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Al Qaeda

Archive, Strategic Adversaries1918 Spanish flu virus, 2001, Al Qaeda, American Council on Science and Health, American security apparatus, biochemical techniques, Bioterrorism, CBRN, DNA fragments, Drug Enforcement Agency, Federal Bureau of Investigation, fentanyl, homeland security analyst , Mexican drug cartels, MIT, National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism, red-team activity, Sarin gas attack, September 11, START report, terrorism trends, terrorists, Tokyo, University of Maryland

Is Bioterrorism Really on the Horizon?

Justin Leopold-Cohen2 Comments

A January 2025 article published by the American Council on Science and Health detailed the results of a recent red-team activity (simulated security exercise) where a professor and two graduate…

Archive, Strategic AdversariesAl Qaeda, apocalyptic motivations, artificial intelligence, Assad regime, border security, communication channels, conventional attack, cyber capabilities, diplomatic channels, false flag attack, global security, global strategic stability, intelligence-sharing, ISIS, Islamic caliphate, jihadi actors, Jonathan Rodriguez Cefalu, martyrdom, missile defense, missile system, Nasir al-Fahd, NATO, NATO member, North Caucasus, nuclear compellence, Nuclear Retaliation, nuclear war, Oksana Bairachna, Osama bin Laden, Preamble, prompt injection, Putin, Russia, security vulnerabilities, Syria, verification systems, weapons of mass destruction

Why and How ISIS Leaders Might Exploit Putin’s Nuclear Compellence to Destroy Russia

Johnathan Rodriguez Cefalu & Oksana Bairachna0 Comments

In September 2024, Russian President Vladimir Putin signaled a significant shift in Russia’s nuclear posture. He indicated that any conventional attack on Russian soil, particularly with the backing of a…

Archive, Strategic AdversariesAfghanistan, Al Qaeda, drug monopoly, Ghazni, global terrorist groups, illicit trade, ISIS, islamic jihad, Islamic Terrorists, madrasa, Pakistan, Taliban, Terrorism, UN Security Council, UNAMA, West

The Coming Disaster in Afghanistan

Unnamed Afghan0 Comments

Afghanistan, under Taliban control, is a powder keg ready to erupt with consequences that will ripple throughout the region and the world. The driving forces of this impending disaster are…

Defense & SecurityAl Qaeda, COVID-19, Iraq, ISIS, Syria, Terrorism

COVID-19 and the Increasing Risk of Terrorism

Mohamed ELDoh

There is no doubt that the global COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted nearly every aspect of life. From how we interact with one another to how we commute and work, people…

Defense & SecurityAfghanistan, Al Qaeda, China, Iran, Iraq, ISIS, Pakistan, Private Military Companies, Russia, United States

Paid to Kill: An Examination of the Evolution of Combatants for Hire

Joshua E. Duke

Throughout world history, as long as there has been conflict among people, there have been people willing to pay others to carry out violence. From assassins and mercenaries to bounty…

Defense & SecurityAfghanistan, Al Qaeda, Pakistan, Taliban, United States

The Taliban Peace Calculus

Tamim Asey

For the Taliban, the ongoing peace talks are a quest for political legitimacy and a political tactic—not a strategy—to end the war in Afghanistan. The Taliban consider direct negotiations with…

Defense & SecurityAl Qaeda, Algeria, Egypt, European Union, ISIS, Lybia, Morocco, North Africa, Tunisia

The Resilience of Jihadi Extremist Groups in North Africa

Paolo Zucconi

Eight years after Qaddafi's fall, Libya remains in a state of chaos due to the fragmentation of power and contrast between West and East Libya (Tripoli and Tobruk)—as well as…

Defense & SecurityAfghanistan, Al Qaeda, NATO, Pakistan, Taliban, United States

The Peace Process in Afghanistan is a Failure

Omar Sadr

Editor's note: this assessment is based on a study conducted by the author for the Afghan Institute of Strategic Studies entitled The Fallacy of Peace Processes in Afghanistan: The People’s Perspectives.…

Defense & SecurityAl Qaeda, European Union, ISIS, United Kingdom

U.K. Statutory Prevent Duty: The Creation and Consequences of a Police-State

Antonio Perra

Introduced by Section 26 of the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015, the Prevent Duty seeks to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism by leveraging on the notion of “non-violent…

Defense & SecurityAl Qaeda, ISIS, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Yemen

The Resurrection of Al-Qaeda

Bruce Hoffman

With the demise of the Islamic State, a revived al-Qaeda and its affiliates should now be considered the world’s top terrorist threat. While the self-proclaimed Islamic State has dominated the…