Author Archives: Thomas Joscelyn & Bill Roggio

Bill Roggio is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Editor of FDD's Long War Journal. Thomas Joscelyn is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Senior Editor for FDD's Long War Journal.





Taliban justifies 9/11 attack, blaming America’s ‘interventionist policies’

The Taliban describes al Qaeda’s Sept. 11, 2001 attack on the US as a “heavy slap on their dark faces,” claiming it “was the consequence of their interventionist policies and not our doing.” Additionally, the Taliban says it will not talk to the Afghan government, will fight Afghan security forces to the end, rejects the presence of foreign forces on Afghan soil, and calls western culture uncivilized.


Analysis: US military ends reporting on security situation in Afghanistan’s districts

The U.S. military and NATO have stopped producing an assessment that was considered key for measuring progress against the jihadist insurgency in Afghanistan, according to a report released on April 30 by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR). The metric, which tracked district stability, was one of the “most widely cited Afghan security […]


Why the Taliban should be required to renounce al Qaeda in any deal with US

Zalmay Khalilzad, the Trump administration’s top envoy for talks with the Taliban, claims that he is already satisfied with the Taliban’s counterterrorism assurances. But the Taliban’s close relationship with al Qaeda stretches from the 1990s until today. The Taliban should be required to publicly renounce al Qaeda in any final deal with the US. Even then, the break would need to be verified.






Newly released interrogation files demonstrate Iran’s long game in Iraq

A newly released interrogation report shows that Qayis al-Khazali identified Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis and Abu Mustafa al-Sheibani as the two individuals Iran trusted “the most with attempting to implement the Iranian agenda in Iraq.” The pair went from being marginal players shortly after the US-led invasion in 2003 to leading the Iranian-backed Popular Mobilization Forces, one of most powerful and influential military organizations in Iraq.



Analysis: Taliban will halt attacks on Afghan government for 3 days

The Taliban has announced that it will refrain from offensive operations against the Afghan government for three days during the Eid holiday. However, this is a shorter timeframe than the Afghan government’s announced ceasefire. And the jihadists say they will continue to attack the “foreign occupiers,” meaning the US and allied forces, during this brief respite. The Taliban also does not say it will participate in meaningful peace talks with the Afghan government.





US resumes strikes against Islamic State in Libya

US Africa Command launched airstrikes against the Islamic State in Libya for the first time in eight months. AFRICOM also revealed to FDD’s Long War Journal that an estimated 800 to 900 Islamic State fighters were killed during Operation Odyssey Lightning’s air campaign in Sirte last year.







Pakistani Taliban confirms senior al Qaeda commander killed in Afghanistan

The Pakistani Taliban confirmed today that Qari Muhammad Yasin, a senior al Qaeda military commander, was killed along with three of his “companions” in a US drone strike on Mar. 19. The airstrike was carried out in Afghanistan’s eastern Paktika province. Yasin was a member of the Punjabi Taliban, which includes jihadists from various other Pakistani terrorist organizations who are aligned with al Qaeda.





US airstrikes target Islamic State stronghold in Libya

The US announced today that it has carried out airstrikes in support of local fighters who are trying to dislodge the Islamic State from the Libyan city of Sirte. After initially advancing in May and early June, an offensive launched by the “Solid Structure” operations room ground to a halt, which likely prompted the US to assist with air support.