Why the United States Should Pay More Attention to the War in Mali
The ongoing civil war in Mali—where a jihadist group is poised to seize power—is spilling over into Nigeria, with ominous humanitarian consequences.
Ivory Coast
To Squeeze Hezbollah, Look to West Africa
With Iran blockaded and weakened, Hezbollah may be increasingly dependent on its West African financial schemes.
Op-eds
Islamic State claims assault on airport in Niger’s capital
In a short statement released online via its Amaq News Agency propaganda outlet, the Islamic State took credit for last week’s assault on Niger’s Diori Hamani International Airport and Air Base 101...
Op-eds
Iraqi intel busts Islamic State financial network in West Africa
The Iraqi National Intelligence Service (INIS) announced yesterday that it rolled up an Islamic State (IS) financial network that spanned three unspecified West African countries. According to Iraqi media...
Op-eds
Al Qaeda kills hundreds in Burkina Faso attack
On Saturday, the Group for Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), Al Qaeda’s branch for West Africa, killed at least 200 people in a massive assault in central Burkina Faso. The strike took place in the...
Op-eds
How Hezbollah Fundraises Through Crime
Hours after Hamas massacred 1,200 Israelis on October 7, Hezbollah opened a second front against Israel on its northern border, re-igniting a conflict now at risk of escalating into a full-blown war. While...
Op-eds
Beware Hezbollah’s Dual-Nationals
Without stigmatizing diaspora communities or profiling their members, Western intelligence services must work against radicalization and incitement by targeting Hezbollah agents.
Op-eds
Islamic State claims first attacks inside Benin
Through its weekly Al-Naba newsletter earlier this week, the Islamic State officially claimed its first two operations inside Benin. The attacks now join the chorus of strikes committed inside the littoral...
Op-eds
Treasury Targets Hezbollah’s West African Finance Network
The U.S. Department of the Treasury imposed sanctions last week on Ali Saade and Ibrahim Taher, two prominent Lebanese entrepreneurs based in the West African country of Guinea. According to Treasury, Saade...
Policy Briefs
Time to Target Hezbollah’s Illicit Finance Facilitators
A hack on the group’s official bank yielded a trove of information that the Biden administration could use to implement sanctions.
Op-eds
Crisis in Lebanon
Anatomy of a Financial Collapse
Monographs
Ayman al-Zawahiri defends 9/11 hijackings in anniversary address
Ayman al-Zawahiri defends the 9/11 hijackings in a video released on the 18th anniversary of al-Qaeda’s most devastating attack. The production, released by al-Qaeda’s As Sahab propaganda arm, is titled...
Op-eds
China Prevents a UN Security Council Meeting on North Korean Human Rights
The UN observes Human Rights Day each year on December 10, the anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, signed exactly 70 yea...
Policy Briefs
The Mystery Martyr
Death came suddenly for Samer Ibrahim Atoui, a 48-year-old native of the southern Lebanese village of Khiyam. On October 2, 2017, a Syrian opposition social media account posted photographs showi...
Op-eds
North Korean Ship Tests the Waters Near America’s Shores
It’s not often that North Korean-flagged freighters turn up near America’s shores, but when they do, they deserve attention. North Korea has a prolific record of arms smuggling, narco...
Op-eds
Emir of Ansar Dine Added to US, UN’s Terrorist Lists
Both the United States and the United Nations have added Iyad ag Ghali, the emir of the Mali-based, al Qaeda-linked Ansar Dine, to their lists of global terrorists. Ghali was instrumental in the...
Op-eds
First Suicide Bombing Reported in Mali
It was just a matter of time before jihadists in Mali began employing suicide bombers. Yesterday, a suicide bomber attempted to attack a military checkpoint in the town of Gao. The attacker faile...
Op-eds
The War Rages, The White House Ducks, Death Abounds
You know all this, of course, because you’ve been reading these blogs all along. But as my mother used to tell me with her charming smile and melodious voice, repetition is the basis...
Op-eds
US Adds West African Group, 2 Leaders, to Terrorism List
The US government has added the al Qaeda-linked Movement for Tawhid [Unity] and Jihad in West Africa and two of its leaders to the list of global terrorists and entities. The Movement for Tawhid...
Op-eds
How the UN Achieves Sustainable Peacekeeper Rape
Year after year, since 2005, the United Nations has proclaimed its “zero-tolerance” policy...