Latest Briefs
Militants Ask Whether Jihad is Defeated in Iraq
Prompted by a question posted in a jihadi internet forum, members discussed the current and future prospects of jihad and jihadi factions in Iraq. Special attention was given to the direction of the jihad movement after the scheduled withdrawal of part of the American occupation... MORE
Jihadis Question al-Qaeda’s Relationship with Israel
Since Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh announced the arrest of an al-Qaeda cell connected with Israel on October 6, 2008, many Islamist forum members have continued to speculate on al-Qaeda’s possible links to Israel (Al-Arabiya, October 6, 2008; AFP, October 7, 2008). Moderate Islamists questioned... MORE
Jihadis Speculate on Secret Cooperation between Iran and al-Qaeda
A discussion in jihadi internet forums triggered by a posting entitled "Is there a secret cooperation between Iran and al-Qaeda?" raised suspicions over possible clandestine connections between Shiite Iran and al-Qaeda, the self-declared enemy of Shi'ism (muslm.net, February 18, 2008). A jihadi forum chatter nicknamed... MORE
BRIEFS
AL-QAEDA AND OIL FACILITIES IN THE SHADOW OF THE GLOBAL ECONOMIC CRISISBy Murad Batal al-ShishaniIn its latest issue, Bahraini weekly business magazine The Gulf reported that Middle East oil companies are spending billions of dollars on security every year and the cost is rising fast,... MORE
Jihadis Debate the Poor Response to Bin Laden’s Call for Jihad in Gaza
In response to a complaint by a jihadi internet forum member describing al-Qaeda's declining popularity, entitled "Why did nobody listen to Osama?", forum participants refuted the claim while revealing the support al-Qaeda receives in financial and other forms from Muslim sympathizers responding to Osama bin... MORE
Leader of Yemen’s Mujahideen Claims al-Qaeda has a Nuclear Weapon
In a recent interview posted to jihadi websites, al-Qaeda's leader in Yemen claims the organization possesses nuclear weapons and vows to attack U.S. and Western interests to compel them to withdraw their forces from the region (hanein.info, January 27).According to the interview, the leader of... MORE
BRIEFS
IS AL-QAEDA IN THE ISLAMIC MAGHREB TESTING BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS? Rumors of a plague outbreak among al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) members in the caves of Algeria's eastern Tizi Ouzou province first appeared in Algiers' Arabic language Ech Chorouk el-Youmi newspaper on January 6. The... MORE
Al-Qaeda Leaders in the Arabian Peninsula Speak Out
Al-Qaeda Leaders in the Arabian Peninsula Speak Out Jihadi forum members hailed a series of statements by leaders of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), gathered under the title “From Here We Start and in Aqsa [Jerusalem] We Meet” (hanein.info, January 24). The statements, originating... MORE
BRIEFS
PAKISTANI TALIBAN THREATEN ISRAEL AND PASHTUN NATIONALISTS WITH SUICIDE BOMBERS Well-pleased with the local “success” of their suicide bombing campaign, the leaders of Pakistan’s Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) are now threatening to send their suicide bombers against Israeli targets and Pakistan’s Pashtun politicians. In a telephone... MORE