The International Standards On Countering The Financing Of Terrorism

Abstract: International recommendations on countering the financing of terrorism have been accepted as the benchmark when drafting national policies against terror financing. Still, the international recommendations are yet to clarify what needs to be included in terrorist financing. This paper examines the necessity to revise the international standards catered to countering the financing of terrorism. The landscape of terrorist financing has changed since the inception of the recommendation about 20 years ago. In addition, the mechanisms in place to identify what is or is not terrorist financing are also explored to better grasp what is scrutinized as terrorist financing on the ground level. In line with that, this paper provides an insight into what could be the components of terrorist financing that need to be considered when revising the international standards on countering the financing of terrorism.

Spotlight on Global Jihad (May 18-24, 2023)

Main events of the past week

  • The moderate increase in ISIS’s activity around the world continued this week. The hotspot of activity was in Africa.
  • Syria: ISIS carried out several attacks against the Syrian army and the forces supporting it in the desert region.
  • Iraq: ISIS operatives carried out several attacks against Iraqi security forces, following the increase in ISIS’s activity in Iraq.
  • Lebanon: A senior Al-Qaeda operative who was responsible for establishing the organization’s cells in Lebanon was detained northeast of Tripoli. A senior ISIS operative was detained in the Sidon area.
  • Africa:
  • Nigeria: ISIS continued its high-intensity activity against the Nigerian army in the northeast of the country. The main incident was the detonation of a car bomb.
  • Democratic Republic of the Congo: ISIS’s activity against Christian residents near the Ugandan border intensifies. At least 40 Christian residents were killed.
  • Burkina Faso: An Australian doctor abducted by an organization affiliated with Al-Qaeda was released after seven years.
  • Mali: ISIS operatives took over Al-Qaeda strongholds in a town in eastern Mali.
  • Somalia: Al-Shabaab, an Al-Qaeda-affiliated organization, claims to have inflicted dozens of fatalities on the Somali army and the forces supporting it.
  • The battle for hearts and minds: The editorial of ISIS’s weekly Al-Naba stresses the importance of implementing Islamic law (Sharia) through violent jihad. The article categorically rejects the values of democracy and secular regimes in general.

Robert Reich: 50 Years Ago, Henry Kissinger And Death Of Democracy In Chile – OpEd

As Chile marks the 50th anniversary today of the coup that brought strongman Augusto Pinochet to power for almost 17 years — toppling Chile’s democratically-elected socialist government, and resulting in the murders and “disappearances” of thousands of Pinochet’s political opponents — it’s important to recall the central role played by Richard Nixon and Nixon’s national security advisor, Henry Kissinger, in this atrocity.

Al-Qaeda Magazine Released On 9/11 Anniversary Threatens Future Attack On U.S. More Devastating Than 9/11

On September 10, 2023, the Al-Sahab Media Foundation, the official outlet of Al-Qaeda’s Central Command, released Issue 11 of its Arabic-language Ummah Wahidah (One Ummah) periodic magazine. The current issue is “dedicated to the 22nd anniversary of the #September_attacks,” perpetrated by Al-Qaeda against the U.S. on September 11, 2001.[1]

De la Covid-19 au changement climatique : Les véhicules de l’autoritarisme global

Comme je l’ai indiqué par le passé, le monde occidental a été à deux doigts d’être complètement assujetti et placé sous une tyrannie médicale perpétuelle par une coalition de responsables gouvernementaux, d’intérêts globalistes et d’entreprises partenaires. Les analystes du mouvement pour la liberté ont souvent parlé de «conspiration ouverte», mais ce n’est qu’avec la réponse à la pandémie que nous avons vraiment vu le masque tomber et l’ordre du jour se révéler.

Salami Tactics: Faits Accomplis and International Expansion in the Shadow of Major War

Salami tactics offer an attractive option for expansionist powers in the shadow of major war — using repetitive, limited faits accomplis to expand influence while avoiding potential escalation. Despite its long history of colloquial use, however, the term has never received a thorough conceptualization. Modeling a state’s decision to initiate salami tactics reveals five conditions that increase their appeal to policymakers: when retaliation would be costly, reversal is unlikely, faits accomplis are easy, fears of future predation can be undercut, and further gains are possible. Two case studies 200 years apart illustrate how these conditions operate: the U.S. annexation of Florida and Russia’s interventions in Georgia and Ukraine. Deterring salami tactics poses unique strategic challenges to current U.S. foreign policy, which should work to ensure that the key escalation decision remains with potential aggressors rather than being foisted onto defenders via faits accomplis.

Salami Tactics: Faits Accomplis and International Expansion in the Shadow of Major War

Salami tactics offer an attractive option for expansionist powers in the shadow of major war — using repetitive, limited faits accomplis to expand influence while avoiding potential escalation. Despite its long history of colloquial use, however, the term has never received a thorough conceptualization. Modeling a state’s decision to initiate salami tactics reveals five conditions that increase their appeal to policymakers: when retaliation would be costly, reversal is unlikely, faits accomplis are easy, fears of future predation can be undercut, and further gains are possible. Two case studies 200 years apart illustrate how these conditions operate: the U.S. annexation of Florida and Russia’s interventions in Georgia and Ukraine. Deterring salami tactics poses unique strategic challenges to current U.S. foreign policy, which should work to ensure that the key escalation decision remains with potential aggressors rather than being foisted onto defenders via faits accomplis.