Tag Archives: Terrorism

Obama Vows U.S. ‘Will Destroy’ ISIS, Other Terrorist Groups

The United States “will destroy” the Islamic State “and any other terrorist organization that tries to harm us,” President Barack Obama said in a televised speech to the nation on Sunday night.

Speaking from the Oval Office, the president said the country faces new challenges in its 14-year war on terrorism but remains equipped to overcome the threat the ideology poses to America.

The speech came days after the husband-and-wife team of Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik killed 14 people and wounded 21 others in a mass shooting at San Bernardino, California. The brazen attack occurred during a holiday party for Farook’s coworkers on Wednesday.

“This was an act of terrorism designed to kill innocent people,” Obama declared in the speech.

Obama went on to say that other shootings at military installations in Fort Hood, Texas, and Chattanooga, Tennessee, were also acts of terrorism. The president said the nature of these attacks represent a fundamental shift in the face of terrorism, and the challenge it presents.

He said the country has been at war with terrorists since 9/11, when terrorists hijacked four airplanes in an elaborate plot that ultimately killed nearly 3,000 people. America has beefed up its security and intelligence operations and disrupted a host of terrorist plots in the years since.

“Over the last few years, however, the terrorist threat has evolved into a new phase,” Obama said. “As we’ve become better at preventing complex, multi-faceted attacks like 9/11, terrorists turn to less-complicated acts of violence like the mass shootings that are all too common in our society.”

While noting there was no evidence that Farook and Malik were directed by a terrorist group or that they were part of a broader conspiracy in planning and executing Wednesday’s shootings, Obama said “it is clear that the two of them had gone down the dark path of radicalization, a perverted interpretation of Islam that calls for war against America and the West.”

The FBI echoed that statement on Monday, with an official saying at a news conference that the bureau had evidence that Farook and Malik had been radicalized “for quite some time.” The probe into the shootings and the circumstances around them continued Monday afternoon.

In his Sunday night speech, Obama reaffirmed the country’s commitment to fighting terrorism.

He said “our military will continue to hunt down terrorist plotters in any country where it is necessary,” and noted that 65 countries have joined an American-led coalition that is carrying out airstrikes against ISIS interests. The United States is also providing training to forces in Iraq and Syria that are fighting ISIS militants on the ground, and deploying special ops in both countries. Coalition forces are working to disrupt ISIS in other ways, like cutting off its money supply (largely obtained through oil smuggling) and preventing it from adding manpower.

Obama noted global efforts to combat ISIS have increased since Nov. 13, when gunmen and suicide bombers linked to the group killed 130 people in multiple terrorist attacks in Paris. In particular, he said the exchange of intelligence between allies has surged since those attacks.

The president said technology has made it easier for groups like the Islamic State to corrupt the minds of people around the world. The terrorists are frequently able to use social media and the Internet to share their radical messages. Obama called for technology companies and law enforcement officials to make it more difficult for terrorists to hide behind computer screens.

He also called for the departments of State and Homeland Security to review the ‘fiancee visa’ waiver program that Malik, a Pakistani native who was living in Saudi Arabia, used to enter the United States. It’s been widely reported that she met Farook, a U.S. citizen, on an online dating site.

Obama also called for stricter gun laws, like making it more difficult to purchase assault weapons like the ones used in San Bernardino. He noted authorities simply can’t identify every potential mass shooter, but “what we can do — and must do — is make it harder for them to kill.”

While Obama outlined the steps America is taking against ISIS and to prevent future terrorist attacks at home, he also laid out a list of things that America should not do. Those included entering a ground war in the Middle East, which could be lengthy and ultimately play into the Islamic State’s hand. He also said the country shouldn’t fear or discriminate against Muslims, noting that the Islamic State “doesn’t speak for Islam” and was “part of a cult of death.”

“The threat from terrorism is real, but we will overcome it,” Obama said in his televised comments. “We will destroy (ISIS) and any other organization that tries to harm us.”

FBI Investigating California Mass Shooting as Terrorist Act

The FBI is investigating the mass shooting in San Bernardino, California, “as an act of terrorism.”

David Bowdich, the assistant FBI director at the bureau’s Los Angeles office, made the announcement at a news conference on Friday, saying the bureau had taken over the investigation’s lead from local authorities.

The revelation came two days after the husband-and-wife team of Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik killed 14 people and injured 21 others when they opened fire during a holiday party at the Inland Regional Center. They were later killed in a shootout with police.

Bowdich told reporters that investigators found evidence that indicated “extensive planning,” as well as mentioning the couple’s extensive stockpile of ammunition and explosive devices.

Speaking at a later news conference in Washington, FBI Director James Comey told reporters there was evidence that suggested the Muslim suspects became radicalized, but no evidence had surfaced that suggested that the shooters were part of a terrorist group. However, Comey did say there were indications that the couple might have been inspired by foreign terrorist organizations.

“There’s a lot of evidence in this case that doesn’t quite make sense,” Comey told reporters, adding that investigators were still wading through a large amount of electronic evidence.

Neither Bowdich nor Comey publicly confirmed multiple published reports that said Malik pledged allegiance to the leader of the Islamic State through a post on social media on the morning of the attack.

CNN, FoxNews, The New York Times and The Washington Post were among the media outlets reporting that sources familiar with the investigation told them about the Facebook post.

Bowdich told reporters at the news conference that Farook and Malik “attempted to destroy their digital fingerprints,” and investigators discovered two “crushed” cell phones in trash cans near the crime scene. He said authorities were working to extract data from those cell phones.

“We do hope that the digital fingerprints that were left by these two individuals will take us towards their motivation,” Bowdich told reporters. “That evidence is incredibly important.”

Comey told reporters neither Farook nor Malik was on the FBI’s radar at the time of the shooting.

It was widely reported that Farook worked at the San Bernardino County Department of Public Health, which was holding a holiday party at the Inland Regional Center at the time of the attack. Police said Farook left the party angrily, then returned with his wife and opened fire.

Farook was born to Pakistani parents in Illinois and met Malik, a Pakistan native who was living in Saudi Arabia, on an online dating site, the New York Times has reported. The couple had a six-month-old daughter who they left with her grandmother on the morning of the attack.

Police have said they found at least 4,500 additional rounds of ammunition and a dozen “pipe-bomb-type devices” at the Redlands, California, residence of the suspects.

The FBI released the crime scene and the couple’s landlord somewhat bizarrely opened it up to the media on Friday morning, leading to several news organizations to take cameras through the residence and broadcast live images of reporters examining the suspects’ personal belongings.

Leaked Document Claims ISIS Present, Planning Attacks in Thailand

Multiple published reports indicate police in Thailand have information claiming that a group of 10 people linked to the Islamic State allegedly entered the country to carry out terrorist attacks.

Reuters reported a leaked memo cites intelligence from Russia’s Federal Security Service that indicated 10 ISIS-linked Syrians traveled to Thailand in October to attack targets tied to Russia.

The BBC reported the document, which was marked “urgent,” said the Syrians did not travel together and at least six have gone to areas that are popular with Russian tourists.

A police spokesman confirmed to the Associated Press that the document was authentic, but he could not verify if the intelligence within it was accurate. Reuters quoted the commissioner of Thailand’s immigration bureau, Nathathorn Prausoontorn, as saying there isn’t any information that ties the 21 Syrians who entered Thailand in October and were still there to the Islamic State.

Russia has been carrying out airstrikes in Syria since late September, which intensified after ISIS bombed a commercial Russian plane in October and killed 224 people.

Video Claims to Show ISIS Beheading Russian Spy

A new Internet video purports to show the Islamic State beheading a Russian spy.

Multiple news agencies couldn’t verify the authenticity of the video or the claims within it.

The video ends with a man in an orange jumpsuit kneeling before a man holding a knife.

The man with the knife threatens Russian citizens and the country’s president, Vladimir Putin, according to reports. He then cuts the throat of the man in the jumpsuit and decapitates him.

Earlier in the video, the man in the jumpsuit is shown speaking to the camera.

Russian television network RT says the man in the jumpsuit claims to be Magomed Khasiev, a 23-year-old from Grozny. The report says the man describes how he was recruited by Russia’s Federal Security Service and gathered intelligence during undercover missions in Iraq and Syria.

CNN reports the man with the knife expressed displeasure with Russia’s recent airstrikes against the Islamic State and warned Russian citizens of retaliatory violent acts against life and property.

RT reports the Russian government hadn’t indicated any of its citizens were being held by ISIS.

County employee Named Suspect in San Bernardino Killings

By Kami Klein

San Bernardino Police Chief Jarrod Burguen held a press conference late Wednesday night to identify the suspects in the shooting earlier today at Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino, CA which caused the deaths of 14 people; 17 were injured.  The suspects killed in a shootout with police were identified as Syed Rizwan Farook (28) and Tashfeen Malik (27) .  According to a report by CBSN, the two had been married for two years and have a 6 month old daughter.  

The U.S. born Syed Rizwan was employed with San Bernardino County as an environmental specialist for the last five years.  He had attended a meeting/ party that has been an annual event for the county and reports were that he left angry.  It is still unclear what the disagreement was about or with whom.   

Chief Burguen says both law enforcement and the FBI feel that although first reports were that there were three suspects, they believe the two that went into the building were the same that were killed in the suspects car and the only shooters.

In an interview with his brother-in-law, CBSN reports that Sayed Riswan and Tashfeen  lived in the house in Redlands, CA that is now being investigated and belongs to his mother.  Syed is the name he went by for work and in public but the family called him Riswan.

Speaking on a motive for the case Police Chief Burgeun stated.

“We do not have a motive at this time.  We understand that when these kinds of things happen, information changes frequently at the beginning of the investigation.  We have not ruled out terrorism at this time.  But we do not yet know a motive.”   

In regards to the crime scenes, Chief Burgeun said that for the last couple of hours they have been working on the explosive devices that have been found.

“We feel that all explosives have been found and disposed of and are just now being able to get in there and process the evidence. Some degree of planning went into this attack.”

Both of the suspects had 223 assault rifles and semi automatic handguns in their possession when the gun battle with police took place.

Chief Burgeun concluded the press conference with a message for his community.  

“ We understand that you are scared and concerned but please understand that we are doing everything we can to keep people safe here. If we see a threat  we will be sure to communicate that to the community to protect you and your families.”

 

Update: Suspects Killed After Horrific Attack

Wednesday Morning at approximately 11:15 Pacific Time three gunman, armed with long assault weapons entered the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino, CA , and opened fire in a conference room.  Witnesses said that the three suspects were on a mission, wearing masks and dark tactical clothing and sounds of bullets filled the air for approximately three to four minutes before fleeing the scene in a black SUV.    In their wake were 14 dead and 17 injured while hundreds of employees locked themselves down and hid waiting for authorities to arrive.  

At a press conference, law enforcement officials said that about 4½ hours later, multiple police cars were involved in a high-speed chase beginning as police followed a lead to a home in the nearby city of Redland.  After a dark SUV emerged from this home. police went into pursuit.  After arriving again in the San Bernardino area, a shootout occurred with police.  One female suspect and one male suspect were killed and one officer wounded with non life threatening injuries.

The dead suspects were armed with assault weapons, handguns and possible explosive material as well as being clothed in dark tactical style gear.  Law Enforcement is handling the scene cautiously until they are sure that there no danger for anyone else.  A third suspect was apprehended while fleeing the neighborhood and is being detained for questioning.  Police are not sure if this person is involved in the shooting or with the  dead suspects.

Assistant Director of the FBI in Los Angeles, David Bowdich, offered true sadness and sympathy to the families that have been involved in this tragedy and reassured them that all law enforcement resources will work diligently together to solve this case.  The FBI has been brought in to analyze the evidence and find all of those who are responsible for carrying out and planning this devastating act.

“Is this terrorism?  We do not know that for sure.  It is a possibility.  We are not willing to go down that road just yet and will go where the evidence takes us.” Bowdich stated. “This is a very fluid, active investigation, we will get there when we get there. ”

Police Chief Jarrod Burguan added that authorities do not yet know who the suspects are, if the home they came from belonged to them or what the motive is for this horrific attack.

Burguan reported that police authorities are still processing and releasing the scene at Inland Regional Center, the scene where the shootout occurred in a neighborhood close by and is also processing evidence at the home where the suspects vehicle came from.  Neighborhoods have been searched for any other possible suspects and police feel that the areas in question have been cleared.

Chief Burguan stressed that this is still an active crime investigation and will be sure that media receives information as soon as they are able to do so.

 

Germany set to join fight against ISIS

German leaders have supported a plan that would allow the country to send 1,200 soldiers to the Middle East to join the fight against the Islamic State, multiple media outlets reported Tuesday.

According to the Associated Press, the plan was endorsed by Chancellor Angela Merkel’s cabinet.

The BBC reported the German soldiers won’t be used in combat, and that the country will also send a naval frigate and aircraft for refueling and reconnaissance. Reuters reported Germany’s forces would stay in the region for up to a year and the mission is expected to cost $142 million.

French leaders had asked Germany to help fight the Islamic State after gunmen and suicide bombers linked to the group attacked Paris on Nov. 13, according to multiple media reports.

Germany’s parliament still technically needs to OK the plan, but the AP notes Merkel’s group is in the majority and appears to have the necessary votes needed to formally approve the measure.

Still, some Germans are skeptical about the plan.

Reuters reported some leaders from other political parties fear joining the fight against the Islamic State will ultimately increase the odds of terrorists executing an attack in Germany.

U.S. officials warn of “imminent attack” in Afghanistan

United States officials have received “credible reports of an imminent attack” somewhere in Kabul, Afghanistan, according to the state department’s Overseas Advisory Council.

The council on Monday issued what it called an emergency message for United States citizens currently in Afghanistan’s capital city, cautioning them to be careful during the next 48 hours.

“There were no further details regarding the targets, timing or method of the planned attack,” according to the posting.

The state department has an ongoing travel warning in effect for all of Afghanistan and urges Americans not to visit the country at all, citing an “extremely unstable” security situation. It notes Taliban-associated extremists remain active in the country.

Just two days ago, Agence France-Presse reported a suicide bomber targeted the life of one of the senior members of Afghanistan’s election commission as he entered his car in Kabul. The official survived the attack, but one of his employees died and two others were wounded.

United States issues worldwide travel warning

Americans planning to travel this holiday season should remain vigilant.

The State Department issued a worldwide travel alert on Monday, advising United States citizens of “increased terrorist threats.” The alert is effective through Feb. 24, 2016.

The State Department’s website posting does not mention a specific new threat, but noted terrorist groups Al-Qaida, the Islamic State, Boko Haram and others are continuing to plan attacks.

“These attacks may employ a wide variety of tactics, using conventional and non-conventional weapons and targeting both official and private interests,” the department wrote.

The State Department also warned of a “continuing threat” from individuals who are not affiliated with a terrorist organization, but might have been inspired by a group’s attacks.

It pointed to recent plots on sporting events, theaters and airliners, and said authorities think terrorist attacks are likely to continue as members of the Islamic State come back from Syria and Iraq.

The alert encourages travelers to remain alert, be aware of their surroundings and avoid large crowds.

“Exercise particular caution during the holiday season and at holiday festivals or events,” the State Department warned.

According to its website, such travel warnings are issued when the State Department wants individuals “to consider very carefully whether (they) should go to a country at all.”