Two parallel, but distinct challenges to central authority underline how Yemen will take some time to shake off its reputation as a cradle of Islamist militancy. One is a resurgence of the rebellion of Shi'ite tribesmen following the cleric Badr al-Din al-Houthi, the second challenge... MORE

The deaths of two suspected al-Qaida militants who blew themselves up in Mecca to avoid arrest has highlighted what the Saudis for years have denied; that al-Qaida has a significant presence in-country, and has even penetrated Islam’s holiest city. As the legitimacy of Saudi rulers... MORE

Perceptions as to the war on terrorism in Saudi Arabia took a knock with the news of a series of armed confrontations during the month of April. The first of these, the bloodiest in a two-year struggle between al-Qaeda and government forces, was a three... MORE

SCIRI The United States faces three adversaries in its attempts to stabilize and democratize Iraq. These are indigenous Arab Nationalists (Baathist or otherwise), foreign Sunni Islamists and Shia extremists. The Sunni Islamists are the least formidable of the three. Iraq lacks the Sunni Islamist political... MORE

Though Afghanistan today faces many threats, the greatest is that from Islamist extremists inside the country as well as those sheltering in the neighboring provinces of Pakistan. The most recent period has seen adversaries of the Karzai government and the US regroup their main forces.... MORE

Military victories in Iraq and Afghanistan do little to alleviate continued U.S. defeats on the most important front in the War on Terror - the war of ideas. A recent report by the Advisory Group on Public Diplomacy for the Arab and Muslim World, a... MORE

The arrest near Islamabad earlier this year of the alleged number three man in al Qaeda's hierarchy, Khalid Sheikh Muhammad, is worthy of note for two reasons. First, the capture took place on Pakistani territory with the help of local bodies of investigation and anti-terror... MORE

If the war on terror is to be won, we must first understand the perspective of our opponent. One of the principal inspirations for the type of Islamist ideology pursued by Osama bin Laden and his Egyptian chief lieutenant, Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri, is the work... MORE

Beginning with this issue, the Terrorism Monitor on a regular basis will analyze the Arab media's portrayal of the ideological sources of terrorism. This will include the most recent broadcasts of Al-Jazeera, Al-Arabi, and other Arab television networks and will focus on the issues of... MORE

Much is being said and written about today's Islam and its role in international relations. "Islamic extremism" is understood as political extremism that uses Islam as an ideological basis. "Fundamentalism," "Wahhabism," "political Islam," and "militant Islam" are often viewed as synonyms. Those who try to... MORE