Lieberman: Turn the Tide Against Bashar al-Assad
On Thursday, Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-CT), writing an op-ed in the Washington Post, called for U.S. action to prevent further human rights abuses in Syria. Nine months after President Barack Obama called for the ousting of President Bashar al-Assad, ...
May 18, 2012
Category: al-Qaeda, Civil Society, Democracy Promotion, Featured, Freedom, Human Rights, Protests, Syria, UN Security Council, US foreign policy
Obama Issues Executive Order in Support of Yemen Transition
President Barack Obama plans to issue an executive order today that would give the Treasury Department authority to freeze the U.S.-based assets of anyone who “obstructs” implementation of the political transition in Yemen. According to one authority, the order ...
May 16, 2012
Category: al-Qaeda, Featured, Journalism, Political transition, US foreign policy, Yemen
Yemenis Wary of US War on Al Qaeda
Offensive tactics from both the U.S. and al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) are increasing. Yemen's military carried out a four-front assault in the south that was directly guided by American troops at a nearby airbase. President Barack ...
Islamist Group Claims Responsibility for Damascus Bombings
Earlier this week, twin suicide bombings tore through the center of Damascus resulting in the deaths of an estimated 55 people. Even as the U.N. mission expands, violence has continued and reamins persistent throughout all areas of Syria. ...
May 12, 2012
Category: al-Qaeda, Featured, Hezbollah, Islamist movements, Syria, United Nations, US foreign policy
POMED Notes: The Arab Awakening: Implications for Al Qaeda and the Future of Terrorism
On Thursday, the Woodrow Wilson Center hosted an event exploring whether the Arab Awakening has marginalized al-Qaeda or has presented opportunities. The speakers included Jon Alterman, the Director at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Barak Barfi, a research fellow at the New America Foundation, Daniel Byman, a professor at Georgetown, and Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, a fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Bruce Hoffman, director for the Center ...
May 11, 2012
Category: Afghanistan, al-Qaeda, Egypt, Event Notes, Iraq, Israel, Libya, Political Islam, Political transition, Syria, Yemen
May 8, 2012
Category: al-Qaeda, Civil Society, Featured, Foreign Aid, Political transition, United Nations, Yemen
Hadi Asserts Power in Yemen
Yemen's President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi asserted his power over the military in what was perceived to be a bold move. General Tariq Mohammed Saleh, had caused problems after refusing to step down from his post as head of the ...
May 5, 2012
Category: al-Qaeda, Democracy Promotion, Featured, Foreign Aid, Political transition, US politics, Yemen
Lofty Promises, Little Pragmatism in Run Up to Algerian Elections
On Monday, four policemen were killed in Mekla in the Kabylie region after attackers opened fire on police. Less than two weeks ahead of the elections, the debate about security in the Kabylie region has been revived. Meanwhile, an al-Qaeda group has demanded €45 million in exchange for seven Algerian diplomats that have been taken hostage. H. Suleiman writes (Arabic) in Al-Khabar that Algerian political parties are “populism, rather than pragmatism”has ...
Yemen: Al-Qaeda’s Nation-Building vs. U.S. Drone Attacks
Jamal Benomar, the U.N. envoy to Yemen, says the implementation of U.N.-backed Gulf-brokered plan that ousted Ali Abdullah Saleh is "on track," but warned there is "no indication that the worst is over or no indication that Yemen ...
Yemen’s Ongoing Political Woes: Hadi vs. Saleh
President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi is still struggling to assert power over former President Ali Abdullah Saleh's loyalists. The BBC reported that Gen Tariq Mohammed Abdullah Saleh, nephew of the former president and head of the Presidential Guard, had finally ...
Security Concerns Hampering Yemen’s Transition
Ongoing security concerns linked to al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), Yemen's branch of al-Qaeda, and other militant groups are hampering Yemen's transitional government. Just today, reports surfaced that Saudi Arabia's deputy consul, Abdullah al-Khalidi was kidnapped in south Yemen. Michael ...
Al Qaeda’s Increased Attacks in Yemen Cause Concern
A Yemeni militant group affiliated with al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) says it shot and killed an American teacher in southern Yemen for preaching Christianity. The U.S. State Department, confirming the death, called it a 'heinous ...
Yemen: Saleh Delaying Departure; Al Qaeda Causes Instability
Ousted Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh said that ten of his rivals among the country’s top military commanders, politicians and tribal leaders must leave the country with him for the sake of stability. However, as al-Qaeda attacked an ...
U.S. Drones Reconvene Attacks in South Yemen
In the biggest U.S. drone attack since newly elected Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi ascended to presidency, at least 25 al Qaeda-linked fighters were killed in Southern Yemen. Residents reported planes bombarding the Jebel Khanafar mountain regions which al Qaeda –linked militant captured and has controlled for over a year. The Islamist movement Ansar Al Shariah, an al-Qaeda afiilliate, has turned the police station in Azzan into its regional headquarters and claimed that the region would join ...
Terrorist Attack Against Police in Algeria
Saturday, a vehicle packed with explosives exploded in the headquarters of the national police in Tamanrasset, an oasis town in the south of Algeria. The local hospital reported 5 death, and that at least 26 victims were treated. The Movement for ...
Arms Influx Continues to Syria Amid Ongoing Violence
As the violence ensues, arms continue to flow into Syria, both to the opposition and the Bashar Al Assad regime. Officials said violence in Iraq has decreased amid reports that Al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) had moved on to helping ...
Yemen Unstable Before Presidential Elections
A Yemeni soldier was reported dead when unidentified gunmen opened fire after an explosion went through a polling station in Aden. Government security forces were deployed to the area in anticipation of mass protests on election day. The Southern ...
Yemen: Precarious Situation A Week From Presidential Elections
The Presidential elections that will complete the power transition of Yemen ending the 33 year long ruling of President Ali Abdhullah Saleh will be held on February 21. The transition was negotiated between Saleh and the Gulf Cooperation Council and signed in November 2011. Critics
February 13, 2012
Category: al-Qaeda, Elections 2012, Featured, Islamist movements, Political transition, Yemen