Prosecutors said the Syrian refugee aimed to kill at least 200 people. He is not believed to have been part of a terror cell, like reported by dw.com.

German prosecutors on Thursday indicted a 20-year-old Syrian refugee for allegedly planning a bomb attack.

Yamen A., whose last name was not given in line with German privacy laws, plotted an Islamist-inspired attack with the goal of “killing at least 200 people,” the Federal Prosecutor’s Office in Karlsruhe said.

The suspect was arrested in Berlin last October.

According to prosecutors, A. made the decision last July “to detonate an explosive device in Germany in the midst of a large concentration of people.” It is unclear where the alleged bomb plot was to be carried out.

“It was important for him to create a climate of fear and uncertainty in the population of the Federal Republic of Germany,” prosecutors said.

He is not believed to have been part of a terror cell.

Investigators said A. had acquired precursors to make the explosive TATP and other bomb-making materials. A search of his residence found bomb-making supplies.

Der Spiegel had previously reported the suspect had acquired bomb-making supplies on Amazon.

According to the Interior Ministry, A. arrived in Germany in September 2015 and applied for asylum in February 2016. In April 2016, he was granted a three-year residency permit.

“The number of people who have radical or extreme Islamic views here varies from a handful to over 100, depending on who you ask”, like reported by thejournal.ie.

Shaykh Dr Umar Al-Qadri, an imam based in Blanchardstown and the chair of the Irish Muslim Peace & Integration Council, thinks the risk of radicalisation in Ireland is “much smaller when compared to the UK” but that Muslim communities here “need to be vigilant”.

Al-Qadri said he believes there are “at least 100 people [in Ireland] that would be supportive to the form or understanding of Islam that Daesh (ISIS) adheres to, that all these militants adhere to”.

“This support does not necessarily mean that these people are terrorists, it means that they could support them, you know, ideologically. They may also support them financially.”

Al-Qadri said these people need to be monitored.

When asked how he arrived at the figure of 100 people, he told us: “I’ve been living here for the past 14 years. I have a lot of people throughout Ireland who are in contact with me and keep informing me about the various different activities that have been happening.”

A spokesperson for An Garda Síochána said the organisation is “monitoring no more than 30 people living in this State” in relation to radical views.

Radicalisation is a concern for An Garda Síochána as it is for all policing and security services, particularly after the horrific attacks that have taken place in Europe by people who have been radicalised. Our response to radicalisation is based on our analysis of the level of threat from it.

“The threat level is kept under constant review,” the spokesperson added, stating that gardaí are “constantly vigilant for any potential emerging threats” and “in constant contact with our policing and security partners across the world, but particularly in Europe, to share information and analysis”.

Al-Qadri said he has reported suspicious activity to gardaí on numerous occasions.

“I am in contact with law enforcement agencies on a regular basis … We exchange information to ensure that our country remains a safe country.”

During our interview, Al-Qadri placed an emphasis on Muslim leaders providing people with a “counter-narrative” to make them “immune” to dangerous ideologies. He said certain speakers who have been given a platform by some mosques in Ireland are “known to have had radical views”.

“They’ve had the opportunity to address Muslims, particularly youngsters, teenagers, and I think that is a problem.” He said mosques in Ireland should not invite “hate preachers” to speak to their congregations.

“If there is one person of my congregation whose child has travelled abroad to participate in a foreign conflict, and has died for example, or has participated in a militant organisation, I would say that is my failure as an imam, as a Shaykh, as a leader of the Muslim community.

“So, when we know that there have been members of congregations whose children have travelled to Libya, whose children have travelled to Syria, whose children have travelled to these parts of the world to participate in foreign conflict, I find that a huge failure on behalf of the leadership from those mosques.”

Disputed claims

Dr Ali Selim, of the Islamic Cultural Centre of Ireland (ICCI) in Clonskeagh, home of Ireland’s largest mosque, disagrees with some of Al-Qadri’s assessments. He’s less concerned with the threat of radicalisation in Ireland, saying it’s “not at all” an issue.

He also disputes that in the region of 100 people in Ireland hold radical views.

“I don’t think that’s true, I think the number is smaller. I cast huge doubt over the existence of individuals who are having radicalised thoughts in Ireland. Even if you travel outside of Ireland to Muslim countries or Arab countries, Ireland has a fantastic reputation, it is known as a friendly country. Muslims living here, they enjoy equal rights.”

However, he added that gardaí hold a clinic at the ICCI every Friday, where people can share any concerns they have.

Selim said Muslim people in Clonskeagh have been embraced by the wider community and vice versa. He said the Muslim population in Ireland would not have grown from about 4,000 in 1991 to over 63,000 in the 2016 Census if its members had any problem integrating into Irish society.

“The fact that the members of the Muslim community in Ireland have increased gives a very positive indication about the level of harmony and cohesiveness.

“Had the Muslim community not felt comfortable about Ireland, they wouldn’t have rapidly increased … The Muslim community, when they arrived in Ireland, they positively contributed to the country that they lived in,” Selim told us.

‘Renowned for their extremism’

Imam Ibrahim Noonan, who is based in Galway, is concerned about certain speakers preaching in mosques around Ireland. He said some of these people are “renowned for their extremism”.

“They have been coming here and they have been lecturing here. I can’t understand how the government allowed it. OK, they had British passports, but they’re here. I mean everyone knows it, everyone involved in Islam in Ireland knows they’re here and that they’re spreading their hate here.”

Noonan said if imams don’t support the more extreme views held by certain preachers, they shouldn’t invite them to speak here.

“If they don’t support it, they shouldn’t allow them in. They should have said ‘You’re not welcome here and that’s it, bye bye – you’re not coming in.’ But they allow them to come in because they are ‘renowned scholars’.

“If I say I don’t support extremism, it means I don’t support extremism. That means if I know that that group and that mosque and those people are linked to extremism, I will say ‘They are extremists.’

“I condemn their actions and I will have nothing to do with them. I will not associate with them, I will keep away from them and I will expose them. That’s how you get rid of extremism,” Noonan said.

Concerns have been raised about some preachers who have been invited to speak at the mosque in Clonskeagh, due to their views on certain issues. One speaker in particular has been accused of making anti-Christian statements and defending female genital mutilation (FGM).

When asked about this particular speaker, Selim said: “I personally have never heard him inciting hatred or anything like that … I have never heard him saying that.”

Selim said, when the mosque invites a speaker to give a talk, the mosque itself decides the theme, rather than the individual.

“We decide the title of what they’re talking about and we control the stage when it comes to a question and answer session. We chair panel sessions so basically there is no way for a speaker to come here and talk about whatever topic they want to talk about.

“We do our homework properly before we invite the speaker. It’s not like someone would come to us with a name and that we would give them a platform. Before inviting the speaker we do our homework but, at the end of the day, we are human beings, we have our shortcomings – if it happens, it happens by mistake. Even if it happens, we control the stage.”

Selim himself came under fire last month after saying female circumcision is acceptable in some cases. He later apologised, saying he misunderstood the term ‘circumcision’ and condemns FGM “in the strongest terms“. Medical professionals say there is no benefit to, and many negative implications of, FGM.

Muslim Brotherhood

There have long been rumours that the mosque in Clonskeagh is connected to the Muslim Brotherhood. The mosque’s imam, Shaykh Hussein Halawa, has always denied this.

Documents published by Wikileaks in 2011 show that the US Embassy in Dublin had concerns about this possible link, as well as “radical” people supposedly meeting at the mosque.

The cable, written in July 2006 by then-US ambassador James Kenny, also discussed the European Council for Fatwa and Research (ECFR), whose general secretariat is based in Clonskeagh.

The ECFR is chaired by Qatar-based Egyptian cleric Yusuf al-Qaradawi, 91, who has links to the Muslim Brotherhood. Al-Qaradawi previously said homosexuality should be punishable by death, and that a husband “lightly” beating his wife is acceptable as a last resort.

When asked about some of Al-Qaradawi’s controversial views, Selim said: “People only focus on certain opinions he expressed. They overlook most of his opinions.

“You and I will never agree on everything. The fact we disagree on certain matters does not disqualify you from being a scholar, it does not disqualify you from contributing positively to what we are talking about. It does not mean we have to adopt everything you are saying … Your contribution is of great value because you are a scholar.”

Selim said the cable from the US Embassy was full of errors, adding that the US’s views can’t be trusted. “The Americans told us that Iraq had chemical weapons. They invaded Iraq and they said they did that because they believed they had chemical weapons. Iraq did not have chemical weapons. What level of credibility can they have after that?,” he said.

When asked if there is any link whatsoever between the mosque and the Muslim Brotherhood, Selim gives a definitive: “No.”

He said the fact people keep asking that question, despite the mosque having answered it on a number of occasions, classifies as “Islamophobia”. “People ask these questions and, when we answer, if it’s the answer that they want then that’s it, but if it’s the answer that they don’t want then they don’t believe us. I think it puts us in a very difficult situation, it makes us feel that we have been victimised.”

‘I want to join ISIS’

Al-Qadri said he is not aware of any member of his congregation travelling abroad to fight in a conflict. However, some young members have come to him to discuss radicalisation and extremism.

“They would have certain concerns. They would say, ‘Shaykh, I’ve heard this, can you tell me if it’s right or not?’”

Al-Qadri said, a few years ago, one man told him, ‘I want to go to Syria, and I want to join ISIS.’ He said this happened when there was “confusion or ambiguity” about ISIS’s goal, something he said no longer exists – given the atrocities the group has committed.

“Their slogan was ‘We are fighting against those that are oppressing us, and against injustice’.

“Some members came to me and they had expressed their concerns, their fears, the questions that they had.”

Al-Qadri said he’s relieved these young people came to him, and listened. “They were able to understand that these militants or these hate narratives really have no place in Islam.”

Al-Qadri said that while there are “common threads” in the narratives of people who become radicalised, such as isolation and “religious distortion”, “there are many factors that contribute to it”.

“There is no such thing as ‘one size fits all’ because when you look at those people who travelled to Syria, travelled to Iraq to participate, and to be part of Daesh, many of them, of course, they were vulnerable.

“There was no sense of belonging, and this is why they were much more vulnerable to radicalisation, much more vulnerable to fall into the traps of these extremists.”

Integration 

Dr Muiz Hajaz, a Sudanese doctor who works in Portlaoise Hospital, organised a conference in Dublin last year about radicalisation.

Hajaz said he is aware of some second-generation Muslim immigrants who were living in Ireland but left to fight with ISIS, adding that some of them “died violently”. He’s also worried about certain preachers who have come to Ireland.

Hajaz said the conference he ran explored three intertwined topics: radicalisation, Islamophobia and integration.

“When you talk about radicalisation, you cannot escape the other parts of Islamophobia and integration. The three of these issues are interconnected with each other so we want to open a conversation about this.”

Hajaz said minorities are sometimes criticised for “not doing enough about radicalisation” but that many Muslims in Ireland are working to help tackle it.

“The main idea is to try and talk about this because it affects our position as a minority in Ireland and also affects the general public.”

Noonan told us it’s vital to talk to young males, in particular, about these issues. He has started a course at his mosque called ‘A journey through the Quran’ which is aimed at boys and men aged from 12 to 20.

“Anything after 20, if you haven’t convinced them by that age, they’ve already moulded their minds. That’s not to say they can’t change but, if you get them within this age group, you’re pretty sure that when they hit 21 they’ll be balanced.

“When I started doing these lectures, a lot of these young men were like ‘No, no, no, we would never be extremists’, and they were genuine.”

Noonan said, despite some initial reluctance, boys agreed to sit down with him and talk about certain topics. “One of the first things I asked was about homosexuality, and straight away there were 15 different views – from extreme to liberal.” Noonan said he told the boys the point of the exercise was to show how people’s views can vary greatly and how they can be moulded through dialogue.

“That’s why I say to them now, ‘You need to listen to people like us, who will guide you, who will show you what the Quran actually says.’”

Noonan said many of the young men he first spoke to a few years ago are now in college. “I’ve had young men thank me for making things clear to them so now when they go to university they’re very balanced. They know this is not what Islam teaches.”

Noonan said he asks “lots of questions” when new members start to attend his mosque in Galway.

“If I think for a second that they hold any extremist views, I will tell them, ‘I’m sorry but this is not the mosque you should be attending.’ And I won’t entertain them here in this mosque. That’s the way you get rid of it.

“I have given countless sermons on Fridays about this, while they have been sitting in front of me. They know very clearly our position.”

Asylum seekers 

Noonan said there’s a chance radical or extreme views could have an impact on people living in difficult circumstances such as Direct Provision centres. He said asylum seekers need psychological support, noting that many of them have witnessed conflict and killing, or lost their families after leaving their home countries.

“Can a radical mind from Syria come here and get really fed up waiting for his status and then one day lose it? Possibly.”

When asked if some people in Direct Provision centres may be more susceptible to being influenced by radical views, a spokesperson for the Department of Justice said there is “no evidence” to suggest this is true.

“There is a small number of individuals in the State whose actions in support of ISIL-inspired extremism are a cause for concern and they are monitored on an ongoing basis by the authorities. Any necessary actions, in accordance with the law, are taken in respect of their activities.”

The spokesperson added that, while some of the recent terrorist attacks in the European Union “have brought a spotlight to bear on Muslim communities, it is to be emphasised that no one community or faith group can be held responsible for acts of terrorism or violent radicalisation”.

“Ireland has a small and peace-loving Muslim community that makes a positive and valued contribution to our national life. The leaders within our Muslim community have made very clear publicly their abhorrence at and their rejection of terrorism and violent radicalisation.”

Working with gardaí

Noonan said if more Muslim people were recruited by An Garda Síochána, “they could utilise them and use them to go out into the Islamic communities, and they will hopefully infiltrate and mould [people with radical views]”.

Noonan said he has no issue with gardaí coming to his mosque and asking questions.

“After the Paris attack (in November 2015), there was a huge movement by gardaí to interview all the imams, including myself, and it was a really long interview … but it didn’t bother me.”

Noonan said one of the gardaí involved in the interview later apologised and said, ‘We already know you’re a peaceful community but we have to do this.’ “I said, ‘That’s fine.’ And that’s what should be done.”

Noonan said he understands why some Muslims may be critical of this approach by gardaí but he thinks it is needed in the current environment.

“Right now people are being killed in Europe, in mainland Europe and Britain, and we’re worried it could happen here. Gardaí came into my classes and sat at the back. I have no issue with this because we need to reassure Irish society. We want that the gardaí will walk away and say there’s no issue with this community.”

At least 17 apartments were raided as men and women were arrested on suspicion of being part of the terrorist group, like reported by mirror.co.uk

Suspected ISIS recruiters and couriers were arrested by Russian secret service agents as at least 17 raids were carried out across Moscow.

Men and women were arrested and hundreds of fake passports, registration cards, credit cards and medical documents were seized.

The FSB believe it has smashed a major route to feed ISIS forces with raw “cannon fodder” recruits who may not understand the dangers.

They are accused of recruiting in Russia and sending people to fight in Syria and Iraq, using women as “couriers”.

A joint police and FSB statement said: “Sixty foreigners were detained.

“17 apartments were searched, and we discovered three laboratories for making fake documents”.

This major operation come just three months before Russia hosts the World Cup.

Yesterday’s events in Tirana, where an explosion took place in a mobile phone shop, has led authorities to suspect that the blast has taken place while a bomb connected to a mobile phone was being manufactured. This is one of the main leads that police mention, like reported by balkaneu.com. They also mention the possibility that the explosive substance may have been placed in the mobile phone beforehand, while the device had been taken to be repaired. While authorities need to conduct further investigations on this, the case in question makes the issue of terrorism resurface once again, meaning that in the country there is a market where bombs are manufactured and used and these bombs are not just used for criminal acts, but they also cause significant damages to civil population. The best case to illustrate this is the event that took place in Shkodra two weeks ago, where a blast caused the wounding of six people who happened to be at the place where the explosion occurred.

Up until now, these events have been treated as criminal cases, where different groups involved in illicit activities settle debts with each other, but they are also treated as cases of explosion in business premises due to competition. But all over the world, explosive blasts, where lives of innocent people are put in danger, are considered to be cases of terrorism. And in this aspect, the reason or the motive why this happens doesn’t really matter. So, they can have a religious motive, an ethnic motive, an ideological motive, but it may also occur for reasons of rivalry between gang groups. However, in every case, they would be considered to be terrorist acts.

One of the main criteria that the EU has set out for Albania as a priority to be met is the “fight against organized crime, traffic of narcotics and terrorism”. In political debates and on the media, we have often heard the issue of organized crime and traffic of narcotics being mentioned, but the issue of the fight against terrorism has been mentioned very little. We have often related the problem of terrorism in Albania with the participation of Albanian nationals in Syria alongside ISIS and as an element which is mainly linked to the propaganda being spread by these groups. A trial was also held against a group of imams and individuals in Tirana and Kosovo, who encouraged different people to join ISIS in Syria. But there was also a strong reaction and a displacement of the match between Albania and Israel from Shkoder to Elbasan, following a tip off that there could be a terrorist attack in the stadium. Meanwhile, the subject of terrorism seems to have disappeared from the media vocabulary. Meanwhile, it is known that when attacked, terrorism becomes more sophisticated.

If we consider the reports issued by foreign police agencies, especially after different terrorist attacks in Europe, there’s a growing concern that groups dealing with the traffic of narcotic substances to European coasts, also transport military weapons and ammunition. There’s a strong suspicion that these armaments are not only destined for organized crime, but there’s also the risk that they may be used by terrorist groups operating in European countries. In this aspect, there’s added pressure on Albanian authorities to fight traffic routes, which are not only related to drugs, but also to weapons that can be smuggled across the border. In a recent media interview, while presenting the work done by police, minister Xhafa singled out the work being done by law enforcement agencies against terrorism, as, according to him, this issue is not mentioned very often on the media. This makes us believe that nevertheless, we remain a country which is threatened not only by conflicts which are settled through the use of explosives, but also by terrorist acts. So far, terrorism has been seen as something exotic, which happens away from us, somewhere in the East and that we have only taken cautious measures against the introduction of ideologies which may be sponsored from abroad. In fact, many portals are alleged to be sponsored by money coming from countries where terrorism is a tangible reality. But we must not forget that since the moment when it was decided to accept in Albania 3000 mujahedeen, who oppose the Iranian government, there’s an added interest for Albania from Iran, not only in terms of subsidizing portals. This means that we’re not very far from hot zones. And this requires a bigger engagement by authorities in order not to allow terrorism to find any space here.

The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) said it foiled an attempt to launch a terrorist attack in southwest Russia’s Saratov region, killing several perpetrators.

During a search operation, the members of a deep-cover terrorist cell opened fire after security forces tried to stop their car, according to a brief FSB press release.

The FSB said the perpetrators received fatal injuries in a cross-fire, but it did not disclose the number of the deaths.

Pistols, a homemade grenade and an improvised explosive device of about 3 kg of TNT equivalent were found at the scene, it said, adding that an immediate investigation is underway.

Russian regions in or near the North Caucasus are vulnerable to terrorist attacks as extremism has been plaguing the regions for years.

Chancellor Angela Merkel’s cabinet approved plans on Wednesday to expand Germany’s military missions abroad, including in Afghanistan, Mali and Iraq, government sources said according to reuters.com.

The defence bill, which must still be approved by the Bundestag, the lower house of parliament, would raise the number of German troops deployed in Afghanistan by a third to 1,300.

It also changes Germany’s military operations in Iraq. After their successful work training Kurdish Peshmerga forces in north, German forces would now also be stationed in Baghdad.

The cabinet’s decision implements an agreement on defence made by Merkel’s conservatives and the centre-left SPD during negotiations about a re-run of the ‘grand coalition’ that ruled Germany since 2013.

It also includes a plan to add 100 more troops to Germany’s 1,000-strong deployment to a U.N. peacekeeping mission in Mali in order to meet increased maintenance needs and Germany’s new responsibility for a military base in Gao.

The decision to increase German military presence in Afghanistan comes against a backdrop of increased violence there and a new peace initiative launched by Afghan President Ashraf Ghani.

Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen told broadcaster ARD the move should be matched with accelerated reforms by Kabul. She warned the mission would likely extend for some time.

“We need patience and a long breath, without question,” von der Leyen told ARD, citing a history of progress and setbacks in Afghanistan in recent years.

She praised the military’s success in training the Peshmerga, adding, “That is moving to a different level now,” von der Leyen said.

In addition, the cabinet backed the continuation of surveillance and refuelling flights by the German military in support of allied efforts to fight Islamic State, as well as AWACs flights carried out on behalf of NATO.

Germany has carried out limited engagements abroad since World War Two, focusing mainly on training, surveillance, medical rescue and peacekeeping, although it participated in the 1999 air offensive on what was then Yugoslavia.

The minister acknowledged shortfalls in military equipment and personnel disclosed in a critical report last week, but said troops headed on overseas missions like those in Iraq and Afghanistan would be adequately equipped.

The new governing coalition has already agreed to add 10 billion euros to the military budget over the next four years, but von der Leyen has said further increases will be needed to rebuild the German military after years of spending cuts.

Germany’s top police authority has found evidence that Islamist terrorist groups may target the 2018 World Cup in Russia, like reported by dw.com.

Germany’s Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) has estimated a high risk of Islamist terror attacks and hooligan violence during the 2018 World Cup in Russia, according to an internal BKA report seen by German daily newspaper Bild.

Violent clashes between Russian hooligans and Spanish police during Spartak Moscow’s recent Europa League tie in Bilbao put the issue of security during the competition under increased scrutiny.

What the report found:

• The risk of Islamist terrorism was high due to the large number of Russian “Islamic State” (IS) members who have fought in Syria and Iraq and seek to avenge the Russian government’s attacks against IS targets in Syria.
• IS has increasingly mentioned the World Cup in its communications since October 2017. The jihadist group has shared images of football superstars Neymar, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo being executed.
• A propensity to violence and racism are widespread among Russian hooligans. The BKA cited some hooligans who announced in early 2017 a “Festival of Violence.”
• There is also a risk of German hooligans entering Russia. A German T-shirt manufacturer was found selling shirts with “June 14, 2018 – July 15 2018: This time we’ll arrive in the summer” printed on the front. It was unclear whether the shirt was alluding to Nazi Germany’s failed invasion of Soviet Russia that began on June 22, 1941. An investigation into the T-shirt seller was opened but then abandoned.

The threat to Britain from returning Islamic State fighters is being underestimated because European extremists fleeing Syria are free to travel here, a terrorism expert warned, like reported by standard.co.uk.

Richard Walton, a former head of Scotland Yard’s counter-terrorism command, said “everyone is assuming” the danger came from British IS supporters arriving back in this country.

But he said free movement between Britain and the rest of the EU meant “several thousand” more foreign fighters who would also be able to enter.

The risk was greater because of the ability of extremists to avoid detection through the use of fake passports or identity cards acquired on the continent or even made by IS.

Mr Walton’s comments come ahead of his participation in a World Counter Terror Congress which begins in London tomorrow [tues].

Others taking part include Met Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley, the country’s most senior counter-terrorism officer, Sir Julian King, the EU’s security commissioner, and security officials from the Gulf, Asia, and other parts of the world.

One aim of the event is to improve international cooperation and to allow countries to share knowledge about the terrorist threat.

Around 300 of the 850 or so British residents who went to Syria are still estimated to be overseas. Of these, around two thirds have been deprived of their citizenship because they were either foreign-born or are of overseas heritage with access to another nationality.

That leaves around 100 who might still try to return.

But Mr Walton said the danger was much greater because of the ability of foreign fighters from other parts of the EU to travel here.

He said: “About 30,000 to 40,000 people from 100 nation states went to Syria and a proportion of those are coming back. But they are not necessarily returning to the countries of origin, they are returning to regions of origin.

“A French national may not return to Paris, he may return to London. No-one’s considered that yet.

“Everyone is assuming it’s your own nationals coming back but, of course, with the common travel area in the EU, it could be any European that’s gone in the last five or six years. If you tot that up for Europe, there are several thousand.

“The concern is foreign fighters .. using common travel areas and their passports to travel around. You hop into one EU country and you’ve got the liberty to get around all the others. Unfortunately, freedom of movement provides freedom of movement for terrorists as well.

“People don’t realise. They think it’s only our British jihadis who have gone and are coming back but it’s not.”

Mr Walton said that if jihadis did seek to return, they should be prosecuted and that Britain had “a sophisticated counter-terrorism machine” capable of using evidence gathered overseas to secure convictions.

He also praised Britain’s counter-terrorism police and intelligence agencies, saying that they remained outstanding despite the wave of attacks last year.

He warned, however, that vigilance was needed about potentially new methods of attack, including using drones, because “there are very few methodologies used by terrorist organisations in their war zones that don’t at some stage come over here.”