Eye on Extremism: February 19, 2026
Top Stories
Reuters: Islamist militants show 'unprecedented coordination' in Burkina Faso attacks
Islamist militants have killed dozens of soldiers and civilians and overrun an army detachment over the past week in coordinated attacks across multiple regions of Burkina Faso, according to internal reports by two diplomatic missions reviewed by Reuters. The operations by Al Qaeda–linked Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin show the JNIM is increasingly able to mobilise across large swathes of territory at one time, said the reports, which described a list of locations and places that came under assault.
US President Donald Trump will preside over the first meeting of his Board of Peace on Thursday, with unresolved questions on the future of Gaza hanging over an event expected to include representatives from more than 45 nations.
CEP Mentions
Jewish News Syndicate: Why I acquired the whiteprint of the Auschwitz-Birkenau crematoria
Working with the Counter Extremism Project, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, I helped fund the purchase of the former home of Auschwitz commandant Rudolf Höss. At 88 Legionów Street in Oświęcim, Poland, the house sits directly adjacent to the camp where he oversaw mass murder on a scale that will forever be incomprehensible.
Stern: Peace exists only on paper
CEP Senior Director Dr. Hans-Jakob Schindler discusses the situation in Gaza and the newly-established Board of Peace.
Deutsche Welle: U.S. military pressure on Iran – is regime change the real objective? | To the Point
“The United States and Iran are engaged in open saber-rattling. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard is showcasing its power in the Strait of Hormuz—calling it merely a ‘naval drill.’ At the same time, one U.S. aircraft carrier is already in the region, and a second carrier group has now been deployed to the Middle East.” CEP Senior Director Dr. Hans-Jakob Schindler joins a DW News roundtable to discuss the situation in Iran.
Analysis
Jerusalem Post: US anti-ISIS mission in Syria is ending – analysis
The US is withdrawing all its forces from Syria, according to a Wall Street Journal report on Wednesday. This follows many momentous developments in Syria in the last year. The US mission in Syria began in 2014 during the war against ISIS. It ramped up in 2015 when the US helped back the creation of the Syrian Democratic Forces, the main partner force against ISIS in Syria. The SDF was primarily a Kurdish force. It’s worth looking back at how the US began its role in Syria and what happened.
Times of Israel: Saudi Arabia has not pivoted back toward extremism
Has Saudi Arabia truly abandoned moderation and embraced Islamism – or even antisemitism – as some have recently alleged? The short answer is no, and the reality defies the overheated media narrative that has circulated since a Saudi-Emirati rift burst into public view in December. That fissure, which had simmered beneath the surface for years and is due to many policy differences as well as economic competition, became overt and highly toxic following an attempted takeover of two southern Yemeni provinces by UAE-backed forces.
United States
The US military is prepared to strike Iran as early as this weekend, though President Donald Trump has yet to make a final decision on whether he’ll authorize such actions, sources familiar with the matter tell CNN.
The Boston field office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation is warning parents about the rise of online extremists targeting children. The networks are often referred to as "764," but the FBI says there are other violent groups motivated by an ideology referred to as Nihilistic Violent Extremism.
New York Jewish Week: Judge blocks deportation of Palestinian Columbia protester
A federal immigration judge has dismissed deportation proceedings against Mohsen Mahdawi, who organized pro-Palestinian activism at Columbia University. Mahdawi, a green card holder from the West Bank, was arrested at a citizenship appointment last year and spent 16 days in a Vermont prison. A judge ordered his release and granted him permission to finish his coursework at Columbia, where he graduated in May.
A key GOP senator is opposing the appointment of a Trump nominee over his past remarks about Jews, the Holocaust and Israel, potentially dooming Jeremy Carl’s bid for a top State Department post.
Canada
CBC: Prince George symphony manager leaves role after presence at white nationalist event
The Prince George Symphony Orchestra (PGSO) says its operations manager is no longer with the organization following her apparent attendance at a white nationalist conference that took place in Vancouver last summer. In January, the PGSO placed its operations manager, Thea Coburn, on paid administrative leave as it investigated her presence at the conference.
United Kingdom
Community Security Trust has released a new in-depth report on the thwarted plot to kill hundreds of Jews in Manchester. The plot, if successful, would have been “one of the deadliest terrorist attacks to ever take place on UK soil,” according to GMP Assistant Chief Constable Rob Potts.
European Union
Iran International: EU adds Revolutionary Guards to terrorist list
The European Union added Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to its terrorist list on Thursday, after a political agreement by EU foreign ministers last month. The decision means the IRGC will face asset freezes in EU member states and a ban on EU individuals and companies making funds or economic resources available to the group.
United Kingdom
The Telegraph: Lammy tries to block early release of al-Qaeda terrorist
David Lammy is seeking to block the release of a terrorist inspired by al-Qaeda who plotted a bomb attack on a Territorial Army base. The Justice Secretary has told the Parole Board that it should reconsider its “legally irrational” decision to release Zahid Iqbal, 43, three years early, despite experts warning that he is too dangerous to free.
Afghanistan
Afghanistan International: Taliban to Deploy 1,000-Strong Force To Secure Badakhshan Mines
The Taliban’s supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, has approved the deployment of 1,000 fighters to protect gold mining operations in Badakhshan province, according to the Taliban-appointed governor. Ismail Ghaznawi, the Taliban governor of Badakhshan, said the force would be sent to the province with Akhundzada’s authorisation to safeguard gold extraction companies. He said the unit was being formed to protect investments and regulate the mining process.
Gaza Strip/West Bank
The anti-Hamas Abu Shabab militia in Gaza is nearing completion of its mission to dismantle Hamas tunnels in the Rafah area of Gaza and is gearing up for the second phase of its operations, the group’s leader, Ghassan Duhine, told N12 News on Sunday.
The head of the Palestinian technocratic committee that is meant to handle the postwar day-to-day governance of Gaza, Ali Shaath, is in Washington, DC, to attend the inaugural meeting of US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace, two Palestinian officials tell AFP.
Reuters: Hamas tightens grip in Gaza as Trump pushes peace plan
Hamas is cementing its hold over Gaza by placing loyalists in key government roles, collecting taxes and paying salaries, according to an Israeli military assessment seen by Reuters and sources in the Palestinian enclave. Hamas’ continuing influence over key Gaza power structures has fuelled widespread scepticism about the prospects of U.S. President Donald Trump’s peace plan, which requires the militant group to give up its weapons in exchange for an Israeli military withdrawal from the territory.
Jerusalem Post: IDF, Hamas committed atrocity crimes in Gaza, UN report claims
The IDF, Hamas, and other Palestinian terror groups have all committed serious violations of international humanitarian law in the Gaza Strip, carrying out atrocity crimes during the Israel-Hamas War, a UN report published on Thursday claimed.
Police say they arrested two Palestinian men on suspicion of online incitement during separate raids overnight in the southern West Bank. During the arrests, officers put up leaflets near the homes of both suspects, warning residents that Israeli intelligence agents surveil Palestinian social media activity.
Iran
Jerusalem Post: Iran issues NOTAM over planned rocket launches on Thursday, US FAA says
Iran issued on Wednesday a notice to airmen that it plans rocket launches in areas across its south on Thursday from 3:30 GMT to 13:30 GMT, the US Federal Aviation Administration website showed on Wednesday.
Israel
Jerusalem Post: Israel was world’s top target for geopolitical cyberattacks in 2025-Radware
Israel was the most targeted country in the world for geopolitically motivated cyberattacks last year, according to new data from Radware’s 2026 Global Cyber Threat Report. The company says Israel absorbed 12.2% of all politically motivated cyberattacks worldwide, reflecting a sharp escalation in digital hostilities linked to global conflicts.
Times of Israel: IDF says it foiled bid to smuggle assault rifles from Egypt into Israel via drone
An attempt to smuggle three assault rifles into Israel from Egypt using a drone was foiled yesterday, the Israel Defense Forces says. The IDF says the drone was spotted crossing the border by soldiers monitoring surveillance cameras and the Israeli Air Force’s air traffic control array.
Naharnet: Israel on alert on Lebanon border as Iran war threat grows
Israeli forces are on alert on Lebanon’s border out of concerns of a possible escalation with Hezbollah in connection with the growing possibility of a war with Iran, the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation reported.
Lebanon
Naharnet: Report: Berri-led contacts with Hezbollah seek to prevent it from backing Iran militarily
There are intensive political and security contacts with Hezbollah, led by Speaker Nabih Berri, with the aim of reining in any attempt to back Iran militarily should a new war be waged on the Islamic republic, media reports said.
Syria
Fox News: US thwarted near-catastrophic prison break of 6,000 ISIS fighters in Syria
This was the kind of prison break officials say could have changed the region, and perhaps even the world, overnight. Nearly 6,000 ISIS detainees, described by a senior U.S. intelligence official as "the worst of the worst," were being held in northern Syria as clashes and instability threatened the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, the guards responsible for keeping the militants locked away and preventing a feared ISIS resurgence. U.S. officials believed that if the prisons collapsed in the chaos, the consequences would have been immediate.
New York Times: Power Shift in Syria Upends an Archipelago for ISIS Prisoners
Orange jump suits lay strewed on the ground, dropped in a trail as the prisoners made their escape, the only sign left of the former inmates. The guards’ quarters were abandoned and the prison gates swung in the wind.
Pakistan
Afghanistan International: Pak Defence Minister Warns of Strikes if Taliban Fails to Curb Militants
Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has again urged the Taliban to rein in militant groups operating from Afghan territory, warning that Islamabad would not hesitate to carry out further airstrikes inside Afghanistan if no action is taken. Speaking to France 24, Asif alleged that attacks inside Pakistan are carried out with Taliban support.
Afghanistan International: Pakistan Summons Taliban Diplomat After Bajaur Attack
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry summoned the Taliban’s deputy ambassador in Islamabad following a deadly attack in the Bajaur district, delivering a formal note of protest over what it described as the alleged use of Afghan territory in the assault.
Nigeria
Reuters: Suspected Lakurawa militants kill 34 in coordinated attacks on Nigerian villages
At least 34 people were killed on Tuesday when suspected Lakurawa Islamist militants launched coordinated attacks on multiple rural villages in Nigeria's northwestern Kebbi state, a security report seen by Reuters said on Thursday. Lakurawa, a new insurgent group, operates mainly in Kebbi and Sokoto states in northwestern Nigeria, where the United States carried out strikes on Islamic State‑linked militants in December.
Somalia
AFP: Somali militias terrorise locals after driving out Al-Qaeda
Fear starts to grip lorry driver Zakeriya Hersi whenever he reaches the edge of the central Somalian plains. The 36-year-old must constantly scan the desolate, drought-ravaged terrain for loose wires and suspicious debris. Decades of war have left these plains littered with landmines and unexploded ordnance.
Sudan
Reuters: RSF actions in Sudan's al-Fashir points to genocide, UN probe says
Mass killings of non‑Arab communities when the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group captured the Sudanese city of al‑Fashir bears hallmarks that point to genocide, an independent UN probe said in a new report on Thursday. At the end of October last year, the RSF took over the city - which had been the last remaining stronghold of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) in the Darfur region in the west of the country - with thousands of people killed and raped during three days of horror, the UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission for Sudan said.
Australia
An influx of federal and state laws trying to curb hateful rhetoric after a wave of antisemitic attacks are risking free speech and could anger the public, a constitutional law expert has warned. A NSW parliamentary inquiry into right-wing extremism is examining laws proposed by the state Labor government, which would criminalise "imagery and characteristics linked to Nazi ideology".
An Australian man who called Jews “the greatest enemy” of Australia during an anti-immigration march has been jailed for one year. Brandon Koschel, 31, delivered the antisemitic speech in Sydney on Australia Day on January 26.
Daily Telegraph: Named: Man charged with terror offences over alleged ‘extremist material’
A man has been charged with terrorism offences after police allegedly found “violent extremist material” on a phone seized on New Year’s Eve. Abdallah El Chami, 31, was arrested by NSW Police when his car was in was pulled over at Yagoona in Sydney’s south west on December 31 last year.
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