Weekly Analyst Review

29 June 2022

Bottom Line Up Front

Since 24 June 2022, eco-fascist Telegram channels across the entire Terrorgram Collective have celebrated and promoted the imminent publication of “The Hard Reset.” This will be the third manifesto/ stochastic instructional guide from the Terrorgram Collective; the first being "Militant Accelerationism;" the second being "Do It For The Gram." Though both were hotly anticipated, the second fell vastly short in terms of content creation and engagement with their target audience: the potential racist lone wolf.

As TRAC has previously documented, the Terrorgram Collective, migrated from 8chan to Telegram in August 2019 and by June 2020, the network accrued and maintained 25 channels, each boasting over 6,000 subscribers. The first publication "Militant Accelerationism" drastically amplified their following. As of October 2021, the core Terrorgram Collective was comprised of no less than a dozen channels, each with thousands of subscribers.

Lately, eco-fascist’s propaganda have referred to themselves as an ‘artist’ to name the creator of any propaganda. In this sense, reference to the creator as an ‘artist’ creates a media label and thus, makes whatever concept that is being presented as something larger than it really is; literally ‘speaking’ the concept / ideology into existence. When the Terrorgram Collective published "Do It For The Gram" the collective focused on giving notoriety to the individual authors, as opposed to remaining merely as a collective. Increasingly, the Terrorgram Collective wishes for anonymity for themselves in real life but notoriety for their online personas when distributing propaganda.

What are your TOP 3 Security Concerns?

Click the link above to take a short survey and help us learn more

about your organization's threat assessment needs.

Other Developments

TRAC Incident Report:

A 42-Year-Old Norwegian, Zaniar Matapour, Gunman Opened Fire at the London Pub, a Popular Gay Bar & Nightclub,

Killing 2 & Injuring 14, in Oslo, Norway

Image: Officer on scene of shooting

On 24 June 2022, a gunman opened fire at the London Pub, a popular gay bar and nightclub in Oslo, Norway. The mass shooting resulted in 2 killed and over 14 injured persons. The suspect was arrested by the police on the scene, as the gunman was apparently known to the police and identified as a 42 year-old Norwegian who was originally from Iran. He has been charged with murder, attempted murder, and terrorism.

This attack was committed days before the Pride parade in Oslo and it is suspected that the shooter intended to interfere with the parade. The perpetrator is said to have arrived at the scene carrying a large bag and upon opening the bag, immediately opened fire on all the patrons of the bar.

The Norwegian security services (PST) were aware of the gunman as a 'suspected radicalized Islamist' since 2015 and was identified as Zaniar Matapour. Matapour migrated to Norway in 1990 with his family from a Kurdish part of Iran. Hence, the incident is being treated as Islamist motivated terrorist attack. Given that the gunmen is originally from Iran, the likelihood of him being a Shia Muslim is high; however, generally speaking, Shia lone wolves attack are extremely rare.

TRAC Incident Report:

TRAC Incident Report: More than 25 Persons, Including 18 High-Ranking South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF) Officers were Killed & Injured in Clashes with ‘Armed Youths’ (Potentially IS Affiliated) in Konggor Warrap, Bahr el Ghazal Region, South Sudan

Image: ISWA Expansion Map as of June 2022

On 23 June 2022, purportedly, local armed youths from Rualbet and Akop Payams ganged up and raided over 100 cattle from Konggor, Bahr el Ghazal Region, South Sudan. When the South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF) officers went to retrieve the stolen animals, the soldiers were attacked and overrun by armed youth. It is being reported that 18 high-ranking officers from SSPDF and 7 armed youth were killed in the dispute.

TRAC wants to highlight that Islamic State affiliated Telegram channels have spread details and celebratory posts of this attack. Officially, there is no Islamic State presence in south Sudan; however, given the aggressive expansion followed by Islamic State in Africa, the intel from IS affiliated Telegram channels should not be dismissed too easily.

TRAC Incident Report:

VBIED Targets Lahj Province Security Director’s Convoy in Khormaksar Suburb of Aden, Yemen

Image: Screenshot of VBIED explosion

On 29 June 2022, the director of Lahj Governorate security was traveling in a convoy in the Khormaksar Suburb of Aden when a bomb hit. An unknown number of persons traveling with Saleh Al-Sayed were killed in the explosion.

Though it is unclear who is behind the attack, the Lahj province hasn’t seen much militant activity since 2017, mostly from al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). Houthis are currently in discussion of extending their truce with the Yemeni government. Even though the truce itself was more than spotty, there is always the possibility of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) being behind this attack.

On Our Radar:

Video:

Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) Releases a Video Interview of its Chief Mufti Noor Wali Mehsud on the Ongoing Peace Talks with Pakistan, Afghanistan

TRAC Incident Report: United States Central Command Allegedly Killed Abu Hamzah al Yemeni, Leader of the al-Qaeda-Aligned Group, Huras al-Din in an Airstrike in Idlib Province, Syria

TRAC Incident Report:

Islamic State Central Africa (Shabaab Cult/ISCA) Militants Ambush Passenger Bus On Mueda - Palma Road Near Njama Village, Mocimboa da Praia, Cabo Delgado, Mozambique

CLICK HERE FOR PAST WEEKLY BRIEFINGS