Violence and Security

Minneapolis a Case Study of Extremist Islamist Global Recruiting in U.S. Cities

September 10, 2014

U.S. government officials are analyzing recruiting activities in the U.S. by global militant Islamist organizations, mining the case of Minneapolis, Minnesota to assess the combination of social media sites and local recruiting networks with success in drawing U.S. citizens to fight with the Somali Islamist extremist group al-Shabaab.
Somali Islamist Extremists Regroup with New Leadership and Revenge Plans

September 10, 2014

Al-Shabaab, the Islamist extremist group fighting to make Somalia and its neighboring countries into sharia states, named a new leader loyal to al-Qaeda, and vowed to avenge the deaths of their commander and other leadership killed by a U.S. air strike.
Debate Continues in U.K. over Returning Islamist Jihadis

September 10, 2014

The debate in Britain continues over how to deal with the prospect of hundreds of Islamist jihadis returning from Syria and Iraq, including calls for comprehensive reappraisal of the British deradicalization programs, to seizure of passports, to debriefing aimed at securing inside intelligence information on the organization, operations, and plans of The Islamic State ("IS").
British Mosques Ready Media Campaign to Staunch IS Recruiting Drive

September 04, 2014

With growing evidence that IS (The Islamic State) is gaining momentum in its recruiting efforts in Britain, leading British mosques are readying a coordinated media campaign aimed at staunching the flow of homegrown jihadi fighters to Syria and Iraq.
U.S. Trying to Address Concern over Returning Jihadis from Syria and Iraq

September 03, 2014

U.S. President Barack Obama's announcement that he plans to convene a heads-of-state meeting at the UN Security Council in September is part of Washington's effort to prevent homeland security threats emanating from jihadi fighters returning from Syria and Iraq.
Islamist Terror Provokes New Protection Alliances in Lebanon

September 03, 2014

The regional terror campaign being spearheaded by the Sunni extremist group known as The Islamic State (“IS”) is provoking unexpected cooperation inside Lebanon, as the Shiite group Hezbollah, as well as some Alawites and Christians, have begun organizing protection brigades designed to defend against IS's religious cleansing in case of an upcoming assault on Lebanon.
Islamic State Practicing Sexual Enslavement of Women in Iraq

August 29, 2014

Eye witness accounts and survivor testimonies confirm that in the Islamic State, the caliphate covering large areas of Iraq and Syria, extremist Islamist forces are practicing systematic sexual enslavement of women, including forced conversion and marriage, gang rape, and human trafficking.
Egypt's President Sisi Embraces Repression as Control Against Destabilization of Islamic Sectarian Battles

August 20, 2014

Analysis of the foreign and domestic policy trends under the leadership of Egypt's President, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, points to his government's default position of repression to deal with the threats of destabilization and violence stemming from Islamic sectarianism.
Syria's Sectarian Violence and Massive Refugee Crisis Destabilize Middle East

August 20, 2014

The estimated nine million refugees and internally displaced people created by sectarian violence driven by Islamist extremist groups fighting in Syria (and Iraq) is creating a crisis of state stability and a humanitarian catastrophe throughout the Middle East.
Qatar's Support for Militant Islamist Groups Raising Questions in Washington

August 20, 2014

Mounting evidence of material, financial, and political support from the government of Qatar to militant Islamist groups in the Mideast and Africa, including several on the U.S. State Department's Foreign Terrorist Watch List, has provoked growing calls by U.S. government officials for an investigation into Qatar as a possible state sponsor of terrorism.