Read MEI’s weekly briefing featuring expert analysis of key regional developments for the week ahead.
As the world prepares to mark the 21-year anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, public perceptions and policy attention on the threat posed by terrorism are arguably at an all-time low. However, it would be a mistake to assume that the challenges and threats posed by terrorism are over. In fact, terrorist groups have grown in number, geographic scope, and technical and military sophistication over the past two decades.
On this week’s episode, host Alistair Taylor explores the ramifications of the CIA drone strike that killed al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in Kabul, Afghanistan on July 31. Joining the program are three MEI experts — Mick Mulroy, Javid Ahmad, and Douglas London — who bring with them a variety of perspectives, from intelligence to diplomacy.
Even prior to al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri’s death in a CIA drone strike on July 31, the last few months have mostly underscored the Taliban’s global isolation and the anguish of the Afghan people. A year on from the Taliban’s takeover of Kabul in August 2021, no foreign government has officially recognized the regime.
The death of al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in a U.S. drone strike outside Kabul over the weekend is a major counterterrorism achievement — and a much-needed triumph for the Biden administration, for whom anything to do with Afghanistan has become an issue of acute discomfort. Since late 2019, Zawahiri has been thought to have been based in eastern Afghanistan, and a number of U.S. officials have suggested that in public. That by itself would seem to indicate a certain level of awareness of his probable whereabouts, but his death in the capital Kabul is astounding.
Read MEI’s weekly briefing featuring expert analysis of key regional developments for the week ahead.
As the U.S. administration considers whether to remove Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a foreign terrorist organization, understanding its nature, development, and ideology is essential to making an informed decision. There is much about it that differentiates it from a conventional armed force. One fundamental aspect of its ideology that until now has been overlooked is the doctrine of Mahdism.
Former Iraqi Prime Minister Dr. Haider al-Abadi joins the program to discuss the country’s fight against ISIS, Iraqi politics and the challenges of reform. Dr. al-Abadi has a new book out, entitled “Impossible Victory: How Iraq Defeated ISIS” (Biteback Publishing, April 2022).
Read MEI’s weekly briefing featuring expert analysis of key regional developments for the week ahead.
International and Arab News
عندما لقي تنظيم داعش الإقليمي الهزيمة في سوريا قبل أكثر من ثلاث سنوات، احتفل العالم بإنجاز تاريخي. فعلى مدار خمس سنوات، حشد تحالف ضم أكثر من 80 دولة موارده المشتركة لدحر «داعش» في سوريا والعراق، والتصدي للجماعة الإرهابية على الإنترنت، ودحر شبكاتها المالية والشركات التابعة لها المكتشفة حديثاً في جميع أنحاء العالم.
On Feb. 17, French President Emmanuel Macron announced the coming withdrawal of French armed forces from Mali. The decision put an end to nine years of French military intervention in the West African country.
Read MEI’s weekly briefing featuring expert analysis of key regional developments for the week ahead.
In a statement released on Feb. 12, the Tehreek-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) distanced itself from international terrorism, declaring that its violence was singularly focused on Pakistan. While the TTP’s recent comments on America are unprecedented, they do fit into its broader rebranding effort under the leadership of Noor Wali Mehsud, who took over the group in 2018.
Expert regional analysis by MEI scholars and contributors.