Northern Afghanistan, a secure and stable area until last spring, is now an insecure and fearful place. Although Taliban and al-Qaeda activities have been limited mostly to southern Afghanistan over the past eight years, the Taliban were able to expand their terrorist activities to central... MORE

Not far from the site of a disastrous encounter with Afghan insurgents last year, French forces have now mounted an offensive to clear the strategic Tagab valley of Taliban and Hizb-i-Islami fighters. An important mission lies behind “Operation Avalon” – the construction of a new... MORE

Earlier this year Tariq al-Fadhli, the prominent jihadist leader from South Yemen, broke his 15 year alliance with the Yemeni government of President Ali Abdullah Saleh. Al-Fadhli, who was a member of the anti-Soviet Mujahideen movement in Afghanistan, is often described as the founder of... MORE

Last year’s devastating attack on Mumbai by operatives of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) was a reminder of the importance of securing the maritime environment against terrorist activities. It was not the first time terrorists had exploited weaknesses in marine security in Asia, but it drew attention to... MORE

Despite the fact that the Pakistani military has pushed Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters out of 90 percent of their stronghold in the South Waziristan tribal agency bordering Afghanistan, there are no indications as yet of weakness on the part of the Taliban. The Taliban have... MORE

Moscow plans to sell helicopters on a commercial basis to NATO in support of International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) operations in Afghanistan. Sources within the Russian aviation industry indicated that the Alliance is interested in procuring civil transport helicopters to enhance prompt and safe troop... MORE

Violence and instability in Afghanistan continue to rage in the form of an organic insurgency shaped by local identities, networks, and interests.  Operating under the nebulous rubric of the Taliban, the insurgents in Afghanistan have evolved in sophistication, lethality, and geographic scope in recent years. ... MORE

Suicide terrorism has taken a lethal turn in Pakistan recently with the widespread use of vehicle bombs, known to security services as Vehicle Borne Improvised Explosive Devices (VBIED). These suicide VBIED attacks have targeted both civilian and military establishments and the frequency of these attacks... MORE

While the Western press has been occupied recently with accounts of fraudulent elections in Afghanistan and the alleged role of President Hamid Karzai’s brother as a paid CIA agent, a stranger but perhaps more instructive story was playing out in Afghanistan that reveals the rather... MORE

The recently released 41st issue of the Afghan Jihadi e-magazine al-Somod carried an interview with the Amir of Jihad of Balkh province in northern Afghanistan, Mullah Raz Mohammad bin Sayd al-Haydari. Al-Somod is published by the press center of the so-called Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan... MORE