The Islamic State’s Vulnerability
As the U.S. military joins with its allies and temporarily-aligned enemies to fulfill President Obama’s promise to “...
Abu Musab al-Zarqawi
Why Al Qaeda Released An American Hostage
Earlier today, the news broke that Peter Theo Curtis, an American who had been held hostage in Syria since 2012, has been released by his captors. Coming just days after another American hostage,...
Op-eds
Zawahiri’s Revenge
The Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham -- which has now rebranded itself "the Islamic State" (IS) -- is trying to position itself as the new leader of the global jihadist movement. After being...
Op-eds
The Enemy Of My Enemy Is My Enemy
When Ottoman armies marched into Europe in the mid-14th century, Europeans started looking hopefully eastward for enemies of the Turks. Spanish and French kings sent ambassadors to Tamerl...
Op-eds
Al Qaeda’s Expansion in Egypt Implications for U.S. Homeland Security
Chairman King, Ranking Member Higgins, members of the committee, thank you for inviting me here today to discuss al Qaeda’s presence in Egypt. The uprisings throughou...
Legislative Testimonies
Lebanon Arrests Leader of Qaeda-Linked Group, Reports Say
The Lebanese military authorities have detained the Saudi leader of a Sunni militant group linked to Al Qaeda that claimed responsibility for a ...
Op-eds
The Abdullah Azzam Brigades and the Attack on Iran’s Embassy in Beirut
By David Barnett The Abdullah Azzam Brigades (AAB), an al Qaeda-linked group, announced today that its Hussein bin Ali Battalion was responsible for the double suicide attack on...
Policy Briefs
It’s War, You Idiots
It’s hard to get our minds around the dimensions of the slaughter underway in the Middle East and Africa, and harder still to see that the battlefields of Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, S...
Op-eds
Global al Qaeda: Affiliates, Objectives, and Future Challenges
Chairman Poe, Ranking Member Sherman and members of the Committee, thank you for inviting me here today to discuss the threat posed by al Qaeda. We have been asked to “examine the nature of...
Legislative Testimonies
Roll, Jordan, Roll
Amman, Jordan — American boots are on the ground here in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. Nearly 5,000 U.S. military personnel joined Jordanian troops for “Eager Lion,”...
Op-eds
Assessing the Threat to the Homeland from al Qaeda Operations in Iran and Syria
Chairman King, Ranking Member Higgins and members of the Committee, thank you for inviting me here today to discuss the threat posed by al Qaeda’s operations inside Iran and Syria. These ar...
Legislative Testimonies
Al Qaeda Intelligence Chief Reported Killed in Drone Strike
Abu Ubaydah Abdullah al Adam, a senior al Qaeda leader who serves as the intelligence chief for the terror group, is reported to have been killed in a recent US drone strike in Pakistan's tr...
Op-eds
Al Qaeda in Iraq, Al Nusrah Front Emerge as Rebranded Single Entity
The emir of al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI), Abu Bakr al Baghdadi (also known as Abu Dua), has announced a new brand for his organization's efforts: the "Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant." The ne...
Op-eds
Al Nusrah Front, Allies Seize Border Area Across the Golan Heights
The Al Nusrah Front, which is al Qaeda's Syrian affiliate, and allied rebel groups overran a military base and several checkpoints in southern Syria. The victories put the Al Nusrah Front in...
Op-eds
Palestinian Jihadist Trainer Killed Fighting for Al Nusrah Front
Co-authored by David Barnett A Palestinian jihadist military trainer and commander who was a member of the Tawhid and Jihad Group in Jerusalem and who previously served with Ham...
Op-eds
Ansar al Sharia Tunisia Launches New Website
Ansar al Sharia Tunisia, the al Qaeda-linked extremist group responsible for the Sept. 14, 2012 assault on the US Embassy in Tunis, has launched a new website. The group advertised the impending...
Op-eds
A Nasty Piece of Work
A tawdry new book accuses the late Christopher Hitchens of plagiarism—and worse.
Op-eds
Ex-Guantanamo Detainee Reportedly Killed in Syria
A former Guantanamo detainee named Slimane Hadj Abderrahmane has reportedly been killed while fighting in Syria. T...
Op-eds
Pakistani Taliban Praise Slain American, British Jihadists
The Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan recently released a video of so-called "martyrs" that includes two previously unknown jihadists from the United States and Britain. The two dead Western ji...
Op-eds
Ansar al Sharia Tunisia Calls for Islamist Solution to Political Crisis
The assassination of a prominent opposition leader has sparked a political crisis in Tunisia. Chokri Belaid, a politician who had spoken out against the ruling Islamist Ennahda party and Salafist...