Friday, May 29, 2015

France to enlist hackers to tackle jihadists - Manuel Valls

France to enlist hackers to tackle jihadists - The Local " France's Prime Minister Manuel Valls has announced that he plans to turn to computer hackers, often the scourge of governments worldwide, in order to infiltrate online jihadist networks."

Bali bombers’ sons among next generation of Indonesia terrorists

theaustralian.com.au, Bali bombers’ sons among next generation of Indonesia terrorists "Andrie, who monitors social media websites, found more than 50 per cent of Indonesian Facebook and Twitter users supporting or ‘‘sharing’’ Islamic State issues. He says the government is ill-prepared for potential attacks by returning militants, and there is nothing to prohibit them from imparting their radical skills: “They are war heroes now.’’



"Of the more than 10,000 accounts, he says, “I observe the beheadings, battles in some cities in Syria and Iraq, how Indonesians respond, and if they have a relationship with local groups in Indonesia.’’ They do, he found. Eighty per cent of those accessing terrorist networks were high school or university students."

Isil 'help desk'

Telegraph, Isil 'help desk' gives online training in how to avoid being spied on" "Jihadists, including members and supporters of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil), have formed online ‘help desks’, designed to teach their comrades safe practice, a study by the US-based Counter Terrorism Centre has found."



See Aaron Brantly & Muhammad al-`Ubaydi, CTC, Extremist Forums Provide Digital OpSec Training "The discussions also deal with facilitating secure mobile communications and browsing. A detailed post by Rakan al-Iraqi analyzes the security of several mobile platforms and a number of available communication applications."

'No exit: For female jihadis, Syria is one-way journey'

Lori Hinnant, Associated Press, No exit: For female jihadis, Syria is one-way journey "Only two of the approximately 600 Western girls and young women who have joined extremists in Syria are known to have made it out of the war zone. By comparison, as many as 30 percent of the male foreign fighters have left or are on their way out, according to figures from European governments that monitor the returns."

Iran’s ‘Generation Normal’

Roula Khalaf, FT.com, Iran’s ‘Generation Normal’ " Iranian youth — curious, wired and desperate for normality — are forcing change that horrifies their rulers." Worth reading!

'Global cyber-strategy needed to confront 'IS' and other terror groups'

Global cyber-strategy needed to confront 'IS' and other terror groups | Opinion | DW.DE | 28 May 15 "The world's most well-known coalition of religious fanatics is using digital technology in many innovative ways. Take, for example, how it created an Android Phone App “the Dawn of Glad Tidings”, which builds up a user database that churns out flash news items and horrific imagery. ISIS also produces online guidebooks like the ‘Hijrah' (Holy Emigration) providing tips to people on how to get into Syria undetected. Last but not least, it controls an estimated 46,000 active Twitter accounts."

'Friday sermon wants jihad on Internet falsehood'

malaysiakini.com, Friday sermon wants jihad on Internet falsehood "The Friday sermon delivered at mosques across the Federal Territories today called on Muslims to launch a jihad (holy war) against falsehood spread on the social media."

Missing Tajik Police Commander Appears On Internet, Says Has Joined IS

rferl.org, Missing Tajik Police Commander Appears On Internet, Says Has Joined IS "A top Tajik police commander who has been missing for weeks has reappeared on the Internet, claiming that he has joined the Islamic State (IS) militant group in protest at official restrictions on religious observance back home."

Iran: Internet dating website launched by state

Iran: Internet dating website launched by state - BBC News "The new site is called hamsan.tebyan.net and is run by the Islamic Development Organisation, an institution under the supervision of the Supreme Leader that promotes the Islamic lifestyle."

First Footage Of Islamic State Grooming HQ

Sky News, First Footage Of Islamic State Grooming HQ This also discusses ‘Till Erin Marie Saltman & Melanie Smith, Martyrdom Do Us Part’ Gender and the ISIS Phenomenon, Institute for Strategic Dialogue [pdf link]

The digital language divide

Guardian, The digital language divide "How does the language you speak shape your experience of the internet?" There is some fascinating research highlighted in this article by Holly Young.

Thursday, May 28, 2015

More -- not less -- religion needed to fight extremism, imam director says

PBS, More -- not less -- religion needed to fight extremism, imam director says
 
This PBS report refers to the importance of internet training for imams (from Mali), and discusses the impact of onine religious authority.

Casablanca Calling

Emma Batha, Reuters/Huffington Post, How Morocco's Islamic Women Preachers Are Leading A Social Revolution "Hannane is one of a new generation of female religious leaders, known as morchidat -- part of a quiet social revolution in the North African country.


"Their groundbreaking work is the subject of a British film, "Casablanca Calling," which will be showcased on Tuesday night at an international conference on child marriage in Morocco's famous port city."




More information can be found on the 'Casablanca Calling' website. 

'Women, “Celebrity” Shaykhs, and Spiritual Abuse'

Ustadha Zaynab Ansari, muslimmatters.org, Blurred Lines: Women, “Celebrity” Shaykhs, and Spiritual Abuse "I believe the celebrity Shaykh is a victim of his own success, a product of the techno-obsessed culture that dictates that every 'alim, school, and institution market its “authentic,” “classical” and “traditional” Islamic “products and services” or perish. Moreover, the celebrity Shaykh has become enthroned on a pedestal, the pedestal of unimpeachable piety and character, the pedestal of “see no wrong, do no wrong,” in which we, the adoring students, have cast this very fallible human being as larger than life." There are some interesting points regarding 'celebrity' and boundaries in this piece by Ustadha Zaynab Ansari.

Wednesday, May 27, 2015

2015 Internet Trends Report

2015 Internet Trends Report Interesting to consider how it applies to my research.

Young Saudis, Bound by Conservative Strictures, Find Freedom on Their Phones

NY Times, Young Saudis, Bound by Conservative Strictures, Find Freedom on Their Phones "Being increasingly wired, however, will not necessarily bring Western-style liberalization. Religious conservatives use social media as adeptly as liberals, and many young Saudis remain committed to and proud of their culture. Even those who want change say it must come gradually."

Iranian Cartoon Contest Lampoons IS, Alleged Backers

RFE/RL, Iranian Cartoon Contest Lampoons IS, Alleged Backers "A man with a long dark beard sits immersed in blood in a bathtub shaped like the map of Iraq. A machine gun is propped against the wall behind him."

Jihadi threat requires move into 'private space' of UK Muslims, says police chief

Guardian, Jihadi threat requires move into 'private space' of UK Muslims, says police chief "Islamist propaganda is so potent it is influencing children as young as five and should be countered with intensified monitoring to detect the earliest signs of anti-western sentiment, Britain’s most senior Muslim police chief has warned."

Israel jails Palestinians for Facebook comments

aljazeera.com, Israel jails Palestinians for Facebook comments

Skyping with the enemy: I went undercover as a jihadi girlfriend

Guardian, Skyping with the enemy: I went undercover as a jihadi girlfriend "When a French journalist posed online as a young woman interested in Isis, she was soon contacted by a fighter in Syria. He proposed marriage – but could she maintain a double life?"

Inside Jordan's fight against home-grown extremism

Inside Jordan's fight against home-grown extremism - BBC News "Jordan is getting a lot of technical help behind the scenes from British counter-terrorism agencies.



"But it has also developed its own mobile phone app, called "Jordan Knights", so young Jordanians can report any suspicious sightings.



""We want to improve our tools to meet the language of the new generation," says Col Rashid from Jordan's Special Branch. "So this application... can be easily used to report any single information by text or by recording or by voice message or by taking a snapshot and sending it to us""

Friday, May 22, 2015

Saudi Girls Finally Get to Drive, but Only in a Videogame

wsj.com, Saudi Girls Finally Get to Drive, but Only in a Videogame "“Saudi Girls Revolution” is slated for release on the Apple Inc. and Google Inc. app stores sometime later this year. It will be free to download and paired with a digital comic book that tells the back stories of the eight heroines."

Wednesday, May 20, 2015

'Any Hobbies?' Al Qaeda Application Form Asked

Sky News, 'Any Hobbies?' Al Qaeda Application Form Asked

Bin Ladin's Bookshelf

ODNI, Bin Ladin's Bookshelf  "On May 20, 2015, the ODNI released a sizeable tranche of documents recovered during the raid on the compound used to hide Usama bin Ladin. The release, which followed a rigorous interagency review, aligns with the President’s call for increased transparency–consistent with national security prerogatives–and the 2014 Intelligence Authorization Act, which required the ODNI to conduct a review of the documents for release."

Also see ABC News, Terror Files: What’s on Osama Bin Laden’s Private Bookshelf’ "The material includes think tank reports, software and technical manuals for computer programs, and Arabic-language letters to bin Laden’s apparent associates, including other suspected terrorists wanted by the U.S. In releasing the documents, the ODNI said they are only publishing those which “will not hurt ongoing operations against al-Qa‘ida [al Qaeda] or their affiliates.”"

Peter Bergen, CNN, Secrets of the bin Laden treasure-trove "Bin Laden was a meticulous editor, and some of the memos he wrote were revised as many as 50 times. Of the thousands of versions of documents recovered from computers and digital media that the SEALs retrieved at bin Laden's compound, the final tally numbers several hundred documents.


"The new documents show how bin Laden reacted to the events of the Arab Spring, which was roiling the Middle East in the months before his death. While bin Laden had nothing to say publicly about the momentous events in the Middle East, privately he wrote lengthy memos analyzing what was happening, pointing to the "new factor" of "the information technology revolution" that had helped spur the revolutions and characterizing them as "the most important events" in the Muslim world "in centuries."

ISIS Is Trying to Lure British Recruits with Cappuccinos

munchies.vice.com, ISIS Is Trying to Lure British Recruits with Cappuccinos "A Brief Guide to the Islamic State 2015 by Abu Rumaysah al Britani, the “Walthamstow jihadi” who escaped to Syria via a Paris-bound coach after being arrested on suspicion of terrorism last year, is being circulated on social media by ISIS sympathisers."

Monday, May 18, 2015

"Contextualizing Islam in Europe and North America"

brookings.edu, Contextualizing Islam in Europe and North America: Challenges and Opportunities "The Working Group “Muslim Communities in Europe & North America: A Transatlantic Dialogue on Contextualized Religion” convened scholars, civil society actors, and community leaders from both sides of the Atlantic to discuss the nature and significance of key challenges in achieving a contextualized understanding of their religion that is suited to the unique circumstances, challenges, and opportunities that face religious minorities in contemporary Western societies." I have yet to read the findings of this report, which is available in English and Arabic.

Profiling 'female foreign fighters'

SMH, Why many local Muslim women will never turn to terror "Audrey Alexander, a research associate at London's International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation​, monitors the online comments of dozens of women who have travelled overseas to support IS, or are planning to. She says there is no one profile for women who become 'female foreign fighters'." This article has a focus on Australia.

E-terrorism targeting 17 million in Saudi Arabia, says expert

ara.tv, E-terrorism targeting 17 million in Saudi Arabia, says expert "Hassan Al-Daajah was quoted by Al-Watan as saying that there are more than 46,000 websites supporting ISIS.



“When we find that about 17 million Saudi men and women are using the Internet, we will realize the magnitude of the electronic danger threatening our society,” he said. He warned that if the concerned authorities in the Kingdom do not move fast, the possibility of ISIS influencing society would become greater.

How Berlin Muslims are tackling jihad

themalaymailonline.com, How Berlin Muslims are tackling jihad " Security services say it’s crucial that imams and Muslim families help combat extremism in a way they can’t, even if that means they are blamed inside their communities for selling out — while at the same time confronted by growing animosity toward Islam in their adopted homelands.

Net radicalisation

Radio Australia, Queensland teenager who fled to join Al Qaeda affiliate became radicalised over the internet, an Islamic leader says

Losing their religion: The hidden crisis of faith among Britain’s young Muslims

Guardian, Losing their religion: The hidden crisis of faith among Britain’s young Muslims "As debate rages over the radicalisation of young British Muslims, are we overlooking a different crisis of faith? Ex-Muslims who dare to speak out are often cut off by their families and fear for their lives. A brave few tell us their stories." Internet sub-text within this.

Senior cleric denounces former Egyptian president's death sentence as 'nonsense'

Independent, Senior cleric denounces former Egyptian president's death sentence as 'nonsense' "Sheikh Youssef al-Qaradawi, who is the spiritual leader of the brotherhood and based in Qatar, posted a video statement on his Twitter account claiming the sentences violated Islamic law."

War with Isis

Patrick Cockburn, Independent, War with Isis: The grim reality of life under the Islamist group in Iraq "In part two of this special series of dispatches, Patrick Cockburn explains how the group is tightening its grip on Fallujah and encouraging people to denounce their neighbours."

Friday, May 15, 2015

Digital age poses a new challenge to Iran's relentless book censors

Saeed Kamali Dehghan, Guardian, Digital age poses a new challenge to Iran's relentless book censors "Rouhani’s culture minister, Ali Jannati, said in 2013 that if the “Qu’ran was not sent from God, Iranian censors would have rejected it”. In a recent speech, he admitted that Iran’s policy of filtering the internet or blocking satellite channels had proved futile. “It’s like blocking the entire highway for the violation of a few cars,” he said. “The best way to control public opinion is to go with it not to fight it.”"

Ignored and Unreported, Muslim Cartoonists Are Poking Fun at ISIS

Newsweek, Ignored and Unreported, Muslim Cartoonists Are Poking Fun at ISIS

Thursday, May 14, 2015

Are Blogger Assassinations Becoming Routine in Bangladesh?

slate.com, Netizen Report: Are Blogger Assassinations Becoming Routine in Bangladesh?

KRG monitors Salafi mullahs to thwart ISIS influence

rudaw.net, KRG monitors Salafi mullahs to thwart ISIS influence

IS Recruits Brides to Solve "Marriage Crisis"

IS Recruits Brides to Solve "Marriage Crisis" | World Policy Institute

How to Take the Internet Back from ISIS

How to Take the Internet Back from ISIS - The New Yorker

ISIS Pushing US into 'New Environment' With Threats

ABC News, ISIS Pushing US into 'New Environment' With Threats

Michael McCaul: ‘Terrorism has gone viral’ from Islamic State’s online recruitment

washingtontimes.com, Michael McCaul: ‘Terrorism has gone viral’ from Islamic State’s online recruitment

How the Islamic State Is Disrupting Online Jihad

Quartz, How the Islamic State Is Disrupting Online Jihad

ISIS manual endorses controversial pressure group Cage

Daily Mail, ISIS manual endorses controversial pressure group Cage "How To Survive In The West advises that jihadis use Cage’s website for tips on dealing with surveillance, raids and interrogations."

Three British teenage Jihadi brides are now on the run from Isis

Daily Mail, Three British teenage Jihadi brides are now on the run from Isis "Home Secretary Theresa May has suggested three British schoolgirls believed to have escaped the clutches of ISIS may not be allowed back into the UK even if they manage to return."

Tuesday, May 12, 2015

ISIS

RT.com, Gay Muslim men joining ISIS risk execution – reports "Shunned in British Muslim communities due to intolerance, gay Muslim men could be driven to join ISIS, reports suggest. As homosexuality is considered a sin by the militants, these men could face execution if their sexuality is revealed.



"The Times reports that a British jihadist fighter has exchanged intimate, homosexual messages with other militants. The correspondence was uncovered during a counter-terrorism investigation."

Friday, May 08, 2015

NSA Phone-Data Collection May Be Illegal, But Terrorists Stopped Using Phones Long Ago

IBT, NSA Phone-Data Collection May Be Illegal, But Terrorists Stopped Using Phones Long Ago

Islamic website aimed at young Emiratis would provide relationship guidance | The National

Islamic website aimed at young Emiratis would provide relationship guidance | The National "As part of the forum’s aim to battle the online influence of violent extremists, the project Haqqathon (Haqq meaning truth in Arabic) tasked five groups to create viable ways of fusing technology and faith to bridge the gap between Islamic scholars and young people.



"One of the groups decided to create an Islamic sex-education website and app called “Marhubba”."



Also see  Muslim hero site is top Islamic app, The National

From hip-hop to jihad

washingtonpost.com, From hip-hop to jihad, how the Islamic State became a magnet for converts

Saudi airplane at Israeli airport causes mass confusion

stream.aljazeera, Saudi airplane at Israeli airport causes mass confusion

Young Muslims Are Inviting You to Draw Muhammad

Time.com, Young Muslims Are Inviting You to Draw Muhammad "Muslim American activist Amani al-Khatahtbeh, who runs the popular blog MuslimGirl.net, is fighting Islamaphobia by inviting people to draw a picture of their friends who are called Muhammad."

The Islamic State's Social Media Machine

The Islamic State's Social Media Machine, The Islamic State's Social Media Machine, The Documentary - BBC World Service "In part one Dominic Casciani explores the way the so called Islamic State use social media to recruit people to their cause, and what can be done combat this. Dominic travels to Canada to meet a mother whose son was recruited by IS and executed by the FSA, and the police chief who says a lot more needs to be done to counter IS online." Haven't heard this yet. And here is Part Two

How Moscow’s migrant workers are being recruited to Isis

Guardian, How Moscow’s migrant workers are being recruited to Isis "Up to 4,000 central Asian migrants are said to have travelled to Syria after being recruited by Chechens in Moscow. Daniil Turovsky reports"

Prayer, food, sex and water parks in Iran's holy city of Mashhad

Tehran Bureau, Guardian, Prayer, food, sex and water parks in Iran's holy city of Mashhad "According to SMT’s estimates, every pilgrim visiting Mashhad spends roughly $1,500 (£990) in the city, meaning that the 345,000 who visit Mashhad every year spend $517m (£342m) altogether. However, government figures suggest that the number of Iraqi visitors to Mashhad could be much higher, as in 2014 Saeed Ohadi, president of the Hajj and Pilgrimage Association, a department in the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, said that 1.3 million Iraqi pilgrims visit Iran each year."

Micah Robbins: 'Re-locating Middle East Studies Conference Roundup'

Micah Robbins, Re-locating Middle East Studies Conference Roundup, 7 May 2015 This is an informed and comprehensive summary of this conference, which was very enjoyable to participate in. [posted retrospectively]

Friday, May 01, 2015

‘Haqqathon’ builds apps for Islamic youth

‘Haqqathon’ builds apps for Islamic youth | The National "An app that provides short video answers to youths’ questions on Islam is just one idea from a forum aimed at battling the online influence of violent extremists."

French Muslim student kept from class over long skirt

aljazeera.com, French Muslim student kept from class over long skirt

ISIS film shows Yemen killings

ara.tv, ISIS film shows Yemen killings "A new branch of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) group in Yemen on Thursday issued a video showing what it said was the beheading of four Yemeni soldiers and the shooting of 10 others, the SITE Intelligence group reported."