Briefs
An In-Depth Portrait of Servando “La Tuta” Gómez Martínez: Co-Leader and Propagandist of Mexico’s Knights Templar Cartel
Servando “La Tuta” Gómez Martínez Servando Gómez Martínez (a.k.a. El Profe, La Tuta—the teacher), was born in Arteaga, Michoacán, Mexico on February 6, 1966 (El Universal, August 7, 2009). He is co-leader of Los Caballeros Templarios (the Knights Templar), a Transnational Criminal Organization (TCO) based in the Michoacán... MORE
The Life of Niger Delta Militant Henry Okah
Henry Emomotimi Okah was born in 1965 and raised in Ikorodu, Lagos State, although his family’s ancestral home was in Baylesa State. The fourth child of a Navy officer, his upbringing was described by a sibling as very “British”; he attended private schools and led a relatively privileged... MORE
Special Report on The Syrian Uprising: A Focus On Parties and Leadership
The Jamestown Foundation is proud to announce the latest edition of the Quarterly Special Report (QSR). Jamestown Militant Leadership Monitor subscribers receive four issues of the Quarterly Special Report in addition to receiving full access to the mlm.jamestown.org website, past archives of MLM, and new... MORE
Power Struggle in Bajaur and Rise of Mullah Dadullah
The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) continues to grab attention due to its ever changing dynamics, whether it is its association with Al-Qaeda and attempts to conduct acts of international terrorism, or internal power struggle between its leadership. While the Waziristan region remains in the limelight in... MORE
The Life of Shaykh Hassan Dahir Aweys: Founder of Somalia’s Armed Islamist Movement
Born in the Galgudud region of Somalia, Shaykh Hassan Dahir Aweys is a member of Habar Gedir clan of Hawiye sub-clan. Shaykh Aweys is a Somali Islamist and political figure who helped found al-Ittihad al-Islamiyya (AIAI). AIAI at one point in time was Somalia’s largest armed Islamist... MORE
Abu Hamza Al-Murqoshi: The Enigmatic Amir of Yemen’s Ansar Al-Shari’a
Abu Hamza Al-Murqoshi, the enigmatic Amir of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula’s (AQAP) newly formed Ansar al-Shari’a, rose to power last spring as anti-government revolts overwhelmed former President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s government and military in Sana’a. Under the Amir’s leadership, Ansar al-Shari’a has seized control of and... MORE
Leadership Void in Khyber Agency’s Lashkar-e-Islam: Is Mangal Bagh Dead or Alive?
The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP)-Darra Adamkhel chapter claimed to have killed Haji Mangal Bagh, their rival and head of Taliban-styled Lashkar-e-Islam (LI) militant outfit, in a suicide attack in Tirah Valley of Khyber Agency on March 9, 2012 (The News International, March 10, 2012). Around 23... MORE
Rebellion Without Reason: The Strange Survival of Joseph Kony and the Lord’s Resistance Army
This article was originally published in the November 2011 Issue of Militant Leadership Monitor (mlm.jamestown.org). Subscribe to MLM today to receive leading analysis of militant figures like this without delay! After decades of carrying out unspeakable atrocities and thousands of kidnappings in Central Africa, the... MORE
Bringing Militant Salafism to the Tuareg: A Profile of Veteran Rebel Iyad ag Ghali
Operating alongside the long-time Tuareg rebels and heavily armed veterans of the Libyan military that fill the ranks of Mali’s Mouvement National de Libération de l'Azawad (MNLA) is a smaller Salafist group led by Iyad ag Ghali, once the most prominent of Mali’s Tuareg rebels.... MORE
Comrade Jose (Victor Quispe Palomino): Leader of Peru’s Shining Path
Comrade Jose (a.k.a. Victor Quispe Palomino) is the leader of 350 to 500 guerillas in the faction of the Shining Path located in the River Apurimac and River Ene Valley (VRAE) of Peru (El Comercio, December 21, 2011). The leader of the Shining Path’s soon-to-be-defunct other... MORE