The Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP, or “Pakistani Taliban”) now has a confirmed presence not only in northwestern Pakistan's Swat district, but also in Dir, Bajaur, and Buner districts. After a military operation in Swat in 2009, the TTP had been expelled from the area, but TTP... MORE

Defections and Leadership Losses are Leading to Abu Sayyaf’s Demise Philippine army operations are further eroding the threat from Abu Sayyaf at the same time as Indonesian security forces are neutralizing remnants of Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) and Mujahidin Indonesia Timor (MIT). If these trends continue,... MORE

On July 31, a U.S drone strike killed al-Qaeda (AQ) leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in Kabul, Afghanistan. Al-Zawahiri appears to have lived in a house linked to the family of the powerful Taliban Interior Minister, Sirajuddin Haqqani (al-Jazeera, August 5). Several hours after the news of... MORE

A notable trend exists of Islamic State in Khorasan Province (ISKP) martyrs becoming internet icons in the South and Central Asian pro-Islamic State (IS) online ecosystem. Abu Muhammad al-Tajiki joined these ranks on June 18 when he conducted a suicide bombing against Kabul’s Gurdwara Karta-e-Parwan... MORE

After the fall of the Afghan government in August 2021, Taliban-ruled Afghanistan once again emerged as a safe haven for Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), also known as the “Pakistani Taliban.” Despite serious complaints from the Pakistani government, the Afghan Taliban have taken few measures to dislodge... MORE

On September 9, the Nigerian security services announced that military equipment was found in the home of Kaduna-based Desert Herald newspaper editor, Tukur Mamu (premiumtimes.com, September 9). This followed Mamu’s detainment in Cairo International Airport and deportation back to Nigeria, where he was arrested at... MORE

Two recent events—the Ukrainian parliament’s October 18 declaration that Chechnya is a Russian-occupied territory and the arrival in Ukraine of a group of Chechen and Syrian war veterans led by Abdulhakim al-Shishani—reflect a significant shift in Kyiv’s policy toward non-Russian minority groups, especially in the... MORE

On July 30, al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, who replaced Osama bin Laden in 2011, was killed in a U.S. drone strike in Afghanistan. U.S. President Joseph R. Biden announced his death on August 1 saying that, “Now justice has been delivered, and this terrorist leader... MORE

In April 2022, then al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri released a video to incite Indian Muslims over the Karnataka hijab row (YouTube/India_Today, April 6; The Hindu, April 6). The video was released by al-Qaeda's official media channel, al-Sahab, and called on India's Muslims to oppose the... MORE

Since the August U.S. drone strike that killed al-Qaeda leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri in Kabul, the Pakistani government’s peace talks with the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP, or “Pakistani Taliban”) have been suspended. The Afghan Taliban’s Defense Minister Mullah Yaqoob further accused Pakistan of allowing the U.S. to... MORE