[SudanTribune] Rapid Support Forces (RSF) drones attacked several vital sites in El Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan State, and in central Sudan’s White Nile State between Saturday night and Sunday morning.
Eyewitnesses reported seeing suicide drones targeting civilian and strategic locations across both regions during the late-night and dawn hours.
The Sudanese Electricity Company said in a statement that the El Obeid thermal power plant was hit at dawn on Sunday. The attack caused direct hits and sparked a fire in the machinery building. Civil Defence forces extinguished the blaze, and officials said a technical assessment is underway to determine the extent of the damage before repairs begin.
Local sources told Sudan Tribune that RSF drones targeted multiple sites in El Obeid, including areas around Al-Amal Hospital and El Obeid Airport. The strikes also hit the thermal power station north of the city. Because the station was offline and acting as a reserve unit, the attack did not disrupt the city’s power supply, which the Um Dabaker plant in White Nile State currently provides.
#ALERT: Landmine Blast Kills Seven Civilians on Adale–Eldheer Road
Seven civilians were killed on Saturday after the vehicle they were traveling in struck a landmine on the road between Adale and Eldheer.
The victims were traveling in a minivan that had departed from Mogadishu and was en route to Eldheer town when the explosion occurred.
The incident took place in an area that remains an active conflict zone, where ongoing clashes have been reported between Al-Shabab militants and Somali government forces.
No group has immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.
#RDC 🇨🇩: après la chute d’Uvira, le M23/RDF se projette vers la ville minière de Kamituga et l’aéroport de Kitutu
Malgré les mises en garde répétées des États-Unis et des Nations unies, la rébellion du M23, soutenue par le Rwanda, poursuit méthodiquement son avancée dans l’est… pic.twitter.com/NKBcIWEDa6
— Daniel Michombero /Batubenga (@michombero) January 4, 2026
Translated Text:
#RDC 🇨🇩: After the Fall of Uvira, M23/RDF Targets the Mining Town of Kamituga and Kitutu Airport
Despite repeated warnings from the United States and the United Nations, the Rwanda-backed M23 rebellion continues its methodical advance in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. The rebels no longer conceal their territorial ambitions.
After seizing the strategic city of Uvira on the shores of Lake Tanganyika, M23/RDC announced on Saturday, January 3, its intention to advance toward Mwenga territory, with the mining town of Kamituga and Kitutu Airport—key infrastructure for supply and control of the area—in its sights.
LOKOJA: TROOPS FOIL BANDITS MOVEMENT: ARREST LOGISTICS SUPPLIER IN KOGI
Troops, 12 Brigade Nigerian Army Lokoja on Saturday 3 January 2026 recorded another operational successes following coordinated patrols and ambush, conducted in Kabba Bunu and Yagba West Local Government… pic.twitter.com/vgSIG2rkoF
LOKOJA: TROOPS FOIL BANDITS MOVEMENT: ARREST LOGISTICS SUPPLIER IN KOGI
Troops, 12 Brigade Nigerian Army Lokoja on Saturday 3 January 2026 recorded another operational successes following coordinated patrols and ambush, conducted in Kabba Bunu and Yagba West Local Government Areas of Kogi State.
A statement by the Acting Assistant Director, Army Public Relations 12 Brigade Nigerian Army Lieutenant HASSAN ABDULLAHI says the troops, acting on credible intelligence on the movement of bandits from Adankolo area towards Agbadu Bunu in Kabba Bunu LGA, swiftly deployed and laid ambush at bandits identified crossing point.
He says the he bandits subsequently ran into the troops's ambush where they were engaged.
In the course of the encounter, troops neutralized two bandits and recovered one AK 47 rifle.
Relatedly, further intelligence revealed another movement of bandits around Saminaka village in Yagba West LGA.
🚨 Butembo, Nord-Kivu : Des flammes et tirs d’armes signalés dès 4h30 ce dimanche 4 janvier. Une expédition punitive entre groupes Wazalendo après l’incendie du camp du commandant Tango Fort à Misugho, attribué à son rival Fiston Nzoli. Bilan non conn pic.twitter.com/kQ7TBYVb8S
— Georges Kisando Sokomeka (@GeorgesKisando) January 4, 2026
Translated Text:
🚨 Butembo, North Kivu: Flames and gunfire reported starting at 4:30 a.m. this Sunday, January 4. A punitive expedition between Wazalendo groups following the burning of Commander Tango Fort's camp in Misugho, attributed to his rival Fiston Nzoli. Toll not known.
ISCAP claims to have attacked two barracks of the Congolese army and its affiliated militias east of Manguredjipa, North Kivu in northeast DRC, on January 1st killing two soldiers, looting weapons and ammunition and burning the barracks
ISCAP claims to have attacked two barracks of the Congolese army and its affiliated militias east of Manguredjipa, North Kivu in northeast DRC, on January 1st killing two soldiers, looting weapons and ammunition and burning the barracks
The terrorists then attacked three Christian villages in the area, killing 13 and burning over 40 houses.
Posted by: badanov ||
01/05/2026 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Islamic State
[HodhodYemenNews] An announcement by Aden Independent Channel (AIC), affiliated with the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC), reporting the escape of al-Qaeda members from Mukalla’s Political Security Prison has raised questions about the timing and implications of the incident amid ongoing developments in Hadhramaut.
The channel reported that prisoners affiliated with al-Qaeda managed to escape from the Mukalla Political Security Prison, exploiting what it described as a security lapse in the city, without specifying the number of escapees or the exact timing of the incident.
This announcement cannot be separated from the ongoing conflict between Saudi Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula, largely made up of sand and oil rigs. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual haj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. Formerly dictatorial and steeped in Olde Tyme Religion, deferring to Salafist holy men on all issues, it has now done a 180 and is making a serious effort to modernize, so as not to be left in the sand by its Gulf Arab neighbors. The holy men have been shoved to the background and the nation is now still dictatorial but somewhat rational. That doesn't make them trustworthy, but it's a start... and the UAE, which resulted in the withdrawal of UAE-backed STC forces from the governorate.
The report also indicates that the UAE appears to be using the issue of murderous Moslem groups as a political tool against Saudi Arabia, potentially at the expense of Hadhramaut’s security and stability.
The Royal Saudi Air Force 🇸🇦 carried out airstrikes near Al Ghaydah, the capital of Al Mahrah governorate in eastern Yemen 🇾🇪, after some UAE-backed 🇦🇪 STC forces refused to hand over their weapons or withdraw from the city. The strikes were intended as a warning ⚠️. https://t.co/YzZ075NV7Apic.twitter.com/j4ZOpoJQA9
#CHO#Yemen | Earlier today, the Saudi-led coalition @modgovksa carried out airstrikes near the eastern axis of Al-Ghaydah. The area is currently hosting pro–Southern Transitional Council (STC) forces operating under the Al-Ghaydah Axis command, led by Major General Mohsen… https://t.co/jzIxFxcNK1pic.twitter.com/30vdpcxQZo
#CHO #Yemen | Earlier today, the Saudi-led coalition carried out airstrikes near the eastern axis of Al-Ghaydah. The area is currently hosting pro–Southern Transitional Council (STC) forces operating under the Al-Ghaydah Axis command, led by Major General Mohsen Marassa, alongside Brigadier Sayyaf al-Maka’ar, commander of the Sixth Support and Reinforcement Brigade, both aligned with the STC South Arabia.
Initial reports described the airstrikes as warning strikes intended to pressure STC forces to withdraw, particularly as the Third Division of the National Shield Forces, led by Sheikh Abdullah bin Sadiq al-Ja‘di al-Mahri, together with elements of the NSF Fifth and Sixth Brigades based in Qishn, has been coordinating a safe exit for STC forces from Al-Mahrah, allowing personnel to depart with personal weapons and civilian vehicles while military equipment remains in the governorate.
More at the link
Dozens of UAE-backed Fighters killed in Saudi strikes in Hadhramaut
[HodhodYemenNews] Dozens of fighters from the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) were killed in Saudi Arclight airstrike ...KABOOM!... s in Hadhramaut’s valley districts over the past two days, media sources reported Sunday. The strikes reportedly targeted positions seized earlier by STC forces.
Sources familiar with the matter said that the preliminary figures indicate that at least 70 STC fighters were killed. Most of them come from the provinces of Dhalea and restive Lahj ... a Yemeni governate located in the southwestern corner of the Arabian Peninsula. It is the stomping grounds on the southern secessionist al-Harak movement provinces.
According to the statistics, Radfan (in Lahj governorate) recorded the highest number of victims, with 22 killed, followed by Dhalea with 14 killed.
The report added that among the dead were seven fighters from Yafa, seven from the al-Musaymir in Lahj, four from Abyan ...a governorate of Yemen. The region was a base to the Aden-Abyan Islamic Army terrorist group until it dropped the name and joined al-Qaeda. Its capital is Zinjibar. In March 2011, al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula declared the governate an Islamic Emirate after seizing control of the region. The New York Times fastidiously reported that those in control, while Islamic hard boyz, are not in fact al-Qaeda, but something else that looks, tastes, smells, and acts the same. Yemeni government forces launched an effort to re-establish control of the region when President-for-Life Saleh was tossed and the carnage continues... , and two each from Shabwah and Aden.
No casualties were reported from Hadhramaut, despite STC claims that local fighters make up the bulk of its forces there.
The sources also noted that five unidentified dead were believed to belong to forces loyal to Tariq Saleh, amid claims from media affiliated with the Islah party that those units had taken part in operations in Hadhramaut
Hundreds more are believed to have been maimed in the strikes and ensuing festivities across the valley and coastal districts, the reports said.
These bloody developments come following intensive air raids by Saudi warplanes on the camps of the First Military Region, which had been seized by the STC forces, in the districts of Hadhramaut, at the beginning of last December, as part of a ground operation that was then called ’Promising Future.’
The sources said the Saudi strikes forced STC units to withdraw from sites they had captured, stretching from al-Khasha’a in al-Abr district in northern Hadhramaut to Seiyun and the placid provincial capital, Mukalla. There are also reports of possible moves to push STC units out of neighboring Shabwah.
This comes after Saudi Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula, largely made up of sand and oil rigs. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual haj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. Formerly dictatorial and steeped in Olde Tyme Religion, deferring to Salafist holy men on all issues, it has now done a 180 and is making a serious effort to modernize, so as not to be left in the sand by its Gulf Arab neighbors. The holy men have been shoved to the background and the nation is now still dictatorial but somewhat rational. That doesn't make them trustworthy, but it's a start... forced the UAE to pull its forces out of military bases it had set up in Hadhramaut and Shabwah — extending to Aden and Lahj — after Abu Dhabi’s role in the Saudi-led coalition’s war was effectively ended.
At least 80 troops from Yemen's secessionist Southern Transitional Council (STC) have been killed in fighting with Saudi-backed forces and strikes since Friday, a military official from the group told AFP on Sunday.
At least 152 members of the UAE-backed STC forces were wounded and 130 were taken captive, the official said, giving a preliminary toll of casualties following the start of the operation.
Saudi-backed forces began on Friday operations to retake swathes of territory seized by the UAE-backed STC, as a struggle for dominance between forces backed by Riyadh and Abu Dhabi deepened a rift between the two Gulf allies.
Most of the casualties had occurred in strikes by the Saudi-led coalition that targeted military camps held by the separatists, the official said, including Al-Khasha and Barshid military camps in Hadramawt province.
Yemen's presidency on Saturday announced the retaking of resource-rich Hadramawt, following an apparent retreat of the STC.
Riyadh-aligned government military officials on Saturday also said authorities in neighboring Mahra province had switched back their allegiance without any resistance.
On Sunday, Saudi-backed forces were consolidating positions in Mukalla, the capital of Hadramawt province, two government military officials told AFP.
Riyadh and Abu Dhabi have long supported rival groups in Yemen's divided government. A December offensive by the STC, in which it took control of Hadramawt and Mahra, angered Saudi Arabia, exposing strains in ties between the two oil-rich powers.
The Saudi-led coalition launched repeated warnings and air strikes over the past week, including one on an alleged Emirati arms shipment to the separatists.
On Friday, a strike on the Al-Khasha military camp in Hadramawt left 20 dead, according to an earlier toll from the separatist group.
On Saturday, a military official with the STC told AFP Saudi warplanes had carried out "intense" air strikes on another of the group's camps at Barshid, west of Mukalla.
#7
Did you guys read the article at all? The aircraft left from NAS Whidbey Island. It is the only place on the West Coast to host the P-8. It also hosted the P-3 and EP-3. To fly from NAS Whidbey down to San Diego should be a normal state of affairs, then do a little snooping off TJ and Ensenada. Much ado about nothing.
[IsraelTime] A total of 32 Cuban nationals were killed during the US attack on Caracas that culminated in the capture of Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro, the government in Havana says.
The Cuban military and police officers were on a mission in the Caribbean country at the request of Venezuela’s government, according to a statement read on Cuban state TV.
“As a result of the criminal attack carried out by the government of the United States” against Venezuela, “32 Cubans lost their lives in combat operations,” the Cuban government says in the statement.
What the Cubans were working on in the South American nation was unclear, but Cuba, a close ally of Venezuela’s government, has sent military and police forces to assist in operations for years.
“You know, a lot of Cubans were killed yesterday,” US President Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One as he flew Sunday night from Florida back to Washington. “There was a lot of death on the other side. No death on our side.”
[IsraelTimes] Police probe arson at home of Andreas Buttner, who vows ’not to be intimidated’; Brandenburg state officials say they ’stand by’ him
The property of a German state commissioner for countering antisemitism was torched early Sunday morning, and a Hamas ..the braying voice of Islamic Resistance®,... symbol was painted nearby, according to local media reports.
Andreas Buttner, who serves as the commissioner for combating antisemitism in the state of Brandenburg, surrounding Berlin, posted on X that his family was at home when the apparent arson occurred, and that they were not injured.
He thanked the police and fire department for their support. Local police said the incident was under investigation.
"This attack represents a massive escalation. It is directed against me personally, against my family and against my home," he wrote in a post.
"At the same time, it is an expression of hatred and intimidation," he said. "I will not be intimidated by this. Anyone who believes that they can achieve something through violence, arson, or threats is mistaken."
German media reported that an inverted red triangle, a Hamas symbol, was painted on a house next door. Israeli Ambassador to Germany Ron Prosor posted a photo of the symbol, and the blaze, on X, along with words of encouragement for Buttner.
[IsraelTimes] Sources who spoke to a UK-based Arabic newspaper claim Israel flew drones and deployed explosives in support of an armed militia that engaged in a gunfight with Hamas operatives in Gaza City’s Tuffah neighborhood this morning.
The self-styled “Popular Defense Forces” militia is based on the Israeli-controlled side of the Gaza ceasefire line, called the Yellow Line, and late last month seized part of Tuffah that is adjacent to the line on the territory’s Hamas-controlled side, forcing residents to flee, according to Asharq al-Awsat.
This morning, members of the militia marched toward the Sanafour Junction but were ambushed by Hamas and other operatives in a residential area, Asharq al-Awsat reports, citing area sources close to Hamas.
The junction lies on the major Salah al-Din Road, on the Hamas-controlled side of Tuffah.
The gunfight lasted 20 minutes before the militia retreated behind the Yellow Line, the sources tell Asharq al-Awsat. No casualties were reported. The outlet says this was the first case of open warfare between Hamas and rival gangs in the area.
Sources cited by Asharq al-Awsat claim that Israeli drones flew overhead during the clash, and that after the clash, Israel launched drone strikes and deployed “vehicles packed with tons of explosives that were detonated in batches to blow up what remained of the houses in the area.”
The IDF does not immediately respond to a request for comment, including on whether the anti-Hamas militia coordinated with the military before crossing the Yellow Line.
Anti-Hamas militias in Gaza have stepped up their activity since the Israel-Hamas ceasefire took effect on October 9. During that time, Hamas has put to death people it accused of collaborating with Israel.
The Ynet news site reported in July that the Popular Defense Forces was one of the Fatah-linked, anti-Hamas militias that were being supported by Israel and the Palestinian Authority in Gaza. The militia’s leader, Rami Helles, is reportedly a Fatah operative from a family at odds with Hamas.
He is an ally of the most prominent Gaza militia, reportedly backed by Israel, Abu Shabab. Helles issued a eulogy for that militia’s leader and namesake, Yasser Abu Shabab, when he was killed early last month, reportedly as a result of an internal dispute.
The Popular Defense Forces militia has killed at least two Palestinians over the past 10 days or so, Asharq al-Awsat says. It’s unclear from the report in what circumstances they were killed.
The underground route, in the Beit Lahiya area, is described by the IDF as a Hamas attack tunnel.
Troops of the Gaza Division’s Northern Brigade, alongside the elite Yahalom combat engineering unit, located and razed the tunnel during ongoing operations on the IDF side of the ceasefire line, called the Yellow Line, the army says.
The report does not identify the dead or say where they were killed.
Gaza hospitals also attended to 13 people wounded by IDF gunfire over the past 24 hours, the ministry says, without specifying the severity of the wounds.
There was no immediate comment from the IDF.
Khan Younis’s Nasser Hospital said this morning that it received the body of a person killed by the IDF on the Israeli-controlled side of the Gaza ceasefire line southeast of Khan Younis, and the body of another person killed by the IDF on the Hamas-controlled side.
One was identified in Palestinian media as 15-year-old Alaa Asaraf, and the other as Fadi Salah, whose age was not reported.
[IsraelTimes] Ibrahim Shalhoub from West Bank, an ex-Shin Bet informant, also ordered to pay damages for murdering 83-year-old Holocaust survivor Ludmila Lipovsky in Herzliya in December 2024
Ibrahim Shalhoub, from the West Bank city of Tulkarem, was sentenced to life in prison on Sunday for killing 83-year-old Holocaust survivor Ludmila Lipovsky in a terror attack in Herzliya in December 2024.
Shalhoub, a former informant for the Shin Bet domestic security service, was indicted on terror charges in January 2025, a month after he stabbed Lipovsky multiple times outside of her assisted living complex.
The indictment said that Shalhoub "drew his knife and stabbed [Lipovsky] in the upper body approximately 11 times," while calling out "Allah is great" and praying in Arabic.
Shalhoub continued to stab Lipovsky until he was shot and maimed by a security guard from the Israel Post office who had been nearby.
The Tel Aviv District Court sentenced Shalhoub to life in prison and awarded damages of NIS 258,000 ($81,000), the highest sum allowed, according to the Ynet news site.
Shalhoub, 28, was allowed to leave Tulkarem and take up residency in Israel after his identity as a Shin Bet informant was exposed. According to the indictment, his family severed all ties with him shortly after he moved, and he decided to carry out a terror attack.
Two days before murdering Lipovsky, Shalhoub purchased a long kitchen knife with which to carry out the attack. He then spent the next day in Herzliya, scoping out an appropriate site for his attack, before settling on an assisted living complex in the city.
The following day, he armed himself with his new knife and one other knife, and made his way to the site he had inspected the previous day.
Lipovsky was outside when he arrived, having just left the complex to wait for her daughter, who was supposed to be driving her to an appointment.
Shalhoub stabbed her multiple times.
Lipovsky was rushed by the Magen David Adom ambulance service to Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv, where doctors pronounced her dead.
According to the Ynet news site, the Shin Bet concluded in an initial investigation that Shalhoub was not planning the attack for any significant length of time before carrying it out.
The security agency also stressed in the aftermath of the attack that its informants work in dangerous conditions on behalf of the State of Israel and that there had never before been an incident in which a former informant carried out a terror attack after moving to Israel.
[IsraelTimes] Police say man suspected of ‘smuggling infiltrators’ into Israel and ‘abusing a helpless person’
The Israel Police said on Sunday that officers arrested a Paleostinian man who was filmed last month spiriting a maiden of tender years over the West Bank security barrier using a rope.
The suspect, a 29-year-old from the West Bank town of A-Ram, was caught on video lifting the girl to the wall’s edge, then lowering her down on the other side with a rope.
He was arrested on suspicion of "smuggling infiltrators over the separation fence and abusing a helpless person," police said.
The suspect was tracked down by Border Police forces with surveillance drones, police said, and was arrested at a shop in A-Ram, just north of Jerusalem.
He was undergoing interrogation at the Border Police headquarters in Jerusalem, police said.
Israel has heavily restricted the entry of West Bank Paleostinians into the country since the October 7, 2023, Hamas ..a regional Iranian catspaw,... -led invasion and massacre in southern Israel.
Before October 7, Israel issued about 140,000 permits for Paleostinians — both for work inside the Green Line and in Israeli settlements or industrial zones in the West Bank.
Today, 18,000 permits are granted for work in the West Bank, and only 8,600 permits remain valid for work inside Israel, according to the Defense Ministry unit that coordinates with Paleostinians on civil affairs. Work inside the Green Line is limited to so-called essential sectors such as hospitality and caregiving, with the construction industry, which previously employed around 90 percent of Paleostinians in Israel, excluded.
In practice, demand for Paleostinian labor in the permitted fields is low, meaning just 6,200 Paleostinians actually enter Israel legally each day, the ministry said.
The steep reduction in permits has led some who used to work in Israel with permits to begin entering illegally to make a living.
Like Paleostinians looking for work, terror operatives have taken advantage of weak spots along the West Bank security barrier and crossed into Israel illegally to carry out attacks.
In September, six people were murdered and 12 were maimed by a pair of Paleostinian bandidosfaceless myrmidons who opened fire on vehicles and pedestrians at Jerusalem’s Ramot intersection.
The button men had reached the site of the attack from West Bank towns several kilometers away. As they were armed with a rifle and a pistol, it was unlikely they would have been able to enter Jerusalem via an army checkpoint. Instead, Sherlocks believe they climbed over the barrier near al-Ram and were then driven to the site of the attack.
Violence in the West Bank has soared since the Hamas attack on Israel triggered the Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... war in October 2023.
More than 1,000 Paleostinians have been killed in the West Bank by Israeli forces or settlers since the war started, according to the PA health ministry. The IDF says the vast majority of them were button men killed in exchanges of fire, rioters who clashed with troops, or bandidosfaceless myrmidons carrying out attacks.
During the same period, 65 civilians and Israeli security personnel have been killed in terror attacks in Israel and the West Bank. Another eight members of the security forces were killed in festivities during raids in Paleostinian cities in the West Bank.
The same period has also seen a major surge in attacks by settler murderous Moslems on Paleostinians and their property across the West Bank. The IDF has recorded more than 752 incidents of nationalistic crime and settler violence since the start of the year. The total for 2024 was 675 incidents.
#1
I wish WE had immigration and border enforcement like this!
But no, Trump's wall was $20 billion, far too expensive. Paying that much was out of the question.
[IsraelTimes] Two people were killed in an Israeli drone strike targeting a vehicle near the southern Lebanese town of Jmaijmeh, Lebanon’s health ministry reports.
The IDF said that it had targeted a Hezbollah operative in the area.
[Rudaw] Syria’s interior ministry announced Wednesday the arrest of several suspects allegedly involved in war crimes and inciting violence across the country’s western coastal regions.
Security operations were carried out in Latakia, Jableh, Qardaha, and Tartous - including surrounding areas - targeting individuals "involved in war crimes," the ministry said.
"These individuals were also involved in acts of incitement that seriously threatened civil peace in Latakia and Tartous governorates," the ministry stated on X. "These actions followed externally instigated calls for sectarian violence that resulted in deaths, injuries, and attacks on public and private property."
Authorities added that similar security operations would continue.
The arrests come days after Alawite residents in Latakia staged demonstrations on Sunday following a call by Ghazal Ghazal, a prominent leader within Syria’s Alawite community. The protests followed a deadly explosion at an Alawite mosque on Friday.
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported that at least two non-combatants were killed and nearly 50 others injured in Latakia, Jableh, and Tartous. According to SOHR, protesters were "attacked with live gunfire and bladed weapons" by security forces affiliated with Damascus.
The Syrian interior ministry said the eight apprehended individuals had sought to "exploit this period to spread chaos, undermine security, and threaten stability."
Violence has continued in parts of Syria since the ouster of former President Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Trampler of Homs... by the now-dissolved jihadist group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, formerly al-Nusra, before that it was called something else ...al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate, from which sprang the Islamic State... (HTS). Its former leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, currently serves as interim president.
The interim authorities have faced growing criticism for their centralized governance.
In March, Sharaa signed a constitutional declaration emphasizing Islamic jurisprudence, sparking backlash from Alawite, Christian, Druze, and Kurdish communities, who viewed the move as exclusionary.
Calls for decentralization or federalism have intensified among Alawite, Druze, and Kurdish groups following repeated waves of violence, including festivities in mid-July that left nearly 800 dead in the Druze-majority Suwayda province and nearly 2,000 killed in Alawite-majority coastal regions in March, according to monitoring groups.
[Rudaw] The Kurdish-led Internal Security Forces (Asayish) in northeast Syria (Rojava) said on Sunday that they had dismantled a cell in Raqqa composed of individuals recruited to incite sedition by raising the flag of an al-Qaeda offshoot and writing inflammatory slogans across the city.
In a statement, the Asayish said they arrested "a group of individuals recruited as part of a cell aimed at undermining security and stability," describing the activity as part of a broader "plot to incite sedition and destabilize Raqqa."
The group reportedly carried out "acts of sabotage," including "raising the flags of the al-Nusra ...formally Jabhat an-Nusrah li-Ahli al-Sham (Support Front for the People of the Levant), also known as al-Qaeda in the Levant. They aim to establish a pan-Arab caliphate. Not the same one as the Islamic State, though .. ... Front, firing gunshots into the air, and writing inciting slogans on walls targeting [Asayish] forces and public service institutions, with the aim of spreading fear and chaos among civilians."
The acts included "sabotage" and "raising the flags of al-Nusra Front in Raqqa" as well as "firing gunshots into the air and writing inciting slogans on walls targeting our forces and our service institutions, with the aim of stirring chaos and spreading fear among civilians."
Of note, Nusra Front - also known as Jabhat al-Nusra - was formed in 2012 as al-Qaeda’s affiliate in Syria. In 2016, it rebranded as Jabhat Fatah al-Sham (JFS) and announced a break from al-Qaeda, though ties are widely believed to have continued.
In December 2012, the United States designated the Nusra Front a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) due to its links to al-Qaeda in Iraq and its activities in Syria, a designation later expanded to include JFS.
The Asayish further noted on Sunday that the detained individuals had deliberately filmed their actions and published them with "jihadist songs taken from Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems.... (ISIS) releases," in "an attempt to give their acts a propagandistic and inciting character and to spread terror among local residents."
The Kurdish-led internal security forces added that "these acts were carried out in exchange for financial incentives" and "to recruit vulnerable individuals for each filmed and documented act, whether it involved a written inciting slogan, a video of gunfire, or the raising of a Nusra Front flag."
So were they paid by the Hayat Tahrir alSham (Al Nusra) government, ISIS, Turkey, or just some bored rich guy who wanted to cause trouble?
The Asayish are affiliated with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), the de facto military authority in Rojava and the main on-the-ground partner of the US-led Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS in Syria.
🚨 The U.S. is telegraphing a very clear message to Iran's Supreme Leader by posting this clip in Farsi on it's Persian account just minutes ago
Pete Hegseth says in the clip: "Nicolas Maduro had his chance, just as Iran had its chance until they no longer had it and he no… pic.twitter.com/oF1dGbgHmc
🇮🇷 𝐈𝐑𝐀𝐍 🇮🇷 Déclaration religieuse de l'akhund (clerc chiite) Sayid Ali Muhammad Dastjib : les forces de sécurité se soulèvent contre Khamenei.
Il y a quelques heures, l'akhund Sayid Ali Muhammad Dastjib a publié une déclaration religieuse (halakhique) appelant toutes les… pic.twitter.com/oTmsqNywUj
— Beau Gosse Prétentieux_Backup (@BoGossPrebackup) January 4, 2026
Translated from French
🇮🇷 IRAN 🇮🇷
Religious declaration of the akhund (Shiite cleric) Sayid Ali Muhammad Dastjib: the security forces rise up against Khamenei.
A few hours ago, the akhund Sayid Ali Muhammad Dastjib
…Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Mohammad Dastgheib Shirazi is member of the Assembly of Experts, the body charged with selecting and supervising Iran's supreme leader. He is a prominent supporter of opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi, and has fiercely opposed key decisions of the Mullahcracy since at least 2010…
published a religious (halakhic) declaration calling on all Iranian security forces to organize a coup d'état against the Iranian Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei.
In his declaration, he encourages the population to take to the streets and unite against what he describes as the regime's "oppression and injustice."
Key excerpts from the declaration, quoted in full:
"In these important days, in this delicate period, I ask you, the security forces, to stand by the people and to refrain from arresting and shooting civilians."
"All military personnel must quickly organize a coup d'état against Khamenei."
"Do you want to violate your conscience and support the dictator, until your names are written in history as those who stood against their people?"
"Do not shoot at those whose words come from a pure heart and a miserable life."
"Do not shoot at a father who takes to the streets to feed his family!"
"Do not shoot at a young man at the beginning of his life, who only asks for a just life!"
Such a message, coming from an important religious figure and explicitly calling on the security forces to rebel, could exacerbate tensions and affect the ranks of the security forces.
The future will tell.
18 dead, 170+ arrested as Iran’s protests enter second week: Watchdog
[Rudaw] More than a dozen people have been killed and over 170 others arrested as protests over worsening economic conditions enter their second week across several Iranian provinces, an Oslo-based rights monitor reported Sunday, as the United Nations ...a lucrative dumping ground for the relatives of dictators and party hacks... has urged authorities to respect the right to peaceful assembly.
The Hengaw Human Rights Organization said it has "verified the identities of 18 people killed during the recent protests," adding that at least six other cases are "under review" by its verification team and will be reported publicly once confirmed. Of the victims, the rights watchdog reported that "at least nine were Lur and seven were Kurdish."
The deaths have occurred since demonstrations began in the Iranian capital last week, driven by rising living costs and the rapid devaluation of the Iranian currency. The protests and strikes spread to several other Iranian cities on Thursday.
Hengaw further reported that 24 people have been arrested across multiple cities on Sunday, including four women and five children. The rights watchdog noted that "no information has been released regarding the detainees’ current condition or whereabouts."
In a previous report, the rights monitor said that at least 177 people were arrested during the first week of the protests.
In a Saturday post on X, Mai Sato, the UN’s Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights ...which are usually open to widely divergent definitions... in Iran, urged Iranian authorities to "respect the rights to freedom of expression, association, and peaceful assembly, and to refrain from using excessive force against peaceful protesters."
The previous day, the UN Human Rights Office cited Commissioner Volker Turk as calling on Tehran to "uphold the rights to freedom of expression, association, and peaceful assembly."
"All individuals must be able to protest peacefully and express their grievances," he stressed.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ...the very aged actual dictator of Iran, successor to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini...> said Saturday that the demands of protesters in the country are "completely fair," but added that rioters "must be put in their place." Iranian officials have also accused "hostile entities" of seeking to exploit the demonstrations to destabilize the country.
The renewed protests have drawn international attention, particularly after US President Donald Trump ...Never got invited to a P.Diddy party... warned Tehran on Friday that Washington would come to the "rescue" of demonstrators if Iranian authorities used lethal force.
The United States is "locked and loaded and ready to go," Trump said.
Iranian officials snapped back at Trump’s remarks, going as far as issuing veiled warnings against US interests in the region.
Tehran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Friday described the US president’s comments as "reckless and dangerous," saying Iranian forces know "where to aim" if the country’s illusory sovereignty is violated.
Earlier the same day, Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said that "all American centers and forces in the entire region will be our legitimate targets" in response to Trump’s statement.
The Iranian rial has plunged to new lows in recent weeks, trading at around 1.42 million rials to the US dollar, up from about 650,000 rials a year earlier.
Inflation is also rampant, estimated at nearly 50 percent, while rising import costs continue to erode living standards amid renewed sanctions and mounting diplomatic pressure.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Tuesday met with labor leaders and pledged to address the protesters’ "legitimate demands" while working to safeguard livelihoods, according to the state-affiliated Mehr News Agency ...And if you can't believe Mehr News Agency who can you believe?...
link goes to video
[YouTube] Welcome to TUC TV. This is your global news channel. Amaya Tusi and the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, Ali K is
0:21
planning his exit to Moscow. The anti-Islamic occupation Iranians are now
0:27
officially armed with weapons and the official police in the country are now
0:33
defecting to the revolution. Ladies and gentlemen, it's coming home slowly but
0:38
surely. Uh we are haven't crossed the line yet. We are very very very close.
0:44
This news of exit to Moscow has now been confirmed by multiple sources including
0:50
the times. uh according to the intelligence coming from Iran which is huge because the Islamic Republic never
0:57
want to show weakness. They never spread rumors about exit plans or anything like
1:03
that. They always do the exact opposite. Everything is fine. We are winning. Now that the intel is coming out that the
1:10
plan is there to go to Moscow. Everything is changing. The Iranian people are now also armed on the
1:16
streets. We're going to give you guys all the updates, all the videos that are coming in live uh towards this channel.
[IsraelTimes] Iranian authorities announce they will give a monthly allowance to every citizen in the country to alleviate economic pressure, after a week of protests.
“Individuals can receive an amount equivalent to one million Tomans (approximately $7) per person per month, which is credited to their accounts for four months,” government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani tells state TV.
She says the amount will be given to every Iranian for four months in the form of credit that can be used to purchase certain goods and is intended to “reduce the economic pressure on the people.”
In Iran, which has a population of more than 85 million people, the minimum wage is roughly $100 per month and average monthly salaries are around $200.
Iranians mostly use mobile phones and debit cards for their daily purchases instead of cash.
Iran’s economy has been grappling with biting US and international sanctions over Tehran’s nuclear program for years, and December saw a 52 percent year-on-year inflation rate.
The national currency has lost more than a third of its value against the US dollar over the past year, causing a sharp decrease in people’s purchasing power and broad discontent in the country.
Sunday marked the eighth day of protests in the Islamic Republic over economic uncertainty in the wake of the depreciation.
The protests have touched, to varying degrees, at least 40 different cities, mostly medium-sized and in the country’s west, according to an AFP tally based on official announcements and media reports.
At least 12 people have been killed, including members of the security forces, according to a toll based on official reports.
Posted by: Lord Garth ||
01/05/2026 00:00 ||
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#1
are the Belorussian planes still flying into Iran with mil supplies? If so shoot down Khomeini's plane/chopper/flying_carpet right into a Belorussian plane.
"He could be in Türkiye today, but he's in New York," Graham told reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday. "Maduro has nobody to blame but himself. Trump gave him a way out. He chose to defy Trump and the U.S. military, and his a** is in jail where he deserves to be."
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