Government & Politics

Austria appoints Jordanian as security chief Appointment follows criticism of old security organisation after failure to prevent attack by Islamic State sympathiser in November

(Middle East Eye) An Austrian-Jordanian has been appointed … head of the country’s new security agency, following harsh criticism of the previous institution’s failure to prevent an attack by an alleged Islamic State (IS) sympathiser. The appointment of Omar Haijawi-Pirchner as head […]

Crime

Republican lawmaker presses DHS on Afghan refugees flagged for terror ties Rep. Mark Green also requests info on reports of 'sexual assault, theft, and violence in evacuee processing facilities'

(Free Beacon) A Republican lawmaker is demanding the Department of Homeland Security address reports that some Afghan asylum seekers are on terror watchlists and have been accused of sexual assault, according to a letter obtained by the Washington Free Beacon. “According to […]

Legal

Montgomery County couple sentenced to prison for supporting their relatives’ efforts to join ISIS Shahidul Gaffar and Nabila Khan, of Collegeville, sent $5,600 to relatives in Bangladesh to fund their travel to Syria. But the couple maintained Thursday they did it out of love for family not ISIS.

(Philadelphia Inquirer) A husband and wife from Montgomery County each were ordered Thursday to spend more than a year in federal prison for sending money overseas to help two relatives travel to Syria and join ISIS. Shahidul Gaffar, 40, and Nabila Khan, […]

Government & Politics

Belgian MP condemns intelligence failure that led to death of Paris attack ‘mastermind’ Authorities have failed to learn the lessons of the radicalisation of a key planner of the deadly terrorist strikes in 2015

(National-UAE) A Belgian politician who investigated the suspected mastermind of the 2015 Paris terrorist attacks said mistakes have been repeated that have left youngsters at risk from dangerous radicalisers in their communities. Belgian-Moroccan citizen Oussama Atar is believed to have been killed […]

Law Enforcement

9/11: 20 years on, Germany still grapples with militant Islamists On the 20th anniversary of 9/11, the Taliban flag is flying over Kabul again. A German police expert fears that Afghanistan could once again become a gathering place for jihadis — including from Germany.

(Deutsche Welle) Sven Kurenbach still remembers the images of the twin towers of the World Trade Center collapsing and the spontaneous minute of silence at the Berlin police department that followed. When Islamist terrorists weaponized passenger planes on September 11, 2001 — killing […]

Law Enforcement

Germany arrests suspected ‘Islamic State’ fundraiser A woman has been detained in southern Germany on suspicion of aiding the terror group 'Islamic State.' Prosecutors believe she may have helped organize money transfers to militants in the Middle East.

(Deutsche Welle) German federal prosecutors arrested a woman on Monday suspected of collecting money for the extremist “Islamic State” (IS) group and helping with bank transfers to the Middle East. The suspect, identified only as Denise S., is thought to have been in contact with […]