Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, as well as al Qaeda’s general command, have issued communiques denouncing Qatar and the World Cup as a means to degrade the morals of the Arabian Peninsula. The Islamic State’s supporters have additionally issued their own infographics, calling for attacks on the games.
Abu Hudhayfah al Sudani, a veteran member of al Qaeda, calls on youth in his native Sudan to unite and form a cohesive jihadist front to combat the Sudanese government. He provides the prospective jihadis a step-by-step guide on how to do so.
Nine individuals were designated by the U.S. Treasury Department while an additional five were also blacklisted by the U.S. State Department.
You guessed it. Our guest is, indeed, Caleb Weiss. This time, he and Bill discuss how (and which) prison breaks fit into the larger strategy of various Jihadi groups — and why some don’t bother.
Ibrahim al Qosi, a former Guantanamo detainee who worked for Osama bin Laden prior to 9/11, praises the Taliban’s victory and threatens new attacks against America in a new video. Al Qosi, who is a senior figure in AQAP, claims that “upcoming operations” may not be a “carbon copy” of 9/11.
Khalid Batarfi, the emir of AQAP, appears in a video released today. His commentary proves that he was not detained late last year, as some reports said.
According to a newly released report by a UN Monitoring Team, AQAP leader Khalid Batarfi was captured in Oct. 2020. FDD’s Long War Journal has not confirmed Batarfi’s arrest.
Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula has sent a message of support to its fellow al Qaeda branch for recently killing five French soldiers.
Senior U.S. officials claim there are fewer than 200 al Qaeda members in Afghanistan. Hosts Bill Roggio and Tom Joscelyn explain why that estimate, like all others before it, isn’t credible.
The FBI and DOJ announced today that Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani had “significant ties” to AQAP and had been planning a terrorist attack for years. Alshamrani carried out the Dec. 6, 2019 shooting at Naval Air Station Pensacola, killing three U.S. sailors and wounding eight other Americans.
In late April, the Islamic State’s Yemen “province” released a video attacking al-Qaeda’s ideological credentials. The video is the latest piece of propaganda in the Islamic State’s campaign against its jihadist rival.
Houthis report to have captured an al Qaeda base in one of its historical strongholds in the country. No independent verification of this event, however, has yet been reported.
Hosts Bill Roggio and Tom Joscelyn profile Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula’s (AQAP) new emir, Khalid Batarfi.
Last week, AQAP released an audio message form its new emir, Khalid Batarfi. In it, Batarfi renews his allegiance to Ayman al-Zawahiri on behalf of AQAP. He also praises the Taliban and Shabaab.
The White House has confirmed that AQAP’s leader, Qasim al-Rimi, was killed in a counterterrorism operation. Rimi served as a “deputy” to Ayman al-Zawahiri, meaning that he was likely part of al-Qaeda’s global management team.
Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) has released a video claiming “full responsibility” for the Dec. 2019 shooting at Naval Air Station Pensacola. The video features images of the shooter, Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani (Al-Shamrani) and his will, but doesn’t explain how he was known to AQAP beforehand.
Two statements, which were released by al Qaeda’s general command and al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, were addressed to Shabaab yesterday in a coordinated messaging campaign.
The past week has seen the harshest fighting between the two jihadist groups since April.
Al Jazeera released a documentary alleging that Bahrain and al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula work together. Today, the al Qaeda branch denied this accusation in a letter to the editor.
While strikes against al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula have waned over the past year, they have not halted all together. AQAP remains a significant threat.
According to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), al Qaeda’s senior leaders are strengthening the al Qaeda “network’s global command structure.” Meanwhile, the Islamic State “still commands thousands of fighters in Iraq and Syria.” Both groups maintain worldwide networks or affiliates, branches, and supporters.
Counterterrorism operations against AQAP have significantly tapered off in 2018 after a massive increase in 2017. The strike that killed Jamal-al Badawi is the first in Yemen since mid-September 2018.
Al Qaeda’s As Sahab has released an essay blasting Saudi Arabia’s relationship with the US. The essay’s author, identified as Sheikh Awab Bin Hasan al Hasni, portrays America as a declining power and touts the resurrection of the Taliban’s Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. AQAP also finally released the 58th issue of Al Masra newsletter, which focuses on the murder of Jamal Khashoggi.
The United States has conducted 36 strikes in Yemen in 2018, roughly a quarter of last year’s record high of 131 strikes.
The US State Department announced today that it is offering rewards for information on two senior AQAP leaders: Qasim al-Raymi and Khalid al-Batarfi. Both men attended al Qaeda’s training camps in pre-9/11 Afghanistan before assuming leadership roles in Yemen.
As JNIM rallies its members and supporters against France and Mali, it depicts the fight with the two countries as part of al Qaeda’s wider global jihad.
AL Qaeda’s operatives are fighting in more countries around the world today than was the case on 9/11. And its leaders still want to target the United States and its interest and allies. The war they started is far from over.
Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula has released a new video that includes the testimony of several “spies” who have allegedly helped the Saudis and Americans hunt down the group’s members. There are reasons to be skeptical of AQAP’s claims, but the organization is clearly concerned that spies will do more damage to its hierarchy.
The United States has conducted a total of 34 strikes in Yemen in 2018, all of which targeted Al Qaeda barring one strike against the Islamic State in Jan. 2018. However the military is not likely to top last year’s high.
In 2017, LWJ reported unprecedented levels of airstrikes in Somalia and Yemen. Thus far in 2018, the United States has sustained its high strike tempo in Somalia and improved transparency on its air campaign in Yemen. Strikes in Pakistan have leveled off, however press restrictions make tracking operations there difficult. In Libya, the U.S. has targeted jihadists sparingly.
