December 1, 2009 (UNITED STATES): U.S. President Barack Obama announced that 30,000 additional U.S. troops would be deployed to Afghanistan as part of the administration’s strategy to stabilize the country by reversing Taliban “momentum.” The troops would also prevent al-Qa`ida from establishing a safe haven. President Obama said that the troops would be deployed starting in early 2010 “with a goal of starting to withdraw forces from the country in July 2011.” – CNN, December 2
December 1, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A suicide bomber killed a provincial politician, Shamsher Ali Khan, in the Swat Valley. Khan was a member of the Awami National Party. The bomber reportedly walked unchallenged into the grounds of Khan’s house and then detonated his explosives. – al-Jazira, December 2
December 2, 2009 (UNITED STATES): U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano warned, “Individuals sympathetic to al-Qaeda and its affiliates, as well as those inspired by their ideology, are present in the U.S., and would like to attack the homeland or plot overseas attacks against our interests abroad.” – Washington Post, December 3
December 2, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A suicide bomber detonated his explosives at a security checkpoint outside Pakistan’s naval headquarters in the heart of Islamabad. Two naval personnel were killed in the blast. – Bloomberg, December 2; BBC, December 2; Dawn, December 4
December 2, 2009 (PAKISTAN): The mayor of Karachi said that the city is the “revenue engine for the Taliban.” Mayor Syed Mustafa Kamal told Reuters, “People are being kidnapped here in Karachi and the ransom is taken in Waziristan.” – Reuters, December 2
December 2, 2009 (SOMALIA): Abdinasir Seraar, the spokesman for the leader of the Ras Kamboni insurgent faction in Somalia, said that the group now considers al-Shabab to be the greatest threat to the country. The Ras Kamboni faction is part of the Somali insurgent coalition Hisbul Islamiyya, which has previously allied itself with al-Shabab. This relationship, however, has been increasingly strained. Al-Shabab, a major insurgent group in Somalia, is linked to al-Qa`ida. – Voice of America, December 2
December 3, 2009 (IRAQ): A suicide bomber killed the head of Salah al-Din Province’s anti-terrorism squad in Tikrit. Lieutenant-Colonel Ahmed al-Fahel died in the blast, along with three of his bodyguards. – AFP, December 3
December 3, 2009 (SOMALIA): A suicide bomber struck a graduation ceremony for medical students at the Shamo Hotel in Mogadishu, killing three cabinet ministers and at least 16 other people. The bomber was disguised as a veiled woman. No group claimed responsibility for the attack, although authorities blamed al-Shabab. An al-Shabab spokesman denied that the group was involved. – Los Angeles Times, December 4; Independent, December 4; AP, December 5
December 4, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): Twenty-five NATO allies agreed to send 7,000 more troops to Afghanistan in support of U.S. President Barack Obama’s December 1 decision to send 30,000 more U.S. soldiers to the country. – Reuters, December 4
December 4, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A mosque frequented by military officials in Rawalpindi was targeted by two suicide bombers during Friday prayers. At least two other militants then opened fire on worshippers. Approximately 36 people were killed. Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan claimed credit for the attack. – Reuters, December 4; CNN, December 7
December 6, 2009 (IRAQ): Unidentified gunmen killed four policemen guarding a vegetable market in Abu Ghurayb on the outskirts of Baghdad. – AFP, December 6
December 6, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A bomb exploded outside a mosque in Bajaur Agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, killing two anti-Taliban tribal leaders. – AFP, December 6
December 7, 2009 (IRAQ): Five gunmen shot dead six members of an anti-al-Qa`ida militia as they were manning a checkpoint in Nadim village, 19 miles north of Baghdad. – AFP, December 5
December 7, 2009 (IRAQ): A bomb ripped through a school for boys in Baghdad’s Shi`a district of Sadr City, killing at least eight people. Among the dead were reportedly six children between the ages of six and 12. – al-Jazira, December 7
December 7, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A suicide bomber killed 10 people outside a courthouse in Peshawar, the capital of the North-West Frontier Province. – AP, December 8
December 7, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Two suicide bombers detonated their explosives at a popular market in Lahore, killing at least 50 people. – AP, December 8; The News International, December 9
December 8, 2009 (IRAQ): At least five car bombs exploded in neighborhoods across Baghdad, killing 127 Iraqis. Three of the car bombs reportedly involved suicide bombers. The Islamic State of Iraq, which is directly tied to al-Qa`ida in Iraq, claimed credit for the attacks. – St. Petersburg Times, December 9; Telegraph, December 9
December 8, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A suspected U.S. unmanned aerial drone killed at least three militants in North Waziristan Agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. The strike occurred in Spalga, 10 miles east of Miran Shah. – Reuters, December 7
December 8, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A U.S. unmanned aerial drone killed Salah al-Somali in Pakistan. Al-Somali was identified as the head of al-Qa`ida’s operations outside of Afghanistan and Pakistan. U.S. officials took credit for the operation, saying that al-Somali was on the Central Intelligence Agency’s list of the top 20 al-Qa`ida targets. – Wall Street Journal, December 12
December 8, 2009 (NORTH AFRICA): Al-Qa`ida in the Islamic Maghreb claimed credit for the November kidnappings of three Spanish aid workers in Mauritania, and the kidnapping of French national Pierre Kamat in Mali. – Voice of America, December 8
December 9, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Pakistani authorities arrested five Muslim-American men in Sargodha, a major city in Punjab Province, on suspicion of having ties to Pakistani extremist groups. The men, who are all from the Washington D.C. suburbs, were allegedly on their way to North Waziristan Agency for training with the Taliban and al-Qa`ida. It appears that the men used the internet—including Facebook and YouTube—to connect with extremist groups in Pakistan. The men were reportedly recruited on the internet by a man identified as “Saifullah,” who authorities in Pakistan are trying to find. – New York Times, December 10; NPR, December 11; Washington Post, December 13
December 11, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): A suicide bomber detonated his explosives on a busy street in Paktika Province, killing three people. One of the dead was a policeman. – AFP, December 11
December 13, 2009 (PHILIPPINES): Approximately 70 suspected Islamic militants broke through a concrete wall and then stormed into a jail in the southern Philippines, freeing 31 inmates. At least five of the escaped militants were members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and 12 were from the Abu Sayyaf Group. – The Scotsman, December 14
December 14, 2009 (SPAIN): A Spanish court convicted 11 Islamic militants of membership in a terrorist group. The court, however, acquitted the men of a “specific” conspiracy to attack Barcelona’s metro subway system in January 2008. The judges found that the “Barcelona plot” had “not advanced sufficiently” to be considered a crime of conspiracy under Spanish law. – CNN, December 14
December 15, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): A suicide bomber in a vehicle killed at least eight people near a hotel in the Wazir Akbar Khan district in Kabul. – BBC, December 15
December 15, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): A suicide bomber killed two British soldiers out on patrol in Helmand Province. Two Afghan army soldiers also died in the blast. – BBC, December 15
December 15, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A suicide bomber rammed his vehicle into the outer wall of a provincial minister’s home in Punjab Province, killing at least 20 people. The lawmaker, Zulfiqar Khosa, was not at home during the time of the attack. – Bloomberg, December 15
December 16, 2009 (PHILIPPINES): Philippine authorities have arrested Abdul Basir Latip, who has been identified as a founding member of the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG). Authorities allege that Latip played a role in forging links between the ASG and Jemaah Islamiya and al-Qa`ida. The United States is asking for his extradition for the 1993 kidnapping of an American missionary in Pangutaran, Sulu Province. According to the Philippine Inquirer, “Latip was arrested by Indonesian authorities last Nov. 21 and turned over to the Philippine Embassy in Jakarta, which sent him back to the Philippines.” – BBC, December 16; Philippine Inquirer, December 17
December 17, 2009 (GLOBAL): A wife of Ayman al-Zawahiri, Omaima Hassan, purportedly released a message to Muslim women urging them to “raise your children to obey Allah and love jihad and to defend the Muslim lands.” The message further said, “Fighting is not easy for women because they need a male guardian by their side…But we can place ourselves in service of the mujahidin and do what they ask of us. We can help by supporting warriors with money or information or even by a martyrdom operation.” – CNN, December 17
December 17, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A U.S. unmanned aerial drone killed two people in a vehicle in Dosali village, located in North Waziristan Agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. – AP, December 17
December 17, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Five U.S. unmanned aerial drones attacked two compounds in the Ambarshaga area of North Waziristan Agency in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, killing 15 people. Zuhaib al-Zahibi, an al-Qa`ida commander, was reportedly among the dead. – Washington Post, December 18; AP, December 17
December 17, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A suicide bomber detonated his explosives at the home of a local political leader in Bannu District of the North-West Frontier Province. The bomber was the only casualty. – AFP, December 17
December 17, 2009 (RUSSIA): A suicide bomber in a vehicle targeted a group of policemen at a checkpoint in the city of Nazran, located in Ingushetia. The explosion wounded seven officers. – AP, December 17
December 17, 2009 (YEMEN): Yemeni security forces killed at least 28 suspected al-Qa`ida militants at a training camp in al-Maajala, Abyan Province. Yemeni authorities identified one of the dead as Mohammed Saleh Mohammed Ali al-Kazemi, described as a deputy in an al-Qa`ida cell in Yemen. – Washington Post, December 17; CNN, December 18
December 17, 2009 (SOMALIA): Al-Shabab militants stormed three UN Mine Action Service compounds in Baidoa. – AFP, December 18
December 18, 2009 (UNITED STATES): Three suspected members of al-Qa`ida in the Islamic Maghreb arrived in New York to be charged with plotting to transport drugs through the Sahara desert to raise money for terrorist attacks. The men, all apparently from Mali, were arrested by local authorities in Ghana in the past week and then turned over to U.S. agents. – AP, December 18
December 18, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A suicide bomber in a vehicle attacked a mosque next to a police headquarters in Lower Dir District of the North-West Frontier Province. At least 11 people were killed by the explosion. – Los Angeles Times, December 19
December 18, 2009 (MAURITANIA): An Italian couple was kidnapped by gunmen in Mauritania. On December 27, al-Qa`ida in the Islamic Maghreb claimed responsibility for the kidnapping. – AP, December 19; Reuters, December 28
December 21, 2009 (IRAQ): A suicide bomber killed a local leader and three of his guards in Tal Afar, Ninawa Province. The leader, Hussein Akris, was an independent politician who heads the Tal Afar governing council. – Reuters, December 21; AP, December 21
December 22, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A suicide bomber detonated explosives outside a press club in Peshawar, killing three people. – AP, December 21; AP, December 22
December 23, 2009 (INDIA): Indian Home Minister P. Chidambaram said that “twelve to 13 terror attacks [in India] were neutralized in 2009 which could have been like Mumbai.” – AFP, December 23
December 24, 2009 (IRAQ): Two bombs ripped through a busy bus station in Hilla, Babil Province, killing 15 people. – AFP, December 24
December 24, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): A suicide bomber driving a horse-drawn cart loaded with explosives blew up in Kandahar, killing eight people. – New York Times, December 24
December 24, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A suicide bomber killed five people near a security checkpoint in Peshawar, the capital of the North-West Frontier Province. – Washington Post, December 24
December 24, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A suicide bomber detonated explosives outside a Shi`a shrine on the main road from Islamabad to the international airport, killing a six-year-old girl. – AFP, December 24
December 24, 2009 (YEMEN): Yemeni aircraft killed 34 suspected al-Qa`ida militants in Shabwa Province. – AFP, December 23
December 25, 2009 (UNITED STATES): Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, a Nigerian, attempted to blow up Northwest Airlines Flight 253 en route from Amsterdam to Detroit, Michigan. His explosives did not detonate properly, allowing passengers to subdue him. Al-Qa`ida in the Arabian Peninsula claimed credit for the failed attack. – AFP, December 26
December 25, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): The Taliban released a video showing Bowe Bergdahl, a U.S. soldier captured by insurgents on June 30, 2009. According to the Los Angeles Times, “Bergdahl had not been heard from since July 19, nearly three weeks after his capture.” – Los Angeles Times, December 25
December 26, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Authorities found the beheaded body of an anti-Taliban Salarzai tribal elder in Bajaur Agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. – AFP, December 26
December 27, 2009 (PAKISTAN): Militants blew up the home of a government official in Kurram Agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, killing the official and five members of his family. Sarbraz Saddiqi, his wife and four children died while sleeping when the house was destroyed with dynamite. – BBC, December 27
December 28, 2009 (PAKISTAN): A suicide bomber attacked a Shi`a religious procession in Karachi, killing at least 40 people. – CNN, December 29
December 28, 2009 (YEMEN): Yemeni authorities arrested 29 suspected al-Qa`ida members and announced that they foiled an attack on government targets in addition to the British Embassy. – Christian Science Monitor, December 28
December 29, 2009 (INDIA): The U.S. government issued an alert for Americans traveling to India, stating, “The US government continues to receive information that terrorist groups may be planning attacks in India.” – AFP, December 29
December 30, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): A suicide bomber killed seven CIA agents at Forward Operating Base Chapman in Khost Province. An officer of Jordan’s General Intelligence Directorate was also killed. Multiple Taliban factions claimed credit for the attack. – New York Daily News, December 31; Washington Post, December 31
December 30, 2009 (AFGHANISTAN): Militants kidnapped two French journalists, their translator and driver in Kapisa Province. – Reuters, December 31
December 30, 2009 (IRAQ): A car bomb and a suicide bomber exploded at a government building in Ramadi, killing at least 27 people and wounding the Anbar Province governor. – Financial Times, December 31
December 30, 2009 (YEMEN): Yemeni authorities arrested Mohammed Abdu Saleh al-Haudali, who they identified as “one of the most dangerous terrorists wanted by the security forces.” – CNN, December 31
December 31, 2009 (PAKISTAN): The United Nations announced that it will withdraw some of its staff from Pakistan, citing increased safety concerns as a result of Taliban attacks. – Reuters, December 31
