Spotlight on Global Jihad (December 17-23, 2020)

Main events of the past week

• Routine attacks continued in ISIS’s various provinces in Syria, Iraq and throughout Africa and Asia. Noteworthy examples:
  • Syria: routine activity continued in the area of Deir al-Zor and Al-Mayadeen and in the desert region west of the Euphrates Valley. Prominent modus operandi of ISIS’s attacks included targeted killings and the activation of IEDs against vehicles and soldiers of the SDF and the Syrian army.
  • Iraq: the activity in northern and western Iraq consisted primarily of activating IEDs and targeted killings. The Iraqi Counterterrorism Unit has issued a report summarizing its activity against ISIS in 2020. According to the report, in the past year, 206 ISIS operatives were killed and 292 were apprehended.
  • Congo: the fighting continues between ISIS operatives and Congolese soldiers in the northeast of the country. According to ISIS, dozens of Congolese soldiers were killed in the fighting.
• Afghanistan: ISIS claims to have fired 12 rockets at the Bagram Airbase, north of Kabul, where US army troops are stationed. According to Afghan media reports, the Kabul police had neutralized the rockets before they were fired.

The Syrian arena

The Idlib region

In the Idlib region, exchanges of artillery fire continued between the Syrian army and the forces supporting it, and the rebel organizations. They were focused on the contact lines in Jabal Zawiya, south of Idlib. There were also reports of Syrian airstrikes about 13 km south of Jisr al-Shughur, southwest of Idlib (Edlib Media Center, December 20, 2020).

ISIS’s activity in Syria^[1]

The region of Deir ez-Zor and Al-Mayadeen

• On December 22, 2020, a sticky bomb was activated against a vehicle of the head of one of the local councils about 40 km northwest of Deir ez-Zor. He was killed.
• On December 21, 2020, ISIS operatives attacked an SDF headquarters in the Diban area, about 5 km east of Al-Mayadeen. Five fighters were killed or wounded.
• On December 19, 2020, an IED was activated against a vehicle of the head of the local council in the village of Shahil, about 10 km north of Al-Mayadeen. No casualties were reported (Ayn al-Furat Facebook page, December 19, 2020). ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack. According to ISIS, the vehicle was destroyed, but there was no mention of the condition of the head of the local council.
• On the morning of December 19, 2020, contact was lost with five soldiers of the Syrian army 4th Division in the area of Jabal Bishri, west of Deir ez-Zor. They were on their way to their positions near Jabal Bishri (Ayn al-Furat opposition website, December 19, 2020; Ibaa, December 20, 2020). So far, no organization has claimed responsibility for their disappearance. However, ISIS may have been behind it.
• On December 19, 2020, two SDF fighters were targeted by machine gun fire about 10 km north of Al-Mayadeen. Both of them were killed.
• On December 18, 2020, an RPG rocket was fired at a vehicle of an SDF commander about 10 km north of Al-Mayadeen. Two of his escorts were wounded.
• On December 17, 2020, an IED was activated against an SDF vehicle about 10 km north of Al-Mayadeen. The passengers were wounded.
• On December 15, 2020, an IED was activated against an SDF vehicle about 4 km north of Deir ez-Zor. The passengers were wounded.

The desert region (Al-Badia)

• On December 16, 2020, a vehicle of the Homeland Defense Forces was targeted by gunfire or hit by an IED on the Ithriya road (about 100 km northeast of Hama). Three fighters were killed (@ALBADIA24 Twitter account, December 16, 2020).

The Syrian-Turkish border region

• On December 18, 2020, an IED was activated against a commander in the rebel organizations operating under Turkish sponsorship in the city of Afrin, about 40 km northwest of Aleppo (and about 30 km east of the Syrian-Turkish border). The commander and his escort were wounded.

SDF counterterrorism activities

• On December 22, 2020, SDF fighters detained six ISIS operatives in a village about 30 km southwest of Al-Raqqah. Breaking into their houses, they found weapons and ammunition and $30,000 in cash. The detainees were transferred to a prison about 40 km west of Al-Raqqah. From there, they will be transferred to the Ghuwayran Prison (in the south of Al-Hasakah), which is designated for detaining ISIS operatives (Khotwa, December 22, 2020).
• On December 22, 2020, before dawn, SDF commando forces were dropped by International Coalition helicopters in the village of Shahil, about 10 km north of Al-Mayadeen. The purpose of the operation was to detain a Shahil resident who had set up an ISIS squad responsible for targeted killings in that area (Khotwa, December 22, 2020).

The Iraqi arena

ISIS attacks in the various provinces^[2]

Diyala Province

• On December 22, 2020, two IEDs were activated against members of the Counterterrorism Unit about 30 km northeast of Baqubah. One of them was killed and eight were wounded, including four officers.
• On December 18, 2020, a Counterterrorism Unit officer was targeted by machine gun fire about 20 km northeast of Baqubah. He was wounded.

Kirkuk Province

• On December 20, 2020, an Iraqi soldier was targeted by machine gun fire about 70 km south of Kirkuk. He was killed. In addition, an IED was activated against an Iraqi army vehicle in the area. The passengers were killed or wounded.
• On December 20, 2020, an Iraqi policeman was targeted by sniper fire about 40 km southwest of Kirkuk. He was killed. A police vehicle was targeted by machine gun fire in that same area, and another policeman was killed.
• On December 18, 2020, a Tribal Mobilization fighter was targeted by machine gun fire in a village 60 km southwest of Kirkuk. He was killed.

Al-Anbar Province

• On December 17, 2020, an IED was activated against a Popular Mobilization vehicle on the Haditha road. The passengers were killed or wounded.

Counterterrorism activities by the Iraqi security forces

Summary of the Iraqi Counterterrorism Unit against ISIS in 2020

On December 19, 2020, the Iraqi Counterterrorism Unit published a summary of its activity against ISIS in 2020. According to the report, 253 operations were carried out, in which 292 ISIS operatives were apprehended and 206 were killed. Some of the operations were carried out with the support of the Iraqi Air Force and International Coalition aircraft. In addition, teams of the Unit’s Digital Security monitored 26,280 accounts and channels of ISIS operatives on social media and messaging apps (Facebook page of the Iraqi Counterterrorism Apparatus, December 19, 2020).

Salah al-Din Province

• On December 21, 2020, an IED was activated against an Iraqi army vehicle about 20 km northeast of Samarra. The passengers were killed.
• On December 20, 2020, an Iraqi army force located an ISIS weapons depot about 100 km north of Baghdad. The depot contained several dozen rockets, 25 mortar shells, and four C4 plastic explosive charges (Facebook page of Iraqi Army Spokesman Yahya Rasoul, December 20, 2020).
• On December 19, 2020, in an operation that lasted for several days, the Iraqi National Security Apparatus apprehended five ISIS operatives who were members of a squad that activated IEDs against the Iraqi security forces in the Al-Tarmiyah District, about 30 km north of Baghdad (Facebook page of Iraqi Army Spokesman Yahya Rasoul, December 19, 2020).
• On December 18, 2020, a force of the Samarra Operations Headquarters which carried out searches on the outskirts of the city located and destroyed an ISIS guesthouse (Facebook page of Iraqi Army Spokesman Yahya Rasoul, December 18, 2020).

Kirkuk Province

• On December 19, 2020, forces of the Iraqi Counterterrorism Unit detained three ISIS operatives in the Hawija District, about 60 km southwest of Kirkuk (Facebook page of the Iraqi Counterterrorism Unit, December 19, 2020).

The city of Baghdad

• On December 18, 2020, teams of the Baghdad Intelligence and Security Directorate captured two wanted ISIS operatives in two neighborhoods in the southwestern part of Baghdad (Facebook page of the Iraqi Defense Ministry, December 18, 2020).

The Sinai Peninsula

ISIS’s activity in northern Sinai^[3]

• On December 18, 2020, an IED was activated against an Egyptian army APC south of Sheikh Zuweid. Two junior officers and three soldiers were killed (Shahed Sinaa – al-Rasmia Facebook page, December 18, 2020).

Three civilians abducted west of Bir al-Abd

• On December 22, 2020, three members of the same family were abducted about 10 km northwest of Rabi’a (Shahed Sinaa – al-Rasmia Facebook page, December 22, 2020). So far, no organization has claimed responsibility for the attack, but it was probably carried out by ISIS.

ISIS’s activity around the globe^[4]

Summary of ISIS’s activity in its various provinces

ISIS released an infographic summarizing its activity on December 10-16, 2020. During this period, ISIS operatives carried out 48 attacks in the various provinces in Asia and Africa, compared to 62 attacks in the previous week. Most of the attacks were carried out in Iraq (19). Attacks were also carried out in ISIS’s other provinces: West Africa (13); Syria (9); Sinai Peninsula (3); Khorasan, i.e., Afghanistan (3); and Somalia (1) (Al-Naba’ weekly, Telegram, December 17, 2020).

• A total of 156 people were killed and wounded in those attacks, compared to 153 in the previous week. The largest number of casualties was in West Africa (86). The other casualties were in the following provinces: Syria (38); Iraq (26); Somalia (3); Khorasan, i.e., Afghanistan (2); and the Sinai Peninsula (1) (Al-Naba’ weekly, Telegram, December 17, 2020).

Africa

Nigeria

• On December 21, 2020, ISIS operatives set up a roadblock about 40 km west of Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State, in northeastern Nigeria. A Christian civilian was taken prisoner.
• On December 19, 2020, ISIS operatives attacked a Nigerian army compound in a town located about 15 km south of Maiduguri. Five soldiers were killed and three others were wounded. ISIS operatives ambushed and fired machine guns at Nigerian soldiers and fighters of the militias that support the Nigerian army, about 45 km east of Maiduguri. Five soldiers and fighters were killed and two others were wounded. In addition, weapons, ammunition, and vehicles were seized.
• On December 19, 2020, ISIS operatives set up a roadblock west of Maiduguri. A soldier and three Christian civilians were taken prisoner.
• On December 18, 2020, ISIS operatives attacked a Christian village in Borno State. Two Christian civilians were shot to death.
• On December 17, 2020, ISIS operatives attacked a Nigerian army camp about 50 km west of the Nigeria-Chad-Cameroon tri-border area. Several soldiers were killed or wounded.
• On December 16, 2020, ISIS operatives exchanged fire with Nigerian soldiers near Maiduguri. Five soldiers were killed and others were wounded. In addition, weapons, ammunition, and motorcycles were seized.
• On December 15, 2020, an IED was activated against a Nigerian army vehicle about 200 km north of Maiduguri. Six soldiers were killed.
• On December 13, 2020, ISIS operatives attacked a headquarters of forces supporting the Nigerian army in a town located about 90 km north of Damaturu, the capital of Yobe State. Two soldiers were killed and others were wounded. In addition, weapons and ammunition were seized.

Democratic Republic of the Congo

• On December 18, 2020, ISIS operatives attacked a Congolese army compound in a village in the Beni region in northeastern Congo (about 50 km west of the border with Uganda). A total of 17 soldiers were killed. In addition, weapons and ammunition were seized.
• On December 18, 2020, ISIS operatives repelled a Congolese army attack by activating IEDs and firing machine guns in northeastern Congo (about 50 km west of the border with Uganda). Several soldiers were killed or wounded.
• On December 18, 2020, a Congolese soldier was targeted by machine gun fire in the Beni region, about 50 km west of the border with Uganda. He was killed.
• On December 18, 2020, ISIS operatives repelled an attack by the Congolese army in a village in the Beni region. The two sides exchanged fire. A total of 13 soldiers were killed and others were wounded. In addition, one soldier was taken prisoner and weapons and ammunition were seized.

Mali

Reports of a non-combat agreement between the Mali government and ISIS and Al-Qaeda

• On December 22, 2020, various media outlets reported that a non-combat agreement had been reached between General Ag Gamou, commander of the Touareg tribal division in Mali, which is loyal to the Mali government, and the Islamic State (ISIS) in the Sahara, and Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimeen (an umbrella framework comprising various Salafist-jihadi organizations affiliated with Al-Qaeda in north and west Africa). It is not clear how reliable the report is and whether such an agreement, if it has indeed been reached, will actually be implemented on the ground (The Washington Post, December 22, 2020; Azawad News, December 22, 2020).

Asia

ISIS activity in Southeast Asia

Three researchers, Amira Jadoon, Nakissa Jahanbani and Charmaine Willis, published a joint article addressing the main characteristics of ISIS’s activity in Southeast Asia between 2014 and 2019 (the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia). The researchers emphasize the dangers in each of the countries in the region, and especially the threat posed by ISIS in Malaysia, where they claim there is a large potential pool of recruits.^[5]

Background

• Starting in mid-2014 with Isnilon Hapilon of the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) in the Philippines, a series of Southeast Asian militants pledged allegiance to the Islamic State. Another key milestone in the development of ISIS’s branch in Southeast Asia was the arrival of an ISIS operative named Bahrun Naim in Syria (2014), where he joined a group of fighters from Southeast Asia who were fighting in the ranks of ISIS. He was subsequently arrested by Indonesia’s counterterrorism force. He later orchestrated connections across disparate Islamic State-linked factions in Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines.
• As ISIS began to lose territory [in Iraq and Syria] in 2016 and 2017, it encouraged Southeast Asian supporters to travel to the Philippines to wage jihad rather than migrate to the Middle East (and join the ranks of ISIS). The activity in Southeast Asia began in 2014. Since 2016, a wave of lethal attacks, including a number of attempted and successful suicide attacks, claimed by the Islamic State across the region have led to heightened concerns about the group’s mounting influence within Southeast Asian countries.
• The peak in casualties as a result of ISIS activity in Southeast Asia was in 2017. In 2018, there was a moderate decline, followed by another increase in 2019, with an increase in the number of suicide bombing attacks. In 2017, the number of terrorist attacks gradually decreased. In 2019, the number of fatalities and wounded in each attack was higher than in the attacks carried out in previous years. ISIS focused on public civilian targets such as markets and parks, but the most deadly attacks were carried out against government targets, mainly military and police.

The main ISIS-affiliated terrorist groups

• The article lists at least six local jihadi groups that carried out ISIS-affiliated attacks in 2014-2019, [mainly in the Philippines]. These groups include: Jamaat Ansharut Daulah (JAD) and Mujahideen of Eastern Indonesia (MIT) in Indonesia, the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG), the Maute Group, Ansarul Khilafah Philippines (AKP), and the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) in the Philippines.

Characteristics of ISIS activity in Southeast Asia and trends for the future

• Three characteristics can be discerned in ISIS’s activity in Southeast Asia in the years under review. The first: upticks in numbers killed and wounded per attack in 2018 and 2019. The second: a marked increase in the use of suicide attacks, especially in 2019; The third: a significant number of foiled and failed attacks in Indonesia and Malaysia as well as associated arrests.
• The researchers note that it is also important to be cognizant of country-specific trends, such as the increased role of women in suicide attacks in Indonesia, independent plotters in Malaysia, and the general presence of returning foreign fighters. In the opinion of the researchers, the most important dimension of the Islamic State threat may be the existing militant infrastructure offered by Islamic State operational alliances, in Malaysia, the primary threat exists in the form of independent plotters and radicalized individuals who present a pool of potential recruits for existing networks of militants in the region.

Afghanistan

• On December 22, 2020, an IED was activated against a vehicle of Afghan Prison Administration officials in Kabul. Five of the passengers were killed.
• On December 21, 2020, a Taliban operative was targeted by gunfire. He had served as an “agent” of the Afghan Special Forces in the Chaparhar Hada area in central Jalalabad. He was killed.
• On December 20, 2020, an IED was activated against an Afghan police vehicle in the city of Jalalabad. Two policemen were killed and two others were wounded.
• On the morning of December 19, 2020, five rockets fired from vehicles hit Bagram military airbase, about 40 km north of Kabul. Kabul police managed to deactivate seven more rockets before they were fired. There were no casualties (Afghanistan Times, December 19, 2020). ISIS claimed responsibility. According to its claim of responsibility, 12 rockets were fired at the airbase, where US soldiers are stationed (Telegram, December 19, 2020).

• On December 17, 2020, three Afghan National Security personnel were targeted by machine gun fire in the city of Jalalabad. One soldier was killed and two others were wounded.

^[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] Amira Jadoon, Nakissa Jahanbani and Charmaine Willis, Rising in the East: A Regional Overview of the Islamic State's Operations in Southeast Asia. Combating Terrorism Center at West Point: United States Military Academy, July 2020. Dr. Amira Jadoon is an assistant professor at the Combating Terrorism Center and the Department of Social Sciences at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. She specializes in international security, economic statecraft, political violence, and terrorism. Dr. Nakissa Jahanbani is an instructor and researcher at the Combating Terrorism Center, where she focuses on the evolution of Iran’s relationship with its proxies in Syria and Iraq. A separate vein of her research studies states’ support of terrorist and insurgent organizations. Charmaine Willis is a Ph.D. candidate at the Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy at the University at Albany, SUNY. She specializes in East Asia and contentious politics. ↑

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