Eye on Extremism - May 26, 2016

Eye on Extremism May 26, 2016 Associated Press: In Iraq Battle, IS Prevents Fallujah Residents From Fleeing “The Islamic State group is preventing people from fleeing Fallujah amid a military operation to recapture the city west of Baghdad, a local Iraqi official and aid groups said on Wednesday. Thousands of civilians are estimated to remain inside Fallujah, located about 40 miles (65 kilometers) west of Baghdad, which IS has held for over two years. On Sunday, government forces launched a large-scale offensive, teaming up with paramilitary troops and backed by aerial support from the U.S.-led coalition. Nearly 20 families have fled from Fallujah's outskirts, where sporadic clashes have been taking place, since the offensive started, said Shakir al-Issawi, the head of the council in the nearby town of Amiriyat al-Fallujah. Al-Issawi said no families managed to flee Wednesday as IS militants tightly control the city outlets. The Norwegian Refugee Council, an aid group working with refugees and the displaced in Iraq, reported that only 17 families has fled Fallujah since Sunday night and that most had fled from the city's outskirts.” CNN: ISIS On Europe's Doorstep “ISIS is trying to infiltrate this trade to get their people to Europe from the chaotic and near-failed state of Libya as the route from Turkey to Greece becomes more heavily policed. ‘Exploitation of migrant smuggling networks by ISIS in North Africa has only been a matter of time ... the U.S. and Europe need to act quickly, and together,’ a Western diplomat told CNN. A senior Libyan military intelligence official in Misrata, Ismail Shukri, said that ISIS militants sought to disguise themselves by traveling with ‘their families, without weapons, as normal illegal immigrants.’ European officials insist they're trying to be better prepared. A senior EU counter-terrorism official told CNN there were more Europol officers working at potential ‘hotspots’ of entry for migrants. Still, the prospect of such an influx is a nightmare for Europe.” The New York Times: U.S. Says Its Strikes Are Hitting More Significant ISIS Targets “Nearly two years into the American-led air war against the Islamic State, military officials say they have corrected the poor intelligence collection and clumsy process for identifying targets that initially plagued the campaign, and are now hitting targets like oil rigs and secret cash coffers that finance the terrorist group’s war machine. The destruction in recent months of these targets, deep behind enemy lines — which commanders previously avoided for fear of causing civilian casualties — has seriously damaged the Islamic State’s ability to pay its fighters, govern and attract new recruits, military officials say. To speed up the approval of targets, the Pentagon shifted the authority for most strikes that posed a risk to civilians to commanders in the field from the military’s Central Command in Tampa, Fla., which oversees operations in the Middle East.” CBS News: Egypt Aviation Minister: "Nothing Has Been Ruled Out" In Egyptair Crash “Egypt's civil aviation minister told CBS News' Holly Williams on Wednesday that ‘nothing has been ruled out’ in determining the cause of the EgyptAir flight 804 crash that killed all 66 passengers and crew on board. Minister for civil aviation Sherif Fathy told Williams that at this premature stage, no possible causes of the crash have been ruled out. ‘It could have been anything, but mechanical failure is, how do you call it, one of four or five assumptions or possibilities that might have happened to the aircraft,’ Fathy said. Fathy told Williams that the possible causes for the downing of the flight include: mechanical failure, a fire on board, an electrical problem, or a terror act.” The Washington Post: Russia Calls Off Attacks Against Syria’s Al-Qaeda Franchise “In an unusual announcement Wednesday, Russia said it would halt air raids against Syria’s al-Qaeda affiliate, Jabhat al-Nusra, to give other rebel factions a chance to distance themselves from the extremist group. The move comes less than a week after Moscow proposed conducting joint airstrikes in Syria with a U.S.-led coalition that is attacking the Islamic State militant group there. U.S. officials have rejected that idea, even as coordination with Russia over a partial truce in the country apparently has increased. Russian news agencies carried a vague statement attributed to Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov, a Russian Defense Ministry spokesman, declaring that unidentified Syrian opposition groups had asked Moscow to suspend attacks.” Washington Post: Two Of Her Daughters Joined ISIS. Now She’s Trying To Save Her Two Younger Girls. “In a small box in her bedroom, Oulfa Hamrounni keeps the photo she treasures most. It shows one of her daughters, brown hair flowing, a smile on her round face. The photo was taken before the girl and her sister left home to join the Islamic State’s affiliate in Libya. Today, Hamrounni is struggling to bring her teenage daughters back to Tunisia. She’s also trying to prevent two others from joining them.” Reuters: Naming Of New Taliban Chief Seen Dimming Obama's Hopes For Afghan Peace Talks “The selection of a hard-line cleric as the new Taliban chief on Wednesday all but dashes U.S. President Barack Obama's hopes for opening peace talks before he leaves office, one of his top foreign policy goals, current and former U.S. defense and intelligence officials said. The Taliban leadership council tapped Mullah Haybattulah Akhundzada, a conservative Islamic scholar from the group's stronghold in southern Afghanistan, to succeed Mullah Akhtar Mansour, four days after Mansour was killed in a U.S. drone strike. U.S. officials had called Mansour a major impediment to peace talks, and some had expressed hope his death would eliminate an obstacle to peace negotiations between the Taliban and the government of Afghan President Ashraf Ghani.” Fox News: 'Martyr': Palestinian Media Praise Killer Of US Tourist In Israel “The Palestinian attacker who unleashed a stabbing spree in Israel nearly three months ago, killing an American tourist and wounding 11 others before police killed him, was a ‘martyr’ in the eyes of Palestinian media. The Palestinian Authority's official TV network reported Saturday the attacker, Bashar Masalha, received a burial described as ‘a large national wedding befitting of martyrs’ -- a reference to the Islamic teaching that a martyr would marry 72 virgins in the afterlife. The March 8 stabbing rampage in Tel Aviv killed Taylor Force, a 28-year-old West Point grad and veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan who was studying abroad in pursuit of his MBA. Israeli police were among the wounded.” Independent: Sally Jones: Isis Recruiter 'Issues Series Of Terror Threats Against UK Cities' Over Twitter “A Twitter account believed to belong to the Isis propagandist Sally Jones has issued a series of terror threats against the UK. Sally Jones, originally from Kent, became infamous after marrying a notorious Isis fighter. She is thought to have left Britain for Syria with her 10-year-old child in 2013 in order to marry Junaid Hussain who was killed in drone strike last year. Jones, also known as Umm Hussain Birtaniya, referred to drones and suicide attacks in a flurry of Twitter posts on Wednesday. Jones has previously used her Twitter account to propagandise for Isis and release provocative statements, including her wish to behead a Western prisoner in Syria and behead Christians with a ‘blunt knife’, according to the Counter Extremism Project.” Associated Press: Russia Accuses Turkey Of Supplying Islamic State Extremists “Russia has accused Turkey of supplying the Islamic State extremist group with components for improvised explosive devices. Russia's U.N. Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said in a letter to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon circulated Wednesday that the devices ‘are being widely used to commit terrorist acts.’ He said an analysis of chemical components of explosives captured from Islamists in the region of the Iraqi city of Tikrit and the Syrian city of Kobani, and a review of conditions for selling the components, ‘indicates that they were either manufactured in Turkey or delivered to that country without the right of re-export.’ Churkin accused five Turkish companies of delivering aluminum powder, ammonium nitrate, hydrogen peroxide and other material produced by various Turkish and foreign companies to the Islamic State group.” Syria Voice Of America: Airstrikes Hit Islamic State In Raqqa “The U.S. led a group of planes on airstrikes Tuesday against Islamic State positions in Raqqa, Syria. A British-based monitoring group, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said the attacks targeted IS on the outskirts of the city. This could have been to avoid civilian casualties, although civilian deaths were reported. IS has declared Raqqa its capital in Syria. Political activists in Raqqa say Islamic State is using innocent people as human shields. They say IS places fighters and weapons in civilian housing. The reports come a day after a group of Syrian militias backed by the U.S. moved against IS north of Raqqa. The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) announced the move in a video posted online.” CNN: Did ISIS Attack Russian Military Equipment At Key Syrian Base? “Russia is denying reports that ISIS struck and destroyed a significant amount of its military equipment at an important military base in Syria. A media outlet affiliated with the terror group claimed on May 15 that ISIS hit the strategic T4 base in central Syria between the cities of Homs and Palmyra. The global intelligence firm Stratfor also released a series of images that purport to show damaged aircraft and supply depots at the base, which the group calls one of the ‘most important’ in the country. ‘The attack, and the considerable losses on the Russian side, stress the continued threat to supply lines for Russia and regime forces,’ Stratfor said. Stratfor says the images show the damage incurred was likely not accidental.” CNN: ISIS Lets Raqqa Residents Flee City As Offensive Waged To North “ISIS has let some residents of its so-called capital flee to the surrounding countryside as a U.S.-backed alliance of Kurdish and Arab forces pushes forward with an offensive to the north of Raqqa, one resident and an activist group tell CNN. The battle, announced Tuesday, is meant to retake that area, Kurdish officials said, but is likely to stop short of attempting to retake the beleaguered Syrian city. A resident of the nearby town of al-Bab said that in recent days, some residents of central Raqqa had been allowed to leave the city center for the outlying areas. Sarmad al-Jilane, of the activist group Raqqa is Being Slaughtered Silently, confirmed the report, saying that the Sunni terror group was allow residents to move to the countryside near Raqqa or to the city of Deir Ezzor to the southeast, but not to travel any further.” Iraq Reuters: Top Shi'ite Cleric Urges Restraint In Assault On Iraq's Falluja “Iraq's top Shi'ite Muslim cleric urged government and allied Shi'ite militia forces fighting to retake Falluja from Islamic State militants to spare trapped civilians amid reports of a budding humanitarian crisis in the city. Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani's appeal reflected concerns that a large civilian death toll in the battle for the mainly Sunni Muslim city could kindle increased sectarian strife in Iraq. The Baghdad government has been led by Shi'ites since the 2003 fall of Saddam Hussein, a member of the Sunni minority. Sistani added his voice to many calls for restraint in the battle begun on Monday to retake Falluja, on Baghdad's western approaches and the first Iraqi city to fall under the control of the ultra-hardline Islamic State (IS), in January 2014.” Turkey Reuters: Car Bomb Kills Three Security Force Members In Turkey's Mainly Kurdish Region “A car bomb attack on a gendarmes station in Turkey's mainly Kurdish southeast killed three members of the security forces and wounded three others on Wednesday, Interior Ministry officials said. The dead included a soldier and two village guards who belong to a state-backed militia that fights Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) rebels along with soldiers and special police units, security sources said. The attack occurred in the village of Anitli in Mardin province, which borders Syria. The PKK has waged a 31-year campaign for greater autonomy in the region. The conflict reignited in July after a ceasefire and peace process spearheaded by President Tayyip Erdogan collapsed.” BBC: Migrant Crisis: Turkey Could Block EU Deal Over Visas “Turkey's parliament will block a deal with the EU on migrants if Turks do not gain visa-free access to the bloc, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says. Access to the EU's passport-free Schengen area was a key demand by Turkey in an agreement struck in March. But the EU says Turkey still needs to meet certain conditions, including changes to its terror laws, before access can be granted. The agreement is aimed at halting the mass movement of people into Europe. Mr Erdogan has also said funds promised by the EU have not yet been released. Under the agreement, Turkey has to meet 72 conditions to earn visa-free access to the Schengen area by the end of June. But German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who met Mr Erdogan on Monday, said there might not be enough time for it to be completed.” Afghanistan Reuters: Ten Killed In Suicide Attack Near Afghan Capital “A suicide bomber killed at least 10 people and wounded four on Wednesday in an attack on a bus carrying staff from an appeal court west of the Afghan capital, Kabul, officials said, and the Taliban claimed responsibility. The attack came on the same day the Taliban announced a new leader to succeed Mullah Akhtar Mansour, who was killed in a U.S. drone strike at the weekend. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the attack on staff from the judicial system was in response to the Afghan government's decision earlier this month to execute six Taliban prisoners on death row. Other attacks would follow, he said.” The New York Times: Taliban Name Lesser-Known Cleric As Their New Leader “Faced with a choice between two obvious candidates to take over the Taliban — one the young son of the insurgency’s founder, the other chief of the Haqqani terrorist network — a small slice of the group’s leadership instead chose ‘none of the above’ on Wednesday. Breaking four days of silence after their previous leader was killed by an American drone strike, the Taliban announced that a lesser-known deputy of the group, Mawlawi Haibatullah Akhundzada, a conservative cleric in his 50s, would take over and continue the group’s war against the Afghan government. Despite a lack of military credentials, Mawlawi Haibatullah became seen during a hasty series of leadership meetings as a throwback to core religious values and a possible figure to unify around after months of leadership struggle and violent schisms, according to insurgent commanders who were briefed on the selection process.” Yemen Associated Press: Yemeni Officials: Airstrike Kills 11 From Same Family “The death toll of a suspected Saudi-led coalition airstrike that hit a family's house in southern Yemen has been raised to 11, including four children from one family, security officials and witnesses said Wednesday. The officials said that warplanes, thought to be Emirati, fired two missiles at the family's house in the town of el-Mahala, in the southern province of Lahj. The house was flattened and only one child from the family survived the strike, they said. The officials said the home is adjacent to a building that is suspected of housing Islamic militants. A witness, Ahmed Hadash, said he heard explosions for 40 minutes while the warplanes were flying.” Egypt The Wall Street Journal: Egypt’s Allies Rally Amid Fears Over Worsening Security “After two years of cool relations between the U.S. and Egypt, the October terrorist attack on a Russian passenger plane over the Sinai Peninsula triggered a flurry of visits here by U.S. officials, who called for increased military aid to shore up President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi. The downing of that jet was claimed by an Islamic State affiliate based in the Sinai. The possibility that the mysterious crash of an Egyptian airliner last week was another act of terrorism has only intensified worries that Mr. Sisi is unable to contain the threat, according to a U.S. official, a Western diplomat and other experts.” Fox News: Egypt Hires 2 Foreign Firms In Search For Downed Plane's Data Recorders “Egypt contracted two foreign companies to help find the flight data recorders from the EgyptAir plane that crashed last week in the Mediterranean Sea, the airline’s chief said Wednesday, as sources close to the investigation claimed the aircraft never showed any technical problems before takeoff. EgyptAir chairman Safwat Masalam said on Wednesday that a French and an Italian company would be working with Egyptian search teams to try finding the black boxes, which could give clues to what happened in the final minutes of the flight. He didn't identify the companies. Earlier, Egypt's president Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi said a submarine would join the search.” Middle East Times Of Israel: Israel Strikes In Gaza Strip In Response To Rocket Attack “The Israeli air force attacked two Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip Wednesday night, hours after terrorists in the Strip fired a rocket into Israel from the territory. Palestinian media reported that a second rocket fired towards Israel exploded inside Gaza territory. Walla News said a small group with ties to the Islamic State, the Omar Hadid Brigade, claimed responsibility for the attack. The IDF said in a statement that it held Gaza’s Hamas rulers responsible for keeping the peace in Gaza. There were no reports of injuries or damage in the rocket attack, which was not preceded by a warning siren. Reports suggested the rocket hit an open area in the Sha’ar Hanegev Regional Council bordering the Gaza Strip.” Libya Reuters: Germany, France Hold Back NATO, EU Ambitions In Libya “Europe's bold intentions to support Libya's new U.N.-backed government are faltering as France and Germany resist a bigger role to rebuild the failed state, scarred by the West's 2011 air campaign to help topple dictator Muammar Gaddafi. The European Union and NATO have said they stand ready to help the unity government in Tripoli, if requested, to combat smugglers sending migrants into the Mediterranean toward Europe. Tripoli, for its part, faces a threat from Islamic State fighters who exploited past conflict between rival governments to extend their power. In a letter, Libyan Prime Minister Fayez Seraj sent a broad request for security training, but Germany and France want the United Nations to move first. Western diplomats in New York say they will have to work hard to secure Russia's support as it accuses the West of going too far in Libya in 2011 and tensions are at their highest since the end of the Cold War.” ABC News: Boat Carrying Hundreds Of Migrants Capsizes Near Libya, Killing At Least Five “An overcrowded boat carrying hundreds of migrants capsized today in the Mediterranean Sea, killing at least five, according to the Italian Navy. Roughly 562 people had been pulled to safety off the coast of Libya, but there was a possibility the death toll could rise, an Italian navy official told ABC News. Search efforts are ongoing. The Italian Navy's Bettica patrol boat spotted ‘a boat in precarious conditions off the coast of Libya with numerous migrants aboard,’ it said in a statement. The waters near Libya have become a hot spot for perilous voyages such as this one, as thousands of people have sought refuge from war-torn regions of the Middle East in recent years -- the bulk of whom are refugees escaping from Syria.” Nigeria Associated Press: Cameroon Teen Escapes Boko Haram After Raid “A 16-year-old girl was kidnapped with her 1-month-old baby by Boko Haram from her home in northern Cameroon 18 months ago, taken to Nigeria, married off to an extremist fighter and then trained to be a suicide bomber. Last week she succeeded in escaping when the Nigerian military launched a raid on a Boko Haram camp. She wandered through Sambisa Forest in northeastern Nigeria for several days until, tired, weak and hungry, she was found by members of a local defense group fighting the extremists, who handed her over to Cameroon's military, said Midjiyawa Bakary governor of the Far North region of Cameroon. The teenager is among thousands of people who have been kidnapped by the Nigeria-based Islamic extremists since they launched their insurgency nearly seven years ago. Recently the abductions have reached across Nigeria's borders to Cameroon, Chad and Niger.” Newsweek: Nigeria: Emirs Reclaim Borno Palaces Two Years After Fleeing Boko Haram “Two traditional rulers from the northeastern Nigerian state of Borno who had to flee the advances of the radical Islamist group Boko Haram have returned to reclaim their palaces after two years in exile. Celebratory crowds met Emir Abdullahi Mai Muhammadu Askirama in the local government area of Askira and Ali Ibn Ismaiya Mamza in Uba, according to Sahara Reporters. The deputy governor of Borno State, Usman Mamman Durkwa, joined the Emirs at their palaces in their separate areas of the state. Boko Haram militants had taken over the palaces in Askira and Uba but a Nigerian military operation in the northeast has pushed the group from most of the territory it captured in early 2015 and into its heartland, the Sambisa Forest.” United Kingdom The Guardian: British Special Forces 'Blew Up ISIS Suicide Truck In Libya' “British special forces reportedly blew up an Islamic State suicide truck in Libya earlier this month, a military commander there has said. The strike apparently came when a vehicle, acting as a bomb, approached a bridge leading towards the city of Misrata in the north-west of the country. UK forces appeared ready for the attack and fired a single missile during the incident on 12 May, Commander Mohammed Durat told the Times. Describing the scene as the truck sped forward he said: ‘Our British friends seemed quite calm about it that day.’ Durat, of Misrata’s Third Force, said the special forces had plotted the coordinates and ranges required for a successful strike, telling the paper: ‘It blew up the suicide truck with a huge explosion, the biggest we have seen yet. Not one of our own forces was killed.’” Germany The Washington Post: German Government Leaders Back Plan To Push Migrants To Integrate “Chancellor Angela Merkel’s cabinet Wednesday backed a plan seeking to better integrate migrants, virtually assuring that Germany will move ahead with efforts designed to stop the creation of ethnic ghettos and compel refugees to learn German and European values. The plan reflects wider questions across Europe on how to assimilate the huge flow of migrants and asylum seekers from the Middle East and beyond that overwhelmed the continent last year and continues despite attempts to curb the exodus. Germany has become a key test: the nation handling the largest number of migrants and a center for debates over how to balance the needs of the new arrivals while safeguarding Western traditions and culture.” France Reuters: France To Deploy Security Force Of 90,000 To Police Euro 2016: Minister “More than 90,000 police, soldiers and private security agents will be deployed across France to ensure safety for the Euro 2016 soccer tournament, Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said on Wednesday. The month-long tournament opens across France on June 10 with a state of emergency still in force after Islamist attacks last November that killed 130 people in Paris at several sites across the capital, including the Stade de France stadium. About 2.5 million spectators are expected for 51 soccer matches involving 24 teams in games played at 10 stadiums across France. There will also be ‘fan zones’ for crowds watching games on giant TV screens in major cities.” The New York Times: French Authorities Given Broader Powers To Fight Terrorism “The French Parliament on Wednesday approved a law that gives the police and judicial authorities new powers to detain terrorism suspects, put people under house arrest and use deadly force to stop attacks. The Senate, France’s upper house of Parliament, approved the bill by a show of hands. The National Assembly, the lower house, had already approved it. The measure is the latest in a series of legislative changes that the government of President François Hollande has pushed through to give the authorities greater policing powers after the deadly terrorist attacks in Paris last year, sometimes prompting debates over civil liberties.” Europe Sputnik: Spain Prevented At Least 10 'Serious' Terror Plots Since 2011 “Spanish security forces have managed to prevent at least ten ‘extremely dangerous’ domestic terror attacks since 2011, local media reported Wednesday. The successful counter-terrorism operations were carried out jointly by the National Police, the Civil Guard, regional police forces and the National Intelligence Center, whose activities have been intensified since 2015, La Vanguardia newspaper reported, citing its own analysis. Among the prevented attacks, the newspaper cited a case in 2011, where a terrorist planned to poison potable water tanks intended for tourists. The publication also recalled that the Spanish authorities regularly intercept Islamic State (IS) recruiters and suspected affiliates, primarily of Moroccan descent.” Daily Mail: Call For Europe-Wide Evidence-Sharing To Target Gun Crime And Terror “Investigators across Europe should gather and share more evidence about guns to crack down on firearms crime and terrorism, researchers say. A study led by Coventry University recommended setting up ‘firearms focal points’ to collect and share weapons and ballistics evidence. Recommendations from the 15-month project, which looked at countries in south-eastern Europe, were passed to the European Parliament and law enforcement chiefs on Wednesday. ‘Countries also need to have the necessary technology and procedures in place that would enable them to further reduce the availability and use of illegal firearms. If each country created a single firearms focal point to gather, analyse and then share information - not only about the firearms, but also pertaining ballistic material - with their counterparts across south-east Europe, and beyond, this would be a major leap forward in protecting communities.’” Reuters: Belgian Police Detain Four On Suspicion Of Belonging To Terrorist Group “Belgian police searched houses in the city of Antwerp on Wednesday and detained four people on suspicion of belonging to a terrorist group and trying to drum up recruits to fight with Islamist militants in Syria or Libya, state prosecutors said. Two were formally arrested while the other two were given a conditional release. ‘They are suspected of trying to recruit individuals to travel to conflict zones in Syria or Libya,’ a prosecutors' statement said. It said no weapons or explosives were found in the house searches and there was no apparent link with the March 22 suicide bombings at the international airport and on the metro in Brussels which killed 31 people. But it said some of the four planned to join the Islamic State militant group and a preliminary investigation showed they may also have been planning attacks in Belgium.” Arabic Language Clips ISIS Alwafd: ISIS Sets The Price For Releasing Hostages In Iraq ISIS terrorist organization has told families it uses as human shields to prevent the advance of Iraqi forces and air strikes by the international coalition, either to pay $2,500 per capita or face execution. Local sources inside the city of Fallujah disclosed on Wednesday that the terror group issued its price for the release of the families beleaguered by it there. These families have been held hostage from the first day of the Iraqi military operation to liberate the city, which started on Monday. The sources said that ISIS demands payment of 6 million Iraqi dinars (roughly $5,000) per family in exchange for securing their release. Muslim Brotherhood The Seventh Day: Mapping The Organization And Funding Of The (Brotherhood) Terrorist Group Around The World There is no single source that is funding the operating costs and activities of the Muslim Brotherhood. However, it is undeniable that the Brotherhood abroad makes up one of the main sources of funding. According to a young Brotherhood member who used to be in charge of student affairs in the group before departing to work in a Gulf country, the Global Association of Muslim Brotherhood, controlled by the London-based international Brotherhood arm, collects the money for the group abroad. It also channels the funds for various purposes. He disclosed that each Egyptian Brotherhood member in the Gulf countries contributes about 10% of his monthly income to the group. He claimed that the average monthly income of a member of the group, who works, for example, as a teacher in a country like Kuwait, can reach 15,000 pounds ($1700). Therefore, he allocates roughly 1,500 pounds ($170) per month to the group. The Seventh Day: Ragab-Ahmed Rawash Writes: Brotherhood Burns Egypt Egyptian politician, Ragab-Ahmed Rawash, claimed that the Muslim Brotherhood generated the dollar crisis in Egypt because they are the "kings of the green currency" controlling 90% of the foreign currency exchange companies in Egypt. He said, "The question now is why there is no nationalization of all their money and property for the benefit of the poor, since the dollar crisis has caused a sharp rise in the prices of many commodities essential to the needy people of Egypt." The Seventh Day: Sameh Ashour: I'm Against The Detention Of Lawyers Defending The Brotherhood And The (Lawyers) Union Will Protect Them The head of Egypt's Lawyers Union, Sameh Ashour, avowed that although the Union is politically tolerant, huge political disputes exist inside its corridors. He added, "There are lawyers under arrest just because they deal with cases related to the Muslim Brotherhood. I am opposed to this, and I have no choice but to defend them." Ashour made these comments during a speech he delivered at the general conference of lawyers in which he endorsed the freedom of expression even for his rivals. He stressed, "We should defend them and those arrested for involvement in the demonstrations of April 25th. We will not abandon them, and we have formed a legal committee to follow up this issue." Islamic Jihad The Seventh Day: Islamic Jihad: We Received No Financial Support From Iran And What Was Published Is A Media Fabrication Khaled al-Batsh, a leader in the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, stated that a newspaper report claiming that the Palestinian movement received $70 million funding from Iran is "baseless." He stressed that what was published is a mere media fabrication designed to discredit his movement. Al-Batsh added that the Islamic Jihad movement is open to all Arab countries because it fulfills a national role aimed at serving the Palestinian cause and the Palestinian people. He noted that parallel to an Islamic Jihad delegation that recently visited in Iran, which has a Shiite majority, a second delegation was in Egypt, which has a Sunni majority. Al-Batsh explained that if the movement really received $70 million from Iran, the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip would not be facing so much suffering, because the Islamic Jihad would direct this money for the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip.