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ISIS

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ISIS has threatened Prince Harry directly in a recent ISIS propaganda video.

The video reportedly challenges the member of the royal family and threatens to send him 'to hellfire.'

The ISIS member identified in the video also encourages new potential members to sign up to the terrorist organisation, according The Independent.

The man in the video, from Singapore, is known to police.

'To Harry, you come to Singapore and tell such stories to gain sympathy for the London terror attacks?' said the man. 

'Why don’t you come here and fight us if you’re man enough, so that we can send you and your Apaches to hellfire?'

Prince Harry previously served in the British Army in Afghanistan, where he flew Apache helicopters. 

The royal family havbe not yet responded to the direct challenge. 

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At this stage, we've all seen Vogue Williams' most recent column in The Sunday World, but just in case you haven't, the model-turned-DJ took the opportunity to use her platform to discuss one of the biggest issues facing our society today – terrorism. 

The model, whose column was placed beside an image of her posing in a bikini, said that she was shaken by the Manchester attack, and that it made her feel that 'we can no longer sit around and do nothing,' a sentiment shared by many who despaired of the attack which claimed the lives of 22 people, including children. 

The 31-year-old has faced massive backlash from the article, with claims on social media that the star wanted a 'mass internment of Muslims.'

However, after reading the column in its entirety, Vogue makes approximately zero references to the internment of Muslims, but actually says she agrees with the internment of known terrorists. 

In fact, the only reference to Muslims in the entire article comes from a description of a Muslim police chief, who is backing internment for terrorists and extremists.

'This is something that should be decided on by the people, but I certainly agree with it. The only way to stop these senseless attacks is to put any potential threats away,' she says, drawing on the opinion of Muslim former police chief, Tarique Ghaffur.

Vogue admits that she is aware that the internment of IRA members in Northern Ireland, 'when 2,000 alleged paramilitaries were held without trial in makeshift camps' did not work, she feels that some kind of action needs to be taken to remove the threat of terrorism before any more people are killed.

Her reference to the IRA internment has led to online cries for the model to 'pick up a history book,' which is fair enough.

While Vogue's opinion on internment may be misguided, she still has a right to give her thoughts on a matter which affects more and more people as time goes by. 

I won't pretend to be a security expert (as some accuse Vogue of), so while I won't offer my opinion on her thoughts on the matter, I do think the backlash she has faced comes from a place of dismissal based on her stance as an influencer, that she can't possibly know what she's talking about. 

I think it is excellent that Vogue has used her platform to discuss something other than makeup or clothes, as most influencers won't touch social or political issue topics for fear of no longer appealing to their target audience.

It is a step in the right direction for other social media icons, who are looked up to by thousands, to come out and say how they feel about important issues, rather than feeling pigeonholed into certain subjects for fear of causing controversy. 

Yes, her opinion is considered wrong by the majority, as evident in the overwhelmingly negative response, but the 'stay in your lane' mentality isn't conducive to an open and engaging society where all opinions are heard, considered, and then (as in the case of Vogue) dismissed.

People are saying that Vogue isn't 'qualified' to speak on the subject because she doesn't have a PhD in security and defence, but if that's the case, then very few people on this planet do have the right to discuss a massive issue, based on education level. 

Vogue has proven that she is 'woke' to social issue thanks to her docu-series Vogue Williams – On the Edge, in which she investigated issues like drugs, social anxiety, gender dysmorphia and the obsessiveness nature of beautification in society.

Last time I checked, Vogue isn't an addiction councillor, gender non-conforming or a plastic surgeon, so why is terrorism off the cards for her to discuss? 

Her views have been described as 'totalitarian, oppressive and genuinely sinister,' which is grand – the majority agrees that her column wasn't for them – but opening a narrative about these issues is what is so important, in order to come up with better suggestions and solutions. 

Clearly, the vast majority of us disagree with Vogue and are anti-internment, but what do we think should be done? 

Yes, we're bloody mortified for Vogue and the reciprocation of her comments, but she should still be allowed to offer her perspective, despite her status as a woman, influencer, model, DJ etc…

As a society, we have considered her opinion and deemed it to be unsavoury, so let's find better recommendations now, moving forward. 

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Fifth Harmony's official website has been hacked by an anti-ISIS protester.

The band's landing page was hacked last night by an unknown source who left fans shocked after they left a political propaganda message.

The landing page changed to a blank screen with a random email address and a post which said: "Kurdish hacker was here! Long live to Kurdistan! F*ck ISIS, F*ck Turkey!"

Fans were shocked and took to Twitter to share their confusion:

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A BBC sketch called Real Housewives of ISIS is causing quite a lot of controversy online.

The two minute sketch was created by BBC2 show Revolting, and pokes fun at jihadist brides.

The sketch is facing plenty of online criticism from fans who feel the sketch has gone too far with its depiction of Islamic women.

"'Real Housewives of ISIS' will make Hijabis feel more isolated n targeted by Islamophobes. Thanks @BBC for adding to the negative stereotype,"(sic) said one. 

However, others feel that the show does not make a mockery of Islam but of ISIS's "morally corrupt" values.

The recently revealed clip has garnered more than 33,000 Facebook comments, arguing as to whether or not the show is problematic.

The clip shows four British women, Afsana, Mel, Zaynab and Hadiya, who have travelled to Syria to join ISIS and become jihadi brides.

The sketch is delivered in the style of popular reality TV show The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.

The sketch portrays the fact that Western women can be lured into joining ISIS by online forums and social media.

“It’s only three days to the beheading and I’ve got no idea what to wear," jokes one of the actors.

Another woman wears a suicide vest and asks: “What do you think? Ahmed surprised me with it yesterday.”

When another ISIS bride turns up wearing the same explosive device she says: “What a complete b****. She knew I had that jacket.”

Some viewers are praising the sketch for drawing attention to the fact that women can be recruited by SIS online, and see no issue in the jokes made.

"I like it. It’s making fun of ISIS which is a good thing. The whole point of satire is to bring people down to a level. If you can mock something, you’re not scared of it. ISIS want to be feared. Don’t give them that. And yes I’m Muslim, and a leftist. This does not offend me and even if it did, I just wouldn’t watch it," said one commentator.

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*Some users may find this article distressing*

An understandably distressed mother has now spoken out about the moment her eight-year-old son saw the Munich shooter loading his gun in a McDonald's toilet… before targeting children and opening fire on them.

The woman, named by CNN as Lauretta, said she was with her child was in a bathroom when the killer struck.

"My son saw in the toilet the man loading his gun. It was a pistol.

"That's where he loaded his weapon.

"Boom, boom, boom, I heard.

"He's killing the children. They were sitting to eat. They can't run."

She added that she heard the gunman say: "Allahu Akbar" meaning 'God is great'.

Mail Online has named 18-year-old ‘loner’ Ali Sonboly as the perpetrator who killed at least ten people in the attack.

The Iranian-German teenager – who complained that he had been bullied for seven years – “targeted innocent children and then turned his gun on himself following the massacre,” the website additionally reports.

Shockingly, Police are investigating claims that Sonboly lured his young victims to their deaths with a promise of free McDonald's food.

A fake Facebook page reportedly told youngsters to gather at the restaurant yesterday afternoon for the special offer. 

Munich Police President Hubertus Andrae has confirmed that a number of adolescents were among the dead and that several children were injured.

Armed and armoured cops are still on the streets around the Olympia-Einkaufszentrum shopping mall in the centre of the German city.

ISIS-related social media accounts have been sharing reports of the attack, but reports in German newspaper Bild suggests right-wing extremists are responsible.

The shopping centre is next to the Munich Olympic stadium, where the Palestinian militant group Black September took 11 Israeli athletes hostage and eventually killed them during the 1972 Olympic Games.

The attack took place a week after a 17-year-old asylum-seeker wounded passengers on a German train in an axe rampage claimed by Islamic State.

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*This is a developing story*

Local media is this evening reporting that an axe- and knife-wielding attacker has injured at least 20 passengers on a train near Heidingsfeld in Bavaria in southern Germany.

Some of the victims' injuries are thought to be life-threatening, according to the BBC, although additional reports say many of those injured were witnesses who required treatment for shock. 

Multiple sources are also now claiming that the attacker has been killed; Sky News cites police spokesman Fabien Hench as confirming that the man was shot dead by police as he tried to flee the scene.

The motives behind the violent outbreak are also currently unclear, although ISIS supporters were quick to state on social media that the terror organisation was behind the incident. 

The train line between Wurzburg-Heidingsfeld and Ochsenfurt has been closed.

The identify of the attacker has furthermore yet to be unveiled. 

 

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With security at heightened levels across Europe in the aftermath of the Paris killings, the HDI Arena in Hannover is currently being evacuated of spectators. 

The German national team – also caught up in the Stade du France explosions on Friday – were due to play The Netherlands in an international friendly game there.

A suspicious object was found before the game, and authorities in Germany, acting on intelligence information, have further reason to believe that the Hannover stadium might be the latest Isis terrorist target.

An official police announcement made in the stadium told football fans to "move away from the stadium. Do not stand still."

Kick-off was due to take place at 8.30pm local time [7.30pm Irish time]. 

Germany's decision to go ahead with their fixture against Holland was seen as an act of sporting defiance in the face of the atrocities in France.

Meanwhile, also tonight, France visit England at Wembley.

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This morning, armed gunmen stormed a branch of Primark in north west Paris – trapping 18 workers inside.

Thankfully, the hostages have now all been freed, however, the three gunmen have yet to be captured. 

One of the gunmen is an employee of Primark, local reports state.

When the attacks arrived at the shopping mall a little after 6am local time, the 18 individuals were trapped in a staff canteen, although some of their colleagues were able to escape immediately. 

The hostages "were evacuated around 10.30am, one of them was unwell but no-one was injured," police said this afternoon, though the circumstances of their release are still unclear.

The armed men were seen by CCTV entering the mall but have not been filmed leaving the premises – indicating they are still inside.

One worker told Le Parisien he saw people fleeing in a panic: "Everyone was running and screaming 'they are armed, they are armed, we must get out'."

Paris – and indeed, all of France – remains on high-alert after Islamic extremists attacked and killed 20 at the offices of Charlie Hedbo in January.

And last month as ISIS killed 38 in Tunisia, Yassin Salhi, a French lorry drive with extremist links, decapitated his boss before ramming a vehicle into a chemical plant near Lyon.

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A further terrorist attack in Tunisia is now highly likely: that's the warning being issued this evening by officials in the UK.

In fact, Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond is telling British nationals to leave the country as soon as they can.

Many tourists are currently making preparations to leave on flights back to the UK tonight or tomorrow. 

The Department Of Foreign Affairs in Dublin has yet to officially update its advice for Irish people visiting the North African nation.

It is still telling tourists there to exercise “extreme caution” – without going as far as to recommend that people avoid Tunisia entirely.

However, the Irish Times this evening is reporting that the Department is now "urgently reviewing" this stance.

On June 26 an attack by Islamic extremist group ISIS in the popular costal resort town of Sousse killed 38 people – including three Irish people. Thirty of the dead were from Britain alone.

The BBC says this evening that some UK travel firms have also already begun to repatriate their British staff from Tunisia. 

And Thomas Cook said in a statement to Reuters that it was working to bring home 2,000 British and Irish guests currently at its resorts in Tunisia on ten flights scheduled for the next few days.

Reports on social media said that tourists were being escorted to the airport by Tunisian military.

British authorities explained that they simply do not believe that necessary security measures are in place to keep holiday-makers safe.

A Foreign Affairs statement this evening read: "Since the attack in Sousse the intelligence and threat picture has developed considerably, leading us to the view that a further terrorist attack is highly likely."

An earlier terrorist attack on March 18 at the famed Bardo National Museum in the capital of Tunis killed 24 people including 20 foreign tourists.

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