Al Bara Shishani
Al Bara Shishani | |
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Cezar Tokhosashvili , known by his nom de guerre Al Bara Shishani, is a Georgian militant and Islamic State leader.
Early life
[edit]He was born Cezar Tokhosashvili in the village of Omalo in the Pankisi Gorge, Georgia.[2]
Militant activities
[edit]He repeatedly fought alongside Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan.[3]
He headed the Group of the One and Only, a small jihadist group in Syria,[3] which was launched in late July 2014,[4] and was injured in a March 2015 battle that took place near Handarat.[5]
Sometime later, he defected to the Islamic State, where he served as a deputy to Abu Omar al-Shishani.[6] He escaped from Raqqa with his wife and children following its capture in 2017.[7] Shishani moved to Turkey in 2016 following al-Shishani's death[6] and moved to Ukraine two years later using false documents and "coordinated ISIS activities" for over a year.[8] Shishani was reported killed in August 2017 by Georgian media outlets,[9] though his family confirmed the following month that he was alive.[10]
He was reportedly the "military emir" of Liwa al-Muhajireen wal-Ansar in Syria.[11]
Capture and extradition
[edit]He was captured in a joint CIA, Security Service of Ukraine and Georgian Intelligence Service operation,[6] which took place in Kyiv Oblast in mid-November 2019.[12] Shishani was detained in Ukraine and was held[13] until he was extradited to Tbilisi, Georgia the following May.[14]
References
[edit]- ^ "Tbilisi City Court Sentences Defendant to Imprisonment in Connection with Islamic State". News Hub. 15 August 2023. Retrieved 23 March 2025.
- ^ Oliver Carroll (21 November 2019). "How Ukraine became the unlikely home for Isis leaders escaping the caliphate". The Independent. Retrieved 23 March 2025.
- ^ a b "Guest Post: MUHAJIREEN BATTALION – JAMAAT AHADUN AHAD". From Chechnya To Syria. 6 August 2014. Archived from the original on 14 August 2014. Retrieved 25 March 2025.
- ^ Caleb Weiss (5 August 2014). "Jamaat Ahadun Ahad". The Line of Steel. Retrieved 23 March 2025.
- ^ Joanna Paraszczuk (10 February 2016). "Al Bara Pankisi Thought To Have Joined IS". From Chechnya To Syria. Archived from the original on 28 February 2016. Retrieved 25 March 2025.
- ^ a b c "Ukraine says it has detained deputy to slain Islamic State official". Reuters. 15 November 2019. Retrieved 23 March 2025.
- ^ "Q&A: Would ISIS Fighters Return to Georgia?". Civil Georgia. 2 February 2018. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
- ^ "Country Reports on Terrorism 2019: Georgia". United States Department of State. Retrieved 23 March 2025.
- ^ "Countering Violent Extremism in Georgia". Onnik Krikorian. 11 October 2017. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
- ^ "UPDATE Al Bara Pankisi, his wife & children confirmed alive in Syria". From Chechnya To Syria. 30 August 2017. Archived from the original on 5 October 2017. Retrieved 5 April 2025.
- ^ "Interview with al-Bara al-Shishani, the military emir of Liwa al-Muhajireen wal Ansar (LMA)". Daniele Garofalo Monitoring. 29 January 2023. Retrieved 27 March 2025.
- ^ Illia Ponomarenko (15 November 2019). "SBU arrests major Islamic State warlord in Ukraine". Kyiv Post. Retrieved 23 March 2025.
- ^ "Georgian Citizen Charged with Terror Offences Arrested in Ukraine". Civil Georgia. 16 November 2019. Retrieved 23 March 2025.
- ^ "Ukraine Extradites Georgian Citizen Charged with Terror Offences to Tbilisi". Civil Georgia. 18 May 2020. Retrieved 23 March 2025.