Suicide Bombers Attack Brussels

On Tuesday March 22^nd, suicide bombers conducted an attack on Brussels’ Zaventem airport and Maelbeek metro killing a total of 35 individuals and injuring more than 300 others. Tuesday’s violence came just after investigators began to close in on Paris attacks suspect Salah Abdeslam, who was hiding in a Brussels suburb. Two of the suicide bombers who carried out the attacks have been identified as brothers Khalid and Brahim el-Bakraoui. Two other attackers at the airport have not been identified—one died at the scene and the other is on the run. In the image below, the man in the center has been identified as Brahim el-Bakraoui, while the man on the left is believed to have died at the airport and the man on the right has fled the scene. It is unconfirmed, however the man on the left is believed to be the wanted jihadist Najim Laachraoui. It is also reported that authorities in Belgium and the United State have a list of people that they believe could be the 3^rd bomber and they are currently following those leads.

A taxi driver stated that he had picked up the three men from an address in the Schaerbeek area of Brussels. Following this tip, the apartment was raided and highly explosive material was found. Additionally, a note from Brahim el-Bakraoui was found that reads, “I’m in a hurry. I don’t know what to do anymore, they’re looking for me everywhere. I’m not safe anymore. If I give myself up they’ll put me in a cell.”

CNN reports that as of March 28^th, there are believed to be at least 8 suspects that authorities are still searching for in connection to the blasts. Police raids have become a daily experience in search for any of the terror suspects.

Many prominent ISIS supporters took to twitter following the attacks, writing celebratory tweets celebrating the blasts and changing their default pictures to images of men stomping on the Belgium flag. Michelle Jesse writes that a widely circulated and disturbing tweet was only 6 words: “What will be coming is worse.” ISIS has claimed responsibility for the attacks noting that Belgium is one of the nations “participating in the international coalition against the Islamic State.” Even though ISIS has openly stated their responsibility for the attacks, authorities say that it is still too soon to confirm whether they were behind the blasts.

 

http://www.cnn.com/2016/03/28/europe/brussels-investigation/

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-35879141

http://www.cnn.com/2016/03/22/europe/brussels-explosions/

http://www.allenbwest.com/2016/03/after-brussels-terror-isis-issues-chilling-six-word-warning/

http://www.newyorker.com/news/john-cassidy/brussels-an-attack-on-all-of-europe

Car Bomb Rocks Turkish Capital, Kills 34.

On March 13, 2016 a huge car bomb rocked Ankara, the Turkish capital. This attack wounded 75 people and killed at least 34, with many victims still in critical condition. There have been no claims of responsibility by any organizations, but it is currently suspected that the attack was orchestrated by members of the PKK. The PKK, otherwise known as the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, is a Kurdish separatist group that has been fighting for autonomy in Turkey for over 30 years. Tensions between the Turkish government and PKK have been escalating ever since a 2 and a half year peace process broke down last July.

This attack comes less than a month after a similar bombing killed 29 people, just blocks away from the location of the most recent attack. Responsibility for this attack was claimed by a PKK offshoot group, lending further credibility to the current PKK suspicions. According to Suzan Fraser, “More than 200 people have died in five suicide bombings in Turkey since July that were blamed either on the Kurdish rebels or [Islamic State].” This is in addition to the more than 340 Turkish military members and 300 Kurdish militants killed since last July. This emerging pattern of violence draws great attention to Turkey’s complex role in the Middle East as it works to oppose the Syrian government, battle the Islamic State, and quell Kurdish dissent within its own borders.

In response to the most recent attack, the Turkish government carried out a series of airstrikes on strategic PKK militant positions throughout northern Iraq. The government also arrested over a dozen suspects in the ongoing investigation of the attack, including family members of the suspected perpetrators and several car salesmen suspected of selling the car used in the bombing.

https://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2016/Mar-14/342063-huge-car-bomb-kills-34-in-ankara.ashx

http://www.dailysabah.com/nation/2016/03/14/ankara-bombers-were-pkk-members-had-links-with-the-group-security-sources

http://time.com/4228167/ankara-bombing-turkey-violence/

http://www.wsj.com/articles/turkey-suspects-kurdish-separatists-behind-deadly-car-bombing-in-ankara-1457947571

http://www.kiro7.com/news/death-toll-in-ankara-bombing-raises-to-37/160529880

ISIS takes responsibility for bombing in Baghdad

 

On March 6^th an ISIS terrorist detonated an explosive laden fuel truck at a security checkpoint in Baghdad according to FOX News. This security checkpoint was located in the predominately Shi’ite region of Hillah, the capital of the Babylon province. ISIS claimed responsibility for this suicide bomber that killed at least 47 and wounding dozens of others. The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria otherwise known, as ISIS, is a radical Islamist militant group headed by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi for the purpose of creating an independent Islamic state in the region. ISIS began as Al-Qaeda ,but eventually rebranded themselves as ISIS two years later and disowned Al-Qaeda in early 2014. ISIS uses much more brutal force and terror attacks than its predecessor Al Qaeda to control the territory it seizes. This past suicide explosion is the third massive bombing in over a week in and around Baghdad. ISIS’ strategy is to attack deep behind the lines of Iraq and weaken the government and over extend their forces. Hillah, which is where the attack took place, is located in Iraqi’s Shi’te south, which is very far from battlefront against ISIS. ISIS now controls a large swath of territory in Iraq and in Syria establishing a “caliphate”. ISIS has led countless attacks killing over 670 Iraqis in the last month in which 2/3 were civilians and primarily Shi’ite. This terrorist bombing has led to the reassessment of what the Iraqi government is doing to stop these bombings and the murders of innocent victims. The ISIS threat is clearly an imminent danger to the global society and especially to those who live in Iraq and Syria. The bombings have only become more frequent and more lethal with every month ISIS tries to burrow themselves into the territories. The Baghdad bombing has exemplified the danger that Shi’ite groups have to deal with everyday when up against the Sunni militant group.

Sources

http://www.cnn.com/2015/01/14/world/isis-everything-you-need-to-know/

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2015/03/what-isis-really-wants/384980/

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2016/03/06/at-least-11-killed-in-baghdad-suicide-attack.html

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/iraq-suicide-attack-kills-11-south-baghdad-37438199

http://time.com/4124810/isis-al-qaeda-rivalry-terror-attacks-mali-paris/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/30/what-is-a-caliphate-meaning_n_5543538.html

 

 

 

 

“El Chapo” Guzman Agrees to Extradition

Joaquin Guzman Loera, more commonly known as “El Chapo,” has agreed to be extradited to the United States after he made supposed torture allegations against the Altiplano, the Mexican maximum security prison he has been in since he was recaptured in January of this year. “El Chapo” Guzman is believed to be the leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, an international drug trafficking, money laundering and organized crime syndicate. Arguably this is the most powerful drug trafficking organization in the world. According to the National Drug Intelligence Center, within the U.S. the Sinaloa Cartel is primarily involved in the distribution of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, marijuana and MDMA. His January capture is the third arrest for the kingpin. He was first arrested in 1993 and escaped in 2001, his second arrest was in 2014 but he escaped through a tunnel on the side of the prison in 2015, and was arrested earlier this year in Los Mochis, Sinaloa. Now Guzman’s lawyer, Jose Refugio Rodriguez, has given an interview to Mexico’s Formula Radio saying that the drug lord is willing to accept and will not fight extradition to the United States only if he is placed in a medium security facility and if his lawyer can negotiate what he called a “reasonable sentence” once he arrives in the states. Guzman has argued that since he has been at the Altiplano maximum security facility he has experienced torture like treatment from the guards. Juan Pablo Badillo, another of Guzman’s lawyers, said “He told me, literally, ‘Every two hours, at night, they wake me up to take roll…they are turning me into a zombie. They do not let me sleep. All I want is just for them to let me sleep.’” It is unclear when this extradition will happen but Mexican president Enrique Pena Nieto said it will be as soon as possible.

Sources:

http://www.cnn.com/2016/02/27/americas/el-chapo-us-extradition-conditions/index.html

http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/El-Chapo-Agrees-to-Plead-Guilty-in-US-But-Only-if-He-is-Held-in-Medium-Security-Prison-370526511.html

http://www.inquisitr.com/2834237/el-chapo-joaquin-el-chapo-guzman-would-accept-extradition-to-united-states-in-exchange-for-being-housed-in-medium-security-prison/

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/10/world/americas/el-chapo-mexico-extradition-united-states.html

http://www.forbes.com/sites/doliaestevez/2016/02/02/el-chapo-guzman-mexico-and-the-death-penalty-whats-at-stake/#7b21dd2d590e