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On 11 April 2024, suspected Islamic State (IS) militants conducted an armed assault on the headquarters of the Syrian Armed Forces (SAA) and seized several anti-tank missiles (Konkurs) with precision targeting at a distance of 13 km in the south of Abu Kamal District, Deir Ezzor. This is the second time in a matter of three days that Islamic State fighters successfully targeted the headquarters of a military organisation. On 9 April 2024, a similar armed assault targeted the HQ of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in Mayadin, an hour away from Abu Kamal City.
What is notable about this recent attack is that militants managed to seize anti-tank missiles (Konkurs) from the IRGC militia. Konkurs is a Russian-made anti-tank missile system designed to destroy tanks and other heavily armoured vehicles. It is known for its effectiveness and ability to hit targets from a distance. The missiles could tip the balance of power in favour of IS militants, giving them the tools to conduct more high-profile and possible government targets. The capture of such advanced weaponry represents a significant threat to the stability of the region.
The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) members have been on high alert since. Militia members have positioned military vehicles equipped with anti-aircraft guns on the outskirts of Abu Kamal. Directives have been issued for IRGC members to vacate their headquarters and maintain vigilance during nighttime hours.
What is most striking about the timing behind the theft of the anti-tank missiles, is that it occurred as the Free Syrian Army (FSA) and the International Coalition forces had announced plans to create a buffer zone between Dara'a in the West to Deir Ezzor in the East. This military operation stands vulnerable on all four sides. Not to mention Islamic State controls all the roads in and out of the area, thus making even the creation of the buffer zone nearly impossible now that IS fighters have high-grade weapons able to pierce armored vehicles.
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As stated above, both Dara'a and Deir Ezzor are under the influence of Islamic State fighters. Islamic State routinely controls crucial highways like the M5 International Highway in Dara'a and both M7 and M4 in Deir Ezzor. Additionally, Abu Kamal is the pivotal stronghold of Islamic State and sees significant activity from IS attacks.
TRAC asserts that the coalition forces will face considerable challenges from IS and are unlikely to achieve success in their operation.
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TRAC Incident Report: Knife-Armed Lone Wolf Shot Dead by the Police After Killing Five in a Shopping Mall Attack, Sydney, Australia | |
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On 13 April 2024, around 3:30pm, Joel Cauchi (40) attacked several people inside the Westfield Bondi Junction mall with a knife. He caused the death of five, one man and four women, and wound several others, among them a nine-month-old baby with his mother. He was neutralised by a lone female police officer.
Mr. Cauchi was an English tutor from Toowoomba, Queensland who had been in Sidney a month before his rampage which clearly focused on attacking women. Cauchi's parents confirmed that he was desperate for a girlfriend.
While authorities emphasized that the attack was not linked to terrorism, they attributed it to Cauchi's mental illness. TRAC wants to highlight that Cauchi's actions bear the hallmarks of misogyny and align closely with the ideology of the 'Incel' movement (Involuntarily Celibate).
Incel ideology harbors extreme misogyny, viewing women as inferior and attributing blame to feminism for societal issues, including the perceived decline of traditional relationships. Incels often express resentment towards women and may resort to violence as a means of expressing their frustrations and sense of entitlement.
This incident underscores the alarming trend of Incels turning to real-world violence fueled by their toxic beliefs.
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TRAC Incident Report: Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) Special Tactical Operations Squad (STOS) Militants Target Pakistan Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Agents on Passenger Bus, Sultan Chaltai, Nushki, Balochistan, Pakistan | |
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At approximately 8:00 pm on 13 April 2024, Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) militants from the self-proclaimed Special Tactical Operations Squad (STOS) conducted’ counterintelligence operations’ against Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence. The STOS targeted the ISI agents while travelling in Sultan Chaltai on the RCD highway three kilometres from Nushki, Balochistan, Pakistan. According to Baloch Liberation Army spokesperson Jayand Baloch, the STOS detained nine suspected ISI agents on board a public bus and executed them two kilometres from the highway.
According to sources on the ground, eleven bodies were found two kilometres from the highway with fatal point-blank gunshot wounds.
This strike has the potential to inflame Pakistan-Iran bilateral relations, like the previous Jaish al-Adl strike earlier this year that led to cross-border airstrikes. TRAC is certain that the Pakistan Armed Forces will be compelled to retaliate with increased checkpoints, disappearances, and potential airstrikes on BLA commanders.
While this is the second strike on ISI agents in Nushki, Balochistan, over the last month, it is notable that militant groups throughout Pakistan have escalated their activities, focusing particularly on targeting members and operatives of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). This marks the fourth overall claimed attack against the ISI over a span of five months.
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TRAC Incident Report: Sinaloa Cartel (CDS) Sicario Armed Assault on the Office of the National Migration Institute (INM) & Leave ‘Narcomanta,’ in Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico | |
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On 10 April 2024, an armed Sinaloa Cartel (CDS) sicario exited a vehicle in front of the INM offices and fired several rounds of ammunition inside the building. A ‘narcomanta’ was placed adjacent to the building and signed by a CDS operative referred to as ‘La Parka,’ who threatened a cleanup of corrupt migration officials involved in human trafficking. Due to the fact no officials were working in the building, no officials were reported killed or injured.
‘Narcomantas’ are banners frequently utilized by criminal organizations to communicate and intimidate rival criminal organizations, the civilian populace, and the state. The National Migration Institute serves as Mexico’s principal migration management organization. Due to the influx of Central American migrants, the organization has faced allegations of abuse and corruption centred around the human trafficking of migrants. Specifically, the ‘narcomanta’ threatens a cleanup of ‘polleros’ (chickens), or human traffickers, who do not follow the direction of CDS. In fact, in March two immigration agents from the Tijuana INM offices were arrested on corruption and involvement in human trafficking.
TRAC documented a similar incident, in which a former police official affiliated with the ‘Gamboa Cartel’ consisting of corrupt police officials engaged in migrant trafficking, was assassinated by armed sicarios in Puebla. As corrupt immigration officials attempt to encroach on criminal markets dominated by criminal networks, TRAC expects continued targeting of the INM infrastructure and officials.
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TRAC Incident Report: FK Bandits Armed Assault on Three Locations & Killed 47 People, in Dan Musa Village, Dutsin-ma Village, and Safana Village, Katsina State, Nigeria | |
TRAC Incident Report: ‘Mocro Maffia’ Operative Arrested Boarding Bus Loaded With Firearms and Ammunition, in Mendez Alvaro Station, Madrid, Spain | |
HBDH (Peoples’ United Revolutionary Movement) Militants Arson of Two Vehicles Belonging to Alleged AKP Political Party Supporters, Kadıköy, Istanbul, Turkey | | | | |
