Defections and Leadership Losses are Leading to Abu Sayyaf’s Demise Philippine army operations are further eroding the threat from Abu Sayyaf at the same time as Indonesian security forces are neutralizing remnants of Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) and Mujahidin Indonesia Timor (MIT). If these trends continue,... MORE

On July 30, al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, who replaced Osama bin Laden in 2011, was killed in a U.S. drone strike in Afghanistan. U.S. President Joseph R. Biden announced his death on August 1 saying that, “Now justice has been delivered, and this terrorist leader... MORE

In April 2022, then al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri released a video to incite Indian Muslims over the Karnataka hijab row (YouTube/India_Today, April 6; The Hindu, April 6). The video was released by al-Qaeda's official media channel, al-Sahab, and called on India's Muslims to oppose the... MORE

Since the August U.S. drone strike that killed al-Qaeda leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri in Kabul, the Pakistani government’s peace talks with the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP, or “Pakistani Taliban”) have been suspended. The Afghan Taliban’s Defense Minister Mullah Yaqoob further accused Pakistan of allowing the U.S. to... MORE

Somali Government Seeks to Stymie al-Shabaab Funding and Propaganda Despite numerous efforts to counter financing to al-Shabaab on a global scale, on October 8, the Somali government demanded businesses in the country eliminate all funding to al-Shabaab or else risk having their business licenses revoked... MORE

On July 8, former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was assassinated while delivering a speech in Nara, Japan (The Japan Times, July 8). The suspect, 41-year-old Tetsuya Yamagami, who was an ex-member of the Maritime Self-Defense Force, shot the former premier using a homemade improvised... MORE

The peace talks between Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the Pakistan security establishment are facing an undeclared deadlock since a fruitless tour paid by a top Taliban delegation to Kabul in late July (The Express Tribune, July 27). The Taliban delegation visited under the leadership of... MORE

On July 25, Tajikistan repatriated 146 of its citizens from Syria, including 42 women and 104 children, who were stranded in the al-Hol and Roj refugee camps. The authorities stated that the operation’s main goal was “to save the Tajik children from hopelessness and their... MORE

ISWAP Expands into Ondo and Edo in Southern Nigeria    Islamic State in West African Province (ISWAP) has developed new tactics and strategies since ejecting Abubakar Shekau from the eponymous “Boko Haram” Shekau faction in 2016. These have included conducting roadside ambushes on the military to... MORE

On September 22, an India-wide crackdown on the neo-radical Islamic movement, Popular Front of India (PFI), was conducted by the National Investigative Agency (NIA), Enforcement Directorate (ED), and various state police agencies. The raids led to the arrests of more than 100 top leaders of... MORE