National Security
Two more arrested in UK as part of TX synagogue terror attack investigation
Two more individuals have been arrested as part of the investigation into Malik Faisal Akram, the man who took hostages at a Texas synagogue last weekend. U.K. terrorism police announced Thursday that the additional individuals were arrested.
Two different teens were detained in South Manchester just one day after Akram’s terror attack in Colleyville, Texas. The teens were released Wednesday without charges after three nights in custody, reports Fox News.
Greater Manchester Police shared an update from the Counter Terrorism Policing North West, that the men arrested for questioning Thursday morning were in Birmingham and Manchester.
Fox News states “several reports” said the two teens detained were Akram’s sons, but police have not confirmed that. Terrorism police have also searched a North Manchester address as part of the investigation.
U.K. terrorism police say they are continued to “support U.S. authorities with their investigation into the events in Texas” and will further “liaise with and support colleagues from other forces.”
Domestically, the FBI has stated its investigations are extending to London and Tel Aviv in order to determine if Akram acted alone or as part of a larger terror cell. During the 11 hour hostage standoff, Akram demanded the release of Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani terrorist in prison in Ft. Worth, known as “Lady Al Qaeda.”
Akram also reached out to a New York City-based Rabbi, Angela Buchdahl, who runs Reform Judaism. Akram wanted her to “use her influence to persuade authorities to release Siddiqui from prison” reports Fox News. Buchdahl told her congregation she had never had any prior connection to Akram.
Among the investigations into Akram, authorities are trying to figure out how he managed to travel to the U.S. last year. He reportedly flew into New York’s JFK, but he had a criminal record that went back decades, and was on the U.K.’s terror watch list for his extreme beliefs.
Akram was raised by his Pakistani parents in Lancashire, England, which is among the many Muslim communities in the U.K. experiencing radicalization. Once in Dallas, Akram stayed at Dallas-area homeless shelters in the days leading up to the hostage incident.
A pastor says he witnessed Akram being “dropped off” at one of the facilities by a man who hugged him and clearly appeared to know him. The pastor handed over video and photos to the FBI.
Israel
Senior Saudi official says Iran ‘engineered’ war in Gaza and ‘should have been stopped a long time ago’
Although it has been widely believed, a senior Saudi Arabian official has accused Tehran of having “engineered a war in Gaza” for the purpose to interfere with Jerusalem’s attempts to normalize relations with Riyadh. The unnamed official then described the regime as “a country that sponsors terrorism, and it should have been stopped a long time ago.”
In an interview with Israel’s Kan public broadcaster, the anonymous individual said that “any suspicious object” entering his country’s airspace is intercepted by the Kingdom’s defense forces. The comment may suggest that there was some level of participation by the Saudis in neutralizing the missiles and attack drones that the Islamic Republic fired at Israel on Saturday, notes Foreign Desk News.
Reports have confirmed that the American, British, French, and Jordanian militaries assisted the IDF in the air defenses during the bombardment.
Foreign Desk News states of the improving relations between Israel and its neighbors:
In 2020, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, and Morocco signed normalization agreements with the Jewish state under the direction of the Trump administration, in what was called the Abraham Accords. The following January, Sudan would also join the reconciliation.
Any diplomatic understandings between Israel and Saudi Arabia would be seen as a big boost to regional security, considering the Kingdom is often viewed as the most powerful Arab-majority country in the world.
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John Bayer
January 21, 2022 at 3:44 pm
“Among the investigations into Akram, authorities are trying to figure out how he managed to travel to the U.S. last year. He reportedly flew into New York’s JFK, but he had a criminal record that went back decades, and was on the U.K.’s terror watch list for his extreme beliefs.”
Government fails. It screws up. And that’s a less-paranoid response than might be given.