Latest Terrorism Monitor Articles
The Threat of Grassroots Jihadi Networks: A Case Study from Ceuta, Spain
On December 12, 2006, Spanish police executed a spectacular counter-terrorism operation in the neighborhood of "Príncipe Alfonso" in Ceuta (a Spanish city located in North Africa, just south of Gibraltar). Those arrested belonged to a grassroots jihadi group planning attacks on local targets in the... MORE
Nigeria Continues to Slide Toward Instability
The ongoing unrest in Nigeria's volatile delta region is having an inflationary impact on oil prices, with no resolution to the crisis in sight. The turmoil in the delta, the center of the country's oil industry, is largely driven by poverty and corruption. This year... MORE
Hizb-ut-Tahrir’s Growing Appeal in the Arab World
Hizb-ut-Tahrir (or Hizb al-Tahrir) is an ostensibly non-violent Islamic political movement dedicated to the recreation of a global caliphate. Although founded in Jordanian-ruled Jerusalem in 1953, it has traditionally been strongest in Europe and Central Asia. Today, however, it is becoming increasingly popular in the... MORE
The Ideological Voices of the Jihadi Movement
It is news to few observers that thousands, even millions, of young Muslims are influenced—to some extent—by jihadi literature circulating on various Islamist websites and discussion forums. The mujahideen's use of the internet for communication, indoctrination, recruitment and public relations has been well demonstrated. Through... MORE
Harith al-Dari: Iraq’s Most Wanted Sunni Leader
According to Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, Harith al-Dari has "nothing to do but incite sectarian and ethnic sedition." Al-Dari, the leader of the Association of Muslim Scholars (AMS), has been an outspoken critic of the Shiite-led Iraqi government and is rumored to be affiliated with... MORE
The Evolution of the PKK: New Faces, New Challenges
The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) was founded in 1974 to mobilize Turkish Kurds to fight for independence from Turkey. During the 1980s and 1990s, the PKK fought a guerrilla campaign against Turkey that claimed over 30,000 lives on both sides. After calling off a five-year-old... MORE
Libyan Fighters Join the Iraqi Jihad
Despite Libyan leader Muammar al-Qaddhafi's uncompromising stance toward Islamist activism, a number of Libyan volunteers have traveled from Libya to join the Iraqi jihad. From the information that is beginning to emerge about some of these militants, it would seem that they are not part... MORE
The Black-Turbaned Brigade: The Rise of TNSM in Pakistan
Tehreek-e-Nafaz-e-Shariat- e-Mohammadi (TNSM, Movement for the Enforcement of Islamic Laws) is emerging as one of the most dangerous religious militant groups in Pakistan. Its founder and leader, Sufi Mohammad, is behind bars and the organization was banned in early 2002. Still, its support base in... MORE
The Islamist Underground in Southern Kyrgyzstan
Last year's uprising in the Uzbek city of Andijan was only the first symptom of renewed tensions in the Ferghana Valley. The region has seen an increase in inter-ethnic tensions and in operations by Islamist radicals. Groups such as Hizb-ut-Tahrir, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan... MORE
Yemen’s Al-Iman University: A Pipeline for Fundamentalists?
The recent arrests of 23 men, including four Europeans and three Australians, have once again raised questions about Yemen's al-Iman University and its possible links to extremism. Initial reports suggested that the European and Australian suspects, who were accused of smuggling weapons to Islamist militias... MORE