Spotlight on Global Jihad (May 25-31, 2023)

Main events of the past week

• This week, there was a decline in ISIS’s activity around the world. The hotspot of the organization’s activity was in Africa.
• Syria: ISIS killed four fighters of the forces supporting the Syrian army in the desert area in two different attacks. A Russian colonel was killed by HTS artillery fire on the outskirts of Latakia.
• Africa:
  • Nigeria: ISIS continued its activity against the Nigerian army in the northeast of the country, albeit on a smaller scale than in recent weeks.
  • Democratic Republic of the Congo: ISIS continued its activity against Christian residents near the Ugandan border.
  • Mozambique: A Mozambican soldier was killed in an exchange of fire between ISIS operatives and a Mozambican army patrol in northeastern Mozambique.
  • Somalia: Al-Qaeda-affiliated Al-Shabaab attacked an African Union force base in the south of the country. Both sides reportedly had losses.
• The battle for hearts and minds: The editorial of ISIS’s weekly Al-Naba stresses that Syrian President Bashar Assad’s return to the Arab League is not surprising “since he is no different from the other tyrants in that organization.” The writer calls on Muslims in Syria to adhere to the path of jihad and not to rely on “the Arab dictators” to rescue them.

The Syrian Arena^[1]

ISIS’s activity

The desert region

• In the early morning hours of May 24, 2023, militants, apparently ISIS operatives, carried out an attack against a Syrian military post in the Ma’adan area, about 60 km southeast of Al-Raqqah. Three fighters from the forces supporting the Syrian army were killed (Al-Araby al-Jadeed, May 24, 2023).
• On May 24, 2023, an ISIS mine was activated against a vehicle of the Palestinian Al-Quds Brigade, which supports the Assad regime, while brigade fighters were searching for ISIS operatives in the Al-Latum area, about 70 km northeast of Palmyra. One fighter was killed (Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, May 25, 2023).

Al-Hasakah area

• On May 28, 2023, an IED was activated against an SDF vehicle about 50 km south of Al-Hasakah. Four fighters were wounded (Telegram, May 29, 2023).
• On May 26, 2023, an SDF vehicle was targeted by gunfire in the Al-Shadadi area. At least one fighter was wounded (Telegram, May 26, 2023).

Southern Syria

• On May 27, 2023, an IED planted in the car of a collaborator with the Syrian regime’s security services exploded while he was driving about 45 km northeast of Daraa. He was wounded and died later that day. Another man, who was traveling with him in the car, was killed instantly (Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, May 27, 2023).

HTS activity

Latakia region

• On the night of May 25-26, 2023, Colonel Oleg Pechevisty, 49, a senior officer in the Russian Air Force Special Forces, was killed by artillery fire at his command post in Syria (Newsweek, May 29, 2023). According to a Syrian source, the officer was killed by artillery fire from the HTS, the dominant organization in the rebel enclave in Idlib, affiliated with Al-Qaeda (Al-Badia 24, May 29, 2023)

   
Colonel Oleg Pechevisty in uniform and during field operations
(Al-Badia 24, May 29, 2023; QalaatM Twitter account, May 28, 2023)

Iraq

ISIS attacks by province^[2]

Diyala Province

• On May 27, 2023, an IED was activated against Iraqi security forces in the city of Al-Khalis, about 10 km northwest of Baqubah. Three people, including a policeman, were wounded. Several vehicles were damaged (Telegram, May 29, 2023).

Counterterrorism

• On May 23, 2023, a court in Babel Province, southern Iraq, sentenced an ISIS commander operating in the Al-Anbar province in western Iraq to death. The commander was accused of detonating two car bombs and destroying the Japanese bridge in Al-Saqlawiya, about 60 km west of Baghdad. Four Iraqi soldiers were killed and 22 wounded (Iraqi News Agency, May 23, 2023).

Summary of ISIS’s activity in the various provinces

• According to an infographic published by ISIS’s weekly Al-Naba, summarizing ISIS’s activity in the period between May 18 and 24, 2023, ISIS operatives carried out 16 attacks in the various provinces during this period (compared with 27 the previous week). The highest number of attacks was carried out by the Central Africa Province (9). Attacks carried out in the other provinces: West Africa (4); Iraq (2); and Pakistan (1). A total of 57 people were killed and wounded, compared with 101 in the previous week. The largest number of casualties was in Central Africa (48). The rest of the dead and wounded: Iraq (6); West Africa (2); and Pakistan (1) (Al-Naba weekly, Telegram, May 25, 2023).

Weekly attacks (according to ISIS’s figures)

Africa

Nigeria

ISIS’s activity

• This week, ISIS continued its activity against the Nigerian army in Borno State, in the northeast of the country:
  • On May 27, 2023, an attack was carried out against Nigerian army forces near the town of Malam Fatori, near the border with Niger. Several soldiers were killed or wounded (Telegram, May 29, 2023). On the same day, grenades were fired at a Nigerian army camp in the town. According to ISIS, definite hits were observed (Telegram, May 29, 2023).
  • On May 25, 2023, ISIS operatives activated IEDs against two Nigerian army foot patrols along the road of the town of Baga, about 30 km west of the Nigeria-Chad-Cameroon tri-border area. Three soldiers were killed, and several others were wounded (Telegram, May 30, 2023).
  • On May 25, 2023, grenades were fired at a Nigerian army camp in the town of Auno, about 15 km west of Maiduguri. According to ISIS, definite hits were observed (Telegram, May 30, 2023).
  • On May 24, 2023, an attack was carried out against a Nigerian army checkpoint in the town of Pulka, about 10 km northwest of the Nigeria-Cameroon border. One soldier was killed. A medium machine gun and an RPG launcher were seized (Telegram, May 25, 2023).
  • On May 22, 2023, three mortar shells were fired at African Coalition (MNJTF)^[3] forces in the town of Argy, Borno State (Telegram, May 24, 2023). No casualties were reported.

Counterterrorism

• On May 28, 2023, an African Coalition (MNJTF) force operated against ISIS on the outskirts of Malam Fatori. Three ISIS operatives were killed, and one soldier was wounded. Two assault rifles were found in the possession of the ISIS operatives (Zagazola, May 28, 2023).

Niger

Counterterrorism

• On May 29, 2023, the Nigerien army announced that a joint operation with the Nigerian army had taken place, which lasted 22 days and ended on May 28, 2023, during which the forces operated against an ISIS stronghold in the town of Arege, about 40 km southwest of the Nigeria-Niger-Chad tri-border area. A total of 55 ISIS operatives, including several senior ISIS operatives and religious leaders, were killed (Barron’s, May 29, 2023).

Democratic Republic of the Congo

ISIS’s activity

• ISIS carried out several attacks against Christian civilians in several villages in the Beni region, near the Congo-Uganda border:
  • On May 25, 2023, an attack was carried out in the village of Kaynana, about 50 km west of the border. More than 15 civilians were murdered, and several others were wounded (Telegram, May 30, 2023).
  • On May 25, 2023, an attack was carried out in the village of Kilia, about 50 km west of the border. Five civilians were killed, and several homes were set on fire (Telegram, May 26, 2023).
  • On May 24, 2023, an attack was carried out against civilians in the village of Kabasiwa. One civilian was murdered (Telegram, May 25, 2023).
  • On May 23, 2023, an attack was carried out in the village of Lubahimba. Two civilians were murdered (Telegram, May 24, 2023).

Mozambique

ISIS’s activity

• On May 26, 2023, there were exchanges of fire between ISIS operatives and a Mozambican army patrol in the village of Tandako, in the Macomia region, in the northeast of the country. One soldier was killed. ISIS operatives seized a mortar, an RPG launcher, a medium machine gun, two assault rifles, and ammunition (Telegram, May 29, 2023).

Somalia

Attack against a base of the African Union forces

• On the morning of May 26, 2023, Al-Shabaab operatives attacked an African Union Transition Mission (ATMIS) base about 90 km southwest of Mogadishu. The attack lasted several hours, and according to residents in the area, loud explosions and heavy exchanges of fire were heard. Al-Shabaab operatives were then seen patrolling the area. According to a Somali army officer, heavy losses were sustained on all sides (The East African, May 26, 2023). Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack, announcing that its operatives had taken over the base and that a car bomb had been used during the attack. The organization noted that 137 Ugandan army soldiers, who are a significant part of the ATMIS forces, were killed in the attack and others were taken prisoner (MEMRI, May 26, 2023; TRACTerrorism, May 26, 2023).

   
(Calibre Obscura Twitter account, May 26, 2023)

• On the same day, in response to the attack on the base, the US Africa Command carried out an airstrike against a force of Al-Shabaab operatives nearby. Weapons and equipment taken from the base by Al-Shabaab were destroyed (AFRICOM, May 27, 2023).

Other incidents

• On May 30, 2023, Al-Shabaab operatives attacked a Somali army base in the town of Masagaway, about 270 km northeast of Mogadishu. The base soldiers responded with massive fire. According to official sources, 30 Al-Shabaab operatives were killed. Three soldiers were wounded in the incident (Reuters and VOA, May 30, 2023).
• On May 25, 2023, a Somali police force identified an Al-Shabaab suicide bomber carrying a bag containing explosives minutes in the town of Beledweyne, in Hiran Province, about 300 km north of Mogadishu. The force called him to stop, but he threw away his bag and fled the scene. Soon after, the bag exploded at the entrance to a popular restaurant with civilians and military personnel. There were no casualties. A manhunt is underway for the terrorist (Garowe Online, May 25, 2023).

Counterterrorism

• On May 30, 2023, eight Al-Shabaab operatives were killed, and two others were detained in Somali army activity in the Galgaduud area in central Somalia (GGTN, May 30, 2023).
• On May 20, 2023, the US Army carried out an airstrike against Othman Muhammad Abdi, aka Muallem Othman, a senior Al-Shabaab operative, in the city of Jilib, about 400 km southwest of Mogadishu, an area under full control of the organization. The senior operative, who was responsible for bringing foreign fighters to Somalia, was wounded (VOA, May 23, 2023)

Tunisia

Counterterrorism

• On May 26, 2023, the Tunisian National Guard announced the arrest of a suspected ISIS operative in the city of Sfax, Tunisia’s second largest city, located in the east of the country, on the Mediterranean coast. It is suspected that the detainee planned to carry out four timed attacks in the country, in coordination with elements outside Tunisia. Explosives were found in his possession (Euronews, May 26, 2023).

Libya

Counterterrorism

• On May 29, 2023, a Libyan court sentenced 23 ISIS operatives to death. Fourteen other ISIS operatives were sentenced to life imprisonment. The operatives were accused of responsibility for the execution of 21 Egyptian Coptic Christian migrant workers on February 15, 2015, on a beach in northern Libya (Barron’s, May 29, 2023; Aljazeera, May 29, 2023).

Morocco

Counterterrorism

• On May 29, 2023, Moroccan security forces detained three ISIS operatives aged 31-40 who were members of the organization’s terrorist cell in Tangier, in the north of the country. The interrogation of the three revealed that they planned to carry out terrorist attacks aimed at undermining security and stability in the country. In addition, the investigation revealed that the three tried to contact various provinces of ISIS, mainly the Sahel Province, to join ISIS’s active terrorist cells (Morocco World News, May 29, 2023).

Asia

Pakistan

ISIS’s activity

• On May 28, 2023, a Pakistani government “agent” was shot and killed in the Belal Kaloni area of the city of Peshawar, about 30 km east of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border (Telegram, May 28, 2023).

Yemen

Al-Qaeda activity

• On May 23, 2023, the Al-Qaeda-affiliated Ansar al-Sharia organization carried out an airstrike by a drone carrying an IED against a position of the forces of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, which are supported by the United Arab Emirates. The incident took place in the Al-Musin’a area, in the Shabwa province in southern Yemen, about 145 km north of Aden. Ahmad Mohsen al-Soleimani, an officer with the rank of lieutenant colonel, was lightly wounded (Al-Ghad Al-Mashreq Channel, May 24, 2023).

Counterterrorism

• On May 26, 2023, Yemen’s Southern Transitional Council announced the arrest of seven members of an ISIS terrorist cell, including a senior commander and foreign nationals in the Lahij province in southwestern Yemen. Weapons, ammunition, and explosives were found in their possession (Anatolia News Agency, May 27, 2023).

Turkey

Counterterrorism

• On May 25, 2023, the Ankara police operating in several areas of the city detained 18 foreign nationals suspected of being ISIS operatives. Turkish security forces are reportedly working to detain two more suspects (Yenişafak, May 25, 2023).

Europe

United Kingdom

• On May 26, 2023, a British court sentenced Shabazz Suleman, 27, from High Wycombe, northwest of London, to life imprisonment on charges that he traveled to Syria to join ISIS and serve as a sniper in the ranks of the organization. Suleiman admitted that in August 2014, when he was 18, he traveled from Britain to Turkey for a family vacation and disappeared during it. He crossed the border into Syria and posted social media materials documenting his experiences in the ranks of ISIS. Five months later, after being disappointed with the jihadi ideology, he tried to defect. In 2017, he was captured by a Free Syrian Army force. He was transferred to Turkey and later arrived in Pakistan. In September 2021, upon landing at Heathrow Airport, he was arrested and charged with various terrorist offenses, including training, operating firearms, and belonging to an illegal organization (Barron’s, May 26, 2023).

France

• On May 26, 2023, a French court sentenced Kevin Guiavarch, 30, to 14 years in prison on terrorism charges. His wife, Salma O., was sentenced to six years in prison, which she could serve at home, using electronic handcuffs. Guiavarch, a Christian who was once a church choir boy and converted to Islam, has been one of the most wanted on a UN jihad list since 2014. He is suspected of being one of the main recruiters of young French operatives to the ranks of ISIS in Syria and Iraq. He also knew some of the ISIS operatives who carried out the Paris attacks on November 13, 2015, while in Al-Raqqah, Syria. He spent several years in Syria, where he initially operated in the ranks of the Fateh al-Sham Front, which at the time was affiliated with Al-Qaeda, and later joined ISIS. In June 2016, he left Syria and entered Turkey, where he was arrested together with his family. In 2017, he was transferred to France (RFI, May 27, 2023).

Italy

• On May 26, 2023, Italian authorities arrested a minor of foreign origin, with Italian citizenship, in the province of Bergamo, about 35 km northeast of Milan, on suspicion of supporting ISIS and planning to carry out an IED attack in the area where he lives. The minor, who was under surveillance by Italy’s intelligence services, underwent a process of radicalization and posted propaganda materials of a terrorist organization on the Internet. Videos documenting executions were found in his possession, as well as manuals on weapons and instructions for making IEDs, which he transferred to a network of ISIS supporters in other countries, encouraging them to carry out violent activity. A week earlier, several young ISIS supporters who are members of this network in Europe and the United States were detained (AP, May 30, 2023).

The battle for hearts and minds

ISIS calls on Syrian residents to adhere to jihad in view of Assad’s return to the Arab League

• This week’s editorial of ISIS’s weekly Al-Naba was titled “Everything is returning to normal.”^[4] It deals with Syrian President Bashar Assad’s return to the Arab League (the “Arab Infidel League”).
• According to the author, there is no reason to be surprised by Bashar’s return since the other Arab leaders, such as Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman are no less “infidels” than him and wage war against Islam and Muslims no less than he does. The writer emphasizes that the other tyrants in the Arab League (the “League of Tyrants”) are merely another version of Bashar Assad.
• The author accuses local collaborators with the Arab leaders, and on top of them local fighters and clerics, of being responsible for killing ISIS’s operatives and of taking part in the return of the “Nusayri [i.e., Alawite] dictator” (i.e., Bashar Assad) to the Arab League. The author also stresses that Syria’s return to the Arab League sends a message that any Arab dictator can commit crimes and massacres as much as he desires, without any fear of punishment or sanction against him.
• The writer concludes by claiming that Syria’s return to the Arab League proves that ISIS’s path, which, according to him, follows Islamic law (Sharia) and the path of jihad against the infidels, is the right way. He calls on Muslims in Syria to adhere to the path of jihad and not to rely on the Arab dictators to rescue them (Al-Naba weekly, Telegram, May 25, 2023).

Al-Qaeda’s branch in Syria condemns the Arab League

• Hurras al-Din, Al-Qaeda’s branch in Syria, condemned the Arab League for returning Syrian President Bashar Assad to that organization and to the Arab world. The organization also called on its operatives to continue on the path of jihad until victory is achieved and avoid receiving support from the Arab governments (MEMRI, May 25, 2023).

ISIS supporter calls on Muslims in the West to carry out attacks

• On May 3, 2023, an ISIS supporter codenamed Abu Imad al-Nayrabi published a post on Telegram, calling on Muslims living in non-Muslim countries (especially Western countries) not to work for Jews or Christians, as this contributes to increasing the power of “infidels” against Islam. In addition, he called on them to carry out lone wolf terrorist attacks (MEMRI, May 24, 2023).

^[1] According to ISIS’s claims of responsibility and the global media. ↑
^[2] According to ISIS’s claims of responsibility and the global media. ↑
^[3] Multinational Joint Task Force – MNJTF, composed of troops from Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon, Benin, and Niger. ↑
^[4] he literal translation is “The water is flowing again along the same path,” a phrase indicating that everything is back to normal. ↑

Related Articles