Tag: Islamic State

American ‘Islamic State fighter’ case challenges Trump

by Paul Handley Agence France-Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) – The first and only US citizen caught on the battlefield allegedly fighting for the Islamic State is in a legal limbo, held in Iraq without rights as Washington grapples with his fate. Identified in court papers as “John Doe,” the man has been held for nearly five months, the military allowing him access to legal advice only after being forced to do so by a federal judge […]

Filipino doctor in New York plot charged in kidnap-murder case

A Filipino doctor accused of wiring money for a foiled New York jihadist plot has been charged in a separate Islamic State-inspired kidnapping and murder case at home, documents released on Tuesday said. Russel Salic, an orthopedic surgeon, has been held in custody in the Philippines after US prosecutors charged him over a failed plot to attack New York’s subway, Times Square and concert venues in the name of IS during the Ramadan in 2016. US prosecutors […]

‘Much more work’ remains in anti-IS fight: Trump

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Donald Trump will warn that much more work remains in the war against the Islamic State group when he delivers his State of the Union address on Tuesday. According to advance excerpts of the speech, Trump will declare that a US-led coalition has “liberated almost 100 percent of the territory once held by these killers in Iraq and Syria.” “But there is much more work to be done,” he […]

Duterte an ISIS target, media report from India says; Palace says Duterte is unfazed

(Eagle News) — President Rodrigo Duterte is a target of the Islamic State during his official trip to India, a publication from the Philippines’ neighboring country said. But Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said the President–who is slated to attend Republic Day celebrations in New Delhi today—remained unfazed despite the report published by The Print. “(President Duterte) will not cower to threats from ISIS nor any other terrorist groups,” Roque said. According to the presidential spokesperson, […]

Now defeated, Iraq’s most feared jihadists await their fate

by Ammar Karim Agence France-Presse BAGHDAD, Iraq (AFP) — Their names spread terror across the Islamic State group’s cross-border “caliphate,” but senior jihadists now languish in Iraqi prisons, subjects of mockery for the populace they ruled. Once boasting nicknames like the Black Box and the Butcher of Mosul, the defeated IS commanders now draw vitriol on social media while news outlets have published selfies taken by Iraqi soldiers of them being captured or marched handcuffed […]

World powers meet to pressure Syria on chemical attacks

by Valérie Leroux Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) – Diplomats from 29 countries including US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson meet in Paris on Tuesday pushing for sanctions and criminal charges against the perpetrators of chemical attacks in Syria. Tillerson and his French counterpart Jean-Yves Le Drian will also co-host a meeting of ministers ahead of a new round of peace talks in Vienna later this week and again in Sochi in Russia the week after. The […]

Surrender or be shot in the face, senior US soldier tells IS

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US troops and their allies will shoot Islamic State jihadists in the face, beat them to death with shovels or drop bombs on them if they don’t surrender, the US military’s most senior enlisted member has said. In an eyebrow-raising set of postings on social media Tuesday, Command Sergeant Major John Troxell warned that IS members who refuse to quit will be dispatched with “extreme prejudice,” including via a small […]

Palace: President Duterte keen on intensifying maritime security, cooperation with Indonesia to fight terrorism

(Eagle News) — President Rodrigo Duterte wants to “intensify” maritime security and cooperation with Indonesia to fight terrorism. Duterte made the statement during a courtesy call made by  Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi on Wednesday. Duterte was accompanied by representatives from the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of Education, while Retno was accompanied by  Consul General for the Indonesian Embassy in Davao Berlian Napitupulu, Indonesian Embassy in Manila charge d’affaires Budi Dhewajani, among others. “While […]

40 dead, dozens wounded in multiple blasts in Kabul, Afghanistan

  By Mushtaq Mojaddidi Agence France Presse KABUL, Afghanistan (AFP) — At least 40 people were killed and dozens more wounded in multiple blasts at a Shiite cultural centre in Kabul on Thursday, officials said, in the latest deadly violence to hit the Afghan capital. There was no immediate claim of responsibility but the Taliban was quick to deny involvement in the assault near the Afghan Voice Agency, a media outlet which earlier reports had […]

Gov’t to turn over temporary shelters to displaced Marawi residents on Wednesday; Duterte to lead turnover ceremonies

(Eagle News) — Around 800 temporary shelters are set to be turned over to displaced residents in Marawi on Wednesday. Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque made the announcement in a televised press briefing in Marawi City. “We targeted to transfer 500 units but instead of just 500, we are actually transferring 800,” he said. According to Roque, of the 800, the 500 are in Sagonsongan, and the 300 in Matungao, in Lanao del Norte. The scheduled turnover–which […]

Philippines to charge woman for recruiting siege fighters

MANILA, Philippines (AFP) — The widow of a slain Islamist militant leader will be charged for allegedly using social media to recruit Islamic State sympathizers to join a five-month siege of a southern city, Philippine authorities said Friday. Hundreds of local and foreign gunmen who had pledged allegiance to IS rampaged through Marawi, the principal Islamic city in the mainly Catholic Philippines, starting in May — sparking the nation’s longest urban war that claimed more […]

AFP official: Gov’t to turn war-torn Marawi into commercial, tourism hub

(Eagle News) — The government plans to turn war-torn Marawi into a commercial and tourism hub in Mindanao, a military official announced on Thursday, as rehabilitation efforts went underway. In an interview over dzbb, Armed Forces of the Philippines Public Affairs Office chief Edgar Arevalo said the plan was to make Marawi known not only as a city that defeated terrorism, but also as a city that rose from the ashes to become a magnet for […]