Greater Middle East

Egypt: jihad against feloul?

With Field Marshal al-Sisi consolidating his rule in alliance with Mubarak-era "left-overs," a Qaedist insurgency is rapidly spreading from the Sinai to the rest of Egypt.

Greater Middle East

Syria: NATO intervention —against al-Qaeda?

A Turkish military incursion against Qaedist rebels in Syria comes amid claims that al-Qaeda affiliates have seized the country's oilfields and are planning attacks on the West.

Greater Middle East

Saudi court hands down death for 2004 bombing

A Saudi Arabian court sentenced to death a member of a militant cell in connection with a 2004 suicide attack on a western company operating in Yanbu port.

Iraq

Qaedists lose ground in Syria; gain in Iraq

Syrian rebels launched an offensive against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS)—just as the Qaeda-inspired army has seized the Iraqi towns of Fallujah and Ramadi.

Africa

Cameroon takes steps against Boko Haram

Authorities in Cameroon have beefed up border controls in the Far North region to guard against infiltration by Boko Haram as civilians flee the growing war in Nigeria.

Watching the Shadows

US transfers two Gitmo detainees to Saudi Arabia

Two Guantánamo Bay detainees were transferred to Saudi Arabia—with “humane treatment assurances.” The total number of detainees at the facility now stands at 160.
Greater Middle East

Syria: imperialists keep flipping script

Ex-CIA director Michael Hayden says Bashar Assad is the best option for stability in Syria—while the White House now considers arming jihadist rebels.

Greater Middle East

Yemen: war comes to capital

A suicide attack on the defense ministry thrust Yemen briefly into the news—as an invisible sectarian war rages across much of the countryside.

Watching the Shadows

Gitmo detainees accuse Poland in CIA rendition

​Lawyers for two Guantánamo detainees, arguing before the European Court of Human Rights, accused Poland of providing a secret torture site for the CIA's "rendition" program.

Watching the Shadows

Gitmo lawyer: declassify interrogation techniques

The lawyer for five Gitmo prisoners charged in the 9-11 attacks has asked President Obama to declassify the CIA interrogation program that allegedly subjected prisoners to torture.