The developments in Kuwait reported in the last issue of Terrorism Focus have accelerated. Following the arrest of high ranking officers in the Kuwaiti army on suspicion of planning terrorist acts against American targets, two policemen were shot dead in the Hawalli suburb of Kuwait... MORE

As the landmark Iraqi elections loom closer, the fate of a controversial and often misunderstood Iranian opposition group hangs in the balance. The formerly armed Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MKO) has been based in Iraq for twenty years with regime change as its exclusive cause. Not... MORE

A group of suspected extremists were arrested in Oman over a period of several days on charges of planning bomb attacks at the Muscat festival which, this year, coincided with the Eid al-Adha holiday that began on January 21. The arrests were apparently triggered by... MORE

More police raids on militant hideouts in Kuwait and the strength of the militants' armed response demonstrate the extremists' continuing vigor. They also illustrate how the broader jihadist wave — irrespective of an al-Qaeda connection — is spreading in the Gulf. On January 30 Kuwaiti... MORE

In October 2004, three explosions rocked Egypt's red sea resorts killing 33 people, mostly Israeli tourists. Despite an official Egyptian denial, Israel and other Western governments were quick in blaming these attacks on al-Qaeda. They associated the attacks with an audio tape broadcast on al-Jazeera... MORE

On January 14, 2004, the Arab television station Al-Jazeera broadcast a report about the death of Mamoun El Hodeiby, the “spiritual leader” of the influential Egyptian fundamentalist organization, the Muslim Brotherhood (Ikhwan al-Muslimoon). The Muslim Brotherhood (MB) is often regarded as the forerunner of many... MORE

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Salih appears to have weathered the worst of his terrorist problem. Indeed, with no al-Qaeda related incidents in two years, Salih's previously suspect security credentials are beginning to look brighter. A high-profile visit from German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder scheduled for March,... MORE

Posted on the jihadi forum al-Qal'ah (www.qal3ati.net), a new 44-page jihadi magazine, Dhurwat al-Sanam, "The Pinnacle", and subtitled the "Pinnacle of Islam" made its appearance on March 2. The magazine is billed as a "periodical issued by the information department of the Organization of the... MORE

The announcement on February 20 of the capture of Talib al-Dulaymi, known as Abu Qutayba, marks the latest in a string of arrests of high-ranking aides to Abu Mus'ab al-Zarqawi. Al-Dulaymi fell victim to the military operation conducted by U.S. and Iraqi troops termed "Operation... MORE

Half-heartedly trumpeted as a potential breakthrough against the insurgency, the Iraqi elections – in the short-term at least – seem to have made the security difficulties even more intractable. Indeed, any wishful thinking by American military and political planners in Iraq and their local allies... MORE