Afghanistan
Crocker: Kabul “pretty secure city”
Monthly Archives: May 2012
Al Qaeda
Obama’s Afghanistan speech: a small view of the war sparked by 9/11
Al Qaeda
Electioneering President sees end of war in Afghanistan
Egypt
Egypt: Military vows to cede power if president elected in first round
Yemen
The Yemeni military said it killed 15 al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula fighters in airstrikes on a camp in Ja’ar. A second Yemeni security guard died of wounds from yesterday’s attack on a convoy in Hadramout. AQAP is distributing free gas and electricity to people living in areas under its control.
Al Qaeda
US-Afghan pact leaves door open for drone strikes
European Court of Human Rights
Abu Qatada judges to decide his appeal on 9 May
Somalia
Shabaab arrested four businessmen and clan elders in Afgoye for links to the Somali government. AMISOM appointed a Ugandan general to lead forces in Somalia.
Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb
The Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa, an al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb offshoot, demanded $30 million for the release of two European women aid workers and $20 million for the release of seven Algerian diplomats. The group also wants Algeria to free prisoners.
Taliban announce start of Al Farooq spring offensive
The “Al Farooq Jihadi spring operation” offensive will begin on May 3, and will target foreign and Afghan security forces, Afghan political and government officials, the Afghan High Peace Council, and anti-Taliban militias.
Afghanistan
Afghanistan – Intelligence Chief Calls on Tribal Elders to Discourage Insurgency
Turkey
Turkey’s artistic freedoms under pressure from Islamist government seeking to uphold values
Libya
Smuggling stirs trouble on Tunisia’s Libya border
Shabaab
Coming face to face with Somalia’s al-Shabab
Taliban launch suicide assault in Kabul following Obama’s departure
Five Taliban fighters and five civilians were killed in the assault on a civilian compound in the Afghan capital. The attack took place just hours after President Obama reiterated that the US seeks a negotiated settlement with the Taliban to end the war.
Al Qaeda
Osama Bin Laden: The night he came for dinner
LWJ Series: Analyzing the bin Laden documents
We will be analyzing Osama bin Laden’s documents in a series of articles. While partial declassification is a good thing, the public should see nearly all of bin Laden’s documents, not just some of them.
United States
Adis Medunjanin, a resident of Queens, N.Y., was convicted of all charges relating to the foiled 2009 New York subway bomb plot. He and two co-conspirators had been instructed by al Qaeda while in Pakistan to return to New York to carry out an attack.
Afghan intel confirms death of senior Afghan Taliban leader, possibly 25 others
The NDS chief confirmed that the Taliban executed Maluvi Mohammad Ismail, the former Deputy Military Council Chairman for the Quetta Shura. Twenty-five other senior Afghan Taliban leaders may also have been executed in Quetta, Pakistan for defying orders not to engage in talks with the Afghan government.
Afghanistan
President Obama is in Afghanistan to sign a security pact with President Karzai. Security forces killed 19 Taliban fighters. Insurgents killed three policemen and two security guards in an attack on a NATO convoy in Farah.
Iraq
Insurgents killed 88 civilians, 20 soldiers, and 18 policemen in attacks in April. Iraq’s crude oil exported reached the highest level in decades.
Yemen
“Gunmen” in Hadramout province wounded Total’s French security chief and killed his Yemeni bodyguard. A Swiss teacher who has been kidnapped by al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula pled with the Swiss government to negotiate her release.
Somalia
A suicide bomber killed three members of parliament and another Somali in an attack in Dusamareb. Eleven people were killed after Shabaab attacked Somali and Ethiopian troops in Hudur.
Nigeria
“Gunmen” killed three Christian traders in an attack in Potiskum. Security forces killed a Boko Haram fighter during a raid in Kano.
Shabaab suicide bomber kills 3 members of Somali parliament
The al Qaeda affiliate has executed 10 suicide attacks in Somalia already this year.
Al Qaeda
Pentagon report paints mixed picture of war in Afghanistan
Is al Qaeda on the verge of defeat?
The answer is no.
United Kingdom
Scotland Yard arrested seven people suspected of involvement in a network that smuggles khat to the US and Canada; the network’s proceeds are thought to be used to fund terror activities in Somalia. In a separate case, a Birmingham man, Kamran Ahmed, 21, was charged with possessing documents useful for preparing acts of terrorism.
Droning on
A discussion at C-SPAN on the US’s use of unmanned aircraft in counterterrorism and military operations.
ISAF captures Taliban leader linked to Musa Qala suicide attack
The Taliban leader was involved in the assassination attempt against Haji Abdul “Koka” Wali, the chief of police for Musa Qala in Helmand province.