Briefs
Denys Prokopenko: The Rise, Capture, and Coming Show Trial of Ukraine’s Azov Regiment Commander
Introduction There is a hackneyed but true saying that one man’s freedom fighter is another man’s terrorist. Since the Russians invaded Ukraine in February, this duality has been most prominently embodied by Azov Regiment Commander Denys “Redis” Prokopenko. To many Ukraine supporters, he is a... MORE
Sheikh Mansur Battalion Commander Muslim Cheberloyevsky: From Chechen Nationalist to Defender of Ukrainian Sovereignty
Just a year ago, Muslim Cheberloyevsky's life in Ukraine was teetering precariously on the brink of disaster after the country’s National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) blacklisted him as a major criminal underworld figure (President.gov.ua, May 14, 2021). For reasons which are still yet to... MORE
A Profile of the Anti-India Secessionist and Pro-Khalilistan Demagogue: Gurpatwant Singh Pannu
Gurpatwant Singh Pannu, one of the founding leaders of the U.S-based pro-Khalistan separatist entity “Sikhs For Justice (SFJ),” is notorious for his incendiary speeches and threatening messages against Indian leaders and its democratic institutions. On May 10, Pannu claimed responsibility for the rocket-propelled grenade (RPG)... MORE
Another Pakistani Taliban Leader Falls to Assassination: The Mysterious Killing of Abdul Wahab Larik
On March 22, Abdul Wahab Larik, a central leader of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) who was appointed the group’s head in the southern Pakistani province of Sindh, was killed by unidentified gunmen in Afghanistan’s Kandahar province (Dawn, March 25). Larik’s killing is a major blow... MORE
Re-Assessing the Death and Legacy of Abu Musab al-Suri
In 2022, attention has returned to the important jihadist theorist, ideologue, and strategist, Abu Musab al-Suri, due to an article published by Syrian journalist, Hossam Jazmati, in February (SyriaTv, February 28). Citing personal sources, Jazmati reported that al-Suri died in 2011 and that he was... MORE
Allah Nazar: The Face of Baluch Separatist Militancy in Pakistan
Allah Nazar is the leader of the Baluchistan Liberation Front (BLF), a banned militant group engaged in a war against Pakistan and seeking the independence of Baluchistan province. As a separatist Baluch leader, Allah Nazar’s BLF has thus far carried out hundreds of terrorist attacks on... MORE
Menandro “Ka Bok” Villanueva’s 50-Year Career as a Philippine Communist Guerilla
On January 5, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) killed most wanted rebel Menandro “Ka Bok” Villanueva, who was one of the country’s longest-active Communist insurgents and was involved in one of the world’s longest-running insurgencies (Manila Times, January 7). Ka Bok was killed... MORE
Muslim Dost: The IS Khorasan Defector to the Taliban and Alleged Ex-Afghan Intelligence Stooge
Abdul Rahim Muslim Dost, a founding member of Islamic State in Khorasan Province (ISKP), surrendered to the Afghan Taliban on March 4 and pledged allegiance to the group’s emir, Hibatullah Akhundzada (Twitter/Ab. Sayed, March 4). Dost appeared on March 4 in the capital city of... MORE
The New Caliph of IS: the Winding Career of Bashar Khattab Ghazal al-Sumaida’i
Two months after a U.S. special operation on March 10 in Atmeh, Syria, al-Furqan Foundation, which disseminates Islamic State (IS) messages from the organization’s central leadership, released an announcement through the new spokesman Abu Umar al-Muhajir (Jihadology, March 10). In the twelve minute audio clip,... MORE
Who is Muslim Khan and Why Does the Pakistani Taliban Demand his Release?
Brokered by the Afghan Taliban’s interior minister and Haqqani Network leader, Sirajudin Haqqani, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), also known as the Pakistani Taliban, agreed with the Pakistani government on November 9, 2021 to a “month-long complete ceasefire” (BBC Urdu, November 6). As part of the... MORE