recent years, and the Maoists have lost hundreds of fighters to desertions and battles with security forces, the group remains capable of staging regular hit-and-run attacks across several states. According to the South Asia Terrorism Portal, more than 7,000 people, including civilians, fighters and security personnel, have been killed in Maoist-related violence in India since 2005.
Pakistan/Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) – At least 60 people have been killed in an attack on a police training centre in the city of Quetta in Balochistan province, Pakistani officials say. The announcement on the 25 Oct 16 came at the end of a military counter-operation. About 200 trainees were stationed at the facility when the attack occurred late on the 24 Oct 16 officials said, and some were taken hostage during the attack, which lasted five hours. Most of the dead were police cadets. Mir Sarfraz Ahmed Bugti, home minister of Balochistan, said that five to six armed men attacked a dormitory inside the training facility while cadets rested and slept. More than a hundred people were injured, he said. The death toll could rise as many cadets were seriously injured. The Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) claimed responsibility for the attack. The group, which has been outlawed by the government, has been involved in past attacks on security forces. "Over the past few years LeJ has been targeted by the military, especially in Punjab province where its leadership was eliminated. And this attack surprised many that it still survives in some form," writer and columnist Raza Rumi said. Witnesses reported hearing at least three explosions leading up to the raid and that it took at least 30 minutes before Pakistani authorities responded to the assault. The police training centre had come under attack in the past, with rockets fired towards it in 2006 and 2008. The attack on the 24 Oct 16 came just hours after armed men shot and killed two customs officers and injured a third near the town of Surab, about 145km south of Quetta. The customs officers were targeted by gunmen riding on a motorcycle, said Zainullah Baloch, a spokesman for the local police. Baloch said two officers died on the spot and the injured one was taken to the hospital in critical condition. Earlier on the 24 Oct 16 two assailants on a motorcycle killed a police intelligence officer in the country's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, according to Khalid Khan, a local police officer. The Pakistan Taliban claimed responsibility for that attack. The group's spokesman, Muhammad Khurasani, said in a statement that the shooters returned to their hideout after the attack.
Lashkar e Jhangvi
Abbreviation: LeJ
Continent: Asia
Country: India, Pakistan
Background:
Considered by many the most secretive sectarian terrorist organisations in Pakistan, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi is the militant offshoot of the Sunni sectarian group Sipah-i-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP) (the Army of Mohamed's companions). The breakaway group was formed in 1996 by Akram Lahori, Malik Ishaque, and Riaz Basra, after they accused the SSP of deviating from the ideals of its slain co-founder, Maulana Haq Nawaz Jhangvi. The Sunni-Deobandi group focuses primarily on anti-Shia attacks and was banned by Pakistani President Musharraf in August 2001 as part of an effort to rein in sectarian violence. Many of its members then sought refuge with the Taliban in Afghanistan, with whom they had existing ties.
A news report of October 2000 claimed that the LeJ had split into two factions, one headed by Riaz Basra (since deceased) and the other by the chief of the group's Majlis-al-Shura (Supreme Council), Qari Abdul Hai alias Qari Asadullah alias Talha. The split reportedly occurred due to differences between the two over resumption of ethnic strife, which had decreased after the military coup in Pakistan in October 1999. While Basra favored resumption of terrorist attacks against Shia targets in order to force the government to comply with the demands of the group, Talha opposed the plan as he reportedly felt it was suicidal not only for the organisation but also for national solidarity. Talha based his opinion on the assumption that, with a military regime in power, any armed activity would invite stern action against the LeJ.
The group has confirmed links with al Qaeda. Recently LeJ banded with two other Sunni extremist groups (Harkat-ul-Mujahideen and Jaish-e-Mohammed) and together they are said to form the Pakistani wing of al Qaeda. In September 2002, three chemical labs were found in LeJ safe houses in Karachi. According to Pakistani authorities, LeJ members are not sophisticated enough to have maintained the stores of cyanide and other toxic chemicals found in the labs. They believe al Qaeda operatives, working with the LeJ, moved its chemical stores and shipments of gold out from Afghanistan to reestablish operations from Pakistan.
The LeJ aims to transform Pakistan into a Sunni state, primarily through violent means. As an anti-Shiite group, it has admitted responsibility for numerous massacres of Shias and targeted killings of Shia religious and community leaders. The LeJ has also carried out numerous attacks against Iranian interests and Iranian nationals in Pakistan. The group claimed responsibility for killing four American oil workers in Karachi in 1997, and for carrying out an assassination attempt in 1999 on then Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. The group is also believed to have taken part in the January 2002 kidnapping and murder of U.S. journalist Daniel Pearl.
The entire leadership of the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi consists of Jehadis who fought against Soviet forces in Afghanistan. A majority of its cadres are drawn from the numerous Sunni madrassas (seminaries) in Pakistan. Being part of the broader Deoband movement, the LeJ secured considerable assistance from other Deobandi groups, including training along with the Taliban and other Deobandi terrorists from Pakistan in Afghanistan.
Also known as Army of Jhangvi, Lashkar I Jhangvi (LJ).
(From the Book: The Complete Encyclopaedia of Terrorist Organisations by Paul Ashley)
Philippines/Abu Sayyaf – The captain and one crew member of a South Korean cargo ship have been abducted by suspected Abu Sayyaf fighters in the southern Philippines, according to military officials. Ten gunmen, who reportedly identified themselves as fighters from the Abu Sayyaf group, boarded the Dongbang Giant 2 ship on the 20 Oct 16 and kidnapped its captain, described by the Philippine army as "Korean", as well as a local crewman. "They identified themselves as Abu Sayyaf Group members .... We're looking into this," regional military command spokesman, Major Filemon Tan, told the ABS CBN television channel on the 21 Oct 16. The ship was en route to South Korea from Australia when it was attacked. Other crewmen were not seized and one managed to call his family, which reported the assault to authorities. The 11,400-tonne vessel was allowed to continue on its course after the abductions, Tan said, adding that authorities had interviewed witnesses on board, with the military now in "hot pursuit" of the kidnappers. Naval patrols off Tawi-Tawi and nearby Sulu, where fighters take most of their kidnapping victims, have been strengthened in recent months due to a spate of abductions, Tan told news agencies. "We do our best to secure that area but it's a wide body of water," Tan said by telephone. The group began abducting sailors in border waters between Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines early this year, taking several dozen Indonesian and Malaysian hostages. The armed fighters also beheaded two Canadian hostages and released a Norwegian man along with a number of Indonesian and Malaysian sailors in the past. Military sources say the group is still holding a Dutch hostage, five Malaysians, two Indonesians and four Filipinos in their jungle stronghold in the southern Philippines.
Turkey – Turkish police shot dead a suspected ISIS militant who was believed to be planning a suicide bomb attack in the capital Ankara, state-run Anadolu Agency reported on the 19 Oct 16. A counter terror squad had tracked the suspect to the ninth floor of a building on the outskirts of Ankara, where he was killed in a gunfight at around 0300 hrs local (2359 hrs GMT) after opening fire in response to a police call to surrender. Police found explosive materials at the scene and Governor Ercan Topaca told reporters there were suspicions that the suspect planned to target public ceremonies in the capital, Anadolu reported. It said the man was registered in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir and was born in 1992. Having received intelligence that militants were planning attacks in the capital, the Ankara governor’s office on the 17 Oct 16 banned public meetings and marches until the end of Nov 16. The ban, enforced under emergency rule imposed after an attempted coup in Jul 16 came as Turkey pursued a near two-month-old military operation in Syria in support of rebels to drive ISIS from its southern border.
Turkey/Kurds – About 100 Turkish rockets pounded a group of Kurdish fighters allied with a US-backed militia in northern Syria on the 21 Oct 16 as Ankara's attacks against Syrian Kurds continue to intensify. The confrontation between Turkey-backed Syrian rebels and Kurdish forces fighting the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant has escalated as both sides race to be the first to expel the armed group from the northern Syrian city of al-Bab. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said nearly 100 rockets fired by Turkish forces hit the town of Sheikh Issa and other frontline areas in northern Aleppo province on the 21 Oct 16. On the 19 Oct 16 Turkey launched dozens of air strikes on the American-backed Kurdish fighters, highlighting the conflicting agendas of NATO members Ankara and Washington in an increasingly complex battlefield. Turkey said between 160-200 Kurds were killed in the strikes, but a war monitor said only nine died. Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said on the 21 Oct 16 Turkey's activities in Syria are aimed at destroying "terrorist organisations" and securing its border, adding all operations are discussed with coalition partners. An adviser to the Turkey-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA), who gave his name as Osama Abu Zayd, said that Friday's clashes were fierce and widening as they try to push Kurdish fighters out of the northern Aleppo countryside. "Two days ago, the [Kurdish fighters] tried to exploit our battle against Da’esh to advance towards Marea," Abu Zayd said. Marea is a town in Turkey-backed rebel territory on the way to al-Bab. "What is happening today is a natural response to these separatist groups," Abu Zayd added. Ahmad Araj - a political representative for the Kurdish fighters allied to the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) militia - said fighters were now under attack both from ISIL and Turkey. He said more than 150 rockets on the 21 Oct 16 hit areas from which they had pushed ISIL out this week. "Today at 10am, Turkish shelling began ... There was an attack and the clashes have continued since morning," said Araj. "Their rockets are not targeting Islamic State, rather they are targeting our forces in areas liberated [from ISIL]." The United States has backed the Kurdish-led SDF in its fight against ISIL, angering Turkey, which sees the umbrella group's dominant YPG militia (People's Protection Units) - as an extension of Kurdish PKK fighters.
Turkey/United States – Family members of US consulate staff in Istanbul have been asked to leave the country, the US state department said, citing threats against US citizens. "The Department of State made this decision based on security information indicating extremist groups are continuing aggressive efforts to attack US citizens in areas of Istanbul where they reside or frequent," the department said in a statement on the 30 Oct 16. The US Consulate General in Istanbul will stay open, the state department said, adding that the order does not apply to any other US diplomatic posts in Turkey. Saturday's warning updates previous State Department advisories of "increased threats from terrorist groups throughout Turkey". The department also advised its citizens to avoid travel to southeast Turkey and cautioned on the risks of travelling anywhere in the country. France temporarily shut down its embassy in the Turkish capital Ankara and its consulate in Istanbul nearly two weeks after Istanbul's main airport was attacked in an assault that killed 47 people. Some of the violence in neighbouring Syria has spilled over to Turkey, which has seen a rise in attacks this year. The security situation has further deteriorated in the wake of a failed coup attempt in July.
(https://travel.state.gov/content/passports/en/alertswarnings/turkey-travel-warning.html)
361 COMMENT: Although not stated this could be a result of the attacks on and around Mosul in Iraq. At some point Da’esh will fight back and probably at first in and around countries near to were the so called caliphate is/was. As America is seen by the group to be the main leader in the air-war against them then this maybe the reason why this warning has been put in place. COMMENT ENDS
Afghanistan/Iran – Mullah Zabihullah, the official spokesman of the “Afghan Taliban” and the second man in the movement revealed the presence of relations and new networks with Iran. “The movement is trying to benefit from all legitimate means to reach a regional agreement as part of the war against the American invasion; therefore, the Imara holds ongoing networks with a large number of regional and neighboring states.” He said to the London based Asharq Al-Awsat in an email 18 months ago, that the movement had received drone planes, which help film suicidal operations it was reported on the 30 Oct 16. However, he refused to reveal the side providing such advanced equipment, but asserted that the “movement is expecting to soon receive more advanced weapons.” Commenting on reports saying that Taliban had appointed a representative in Iran, Zabihullah said: “We heard these reports, but they are untrue.”
India/Pakistan – Seven Pakistani soldiers were killed in retaliatory fire by Indian forces along the disputed Kashmir border, according to Indian officials, but Pakistan refuted those claims. India's Border Security Force (BSF) said Pakistan Rangers targeted Indian positions with sniper fire early on the 21 Oct 16 following a failed overnight attempt by fighters to cross the border near the main city of Jammu in Indian-administered Kashmir. "During intermittent firing of small arms and area weapons, one militant and seven rangers were shot dead," the BSF said in a press statement. Its spokesman, Shubhendu Bhardwaj, said that troops launched an "aggressive offensive" after one of their soldiers was critically wounded by sniper fire from across the border. "There was an infiltration attempt and sniper fire. We retaliated. The bodies are on the other side of the border," said Bhardwaj. However, Lieutenant-General Asim Bajwa, a Pakistani army spokesman, refuted the claim and accused India of unprovoked shooting across the Line of Control (LoC), the de factor border.
India/Maoists – At least 24 Maoist fighters have been killed in a clash with police in eastern India, according to Indian security officials. They said members of Andhra Pradesh state police's elite anti-Maoist force, the Greyhounds, on the 24 Oct 16 attacked a Maoist camp in Odisha state where about 60 fighters had gathered for a meeting. Police acted on a tip-off that about 30 fighters had gathered close to the border with Andhra Pradesh state. "It was a makeshift training camp. Police have recovered 24 dead bodies of the Maoists during the search," Mitrabhanu Mahapatra, the chief of police in Malkangiri district, where the ambush occurred said. One police officer was killed in the gunfight that followed and another injured said Rahul Dev Sharma, superintendent of police in neighbouring Visakhapatnam. The clash was the biggest involving the fighters this year and police claimed it was a setback for left-wing insurgency in the region. In Mar 16 eight Maoist fighters were killed in southern India. Maoist fighters are active in more than a third of India's 626 administrative districts and usually target security personnel and government installations. The Maoists, who reject parliamentary democracy, say their armed campaign is to secure the rights of the poor and marginalised. They accuse the Indian state of plundering the mineral-rich and underdeveloped east and central regions of the country at the expense of the poor and landless, among whom they retain some support. While the level of violence has fallen in recent years, and the Maoists have lost hundreds of fighters to desertions and battles with security forces, the group remains capable of staging regular hit-and-run attacks across several states. According to the South Asia Terrorism Portal, more than 7,000 people, including civilians, fighters and security personnel, have been killed in Maoist-related violence in India since 2005.
Pakistan/Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) – At least 60 people have been killed in an attack on a police training centre in the city of Quetta in Balochistan province, Pakistani officials say. The announcement on the 25 Oct 16 came at the end of a military counter-operation. About 200 trainees were stationed at the facility when the attack occurred late on the 24 Oct 16 officials said, and some were taken hostage during the attack, which lasted five hours. Most of the dead were police cadets. Mir Sarfraz Ahmed Bugti, home minister of Balochistan, said that five to six armed men attacked a dormitory inside the training facility while cadets rested and slept. More than a hundred people were injured, he said. The death toll could rise as many cadets were seriously injured. The Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) claimed responsibility for the attack. The group, which has been outlawed by the government, has been involved in past attacks on security forces. "Over the past few years LeJ has been targeted by the military, especially in Punjab province where its leadership was eliminated. And this attack surprised many that it still survives in some form," writer and columnist Raza Rumi said. Witnesses reported hearing at least three explosions leading up to the raid and that it took at least 30 minutes before Pakistani authorities responded to the assault. The police training centre had come under attack in the past, with rockets fired towards it in 2006 and 2008. The attack on the 24 Oct 16 came just hours after armed men shot and killed two customs officers and injured a third near the town of Surab, about 145km south of Quetta. The customs officers were targeted by gunmen riding on a motorcycle, said Zainullah Baloch, a spokesman for the local police. Baloch said two officers died on the spot and the injured one was taken to the hospital in critical condition. Earlier on the 24 Oct 16 two assailants on a motorcycle killed a police intelligence officer in the country's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, according to Khalid Khan, a local police officer. The Pakistan Taliban claimed responsibility for that attack. The group's spokesman, Muhammad Khurasani, said in a statement that the shooters returned to their hideout after the attack.
Lashkar e Jhangvi
Abbreviation: LeJ
Continent: Asia
Country: India, Pakistan
Background:
Considered by many the most secretive sectarian terrorist organisations in Pakistan, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi is the militant offshoot of the Sunni sectarian group Sipah-i-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP) (the Army of Mohamed's companions). The breakaway group was formed in 1996 by Akram Lahori, Malik Ishaque, and Riaz Basra, after they accused the SSP of deviating from the ideals of its slain co-founder, Maulana Haq Nawaz Jhangvi. The Sunni-Deobandi group focuses primarily on anti-Shia attacks and was banned by Pakistani President Musharraf in August 2001 as part of an effort to rein in sectarian violence. Many of its members then sought refuge with the Taliban in Afghanistan, with whom they had existing ties.
A news report of October 2000 claimed that the LeJ had split into two factions, one headed by Riaz Basra (since deceased) and the other by the chief of the group's Majlis-al-Shura (Supreme Council), Qari Abdul Hai alias Qari Asadullah alias Talha. The split reportedly occurred due to differences between the two over resumption of ethnic strife, which had decreased after the military coup in Pakistan in October 1999. While Basra favored resumption of terrorist attacks against Shia targets in order to force the government to comply with the demands of the group, Talha opposed the plan as he reportedly felt it was suicidal not only for the organisation but also for national solidarity. Talha based his opinion on the assumption that, with a military regime in power, any armed activity would invite stern action against the LeJ.
The group has confirmed links with al Qaeda. Recently LeJ banded with two other Sunni extremist groups (Harkat-ul-Mujahideen and Jaish-e-Mohammed) and together they are said to form the Pakistani wing of al Qaeda. In September 2002, three chemical labs were found in LeJ safe houses in Karachi. According to Pakistani authorities, LeJ members are not sophisticated enough to have maintained the stores of cyanide and other toxic chemicals found in the labs. They believe al Qaeda operatives, working with the LeJ, moved its chemical stores and shipments of gold out from Afghanistan to reestablish operations from Pakistan.
The LeJ aims to transform Pakistan into a Sunni state, primarily through violent means. As an anti-Shiite group, it has admitted responsibility for numerous massacres of Shias and targeted killings of Shia religious and community leaders. The LeJ has also carried out numerous attacks against Iranian interests and Iranian nationals in Pakistan. The group claimed responsibility for killing four American oil workers in Karachi in 1997, and for carrying out an assassination attempt in 1999 on then Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. The group is also believed to have taken part in the January 2002 kidnapping and murder of U.S. journalist Daniel Pearl.
The entire leadership of the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi consists of Jehadis who fought against Soviet forces in Afghanistan. A majority of its cadres are drawn from the numerous Sunni madrassas (seminaries) in Pakistan. Being part of the broader Deoband movement, the LeJ secured considerable assistance from other Deobandi groups, including training along with the Taliban and other Deobandi terrorists from Pakistan in Afghanistan.
Also known as Army of Jhangvi, Lashkar I Jhangvi (LJ).
(From the Book: The Complete Encyclopaedia of Terrorist Organisations by Paul Ashley)
Philippines/Abu Sayyaf – The captain and one crew member of a South Korean cargo ship have been abducted by suspected Abu Sayyaf fighters in the southern Philippines, according to military officials. Ten gunmen, who reportedly identified themselves as fighters from the Abu Sayyaf group, boarded the Dongbang Giant 2 ship on the 20 Oct 16 and kidnapped its captain, described by the Philippine army as "Korean", as well as a local crewman. "They identified themselves as Abu Sayyaf Group members .... We're looking into this," regional military command spokesman, Major Filemon Tan, told the ABS CBN television channel on the 21 Oct 16. The ship was en route to South Korea from Australia when it was attacked. Other crewmen were not seized and one managed to call his family, which reported the assault to authorities. The 11,400-tonne vessel was allowed to continue on its course after the abductions, Tan said, adding that authorities had interviewed witnesses on board, with the military now in "hot pursuit" of the kidnappers. Naval patrols off Tawi-Tawi and nearby Sulu, where fighters take most of their kidnapping victims, have been strengthened in recent months due to a spate of abductions, Tan told news agencies. "We do our best to secure that area but it's a wide body of water," Tan said by telephone. The group began abducting sailors in border waters between Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines early this year, taking several dozen Indonesian and Malaysian hostages. The armed fighters also beheaded two Canadian hostages and released a Norwegian man along with a number of Indonesian and Malaysian sailors in the past. Military sources say the group is still holding a Dutch hostage, five Malaysians, two Indonesians and four Filipinos in their jungle stronghold in the southern Philippines.
Turkey – Turkish police shot dead a suspected ISIS militant who was believed to be planning a suicide bomb attack in the capital Ankara, state-run Anadolu Agency reported on the 19 Oct 16. A counter terror squad had tracked the suspect to the ninth floor of a building on the outskirts of Ankara, where he was killed in a gunfight at around 0300 hrs local (2359 hrs GMT) after opening fire in response to a police call to surrender. Police found explosive materials at the scene and Governor Ercan Topaca told reporters there were suspicions that the suspect planned to target public ceremonies in the capital, Anadolu reported. It said the man was registered in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir and was born in 1992. Having received intelligence that militants were planning attacks in the capital, the Ankara governor’s office on the 17 Oct 16 banned public meetings and marches until the end of Nov 16. The ban, enforced under emergency rule imposed after an attempted coup in Jul 16 came as Turkey pursued a near two-month-old military operation in Syria in support of rebels to drive ISIS from its southern border.
Turkey/Kurds – About 100 Turkish rockets pounded a group of Kurdish fighters allied with a US-backed militia in northern Syria on the 21 Oct 16 as Ankara's attacks against Syrian Kurds continue to intensify. The confrontation between Turkey-backed Syrian rebels and Kurdish forces fighting the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant has escalated as both sides race to be the first to expel the armed group from the northern Syrian city of al-Bab. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said nearly 100 rockets fired by Turkish forces hit the town of Sheikh Issa and other frontline areas in northern Aleppo province on the 21 Oct 16. On the 19 Oct 16 Turkey launched dozens of air strikes on the American-backed Kurdish fighters, highlighting the conflicting agendas of NATO members Ankara and Washington in an increasingly complex battlefield. Turkey said between 160-200 Kurds were killed in the strikes, but a war monitor said only nine died. Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said on the 21 Oct 16 Turkey's activities in Syria are aimed at destroying "terrorist organisations" and securing its border, adding all operations are discussed with coalition partners. An adviser to the Turkey-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA), who gave his name as Osama Abu Zayd, said that Friday's clashes were fierce and widening as they try to push Kurdish fighters out of the northern Aleppo countryside. "Two days ago, the [Kurdish fighters] tried to exploit our battle against Da’esh to advance towards Marea," Abu Zayd said. Marea is a town in Turkey-backed rebel territory on the way to al-Bab. "What is happening today is a natural response to these separatist groups," Abu Zayd added. Ahmad Araj - a political representative for the Kurdish fighters allied to the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) militia - said fighters were now under attack both from ISIL and Turkey. He said more than 150 rockets on the 21 Oct 16 hit areas from which they had pushed ISIL out this week. "Today at 10am, Turkish shelling began ... There was an attack and the clashes have continued since morning," said Araj. "Their rockets are not targeting Islamic State, rather they are targeting our forces in areas liberated [from ISIL]." The United States has backed the Kurdish-led SDF in its fight against ISIL, angering Turkey, which sees the umbrella group's dominant YPG militia (People's Protection Units) - as an extension of Kurdish PKK fighters.
Turkey/United States – Family members of US consulate staff in Istanbul have been asked to leave the country, the US state department said, citing threats against US citizens. "The Department of State made this decision based on security information indicating extremist groups are continuing aggressive efforts to attack US citizens in areas of Istanbul where they reside or frequent," the department said in a statement on the 30 Oct 16. The US Consulate General in Istanbul will stay open, the state department said, adding that the order does not apply to any other US diplomatic posts in Turkey. Saturday's warning updates previous State Department advisories of "increased threats from terrorist groups throughout Turkey". The department also advised its citizens to avoid travel to southeast Turkey and cautioned on the risks of travelling anywhere in the country. France temporarily shut down its embassy in the Turkish capital Ankara and its consulate in Istanbul nearly two weeks after Istanbul's main airport was attacked in an assault that killed 47 people. Some of the violence in neighbouring Syria has spilled over to Turkey, which has seen a rise in attacks this year. The security situation has further deteriorated in the wake of a failed coup attempt in July.
(https://travel.state.gov/content/passports/en/alertswarnings/turkey-travel-warning.html)
361 COMMENT: Although not stated this could be a result of the attacks on and around Mosul in Iraq. At some point Da’esh will fight back and probably at first in and around countries near to were the so called caliphate is/was. As America is seen by the group to be the main leader in the air-war against them then this maybe the reason why this warning has been put in place. COMMENT ENDS
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