Religious Extremism

Syria's Main Islamist Group Continues Jihadist War, Celebrating Taliban Victory

August 25, 2021

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the main Islamist extremist group aiming to set up an Islamic emirate in northern Syria and Iraq, is celebrating the Taliban victory in Afghanistan with propaganda posts and on-the-ground offensives that belie the group's leaders recent diplomatic moderation aimed at normalizing relations with the United States.
Globalization of Sharia Law Reflected in Variety of Islamist Regimes

August 25, 2021

The globalization of sharia law as a system of governance, family law, financial and judicial practice is reflected in the diversity and scope of Islamists regimes across the world, and the Taliban's victory in Afghanistan will add another Islamic state to the growing range of sharia state and non-state actors.
Afghanistan's Jihadist Geopolitics Offer Foreboding

August 25, 2021

The Guardian reports that the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan is creating a geospace for jihadist competition among a range of Islamist extremist groups including al-Qaida, IS, and a diversity of sub-groups, whose short-term political-military jockeying for turf will be outweighed by the global destabilization caused by their ideological consensus and operational collaboration.
Afghanistan Offers New Homeland for Worldwide Jihadism

August 24, 2021

The New Yorker reports that the Taliban victory in Afghanistan will make the country a homeland for worldwide jihadist groups already celebrating the victory of militant Islamism against $1 trillion US investment and a 20-year military presence by Western coalition forces, and international security experts concur that Al Qaeda (AQ) will use Afghanistan for recruitment and terrorist operations against US assets in the homeland and abroad.
Taliban Victory Emboldens Islamo-Nationalists in Turkey & Pakistan

August 24, 2021

The Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan has evoked commentary from Islamo-nationalist political elites in Turkey and Pakistan, and the Taliban's declaration of an Islamic emirate regime has been met by anti-Western triumphalism in Ankara and Islamabad, suggesting a further turn by those Islamist regimes to Eurasianist powers such as China and Russia.
Renewal of UN Monitoring Mission in Lebanon Reveals Control of Hezbollah

August 23, 2021

Hezbollah's political strength and institutional power in Lebanon is evident in the discussions related to the UN Security Council's annual decision on extension of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), as the Islamist militant group is imposing conditionality on the UNIFIL's renewal by opposing the UN Secretary General's suggestions regarding upgrades to the electronic surveillance technologies intended to facilitate UN peacekeeping monitors at the Lebanese-Israeli border.
Taliban Establishment of Islamic Emirate Creates Permissible Environment for Jihadis

August 23, 2021

According to BESA, The Taliban's establishment of an Islamic Emirate in Afghanistan is creating a permissible environment for jihadist actors in South and Central Asia, and the short-term prospects for respect for human rights and rule of law in Afghanistan remain unclear based on contradictory discourse and actions by the Islamist extremist group.
Somaliland Is Microcosm of Global Geopolitics of Islamist Extremism

August 18, 2021

Somaliland remains an internationally unrecognized state by the international community 30 years since its breakaway from Somalia, but political economic engagement by African regional powers and global powers signals the geopolitical significance of the statelet, as does the plethora of jihadist groups operating within in and near Somaliland’s borders.
NATO: Turkey Announces their Ideology Complementarity with Taliban

August 18, 2021

According to The Nordic Monitor, the president of Turkey announced that the NATO member “has nothing against the Taliban’s ideology and beliefs,” in a statement indicative of the jihadist problem inside the Transatlantic Alliance.
Islamist Regimes Win from Taliban Takeover of Afghanistan

August 17, 2021

According to the Jerusalem Post, the Islamist regimes of Pakistan, Qatar, Turkey, and Iran are clear winners at the outset from the Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan, since the four regimes endorse a diversity of ideological versions of radical Islamism and also have supported the Taliban, while anti-US regimes like China and Russia may seek to limit Taliban contagion by engaging with the Islamist terror group.