Spotlight on Global Jihad (July 15-21, 2021)

Main events of the past week

• Syria: Idlib region – 10 soldiers were killed and several others were wounded in exchanges of artillery fire between the Syrian army and the rebels. Eight civilians were also killed. HTS, the dominant organization in the rebel enclave in Idlib, issued an ultimatum to the operatives of Jund al-Sham (an organization of Chechen operatives) operating in the rebel enclave, ordering them to either join it or disband their organization. Al-Raqqah region – ISIS fired machine guns and a tanker belonging to the Al-Qaterji company, which supplies oil to the Syrian regime, east of Al-Raqqa. According to ISIS, the tanker was put out of commission.
• Iraq: One noteworthy attack this week was a deadly attack carried out by ISIS operatives on the eve of Eid al-Adha in a crowded open market in a Shiite neighborhood in east Baghdad. A total of 30 people were killed in the attack, including children, and 50 were wounded. ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack. At the same time, ISIS operatives continued their “economic war” against the Iraqi regime. Attacks were also carried out against the Iraqi army and the militias supporting it.
• Africa: ISIS announced the resumption of hostilities between its operatives and the joint forces of Mozambique, South Africa and Portugal in the Palma region, northeast of Mozambique. At least 15 fighters of the joint force were reportedly killed in the fighting. Nigeria – ISIS continued its activity, mainly against positions of the Nigerian army and the militias supporting it in the northeast of the country.
• Afghanistan: ISIS operatives continued to attack government and Taliban targets. One noteworthy attack was rocket fire at the Presidential Palace and the Green Zone (the embassy and government building compound) in the capital Kabul. Three rockets reportedly landed near the Presidential Palace during a prayer service attended by senior government officials. No fatalities were reported.
• This week, ISIS’s organ published photos documenting the organization’s activity in the various provinces.

The Syrian arena

The Idlib region

• This week, the Syrian army continued its artillery fire at the rebel enclave in Idlib. At least eight civilians were killed and 10 others were wounded. Several Syrian soldiers were killed by a rocket fired by the rebel forces at an armored vehicle (Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, July 14-18, 2021). Several other soldiers were killed and others were wounded in an attack carried out by the rebels in the northeastern part of the enclave, near Aleppo (Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, July 20, 2021).
• HTS, the dominant rebel organization in the enclave, issued an ultimatum to Jund al-Sham (a rebel organization consisting mostly of Chechens): they must join HTS or disband their organization. According to sources in Idlib, this was the reason the Jund al-Sham operatives left their positions in the western part of the enclave (Al-Monitor, July 15, 2021).

The desert region (Al-Badia)

• On July 19, 2021, four Syrian soldiers were ambushed and killed by ISIS operatives in the Palmyra desert region (Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, July 19, 2021). Russian fighter jets carried out over 50 airstrikes against ISIS targets in the area (Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, July 20, 2021).

Deir ez-Zor-Al-Mayadeen region^[1]

• On July 17, 2021, the vehicle of a commander in the SDF civilian council in Shahil, about 10 km north of Al-Mayadeen, was targeted by gunfire. He was killed.

Counterterrorism measures

• On July 15, 2021, an SDF patrol located five ISIS tunnels in the northern part of Deir ez-Zor. They found weapons (SDF Facebook page in the Deir ez-Zor region, July 15, 2021). The day before, the SDF forces arrested 10 people suspected of ISIS activity near Deir ez-Zor (www.kurdistan24.net, July 14, 2021).

Al-Raqqah Province

• On July 16, 2021, an oil tanker belonging to the Al-Qaterji company, which supplies oil to the Syrian regime, was targeted by gunfire in the Al-Manakher region, east of Al-Raqqah. It was put out of commission (Telegram, July 16, 2021).

The Iraqi arena

Deadly attack in a Shiite neighborhood in east Baghdad

• This week, ISIS carried out a multi-casualty attack in a Shiite neighborhood in the city of Baghdad. On July 19, 2021, on the eve of Eid al-Adha, there was an explosion in the Al-Wahilat open market in Sadr City, a Shiite neighborhood in east Baghdad. A total of 30 people, including children, were killed. Fifty people were wounded. According to eyewitnesses, the explosion was caused by an IED or an explosive belt. According to security sources, a self-manufactured IED exploded (Al-Sumaria, Al-Ghad channel, July 19, 20, 2021).

   
Scene of the attack in the Al-Wahilat open market in Sadr City, in east Baghdad
(Al-Sumaria, July 19, 2021)

• ISIS issued a statement claiming responsibility for the attack. According to its claim of responsibility, the attack was carried out by an ISIS operative codenamed Abu Hamza al-Iraqi, who was wearing an explosive vest. ISIS claimed that at least 30 people had been killed and at least 35 had been wounded (Telegram, July 19, 2021). A photo of the suicide bomber was published the day after the attack (Telegram, July 20, 2021).

• The attack was carried out on the eve of Eid al-Adha, when the markets are very crowded, in a clearly Shiite neighborhood. The neighborhood in question is a stronghold of Shiite leader Muqtada Sadr. It should be noted that having suffered many suicide bombing attacks in 2017, the city of Baghdad had become much safer in recent years. However, this is the third suicide bombing attack carried out by ISIS in Baghdad over the past year.

Attacks by province

• This week as well, there were many ISIS attacks against electricity and gas infrastructure as part of the “economic war” waged by ISIS against the Iraqi authorities. At the same time, ISIS also carried out attacks against the Iraqi security forces and the militias supporting them. Following are the main ISIS attacks in the various provinces of Iraq^[2]:

Kirkuk Province

• On July 18, 2021, a police patrol that set up an ambush for ISIS in a house in Al-Tar, about 50 km southwest of Kirkuk, was targeted by gunfire. One policeman was killed and another was wounded.
• On July 17, 2021, rockets were fired at the headquarters of the Al-Shamal Gas Company in southwest Kirkuk. According to ISIS, a definite hit was identified. For the time being, no official sources have reported about it.
• On July 16, 2021, an Iraqi army guard post was targeted by gunfire. The post is intended to secure high-voltage pylons in the Dabas region, about 40 km northwest of Kirkuk. Four soldiers were killed. A force arriving on the scene to provide assistance was also targeted by gunfire. Several other soldiers were wounded. Two vehicles were damaged. The ISIS operatives seized weapons.

• On July 15, 2021, an Iraqi police post was targeted by gunfire in the Rashad region, about 40 km southwest of Kirkuk. One policeman was killed. Several days before, ISIS operatives claimed responsibility for downing an Iraqi police drone in the area.

• On July 14, 2021, an Iraqi police roadblock was targeted by gunfire on the outskirts of the Riyad region, about 50 km southwest of Kirkuk. One policeman was killed and another was wounded. Three days later (July 17, 2021), the same post was targeted by gunfire again. Two policemen were killed or wounded.

Al-Anbar Province (western Iraq)

• On July 18, 2021, three “spies” of the Iraqi security forces were targeted by gunfire east of Hit, in western Iraq. They were killed.
• On July 16, 2021, joint forces of the Iraqi army and the Tribal Mobilization operating in the Al-Anbar Desert were attacked. There was an exchange of fire. According to ISIS, the forces fled.

Salah al-Din Province

• On July 18, 2021, an IED was activated against an Iraqi army vehicle in the Zarka region, about 100 km northeast of Samarra. The passengers on board were wounded.
• On July 15, 2021, an IED was activated against a Popular Mobilization fighter riding a motorcycle east of Tuz Khormato, about 100 km northeast of Samarra. He was wounded.
• On July 13, 2021, a police post was attacked in the Al-Moatassem region, about 15 km southeast of Samarra. One policeman was wounded.

Diyala Province

• On July 17, 2021, an Iraqi army camp was targeted by gunfire east of Al-Miqdadiya, about 40 km northeast of Baqubah. One soldier was killed and two others were wounded.

Nineveh Province

• On July 14, 2021, an IED was activated against a Popular Mobilization ATV south of Mosul. Six fighters were killed or wounded.

Erbil Province

• On July 13, 2021, a Tribal Mobilization fighter was abducted and executed in the Makhmur region, about 70 km southeast of Mosul.

Babel Province

• On July 18, 2021, a camp of a Popular Mobilization militia (a Hezbollah militia) was targeted by gunfire in Jarf al-Sakhr, about 40 km south of Baghdad. One fighter was killed and another was wounded.

Counterterrorism measures in Iraq

Kirkuk Province

• The Iraqi security forces killed two ISIS operatives south of Kirkuk (Al-Sumaria, July 15, 2021).

Nineveh Province

• The Popular Mobilization forces foiled an attempt by ISIS operatives to activate IEDs against a high-voltage pylon south of Mosul (Al-Sumaria, July 18, 2021).

Babel Province

• A Popular Mobilization force foiled an attempt by ISIS operatives to enter the Jarf al-Sakhr region. The operatives activated an IED, killing a Popular Mobilization fighter (Popular Mobilization website, July 15, 2021).

The Sinai Peninsula

• On July 17, 2021, an IED was activated against an Egyptian army M90 tank on the outskirts of Al-Touma, south of Sheikh Zuweid. All the soldiers who were in the tank were killed or wounded. The tank was destroyed (shahidsinai2019 Facebook account, July 17, 2021).
• On July 17, 2021, ISIS operatives activated an IED against an Egyptian army water tanker south of the Kharafin roadblock, in the Sheikh Zuweid region. The tanker was put out of commission (Telegram, July 18, 2021).
• On July 12, 2021, ISIS operatives fired at a vehicle of a militia supporting the Egyptian army near Abu al-Araj, south of Sheikh Zuweid. All the passengers on board the vehicle were killed or wounded (Telegram, July 13, 2021).

The Gaza Strip

•   The Al-Qaeda-affiliated Salafi Army of the Nation in Jerusalem, a Salafist jihadi organization operating in the Gaza Strip, released a video intended to raise funds for the purchase of weapons for the organization (Telegram, July 17, 2021). This is not the first time it has campaigned to raise funds on the Internet. It repeatedly published posters calling on the public to donate in Bitcoin.^[3]

Summary of ISIS’s activity in the various provinces

•  Data from an infographic published by ISIS, summing up its activity around the world between July 8 and July 14, 2021, shows that during the past few weeks, there has been an increase in ISIS’s activity throughout the world. According to the data, in this period, ISIS carried out 85 attacks in the various provinces in Asia and Africa, compared to 78 attacks in the previous week. The largest number of attacks was carried out in Iraq (30). Attacks carried out in ISIS’s other provinces: Khorasan, i.e., Afghanistan (15); Central Africa (12); West Africa (12); Somalia (8); Syria (5); Sinai (3). A total of 189 people were killed or wounded in the attacks, compared to 140 in the previous week. The largest number of casualties was in West Africa (56). The other casualties were in the following provinces: Khorasan, i.e. Afghanistan (38); Iraq (31); Somalia (24); Central Africa (22); Sinai (9); Syria (9) (Al-Naba’ weekly, Telegram, July 15, 2021).

Africa

• ISIS released details of the fighting between its operatives and the joint forces of the governments of Mozambique, South Africa and Portugal in the past three weeks in the Palma region and the area surrounding it in northeastern Mozambique.^[4] In Nigeria, attacks continued against the forces of the Nigerian army and the militias supporting it, mainly in the northeast of the country. Following are the main attacks in Africa. The information about most of the attacks is based on ISIS’s claims of responsibility (Telegram).

Nigeria

• On July 20, 2021, a Nigerian army checkpoint was attacked in Konduga, about 30 km southeast of Maiduguri, in northeastern Nigeria. Four soldiers were killed and several others were wounded in the exchange of fire. ISIS operatives seized vehicles, weapons and ammunition (Telegram, July 20, 2021).
• On July 17, 2021, a position of a militia loyal to the Nigerian army was targeted by gunfire in Mirari (the ITIC could not locate it) in northeastern Nigeria. Two militia fighters were killed and two others were abducted. ISIS operatives seized 10 rifles and an ATV.
• On July 17, 2021, a Nigerian army checkpoint was targeted by gunfire near Goza (the ITIC could not locate it) in the northeast of the country. Three soldiers were killed.
• On July 17, 2021, Nigerian soldiers were attacked in Loma, about 200 km southwest of Maiduguri. One soldier was abducted and later executed. A vehicle was destroyed and another vehicle was put out of commission.
• On July 16, 2021, a checkpoint was attacked on the Jakana-Mainok highway, about 150 km southwest of Lake Chad. One soldier was killed and another soldier and a Christian citizen were abducted. A Nigerian army patrol passing through the area was targeted by gunfire and forced to withdraw.
• On July 16, 2021, a post of a militia loyal to the Nigerian army was targeted by gunfire in Girboa, in the northeast of the country. Two militia fighters were killed. The post was set on fire (Telegram, July 18, 2021).
• On July 15, 2021, a Nigerian army camp was attacked in Qawari (the ITIC could not locate it), in Yobe State, in northeastern Nigeria. One soldier was killed and several others were wounded in the exchange of fire. ISIS operatives set fire to two armored vehicles and an ATV, and seized four other ATVs, weapons and ammunition. Two IEDs were activated against an aid force that arrived at the scene, and an exchange of fire ensued. Several other soldiers were killed or wounded (Telegram, July 15, 2021).

      
Right: One of the armored vehicles set on fire by ISIS operatives. Left: Weapons and ammunition seized by ISIS operatives (Telegram, July 17, 2021).

• On July 13, 2021, positions of militias supporting the Nigerian army were attacked in Lambawa, southwest of Maiduguri. Five militia fighters and a Nigerian army “spy” were killed in the exchange of fire. Several houses of the militiamen were set on fire, and vehicles and weapons were seized by ISIS operatives.

• On July 14, 2021, mortar shells were fired at a Nigerian army base in Yadin Yobe, in Yobe State. According to ISIS, definite hits were identified.

   
Right: Mortar bomb being fired at a Nigerian army base (Telegram, July 15, 2021)

Cameroon

• On July 14, 2021, a Cameroonian army foot patrol was targeted by gunfire in the Mura region, near the Cameroon-Nigeria border. Several soldiers were wounded.

Mozambique

• ISIS’s Amaq News Agency released details of the fighting that has been going on for the past three weeks between ISIS operatives and joint forces of the governments of Mozambique, South Africa and Portugal in the Palma region and the surrounding area of Cabo Delgado in northeastern Mozambique. According to ISIS, fighting in the area resumed on June 23, 2021, following an attempt by the joint forces to infiltrate by land into an area near the city of Palma. The forces, which came under massive fire by ISIS operatives, were forced to land from the air (apparently by means of helicopters) in order to reach the area (Amaq News Agency, Telegram, July 14, 2021).
• The fighting was concentrated in the eastern areas of Palma and a number of other sites on the outskirts of the city. ISIS operatives ambushed and attacked the joint forces along the route on which the forces were moving. At the same time, they attacked a position in Batakwa, south of Palma, near the gas fields. The joint forces, aided by helicopters and warplanes, carried out counterattacks (Amaq News Agency, as posted on Telegram, July 14, 2021). ISIS operatives set fire to three Christian villages south of Palma. According to ISIS, at least 15 soldiers and fighters of the forces supporting them were killed in these attacks, and several others were wounded (Amaq News Agency, Telegram, July 14, 2021).
• According to ISIS, since its operatives took over the city of Palma several months ago, there have been intermittent battles on the outskirts of the city. The fighting wore down the Mozambican army, motivating it to enlist the help of forces from outside the country (Amaq News Agency, Telegram, July 14, 2021).
• On July 14, 2021, ISIS operatives attacked Macombi in southern Cabo Delgado, killing four “infidel Christians.” They also exchanged fire with a Mozambican army patrol on the Palma-Mocímboa da Praia highway. The patrol fled the scene (Telegram, July 15, 2021).

Democratic Republic of the Congo

• On July 19, 2021, a Congolese army camp was targeted by gunfire in the Ituri region, about 50 km west of the Congo-Uganda border (Telegram, July 20, 2021). A few days earlier (July 16, 2021) a Congolese army base in the region was targeted by gunfire. According to ISIS, Congolese soldiers fled the scene and ISIS operatives seized weapons and ammunition left at the base (Telegram, July 17, 2021).
• On July 16, 2021, a position of a militia loyal to the Congolese army was targeted by gunfire about 50 km west of the Congo-Uganda border. The militia fighters fled following the exchange of fire. ISIS operatives killed five Christians and set fire to two vehicles and several houses (Telegram, July 19, 2021).

Somalia

• On July 13, 2021, an IED was activated against a Somali army vehicle in Afgoye, about 20 km northwest of Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia. Three soldiers on board the vehicle were killed (Telegram, June 14, 2021).

Documentation of ISIS activity in Africa

• ISIS’s West Africa Province released photos documenting the activity of its operatives in several African countries, including activity in northeastern Nigeria in the Sambisa Forest in Borno State (Telegram, July 17, 2021) and the daily routine of its operatives in the Congo (Telegram, July 18, 2021).
• ISIS’s Libya Province also released photos documenting the daily routine of its operatives in the country (Telegram, July 19, 2021).

Asia^[5]

Afghanistan

• The most noteworthy event this week was the launching of seven rockets at the Presidential Palace in Kabul and the Green Zone (the embassy and government building compound). According to ISIS, direct hits were identified (Telegram, July 20, 2021). According to reports from Afghanistan, three rockets landed near the Presidential Palace during a prayer service attended by senior government officials. No casualties were reported (CNN, July 20, 2021).
• The following are additional incidents according to ISIS’s claims of responsibility (Telegram):
• On July 18, 2021, an IED was activated against a vehicle of the Afghan security forces in the Watapur district of the Kandahar province, near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. A security operative on board the vehicle was wounded. An aid force that arrived on the scene was also targeted by gunfire.
• On July 17, 2021, in two separate incidents, IEDs were activated against people referred to by ISIS as “polytheistic wizards” in the Samangan region, about 200 km northwest of Kabul.
• On July 16, 2021, an Afghan intelligence operative was executed in the Khogyani region of Jalalabad.
• On July 15, 2021, a Taliban commander was targeted by gunfire in the Ghani Khel region of Nangarhar Province, about 75 km southwest of Kabul (Telegram, July 16, 2021). On the same day, an Afghan policeman was targeted by gunfire in Jalalabad.
• On July 14, 2021, an IED was activated against an oil tanker belonging to the Afghan government in the Samangan region. The tanker was destroyed.The day before, an IED had been activated against an oil tanker in the Kunduz region, near the Afghanistan-Tajikistan border. The tanker went up in flames.
• On July 14, 2021, an Afghan policeman was targeted by gunfire in the city of Jalalabad.
•   ISIS’s Khorasan Province released photos documenting its operatives (Telegram, July 19, 2021).

The Philippines

• ISIS’s East Asia Province released photos documenting the daily routine of its operatives in the Philippines. The photos show the operatives hiding in a thicket in a wooded area, armed and ready to attack, praying, and training children (Telegram, July 14, 2021).

India

• On July 16, 2021, ISIS operatives and Indian police exchanged fire in the Srinagar region of Kashmir. Two policemen were wounded in the exchange of fire (Telegram, July 16, 2021).

^[1] According to ISIS's claims of responsibility posted on Telegram ↑
^[2] According to ISIS’s claims of responsibility posted on Telegram ↑
^[3] For further details, see the ITIC's Information Bulletin from May 14, 2020, “Funding terrorism: The al-Qaeda-affiliated Salafi Army of the Nation in Jerusalem, which operates in the Gaza Strip, recently renewed its Bitcoin fund-raising campaign” ↑
^[4] For further information about the battles in Palma, see the ITIC’s Information Bulletin from April 26, 2021: "After 12 days in which Palma was held by ISIS, the Mozambican army regains control of the city" ↑
^[5] According to ISIS’s claims of responsibility posted on Telegram ↑

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