Summary of Terrorist Incidents and CT Operations: May 2014
This month’s report covers terrorist incidents throughout the world, with special emphasis in Europe. On May 24, a gunman opened fire at short range using a Kalashnikov assault rifle, killing four people, at the Jewish Museum of Belgium in Brussels. On May 30, French police arrested Mehdi Nemmouche, 29, in Marseilles, France. He was identified as the prime suspect in the attack and was in possession of explosives at the time of his arrest. May 2014 was also marked by terrorist incidents in Afghanistan, Belgium, China, Egypt, Iraq, Israel and the West Bank, Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Somalia, Syria, Thailand and Yemen.
This month’s report also covers counter-terrorist incidents throughout the world, with particular emphasis on events in the Middle East. Of particular significance was the arrest and interrogation of Mahmoud Mohammad Issa Tuama, a senior Hamas operative, by Israeli Security Agency (Shin Bet). Tuama revealed the extent that Hamas uses the charity, ‘The Islamic Movement in Israel’, as a front to advance its activities and goals in Jerusalem, particularly in the financial realm. He also revealed significant information about the connections between Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood. Finally, he admitted that both Turkey and Qatar harbor members of Hamas’s leadership, including many of the prisoners released in the Gilad Schalit deal. May 2014 was also marked by counter-terrorist incidents in China, Egypt Israel and the West Bank, Lebanon, the Netherlands, North America, Norway, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Sudan, Tunisia and the United Kingdom.