Violence and Security

Hamill-Stewart: Iran's Islamic Theocracy Intensifies Repression & Executions in Response to Pressures of COVID-19 & Economic Decline

October 19, 2020

Writing in Arab News, Christopher Hamill-Stewart explains that Iran's Islamic theocratic regime is responding to growing popular unrest due to their failure to manage the COVID-19 pandemic and economic collapse with intensified repression of human rights, including arrests, executions, and torture of dissidents opposed to the Islamist regime.
Jerusalem’s Grand Mufti Emphasizes Jihad in Wake of UAE-Bahrain-Israel Normalization

October 19, 2020

Jerusalem’s Grand Mufti has responded to the normalization in relations between the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, and Israel by calling in the two Muslim-majority countries to remember the obligation jihad against Israel, arguing that Islamic legal texts lead to no other conclusion than the need to “fight against the thieving Jews” for their theft of demand that Israel’s theft of Islamic lands.
Joscelyn: U.S. Afghanistan Departure Gives Rise to Taliban and Al-Qaeda Global Jihads

October 19, 2020

According to Thomas Joscelyn, Senior Fellow and Senior Editor of Foundation for Defense of Democracies' Long War Journal, following the departure of U.S. operations after two decades, Afghanistan has become a base for the Taliban and al-Qaeda, who are working together using the South Asian country as a base for funding and coordination of international jihadists operations.
Taliban Expand Islamist Radical Influence in Afghanistan in Aftermath of Doha Peace Deal

October 14, 2020

In the wake of their peace negotiations with the government of Afghanistan and the US military, the Islamist jihadi Taliban have intensified its offensive actions, intimidation campaigns, and overall low-level use of violence in the southeastern part of Afghanistan that borders Pakistan.
Swiss Hostage Killed by Jihadist Coalition in Mali

October 14, 2020

The Swiss Foreign Ministry announced the murder of one of its citizens held hostage for four years by a coalition of Islamist extremist groups active in Mali, an update that came only hours following the release by the same West African jihadist coalition of a French aid worker and two Italian hostages.
IS Uses Social Media to Urge Followers to Kidnap US Politicians & Celebrities

October 13, 2020

IS is using the Telegram platform to call on its followers to kidnap high-profile American politicians and celebrities and their children, to be held as hostages to exchange for an al-Qaeda-affiliated Pakistan woman currently under US custody for attempted murder of American military personnel.
Expanding Jihadism in Mozambique Generates Human, Energy, and Security Costs

October 09, 2020

The expanding jihadist insurgency in the East African country of Mozambique has generated hundreds of thousands of internally displaced persons and increasing civilian casualties, weakening the security environment in the fragile state and putting at risk the potential energy dividends related to the country's huge natural gas reserves.
Turkey Expands Islamist Geopolitics to Target Israel

October 06, 2020

Turkey's Islamist President Erdogan has laid out the NATO member's geopolitical revisionist ambitions towards Israel, declaring Jerusalem a city whose al-Aqsa Mosque, located in the shared space with the Jewish Temple Mount, must be liberated by Turkey.
West Point Report Reveals Details of IS Recruitment Tactics

September 30, 2020

The Combatting Terrorism Center of the US Military Academy at West Point released an analysis of key Tactical Interrogation Reports of the current leader of the Islamic State, offering important details about his radicalization-and-recruitment narrative.
Pakistan's Socio-Political Order Endangered by Growing Sunni Attacks on Shiites

September 30, 2020

Over the last month Pakistan has witnessed increased violence against Shittes as Sunni Islamists groups consolidate their efforts within the South Asian country, weakening social political cohesion and degrading security.