JUST IN: After promoting it last night, #alQaida's as-Sahab media is out with another speech from AQ leader Ayman al-Zawahiri
Per @siteintelgroup, the 32+ minutes video is the 3rd in a series of anti-atheism lectures
In the video, #alQaida's Zawahiri seems to allude to the US withdrawal from #Afghanistan
"We hope that today, with the blessings of Allah, the defeat of the Americans in Afghanistan shall be the beginning of their end too" he says, per transcript from @siteintelgroup
This is the 2nd video from #alQaida featuring Zawahiri this month
BREAKING: US scrapping Minuteman III nuclear missile test scheduled for this weekend "to demonstrate we are a responsible nuclear power..." per @PentagonPresSec
Says move is being made to make nothing can be misconstrued during a time of heightened tensions
#Russia convoy headed to #Kyiv & the northern push from Russia to south "has stalled" per @PentagonPresSec, saying no real progress in last 24-36 hours
"6 days ago, Russia’s Vladimir Putin sought to shake the very foundations of the free world thinking he could make it bend to his menacing ways. But he badly miscalculated..."
#Russia#Putin "thought he could roll into #Ukraine & the world would roll over" per @POTUS "Instead he met a wall of strength he never anticipated or imagined"
"He rejected efforts at diplomacy. He thought the West & @NATO wouldn’t respond. And, he thought he could divide us here at home" per prepared remarks for #SOTU
"Putin was wrong. We were ready"
"Throughout our history we’ve learned this lesson – when dictators do not pay a price for their aggression, they cause more chaos. They keep moving" @POTUS to say in #SOTU "And, the costs and threats to America & the world keep rising..."
In the Republican response, #Iowa Gov @KimReynoldsIA to say, "all Americans must stand united in solidarity with the brave people of #Ukraine as they courageously defend their country against #Putin’s tyranny..."
"ISIS members & associates in South Africa are playing an increasingly central role in facilitating the transfer of funds from the top of the ISIS hierarchy to branches across Africa" per @USTreasury
.@USTreasury "is taking this action to disrupt and expose key #ISIS supporters who exploit #SouthAfrica’s financial system to facilitate funding for ISIS branches & networks across #Africa" per UnderSec Brian Nelson, who adds US working w/SouthAfrica, others
-Farhad Hoomer, leader of #Durban-based cell
-Siraaj Miller, leader of #CapeTown-based group of supporters
-Abdella Hussein Abadigga, a recruiter w/ties to ISIS-#Somalia
-Peter Charles Mbaga, connected to ISIS-#Mozambique