April 1, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid responded to a U.S. offer of “honorable reconciliation” by calling the notion a “lunatic idea.” The spokesman said that the withdrawal of foreign troops was the only way to end the conflict: “There is no other way. We want our freedom and respect for our independence.” – Reuters, April 1
April 1, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): Thirteen people, including senior government officials, were killed when four suicide attackers stormed provincial council offices in Kandahar city. According to reports, the assailants drove up to the offices in a four-wheel drive vehicle. Three of the men got out of the car, while the fourth detonated explosives in the vehicle, killing himself but blowing open the gate to the compound. The three militants then entered the compound and opened fire. Security forces shot dead two of the assailants; the remaining militant blew himself up. Witnesses claim that the militants wore Afghan military uniforms. – AFP, April 1
April 2, 2009 (UNITED STATES): A U.S. federal judge ruled that the government can continue to detain Hedi Hammamy—a Tunisian charged with supporting al-Qa`ida—at Guantanamo Bay. The U.S. government alleges that Hammamy fought with the Taliban and al-Qa`ida in the Tora Bora region of Afghanistan, in addition to belonging to an Italy-based terrorist cell. Hammamy was apprehended in Pakistan in April 2002. – Washington Post, April 3
April 2, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): Taliban militants attacked a police post on the border with Iran, reportedly killing one policeman and three civilian customs office clerks. The attack occurred in Herat Province. – AFP, April 3
April 2, 2009 (PHILIPPINES): The Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) released Mary Jean Lacaba, one of three International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC) workers held hostage since January 15. The ASG is still holding Swiss national Andreas Notter and Italian national Eugenio Vagni on Jolo Island in the southern Philippines. – ABS-CBNNews.com, April 2
April 3, 2009 (IRAQ): Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said on state-run television that al-Qa`ida fighters and Saddam Hussein loyalists had infiltrated Sunni Arab militias—Awakening (sahwa) movements such as the Sons of Iraq. “Our intelligence reports confirm that al-Ba`ath and al-Qa`ida have infiltrated Sahwas,” he charged. “It’s not a question of Shiite and Sunni conflict. It’s a question of an organized armed party that is banned and wants to create problems.” – AFP, April 3
April 3, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Suspected Taliban militants destroyed nine NATO vehicles at a logistics terminal on the outskirts of Peshawar. The incident was just the latest in the Taliban’s ongoing strategy to attack the supply lines for international forces in Afghanistan. – AFP, April 2
April 3, 2009 (PHILIPPINES): An explosion ripped through a public square in Isabela, Basilan Province, in the southern Philippines. At least two people were killed and eight wounded. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. – GMANews.tv, April 3
April 4, 2009 (UNITED STATES): Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan leader Baitullah Mehsud immediately claimed credit for an incident in New York state on April 3, in which a man shot and killed 13 people at an immigrant services center before committing suicide. Mehsud told reporters, “I accept responsibility. They were my men. I gave them orders in reaction to U.S. drone attack.” The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, however, “firmly” discounted Mehsud’s claim. The gunman, moreover, turned out to be Jiverly Wong, an immigrant from Vietnam. – Reuters, April 4; Los Angeles Times, May 6
April 4, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A U.S. unmanned aerial drone strike killed at least 11 suspected militants in North Waziristan Agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. According to the New York Times, those killed in the strike “were loyal to Hafiz Gul Bahadur, a militant leader and ally of [Baitullah] Mehsud’s, and appeared to be Arabs and Afghans.” – AFP, April 4; New York Times, April 4
April 4, 2009 (PAKISTAN): John Solecki, a U.S. national working for the United Nations, was released south of Quetta near the Afghanistan border. Solecki had been held hostage since February 2, after he was kidnapped by gunmen in Quetta, Balochistan Province. The gunmen killed his driver during the kidnapping. A previously unknown group called the Balochistan Liberation United Front took credit for the kidnapping, and it demanded that the Pakistani government release from jail Baloch nationalists and separatists. – New York Times, April 4
April 4, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A suicide bomber detonated his explosives near a paramilitary checkpoint in Miran Shah, North Waziristan Agency. At least seven people, all reportedly civilians, were killed. – AFP, April 4
April 4, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A suicide bomber walked into a Frontier Constabulary tented police camp in Islamabad and detonated his explosives. Eight members of the security force were killed. The incident occurred in an exclusive, heavily guarded neighborhood. – AFP, April 4
April 4, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Pakistani ground forces, helicopter gunships and fighter jets attacked Taliban militants in Mohmand Agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. The Pakistani government estimated that at least 18 militants were killed. – AFP, April 5
April 5, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A suicide bomber detonated his explosives outside a Shi`a mosque in Chakwal, Punjab Province. At least 22 people were killed. – Guardian, April 5
April 6, 2009 (IRAQ): Six car bombs ripped through Baghdad, killing at least 33 people. The attacks largely targeted Shi`a areas of the city. The majority of the casualties were civilians. – CNN, April 6; Reuters, April 7
April 7, 2009 (IRAQ): A car bomb exploded near a mosque in the Shi`a area of Kadhimiyya in Baghdad, killing eight people. – New York Times, April 7
April 7, 2009 (IRAQ): A suicide car bomber rammed his vehicle into the armored car of Colonel Saad Abbas al-Shimary, an Awakening Council leader in Garma, Anbar Province. The attack, which occurred in Garma, failed to kill al-Shimary. One policeman, however, was killed. The assassination attempt was the third on al-Shimary since December 2008. – New York Times, April 7
April 7, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Suspected Taliban militants used a remote-controlled bomb to destroy a music shop in Peshawar. There was no loss of life as the bomb exploded during the night. – AFP, April 6
April 7, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Authorities announced that Taliban militants killed five people, including three policemen, during overnight clashes between an anti-Taliban tribal force, the police and approximately 60 Taliban fighters. The clashes occurred after the anti-Taliban tribal force, or lashkar, attempted to dislodge the Taliban from a mountain top in Buner District of the North-West Frontier Province. – AFP, April 7
April 7, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Karachi police arrested five members of Lashkar-i-Jhangvi, a Pakistani terrorist group. Police allege that the men were planning to conduct attacks on government offices and security forces in Karachi. – Daily Telegraph, April 8
April 7, 2009 (SAUDI ARABIA): Saudi security forces arrested 11 alleged al-Qa`ida militants operating from a hideout near the border with Yemen. The men were allegedly planning to attack police installations, conduct armed robberies and kidnap people in Saudi Arabia. Explosive suicide belts were uncovered during the operation. – BBC, April 7; Reuters, April 7
April 8, 2009 (UNITED KINGDOM): UK police arrested 12 men in England on suspicion of plotting a terrorist attack in the country. – Daily Telegraph, April 10
April 8, 2009 (IRAQ): A bomb exploded near the Shi`a Musa Kadhim mosque in Baghdad, killing seven people. – AFP, April 8
April 9, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): A suicide bomber killed two police officers and three civilians in Lashkar Gah, Helmand Province. The bomber targeted a counternarcotics police brigade. – New York Times, April 9
April 9, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Sufi Muhammad, who brokered a cease-fire deal between the government and militants in the Swat Valley in February, pulled out of the peace deal. He said that the government was not serious about implementing Shari`a. Sufi Muhammad’s son-in-law is Maulana Fazlullah, who leads Taliban fighters in Swat. – CNN, April 10
April 9, 2009 (TURKEY): Turkish authorities detained 28 al-Qa`ida suspects in simultaneous operations in several districts of Eskisehir Province. – Voice of America, April 9
April 10, 2009 (IRAQ): A suicide bomber drove a truck packed with 2,000 pounds of explosives into the entrance of the main military base in Mosul, Ninawa Province. The large blast killed five U.S. soldiers and two Iraqi soldiers. According to the New York Times, “Driving a dump truck, the bomber appears to have passed a number of checkpoints before finally blasting through a final checkpoint guarding a military road that leads to one of the main entrances to the base.” – New York Times, April 10
April 10, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Suspected Taliban militants destroyed at least six oil tankers in Peshawar used for supplying fuel to NATO troops in Afghanistan. – RTTNews, April 10
April 11, 2009 (IRAQ): A suicide bomber killed 12 Sunni militiamen at an Iraqi Army post in Iskandariyya, Babil Province. – Reuters, April 11
April 11, 2009 (TURKEY): Turkish prosecutors charged seven people with belonging to a terrorist organization. The seven al-Qa`ida suspects were rounded up during a large counterterrorism operation on April 9. – AFP, April 11
April 12, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): Sitara Achakzai, a leading female Afghan politician, was gunned down after leaving a provincial council meeting in Kandahar. According to the Guardian, Achakzai “was attacked by two gunmen as she arrived at her home in a rickshaw—a vehicle colleagues said she deliberately chose to use to avoid attracting attention.” The Taliban claimed responsibility for the killing. – Guardian, April 13
April 12, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Taliban militants destroyed 10 container trucks in Peshawar used for supplying Western forces in Afghanistan. – Reuters, April 12
April 12, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A Taliban spokesman told reporters that airstrikes in Orakzai Agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas killed between 16 and 20 Taliban fighters. The spokesman said that their commander escaped. It was unclear which country conducted the airstrikes. – UPI, April 15
April 12, 2009 (PHILIPPINES): Philippine soldiers recovered the body of one of two Christian hostages kidnapped from a Christian community in Basilan Province in the southern Philippines. The murdered hostage, Cosme Aballes, had been beheaded. It is suspected that the Abu Sayyaf Group was behind the kidnappings. – AKI, April 13
April 13, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): Taliban militia publicly executed a young couple who tried to elope. The couple was shot dead in front of a mosque in Nimroz Province. According to the Nimroz governor, “Three Taliban mullahs brought them to the local mosque and they passed a fatwa that they must be killed. They were shot and killed in front of the mosque in public.” – AFP, April 14
April 13, 2009 (PAKISTAN): President Asif Ali Zardari approved Islamic law in the Swat Valley. A spokesman for the Taliban in Swat said in response that “the Taliban will accept the writ of the government. We got what we wanted.” – Bloomberg, April 14
April 13, 2009 (YEMEN): Yemeni tribesmen released two Dutch hostages who were kidnapped on March 31. It appears a ransom was paid. According to Reuters, “Tribesmen often kidnap Western tourists in Yemen…to pressure the government to provide better services and improve living conditions.” – Reuters, April 13
April 13, 2009 (SOMALIA): Mortars narrowly missed the plane of U.S. Representative Donald M. Payne from New Jersey, who was visiting Mogadishu. Payne, who is the chairman of the House subcommittee on Africa, was unhurt. Although al-Shabab took credit for the attack, it was unclear whether Payne’s plane was targeted or if it was a routine attack on the airport. The mortar rounds may have killed five civilians on the ground. – New York Times, April 13; Washington Post, April 14
April 14, 2009 (IRAQ): U.S. Army Colonel Gary Volesky, commander of American forces in the Mosul area, told reporters that U.S. troops could stay in Mosul after a June 30 withdrawal deadline. “If the Iraqi government wants us to stay we will stay,” he said. – Reuters, April 14
April 15, 2009 (IRAQ): A car bomb ripped through a bus in Kirkuk, killing 10 policemen. The bomb was detonated remotely, and it targeted policemen heading home from protecting an oil installation. After the attack, police arrested a man who reportedly filmed the attack. – AFP, April 15
April 15, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A suicide car bomber drove a vehicle into a police checkpoint in Charsadda, near Peshawar in the North-West Frontier Province. The attack killed at least 16 people. At least nine of the dead were police. – Voice of America, April 15
April 16, 2009 (IRAQ): A suicide bomber attacked an airbase in Habbaniyya, Anbar Province. The bomber wore an Iraqi military uniform. Initial reports claimed that 15 soldiers were killed. Later, however, authorities claimed that only the bomber died. According to the New York Times, “One of the three officials who reported 15 deaths suggested that commanders were playing down the toll, perhaps reflecting embarrassment over the security breach.” – AP, April 16; New York Times, April 16
April 16, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): Afghan police announced the arrests of two men accused of the April 12 killing of Sitara Achakzai, a leading female Afghan politician. – Reuters, April 16
April 16, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Maulana Abdul Aziz, the cleric who led militants during the July 2007 standoff between the army and fighters holed up in the Red Mosque in Islamabad, was released on bail. He had been under house arrest in Rawalpindi since July 2007. After his release, he said, “God willing, the day is not far away when Islam will be enforced in the whole of Pakistan. Our struggle has always been peaceful, and we will continue this struggle for the enforcement of Islamic laws in the country.” – AP, April 16
April 17, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Maulana Abdul Aziz, the head of the Red Mosque in Islamabad, led thousands of followers in prayer, and said, “I tell you that you should be ready to make sacrifices for Islam. The day is not far away when Islam will be enforced in the whole of the country…What we have seen in Swat and the tribal areas is the result of the sacrifices at the Red Mosque: the students, the people who were martyred.” Aziz was released on bail on April 16. In July 2007, he led militants during a standoff between the army and fighters holed up in the Red Mosque. Approximately 102 people, including 11 security personnel, were killed during the standoff. – AP, April 17
April 18, 2009 (IRAQ): Iraqi authorities announced that they had recently arrested a Saudi national in Basra, accused of being a senior al-Qa`ida member. Three of his aides were also arrested. – AFP, April 18
April 18, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN/PAKISTAN): A new report in the Wall Street Journal claimed that U.S. military and intelligence personnel are attempting to prevent the Taliban from using radio stations and internet websites to intimidate civilians and coordinate attacks. The report stated that the United States will jam unlicensed radio stations in parts of Pakistan near the Afghan border, and block Pakistani jihadist websites. – Reuters, April 18
April 18, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): Taliban militants stormed a police post in Farah Province, killing five policemen. – AFP, April 19
April 18, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A suicide car bomber attacked a Pakistani military convoy in Kohat District of the North-West Frontier Province. At least 20 people were killed, and eight vehicles in the convoy were destroyed. – Reuters, April 18
April 18, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A suicide bomber attacked a checkpoint in Hangu District of the North-West Frontier Province, killing 10 people. – AP, April 18
April 18, 2009 (SOMALIA): Somalia’s parliament voted unanimously to institute Islamic law. – New York Times, April 18
April 18, 2009 (PHILIPPINES): Philippine officials announced that the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) released Andreas Notter, a Swiss national and volunteer for the International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC). He had been held hostage since January 15, along with two other ICRC workers. The ASG previously released one of the three on April 2. They are still holding Italian Eugenio Vagni. – Reuters, April 17
April 19, 2009 (IRAQ): Iraqi security forces announced that they recently arrested four children who were recruited by al-Qa`ida to conduct suicide attacks in the Kirkuk area. The children, who are all under 14 years of age, call themselves the “Birds of Paradise.” According to the AFP, “The name of the group likely comes from the traditional Islamic belief that when children die they become birds in paradise.” – AFP, April 19
April 19, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A suspected U.S. unmanned aerial drone strike killed three people in South Waziristan Agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. – Voice of America, April 19
April 20, 2009 (GLOBAL): Al-Qa`ida second-in-command Ayman al-Zawahiri released a new audio statement on jihadist websites. Al-Zawahiri criticized President Barack Obama’s plan for Afghanistan, stating that his decision to deploy more troops will add “more fuel to the fire.” He also responded to Obama’s attempts to change the Islamic world’s perceptions of the United States: “The new President Obama did not change anything of the image of America towards Muslims and the oppressed…It is America that is still killing Muslims in Palestine, Iraq, and Afghanistan. It is America that steals their fortunes, occupies their land, and supports the thieving, corrupt, and traitor rulers in their countries. And, consequently, the problem is not over. Rather, it is likely to deteriorate and escalate.” Al-Zawahiri also called on al-Qa`ida in Iraq to “break the borders” of neighboring countries and liberate Jerusalem from the Israeli “crusader invaders.” – AFP, April 20; AP, April 20
April 20, 2009 (IRAQ): A suicide bomber attacked U.S. military personnel visiting city officials in Ba`quba, Diyala Province. The bomber, who wore an Iraqi special forces uniform, killed four Iraqis when his suicide vest exploded. At least eight U.S. soldiers were injured. – UPI, April 20; AP, April 20
April 20, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): A suicide bomber entered the compound of Herat’s provincial governor, but was shot by police before he could reach his target. His vest, however, exploded, and three people were wounded. The bomber was reportedly disabled, and he had packed explosives into his artificial leg. – Reuters, April 20; AFP, April 20
April 21, 2009 (UNITED STATES): A federal court in Manhattan heard opening arguments against Ousama Kassir, a Swedish man of Lebanese descent charged with planning to set up an al-Qa`ida terrorist training camp in the United States. Kassir was extradited to the United States from Prague in September 2007. Prosecutors allege that Kassir offered military weapons training for Muslims interested in fighting in Afghanistan. – Dow Jones Newswires, April 21; AP, May 11
April 21, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Hundreds of Taliban militants in the Swat Valley crossed into Buner District of the North-West Frontier Province, setting up checkpoints and occupying mosques. Their move into Buner District places them within 68 miles of Islamabad. – AFP, April 21
April 21, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Taliban spokesman Muslim Khan told reporters that Pakistan’s entire legal system is “un-Islamic.” He said, “Let the judges and the lawyers go to Islamic university…[After] they learn Islamic rules, Islamic regulation, they can continue to work.” – CNN, April 22
April 21, 2009 (TURKEY): Turkish police arrested 37 suspected terrorists in separate locations in the country. The men are suspected of having ties to al-Qa`ida. – Wall Street Journal, April 22
April 21, 2009 (SOMALIA): Mohamed Mohamud Jimale, a former leader in the Islamic Courts Union and a supporter of Somalia’s new government, was assassinated by three gunmen in Mogadishu. Media reports speculated that al-Shabab was likely behind the killing. – UPI, April 21
April 22, 2009 (UNITED KINGDOM): British authorities released all 12 men arrested during a counterterrorism sweep on April 8. Authorities said there was not enough evidence to keep them in custody. Officials are now trying to deport 11 of them to their native Pakistan. – Los Angeles Times, April 23
April 22, 2009 (GERMANY): The Berlin trial opened for four members of an alleged Islamist terrorist cell accused of plotting to kill dozens of Americans and Germans; their alleged goal was to force Germany to withdraw its soldiers from Afghanistan. The defendants include three Germans and one Turkish national. The cell was broken up by police in September 2007. – Washington Post, April 23
April 22, 2009 (IRAQ): A suicide bomber detonated his explosives inside a Sunni mosque in Salah al-Din Province, killing at least five people. – Reuters, April 22
April 22, 2009 (MALI): Two Canadian diplomats and two European tourists were released in Mali by al-Qa`ida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM). The Canadians were kidnapped in December, while the tourists were kidnapped in January. Canadian Robert Fowler, a United Nations envoy to Niger, was one of the released hostages. AQIM is still holding two Westerners hostage. – Reuters, April 22; Bloomberg, April 22
April 22, 2009 (PHILIPPINES): Philippine troops clashed with Abu Sayyaf Group fighters who have been holding an Italian Red Cross worker hostage since January. Authorities said that the clash occurred when about 50 ASG fighters tried to escape from a jungle area on Jolo Island in the southern Philippines. There were no details on casualties. – AFP, April 22
April 23, 2009 (IRAQ): A suicide bomber detonated his explosives at a restaurant in Muqdadiyya, Diyala Province, killing at least 47 people. The bomber apparently targeted a group of Iranian Shi`a pilgrims who had stopped to eat at the restaurant before reaching their destination of Karbala. – Bloomberg, April 23
April 23, 2009 (IRAQ): A female suicide bomber detonated her explosives at a food distribution center in Baghdad’s Rusafa neighborhood, killing 28 people. The woman reportedly held a child’s hand as she detonated her explosives. – Bloomberg, April 23; New York Times, April 23
April 23, 2009 (IRAQ): A suicide bomber detonated his explosives as a vehicle carrying a local Awakening Council leader passed by. Five people were killed, including the council leader. – New York Times, April 23
April 23, 2009 (IRAQ): The Iraqi military claimed to have captured the head of the Islamic State of Iraq, Abu `Umar al-Baghdadi. The U.S. government, however, could not confirm the report. Al-Baghdadi has been falsely reported captured or killed multiple times in the past. – AFP, April 23
April 23, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Pakistan sent approximately 100 paramilitary troops to Buner District in the North-West Frontier Province, and they quickly came under attack by Taliban militants who swept into the province on April 21. – Reuters, April 23
April 23, 2009 (SOMALIA): Shaykh Hassan Dahir Aweys, a former hard line member of the Islamic Courts Union, reportedly returned to Mogadishu. Aweys had been living in Eritrea since Ethiopian troops dislodged the Islamic courts from power in December 2006. He has been accused of having ties to al-Qa`ida. Aweys currently leads a faction opposed to the new government of Shaykh Sharif Shaykh Ahmad. – Voice of America, April 24
April 24, 2009 (PAKISTAN): General David Petraeus told the U.S. Congress that Pakistan should concentrate its resources on the Taliban and other extremists within its borders, rather than on India. “The most important, most pressing threat to the very existence of their country [Pakistan] is the threat posed by the internal extremists and groups such as the Taliban and the syndicated extremists.” – AP, April 24
April 24, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Taliban militants who swarmed into Buner District of the North-West Frontier Province on April 21 began withdrawing back to the Swat Valley. – AP, April 24
April 24, 2009 (SOMALIA): Shaykh Hassan Dahir Aweys called on African Union peacekeepers to leave Somalia. Aweys returned to Somalia on April 23, after living in exile in Eritrea since Ethiopian troops dislodged the Islamic courts from power in December 2006. He has been accused of having ties to al-Qa`ida. – Voice of America, April 24
April 25, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Three suicide bombers attacked the governor’s compound in Kandahar Province, killing five policemen. – Voice of America, April 25
April 25, 2009 (SOMALIA): Militia fighters launched mortars at a building where Somalia’s legislators were meeting, killing at least eight people. No legislators were injured. – Reuters, April 25
April 25, 2009 (SOMALIA): Insurgents attacked two African Union peacekeeping bases in Mogadishu. Soldiers managed to repulse the insurgents, although approximately three civilians may have been killed. – AP, April 26
April 26, 2009 (NORTH AFRICA): Al-Qa`ida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) threatened to execute a British hostage unless the British government releases a Muslim cleric, Abu Qatada, from detention. AQIM gave the British government 20 days to release Qatada. Although AQIM released four hostages on April 22, it is still holding a British national and a Swiss national. – AFP, April 26
April 27, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): Afghan President Hamid Karzai announced that he will run for reelection in the country’s upcoming elections, scheduled for August 20. – AFP, April 27
April 27, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): Taliban fighters attacked a government building in northern Baghlan Province, and possibly abducted 10 officers. At least one policeman was killed in the attack. – Reuters, April 27
April 27, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari ruled out the possibility that his country’s nuclear weapons could fall into the hands of the Taliban. “I want to assure the world that the nuclear capability of Pakistan is under safe hands,” he said. – Reuters, April 27
April 28, 2009 (UNITED KINGDOM): A British court acquitted three men on charges of helping to plot the July 7, 2005 terrorist attacks in London that killed 52 people. According to the New York Times, “the men were found not guilty of conspiracy to cause explosions, but [two] were convicted on a second charge of conspiring to attend a terrorist training camp in Pakistan…The jury’s decision on Tuesday meant that no one had been convicted in the July 7 attacks, leaving survivors and relatives of the dead frustrated.” – New York Times, April 28
April 28, 2009 (INDONESIA): Mohammad Hasan bin Saynudin, a Singaporean, was sentenced to 18 years in jail by an Indonesian court on charges of killing an Indonesian teacher and plotting an attack on a bar frequented by non-Muslims. Saynudin was arrested on the island of Sumatra in July 2008. He claimed to have met Usama bin Ladin “countless times.” – The Press Association, April 28
April 29, 2009 (UNITED STATES): President Barack Obama said that al-Qa`ida and the Taliban are the “single most direct threat” to U.S. national security. – Reuters, April 29
April 29, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): Australia announced that it will send an additional 450 troops to Afghanistan to help train the Afghan army and provide security for the upcoming presidential elections in August. Taking into account the new troop deployment, Australia will have 1,100 troops in Afghanistan. – Voice of America, April 29
April 29, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): A suicide bomber detonated his explosives next to a German military patrol in Kunduz Province in northern Afghanistan. Five German soldiers were injured. The incident occurred shortly after German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier landed in Kunduz for an unannounced visit to Afghanistan. – UPI, April 29
April 29, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Pakistani commandos retook Daggar, the main town in Buner District, and began linking up with police and security forces in the area. Buner District of the North-West Frontier Province was overrun by Taliban militants on April 21, but they partially withdrew from the district on April 24. Helicopter gunships and fighter jets also bombed Taliban targets in the area. – AP, April 28
April 29, 2009 (TURKEY): Nine Turkish soldiers were killed when a bomb ripped through their armored vehicle in the mainly Kurdish southeast. It was widely suspected that the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) was behind the attack. – Guardian, April 29
April 30, 2009 (UNITED STATES): Ali Saleh Kahlah al-Marri pleaded guilty before a U.S. district judge in Peoria, Illinois, admitting to one count of conspiring to provide material support or resources to a foreign terrorist organization. Accused of being an al-Qa`ida sleeper agent, al-Marri has been held by authorities since 2001. His sentencing is scheduled for July 30, and he faces up to 15 years in prison. – USA Today, April 30
April 30, 2009 (IRAQ): U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said that the recent uptick of attacks in Iraq is “an orchestrated effort on the part of al-Qaida to try and provoke the very kind of sectarian violence that nearly tore the country apart in 2006…They are clearly trying to take advantage of our drawdown, and particularly our drawing back away from the cities, to try and provoke a renewed round of sectarian violence.” – Voice of America, April 30
April 30, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Al-Qa`ida commander Abu Yahya al-Libi posted a message on Islamist web forums calling on Pakistanis to rise up against their government to perform the duty of “fighting the Pakistani army and the rest of the apparatus that are the pillars of their tyrannical state…The criminals in the Pakistani government and its army have not only been a cover for the occupying crusader infidels in Afghanistan, they have directly helped them in committing all their crimes in Afghanistan and elsewhere.” – Reuters, April 30
