Latest Terrorism Focus Articles
PJAK Intensifies Its Struggle for Iranian Kurdistan
A recent upsurge of violence in northwestern Iran between ethnic Kurdish rebels and Iranian Pasdaran (Revolutionary Guards) forces represents the latest chapter in the ongoing tensions between the nationalist dissidents and Tehran. Iranian and Kurdish sources report that the armed wing of the Party for... MORE
Hardliners Assume Leadership of Jordan’s Muslim Brotherhood
In an internal election for the Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood’s top position, Hamam Sa’id, a senior member known as a hawk within the organization, defeated incumbent leader Salem Falahat (Jordan Times, May 2). The new general regulator of the Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood is a critic of... MORE
Turkish Generals Admit Military and Intelligence Coordination with Iran
On June 6, General Ilker Basbug, the commander of the Turkish Land Forces, confirmed that Turkey and Iran were sharing intelligence and coordinating military operations against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK)—which is primarily composed of Turkish Kurds—and its Iranian affiliate, the Kurdistan Free Life Party... MORE
Rumors of al-Qaeda’s Death May Be Highly Exaggerated
Whether said about the aging process or the implacable approach of writing deadlines, the old saw about “time flying” is certainly true. But seldom has it been truer than in the three weeks since this author last wrote for Terrorism Focus. At dawn on May... MORE
Freeing Jerusalem: Turkey and the Lebanese Hizbullah
Newly launched peace talks between Syria and Israel mediated by Turkey have focused the international community’s attention on Turkey’s role in the Middle East. Political observers have been cautiously awaiting whether the attempt would bring any hope for Middle East peace. The head of the... MORE
Leading PKK Commander Cemil Bayik Crosses into Iran
On May 10, the Turkish General Staff posted a press release on its web site which stated: “As a result of the Turkish air strike on the Qandil Mountains, a senior PKK commander, Cemil Bayik, fled into a neighboring country together with a large group... MORE
Iraqi Government Launches Operation to Expel al-Qaeda from Mosul
After four days of a preparatory operation code-named Za’eer al-Asad (The Lion’s Roar), Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki arrived in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul to supervise a new military operation against al-Qaeda in Ninawa (Nineveh) province (al-Jazeera, May 14). Al-Maliki was accompanied by... MORE
Victory in Death: The Political Use of Islamist Martyrs
The past week once again saw the international media intensely focus on the capture and death of prominent Islamist leaders. On May 8, hundreds of reports appeared that al-Qaeda’s commander in Iraq Abu Ayub al-Masri (a.k.a. Abu Hamza al-Muhajir) had been captured by U.S. and... MORE
Turkish and Iraqi Kurdish Rapprochement Ominous for PKK
In a significant change of policy, Turkey recently initiated high-level official dialogue with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) of Iraq. A columnist for the Turkish mass circulation daily Zaman commented that such an official dialogue “was not an ordinary step. It was a turning point... MORE
London’s 7/7 Conspiracy Trial Offers Inside View of Terrorists’ Lives
Like any major terrorist event, the July 7, 2005 (7/7) bombings of London’s public transportation system that killed 52 commuters and four suicide bombers had the immediate result of generating a number of wide-ranging and speculative conspiracy theories. One of the early unanswered questions concerned... MORE