Islamic State claims suicide attacks in Sana’a mosques
The coordinated suicide assault is the first high-profile attack by the Islamic State inside Yemen.
Category Archives: Long War Journal
Islamic State reportedly claims responsibility for Tunis massacre
Twenty of the victims were visiting from Western nations and elsewhere, which the Islamic State referred to as “Crusader countries.”
US kills Pakistani Taliban commander in drone strike
Khawray Mehsud served as a bodyguard and close aide to Baitulllah Mehsud, the founder of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan. The Taliban said Khawray was a skilled military commander who fought on multiple “fronts” in both Pakistan and Afghanistan.
US confirms Shabaab intelligence official killed in drone strike
Garaar is the fourth senior Shabaab official killed by US forces since September 2014, and the third high-ranking official in the Amniyat killed since December 2014.
Iranian-backed militias rampaged in central Iraq after freeing town: HRW
A Human Rights Watch report says that the militias looted, burned thousands of buildings, and abducted at least 11 people during the Amerli offensive last summer. “The widespread burning of civilian homes by the militia groups in areas under their control appeared to have had no clear military objective and to represent collective punishment against residents of local Sunni villages,” HRW stated.
Analysis: Shiite Pakistani casualties of the wars in Syria and Iraq
Seven Pakistani Shiites who were killed while fighting for Bashar al Asad’s regime in Syria appear to have been recruited and trained inside Iran.
Islamic State in ‘Khorasan province’ commander killed in southern Afghanistan
Hafiz Wahidi was the deputy emir for the Islamic State’s Khorasan province. His predecessor was killed in a US airstrike in Helmand last month.
Islamic State overruns Iraqi Army brigade headquarters north of Fallujah
The Thar Thar area, where the attack took place, is key terrain between Anbar and Salahaddin provinces. The assault on the base comes as fighting has escalated in Anbar’s provincial capital of Ramadi.
US targets senior Shabaab intelligence official in airstrike
The airstrike is said to have targeted Adan Garaar, a senior official in the Amniyat, Shabaab’s intelligence and security service that also is responseble for external operations. Garaar’s fate is not known.
Islamic State spokesman publicly accepts Boko Haram’s allegiance
In a new audio speech, the Islamic State’s spokesman, Abu Muhammad al Adnani, accepts the pledge of allegiance made by Boko Haram’s leader earlier this month.
Foreign suicide bombers launch assault on Ramadi
At least 13 suicide bombers, including jihadists from Belgium, Australia, Uzbekistan, Chechnya, Syria, Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia launched a coordinated assault on Anbar’s provincial capital.
Pakistani jihadist groups, Lashkar-i-Islam merge into the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan
Omar Khalid Khorasani’s Jamaat ul Ahrar faction and Mullah Fazlullah’s group have put aside differences and reformed the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan. Lashkar-e-Islam also joined the group.
Analysis: Shiite Afghan casualties of the war in Syria
The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps – Qods Force is backing the Fatemiyoun Brigade, a unit comprised of Shiite Afghans living in Iran. The leader of the Fatemiyoun Brigade has been pictured with Qods Force commander Qassem Soleimani.
Analysis: Iran is no partner in the fight against the Islamic State
The threat of the Islamic State not only makes Iraq more dependent on Tehran and legitimizes Iran’s military presence in Iraq, it also provides the regime in Tehran with another bargaining chip in nuclear negotiations.
Shiite militias, Iraqi forces surround Tikrit
Shiite militias closely linked to Iran and Qods Force commander Qassem Suleimani have taken control of key towns surrounding the central Iraqi city.
Osama bin Laden’s Files: The Pakistani government wanted to negotiate
Recently released letters recovered in Osama bin Laden’s compound reveal that key Pakistani leaders, including the brother of Pakistan’s current prime minister, sought out negotiations with al Qaeda. Pakistan intelligence also communicated with al Qaeda leaders through jihadist intermediaries to discuss a possible truce.
Boko Haram leader pledges allegiance to the Islamic State
Boko Haram’s leader, Abu Bakr Shekau, has pledged allegiance to the emir of the Islamic State, Abu Bakr al Baghdadi.
Al Murabitoon attacks nightclub in Mali capital
The assault, which has been claimed by the Al Qaeda-affiliated group, is the first of its kind in Bamako.
Al Qaeda veteran reportedly targeted in Syria
Abu Hamam al Suri, an al Qaeda veteran who has served as a senior military commander in the Al Nusrah Front, was reportedly targeted in Syria. There are conflicting accounts concerning his fate.
Mapping the emergence of the Islamic State in Afghanistan
The Islamic State claims it operates in multiple Afghan provinces, and runs a training camp in Farah.
Iranian-backed Shiite militias lead Iraq’s fight to retake Tikrit
Massive columns of Shiite militas, including some groups that are listed by the US as Foreign Terrorist Organizations, have been leading the fight in Tikrit. Qods Force commander Qassem Soleimani has been spotted at the front lines.
Osama Bin Laden’s Files: The Arab revolutions
Al Qaeda’s general manager, Atiyah Abd al Rahman, believed there was “good” in the 2011 Arab uprisings. And he discussed with Osama bin Laden how to send al Qaeda operatives around the globe to take advantage of the situation. The Libyan “brothers” were especially anxious to wage jihad in their home country.
Islamic State claims American suicide bomber attacked Iraqi troops
The Islamic State claimed that Abu Dawoud al Amriki executed a suicide attack against Iraqi troops and Iranian-backed Shiite militias as they massed in the central city of Samarra in preparation for the newly launched offensive in Tikrit.
Osama bin Laden’s Files: Pakistan operations chief denied spot on top shura
One al Qaeda commander, Abu ‘Uthman, was a bit too close to Gulbuddin Hekmatyar for Osama bin Laden’s liking. Abu ‘Uthman was denied a seat on al Qaeda’s elite shura council because of his flaws, including his lack of proper respect for Mullah Omar.
US-backed Hazm Movement disbands after Al Nusrah attack
The Hazm Movement was once touted as a moderate Syrian rebel group that the US could work with to counter the Islamic State in Syria. In the past, the rebel group allied with the Al Nusrah Front and other jihadist movements.
Osama bin Laden’s Files: Al Qaeda’s deputy general manager in Yemen
Documents recovered in Osama bin Laden’s compound reveal that Nasser bin Ali al Ansi, a senior Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) official, was appointed as one of al Qaeda’s deputy general managers. It is highly likely that he continues to serve in that role underneath Nasir al Wuhayshi, who is both AQAP’s emir and al Qaeda’s global general manager.
Afghan ‘Death’ militia emerges, vows to fight Islamic State, Taliban
The creation of the “Marg” militia appears to be a part of a growing trend of the re-arming of warlords and the defunct Northern Alliance as Afghans fear the resurgence of the Taliban and an increasing threat from the Islamic State.
Osama Bin Laden’s Files: ‘Very strong military activity in Afghanistan’
Correspondence between senior al Qaeda leaders indicates that the group maintains a larger foothold in Afghanistan than is widely recognized.
Islamic State’s female jihadists use social media to lure women recruits
The Islamic State’s recruiting campaign uses sites like Kik, Twitter, and Tumblr to entice women into joining the jihad and to glorify life under the “caliphate.”
Taliban suicide bomber strikes NATO diplomatic convoy in Kabul
A Turkish soldier and an Afghan civilian were killed in the blast. The attack on NATO’s envoy to Afghanistan takes place as rumors of peace talks between the Taliban, the Afghan government, and the US persist.