Eye on Extremism: September 18, 2026
Top Stories
Associated Press: Bombing at mosque near police offices in Pakistan kills at least 16
A powerful bomb exploded Friday at a mosque near a building housing police offices in northwestern Pakistan, killing at least 16 people and wounding 57, police and rescue officials said. The attack came as violence has surged in the region with security forces targeting militants.
NDTV: “God Helped Us, So Will AI”: How Boko Haram Used ChatGPT, Grok For Attacks
The use of artificial intelligence is no longer just limited to content generation and it being used as a chatbot to answer questions. Terrorist group Boko Haram and its factions have been using artificial intelligence tools from major technology companies to build explosives, plan attacks and solve problems during combat, according to a new study by the University of Cambridge
CEP Mentions
ZDFheute: Houthi militia: Three reasons for their advance
Furthermore, the Houthis have a strong backer: Iran. This has also enabled the militia to supply itself with weapons, explains security expert Hans-Jakob Schindler in an interview with ZDFheute: “Initially, entire missiles were shipped to Yemen, then the Houthis were given the capacity to assemble the missiles and drones themselves, so that they practically only need parts from Iran.”
ZDFheute: Houthi advance: What threatens global oil trade?
The Houthi militia controls the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a crucial waterway for global trade. ZDFheute live discusses the implications of this with Middle East expert Hans-Jakob Schindler.
Analysis
Different databases, initiatives and reports aim to capture the state of the terrorist threat to a given country or region. It is less often, however, that these products focus on counter-terrorism, nor do they feature the views of frontline practitioners on terrorism.
The Houthis’ takeover of key points along Yemen’s western coast and of Perim Island, in the heart of the Bab al-Mandab Strait, has brought renewed attention to a threat Israel knows well and has been paying a price for nearly three years, as the group’s latest advances turn the Red Sea shipping threat into an increasingly urgent strategic problem for Saudi Arabia as well.
Small Wars Journal: Why Al-Qaeda Is Bringing Hamza bin Laden Back
A man in a white turban appears sitting against a cracked mud wall, a rifle beside him. Twenty-five years ago, that image would have immediately called to mind Osama bin Laden. But now it’s his long presumed dead son, Hamza—the star of a 52-minute video released by al-Qaeda’s As-Sahab Media Foundation to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks. Unlike previous As-Sahab productions, this video had no English translation, suggesting that its primary audience was al-Qaeda’s Arabic-speaking base.
United States
Former Homeland Security officials and federal cybersecurity agencies are warning that artificial intelligence is increasingly being exploited by terrorists, criminals and foreign adversaries, raising concerns about potential threats to national security.
Fox News: Mike Huckabee calls out Macklemore on antisemitism: ‘Voice’ of ‘Jew hatred’
U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee called out Macklemore for antisemitism on Thursday, saying he supports NFL owners pushing to cancel Macklemore’s performances. Huckabee made the statement in an interview with Fox News Digital, saying his time living in Israel has shown him the vast majority of criticisms against Israel are misguided and unfounded.
A first-of-its-kind federal prosecution in Maine is shedding light on an international online violent extremist network known as “764” that targets minors across popular gaming and messaging platforms.
New York Times: How Ed Sheeran’s Tour Turned Into a Clash Over Palestinians and Antisemitism
Finneas and an array of other musicians associated with Ed Sheeran’s stadium tour have withdrawn from the engagement, a day after the rapper Macklemore was removed over his statements opposing the war in Gaza.
JNS: New policy institute at Emory to focus on ‘multi-tiered’ Jew-hatred threat
Antisemitism not only threatens Jews but also democratic institutions and national security, Deborah Lipstadt, former U.S. special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism, told JNS shortly after the noted historian launched a new institute at Emory University, where she has taught for more than 30 years.
JNS: North Carolina man arrested over antisemitic threats sent to Jewish leaders, Holocaust memorial
Federal authorities arrested a North Carolina man accused of mailing antisemitic threats to Jewish organizations and leaders, including a Holocaust memorial and officials with the American Jewish Committee and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.
The Denver school board will investigate allegations that Director Monica Hunter made antisemitic comments about a Jewish colleague, marking the third time in five years that the governing body of Colorado’s largest K-12 district has hired an outside firm to look into alleged misconduct by a board member.
WRAL: Chapel Hill High school investigates antisemitic disruption during Zoom meeting
Chapel-Hill High School officials are investigating after an individual disrupted a Zoom meeting for families of their senior class. During the interruption, the individual shared antisemitic and other hateful content and claimed to be the leader of a national hate group. School officials removed the person from the meeting within about 90 seconds.
France
RFI: French police officer detained over terror plot linked to far-right ideology
The 35-year-old officer, who was serving in the Yvelines department west of Paris, was arrested by anti-terrorism investigators on 23 August as he left work.
France 24: Far-right politician Éric Zemmour joins 2027 French presidential race
French far-right politician Éric Zemmour said on Friday that he would run in next year's presidential election, joining far-right candidate Marine Le Pen, who was runner-up to President Emmanuel Macron in the last two elections. Zemmour is campaigning on a crackdown on immigration, including a plan to expel unemployed foreigners even if they are legal residents.
Germany
DPA: Germany arrests suspected Islamist over planned attack on church
An Iraqi national has been arrested in Germany on suspicion of planning Islamist attacks on a number of targets, including a church, federal prosecutors said on Thursday.
Deutsche Welle: Far-right AfD surges, but shuns compromises needed to govern
With just under 44% of the vote, the far-right populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) emerged as by far the strongest party in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt on September 6. It fell only narrowly short of an absolute majority in the newly elected state parliament, and with it the opportunity to govern on its own.
Russian President Vladimir Putin's top economic envoy and Germany’s far-right AfD leadership have begun preparations to meet next year to discuss restarting gas supplies to Europe's biggest economy, two people familiar with the plan said. The discussions for a meeting as early as March underline the close relations between Moscow and the AfD, which, although blocked from power by a coalition of its rivals, is Germany’s most popular party with voters.
Netherlands
NL Times: Far-right figures calling for violence at Hague protest one year after Malieveld riots
A year after the far-right riots around an anti-asylum demonstration on the Malieveld in The Hague, right-wing groups are holding another protest in the city. And far-right figures are calling for violence, Vrij Nederland discovered in an analysis of far-right social media and networks.
Poland
TVP World: Polish intelligence detains two teens in neo-Nazi radicalization probe
Poland’s domestic spy agency has detained two 16-year-old boys after uncovering online activity linked to neo-Nazi propaganda, extremist material and an interest in mass attacks.
United Kingdom
JNS: Heaton Park survivor: Manchester Jewish community ‘doesn’t feel any safer’
According to a survivor of the deadly terrorist attack on a Manchester synagogue last Yom Kippur, the Jewish community still does not feel safe, with heightened security and fear continuing to shape daily life.
BBC: Ukrainian guilty of vandalism at mosques linked to Russian network behind Starmer arson attack
A Ukrainian man has pleaded guilty to spraying abusive graffiti on mosques in east London, in a case linked to the Russian state network behind arson attacks against the former prime minister Sir Keir Starmer. Illia Bilyk, 21, entered guilty pleas at Thames Magistrates’ Court to five counts of racially and religiously aggravated criminal damage.
Shabana Mahmood has described the anti-asylum activist Daniel Thomas as “a far-right and outright racist” who will feel “the full force of the law” if his organisation commits crimes near contested asylum sites such as Piddington.
Sky News: Archbishop of Canterbury revokes award given to cleric who praised Osama bin Laden
The Archbishop of Canterbury’s office has withdrawn an award presented to a Muslim cleric who previously pledged to bestow an honorary title on Osama bin Laden.
The funeral of IRA man Billy ‘Blue’ Kelly heard how his links to armed groups in Lebanon were used by the Provos to try and negotiate the release of hostage Brian Keenan.
Afghanistan
A source at Germany’s Foreign Ministry told Afghanistan International that Berlin, together with international partners, is pursuing efforts to hold the Taliban accountable for violations of women’s rights.
Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid has warned Pakistan against any military action inside Afghanistan and called on Saudi Arabia to mediate in disputes between the Taliban and Islamabad.
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry says the country is ready to reopen border crossings and resume trade with Afghanistan if the Taliban cooperates in stopping armed groups that Islamabad says cross from Afghan territory into Pakistan.
Afghanistan International: Turkish Intelligence Chief Meets Taliban Governor In Kandahar
The Taliban governor’s office in Kandahar says İbrahim Kalın, head of Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organisation, met Mohammad Shirin Akhund, the Taliban governor of the province, on Wednesday.
Gaza Strip/West Bank
Sufian Abu Zaida, a former Palestinian Authority minister from Gaza, claims in a video posted to Facebook that he was the source who relayed a warning from Yahya Sinwar to Israeli intelligence services ahead of the October 7, 2023, attack, saying that then-Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar intended to cause an “earthquake” if negotiations then underway with Jerusalem over a long-term arrangement with Hamas failed.
Times of Israel: Settler filmed beating Palestinian woman in southern West Bank
A masked settler was filmed beating a Palestinian woman with a stick while he was herding sheep in the South Hebron Hills in the southern West Bank earlier today.
Iran
Iran International: Iran’s Guards stage show of force two days after protest anniversary
Iran's Revolutionary Guards paraded uniformed volunteers, Basij paramilitaries and children through Tehran on Friday in a state-organized show of force, two days after the anniversary of the 2022 protests.
Iran International: Qom cleric praises revenge calls at nightly pro-government rallies
Qom Friday prayer leader Mohammad Saeedi praised calls for revenge at nightly pro-government gatherings, saying supporters of Iran’s leadership had remained on the streets for more than 200 nights.
Iraq
Le Monde: French jihadists held in Iraq set to be tried from Sunday
For just over a year, 47 French jihadists, who were captured in Syria and then discreetly transferred from Derik prison to Iraq in July 2025, have languished in their cells at Baghdad's Al-Karkh Central Prison. They have been held there while awaiting trials over their membership in the Islamic State group (IS). In early 2026, two young adults, who were minors at the time, joined them there. In recent months, French lawyers representing 25 of these prisoners have filed multiple appeals in an attempt to have them repatriated and tried in France, to no avail.
Israel
Jerusalem Post: Haifa resident arrested after vandalizing church, spitting on police officer
The Haifa Magistrate’s Court filed an indictment against Dean Mor, a 34-year-old Haifa resident, for vandalizing a church and assaulting a police officer on Friday.
Hunter Biden, former US president Joe Biden’s son, says that Israel knew of Hamas’s plans to carry out an onslaught before October 7, 2023, but did nothing to prevent it so that they could carry out its own plans in Gaza they would have never been allowed to do.
Lebanon
Naharnet: Hajj Hassan: Let no one bet on Hezbollah weakness, we would rather die than bow
MP Hussein al-Hajj Hassan of Hezbollah on Friday warned against betting on “the weakness of Hezbollah and the Resistance.” “We would rather die than bow," he announced.
AFP: Lebanon charges ex-Syrian officer, Hezbollah member accused of planning attacks
Lebanon’s judiciary has accused 14 Lebanese and Syrians, including a Hezbollah member and an Assad-era Syria officer, of forming and training groups to launch attacks in Syria, a judicial official said Thursday.
Syria
DPA: Three killed in operation against Islamic State in southern Syria
Three Syrian security personnel have been killed and others wounded during an operation against members of the Islamic State terrorist group, state news agency SANA reported.
Yemen
It’s been a week since Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels stormed down the Red Sea coast, extending their reach to a key maritime chokepoint and threatening Saudi Arabia’s oil exports.
Reuters: Barefoot and terrified, Yemenis flee the Houthi advance
The conflict between the Iran-backed Houthis and forces aligned with the Saudi-backed government mostly stopped after a 2022 truce, but fighting has broken out again in a spillover from the wider war between Iran and the United States. As the Houthis seized the port city of Mocha and the southern stretch of Yemen’s Red Sea coast last week, a wave of displaced people fled into areas held by the government and across the sea to Djibouti.
At least 112,000 people have been displaced inside Yemen within the last two weeks as fighting continues along the country's west coast amid a renewed conflict, while nearly 3,000 have fled by sea to Djibouti, the United Nations migration agency said on Friday.
Bangladesh
Dhaka Tribune: 23 detained from Tejgaon College mosque over suspected militant links
Police detained 23 people during what they described as a secret meeting at the Tejgaon College mosque in Farmgate, Dhaka, on Friday. The 23 were detained based on intelligence information. However, police have yet to confirm their organizational affiliations and are verifying their identities and backgrounds, said Tejgaon Division Deputy Commissioner Ibne Mizan.
Pakistan
Pakistan’s military said 10 fighters from the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and six Pakistani soldiers were killed during separate security operations and a roadside bomb attack in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province between September 2 and 4.
Pakistan tells UN Security Council that terrorism from Afghanistan has killed 4,700 Pakistanis over three years, highlighting a “deep nexus” between the Afghan Taliban, TTP and BLA while warning it will respond in self-defence and urging action against illegal arms and money networks.
Nigeria
Reuters: Nigeria begins trial of five suspected Ansaru members over school kidnapping
Nigeria’s state security service on Thursday opened the trial of five suspected members of Islamist group Ansaru over the abduction of pupils and teachers from schools in southwestern Oyo state.
South Sudan
Reuters: At least 26 killed in South Sudan tribal clashes
At least 26 people have been killed and 82 others injured in Abyei town on the border between South Sudan and Sudan after clashes between two rival tribes, the United Nations said in a statement on Thursday.
Australia
Nine News: Queensland teenager arrested after FBI tip-off into extremist social channels
A Queensland teenager has been arrested after a long investigation involving the FBI found he was allegedly promoting online extremist material via several social media channels.
Technology
UN News: Guterres calls for action as hate speech spreads across new platforms online
António Guterres was speaking at the opening of a global conference on promoting interreligious and cultural dialogue held at UN Headquarters in New York on Thursday. “In its worst forms, hate speech incites violence, drives conflict, and contributes to the perpetration of atrocity crimes – including genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and ethnic cleansing,” he said.
A first-of-its-kind operation to disrupt terrorist networks in the digital domain has harnessed artificial intelligence to identify suspected terrorists. Operation Shams II (1 – 5 June 2026), coordinated by INTERPOL, brought together 28 specialized officers and experts from 11 countries. During the five days of coordinated action, held in Tunis, Tunisia, law enforcement officers extracted 108,076 facial images from visual content published by jihadist groups.
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