The competition between regional and global powers for access to—and influence in—the Horn of Africa is intensifying. The Horn is Asia’s and the Gulf’s door to Africa’s vast natural resources. While great powers’ growing interest in the Horn may lead to greater development in the... MORE

On January 18, al-Qaeda affiliated al-Shabaab conducted a suicide bombing outside of a Turkish military base in Somalia’s capital city of Mogadishu, killing at least four people and injuring around 14 others (Garowe Online, January 19). The group claimed responsibility for the attack through the... MORE

The third anniversary of the birth of the Hirak Movement in Algeria occurred on February 22, 2022. Three years earlier, in early February 2019, the then Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika officially announced his decision to run for a fifth term, despite his obvious poor health... MORE

Indonesia Keeps Close Tabs on Jemaa Islamiyah and Jihadists in Sulawesi Jacob Zenn Indonesia stands out as one of the few countries in the world that can claim it has largely won its domestic War on Terror. Jemaa Islamiyah (JI), for example, has not carried... MORE

The long-planned Ukrainian war is going poorly for President Vladimir Putin on many fronts, from the fiercely defended outskirts of Kyiv to the closed doors of McDonald’s restaurants in Moscow. However, the drastic deterioration of Russia’s international standing is likely particularly painful for him. The... MORE

Al-Qaeda’s Malian Affiliate Celebrates French Withdrawal Jacob Zenn On February 17, France announced its withdrawal of troops from Mali (France24.com, February 17). President Emmanuel Macron noted that victory was “impossible” if the Malian junta, which came to power through a coup in 2021, continued to... MORE

On January 18, 2022, Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), which is the Islamic State (IS)’s affiliate in Nigeria and the Lake Chad basin, released a 27-minute propaganda video titled “The Empowerment Generation” on its official media platform (Ujasusi, January 23). The video provides exclusive... MORE

Chinese Interests Come Under Pressure in Myanmar’s Insurgency Jacob Zenn China’s involvement in economic projects in Pakistan has riled ethnic-based insurgent groups, which believe their peoples’ interests are being ignored, or worse, trampled upon (Terrorism Monitor, May 7, 2021). In Myanmar, however, this trend of... MORE

Last November, the Moscow Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) announced it was creating its own exarchate for Africa and would seek to wrest control of the continent’s bishoprics and parishes away from the Orthodox Church of Alexandria and All Africa (a.k.a. the Greek... MORE

Nigeria’s Ansaru Raises Profile on al-Qaeda’s Media Agenda Jacob Zenn After several years of a media hiatus following Boko Haram Shekau faction’s and Islamic State in West Africa Province’s (ISWAP) attacks, al-Qaeda’s de facto Nigerian branch known as Ansarul Muslimina Fi Biladis-Sudan (Ansaru) reemerged in October 2019... MORE