What Is This So-Called ISIS ‘Kill List’?
The Islamic State, or ISIS, claimed responsibility for the Paris attacks on Friday night. The terrorist group based in Syria and Iraq said France is atop its target list.
“What happened yesterday in Paris and in Saint Denis is an act of war and this country needs to make the right decisions to fight this war,” French President Francois Hollande said.
He added: “This act committed by the terrorist army, Islamic State, is against who we are, against a free country that speaks to the whole world. It is an act of war prepared and planned outside, with outside involvement which this investigation will seek to establish. It is an act of absolute barbarism. France will be ruthless in its response to Islamic State.”
ISIS released a statement about the Paris attacks on Friday, and it read:
Eight brothers carrying explosive belts and guns targeted areas in the heart of the French capital that were specifically chosen in advance: the Stade de France during a match against Germany which the imbecile, Francois Hollande, was attending; the Bataclan where hundreds of idolaters were together in a party of perversity as well as other targets in the 10th, 11th and 18th arrondissement. France and those who follow its path must know they will remain on top of Islamic State targets, and the scent of death will not leave their noses.
But in March of this year, ISIS released the names and information of around 100 U.S. service members, asking followers or supporters to hunt and kill them. According to a Fox News report at the time:
An Islamic State “kill list” with the names, addresses and photos of American military members has triggered a federal investigation, the White House confirmed — and one military spouse told Fox News she’s already heard from someone, who said they were with NCIS, urging her family to be vigilant.
Click2Houston.com reported in March that about a dozen servicemen with Texas addresses were on the list.
The U.S. Department of Defense said at the time that the “kill list” was mostly a scare tactic.
However, Twitter users on Saturday and Sunday were commenting on the list as if it were a recent news development, expressing fears that their town would get hit next.
A NewsChannel10 report was being heavily circulated over the weekend following the Paris attacks, and it includes a list of American cities, but those are in reference to the aforementioned addresses of U.S. service members. Many Twitter users were circulating a screenshot of the list of cities from the report.
ISIS releases ‘Kill List’; Seven Texas cities included
Posted: Mar 24, 2015 2:15 PMUpdated: Jul 24, 2015 12:03 AM
The Pentagon has responded to a globally-released ‘Kill List’, asking law enforcement to give extra protection for military personnel whose personal information was released.
CBS News national security correspondent David Martin reports the Pentagon spent the weekend notifying the soldiers who appeared on the list, and urged city police departments and military police to increase patrol in the neighborhoods where the targeted live.
The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) published the list days ago, a report that contained names, photos, and home addresses of U.S. Armed Forces personnel, causing alarm in cities potentially at high-risk.
According to the publication, ISIS urges followers and sympathizers in the U.S. to kill the servicemen. Specific personnel on the list are largely from the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy – branches of the country’s military that have conducted massive air strikes against ISIS.
The air strikes have left ISIS mostly defenseless, killing over 8,000 fighters with attacks carried out on more than 5,000 targets. But ISIS appears to be fighting back through forms of social media.
The Pentagon says the the targeted appeared to be compiled from public sources — anything from news articles to Facebook posts that could have linked them to attacks on the terrorist group. Officials with the Pentagon say some members were incorrectly identified, but right or wrong, it’s still a threat.
Seven Texas cities were included on the list: Abilene, New Braunfels, San Antonio, Wyle, Fort Hood, Bedford, and Killeen.
Cities expected to increase in security due to the threat are below:
———–
Texas: Abilene, New Braunfels, San Antonio, Wyle, Fort Hood, Bedford, Killeen
Indiana: Michigan City, Bolivar
Michigan: Dearborn Heights, Lake Orion
Connecticut: Barkhamsted, Manchester
Nevada: Reno
Georgia: Griffin
Maryland: Upper Marlboro, Warrensburg, Lexington Park
Arizona: Phoenix
Louisiana: Shreveport, Bossier City
South Carolina: Daniel Island, Charleston
North Carolina: Fayetteville, New Bern
Virginia: Burke, Virginia Beach, Suffolk, Springfield, Norfolk, Chesapeake
Colorado: Colorado Springs
California: Hanford, Solvang, San Ardo, Monterrey, Newberry Park, Carlsbad
New Mexico: Farmington
North Dakota: Minot
South Dakota: Rapid City
Florida: Merritt Island, Palm Coast, Saint John, Middleburg, Saint Augustine
Washington: Colton, Cheney, Seattle, Spokane, Anacortes
Nebraska: Bellevue
Illinois: Orland Park
Rhode Island: Newport
Idaho: Bonners Ferry