Spotlight on Global Jihad (November 26- December 2, 2020)

Main events of the past week

• In the Idlib region, incidents continued between the Syrian army and the rebel organizations, mainly Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).
• In recent months, the desert region in eastern Syria has become the epicenter of ISIS’s activity in the Syria Province. The Syrian army and the forces supporting it fail to provide an effective response to ISIS’s intensive guerrilla activity. Last week, ISIS’s activity was characterized by ambushes, planting mines, and activating IEDs against vehicles and convoys of the Syrian army and the forces supporting it. The Syrian army conducted searches for ISIS squads with Syrian and Russian air support. ISIS reported dozens of dead and wounded among the Syrian forces.
• In Iraq, ISIS’s intense activity in the various provinces continued, in the form of activating IEDs, sniper and light arms fire, firing mortar shells, targeted killings, and firing Katyusha rockets. One noteworthy attack this week was the firing of rockets at the refinery near the city of Baiji. One of the rockets caused a fire. Local workers gained control of the fire and the incident ended without casualties.
• ISIS’s other provinces in Africa and Asia continued their routine activity. Noteworthy examples:
  • Northern Sinai: ISIS operatives carried out attacks against the Egyptian security forces in northern Sinai. An Egyptian army officer with the rank of lieutenant colonel was seriously wounded in the Bir al-Abd region.
  • Nigeria: ISIS’s intensive activity against the Nigerian army and local civilians continues in Borno State, in the northeast of the country. This week, the British media reported that ISIS-affiliated operatives had murdered at least 110 farmers in a village near Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State. ISIS did not claim responsibility for the attack.
  • Chad: ISIS operatives planted an IED against a Chadian army ship in the northern part of Lake Chad. This was the second attack of its kind, recently carried out in Lake Chad. ISIS reported dozens of dead.
  • Indonesia: East Asia Province operatives attacked local Christian residents, murdering four men and setting fire to homes and a house of worship.

The Syrian arena

The Idlib region

In the Idlib region, exchanges of artillery fire continued between the Syrian army and the rebel organizations. Southwest of Idlib, there were local clashes between HTS and the Syrian army. According to an HTS report, three soldiers, including an officer, were killed in the clashes (Ibaa, December 1, 2020). Local sources reported about Russian airstrikes southwest of Idlib (November 26 and 29, 2020)

ISIS’s activity in Syria^[1]

The region of Deir ez-Zor and Al-Mayadeen

• On November 26, 2020, an SDF roadblock was targeted by machine gun fire about 8 km southeast of Al-Mayadeen. Two SDF fighters were wounded.
• On November 24, 2020, an IED was activated against an SDF vehicle about 10 km north of Deir ez-Zor, on the east bank of the Euphrates River. Three SDF fighters were wounded.

The desert region in eastern Syria

In the past week, there has been an increase in the intensity of ISIS activity in the desert region of eastern Syria, mainly in the form of planting mines, ambushes, and activating IEDs against Syrian army vehicles and convoys.

The desert region west of the Euphrates Valley

• On November 29, 2020, forces supporting the Syrian army hit a mine in the Jabal Bishri region, about 80 km west of Deir ez-Zor. Three soldiers were killed (Deir ez-Zor 24 Twitter account, November 29, 2020).
• On November 25, 2020, HTS reported that, according to local sources, the Homeland Defense Forces and the Palestinian Quds Brigade searched for ISIS squads in two areas: in an area about 15 km south of Deir ez-Zor and an area deep in the desert west of Al-Mayadeen (Ibaa, November 25, 2020).

The desert region northeast of Hama

• On November 29, 2020, a force of the Syrian army and the forces supporting it hit a mine in the desert area east of Hama. Two officers and three soldiers were wounded (Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, November 29, 2020).
• On November 25, 2020, ISIS operatives attacked positions of forces supporting the Syrian army southwest of Palmyra. A total of 11 fighters were killed and four others were wounded (OrientNews Twitter account, November 26, 2020).

Russian airstrikes

• On November 25, 2020, Russian fighter jets carried out more than 30 airstrikes in the desert region between Rasafah (about 40 km southwest of Al-Raqqah) and Ithriya (about 95 km northeast of Hama). The airstrikes apparently targeted ISIS positions (Al-Badia 24 Twitter account, November 25, 2020).

Al-Sukhnah airstrikes

• On November 30, 2020, Syrian army units operated against ISIS deep in the desert, on the Ithriya road (about 95 km northeast of Hama). The operatives of an ISIS squad were killed. In addition, several vehicles were destroyed (Syrian army@Tiger_forces Twitter account, November 30, 2020).
• On November 29, 2020, an IED was activated against a vehicle of the Syrian army or the forces supporting it northwest of Al-Sukhnah (about 60 km northeast of Palmyra). The passengers were killed or wounded.
• No November 29, 2020, an IED was activated against a Syrian army vehicle west of Al-Sukhnah (about 60 km northeast of Palmyra). The passengers were killed or wounded.
• On November 29, 2020, ISIS operatives set up an ambush north of Al-Sukhnah (about 60 km northeast of Palmyra). About 15 Syrian soldiers and fighters of the forces supporting the Syrian army were killed or wounded (Al-Badia 24 Twitter account, November 29, 2020).
• On November 27, 2020, several IEDs were activated against a Syrian army convoy west of Al-Sukhnah, (about 60 km northeast of Palmyra). According to ISIS, 20 soldiers were killed. In addition, two tanks and a vehicle were destroyed.

The desert region in the Aleppo-Hama-Al-Raqqah triangle

• On November 29, 2020, there were clashes between the Syrian army and the forces supporting it, and ISIS operatives on roads in the desert region of Aleppo-Hama-Al-Raqqah. Ten Syrian soldiers and 16 ISIS operatives were killed. In addition, Russian and Syrian fighter jets carried out several airstrikes against ISIS operatives deployed in the region (Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, November 29, 2020).

The Iraqi arena

ISIS attacks in the various provinces^[2]

Diyala Province

• On November 29, 2020, Iraqi soldiers were targeted by sniper fire on the outskirts of Al-Azim, about 60 km north of Baqubah. One soldier was killed and five others were wounded, including two officers. According to ISIS, one of the wounded is a lieutenant colonel named Mussab al-Shamri, an Iraqi army fawj commander.
• On November 26, 2020, two Iraqi soldiers were targeted by sniper fire about 60 km north of Baqubah. One was killed and the other was wounded.
• On November 23, 2020, two Iraqi soldiers were targeted by sniper fire about 60 km north of Baqubah. One was killed and the other was wounded.

Salah al-Din Province

• On November 29, 2020, two Katyusha rockets were fired at the refinery in the Al-Siniya area, near the city of Baiji. An Iraqi security source confirmed that one rocket hit the Al-Siniya refinery and caused a fire in one of the oil pipelines. The same source added that the control valves were shut off and that the fire was contained after oil tanks and crude oil pipelines had caught fire. No casualties were reported during the incident (Al-Sumaria, November 29, 2020).

  
The moment the container compound was hit. Left: Fire breaking out as a result of an ISIS rocket hitting a crude oil pipeline (photo taken by security cameras at the site – Shafaq news, November 30, 2020)

• On November 24, 2020, policemen were targeted by machine gun fire about 65 km north of Baghdad. Two were killed and another was wounded.
• On November 24, 2020, several mortar shells were fired at the houses of two Iraqi police officers about 70 km north of Baghdad. According to ISIS, accurate hits were observed.
• On November 23, 2020, a Tribal Mobilization fighter was shot and killed north of Baiji.

Kirkuk Province

• On November 29, 2020, an Iraqi police compound was targeted by sniper fire about 60 km southwest of Kirkuk. One policeman was wounded.
• On November 28, 2020, an Iraqi police headquarters was targeted by machine gun fire, RPG rockets and mortar shells about 10 km southwest of Kirkuk. Several policemen were killed or wounded.
• On November 26, 2020, an IED was activated against an Iraqi army vehicle about 30 km south of Kirkuk. Two soldiers were killed and two others, one of them an officer, were wounded.
• On November 25, 2020, an Iraqi police headquarters was targeted by mortar shells about 30 km south of Kirkuk. According to ISIS, accurate hits were observed.
• On November 24, 2020, a Katyusha rocket was fired at an Iraqi army headquarters about 80 km southwest of Kirkuk. According to ISIS, the headquarters sustained damage.

Al-Anbar Province

• On November 28, 2020, ISIS operatives broke into a house where there were several Iraqi soldiers and a local mukhtar, in a village west of Ramadi (about 90 km west of Baghdad). Five soldiers and the mukhtar were killed. Weapons and ammunition were seized. Afterwards, there was an exchange of fire between ISIS and a force which arrived at the scene for assistance. Three soldiers were wounded.

Counterterrorism activities by the Iraqi security forces

Kirkuk Province

• On November 29, 2020, teams of the intelligence agency subordinate to the Iraqi Interior Ministry apprehended two wanted ISIS operatives. The two admitted under interrogation that they had supplied ISIS squads with intelligence including names, positions, and movements of the Iraqi security services (Al-Sumaria, November 29, 2020).
• On November 28, 2020, Iraqi police arrested two wanted ISIS operatives about 30 km south of Kirkuk. The two admitted under interrogation that they had given logistical assistance and communications devices to an ISIS squad which had operated southwest of Daqouq (Al-Sumaria, November 28, 2020).

Al-Anbar Province

• On November 29, 2020, teams of the Iraqi Military Intelligence, operating with the assistance of drones, located an arms depot in the Al-Sham Desert, in the Al-Anbar Province. The depot contained 35 canisters of C4 plastic explosive and 31 tripwires for the activation of IEDs (Facebook page of the Iraqi Defense Ministry, November 29, 2020).

Nineveh Province

• On November 28, 2020, an Iraqi army force located an ISIS weapons depot about 60 km west of Mosul. The depot contained IEDs and tripwires (Facebook page of the Iraqi Defense Ministry, November 28, 2020).

The city of Baghdad

• On November 27, 2020, teams of the Directorate of the Baghdad Intelligence and Security, operating in collaboration with the Iraqi police, arrested a wanted ISIS operative in a neighborhood southwest of central Baghdad (Facebook page of the Iraqi Defense Ministry, November 27, 2020)

The Sinai Peninsula

ISIS’s activity in northern Sinai^[3]

• On December 1, 2020, an IED was activated against an Egyptian army bulldozer west of Rafah. The passengers were wounded.
• On November 25, 2020, Mohammad Hamed, an Egyptian army officer with the rank of lieutenant colonel, was severely wounded during military activity in one of the villages in the Bir al-Abd region (Shahed Sinaa – al-Rasmia Facebook page, November 26, 2020).

• On November 29, 2020, an IED was activated against an Egyptian army bulldozer in the village of Husseinat, east of Sheikh Zuweid. The passengers were wounded. The bulldozer was destroyed.
• On November 26, 2020, a compound of the Egyptian Border Police on the Rafah beach was targeted by gunfire and hand grenades. Several soldiers were wounded.

   
Right: At least six ISIS operatives seen during an attack on an Egyptian Border Police compound on the Rafah beach (Telegram, November 28, 2020). Left: An ISIS sniper shooting at the Egyptian Border Police compound on the Rafah beach (Telegram, November 28, 2020)

• On November 25, 2020, an IED was activated against an Egyptian army APC east of Sheikh Zuweid. The passengers were killed or wounded.
• On November 24, 2020, an IED was activated against two Egyptian soldiers southwest of Sheikh Zuweid. Both of them were killed.

ISIS’s activity around the globe^[4]

Summary of ISIS’s activity in the various provinces (November 19-25, 2020)

• ISIS released an infographic summarizing its activity on November 19-25, 2020. During this time, ISIS operatives carried out 59 attacks in the various provinces in Asia and Africa (same as in the previous week). Most of the attacks were carried out in Iraq (33). Attacks were also carried out in ISIS’s other provinces: Syria (8); Sinai Peninsula (7); West Africa (5); Khorasan, i.e., Afghanistan (3); and Central Africa (3) (Al-Naba’ weekly, Telegram, November 26, 2020).
• A total of 126 people were killed and wounded in those attacks, compared to 131 in the previous week. The largest number of casualties was in Iraq (47). The other casualties were in the following provinces: West Africa (43); Syria (17); Central Africa (11); Sinai Peninsula (7); and Khorasan, i.e., Afghanistan (1) (Al-Naba’ weekly, Telegram, November 26, 2020).

Africa

Nigeria

• On November 30, 2020, ISIS operatives set up a roadblock on a road northwest of Maiduguri (the capital of Borno State, in northeastern Nigeria). An International Red Cross official was taken prisoner.
• On November 29, 2020, ISIS operatives ambushed and fired machine guns at Nigerian soldiers in Borno State. Several soldiers were killed or wounded.
• On November 28, 2020, ISIS operatives attacked a headquarters of the forces supporting the Nigerian army, about 200 km southwest of Maiduguri. The fighters supporting the Nigerian army fled. The headquarters and homes of three fighters were set on fire. Weapons and ammunition were seized.
• On November 26, 2020, ISIS operatives set up a roadblock between the towns of Gubio (about 80 km northwest of Maiduguri) and Damasak (about 3 km south of the border between Nigeria and Niger). A Nigerian police officer and a fighter of forces supporting the Nigerian police were taken prisoner.
• On November 25, 2020, ISIS operatives ambushed Nigerian soldiers, firing machine guns and activating an IED on the road east/northeast of Maiduguri (in Borno State in northeastern Nigeria). In addition, weapons and ammunition were seized.
• On November 25, 2020, ISIS operatives ambushed and fired machine guns at Nigerian soldiers about 50 km west of the Nigeria-Chad-Cameroon tri-border area. Several soldiers were killed or wounded.

Massacre of local civilians

• On November 28, 2020, armed men apparently belonging to Boko Haram (Note: This refers to ISIS-affiliated operatives) attacked farmers in rice fields in a village about 20 km northeast of Maiduguri. The farmers’ hands were bound and their throats slit. At least 110 people were murdered. Many other people were wounded. Several women were reportedly abducted (The Guardian, November 29, 2020). To date, no organization has claimed responsibility for the mass murder.

Chad

Activation of an IED in Lake Chad

On the night of November 24-25, 2020, an IED was activated against a ship carrying Chadian soldiers as it sailed between reeds in the northern part of Lake Chad (about 25 km east of the border between Chad and Nigeria). Four soldiers were killed and 16 were seriously wounded. The Chadian authorities noted that this type of attack, in which an IED was detonated in the water, is new (Medafrica Times, November 26, 2020).

• ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack. According to the claim of responsibility, on November 24, 2020, ISIS operatives fired machine guns and then activated an IED against a ship carrying Chadian and Canadian soldiers (sic) (note: Canadian soldiers were not mentioned in local media reports). According to ISIS, dozens of Chadian soldiers and four Canadian soldiers were killed and others were wounded. The ship was destroyed and weapons and ammunition were seized. According to ISIS, the force that was attacked was preparing for an attack against ISIS positions on the shores of Lake Chad. According to ISIS, as a result of the many losses, the operation of the Chadian army and its allies in the region was postponed (Telegram, November 26, 2020).
• ISIS mentioned the attack on the ship in its Al-Naba’ weekly and included a photo showing three ISIS operatives standing on a boat on Lake Chad. According to the weekly, the boat was full of soldiers who arrived in the region as part of an operation against ISIS. The boat was destroyed in an explosion and sank. As a result, the planned operation against ISIS was canceled (Al-Naba’ weekly, Telegram, November 26, 2020).

   
Right: The place where the ship sank in Ngouboua, in the northern part of Lake Chad (Google Maps). Left: ISIS operatives standing on the ship in Lake Chad (Al-Naba’ weekly, Telegram, November 26, 2020)

• It should be recalled that on November 18, 2020, ISIS operatives planted an IED near the shores of Lake Chad, in western Chad. The IED was activated when a ship carrying Chadian soldiers drew near. According to ISIS, dozens of soldiers were killed. The ship was destroyed and sank. In the ITIC’s assessment, ISIS drew encouragement from the success of the attack on the shores of Lake Chad and therefore carried out a similar attack six days later. In the ITIC’s assessment, ISIS will continue to carry out such attacks on the shores of Lake Chad and may adopt this modus operandi for additional bodies of water in its areas of operation.

Democratic Republic of the Congo

• On November 29, 2020, ISIS operatives attacked Congolese forces in the Beni region in northeastern Congo (about 6 km west of the border with Uganda). Several soldiers were wounded. In addition, weapons and ammunition were seized.
• On November 27, 2020, an RPG rocket was fired at a Congolese army truck in the Beni region in northeastern Congo (about 6 km west of the border with Uganda). Five soldiers were killed or wounded.

Asia

Afghanistan

• On November 28, 2020, an Afghan army commander and two of his escorts were targeted by machine gun fire in the Sorkhrud region, about 11 km west of Jalalabad. All three were killed. In addition, weapons, ammunition and military equipment were seized.

Indonesia

Killing of four residents of a Christian village in Indonesia

• On November 27, 2020, about eight ISIS operatives armed with rifles and machetes attacked a Christian village in the center of Indonesia’s Sulawesi Province. The operatives killed four men: the first was beheaded, the second had his throat cut, the third was stabbed, and the fourth was burned to death in his home. ISIS operatives set fire to six homes and a house used for prayers and religious services (The Straits Times, a Singapore-based news site, and AFP, November 28, 2020).
• ISIS’s East Asia Province claimed responsibility for the attack. According to the claim of responsibility, ISIS operatives attacked a Christian village. Like the media reports, the claim of responsibility stated that four Christians had been killed and that a building used as a church and six houses had been set on fire.

An article about the Al-Shabab movement in Somalia

• Researcher Abdi Ismail Samatar, one of Somalia’s most prominent researchers, analyzed the Al-Shabaab movement in Somalia in his latest article. His conclusion is that that the organization has created a “shadow state” that includes an independent administrative, financial and legal system, which Somalia’s residents are forced to cooperate with in the absence of a stable and effective state regime^[5].

The transformation of Somalia into a “shadow state” by the Al-Shabaab movement

• According to the researcher, Al-Shabaab, which is affiliated with Al-Qaeda, has turned Somalia, which is under its actual control, into a “shadow state,” i.e., a quasi-state apparatus operating below the surface, as a substitute for the nation-state apparatus. This was made possible in view of the failure of the international community, the African Union^[6], the UN, and local politicians. All of them have failed to secure Mogadishu and other major population centers from the menace of Al-Shabaab. Where the African Union has put troops on the ground in partnership with poorly trained Somali forces, Al-Shabaab simply retreats from the area which was occupied by the Somali army but its network remains inside the ‘liberated” areas to intimidate the population.

Al-Shabaab’s administrative system

• Al-Shabaab is not just a terrorist organization. It maintains an efficient and impressive administrative system. Its people collect taxes from the population from the sale of houses and imported goods, and the Somali local government does not prevent this. These operatives have also put a credible system of ‘justices’ in place to adjudicate conflicts and disputes. Government courts are so corrupt the public avoids them as they are known to serve the highest bidder. Individuals who are aggrieved then appeal to Al-Shabaab for justice. Indeed, while Al-Shabaab provides a quick and efficient, effective court system, justices in government courts take an extremely long time and always rule in favor of the powerful.

Al-Shabaab’s financial conduct

• Al-Shabaab transfers the monies at its disposal through local banks and financial institutions. At the same time, the government has not yet been able to secure the local financial system, for example by issuing a national identity card whose veracity is beyond reproach.

Summary and conclusions

• Somali residents blackmailed by Al-Shabaab are accused by the government of collaborating with terrorism. In practice, however, the Somali government has failed to provide security for Mogadishu for the past two decades. As a result, Al-Shabaab can kill anyone who refuses to follow its orders. After failing to provide security for the country, the Somali government confronts, and even imprisons, residents who pay money to Al-Shabaab operatives who blackmail them, threatening their lives if they do not pay them various so-called taxes.
• Similarly, the UN, as well as the international community, accuse the locals of collaborating with Al-Shabaab terrorists and impose sanctions and fines on those suspected of collaborating with Al-Shabaab members. However, these locals are forced to pay taxes to Al-Shabaab operatives who blackmail them, in view of the precarious security situation in the country, which has developed due to government incompetence. Al-Shabaab operatives mercilessly kill and punish local citizens who do not cooperate with them.
• In conclusion, the researcher notes that the role of the UN and the international community is to ensure conditions under which Somali residents will not be forced to cooperate with terrorism. In addition, the Somali government, the UN and the international community must focus their efforts on creating security in the country and removing the influence of Al-Shabaab on the people of Somalia.

Counterterrorism and preventive activity

The United States

• On November 26, 2020, the US Department of State announced a reward of up to $5 million in cash to anyone providing information about Faruq al-Suri, former commander of the Guardians of Religion Organization (Al-Qaeda’s branch in Syria, which operates mainly in the Idlib region and is subordinate to Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri). According to the announcement, he spent decades fighting as an Al-Qaeda operative in Afghanistan and Iraq. The announcement states the means of communication through which the information can be conveyed (Twitter account of the US Department of the Treasury, November 30, 2020).

Turkey

Arrest of 22 Iraqi civilians in central Turkey on suspicion of being ISIS operatives

• On November 28, 2020, a local counterterrorism police force arrested 22 Iraqi civilians on suspicion of being ISIS operatives. They were arrested in the Yozgat Province, in central Turkey (Anadolu Agency, November 28, 2020).

^[1] According to ISIS’s claims of responsibility posted on Telegram ↑
[^2] According to ISIS’s claims of responsibility posted on Telegram ↑
^[3] According to ISIS’s claims of responsibility posted on Telegram ↑
^[4] According to ISIS’s claims of responsibility posted on Telegram ↑
^[5] Abdi Ismail Samatar, Al Shabab has created a perfect storm in Somalia. Hiiraan online – News and Information about Somalia. 14 October 2020: https://www.hiiraan.com/op4/2020/oct/180294/al_shabaab_has_created_a_perfect_storm_in_somalia.aspx
The author is a professor of Geography at the University of Minnesota and a research fellow at the University of Pretoria. His latest book is “Africa’s First Democrats.” He is a Somali Muslim researcher (born in 1950) who acquired his full academic education in US universities. He received many prizes, held professional academic posts relevant to his field of interest and gave interviews to the international media. ↑
^[6] The African Union is an organization on the African continent with 55 member states. It began operating in July 2002, mainly with the goal of creating unity and solidarity among its members, maintaining their territorial integrity and promoting peace and security on the continent. The African Union has a military mission in Somalia (The African Union Mission in Somalia, AMISOM), established in 2007 and numbering about 20,000 military personnel, with the aim of helping the local government improve its security capabilities in coping with Al-Shabaab. However, this mission has not yet recorded any real achievements, especially in view of disagreements with the local government on various issues. ↑

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