"In East Africa, #alShabaab moved freely & launched attacks in #Somalia & #Kenya...In the #Sahel & LakeChad regions, violence continued at high levels & expanded to new territories"
"In North #Africa, ISIS-#Libya resumed small-scale attacks in the southern desert region of #Libya" per @DoD_IG Sean O'Donnell "The ongoing civil war...intensified as more foreign fighters and mercenaries deployed to Libya to fight on both sides of the conflict"
MORE: Spread of #COVID19 across #Africa "did not appear to slow VEO (violent extremist organizations) activity" per @DoD_IG O'Donnell "The pandemic exacerbated many of the underlying conditions that foster VEO growth, including economic and food insecurity"
"Several administrative hurdles, including additional layers of approval at the White House...slowed @USAID’s COVID19 programming" per @DoD_IG
Those also hurdles for @USAID included "restrictions on the procurement of personal protective equipment (PPE) for overseas projects, & inconsistent guidance on the branding and marking of assistance" per @DoD_IG report
Pace of US airstrikes vs #alShabaab slowed in 2nd quarter of 2020 - @USAfricaCommand telling @DoD_IG it launched 7 airstrikes in #Somalia from April-June as opposed to 33 from January-March
US counterterror ops in North #Africa "remained limited" from April-June, per @DoD_IG, noting @USAfricaCommand "has not had a physical presence in Libya since April 2019 due to the unpredictable security environment"
#ISIS attacks in May, June were first by the group in #Libya in more than a year, per @DoD_IG
Concerns that more #foreignfighters w/links to terror groups are fighting in #Libya|n cival war, tho "it is possible they were fighting for financial & personal reasons rather than for ideological motivation" per @DoD_IG, citing @USAfricaCommand
.@USAfricaCommand also noted "increasing reports of theft, sexual assault, and misconduct by #Syria|n fighters" per @DoD_IG
#Russia also providing "illicit financial support" to #Libya|n National Army (#LNA)
In #Somalia "#alShabaab attacks continued at historically high levels & remained steady during the quarter despite the COVID-19 pandemic" per @DoD_IG citing data from @ACLEDINFO
.@USAfricaCommand tells @DoD_IG decrease in airstrikes vs #alShabaab for 2nd quarter of 2020 due to adverse weather patterns and resource allocation issues
US believes #Turkey-backed #Syria|n mercenaries "have bolstered" #Libya's Gvt of Nat'l Accord (#GNA) but warns they pose a long-term risk
The Turkish-backed Syrians are "inexperienced, uneducated, & motivated by promises of considerable salary" @USAfricaCommand tells @DoD_IG
.@USAfricaCommand also warned of increased reports of theft, sexual assault & other misconduct-which could spark a backlash from the #Libya|n public
Several dozen military trainers from Sadat, a private Turkish military company responsible for training & supervision, per @DoD_IG
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HAPPENING NOW - US intelligence chiefs testify before the Senate Intelligence Committee:
@ODNIgov Dir Avril Haines
@CIA Dir William Burns
@FBI Dir Christoper Wray
@NSAGov Dir Gen Timothy Haugh
@DefenseIntel Dir LtGen Jeffrey Krause
@StateDept Asst Sec for Intel Brett Holmgren
Noting that the current era is as challenging as ever, with a wide variety of threats, Senate Intelligence Committee Chair @MarkWarner calls for "redefining what we think of" when it comes to national security
@MarkWarner "We are no even seeing the possibility of foreign adversaries weaponizing space" in ways that could be detrimental to US way of life, per @MarkWarner
NEW: @FBI joins White House, Senate intelligence committee chair in sounding alarm about foreign interference in #Election2024
"This election cycle, the US will face more adversaries, moving at a faster pace & enabled by new technology
per Dir Christopher Wray at @INSAlliance
#ArtificialIntelligence advances "lowering the barrier to entry-making it easier for both more & less-sophisticated foreign adversaries to engage in malign influence" per @FBI's Wray
"Making foreign influence efforts by players old and&new more realistic & difficult to detect"
@FBI Where are US adversaries focused?
“The attack surface for the bad guys is the private sector” per @FBI's Wray "The intelligence that we need is in the hands of the private sector, often”
NEW: US worried about #Russia seeking to interfere in #Election2024
"Of course there are concerns" White House Nat'l Security Adviser @JakeSullivan46 tells @MeetThePress
"There's plenty of reason to be concerned" per @JakeSullivan46
"There is a history here in presidential elections by the #Russia|n Federation, by its intelligence services" he says
"We are going to be vigilant"
Concerns about #Russia|n interference in #Election2024 "not about politics" per @JakeSullivan46
"This is about national security. It is about a foreign country, a foreign adversary seeking to manipulate the politics & democracy of the United States of America."
NEW: US confirms #Houthis using "various #Iran|ian-origin missiles & unmanned aerial vehicles" in their attacks on shipping in the #RedSea #GulfofAden
Conclusion based on new analysis by @DefenseIntel
The assessment is based on information current as January 2024 - including a "comparative analysis of publicly available images of #Iran|ian missiles & UAVs to those displayed & employed by #Houthi forces in #Yemen to attack commercial shipping" per @DefenseIntel
US @DefenseIntel on #Iran|ian drones in #Houthi arsenal:
-Sayad (Sammad) - range of 1800km
-Shahed-136 - range of 2500km
-Waid-1 (version of the Shahed-131) - range of 900km
AQ "established up to 8 new training camps in Afghanistan, including four in #Ghazni, #Laghman, #Parwan & #Uruzgan Provinces w/a new base to stockpile weaponry in the #Panjshir Valley" per new @UN report
The new #alQaida camps appear to be "conducting suicide bomber training for TTP [Tehrik-i-Taliban #Pakistan]" per the @UN report
Intelligence provided by @UN member states also notes #alQaida is operating madrasas in #Laghman, #Kunar, #Nangarhar, #Nuristan & #Parwan provinces
AQ also "maintains safe houses to facilitate the movement between #Afghanistan & the Islamic Republic of #Iran"
NEW: @usairforce disciplines 15 Air National Guard members as a result of the so-called Discord intel leak this past April
Inspector General report cited lax inspections, lack of guidance & lack of supervision as contributing factors in the leaks by 21-year-old Jack Teixeira
"The IG investigation found individuals in Teixeira’s unit failed to take proper action after becoming aware of his intelligence-seeking activities..." per @usairforce statement
"...However, the investigation did not find evidence that members of Teixeira’s supervisory chain were aware of his alleged unauthorized disclosures" per @usairforce