Muhammad Mansour Muhammed Rabee al-Zawahiri, a younger brother of al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, was released from Egyptian prison on March 17. A court had acquitted him on October 15 of charges related to forming an al-Qaeda-linked terrorist group called “al-Zawahiri cell” in Egypt, as well... MORE

Andrew McGregor The rise to power of Mu’ammar Qaddafi (1969-2011) in Libya led to major changes in the observation of Islam in a deeply conservative Sunni Muslim North African nation. While establishing Shari’a as the basis of Libyan legislation, Qaddafi sought to disrupt the dominant... MORE

Jacob Zenn The Libyan uprising that broke out in 2011 was followed by a civil war that has lasted five years. During this time, the Islamic State has set up three “provinces” in Libya, although al-Qaeda and other rebel groups have maintained a strong presence... MORE

Zainul Abid Muhammal al-Madhuni is an Islamic State commander operating from the Libyan city of Sabratah, which is presently controlled by militias. He was born in 1953 and grew up in Ain Zara, located in central Tripoli, though he holds an Iraqi passport under the... MORE

Nathaniel Barr The Islamic State’s Syria and Iraq-based leadership has taken an active role in overseeing and supporting the group’s operations in Libya since pro-Islamic State jihadists first gained a foothold in the country in mid-2014. The Islamic State (IS) leadership has encouraged migration (hijrah)... MORE

Jacob Zenn One of the newest groups to emerge in the Sahelian jihadist landscape since 2015 is the Macina Liberation Front (FLM). Its leader, Amadou Kouffa, however, is unlike other leaders in the region. He does not crave publicity or appear in “jihadist videos” to... MORE

Ebi Spahiu The San Bernardino attacks, which left 16 dead and 24 injured, have set the tone for an intense discussion among information technology experts and security agencies about accessing “backdoor” information technology as means to prevent potential terrorist attacks. Even though social media is... MORE

Farhan Zahid According to a 2014 Pew Poll, a mere 14 percent of Pakistanis have favorable views of the United States (Pew Poll, July 2014). There may be other reasons for growing anti-Americanism in Pakistan but Islamist militant conspiracy theorists play a pivotal role. According... MORE

Animesh Roul In late January 2016, India’s elite anti-terrorism agency, the National Investigating Agency (NIA), stumbled on an unknown extremist network, the Junood al-Khilafa-e-Hind (JKH), known to be sympathetic to the Islamic State. With the arrest of nearly 14 suspects in a countrywide search and... MORE

Andrew McGregor With debate growing over the role of Saudi-inspired Salafism in the development of Islamist extremism, it is worth examining the career and continuing influence of Yasir Hussein al-Borhami, one of Egypt’s most prominent Salafists. Despite the rigid ideology associated with Salafism, Borhami has... MORE