Latest Articles about Middle East
Muqtada al-Sadr Calls for a New Role for the Jaysh al-Mahdi Militia in Iraq
Recent calls by the radical Iraqi Shi’a cleric Muqtada al-Sadr to his Jaysh al-Mahdi (JaM) militia to become involved in protecting local Shi’a mosques have ignited fear of a new sectarian confrontation in Iraq. Al-Sadr has suggested that his followers join the national security forces... MORE
Shifting Sands in the Gulf: The Iran Calculus in China-Saudi Arabia Relations
The fourth joint meeting on economy and trade convened by China and Saudi Arabia in January 2010 in the Saudi capital of Riyadh came and went without much fanfare. Yet the meeting between China, the world’s second largest and fastest growing oil consumer, and Saudi... MORE
Breaking Yemen Apart: Al-Qaeda Exploits Social Divisions to Further its Agenda
Since its emergence in January 2009, al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) has become much more ambitious in carrying out international terrorist operations. The group’s ambition quickly grew beyond its stated desire to overthrow the Yemeni regime, reaching first into Saudi Arabia and then into... MORE
The Succession Question: The Islamic State of Iraq Searches for New Leaders
The killing of the two top leaders of the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI - al-Qaeda’s umbrella group in Iraq), Abu Omar al-Baghdadi and Abu Ayub al-Masri (a.k.a Abu Hamza al-Muhajir), came at a crucial time for the organization. The need for symbolic figures in... MORE
AQAP’s Man in the South: Nasir al-Wuhayshi
Nasir al-Wuhayshi (a.k.a Abu Basir) appeared in a video in January 2009 to announce the merger between al-Qaeda branches in Saudi Arabia and Yemen under his command. The new organization was given the name Qaedat al-Jihad in the Arabian Peninsula (al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula,... MORE
In the Shadow of al-Zarqawi: A Profile of the Saudi Militant Saleh al-Qara’wi
The late leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq Abu Mus’ab al-Zarqawi, who was killed on June 7, 2006 in a U.S. missile strike, always had ambitions to create a Salafi-jihadi movement in the Levant region. [1] Zarqawi worked to achieve his goal since the establishment of... MORE
Iranian Naval Exercises Display Advancements in IRGC Armed Capabilities
On April 22, the Iranian armed forces began an annual series of military exercises over the course of three days in the strategic Strait of Hormuz region (The Great Prophet 5) (IRNA, April 23; Press TV, April 23; Mehr, April 23; Keyhan, April 23). Named... MORE
Commander of Iraq’s Hizbullah Brigades Insists on Resistance to U.S. Occupation
While most of Iraq’s armed Shi’a resistance has entered the political process, some independent Shi’a resistance groups remain in the field, determined to expel the American occupation by force of arms. Leading among these is the Kata’ib Hizbullah (Brigades of the Party of God), who... MORE
Al-Qaeda in Iraq Resurfaces with New Strategy and Specific Operations
The reported death of the elusive leader of the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, and his al-Qaeda colleague, Abu Ayyub al-Masri, in a combined attack by U.S. and Iraqi government forces on April 20 raises important questions regarding the future of the... MORE
Syria in China’s New Silk Road Strategy
While the international community is fixated on Iran’s nuclear program, China has been steadily expanding its political, economic and strategic ties with Syria. Since Syrian President Bashar al-Assad visited China in 2004 on the heels of the 2003 U.S. intervention in Iraq, there have been... MORE