Latest Articles about Terrorism
Al-Qaeda after al-Yazid: Coping with the American Drone Offensive
The death of al-Qaeda’s operational leader in Afghanistan last month is a significant but not fatal setback for the radical Islamist movement. Mustafa Ahmad Muhammad Uthman Abu al-Yazid (a.k.a. Shaykh Sa’id al-Masri) was apparently killed in a May 21 drone attack in Pakistan’s North Waziristan... MORE
Attacks on the Ahmadiya in Lahore Reveal Growth of the Punjabi Taliban
The multiple suicide attacks by the Punjabi Taliban on two mosques in Lahore where members of the Jamaat-i-Ahmadiya had gathered to pray on May 28 hardly came as a surprise. As hundreds of Ahmadis gathered to offer prayers in the early Friday afternoon, several suicide... MORE
100 More Terrorist Groups Banned in India: What are India’s Counterterrorism Priorities?
India, one of the most terrorism-troubled countries in the world, is finally pursuing the idea of proscribing nearly 100 terrorist entities, both regional and international. The proscription will exist in tandem with the United Nations’ consolidated list of al-Qaeda and Taliban linked groups. Many of... MORE
Europol Report Suggests Separatism Rather than Islamism Constitutes Biggest Terrorist Threat to Europe
Europol, a European Union law enforcement agency dedicated to improving the effectiveness and cooperation of member states’ security agencies, released its annual report on terrorism in Europe on April 28. [1] The report provides an overview of the current situation regarding terrorism in Europe and... MORE
The Deobandi Debate Terrorist Tactics in Afghanistan and Pakistan
Muslim clerics following the Deobandi school of Islamic theology (named after the movement’s original seminary in Deoband, India) are now increasingly associated with the Taliban and other allied militant groups in both Afghanistan and Pakistan. Though the parent Deobandi seminary in India has distanced itself... MORE
The Religious Godfather of the Punjabi Taliban: Maulana Abdul Aziz Ghazi
Maulana Abdul Aziz Ghazi, the elder brother of Abdul Rasheed Ghazi of Lal Masjid (Red Mosque) infamy is probably the most notable Islamic ideologue in Pakistan’s rapidly radicalizing society (The Nation [Lahore], July 3, 2007). [1] With a following of thousands of diehard Islamists who... MORE
The Asian Tigers – The New Face of the Punjabi Taliban
The emergence in North Waziristan of the Asian Tigers, a previously unknown jihadi group, has several messages for jihad watchers. Two of them are very important. First, the Punjabi Taliban are slowly but surely growing in strength and numbers. Second, their war is primarily against... 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
Al-Qaeda Infiltration of the Western Sahara’s Polisario Movement
Jihadi forum participants were excited about a posting entitled: "Al-Qaeda penetrates the Polisario army and the Mauritanian army is in danger" (atahadi.com, April 20). Endeavors to penetrate the Polisario Front of the Western Sahara have long been on al-Qaeda's agenda.The posting gives a short brief... MORE
Chechen Officials Press Moscow to Assist with Demining as Blasts Still Claim Lives
On May 6, the Kavkazsky Uzel (Caucasian Knot) website reported that the Chechen parliament resolved to address Moscow with a request to assist with clearing minefields in the republic. An estimated 24,000 hectares (59,000 acres) of land in Chechnya remain littered with landmines years after... MORE