Tag Archives: al-Qaeda

Another Islamic State “Caliph” Falls

By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 3 February 2022

The compound where Islamic State leader Amir Muhammad al-Mawla killed himself, 3 February 2021 || Image taken from social media

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An Uptick of Islamic State Activity in Libya

By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 25 January 2022

Islamic State in its desert sanctuaries in eastern Syria, 2017

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Islamic State and “Breaking the Walls”: Jihadist Prison Breaks

By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 22 January 2022

Islamic State car bombing against Al-Sinaa prison in Syria, 20 January 2022 [image source]

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The 2007 Islamic State Book “Informing Mankind” of its Justifications for the Caliphate

By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 22 November 2021

The Islamic State movement published an 87-page book, “Informing Mankind of the Birth of the Islamic State” or “Informing the People of the Birth of the Islamic State” (I’lam al-Anam bi-Milad Dawlat al-Islam), on 7 January 2007. The document was released by Al-Furqan Media Foundation, the central Islamic State propaganda institution, and first appeared on the World News Network website. A rough translation of the book appears below.

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The Taliban Supreme Leader Emerges—Maybe

By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 1 November 2021

Hibatullah Akhundzada

A ten-minute audio tape attributed to the Taliban’s Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada appeared on 30 October, the first such communication since the jihadist takeover of Afghanistan in August. Hailed as Akhundzada’s “first public appearance” or his decision to step into “the limelight”, the reality is more complicated. Continue reading

The Capture of the Islamic State “Finance Minister” and the Impact of Leadership Losses

By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 22 October 2021

This article was originally published at European Eye on Radicalization

Sami Jassim al-Jaburi (Haji Hamid) | IMAGE SOURCE

Mustafa al-Khadhemi, the Iraqi Prime Minister, announced on the morning of 11 October that the Iraqi National Intelligence Service (INIS) had arrested Sami Jassim al-Jaburi (Haji Hamid), the effective finance emir of the Islamic State (ISIS), in “a complex external operation”. Continue reading

India’s Options in Afghanistan

By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 6 October 2021

Army Jawans hold the National Flag near the snow-covered border on the 71st Republic Day (ANI Photo)

The U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman arrived in India today for a three-day visit. Afghanistan will be high on the agenda. Continue reading

Tajikistan and the Afghan Resistance

By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 1 October 2021

Since the takeover of Afghanistan by a coalition of jihadists controlled by Pakistan, the one neighbouring state to vocally object is Tajikistan, which has extended support to the remaining anti-Taliban resistance. This is a reprise of Tajikistan’s role in the 1990s, when it provided a rear base to the United Islamic Front (UIF) or “Northern Alliance”, and was the gateway for the states supporting the UIF, notably Pakistan’s great rival India. Continue reading

The Special Risks to Britain from the Jihadist Takeover of Afghanistan

By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 10 September 2021

Members of a Taliban Red Unit in the Alingar District of Laghman province in Afghanistan, 2020 || Image credit: Jim Huylebroek, The New York Times

The restoration of the Taliban-Qaeda regime in Afghanistan is a terrorism threat to the whole world, but Britain has some unique vulnerabilities, as MI5 Director general Ken McCallum warned today. Continue reading

Islamic State Says the Massacre at Kabul Airport Shows They Are the True Jihadists

By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 9 September 2021

Front page of Al-Naba 302

The Islamic State (IS) released the 302nd edition of Al-Naba, its weekly newsletter, on 2 September. The major focus of Al-Naba 302 was the 26 August bombing of the Kabul Airport by IS’s “Khorasan Province” (ISKP) that killed nearly 200 people, including thirteen members of the U.S. military (eleven marines, one soldier, and one navy corpsman), and wounded 150 people. Continue reading