Tiresome Targets in the War on Terror
REVIEW: ‘All The Presidents' Wars: Twenty-Five Years of America’s War on Terror’ by Peter Bergen
Al-Qaeda in Iraq
Iraq’s New Christian Patriarch Inherits a Vanishing Flock
On its surface, Polis III Nona’s installation ceremony bore all the hallmarks of a thriving church. The new patriarch of the Chaldean Catholic Church, Iraq’s largest Christian denomination,...
Op-eds
US forces begin withdrawal from Ain al Asad airbase as US presence in Iraq transitions
Arab media reported on August 18 that a US military convoy departed Ain al Asad airbase, a military facility hosting US forces in western Iraq, on its way to Syria. An Iraqi security source speaking...
Op-eds
Trump announces sanctions relief for Syria
On June 30, US President Donald Trump issued an executive order revoking longstanding sanctions on Syria. “The United States is committed to supporting a Syria that is stable, unified, and...
Op-eds
President Trump meets with a Specially Designated Global Terrorist, lifts sanctions on Syria
President Donald Trump met with Syrian interim president Ahmad al Sharaa, formerly known as Abu Mohammad al Jolani, a US and UN-designated terrorist and the former leader of Hayat Tahrir al Sham,...
Op-eds
Pro-Iranian Iraqi politicians, militia leaders object to Syrian president visiting Iraq
A possible visit by Syria’s new transitional president, Ahmad al Sharaa, is causing controversy in Iraq. Several key Shiite political and militia leaders have come out against the visit and called on...
Op-eds
Why do Iraqi Shiites hate the new Syria and its leader?
One might assume that the most unpopular individuals in Iraq are US President Donald Trump or Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Op-eds
Syrian Government Uses Islamic Teaching to Recruit, Train New Security Forces
Syria’s new leaders insist they are committed to religious tolerance, yet they are employing their preferred variant of Sunni Islamic beliefs to recruit and train the country’s new security forces....
Policy Briefs
Turkey and HTS: A New Era of Extremism in Syria?
Following the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s government in December 2023, Syria is now controlled by an alliance of opposition groups led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS). While there has...
Op-eds
U.S. continues to target the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria
The US launched a series of strikes against the Islamic State’s (IS) network in Iraq and Syria over the past week. The operations are part of the US military’s continuing effort to degrade the Islamic...
Op-eds
US removes $10 million reward for Hayat Tahrir al Sham leader
The US State Department removed the $10 million reward for Abu Mohammad al Jolani, the Specially Designated Global Terrorist who leads Haytat Tahrir al Sham (HTS), which State describes as an Al Qaeda...
Op-eds
US and Iraqi forces kill Islamic State leaders
The US military and Iraqi Security Forces killed four Islamic State (IS) leaders during an August 29 raid in western Iraq that resulted in the wounding of seven American soldiers. One of the IS leaders...
Op-eds
America’s ‘self-defeat’ in Afghanistan
Three years after the U.S. withdrawal, lessons should have been learned
Op-eds
Shabaab advertises creation of “special forces” unit
In a newly released video, Shabaab, al-Qaeda’s branch for East Africa, announced and advertised the creation of its new so-called ‘special forces’ unit. The new unit also has its own specific training...
Op-eds
U.S. military strikes Iranian assets in Syria after weeks of militia attacks
The U.S. military attacked two weapons storage facilities in Syria that were used by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and its militia proxies on Oct. 27. The U.S. strikes are in response...
Op-eds
Islamic State’s emir dead after U.S. military raid in Syria
Islamic State emir Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi died during a daring overnight raid conducted by U.S. special operations forces in Idlib province in northeastern Syria on Thursday, according to the...
Op-eds
Preserving the Warrior Ethos
It is corroded, and the necessary restorative work belongs to us all
Op-eds
Ayman al Zawahiri promotes ‘Jerusalem Will Not Be Judaized’ campaign in new video
As Sahab, al Qaeda’s main propaganda arm, released a video featuring Ayman al Zawahiri earlier today. Although the hour-long production was disseminated on the 9/11 anniversary, it does not appear to...
Op-eds
Twenty 9/11 anniversaries
The sleeping giant nods off again
Op-eds
Iraq, the model
Biden’s military strategy for Iraq should be applied in Afghanistan