April was an extremely successful month for the Russian security forces in the North Caucasus, following the liquidation of Israpil Validzhanov, the leader of the Dagestani jamaat on April 18, and of Emir Mukhannad, a well-known Arab volunteer in the ranks of the Chechen armed... MORE

Boko Haram carried out a series of attacks in northern Nigeria during the country’s elections, which began on April 9 with legislative elections and continued on April 16 and April 26 with presidential and gubernatorial elections. While Boko Haram has typically targeted government buildings, military... MORE

Russian officials reacted favorably to the killing of the al-Qaeda terrorist network leader Osama bin Laden by SEAL commandos during a raid of a compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. The Kremlin congratulated the United States with a “serious success in the fight against international terrorism” and... MORE

Contrary to statements released by Pakistani intelligence agencies denying any knowledge of the occupants of the Abbottabad compound raided by American Special Forces units on May 1, there is evidence that the occupants of the compound housing Osama bin Laden were well known to Pakistani... MORE

The United States has made good on its promise to bring Osama Bin Laden to justice through brilliant intelligence work capped by a precise military operation.  Only al-Qaeda or its sympathizers would disagree with the account so far, but at this point the world of... MORE

On April 29, the Russian security services wiped out the leadership of the insurgency in Kabardino-Balkaria in a single stroke. Ten rebels, including rebel leader Asker Dzhappuev (aka Abdullah), deputy leader Kazbek Tashuev (aka Abdul Dzhabbar) and Ratmir Shameyev (aka Zakaria) were killed in a... MORE

Originally published: Terrorism Monitor Volume 8, Issue 24 (June 17, 2010)With rumors emerging once again of the death of Osama bin Laden, it seems like an appropriate time to examine the future of al-Qaeda in the event of the elimination of Bin Laden and his... MORE

During a U.S. Senate hearing on March 29, 2011 on the composition of Libya’s revolutionary rebel movement, EUCOM commander and NATO Supreme Allied Commander for Europe Admiral James Stavridis commented that intelligence informed him that there were “flickers” of transnational al-Qaeda jihadis operating in the... MORE

Early Life and Education Maulana Fazlur Rehman was born into a religious family in 1953 in Dera Ismail Khan, one of the more underdeveloped areas in Pakistan. His ancestors came from Kandahar. Due to the severe and harsh winters in Kandahar, they would migrate to... MORE

The chasm between the Sunni ruling elite and the Shi’a majority has been always the driving factor shaping the modern political history of Bahrain. Although Shi’a Muslims form the majority of the population of the small nation, the Sunni al-Khalifa family has been ruling the island... MORE