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82. September 2018 Issue
- Author:
- Bryant Neal Viñas, Mitchell D. Silber, Brian Dodwell, Paul Cruickshank, Michael Knights, Audrey Alexander, Rebecca Turkington, and Derek Henry Flood
- Publication Date:
- 09-2018
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- CTC Sentinel
- Institution:
- The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
- Abstract:
- Seventeen years after 9/11, the threat posed by jihadi terrorist groups is in a state of flux. The demise of the Islamic State’s territorial ‘caliphate’ has demoralized some of its supporters and eroded some of the group’s ability to direct attacks in the West. But the Islamic State still has a large sympathizer base, a significant presence in Syria and Iraq, and dangerous nodes in other parts of the world. Meanwhile, al-Qa`ida and its network of affiliates and allies have grown in strength in some regions and could pivot back to international terror. Worryingly, both groups in the years to come may be able to draw on an ‘officer class’ of surviving foreign fighters who forged personal bonds in Syria and Iraq. In our cover article, Bryant Neal Viñas, the first American to be recruited into al-Qa`ida after 9/11, writes about his experiences for the first time in the hope that his case study sheds light on the foreign fighter issue. Viñas was convicted for his actions and recently completed his prison sentence. His article is co-authored by Mitchell Silber, who supervised analysis and investigation of his case at the NYPD Intelligence Division. During his time in the Afghan-Pakistan border region between 2007 and 2008, Viñas came into contact with a variety of jihadi groups, was trained by al-Qa`ida, and spent time with several of the group’s most senior figures. After his arrest, Viñas immediately started cooperating with U.S. authorities and contributed significantly to the near destruction of al-Qa`ida in the tribal areas of Pakistan. Our interview this month is with Kevin McAleenan, the commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Drawing on extensive field reporting, Michael Knights documents how Houthi forces in Yemen metamorphosed in just five years from guerrilla war fighters into a powerful military entity capable of deploying medium-range ballistic missiles. His article provides a case study of how an ambitious militant group can capture and use a state’s arsenals and benefit from Iran’s support. Audrey Alexander and Rebecca Turkington find mounting evidence that women engaged in terrorism-related activity receive more lenient treatment by the criminal justice system than their male counterparts. Derek Flood reports on how the Islamic State’s cave and tunnel complexes in the Hamrin Mountains are helping it sustain insurgent attacks in northern Iraq.
- Topic:
- Gender Issues, Terrorism, War, Counter-terrorism, Al Qaeda, Islamic State, Borders, 9/11, Houthis, and Foreign Fighters
- Political Geography:
- Iraq, Middle East, Yemen, and Global Focus
83. An Untold Story: The Role of Women in Art & Peacebuilding in the Middle East
- Author:
- Alia Ali, Lulwa Al Khalifa, Helen Zughaib, and Neda Ulaby
- Publication Date:
- 09-2017
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- Middle East Institute (MEI)
- Abstract:
- The Middle East Institute's (MEI) Arts and Culture Program was pleased to host a panel conversation examining the critical role Middle Eastern women play in building more stable and tolerant communities through the lens of the arts. The panel took place in conjunction with programming around I AM, an exhibition of 31 Middle Eastern women contemporary artists from 12 countries, at the American University Museum at the Katzen Arts Center, with a general public opening reception on September 9. Organized by CARAVAN, an international NGO that focuses on building bridges through the arts, the exhibition highlights the role that Middle Eastern women play in their societies and the power of the arts to articulate their ambitions. The panel featured three participating artists and a scholar of women's issues and was moderated by NPR's Neda Ulaby. The panelists drew upon their experiences to challenge common misconceptions about women in the region and explore how the arts can serve as a form of creative and non-violent resistance.
- Topic:
- Arts, Culture, and Women
- Political Geography:
- Middle East, Yemen, Lebanon, Bahrain, and United States of America
84. Pick your Poison: Assessing the Strategic Effectiveness of Decapitation via Drone Strikes by Looking at the Organizational Dynamics of Targeted Groups
- Author:
- Gabriel Boulianne Gobeil
- Publication Date:
- 09-2017
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Journal of Military and Strategic Studies
- Institution:
- Centre for Military, Security and Strategic Studies
- Abstract:
- Leadership targeting, or decapitation, which involves the removal of an organization’s leader, has been utilized in various military conflicts. The use of drones has been particularly consequential in such schemes, earning themselves the reputation of being “Washington’s weapon of choice.” The existing literature on leadership targeting gravitates around the question of the practice’s strategic effectiveness, focusing on the targeted groups’ internal characteristics to explain their (in)ability to withstand decapitation. However, this literature overlooks a key feature of terrorist groups, namely their identity’s organizational dynamics. Highlighting the importance of group identities in determining the outcome of decapitations, this article fills this void. Looking at the cases of al Qaeda in Iraq and Ansar al-Sharia in Yemen, it argues that groups which have a global identity are likely to retain cohesion when their leaders are the victim of decapitation while groups whose identity stems from an ethnic or tribal lineage tend to fragment, therefore creating “veto players.”
- Topic:
- Terrorism, Military Strategy, Drones, Leadership, and Conflict
- Political Geography:
- United States, Iraq, Middle East, and Yemen
85. R2P Monitor, Issue 36, 15 November 2017
- Author:
- Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
- Publication Date:
- 11-2017
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- The Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
- Abstract:
- R2P Monitor is a bimonthly bulletin applying the Responsibility to Protect lens to populations at risk of mass atrocities around the world. Issue 36 looks at developments in Myanmar (Burma), Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan, Central African Republic, Sudan, Burundi, Philippines, Afghanistan and Somalia.
- Topic:
- Human Rights, International Law, Responsibility to Protect (R2P), and Atrocities
- Political Geography:
- Afghanistan, Iraq, Sudan, Philippines, Yemen, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Syria, Somalia, Burundi, Myanmar, South Sudan, and Central African Republic
86. R2P Monitor, Issue 35, 15 September 2017
- Author:
- Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
- Publication Date:
- 09-2017
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- The Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
- Abstract:
- R2P Monitor is a bimonthly bulletin applying the Responsibility to Protect lens to populations at risk of mass atrocities around the world. Issue 35 looks at developments in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Myanmar (Burma), South Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Central African Republic, Sudan, Burundi, Philippines, Afghanistan and Somalia.
- Topic:
- Human Rights, International Law, Responsibility to Protect (R2P), and Atrocities
- Political Geography:
- Afghanistan, Iraq, Sudan, Philippines, Yemen, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Syria, Somalia, Burundi, Myanmar, South Sudan, and Central African Republic
87. R2P Monitor, Issue 34, 15 July 2017
- Author:
- Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
- Publication Date:
- 07-2017
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- The Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
- Abstract:
- R2P Monitor is a bimonthly bulletin applying the Responsibility to Protect lens to populations at risk of mass atrocities around the world. Issue 34 looks at developments in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Sudan, Myanmar (Burma), South Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi, Philippines and Kenya.
- Topic:
- Human Rights, International Law, Responsibility to Protect (R2P), and Atrocities
- Political Geography:
- Kenya, Iraq, Sudan, Philippines, Yemen, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Syria, Burundi, Myanmar, and South Sudan
88. R2P Monitor, Issue 33, 15 May 2017
- Author:
- Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
- Publication Date:
- 05-2017
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- The Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
- Abstract:
- R2P Monitor is a bimonthly bulletin applying the Responsibility to Protect lens to populations at risk of mass atrocities around the world. Issue 33 looks at developments in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Sudan, Myanmar (Burma) , South Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi, Philippines and Central African Republic.
- Topic:
- Human Rights, International Law, Responsibility to Protect (R2P), and Atrocities
- Political Geography:
- Iraq, Sudan, Philippines, Yemen, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Syria, Burundi, Myanmar, South Sudan, and Central African Republic
89. R2P Monitor, Issue 32, 15 March 2017
- Author:
- Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
- Publication Date:
- 05-2017
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- The Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
- Abstract:
- R2P Monitor is a bimonthly bulletin applying the Responsibility to Protect lens to populations at risk of mass atrocities around the world. Issue 32 looks at developments in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Sudan, Myanmar, South Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi, Philippines and Central African Republic. Issue 32 also includes an insert regarding states that have endorsed the Kigali Principles on the Protection of Civilians. For more information on the Kigali Principles, see: Improving Peacekeeping and Civilian Protection.
- Topic:
- Human Rights, International Law, Peacekeeping, Civilians, Responsibility to Protect (R2P), and Atrocities
- Political Geography:
- Iraq, Sudan, Philippines, Yemen, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Syria, Burundi, Myanmar, South Sudan, and Central African Republic
90. R2P Monitor, Issue 31, 15 January 2017
- Author:
- Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
- Publication Date:
- 01-2017
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- The Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
- Abstract:
- R2P Monitor is a bimonthly bulletin applying the Responsibility to Protect lens to populations at risk of mass atrocities around the world. Issue 31 looks at developments in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Sudan, Myanmar (Burma), South Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi, Philippines, Central African Republic and Nigeria.
- Topic:
- Human Rights, International Law, Responsibility to Protect (R2P), and Atrocities
- Political Geography:
- Iraq, Sudan, Philippines, Yemen, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Syria, Nigeria, Burundi, Myanmar, South Sudan, and Central African Republic