ISDEI Instituto de Seguridad, Defensa y Estudios Internacionales

Imitation devices made from plastic water bottles covered in silver and black duct tape Fake explosive belt used in the London Bridge attack  Metropolitan Police Pictures of the home-made fake explosive belts worn by the  London Bridge terrorists  have been released by police. The imitation suicide devices were each made from three plastic water bottles covered in silver and black duct tape, attached to a leather belt. They were worn by killers Khuram Butt, Rachid Redouane and Youssef Zaghba on their deadly rampage last Saturday night which left eight dead and injured dozens more. READ MORE Police reveal the knives used in London Bridge attack The belts were still attached to all three suspects when they were shot dead by armed officers, said the Metropolitan Police in a statement. “I have not seen this tactic in the UK before where terrorists create maximum fear by strapping fake explosives to themselves,” said Commander Dean Haydon,...

Elham Ahmad Saudi Arabia’s Al-Riyadh newspaper made an interview with Co-Chairman of the Syrian Democratic Council (a political wing of the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces), Ilham Ehmed. This could be considered the first interview of SDF officials to the Saudi media. Ilham Ehmed praised the role of Saudi Arabia in promoting stability in Syria: “ Saudi Arabia is a brother country of Syria and important to Muslims. The SDF is ready to cooperate with countries seeking to end the conflict in Syria and to impose stability by building a democratic Syria away from all sectarian and national projects. “ When asked about the role played by Qatar in the Syrian warfare, she said: “Many regional countries involved in the Syrian issue could have played a positive role in resolving the crisis, including Qatar, but their support for groups at the expense of other groups led to the division of the opposition, and this opened the door to the spread of extremism and terrorism th...

Using their V-300 Commando Fire Support Vehicle, the Philippine Marines patrol Barangay Saduc in Marawi City on June 6, 2017. Photo by Bbobby Lagsa/Rappler The Philippine Army announced that the US Special Operations Forces have begun providing technical support to help end the siege imposed on Marawi city by ISIS fighters. At a press conference, Lieutenant Colonel Jo-Ar Herrera of the Philippine Army said that “US forces are not fighting but only providing technical support.” A spokesman for the US Embassy in the Philippines said the Philippine Army asked for American help in the Battle of Marawi, which entered its third week. OV-10 Bronco is carrying out airstrikes on ISIS targets in Marawi From its side, ISIS claimed that 19 Philippine soldiers were killed during clashes in Dagodban district of Marawi city. ISIS also claimed that its fighters managed to damage an armored vehicle of the Philippine army with a rocket-propelled grenade in Marawi yesterday....