Briefs
A Biographical Sketch of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front’s Murad Ebrahim
The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) is the Philippines’ largest Islamic secessionist and insurgent movement and is led by a man named al-Haj Murad Ebrahim. For the last eight years Ebrahim has been at the forefront of negotiating with the Philippine government for greater autonomy for... MORE
Muhammad Yasin Malik: From Underground Militant Leader to Kashmir’s Gandhi
Background Muhammad Yasin Malik, the leader of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), has undergone a 15-year transformation from underground militant leader fomenting violence to an advocate for a non-violent solution to the festering crisis plaguing South Asia’s northernmost tier for decades. He describes... MORE
A Portrait of Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri: The Last Ba’athist
Over the months that followed the invasion of Iraq in 2003, most of the prominent figures of Saddam Hussein’s Ba’athist regime and his family members were killed, captured or fled the country. The most senior member of the regime who survived that critical period was... MORE
Mu’ammar al-Qaddafi’s Last Line of Defense: A Profile of Khamis al-Qaddafi
Khamis al-Qaddafi, son of Mu'ammar Qaddafi and leader of the Khamis Brigade Libya’s most important military commander has no combat experience and has achieved his rank through nepotism rather than merit. His first active command involved attacking unarmed civilians and ex-members of his own military,... MORE
From 9/11 to Iraq: The Long Arm of Saudi Arabia’s Suliman al-Elwan
Abdulaziz al-Omari, one of the five hijackers on board American Airlines Flight 11 that crashed into the North Tower of New York’s World Trade Center on 9/11, devoted part of his final will and testament to the shaykhs (religious scholars) who provided him rigid religious... MORE
A Profile of Maulana Sadiq Noor: A Central Player in the North Waziristan Taliban
While Hafiz Gul Bahadur Wazir occupies the central leadership position of the Taliban in North Waziristan, Maulana Sadiq Noor is credited for building the North Waziristan Taliban and instigating the group to wage jihad against the Pakistani security forces prior to the September 2006 North... MORE
A Jihadi in the Horn of Africa: al-Shabaab’s Ahmad Abdi Godane “Abu Zubayr”
Shaykh Ahmad Abdi Godane “Abu Zubayr” appears to be losing his grip on the leadership of Somalia’s al-Shabaab, the largest and most formidable of the militant Somali Islamist groups operating in the Horn of Africa. Reports indicate that Godane was relieved of his post as... MORE
A Portrait of Chechen Rebel Commander Hussein Gakaev
Background Hussein Vakhaevich Gakaev (a.k.a. Amir Mansur) was born on July 8, 1970, in the village of Kalinovskaya of the Naur district of the Chechen Republic bordering Mozdok, North Ossetia. His identification card states that he is a resident of the village of Elistanzhi in... MORE
Nedžad Balkan: The Face of Southeastern Europe’s Newest Radical Threat
A Vienna-born Serbian Muslim named Nedžad Balkan (a.k.a. Ebu Muhammad) is believed to have been behind the most recent terror attack in the central Bosnian town of Bugojno. His connection to Bosnia and Herzegovina signals the rise of a new and avowedly violent sect of... MORE
The Return of Ali Salim al-Beidh: The Leader of Yemen’s Southern Secessionist Movement
In May 2009, Ali Salim al-Beidh officially reentered Yemeni politics with a speech addressed to his former constituents in southern Yemen. In the speech, al-Beidh called on southern Yemenis to continue their struggle against what he calls the military occupation of the south by the... MORE