The U.S. drone program has proved to be an efficient tool for targeting terrorist bases and eliminating militant leaders within the ranks of groups like the Taliban and al-Qaeda. After years of relative success, however, the use of drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), is... MORE

Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), the official South Asian branch of the transnational al-Qaeda network, has spread its tentacles in the region beyond its strongholds. Beyond Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh, its influence has reached neighboring India and Myanmar. The emergence of the so-called Base... MORE

In early July, the United States, Russia and Jordan agreed to support a “de-escalation zone” in the southwestern Syrian governorates of al-Quneitra, Daraa and part of the governorate of Suwayda (TASS, July 31; Hurriyet, July 22). The de-escalation zone agreement was the product of a... MORE

Members of China’s Uighur population have played a small but important role in the spread of global jihad, and Beijing is playing an increasingly assertive role in pursuing them as China’s influence grows. China’s Uighur exodus began following the 2009 riots in Xinjiang that led... MORE

Iraq: Political Differences and Outside Influences As Iraq moves into the next stage of its campaign against Islamic State (IS), political rivalries, sectarian divisions and the outside influence of regional players are conspiring to hamper efforts to tackle the terrorist group. Backed by air strikes,... MORE

Over the last 12 months, al-Shabaab has markedly increased the tempo and sophistication of its attacks on a range of soft and hard targets in Somalia, the semi-autonomous region of Puntland and in southeast Kenya. The al-Qaeda affiliate is re-taking territory it once controlled in... MORE

On June 26, the U.S. State Department announced the designation of Mohammad Yusuf Shah (a.k.a. Syed Salahuddin) as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT). The 71-year-old is “supreme commander” of the Hizbul Mujahideen (HM), the largest Kashmiri militant group operating in the Kashmir Valley, and... MORE

Since Islamic State (IS) declared its caliphate in June 2014, the rate of jihadist violence has escalated throughout the Middle East and North Africa. Until last month, Iran had proved to be an exception to this general trend, with its aggressive efforts to combat IS... MORE

Cameroon: Boko Haram Stepping Up Attacks Two suicide bombers killed at least 14 people and wounded another 30 in northeast Cameroon on July 12 in an attack on a bustling market town near the Nigerian border (Cameroon-Info, July 14). The attack in Waza, attributed to... MORE

Last month, Australia experienced its fifth jihadist attack since September 2014. On the afternoon of June 5, 2017, a 29-year old man named Yacqub Khayre tampered with the electronic ankle bracelet he had to wear after being recently released from prison on parole. He then... MORE