Eye on Extremism - February 8, 2016

Eye on Extremism February 8, 2016 Counter Extremism Project Kashmir Monitor: Twitter Shuts Down 125,000 Daesh Accounts “Twitter, an American social networking website, says since 2015 it has deleted 125,000 accounts linked to the Daesh (ISIL) Takfiri group. The California-based company made the announcement , adding it has stepped up its fight against violent extremism online. It is estimated that extremists post about 90,000 Twitter messages a day, according to the Counter Extremism Project, a New York-based nonprofit organization.” NPR: Twitter Says It Has Shut Down 125,000 Terrorism-Related Accounts “In its ongoing effort to combat violent extremism, Twitter announced Friday that it has suspended more than 125,000 accounts since mid-2015 because of what it called their connections to terrorist or extremist groups, primarily ISIS. NPR's Aarti Shahani reports that the company says there is no ‘magic algorithm’ to identify terrorist content on the Internet, so it is forced to make challenging judgment calls based on ‘very limited information and guidance.’ ‘The company says it is trying to strike the right balance between enforcement against tweets that break the rules, the needs of law enforcement, and free expression,’ Aarti reports.” The Guardian: Michigan Man Arrested Amid Alleged Support For Isis And Plot Against Church “Authorities have arrested a 21-year-old Michigan man whom they accuse of supporting Islamic State militants and plotting to attack a Detroit church. Khalil Abu-Rayyan, of Dearborn Heights, appeared Thursday in US district court in Detroit and remains jailed pending a Monday hearing. He hasn’t been charged with terrorism-related crimes but has been investigated since May and faces marijuana and gun charges. US attorney’s office spokeswoman Gina Balaya said Saturday that Abu-Rayyan would have a court-appointed attorney at the hearing, but she didn’t know whom it would be. She said Abu-Rayyan had been under constant FBI surveillance recently due to growing concern about threats he made against the church, police officers and others in support of Isis. There’s no indication he was acting with others, authorities said.” Reuters: UAE Ready To Confront ISIS With Ground Troops In Syria “The United Arab Emirates (UAE) said on Sunday it was ready to send ground troops to Syria as part of an international coalition to fight against Islamic State. Asked if the UAE was ready to send troops if need be, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash said at a media briefing in the Emirati capital Abu Dhabi: ‘This has been our position throughout.’ ‘We have been frustrated at the slow pace .... of confronting Daesh,’ he added, referring to Islamic State by its Arabic acronym. ‘We are not talking about thousands of troops but we are talking about troops on the ground that will lead the way ... that will support ... and I think our position remains the same and we will have to see how this progresses’” Associated Press: Turkey Under Pressure As Thousands Of Syrians Amass At Border “An influx of Syrians flocked to the Turkish border on Saturday, but officials in Turkey say any displaced refugees would not be allowed into their country except in the case of extreme ‘crisis.’ As many as 35,000 Syrians had massed along the closed border in the last 48 hours, a Turkish official said Saturday, according to The Associated Press. But a source from the office of Turkey's prime minister told NBC News that the border would likely not be opened because the Turkish government worries that the mostly-Sunni refugees will settle in villages and towns with differing religious groups.” Al-Arabiya: U.N. Chief: 34 Groups Now Allied To ISIS Extremists “Thirty-four militant groups from around the world had reportedly pledged allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) extremist group as of mid-December - and that number will only grow in 2016, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in a report Friday. Ban said ISIS poses ‘an unprecedented threat,’ because of its ability to persuade groups from countries like the Philippines, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Libya and Nigeria to pledge their allegiance. He said U.N. member states should also prepare for an increase in attacks by ISIS associated groups traveling to other countries to launch attacks and develop networks.” The Mirror: Cash-Strapped ISIS Fighters Ditch Terror Group After Being Left Furious Over Pay Cuts “Islamic State monsters are ditching the evil terror group after being forced to take yet another pay cut, a terror expert has claimed. The ISIS fighters who are fuelling bloodshed and misery in Iraq, Syria and now increasingly Libya are said to be ‘looking for better deals’ with rival terror groups. She claims that the ‘for-profit militants’ are ditching ISIS for rival groups in the region who can offer better pay.” Reuters: Tunisia Finishes Libya Border Fence Intended To Keep Out Militants “Tunisia has completed a 200-km (125 mile) barrier along its frontier with Libya to try to keep out Islamist militants, and will soon install electronic monitoring systems, Defence Minister Farhat Hachani said on Saturday. Libya's chaos since the fall of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011 has allowed Islamic State to gain a foothold there, and officials say militants who carried out two major attacks in Tunisia last year had trained in jihadist camps in Libya. Troops have raised an earth wall and dug trenches 2 km (1.2 miles) from the Libyan border, and European and American military trainers will soon train Tunisian forces to improve electronic surveillance with cameras and radar, Hachani told reporters on a visit to the border.” NBC: Spanish Raids Net Seven Suspected Of Supplying Cash, Weapons To ISIS “Seven people were arrested in Spain Sunday in relation to the supply of firearms and cash to terrorist groups in Syria and Iraq. The Spanish interior ministry said the international cell operated as a ‘business complex,’ which allowed it to send the supplies unsuspected from Spanish ports under the guise of humanitarian aid. Among those arrested include five Spanish nationals of Syrian, Jordanian, and Moroccan origin, and two foreigners of Syrian and Moroccan origin. All have links to ISIS and the Al Nusra Front, according to the Spanish interior ministry.” United States Business Standard: ISIS Is Hijacking Train, Pranksters Tell US Subway Riders “Two pranksters sparked a scare after they broke into the conductor's booth of a Manhattan subway train and announced on the public address system that ISIS is ‘hijacking’ the train and will blow it up.  The startling announcement aboard the Brooklyn-bound R train had riders scurrying out of the train when it pulled into the next stop. The suspects also slipped off the train at the next stop. The two mischievous pranksters, in their 20s, broke into the conductor's booth last Thursday and announced over the loudspeaker that they were ISIS members set to ‘blow up the train’, police sources were quoted as saying by the New York Post.” Yemen AFP: Qaeda Tightens Its Grip On South Yemen Coast “Al-Qaeda overran a police headquarters in a south Yemen provincial capital on Saturday, strengthening their grip on the coast road overlooking the Gulf of Aden, security sources said. The jihadists, who hold parts of the lawless south of the war-torn country, seized the headquarters in Zinjibar unopposed by pro-government forces who fled the capital of Abyan province, the sources told AFP. The militants have controlled other government buildings in Zinjibar for weeks and also have a large presence in the nearby town of Jaar. Earlier this week, they seized the town of Azzan in neighbouring Shabwa province.” Asharq Al-Awsat: Yemen Army Takes Control Of The Eastern Gate Of Sana’a “Aden- Brig. Gen. Ahmed Asiri, Arab Coalition Spokesman and Consultant at the Saudi Defense Ministry, announced that the presence of pro-government forces in Sana’a is now an irrevocable reality. Brig. Asiri confirmed that Houthi militias are resorting to mine fields to hurdle the resistance and the Yemen’s army advance in Sana’a. Asiri’s announcement came after both national Army and resistance forces, on Friday, took control over the Al-Farda Nahim camp believed to be the insurgents’ ‘platoon312’, east of Sana’a. The camp was confiscated after 24 hours of a broad attack launched by pro- government forces for freeing the eastern door of the capital city from Houthi militia.” Turkey Reuters: Militant Group Sidelined As Turkey Unveils Plan To End Kurdish Unrest “Turkey all but ruled out direct talks with Kurdish militants to end one of the worst periods of bloodshed in a three-decade insurgency on Friday, saying the government would instead bring what it called civil society groups to the table. In a speech in the southeastern city of Mardin, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu unveiled what he billed as a new plan to bolster security and rebuild areas ravaged by conflict, but made clear the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militant group would be sidelined unless it laid down weapons. ‘We're starting a new period for our national unity and brotherhood. We will talk to the the people directly. We'll talk to everyone, except those who are holding guns in their hands,’ he told local officials and members of the ruling AK Party, including several cabinet ministers, at Mardin university.” Hurriyet Daily News: Nine Suspected PKK Militants Killed In Fire In Cizre During Operation “Nine suspected militants, four members of security forces and dozens of outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants have been killed in two towns over two days in the latest spate of violence in Southeast Anatolia. Nine suspected PKK militants were reportedly killed and 25 others were wounded in a fire that erupted in an apartment building in the southeastern district of Cizre on Feb. 5 where operations are continuing. Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Group Deputy head İdris Baluken wrote on his official Twitter account that nine people had been killed and 25 injured others were still inside the building early Feb. 5, accusing authorities of failing to extinguish the fire.” Syria Ara News: ISIS Bombs Headquarters Of Western-Backed Syrian Democratic Forces In Hasakah “Militant fighters of the Islamic State (ISIS) on Saturday launched an offensive on headquarters of the western-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the northeastern province of Hasakah, military sources reported. ISIS militants hit an SDF security center and a checkpoint near the village of Qana in Hasakah countryside with mortar fire and heavy machine guns, where at least four SDF fighters were killed and several others were injured.  ‘Subsequent to the terror attack, our (SDF) units were engaged in clashes with Daesh terrorists in the vicinity of Qana village,’ Ali al-Jassim, a member of the SDF, told ARA News in Hasakah, using another acronym for ISIS.” Associated Press: Syrian Troops Move Forward “The Syrian military and allied fighters, backed by Russian airstrikes, on Friday pushed ahead with a major offensive in the north of the country, capturing another village and moving a step closer to encircling contested Aleppo, Syria's largest city. The government also scored gains in southern Syria on Friday, capturing a town near the provincial capital of Daraa, state media said.” Ara News: Kurds Repel Renewed ISIS Attack North Raqqa “Kurdish forces of the People’s Protection Units (YPG) repelled on Sunday an attack by militants of the Islamic State (ISIS) near the town of Ain Issa in Syria’s northern province of Raqqa. ISIS jihadis hit with mortar fire a security checkpoint for the YPG at the southern entrance of Ain Issa town in the northern countryside of Raqqa. At least two Kurdish fighters were killed before clashes broke out between the YPG and ISIS militants in the vicinity of Ain Issa.” Al-Bawaba: Hezbollah Commander Killed In Aleppo Shia Town “A Hezbollah field commander has been killed in clashes in a flashpoint Shiite town in the northern Syrian province of Aleppo, media reports said on Friday. ‘The commander Haidar Fariz Merhi and the fighter Hussein Hassan Jawad, who both hail from the western Bekaa town of Mashghara, were killed fighting in the Nubol and Zahraa area north of Aleppo,’ Al-Arabiya television reported. The pro-Hezbollah South Lebanon news portal confirmed Merhi's death, also describing him as a Hezbollah commander. According to Al-Arabiya, a third Hezbollah fighter was killed in Syria in recent days.” Ara News: Dozens Of Pro-Assad Hezbollah Militants Killed In Attacks By Syrian Rebels Near Damascus “At least 50 pro-Assad militant fighters of Hezbollah were killed in a series of attacks by rebel factions near the Syrian capital Damascus, military officials said on Sunday. Rebels of Jaish al-Islam (Army of Islam) and allied groups launched several attacks on military positions of pro-Assad troops in the Eastern Ghouta of Damascus, targeting members of the Lebanese Hezbollah militia.” Afghanistan Fox: Afghanistan Expects Talks With Taliban This Month “Afghanistan expects to hold direct talks with the Taliban by the end of this month, an official said Sunday. Foreign Ministry spokesman Ahmad Shakib Mostaghani told reporters that Afghanistan, Pakistan, China and the United States agreed on a roadmap toward peace talks at a meeting in Islamabad the day before. He said the government hopes to ‘put an end to the futile violence which is imposed on our people.’ The last direct talks between Kabul and the Taliban broke down after just one session last summer when Kabul announced that the Taliban's reclusive, longtime leader Mullah Mohammad Omar died two years earlier.” BBC: Sangin 'On Verge Of Falling Back Into Afghan Taliban Hands' “The key district of Sangin in the southern Afghan province of Helmand is once again on the verge of being overrun by the Taliban, according to an Afghan army commander. The commander, who wishes to remain anonymous, told the BBC that most of the district had already been taken. He said the Afghan government now controls just a few square kilometres of Sangin city. The Afghan army and local governor's office dismissed the claims.” Khaama Press: 16 Pakistani Militants Affiliated With ISIS Killed In Afghanistan Airstrikes “At least sixteen Pakistani militants affiliated with the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) terrorist group loyalists in Afghanistan, were killed in separate airstrikes in eastern Nangarhar province of Afghanistan. According to the local government officials the militants were killed in two separate raids in Batikot and Achin districts where the loyalists of the terror group are largely operating. The airstrikes were apparently carried out by the foreign forces using unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), a local official said, adding that a vehicle carrying the loyalists of the terror group was targeted in the first raid. The official further added that five militants were killed in the raid while eleven others were killed in the second raid that targeted a gathering of the loyalists of the terror group.” Iraq Ara News: Kurdish Peshmerga Repels ISIS Attack, Kills 30 Jihadis North Iraq “At least 30 militant fighters from the Islamic State (ISIS) were killed on Saturday in clashes with the Kurdish Peshmerga forces in Makhmur district, northern Iraq.  Clashes broke out after ISIS militants carried out three car bomb attacks on Peshmerga headquarters in Makhmur district.  ‘The group conducted three simultaneous terror attacks with explosive cars near the Peshmerga headquarters, while other militants were trying to infiltrate in recently liberated villages in the district on Saturday evening,’ Peshmerga officer Reshid Sufi told ARA News in Erbil, capital of Iraqi Kurdistan.” Al-Bawaba: Top Daesh Commander Killed In Iraq: Local Media “A top commander of Daesh has been killed in an airstrike in the northern Iraqi province of Nineveh. Shobaib Abu Majd al-Kanani, the Saudi-born commander, was killed along with eight other Daesh commanders in an airstrike late on Saturday, Iraq's Alsumaria news website reported. Also on Saturday, seven Daesh elements were killed and 12 others injured in airstrikes in the northern province of Kirkuk. Some 45 Daesh militants were killed by Iraqi security forces in the northern part of the city of Ramadi, the capital of Anbar Province, on the same day.” Ara News: ISIS Executes 300 Iraqis In Mosul, Including Activists And Former Soldiers “Extremists of the Islamic State (ISIS) have executed some 300 Iraqi people in Mosul city of the northwestern Nineveh province, an official said on Sunday.  The victims included civilian activists and former members of the Iraqi army and national security.  Official spokesman of the Iraqi army in Nineveh Mahmoud Souraji confirmed the execution of 300 people at the hands of ISIS militants in Mosul over the last few days.” Egypt AFP: Egypt Flooded Gaza Tunnels At Israel's Request: Minister “An Israeli minister said Egypt flooded tunnels on its border with the besieged Gaza Strip at the Jewish state's request, before a spokeswoman on Sunday said the remarks were misinterpreted. Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz, a member of the ruling Likud party, said on Saturday that Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ‘did flood a large part of the tunnels between Gaza and Sinai’, calling it a ‘good solution’. The Palestinian coastal enclave's southern border with Egypt's Sinai Peninsula is significantly shorter than its eastern border with Israel.” Business Standard: 10 Militants Killed In Army Raids In Egypt “Ten militants were killed and 13 others injured during army raids in multiple cities in Egypt's restive North and Central Sinai.  Thirteen were injured in the ground and air raids, while six suspected terrorists were arrested, army spokesperson Brigadier General Mohamed Samir said yesterday.  Six unlicensed vehicles and motorcycles were destroyed during the raids, Samir said in a statement.” Middle East Arutz Sheva: Gaza: Hamas-ISIS Ties Tighten “Israel's intelligence community has found that the Hamas terrorist organization and Islamic State (ISIS) intensified their mutual cooperation in the year 2015 - so reports Middle East Newsline (MENL). According to the Israeli intelligence sources, the two terrorist movements share intelligence, weapons shipments, logistics and medical services. For instance, ISIS frequently works with Bedouin smugglers to facilitate shipments of missiles and weapons to the Hamas-ruled Gaza via Egypt's Sinai Desert. ISIS then takes 10-20% of the weapons ordered by Hamas.” Times Of Israel: Jewish Grandma Stabbed By Terrorist In Southern Bedouin Town “A Jewish Israeli woman was stabbed and wounded Saturday evening in the Bedouin town of Rahat, in southern Israel. She sustained moderate injuries to her neck and was hospitalized for treatment, where her condition was later defined as lightly injured. Security forces were treating the stabbing as a terror attack. The attack occurred as the woman, Shlomit Gonen, 65, a grandmother from nearby Kibbutz Mishmar Hanegev, was shopping with family members in the town’s open market. Eyewitnesses said an Arab youth of about 20 years of age stabbed her before fleeing the scene. Large numbers of security forces were searching for the assailant, and set up roadblocks in the area.” Haaretz: Sudanese National Wounds Israeli Soldier In Stabbing Attack “An Israeli soldier was lightly wounded in a stabbing attack in the southern city of Ashkelon on Sunday morning in an attack allegedly conducted by a foreign national.  The soldier sustained a light wound to the upper body, and was taken to the Barzilai Medical Center in the city for treatment. The alleged assailant, identified as Kamel Hassan, a 32-year-old Sudanese national residing in Ashkelon, was shot and wounded at the scene of the attack, and later succumbed to his wounds. Hassan had stayed in the Holot detention center in the Negev in April 2014 for a month.” NBC: Number Of ISIS-Related Groups Likely To Grow In 2016: U.N. “Thirty-four militant groups from around the world had reportedly pledged allegiance to the Islamic State extremist group as of mid-December — and that number will only grow in 2016, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in a report Friday. Ban said U.N. member states should also prepare for an increase attacks by ISIS associated groups from countries such as the Philippines, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Libya and Nigeria, traveling to nations. ‘The recent expansion of the ISIL sphere of influence across west and north Africa, the Middle East and south and southeast Asia demonstrates the speed and scale at which the gravity of the threat has evolved in just 18 month,’ Ban said, using another abbreviation for the group.” Libya Africa News: 30 Killed After Two Days Of Heavy Fighting In Southeast Libya “A local official said on Friday that the clashes are between Libya’s Subul Assalam faction,and Sudanese fighters from the Darfur region in western Sudan. According to Abdurrahman Hashim who heads the Subul Assalam faction, his group was retaliating for armed robberies and attempted attacks on Kufra, in Libya’s desert, which shares a border with northwestern Sudan. Hashim added that at least one of his men had been killed and six wounded in the fighting and his fighters had also destroyed and captured a number of vehicles. While speaking to news agencies, the mayor of Kufra, Miftah Bou Khali, said that Subul Assalam fighters attacked an oasis 150 km north-west of Kufra on Friday, killing 10 Sudanese fighters and capturing four. He added that at least 20 more Sudanese fighters were attacked and killed at a checkpoint located 200 kilometres north of Kufra.” Nigeria Financial Times: Nigerians Fear Military Onslaught Has Failed To Crush Boko Haram “High quality global journalism requires investment. Please share this article with others using the link below, do not cut & paste the article. Muhammadu Buhari, Nigeria’s president, seized on the momentum gained in the offensive — launched before his election victory last April — and took office promising to wipe out the insurgency, and fast. Setting himself a deadline of the end of 2015, the former army general and one-time military ruler says that on his watch, the troops have delivered. He describes Boko Haram as ‘degraded’ and no longer capable of ‘military-style attacks’. Last month he said the return of people forced to flee their homes ‘will start in earnest’ this year. But Mr Buhari’s push to declare the demise of one of the world’s deadliest terror groups risks damaging his credibility, say western officials and Nigerian analysts” Arabic Language Clips Combating Terrorism Financing Sada El-Balad: Representative Of Egypt To The United Nations Will Participate In A Meeting On The Financing Of Terrorism In London Egypt's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Amr Abu Atta, in his first appearance as head of the Counter-Terrorism Committee, is expected to attend a meeting called and hosted by the London-based Chatham House (the Royal Institute of International Affairs) on Monday February 8th. The meeting will focus on the financing of terrorism, and the Egyptian official will be one of the keynote speakers at the event. Members of the Security Council unanimously chose Egypt to chair the Committee, which was formed after the terror attacks of September 11th, 2001. It is considered one of the most important committees in the United Nations for combating terrorism. ISIS Almada Paper: 700 Billion (Iraqi) Dinars Lost By The Agricultural Sector In Anbar Because Of ISIS The Agriculture Committee in Iraq's Anbar Province announced on Saturday that the agricultural sector in the Province had lost more than 700 billion dinars ($633 million). These losses stemmed from the increasing desertification caused mainly by ISIS operations. The Chairman of the Agriculture Committee, Farhan Mohammad, was quoted as saying that "the losses of Anbar in the agricultural sector in 2014 and 2015 totaled more than 700 billion dinars, with a high rate of desertification and salinization of the soil caused by the terror attacks in the areas under ISIS's control. This was compounded by the emigration of many farmers who abandoned their farm lands." Muslim Brotherhood Albawabh News: Union Of Scientific Professions (In Egypt): Brotherhood In Full Control Of The Union Dr. Ahmed Obaya, a member of the Egyptian Union of Scientific Professions, claimed that the Muslim Brotherhood wields significant control over the Union. He stressed that the group's current domination of the Union has never been so strong. Obaya added that after the election nominations for the Union of Scientific Professions were opened, the Brotherhood put forward their candidate, even though he is serving a prison term for security-related offenses. Forsannet: Haitham Al-Hajj Ali: We Did Not Ban Books Of Brotherhood And Al-Qaradawi From The (Cairo International Book) Fair The Egyptian General Book Authority Chairman, Haitham al-Hajj Ali, insisted that he did not issue any decision calling to ban the books of the Muslim Brotherhood, or those written by Yusuf al-Qaradawi, from the 47th Annual Cairo International Book Fair. Al-Hajj Ali explained that it was the owners of publishing houses who refused to display these books at the event, for lack of demand. However, an owner of a publishing house disclosed that the General Book Authority had warned them all to refrain from selling books by al-Qaradawi or the Brotherhood at the Fair; therefore, they were allowed to participate in it. The owner revealed that – irrespective of any political dispute – the publishers had received numerous requests from the public to purchase Sheikh al-Qaradawi's books. Over the past year, three publishing houses were shut down for selling books of the Brotherhood and al-Qaradawi, which registered a high sales volume. Masrawy: Researchers: Qatar Supports The Brotherhood For Politics, Not Religion Sameh Rashed, an Egyptian journalist and political analyst in regional and international relations, asserted that Qatar is seeking, through its investments, to protect the country from any future pressures. He noted that the fact that Qatar supports radical Islamist movements including the Muslim Brotherhood while, at the same time, cooperating with the United States, indicates that its support for extremists serves a political goal rather than a religious one. Albawabh News: Brotherhood Conflicts Extend To Their Allies In Turkey Because Of Finances The internal struggles inside the Muslim Brotherhood, which surfaced six months ago, between its Deputy Supreme Guide and temporary leader Dr. Mahmoud Ezzat, and senior official Mohammed Kamal, have extended outside the organization. They now extend also to the Brotherhood's allies from the Islamic Group (al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya) who took shelter in Turkey. These disputes stem from financial disagreements. The Brotherhood recently took another blow with the announcement by 15 officials, led by Amr Darraj, of their resignation from the so-called "Revolutionary Council." Those who stepped down complained of the lack of funds being pumped from the group to the Council, due to the financial crunch faced by the Brotherhood. This crisis has led to the closing of the Brotherhood TV channels, and a halt in payment of salaries and bonuses to the group's members. Sources explained that the 15 officials who stepped down took this decision because they felt the Brotherhood leadership does not listen to their views. However, their main reason for resigning is related to financing, amid growing concerns among the Brotherhood and its allies with regard to the imminent termination of Turkish - Qatari backing. Veto: Tharwat El-Kherbawy: Half Of The Members Of The Brotherhood's Guidance Office Are Agents For Security (Services) In Exchange For (Financial) Rewards Tharwat el-Kherbawy, a former Muslim Brotherhood member, revealed that about half of the members of the Guidance Office of the Muslim Brotherhood are working as agents for local and international security services. El-Kherbawy added that members of the Guidance Office have been leaking details to security agencies on internal meetings and information they have gleaned from discussions held by the Brotherhood leaders in exchange for money. The ex-Brotherhood leader stressed that through these agents the security services have managed, over the past decades, to gain knowledge of the contents of the secret meetings. Albawabh News: El Kherbawy: Brotherhood Infiltrated The Official Media Of The (Egyptian) State Ex-Brotherhood leader Tharwat El Kherbawy asserted that the Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated entities are still active and are not blocked from infiltrating Egypt's official media. El Kherbawy added that the group has infiltrated the state media in "many outlets," and thus must be handled by administrative and security measures. He explained that the Muslim Brotherhood media operates in a systematic and orderly fashion. The Brotherhood's media scheme is to keep fueling the controversy surrounding the group, even if it includes negative points, so the Brotherhood will remain in the public's consciousness. Popular Mobilization Forces Al-Akhbar: Popular Mobilization (Forces) Dying...Financially A source in the Iraqi "Popular Mobilization Forces (Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi)" claimed the militia is facing huge financial challenges. This prompted a scale-down or complete cancellation of many of its activities, including shutting down offices and reducing its fighters' salaries by roughly 50%. The source did not rule out the fact that the challenges experienced by the "Hashd" may be related to "smear campaigns and conspiracies being launched against the Popular Mobilization." The source confirmed that the Popular Mobilization Forces' allocations in the 2016 budget have been reduced by nearly half compared to last year's budget. The budget cuts were introduced despite the many calls, appeals and pressure exerted on Iraqi politicians. The source warned that weakened Popular Mobilization Forces and fighting them financially are both related to the media speculations regarding the imminent plans to dismantle this militia. Islamic Jihad 3roba News: Tehran Erases The Islamic Jihad From The List Of Palestinian Allies As A Result Of Its Neutrality Towards The Events In Yemen According to reports, Iran recently informed the Islamic Jihad that relations between the two parties have shifted from "important ally" status to a "friend" for whom "Iran cannot consistently provide what it wants." Reports indicate that the leadership of the Islamic Jihad movement was not convinced by Iran's declarations, since Tehran has been financing small groups in Gaza, notably the "Al-Sabirin Movement." The Islamic Jihad lacks any self-financing sources, in contrast to Hamas, which has heavily invested in various lucrative economic projects. A senior official in the Islamic Jihad acknowledged that its severe financial crunch stems from Tehran's decision to discontinue its support for the movement. The official asserted that "the main reason Iran decided to stop its support is our refusal to oppose the (Saudi-led) Operation Decisive Storm in Yemen. We remain 'sitting on the fence', with an emphasis on non-interference in the affairs of another Arab country."