Author Archives: Thomas Joscelyn & Bill Roggio

Bill Roggio is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Editor of FDD's Long War Journal. Thomas Joscelyn is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Senior Editor for FDD's Long War Journal.
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Ep. 58 — The Year in Review

Hosts Tom Joscelyn and Bill Roggio discuss 5 key stories from 2021 and what they mean for jihadism going forward. Mentioned in the episode Tom’s article in The Dispatch: “The U.S. Must Better Explain Al-Qaeda to the Public” — read via FDD here. Powered by RedCircle Take a look around the globe today and you’ll […]


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Ep. 57 — The Emperor Was Nude All Along

Hosts Tom Joscelyn and Bill Roggio discuss Tom’s recent testimony before the Senate, why the Islamic State bombed a mosque in Kunduz, and the Pakistani Taliban’s ongoing jihad. Powered by RedCircle Take a look around the globe today and you’ll see jihadists fighting everywhere from West Africa to Southeast Asia. They aren’t the dominant force […]





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Ep. 55 — Afghanistan Falls

Hosts Tom Joscelyn and Bill Roggio discuss the need for accountability after 20 years of failures. Powered by RedCircle Take a look around the globe today and you’ll see jihadists fighting everywhere from West Africa to Southeast Asia. They aren’t the dominant force in all of those areas, or even most of them. But jihadism […]



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Ep. 54 — What Shabaab Wants

Hosts Tom Joscelyn and Bill Roggio discuss a new message from Shabaab’s emir. They also discuss their reluctance to report on a video, titled “America Burns,” produced by Al Qaeda’s main propaganda arm. Powered by RedCircle Take a look around the globe today and you’ll see jihadists fighting everywhere from West Africa to Southeast Asia. […]


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Ep. 53 — The Taliban and al Qaeda advance as U.S. completes withdrawal

Hosts Bill Roggio and Tom Joscelyn discuss President Biden’s latest defense of the withdrawal from Afghanistan. Despite the jihadists’ significant advances since May 1, the president remains steadfastly committed to completing the American retreat. Powered by RedCircle Take a look around the globe today and you’ll see jihadists fighting everywhere from West Africa to Southeast […]


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Ep. 52 — Mapping the Taliban’s Offensive

Hosts Bill Roggio and Tom Joscelyn discuss the Taliban’s massive offensive in Afghanistan. The campaign demonstrates, once again, that the “peace process” is a Western delusion. They also discuss how Bill’s map of the Taliban’s gains has evolved over time.  Powered by RedCircle Take a look around the globe today and you’ll see jihadists fighting everywhere […]


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Ep. 51 — How the U.N. assesses al Qaeda and ISIS

Edmund Fitton-Brown joins hosts Tom Joscelyn and Bill Roggio to discuss his team’s most recent report on Afghanistan. Fitton-Brown is a former British diplomat. He is currently coordinator of the U.N. Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team concerning the Islamic State, al-Qaeda, and the Taliban. Powered by RedCircle Take a look around the globe today […]


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Ep. 50 — The Unknowns

Hosts Tom Joscelyn and Bill Roggio discuss the basic epistemological problems that plague analyses of al Qaeda nearly 20 years after 9/11. Powered by RedCircle Take a look around the globe today and you’ll see jihadists fighting everywhere from West Africa to Southeast Asia. They aren’t the dominant force in all of those areas, or […]




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Ep. 47 – Designating terrorists

FDD’s Jonathan Schanzer joins the podcast to discuss how the U.S. Treasury Department designates terrorists and America’s current challenges. Jon and host Bill Roggio also discuss their love of Philly sports teams to the disgust of host Tom Joscleyn. Powered by RedCircle Take a look around the globe today and you’ll see jihadists fighting everywhere […]


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Ep. 46 — Waiting for a withdrawal decision

Hosts Tom Joscelyn and Bill Roggio briefly discuss recent reporting on the Biden administration’s deliberations concerning a withdrawal from Afghanistan. They also discuss ISIS’ surge in Mozambique. Powered by RedCircle Take a look around the globe today and you’ll see jihadists fighting everywhere from West Africa to Southeast Asia. They aren’t the dominant force in […]


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Ep. 45 — President Biden’s Decision Points

Hosts Tom Joscelyn and Bill Roggio explain why President Biden should be clear-eyed when it comes to making decisions about the U.S. troop presence in Afghanistan and Iraq. Some argue the U.S. should stay in Afghanistan to further the “peace process,” but there is no evidence that such a “process” even exists. Powered by RedCircle […]




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Ep. 42 — Groundhog Day in Afghanistan

In episode 42 of Generation Jihad, hosts Tom Joscelyn and Bill Roggio discuss National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s comments on the U.S.-Taliban deal. They explain why there isn’t much for the Biden administration to assess. The Taliban was never interested in peace and hasn’t taken any steps to break with al Qaeda.



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Ep. 40 – Al Qaeda in Iran–and Afghanistan

Hosts Tom Joscelyn and Bill Roggio discuss and critique Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s speech on the Iran-Al Qaeda axis. Contrary to much reporting, there is a long history of ties between the two. But there’s also much evidence pointing to al Qaeda’s ongoing alliance with the Taliban, an issue Pompeo is eager to downplay. The guys also explain why the 2001 AUMF isn’t being used to start a war with Iran.


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Ep. 39 – Countering Extremism

Robin Simcox joins hosts Tom Joscelyn and Bill Roggio to discuss the ongoing jihadist threat in Europe and efforts to combat extremism in the U.K. and elsewhere. Simcox is the director of the London-based Counter Extremism Group.




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Ep. 36 – The U.S. withdraws from Somalia

Hosts Tom Joscelyn and Bill Roggio discuss President Trump’s decision to order the withdrawal of a small American force from Somalia. Shabaab, al Qaeda’s branch in East Africa, will continue to fight on, waging an insurgency against the Somali government while threatening countries throughout the region and possibly elsewhere as well.




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Ep. 33 – A Conversation with H.R. McMaster

LTG (ret.) H.R. McMaster joins hosts Tom Joscelyn and Bill Roggio to discuss his new book, his career in the U.S military and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.  Powered by RedCircle Take a look around the globe today and you’ll see jihadists fighting everywhere from West Africa to Southeast Asia. They aren’t the dominant […]


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Ep. 32 – What Will Biden Do?

Hosts Tom Joscelyn and Bill Roggio discuss the decisions awaiting the incoming Biden administration with respect to the ongoing conflicts in several countries. They also discuss the State Department’s decision to delist al Qaeda’s Uighur affiliate.  Powered by RedCircle Take a look around the globe today and you’ll see jihadists fighting everywhere from West Africa […]