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Weekly Analyst Review

04 May 2022

Bottom Line Up Front

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In another cross-over to the Islamic State (IS) playbook on recruitment tactics, racists, fascists and white nationalists have been attempting to gain a wider audience to spread ideas and propaganda via the fertile video game chat arena. The "Steam" platform was created for users to develop hubs of discussion groups where members "share interests, coordinate gaming activities and host discussions in group-specific forums."


A famous, now imprisoned neo-Nazi, GypsyCrusader (aka Paul Miller), also attempted to co-opt the Steam video platform in December 2020 as well as a very racist "Tyrone vs. Cops" video game that debuted in February 2022, along with "Sex With Hitler " video game that released on 22 January 2022. 


On the newest release, a Kyle Rittenhouse-inspired first person shooter video game on the Steam Platform entitled "Acquitted," one can hunt zombie BLM rioters. This isn’t the first Kyle Rittenhouse video game released on Steam and Nintendo Switch. In 2020, a video game entitled "Tonight We Riot" was released as a first person shooter game targeting both 'capitalists and police'. 


While the graphics in "Acquitted" are overly simplistic, it is the concept that will attract users to purchase this game. The game itself is not merely whimsey, represents stochastic propaganda. The term stochastic terrorism is defined as “using language and other forms of communication to incite random acts of violence that are “statistically predictable but individually unpredictable.”

Other Developments

TRAC Insight:

Islamic State Sinai (Jamaat Ansar al-Dawla al-Islamiya fi Bayt al-Maqdis): Amaq News Agency Releases Execution Video For A “Spy” From Militias Loyal To The Egyptian Army, Bir al-Abed, Sinai, Egypt

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Image:  Screenshot from execution video

On 26 April 2022, an execution video was released on official Islamic State media distribution channels, wherein a militant is shown executing a spy 'From Militias Loyal To The Egyptian Army' in the town of Bir al-Abed, Sinai, Egypt. While execution videos are not rare, what is most notable about this execution sequence appears to have been recorded on green screen video editing. In the heyday of Islamic State media propaganda, IS Central Command often used video editing or green screen technology to obscure the locations where Jihad John executed hostages. If true that this most recent execution video was shot with a fake background, the question remains: Why? Especially given that the previous execution video, released two days prior, was not.

TRAC Incident Report:

Bombing of Addax Petroleum Company Oil Flow Station Kills

Two in Izombe in Oguta LGA of Imo State, Nigeria

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Image: Addax Petroleum Development

In the early morning hours of 04 May 2022, a bomb detonated at the Addax Petroleum Development Nigeria Limited Oil Flow Station in Izombe village in Imo State. According to eyewitnesses, the two who were killed were carrying the bomb at the entrance to the Oil Flow Station when the bomb accidentally went off. Given the unstable nature of the bomb, it is likely that the bomb makers were unprofessional. Oil thieves often target sub-stations and logistical supply lines in southern Nigeria. Nigeria has grandiose plans to built an oil pipeline from southern Nigeria to Morocco to help ease Europe’s dependance on Russian oil. The aspirations are not likely to meet with reality, given the insecurity of both the oil production in Nigeria as well as all the nations that the oil pipe line would have to be laid.

TRAC Incident Report:

Unknown Assailants Coordinated a Nation-Wide Sabotage Attack on Several Long-Distance Fiber Network Cables Across France

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Image: One photo of the damage caused to the Long-Distance Fiber Network Cables

On 27 April 2022, a group of unknown perpetrators committed a nationwide sabotage attack against several long-distance fiber network cables in France. The attacks were committed throughout the night, at around 3:20 a.m., 3:40 a.m. and 5:20 a.m. local time. The cables attacked were running from Paris towards Strasbourg, Lyon and Lille, connecting the major French cities and their infrastructure and datacenters hubs. The Paris-Lyon line was targeted first, followed by Paris-Strasbourg, and lastly, Paris-Lille. French anarchists have increasingly shifted their regular attack strategies to target key infrastructure and network sites across France. This attack is a clear escalation, as the perpetrators demonstrated that they are not just a group of local rebels, but are capable of conducting a nationwide, coordinated sabotage attack.

TRAC Incident Report:

New Q & A Islamic State West Africa Insider Predicts

Expansion Into Indo, Ibo, Nasarawa, Bauchi, Plateau, Katsina, Niger States, Nigeria

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Image: Islamic State Expansion During Ramadan 2022 – Taraba, Kogi, Gombe and Kaduna States, Nigeria

Over Ramadan 2022, Islamic State West Africa (ISWA) saw unprecedented expansion into four new states of Nigeria: Taraba, Kogi, Gombe and Kaduna. The new ISWA Kaduna rumors began when an armed assault on a military forward operating base (FOB) was attributed to Bandits in Polwire village on 05 April 2022. This attack just seemed too complex for Bandits to have performed on their own accord. 


Additionally, Abuja is now surrounded on three sides by Islamic State and TRAC cannot understate how dangerously Nigeria is becoming the next Caliphate command center. If Abuja falls, Nigeria may never be able to recover. The insider Q & A clearly understands the international implications of ISWA expansion in Nigeria. The insider gives good reasons to expect that Indo, Ibo, Nasarawa, Bauchi, Plateau, Katsina, Niger States, Nigeria. Indeed, Islamic State Central Command’s investment into Nigeria appears to be paying off big.

On Our Radar:

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TRAC Incident Report: Islamic State West Africa (ISWA) Nighttime Assault Takes Control of Christian Village and Military Base, Raze Homes, in Kautikari, Chibok LGA, Borno State, Nigeria

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TRAC Incident Report:

American Anarchists Claim 20 April 2022 Vandalism Attack on a Bank of America ATM in Solidarity with the Yintah Land Defenders, Olympia, Washington, United States

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TRAC Incident Report:

Logistics Supply Truck Carrying Food and Pharmaceuticals To The Medical Center in Diapaga, Hijacked on RN4 Between Ougarou and Matiacoali, Gourma, Est Region, Burkina Faso

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