Arab Quartet Adds Two Entities, 11 Individuals to Terror List

Figures accused by the Arab quartet of supporting and funding terrorism. Asharq Al-Awsat
Figures accused by the Arab quartet of supporting and funding terrorism. Asharq Al-Awsat
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Arab Quartet Adds Two Entities, 11 Individuals to Terror List

Figures accused by the Arab quartet of supporting and funding terrorism. Asharq Al-Awsat
Figures accused by the Arab quartet of supporting and funding terrorism. Asharq Al-Awsat

The Arab anti-terror quartet added to its terror list 11 more individuals and two entities – the International Union for Muslim Scholars (IUMS) headed by Yusuf al-Qaradawi and International Islamic Council (IIC).

Saudi Arabia, Egypt, UAE, and Bahrain declared in a statement that in light of their commitment to fighting terrorism, drying up its sources of funding, combating extremist ideology and working together to eradicate it and immunize societies against it, and in the framework of their joint efforts with active partners in fighting terrorism, they blacklisted the two entities and eleven individuals.

“The two entities listed are two terrorist organizations that promote terrorism by using Islamic rhetoric as a cover to facilitate terrorist activities,” the statement said.

Qatar-based IUMS was established in 2004 and is chaired by al-Qaradawi who is considered the Muslim Brotherhood's "godfather". The union is strongly linked to the terrorist organization and has 67 members including the president, the vice president, who is Iranian, the secretary general, and some indivudials who had been accused of terrorism.

The International Union had an effective role in creating strife in Arab and Islamic countries, backed by both Qatari and Turkish governments.

As for IIC, it aims at targeting Arab countries, mainly Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain and Egypt. Backed by the Qatari regime, it describes Saudi Arabia and UAE as two "zionist" states.

The council is affiliated with several organizations and entities on the quartet's terror list such as al-Karama organizations, Raf Institution, Qurtoba organization in UK, and Islah Association. 

Among those on the blacklist is Khaled Nazem Diab, a US citizen of Syrian origin. He is the head of Relief International Development of the Qatari Red Crescent, and funds armed militias in Syria.

Diab's activities reach countries like Yemen, Mauritania, Djibouti and Mosul city in Iraq. He is a supporter of the Muslim Brotherhood and a member of the board of trustees of al-Karama foundation.

He was arrested in Lebanon in 2013 on charges of funding terrorist groups in Syria and had been on UN and US blacklists since 2002.

Salem Jaber Omar Ali Sultan Fathallah Jaber, who is a Libyan preacher and a partner at "Boshra News Agency", a classified organization, is also on the list. 

He used to preach in al-Tahrir Square in Benghazi, Libya, where he was known for provoking armed militias to launch attacks against vital infrastructure spots.

Slain Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi had banned Jaber from delivering any speech for five years. 

A close colleague of terrorist preacher Yusuf al-Qaradawi, Jaber is also a partner in several Qatari foundations such as "Qatar Charity" and "Raf", both entities identified as terrorist.

Moyasar Ali Musa Abdullah al-Jubouri, dubbed Abu Maria al-Qahtani, was a former officer in the Iraqi Army within a group called "Fedayeen Saddam" until 2003.

After Paul Bremer restructured the army and police, Jubouri worked as a policeman in Baghdad after which he joined al-Nusra Front in Syria as the Grand Mufti and Emir of eastern area. He was then dismissed by the organization leader "Abu Mohammed al-Joulani". He is the previous assistant of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and uses a Qatari passport in his travels.

UN listed Jubouri as an international terrorist in 2014 for associating with al-Qaeda terrorist group.

The list also included Bahraini national Hassan Ali Mohammed Juma Sultan.

Sultan is a known extremist Shi’ite cleric who obtained his religious studies in Iran. He is one of the top commanders of the Islamic Dawa Party, as well as the dissolved al-Wefaq Association, and affiliated in several activities with the Lebanese Hezbollah. He is considered a fugitive in Bahrain.

An audio recording reveals a phone conversation between Sultan and the Qatari Emir’s adviser, Hamad bin Khalifah al-Attiyah, on attempts to create chaos in Bahrain.

Also on the list, Mohammed Suleiman Haidar Mohammed al-Haidar, who is a businessman from a wealthy Qatari family and accused of financing several terrorist groups active in Bahrain. He supported Bahraini terrorists trough bank transfers of over 35,000 Bahraini Dinars. He is also linked to terrorist activities in Bahrain through his financial support of the Bahraini opposition.

On the list, an Egyptian national, Mohammed Jamal Ahmed Hishmat Abdul Hamid who is accused of plotting the General Attorney’s assassination. Following the Egyptian revolution on June 30, he fled to Sudan then to Turkey.

Abdul Hamid is the key founder of the dissolved Freedom and Justice Party, the political office of the Muslim Brotherhood group, and member of the party's high committee. He is accused of inciting riots in Egypt.

Egyptian Alsayed Mahmoud Ezzat Ibrahim Eissa is also on the list for his terrorist activity. He is the Muslim Brotherhood’s supreme guide. He has escaped Egypt and is a wanted fugitive.

Eissa is accused of several crimes including espionage and had been arrested several times.

The quartet said in the statement that through their monitoring, they discovered that Qatari authorities continued to support and finance terrorism, promotion of extremism, and dissemination of hate speech. It added that Doha not taken effective action to stop terrorist activity.

The statement reaffirmed the four countries’ commitment to strengthening all efforts to combat terrorism and establish security and stability in the region.

They stressed that they will not hesitate to pursue individuals and terrorist groups and will support all means in this regard at the regional and international levels.

The quartet assured that it will continue to combat terrorist activities and target terrorism financing regardless of its source, and will continue to work with partners around the world to effectively reduce terrorist activities and extremist organizations that should not be tolerated by any state.

The four countries concluded by thanking all the countries that support them in their fight against terrorism, extremism and violence.



Israeli Troops Battle Palestinian Fighters in Gaza City of Khan Younis

 Smoke rises following Israeli strikes during an Israeli military operation, amid Israel-Hamas conflict, in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, July 24, 2024. (Reuters)
Smoke rises following Israeli strikes during an Israeli military operation, amid Israel-Hamas conflict, in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, July 24, 2024. (Reuters)
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Israeli Troops Battle Palestinian Fighters in Gaza City of Khan Younis

 Smoke rises following Israeli strikes during an Israeli military operation, amid Israel-Hamas conflict, in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, July 24, 2024. (Reuters)
Smoke rises following Israeli strikes during an Israeli military operation, amid Israel-Hamas conflict, in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, July 24, 2024. (Reuters)

Israeli troops battled Palestinian fighters in Khan Younis in southern Gaza and destroyed tunnels and other infrastructure, as they sought to suppress small militant units that have continued to hit troops with mortar fire, the military said on Friday.

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said troops had killed around 100 Palestinian fighters since Israeli troops began their latest operation in Khan Younis on Monday, which continued as pressure mounted for a deal to halt the fighting.

It said seven small units that had been firing mortars at the troops were hit in an air strike, while further south, in Rafah, four fighters were also killed in air strikes.

The Islamic Jihad armed wing said it fired rockets toward the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon and other Israeli towns near Gaza. No casualties were reported, the Israeli ambulance service said.

The continued fighting, more than nine months since the start of Israel's invasion of Gaza following the Oct. 7 attack, underlined the difficulty the IDF has had in eliminating fighters who have reverted to a form of guerrilla warfare in the ruins of the coastal strip.

A Telegram channel operated by the armed wings of Hamas and Islamic Jihad, the two main militant groups in Gaza, said fighters had been waging fierce battles with Israeli troops east of Khan Younis with machine guns, mortars and anti-tank weapons.

Medics said at least six Palestinians were killed in Israeli strikes in eastern Khan Younis.

US PRESSURE

US President Joe Biden, and Vice President Kamala Harris, the presumptive Democratic Party nominee for president, both urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to agree to a proposed ceasefire deal as soon as possible.

However there has been no clear sign of movement in talks to end the fighting and bring home some 115 Israeli and foreign hostages still being held in Gaza. Public statements from Israel and Hamas appear to indicate that serious differences remain between the two sides.

Local residents contacted by messenger app, said Israeli tanks had pushed into three towns to the east of Khan Younis, Bani Suhaila, Al-Zanna and Al-Karara and blew up several houses in some residential districts.

The military said air force jets hit around 45 targets, including tunnels and two launch pads from which rockets were fired into Beersheba in southern Israel.

Even while the fighting continued around Khan Younis and Rafah in the south, in the northern part of the enclave, Israeli tanks pushed into the Tel Al-Hawa suburb west of Gaza city, residents said.

A Hamas Telegram channel said fighters targeted an Israeli tank in Tal Al-Hawa and shot an Israeli soldier.

Medics said two Palestinians were also killed in an air strike in western Gaza city.

More than 39,000 Palestinians have been killed in the fighting in Gaza, according to local health authorities, who do not distinguish between fighters and non-combatants.

Israeli officials estimate that some 14,000 fighters from armed groups including Hamas and Islamic Jihad, have been killed or taken prisoner, out of a force they estimated to number more than 25,000 at the start of the war.