Executive Summary: Simon Ekpa, a Finnish–Nigerian politician and media activist, rose to prominence as a self-proclaimed successor to Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) leader Nnamdi Kanu after Kanu’s 2021 arrest, directing separatist agitation and violence in southeastern Nigeria from his base in Finland. Through online... MORE

Executive Summary: The death of 21-year-old Bangladeshi national Faisal Hossain in a September operation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa underscores the growing participation of Bangladeshis in Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) networks. Hossain’s recruitment, disguised as overseas employment, reflects an emerging transnational pipeline linking Bangladeshi jihadists to militant groups... MORE

Executive Summary: Abdul-Malik al-Houthi has sustained and expanded the Houthis into one of Iran’s most durable proxies, using drone and maritime disruption (including in the Red Sea) to project regional influence despite Israeli and U.S. counterstrikes. His rhetoric and operations align with Iran’s broader “axis... MORE

Executive Summary Damascus has sought to promote Sheikh Laith al-Balous as a counterweight to Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri, whose leadership of Suweida’s Druze calls for autonomy and eventual independence from the Syrian transitional government. In practice, al-Balous functions more as a political prop than a genuine... MORE

Executive Summary Paresh Baruah, the long-time leader of the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA), remains at large in Myanmar and along the China border, sustaining a weakened but still symbolically potent Assamese separatist movement through criminal networks and transnational alliances. Though ULFA-I’s operational capacity... MORE

Executive Summary Bafel Talabani’s August 2025 arrest of his cousin Lahur ended years of infighting within the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and solidified his control, marking a decisive victory for the Iran-aligned faction in Iraqi Kurdish politics. The crackdown reflects growing authoritarianism and polarization... MORE

Executive Summary Western Sahara remains an unresolved decolonization conflict, with Morocco controlling most of the territory since 1975 and the UN continuing to list it as a “non-self-governing” region. Brahim Ghali’s leadership of the Algeria-backed Polisario Front has been marked by authoritarianism, corruption, and repression,... MORE

Executive Summary AQIM under Abu Ubayda al-Anabi has become largely symbolic, eclipsed by the far more active JNIM; his possible death in recent Malian airstrikes would have little operational impact. AQIM’s decline reflects an aging leadership and loss of relevance within the jihadist movement, signaling... MORE

Executive Summary: Mahmoud Abdulrazzaq Hamza’s ascent from civilian to major general reflects Libya’s militia-centered state. He built the 444th Brigade into Tripoli’s most disciplined force, making himself indispensable to the GNU. Hamza is both the enforcer of Abdul Hamid Dbeibah and a potential rival. Dbeibah’s enforcer... MORE

Executive Summary: Özgür Altun, a Turkish national and leading propagandist for IS–KP, was arrested in Pakistan after years of orchestrating the group’s online media, recruitment, and logistics networks. His detention marks a major setback for IS–KP’s transnational communications and recruitment efforts across Turkey, Central Asia,... MORE