ISIS attempts to “support” the US military presence in the region: NCS

The monitoring carried out by the National Center for Studies (NCS) revealed the activities and interactions related to the terrorist phenomenon in the Middle East and the Arab region during the month of May counted 208 terrorist attacks during this period.

According to MEAR Terrorism index, the operational activity of terrorist groups and organizations active in the region has sharply increased, after the monthly indicator of terrorism issued by the center in this context recorded more than two hundred of attacks/ operations.

“Terrorism” in the region covered by MEAR escalated for the third month in a row, after the monthly terrorism index issued by the NCS in this context recorded about 208 terrorist attacks carried out by these groups, compared to 198 attacks during the month of April, 182 attacks during the month of March and 83 attacks During the month of February, after excluding all the combat operations carried out by terrorist organizations inside some countries of the region in the context of ongoing conflicts with other “illegal” armed organizations.

The “National Center for Studies” based in Cairo had indicated in its monthly report about the occurrence of about 177 terrorist attacks within the countries of the region experiencing conflicts or “political instability/ unrest”; 85.1% of the total number of attacks, compared to 31 attacks in the countries described by the report as stable, with a rate of 14.9% of the same attacks, before the report indicated that the two types of bombings and armed attacks captured the vast majority of attacks, as the region witnessed 93 explosions during the reporting period. (including 87 bombings in conflict countries and 6 bombings in stable countries), and 72 armed attacks (including 65 armed attacks in conflict countries and 7 attacks in stable countries), at a time when the report indicated that Iraq retained the lead of countries most vulnerable to terrorist attacks that During the month of May, it reached 96 attacks, and Afghanistan ranked second with 43 terrorist attacks. It revealed the decline of terrorist activities in stable countries in 4 countries, led by Iran, which was subjected to about 10 different terrorist and sabotage operations.

The "NCS" attributed the continuous increase in the rate of terrorist attacks and operations - despite the security and military efforts made by the parties concerned to combat the Terrorism phenomenon - to a set of motives and determinants, at the forefront of which is the Taliban's desire to pressure on “Western” governments to force them to withdraw their forces from Afghanistan, in parallel with the efforts The so-called “Islamic State in Iraq and Sham” (ISIS) aims to thwart any efforts to end the foreign military presence in Afghanistan and Iraq, in which the organization has intensified its targeting of civilians, which the report explained as the existence of a desire on the part of the Islamic State (ISIS) to maintain the presence of foreign forces as one of the most prominent features of the scene.

In addition, the security and military operations carried out by the special agencies and forces in combating terrorism have succeeded in inflicting painful blows on the Islamic State (ISIS), which also tried to prove its presence in the face of these efforts through more attacks.

Finally, the conflict intensified between “Israel and Iran”, which increased the rate of terrorist attacks per month to 10, in contrast to the attack on an Iranian ship in Syrian territorial waters in the Mediterranean Sea, which could be considered a remarkable development raises concerns related to Maritime Security.

As for the section called "the efforts made in the context of combating the terrorist phenomenon”, The report spot the light on the field efforts made by the Iraqi security forces and forces, which resulted in the arrest of a number of ISIS leaders, led by Abu Ali Al-Jumaili, the Wali of Fallujah. as well as the organization's liaison officer in Kirkuk governorate; He is responsible for booby-traps and guarantees in Al-Baaj district, as well as for the five-year strategy announced by the Iraqi government regarding its response to the terrorist phenomenon.

In the same context; the report did not ignore the importance of the efforts made by the governments of the region to renew the legislative structure necessary to confront the phenomenon. This point was evident recently in the Jordanian Parliament's approval of the amendments to the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and “Terrorist Financing” Law.

Finally, The NCS concluded its monthly report by shedding light on the Ashab al-Azarat organization (a new armed group called itself “Ashab al-Azarat”), after the latter resumed its activity in Somalia by targeting one of the officials of the Presidency of "Hirshabelle State" regional state. And then the May Report mapping the possible paths for this activity during the coming period.