Briefs
The Brotherhood Fox: A Profile of Fugitive Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood Leader Mahmud Ezzat
How does a leader of an outlawed religious-political movement apply pressure on an inflexible regime at a moment of organizational weakness and internal division? This is the dilemma facing Dr. Mahmud Ezzat, the deputy supreme guide of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood (MB). The Ikhwan (Brothers) are... MORE
The Unlikely Rebel: A Profile of Darfur’s Zaghawa Rebel Leader Minni Minawi
The career of Sulayman Arcua Minawi (better known as “Minni Minawi”) is the story of how a primary school teacher in a remote corner of northern Africa parlayed an ability to read and write and a previously hidden penchant for ruthlessness into his appointment in... MORE
Top Badr Commander Named Iraqi Interior Minister: The Ascension of Qasim al-Araji
On January 30, Qasim al-Araji, a prominent member of the Iran-backed Badr organization, was appointed to be interior minister of Iraq (al-Arabiya, January 30). As a member of the parliament and a Shia militia field commander, Mr. al-Araji is well known for his anti-U.S. views—though... MORE
Islamic State’s White Widow: Sally Jones’ Digital Jihad
Sally-Anne Frances Jones (a.k.a. Sakinah Hussein; Umm Hussain al-Britani; the White Widow) is a former punk rock guitarist turned one of the most dangerous female militants in the Islamic State (IS) group, serving as an online recruiter and propagandist. Jones is believed to be the... MORE
Tackling Islamic State Recruitment in Southeast Asia: The Arrest of Karen Aisha Hamidon
Karen Aisha Hamidon (a.k.a. Karen Aisha al-Muslimah) was arrested on October 11, 2017, by the Philippines’ National Bureau of Investigation (Counterterrorism Division) in Taguig City for luring foreign and local Muslims to join the Maute group (the so-called “Islamic State of Lanao”) to fight against... MORE
Pushing Back Against the KRG: A Profile of Iraq’s Dr. Hunain al-Qaddo
The decision by Masoud Barzani, the president of the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq (KRG), to hold the September 25 referendum on the independence of the KRG has led to significant conflict inside Iraq. In the middle of October, Iraqi Security Forces (ISF), including groups... MORE
Islamic State in Libya Emir Abdel Qader al-Najdi Returns From the Dead
On September 28, Sadiq al-Sour, head of investigations for the Libyan attorney general’s office in Tripoli, held a press conference in the Libyan capital providing fresh information regarding the recent reorganization of Islamic State (IS) in Libya (al-Jarida, September 28). The group, which was dislodged... MORE
The Future Leader of the Taliban? A Brief Sketch of Taliban Deputy Chief Mullah Muhammad Yaqoob
The announcement of the death the Taliban movement’s founding leader, Mullah Muhammad Omar, in July 2015, almost two years after his actual demise, set off a succession battle within the Taliban’s ranks (Dawn (Karachi), July 29, 2015; Daily Pakistan, August 31, 2015). Despite vehement opposition... MORE
Al-Qaeda’s New Hope on the Run: A Profile of Ansar al-Sharia Pakistan Emir Abdul Karim Saroush Siddiqui
A series of terrorist attacks swept Karachi this summer. At least six terrorist attacks — five in Karachi and one in the remote Mastung district of Baluchistan province — were claimed by Jamaat ul Ansar al-Shariah Pakistan, a new Islamist terrorist entity on Pakistan’s jihadist... MORE
“Biafra or Death”: Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and the Struggle for Biafran Independence in Nigeria
Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, the founder and leader of a Biafran separatist movement known as the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB), has been missing since a raid by Nigerian security forces on his Abia State compound on September 14. Rumors abound regarding Kanu’s fate or location:... MORE