Tag: ISIS

Video Shows Egyptian In Libya Becoming A Suicide Bomber

A four-minute video shows a young man identified as Mosa’ab el Mohager in the back of a car, driving near the outskirts of Benghazi.

It ends with a shot of a distant explosion, which was supposedly the explosion of the young man carrying out a “martyrdom operation” in the name of the local Libyan branch of ISIS.

“We, unfortunately, are likely to see more and more of these tapes,” said Khaled Masouri, a 27-year-old Egyptian teacher who recently returned to Cairo from a year-long teaching project in Libya. “There are many Egyptians flocking to these jihadi groups.”

Thousands of Egyptians are estimated to be fighting with ISIS in Iraq and Syria, states BuzzFeed.

Egypt’s military has openly bombed ISIS targets in Libya.

However, Egyptian officials fear that thousands more Egyptioans could join the ISIS militants that it’s attacking, in a country that it shares a long, porous border with.

More here

Saudi Arabia Has Beheaded 57 People This Year Alone


Secular Talk

While we focus on the beheadings in the fight with ISIS in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia has beheaded 57 criminals this year, according to Agence France-Presse.  The most recent beheading was for the crime of drug smuggling.

Is there a double-standard in our dealings with the different countries of the Middle East?  Does it have a relationship to oil and economics?

More:

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/Flash.aspx/320976#.VSQIEfnF9AQ

Reagan-Era Conservative Buchanan Disagrees With Fox News’ Sean Hannity On Iran

Secular Talk

“Old-Time” conservative Pat Buchanan “gets it” about Iran and the fight against ISIS.

The fight in Iraq is the Sunni rebel ISIS against Iran-backed Shia Muslims.

Buchanan was a senior advisor to Nixon, Ford, and Reagan, according to Wikipedia.

Fox News’ Sean Hannity doesn’t seem to understand the situation on the ground in the Middle East.  He apparently wants the United States to fight both sides in the battle of Sunni rebel ISIS vs. Iran-backed Shia. The U.S. has to pick a side – hopefully the lesser of two evils.

In World War II, you wouldn’t fight both the Nazis AND Britain.  You pick a side.  Hannity doesn’t seem to get it.

Has There Been Progress In Tikrit?

Is the U.S. winning in Tikrit?

Iraqi prime minister Haider al-Abadi confirmed recently that the city of Tikrit (in Iraq) has been recaptured from Islamic State (ISIS) after a long battle.

Tikrit was considered Saddam Hussein’s hometown.

Haider al-Abadi went on live television to announce the liberation of Tikrit and congratulated the Iraqi security forces and popular volunteers “on the historic milestone,” according to the IB Times U.K.

According to the I.B. Times U.K., “an Iraqi commander said the Iraqi flag is flying on the Salaheddin provincial headquarters in the flashpoint city.”

Previously, Iraqi Shi’ite militias halted Tikrit operations following US air strikes on IS defenders.

A spokesman for the Ministry of Defense, A’laa al-Idani, told IBTimes UK air strikes by the US and its coalition allies would help to destroy the network of tunnels where IS militants were holed up and allow the army and militias to fully take the city after over a week of fighting.

Iraqi forces launched an attack to push IS out of Tikrit on March 2nd, with a force of 30,000 Sunni and Shi’ite fighters. Taking back Tikrit could serve as a launchpad for a key battle to seize Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city, back from the jihadists.

More here:

http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/tikrit-liberated-iraqi-army-have-routed-isis-saddam-husseins-home-town-says-pm-abadi-1494411

Do Some Right-Wingers Want To Bomb Iran?


Majority Report

Iran is fighting against ISIS in the Middle East, and backing Shia militias to help in the fight against ISIS.  Does this make Iran our ally?

That doesn’t matter to Louie Gohmert, who on Fox News said again that he would like to bomb Iran.

Are Sunni And Shia The Same?


Secular Talk

Are all Muslims the same? Does religion play a role in the Middle East?

Is ISIS and Iran on the same side, or are they fighting each other?

Is Bashar Assad on the same side as ISIS?

The turmoil in Yemen grew into a regional conflict Thursday, with Sunni Saudi Arabia and its allies bombing Shiite rebels allied with Iran, while Egyptian officials said a ground assault will follow the airstrikes.

Sean Penn Discusses Dick Cheney

What does actor Sean Penn have to say about former Vice President Dick Cheney?  On March 18th, he discussed it with talk show host Conan O’Brien.  They also discussed Cuba and ISIS.

Video by Team Coco

UN Human Rights Office: The ICC Should Prosecute ISIS For Genocide, War Crimes

The U.N. human rights office said Thursday that Islamic State fighters may have committed genocide against the minority Yazidi community in Iraq as well as crimes against humanity and war crimes against civilians including children.

In a report based on interviews with more than 100 alleged victims and witnesses, it urged the UN Security Council to refer the situation to the International Criminal Court (ICC) for prosecution of perpetrators.

The UN Human Rights Council launched its inquiry in September after the Islamist militant group Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL, seized large areas of land in northern Iraq.

The report said the Security Council should “consider referring the situation in Iraq to the International Criminal Court,” states the Jerusalem Post.

The UN investigators also cited allegations that ISIS had used chlorine gas, a prohibited chemical weapon, against Iraqi soldiers in the western province of Anbar in September.

Captured women and children were treated as “spoils of war”, and often subjected to rape or sexual slavery, states the Jerusalem Post.

(Updated article)

ISIS Militant Jihadi John May Still Have Bank Account In U.K. – And Be Withdrawing Money From It

The British ISIS militant known as “Jihadi John” may still have access to a U.K. bank account, claims the publication The Independent.  The 26-year-old Londoner, whose real name is Mohammed Emwazi, has appeared in several propaganda videos showing the brutal murders of international hostages.

However, despite the atrocities he has committed, any assets held by Emwazi have not been frozen by the Treasury, the Sunday Telegraph reported.

The newspaper referenced a report by David Anderson QC, which looked into the operation of the “Terrorist Asset-Freezing etc. Act 2010 (Tafa)” in the year to September 2014.

The act gives the Treasury the power to freeze the assets of individuals and groups who are thought to be involved in terrorism, whether in the U.K. or abroad – even if they have not been charged with or convicted of an offense.

Only 25 individuals are currently affected by the law – and Emwazi is not among them, claims The Independent.

More here:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/islamic-state/11472133/Jihadi-John-keeps-his-bank-account-after-Treasury-freezes-assets-of-only-a-handful-of-Islamic-terrorists.html

(Updated post)