Reuters: Trump Says Hamas Should Free All Hostages By Midday Saturday Or 'Let Hell Break Out'
“U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday that Hamas should release all hostages held by the militant group in Gaza by midday Saturday or he would propose canceling the Israel-Hamas ceasefire and "let hell break out." Trump cautioned that Israel might want to override him on the issue and said he might speak to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. But in a wide-ranging session with reporters in the Oval Office, Trump expressed frustration with the condition of the last group of hostages freed by Hamas and by the announcement by the militant group that it would halt further releases.”
Voice Of America: UN Security Council Raises Alarm Over Rising IS-K Threat From Afghanistan
“United Nations counterterrorism officials warned during a Security Council meeting Monday that an Islamic State affiliate in Afghanistan remains a significant threat to regional and global security. The discussion centered on the threat posed by Islamic State, also known as Daesh, and its regional offshoots to international peace and security. The Afghan-based Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K) was highlighted as one of the “most dangerous branches” of the transnational terrorist group. It has carried out repeated high-profile attacks targeting Afghan civilians and members of the country’s de facto Taliban rulers.”
CNN Portugal: This Family Home Near Auschwitz Is Opening Its Doors To The World
“With its well-kept garden and spacious interior, the three-storey house was once described as a “paradise” by the mother who raised her five children there. Much has been done to preserve the tranquillity of this house, considering its closest neighbour: the largest and most notorious Nazi concentration camp, Auschwitz… Since the liberation of Auschwitz in January 1945, the house, 88 Legionow Street, has been in the hands of a Polish family. However, last year it was acquired by the Counter Extremism Project, a New York-based non-governmental organization that has been working to combat extremism since 2014. This building – a powerful symbol of how the Holocaust was orchestrated, and a central character in the Oscar-winning film “The Zone” – has now opened its doors to visitors in a completely different way. “The idea behind this project is to create something that doesn’t exist, a global center to combat extremism, in what was the home of one of the worst extremists and anti-Semites in history,” Hans Jakob Schindler, director of the Counter Extremism Project, told CNN.”
UNESCO: A Decade Of Action Against Antisemitism
“Decades after the Holocaust, antisemitism is on the rise in Europe and beyond. Education programmes are vital to help people understand violent pasts and develop values to prevent future atrocities. To mark the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz Birkenau German Nazi Concentration and Extermination Camp, UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay recently travelled to Poland to take part in official commemorations. On site, she visited a new research centre on hate, extremism and radicalization being created by the Counter Extremism Project with support from UNESCO in the former house of Auschwitz commandant, Rudolf Höss. She reiterated UNESCO’s commitment to the fight against antisemitism. “At a time when survivors and direct witnesses of the Holocaust are growing fewer, it is vital to further invest in education to pass on memory to younger generations as well as to combat contemporary forms of antisemitism. Since its creation, UNESCO has been resolutely committed to carrying out this mission.””
Fox News: USAID Reportedly Bankrolled Al Qaeda Terrorist's College Tuition, Unearthed Records Show
“The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) reportedly provided "full funding" for al Qaeda terrorist Anwar al-Awlaki to attend college in Colorado, unearthed documents apparently show. Al-Awlaki was an American-born jihadist who was killed in a drone strike in Yemen in 2011, during the Obama administration. He was a central figure of al Qaeda, including having direct contact with Army psychiatrist Nidal Hasan before he opened fire at Fort Hood, Texas, in 2009, killing 13 people, U.S. officials reported at the time. Amid the Department of Government Efficiency's (DOGE) investigations of federal government agencies in search of overspending, corruption and fraud, political eyes have been locked on USAID funding.”
The Guardian: Bomb-Plot Trial Of Neo-Nazi Leader Pulls Back Veil On US Extremist Networks
“February was to be Brandon Russell’s moment: facing federal charges of conspiring to blow up a series of power stations around Baltimore and trigger a citywide blackout, the neo-Nazi figurehead decided to take his case to trial and mount an entrapment defense against the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It did not work. Russell, a 29-year-old native of the Bahamas, had thrown away a promising future involving a college degree at the University of Florida and a national guard position to become a dedicated far-right figurehead previously imprisoned in 2017 over a murderous spat between comrades in the Atomwaffen Division, a neo-Nazi guerrilla group he had founded that was involved in five murders and a number of bomb plots before federal agents dismantled it in 2020.”
Reuters: Syria's Sharaa Calls Trump Gaza Plan 'Serious Crime' Bound To Fail
“Syria's new president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, said in remarks broadcast on Monday he believes U.S. President Donald Trump's plan to resettle Palestinians from Gaza and take over the Strip "is a serious crime that will ultimately fail". Trump had said the U.S. would take over the war-ravaged Gaza Strip and develop it economically after Palestinians are resettled elsewhere. He said Palestinians would not have the right of return to Gaza under his proposal. In an interview with a UK podcast, Sharaa, an Islamist whose militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham was once an affiliate of al Qaeda, said Trump's proposal would not succeed. "I believe no power can drive people from their land. Many countries have tried to do it and they have all failed, especially during the recent war in Gaza over the past year and a half," he said. Sharaa, declared president for a transitional phase after his group's fighters led the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad, said it would be neither "wise nor morally or politically right" for Trump to lead an effort to force Palestinians out of their land.”
ABC News: 5 People Killed In A Suicide Bombing Near A Bank In Northern Afghanistan
“A suicide bomber blew himself up near a bank in northern Afghanistan on Tuesday, killing at least five people and wounding seven others, police said. The attack happened near a branch of the Kabul Bank in Kunduz province, said Jumauddin Khaksar, a police spokesman. The dead included a guard at the bank. No one has claimed responsibility for the attack and Khaksar said police were working to track down those who orchestrated the attack. Khaksar provided no further details. Militants from the Afghan chapters of the Islamic State group have carried out bombings across Afghanistan, though suicide attacks have become rare since the Taliban seized power in August 2021, as U.S. and NATO forces withdrew after 20 years of war.”
The New York Times: U.N. Suspends Humanitarian Work In Yemeni Area After Houthis Detain More Staff
“The United Nations announced on Monday that it was suspending all humanitarian operations in a large Houthi-controlled area in northern Yemen in response to the arbitrary detention of its staff, which it said created hostile conditions for aid work. The U.N. secretary general, António Guterres, made the decision because the Houthis detained eight more U.N. staff members in late January, bringing the total arrested since 2021 to 24, said Farhan Haq, a U.N. spokesman. Mr. Haq said the Houthis had violated an agreement reached in December with the U.N. to stop detaining the global agency’s staff and to find a pathway to releasing those in their custody.”
“Israeli police raided a long-established Palestinian-owned bookstore in east Jerusalem, detaining the owners and confiscating books about the decades-long conflict. The police claimed the books incited violence. The Educational Bookshop, established over 40 years ago, is a hub of intellectual life in east Jerusalem, which Israel captured in the 1967 Mideast war and annexed to its capital in a move not recognized internationally. Most of the city’s Palestinian population lives in east Jerusalem, and the Palestinians want it to be the capital of their future state. The three-story bookstore, raided on Sunday, has a large selection of books, mainly in Arabic and English, about the conflict and the wider Middle East, including many by Israeli and Jewish authors. It hosts cultural events and is especially popular among researchers, journalists and foreign diplomats.”
Bloomberg: Palestinians Scrap Stipends That Israel Saw As Stoking Terrorism
“Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said he was scrapping stipends paid to families of those jailed or killed in the war with Israel, as his administration seeks to build ties with US President Donald Trump and vie for a role in post-war Gaza. The payouts were long denounced by Israel, which says the system incentivizes terrorism and rewards the most violent acts by linking payments to Palestinians to the length of time spent in jail. The Palestinian Authority says the payments are needed for families whose main breadwinner has been killed or imprisoned. The PA, which is internationally recognized and controls parts of the West Bank, has said it’s ready to govern Gaza after the war and help rebuild the war-ravaged territory.”
Reuters: Ceasefire Is Only Way To Bring Israeli Hostages Home, Hamas Official Says
“A Hamas official said on Tuesday Israeli hostages can be brought home from Gaza only if a fragile ceasefire is respected, dismissing the "language of threats" after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would "let hell break out" if they were not freed. Hamas has started releasing some hostages gradually under the ceasefire in place since January 19 but has postponed freeing any more until further notice, accusing Israel of violating the terms by continuing attacks on the Gaza Strip. Trump, a close ally of Israel, said on Monday that Hamas should release all the hostages held by the militant group by midday on Saturday or he would propose cancelling the Israel-Hamas ceasefire. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel remained determined to get all the hostages back.”
Reuters: Islamic State Attacks Military Bases In Somalia's Puntland With Car And Motorbike Bombs
“The Islamic State armed group attacked military bases in Somalia's northeastern Puntland state overnight with suicide car and motorbike bombs, a military official said on Tuesday. Puntland announced a major offensive against Islamic State and a rival Islamist group, the al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab, in December and claims to have since killed dozens of foreign fighters, captured several IS bases, and forced a senior commander to surrender. "Last night after midnight, IS fighters attacked us in the recently liberated bases with suicide car and motorbike bombs. Many IS infantry attacked us, and the fighting is still ongoing," Mohamud Fadhigo, a Puntland military spokesperson, told Reuters.”
Bloomberg: Mali Starts Taxes On Mobile-Phone Use To Fund Terrorist Fight
“Mali has introduced taxes on mobile voice calls and mobile-money withdrawals to support its fight against an Islamic insurgency that’s threatening to take over part of the country. Customer recharge for calls will incur a tax of 10% while withdrawals from mobile-money wallet will be hit with a 1% levy, Minister of Economy and Finance Alousseni Sanou told reporters in the capital, Bamako. The new taxes together with other revenue measures are expected to raise roughly 140 billion CFA francs ($220 million) to finance security and energy, Sanou said. Mali has been under military rule since 2020, when General Assimi Goita ousted the West African nation’s elected president, citing the previous regime’s failure to repel Islamist insurgents.”
Extremists: Their Words. Their Actions.
Fact:
On October 7, 2023, Hamas invaded southern Israel where, in the space of eight hours, hundreds of armed terrorists perpetrated mass crimes of brutality, rape, and torture against men, women and children. In the biggest attack on Jewish life in a single day since the Holocaust, 1,200 were killed, and 251 were taken hostage into Gaza—where 101 remain. One year on, antisemitic incidents have increased by record numbers.
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