Iraq
Al Qaeda in Iraq killed five worshippers in a bombing at a mosque in Madain and two policemen in an attack in Kirkuk. Iraqi special forces captured five al Qaeda fighters in a remote area of Babil.
Author Archives: Bill Roggio
Yemen
A Yemeni newspaper reported that Ibrahim al Asiri, al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula’s master bombmaker, may have been wounded in the Aug. 10 drone strike in Lahj. Yemen’s spokesman in Washington denied al Asiri was wounded or killed.
Yemeni official denies report that US drones wounded AQAP’s master bomb maker
A newspaper reported that Ibrahim al Asiri may have been badly wounded in a US drone strike, but Yemen’s spokesman in Washington denied this.
Iraq
Al Qaeda in Iraq killed 26 people in bombings and attacks in Balad, Baqubah, and Fallujah. The attack in Fallujah was carried out by a suicide bomber; five soldiers were killed. Security forces in Mosul killed a suicide bomber before he could detonate his explosives.
Wuhayshi imparted lessons of AQAP operations in Yemen to AQIM
The al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula emir was providing guidance to al Qaeda’s affiliate in North Africa on its operation in northern Mali more than one year ago.
Iraq
Al Qaeda in Iraq killed seven people in a series of bombings and attacks throughout Iraq. Dozens of tribal leaders in Anbar province vowed not to shelter al Qaeda leaders and fighters who escaped from Abu Ghraib prison last month.
Yemen
US drones killed two al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula fighters in a strike in Lahj. AQAP fighters killed five soldiers in an attack at a checkpoint outside of the Balhaf liquefied natural gas export terminal in Hadramout province.
US kills 2 AQAP fighters in drone strike in southern Yemen
The US has launched nine strikes in Yemen in the past 14 days. The strike in Lahj is the first recorded in the southern province.
Iraq
Al Qaeda in Iraq killed 69 people in a wave of car bombings in major cities throughout Iraq. In one attack, a suicide bomber killed 8 people in an attack in Tuz Khurmatu. The body of a wanted al Qaeda leader was found in Babil.
Free Syrian Army commander celebrates victory with al Qaeda affiliate
FSA commander Abdul Jabbar al Okaidi celebrates the takeover of the Minnigh airport with Abu Jandal, a known al Qaeda leader. “We’re here to kiss every hand pressed on the trigger,” al Okaidi said.
Islamic Jihad Union fighters attack US base, plant ‘anti-helicopter’ mine
The IJU continues to operate in eastern Afghanistan. The group said that fighters from Russia, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan as well as Pashtuns participated in attacks on US bases, and that the fighters have deployed a mine designed to down a US Apache.
Pakistan
Four “gunmen” killed 10 people in an attack during Eid prayers at a mosque in Quetta. No group has claimed credit for the attack. Security guards killed a would-be suicide bomber outside of a Shia mosque in Islamabad.
Pakistan
A suicide bomber killed 30 people, including at least 21 policemen, in an attack at a funeral for a police officer at a mosque in Quetta. Four senior police officials were among those killed in the blast.
Afghanistan
The Taliban killed 14 women and children in a bombing at a graveyard in Nangarhar. President Karzai said the Taliban should open a political office in Afghanistan.
Iraq
Al Qaeda killed a policeman, his wife, and three children in an attack on his home in Tikrit; eight more people were killed in a car bombing outside of his home. An al Qaeda bombmaker died in a premature detonation. Police killed an al Qaeda fighter and captured two more on a boat on the […]
Yemen
US drones killed six al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula operatives and two civilians in a pair of strikes in Hadramout province. Yemeni officials are denying that AQAP plotted to take over the city of Mukallah and two petroleum export facilities.
Suicide bomber kills 21 Pakistani policemen
Four senior police officials are said to be among the 30 people killed in the suicide attack.
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant leads charge to take Syrian airport
An “emigrant lion from the Peninsula of Muhammad” drove a BMP packed with explosives into the Minnigh airbase in Aleppo province; assault teams then took the airbase. Free Syrian Army units fought alongside al Qaeda’s affiliates during the attack.
US targets AQAP in 2 more drone strikes, kills 6 operatives
The US has dramatically stepped up its targeting of AQAP as a plot to attack US facilities has unfolded. There have been four strikes in the past two days, and eight in 12 days.
Iraq
Al Qaeda in Iraq killed 17 people, including four policemen in attacks throughout the country. The death toll from yesterday’s attack across the country rose to 42.
Yemen
US drones struck for the fifth time in 11 days, killing seven al Qaeda operatives in a strike in Shabwa province. The government said it foiled an al Qaeda plot to take control of the provincial capital of Mukallah and seize the Balhaf and Al Dabbah gas and oil export facilities.
US strikes twice in Yemen, kills 11 AQAP operatives in drone attacks
The US has launched six strikes in 11 days. The strikes are part of a US effort hit al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, whose emir is at the center of the plot to conduct attacks on Western targets.
Iraq
Al Qaeda in Iraq killed 12 people in bombings in Baghdad, a policeman in a shooting a Fallujah, and two more civilians in a bombing in Khanaqin. Security forces captured a senior al Qaeda leader during a series of raids in western Anbar province.
US adds emir of Pakistan-based Mullah Nazir Group to list of global terrorists
Bahawal Khan, the leader of the Mullah Nazir Group who is considered to be part of the “good Taliban” by Pakistani officials, continues to support al Qaeda, runs training camps, and conducts operations in Afghanistan.
Al Qaeda
Wishful thinking on the war on terror
US kills 4 AQAP operatives in Yemen drone strike
The strike, which took place in the central province of Marib, is the fourth in Yemen in 10 days.
Afghanistan
The Taliban killed four civilians in an IED attack in Kandahar. The NDS captured 52 Pakistanis in Afghanistan over the past four months. The Taliban denied that two senior commanders were killed during recent fighting in Nangarhar.
Iraq
Insurgents killed four Iraqis in a bombing in Baghdad and two more in a shooting in Madain. Muqtada al Sadr is rumored to have shut down his political office and withdrawn from politics.
Nigeria
Seventeen Boko Haram fighters and a policemen were killed when the Islamist group attacked a police station in Bama. Fifteen more Boko Haram fighters and two soldiers were killed in a clash in Malam Fatori.
So, is al Qaeda still defeated?
Counterterrorism experts who have claimed that al Qaeda is defeated need to rethink their position.