Eye on Extremism: August 7, 2026
Top Stories
Attacks by the Iran-aligned Houthis on a military camp in Yemen and in Saudi Arabia have sparked concerns that the Middle East crisis will continue to spiral. Yemen is being increasingly drawn into the US-Israeli war with Iran, with the Houthi rebels stepping up attacks against both government forces inside the country and neighbouring Saudi Arabia, a key US ally and supporter of the internationally recognised Yemeni government.
Financial Times: Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan sign defence pact in Mecca
Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan signed a defence pact in Mecca on Friday as the allies seek to deepen regional security co-operation after the turmoil triggered by the US-Israeli war against Iran. The military alliance “reflects a recognition that American deterrence has been significantly weakened and that the Iranian threat will increasingly need to be managed by regional powers,” said Ali Shihabi, a Saudi commentator close to the royal court.
CEP Mentions
Euronews: Germany in the crosshairs: Attacks against airports, companies and managers
A drone attack at Leipzig Airport, a German freighter targeted, arms executives exposed, and warehouses belonging to German companies destroyed in Ukraine: Hybrid and conventional attacks against Germany are on the rise. “It’s definitely becoming more aggressive,” security expert Hans-Jakob Schindler told Euronews. “In my estimation, this is because, despite all the rhetoric in Russia's favor, things aren’t going quite optimally in Ukraine.”
SRF TV (Switzerland): Attack against Leipzig Airport
Live interview with CEP Senior Director Hans-Jakob Schindler on Thursday, August 6, 2026, regarding the attack on Leipzig Airport.
RBB24 Brandenburg aktuell: Drone defense
CEP Senior Director Hans-Jakob Schindler comments on the defense of German airports against drones
WDR 5 Morning Echo: Strait of Hormuz: “Iran is pursuing a high-risk strategy”
Iran and Oman have reached an agreement on the Strait of Hormuz. “The problem with agreements so far has been that parts of the regime have changed their minds shortly afterwards,” says Hans-Jakob Schindler, Middle East and security expert.
Hans-Jakob Schindler of the Counter Extremism Project: “If evidence were to emerge that Moscow was behind the airport drones, it would be grounds for triggering Article 4 of the Alliance.”
NTV: Highly explosive Semtex and the same recurring question
“This was clearly an attack where the intention was not only to spy on a specific location, but also to actually destroy things, possibly to kill people.” Terrorism expert Hans-Jakob Schindler pointed out on ntv that ordinary passengers were not directly at risk. The attack was aimed at creating a climate of fear. “A hybrid scenario is not a terrorist scenario aimed at causing as many civilian deaths as possible,” said Schindler. It’s about creating insecurity.
Hans-Jakob Schindler, senior director at the Counter Extremism Project, joins the ICCT-SACC SENTINEL podcast to examine the escalating threats facing Germany's Jewish community since October 7th, 2023 - and the shifting coalitions behind them.
Analysis
Wall Street Journal: Can Iran’s Diminished Diplomats Deliver a Hormuz Deal?
Arab mediators working on a deal with Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz said they fear the country’s diplomats, who are under pressure from hard-liners in Tehran, lack the clout to guarantee compliance even if an agreement is reached.
United States
Jewish Link: Two Montclair Men Plead Guilty to ISIS-Inspired Terrorism Charges
Two ISIS-inspired Montclair men pleaded guilty in federal court in Newark to terrorism-related offenses, including some targeting the Jewish community. The defendants used encrypted messaging apps as they planned to travel to Turkey and then to Syria to join ISIS. They also discussed training methods, weapons and how to avoid law enforcement while planning terrorism acts in the United States.
Canada
CBC: Large white supremacist meeting shakes residents of Alberta town
Residents of a small town outside Calgary are shocked to learn that Canada's most prominent white supremacist group held its second annual national meeting — where masked group members participated in military-style drills — at a volunteer-run community centre in early July.
CBC: Canadian Armed Forces member charged in terrorist case no longer in the military
A Quebec man charged last year with facilitating a terrorist activity is no longer a member of the Canadian Armed Forces. Department of National Defence spokesperson Cheryl Forrest declined to provide further details about Marc-Aurèle Chabot's release, saying the information is protected under the Privacy Act. Chabot was one of three Quebec men charged in July 2025 with allegedly participating in what the RCMP said was an anti-government extremist plot in the Quebec City area.
United Kingdom
Middle East Eye: Hearing set to decide ‘terror sentencing’ of activists who targeted Barclays
A judge has ordered a hearing in which he will decide whether five Palestine Action defendants convicted of criminal damage will be sentenced as terrorists. The five defendants were found guilty in June 2026 of causing £212,000 ($283,000) worth of damage to a Barclays branch in Burnley in August 2024. Following their convictions, presiding Judge Phillip Parry told defence lawyers that he would consider applying a “terrorist connection,” despite jurors not being told about a potential terror sentencing in the case. He then referred the matter to Judge Robert Altham who will decide whether to apply the terror designation at a hearing on 21 August, two weeks ahead of their sentencing on 4 September.
Germany
DPA: Two suspected Islamic State fighters detained in Germany
German authorities have arrested two Iraqi nationals on suspicion of terrorism after evidence emerged that they had fought with the Islamic State in Iraq a decade ago. The Düsseldorf State Prosecutor’s Office accuses the men, aged 29 and 46, of being members of a terrorist organization abroad, a spokeswoman said in response to an inquiry on Thursday.
France
EWTN News: French government shuts down Paris-area mosque over alleged support for terrorism
French authorities on July 27 ordered the closure of a mosque in the Paris region for six months, citing sermons and social media posts by its imams that officials say glorified terrorism, legitimized jihad, and incited violence, hatred, and discrimination.
RFI: Threats by Corsican separatist group FLNC-UC trigger anti-terrorism inquiry
French anti-terror prosecutors have opened a preliminary investigation after armed members of a Corsican separatist group appeared masked at a press conference to reject the island’s proposed autonomy deal, and threaten people moving there from mainland France.
Italy
Ansa.It: 16-year-old arrested on terror charges after spreading ISIS propaganda
Italian police said Friday that they have arrested a 16-year-old boy on terrorism charges after he allegedly shared ISIS propaganda on the Internet. The boy, an Italian national with foreign roots who resides in the Como area, was arrested while on holiday with his family near the Tuscany city of Grosseto. Investigators found “clear references to the Islamic State” in his online profile and several chat messages in which he shared “jihadist, neo-Nazi, and anti-Semitic content.”
Afghanistan
More than 50 leading international law and human rights experts have called for gender apartheid to be recognised as a crime under international law, with a focus on the situation of Afghan women. The appeal is contained in the “International Declaration on Gender Apartheid and Its Destructive Consequences,” which is due to be launched on August 13. The authors of the document said its aim was to support Afghan women and girls in their struggle against what they described as the Taliban’s systematic repression and to strengthen efforts to criminalise gender apartheid under international law.
Israel
A Nukhba terrorist who participated in the October 7 Massacre was arrested on his way to the Kerem Shalom border crossing on Thursday after being caught driving a humanitarian aid truck. Security forces stated that the terrorist had been collecting aid from private merchants operating inside of Gaza and was transporting it for one of his clients when he was apprehended. The report also mentioned that IDF soldiers operating inside the crossing captured him after learning about his identity and role in Hamas, before he could collect the aid.
Wall Street Journal: Israel Steps Up Attacks on Hezbollah, Clouding Talks With Lebanon
Israel has stepped up its attacks in southern Lebanon after weeks of relative calm, as delegations from both countries finished another round of U.S.-brokered talks exploring a diplomatic solution to years of fighting. Israel accused the Iran-backed militia Hezbollah of violating a ceasefire on Wednesday and began striking what it said was the group’s infrastructure in southern Lebanon after two of its soldiers were killed by an explosive device in a booby-trapped building in the village of Majdal Zoun, an area the Israeli military has held for months. Among the targets, the Israeli military said, were a Hezbollah command center and weapon-storage facilities.
West Bank/Gaza Strip
Arab News: 300 children killed in Gaza in 300 days, UNICEF says; West Bank settler attacks continue
At least 300 children have been killed and hundreds more wounded in Gaza over the past 300 days, the UN Children’s Fund said on Thursday, an average of one a day as civilians in the territory continue to face intense military strikes including shelling, gunfire and naval fire. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said children in Gaza continued to live in difficult conditions that include overcrowded shelters and limited access to safe water and healthcare. In the West Bank, settler attacks and Israeli military operations continue to affect the homes and livelihoods of Palestinians, OCHA warned.
A Palestinian man living on the outskirts of the West Bank Palestinian town of Taybeh and three Israeli civil-wing activists say they were assaulted yesterday by settler extremists on as they tried to rebuild fences torn down by extremists on Wednesday. According to longtime Palestinian rights activist Rabbi Arik Ascherman, extremist settlers have been breaking down fences around homes on the outskirts of Taybeh over the last three days.
Since the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza began nearly three years ago, Israel has withheld billions of dollars of tax and customs revenues collected on behalf of the Palestinian Authority, the government body that administers parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Without those funds, the PA has struggled to pay health workers, buy medications and support public hospitals, pharmacies and clinics, 75% of which have reduced operations and are functioning just once or twice a week.
Iran
Iran International: A Khamenei in-law is openly recruiting to replace the Islamic Republic
Mohammad-Bagher Kharrazi, the head of Hezbollah of Iran who is also tied by marriage to Iran's ruling family has declared the Islamic Republic obsolete, telling followers that a shadow government already exists and urging them to build a 250,000-strong network to replace the system with an “Islamic government.”
Iran International: Dozens of Iran protest detainees held without hearings - rights group
Dozens of people detained over Iran's January protests remain in a security ward in the country’s northwest, with more than half still awaiting hearings or serving prison sentences of up to five years, the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) reported on Friday.
Lebanon
Arab News: UN peacekeepers record worst Israeli escalation in Lebanon since June ceasefire deal
UN peacekeepers in Lebanon this week observed the sharpest surge in Israeli military activity since the announcement of a trilateral framework agreement for a ceasefire brokered by the US on June 26. Between midnight and 4 p.m. local time on Thursday, the UN Interim Force in Lebanon recorded 120 projectiles fired by the Israeli military, the UN said. This surpassed the full-day total of 113 projectiles on Wednesday, and marked the highest single-day total since June 21, UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq said.
Two Israeli soldiers were killed in an explosion in southern Lebanon, Israel’s military said Thursday, the first Israeli deaths since a shaky truce between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah began nearly two months ago.
India
The Enforcement Directorate (ED), Chennai Zonal Office, conducted search operations on July 30 at 15 residential premises located in Chennai, Coimbatore, Mumbai and Hyderabad in connection with the money laundering and terror financing investigation related to the 2022 Coimbatore bomb blast case. According to a release, “ED initiated investigation on the basis of various FIRs registered by the NIA in connection with the suicide VB-IED explosion that occurred on 23.10.2022 near the ancient Kottai Sangameshwarar Thirukovil temple at Coimbatore. The bomb blast was caused by suicide bomber Jamesha Mubeen, who had pledged allegiance to ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) before his death.”
Pakistan
The Diplomat: Balochistan Is Now Pakistan’s Most Dangerous Province
Balochistan witnessed an unprecedented surge in separatist violence in July: 176 terrorist attacks, involving suicide bombings, complex ambushes, coordinated high-profile assaults and drone operations, were reported that month, according to the South Asia Terrorism Portal’s open-source database. In total, the attacks killed 438 people, including 127 security personnel.
Africa
The Sun (Nigeria): Military uncovers top ISIS, ISWAP commanders hiding around Lake Chad
The Nigerian military has uncovered the identities of senior commanders of ISIS and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) operating around the Lake Chad region in northern Borno State, following the exploitation of intelligence recovered during a recent offensive operation. The key terrorist leaders were identified as Abu Musa Al-Mangawi Baa Shuwa, described as the Wali (Governor) of ISIS West Africa Province; his deputy, Amirul Jaish Muhammad Jidda, popularly known as “The One-Handed Man”; and Hamad Abu Hanifa, identified as the Amirul-Fiya of ISWAP.
BBC News: Nigerian security forces rescue more than 300 abductees
More than 300 people abducted in separate attacks in Nigeria have been rescued, the country's presidency says, in what it describes as the largest single-day operation by joint security forces. The victims were rescued from the Kainji Lake National Park in Niger state in an operation involving the military, police, intelligence unit and the National Counter-Terrorism Centre. Those freed include 163 people abducted during a February attack on the Woro and Nuku communities in Kwara state, where scores were killed. At least 145 others had been taken in Niger state.
Associated Press: Uganda approves sending troops for international force in Gaza
Ugandan authorities sought and won parliamentary approval Thursday to deploy troops to Gaza as part of the international force proposed by U.S. President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace to secure the territory following the devastating Israel-Hamas war. The successful motion, brought by the defense minister, is Uganda’s first public indication of its willingness to join the International Stabilization Force for Gaza. Morocco also has pledged troops for the mission.
Australia
Australian Jewish News: Extremism referrals rising since Gaza war, children as young as 10 referred
Victoria has recorded a sustained rise in referrals to its countering violent extremism programs since the Israel-Gaza war began, with further spikes after the Bondi attack, the state’s first Commissioner for Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism has told the Royal Commission on Antisemitism and Social Cohesion.
Canberra Times: Blurred extremist ideologies challenging intervention
Mixed, unclear, and unstable ideologies are defining violent extremism responses by states.
The Royal Commission into Anti-Semitism and Social Cohesion has investigated radicalisation and fanaticism over the course of the week. Victoria's Commissioner for Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism, Kelly Mischel, testified states were presented with a changing extremism landscape.
Technology
In June 2026, the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism (GPAHE) published a report on the white nationalist Identitarian movement in Europe exploding in popularity, with social media platforms such as Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, and X all facilitating their rapid growth. TikTok deplatformed some Identitarian accounts in response to GPAHE reporting while Instagram and YouTube remained superspreaders of hateful content promoting the white supremacist “Great Replacement” conspiracy theory and calls for “remigration,” an ethnic cleansing policy proposal, that often accompanies it.
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