Untangling Pashtun History
BOOK REVIEW: The Pashtuns: A Contested History by Tilak Devasher / Harper Collins Reviewed by Cipher Brief Expert Tim Willasey-Wilsey THE REVIEWER — Tim Willasey-Wilsey is […] More
Archive for ‘Afghanistan’
Today’s Global Threat from Terrorism
EXPERT PERSPECTIVE — The US – Europe Group on Afghanistan, which includes special envoys and representatives for Afghanistan from France, Germany, Italy, Norway, the UK, […] More
We Know Afghanistan’s Past but Where is it Headed?
The United States’ policy errors which led to the chaotic exit from Afghanistan were only surpassed by Pakistan’s blunder in championing the Taliban and the […] More
Justice by Hellfire: The Killing of Ayman al-Zawahiri
It’s possible that the terrorist leader, wanted for his role in plotting the 9/11 attacks and later becoming the head of al Qaeda after the […] More
Afghanistan’s Napoleon and how things could have been different
BOOK REVIEW: Afghan Napoleon: The Life of Ahmad Shah Massoud By Sandy Gall / Haus Publishing Reviewed by Tim Willasey-Wilsey The Reviewer — Tim Willasey-Wilsey […] More
How Lessons from Afghanistan are playing out in Ukraine
OPINION — How much has the United States learned from past history about undertaking major, large-scale military assistance efforts such as the one now underway […] More
The Afghan Debacle Should Prompt China to Revise its South Asian Policy
This piece was first published by RUSI in London. The views do not represent those of RUSI. EXPERT PERSPECTIVE — While China has tried to rebalance its […] More
What Stands Between the Taliban and Recognition
This piece was first published by RUSI in London. The views do not represent those of RUSI. EXPERT PERSPECTIVE –The international community is coming under increasing […] More
Mapping Afghanistan’s Many Terrorist Groups
EXPERT PERSPECTIVE – The on-going bloody terrorist violence against Shia mosques in Afghan cities like Kunduz, Kandahar, and elsewhere have highlighted the murky issue of […] More
9 Good Questions for First Casualty Author Toby Harnden
Cipher Brief UnderCover senior editor, Bill Harlow talks with journalist and author Toby Harnden about his new book, First Casualty: The Untold Story of the […] More
What The Afghanistan Papers tells us about War and Truth
BOOK REVIEW: The Afghanistan Papers: A Secret History of the War By Craig Whitlock / Simon & Schuster Reviewed by Jean-Thomas Nicole (The Cipher Brief taps […] More
Out of Afghanistan, an Opportunity for Acquisition
Cipher Brief Expert Robert J. Eatinger is former senior deputy general counsel at the CIA. He has 35 years of experience practicing law in the […] More
America Needs Accountability on Afghanistan
Cipher Brief Expert Laura E. Thomas is a former CIA case officer and Chief of Base in Afghanistan, who led sensitive CIA programs at CIA […] More
After 9/11, Good Intelligence is More Important than Ever
Cipher Brief Expert Daniel Hoffman is a former senior officer with the Central Intelligence Agency, where he served as a three-time station chief and a senior executive […] More
Wars are not Won by Evacuations
Mark Kelton, Former Deputy Director, CIA’s Counterintelligence, National Clandestine Service Cipher Brief Expert Mark Kelton is a retired senior Central Intelligence Agency executive with 34 […] More
What Afghanistan Cost the CIA
BOOK REVIEW: First Casualty: The Untold Story of the CIA Mission to Avenge 9/11 By Toby Harnden Little Brown & Co. Reviewed by Philip Mudd […] More
What the CIA’s Fight Against Terrorism Looks Like Now
Cipher Brief Expert Daniel Hoffman is a former senior officer with the Central Intelligence Agency, where he served as a three-time station chief and a senior […] More
Reflections on Ending an Endless War
Cipher Brief Expert Robert Cardillo served as the sixth Director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA). Prior to that assignment, Mr. Cardillo served as the […] More
Applying What We Learned from Iraq in Afghanistan
Cipher Brief Expert Vice Admiral Kevin Donegan, USN (ret), served as Commander of the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet and Commander of the 32 Nation Combined Maritime […] More
The Risk of Terrorism at Home and Abroad
As information emerges about Islamic State of Khorasan, or ISIS-K – the terrorist group that claimed responsibility for last week’s suicide attack that killed 13 […] More
Why We’re Much Safer from Terrorism Now than We Were After 9/11
Cipher Brief Expert Mike Leiter served in several senior national security positions in the federal government, to include as the Director of the National Counterterrorism […] More
An Afghan View Through the Eyes of an American
Major (Retired) Jason Criss Howk is a former Infantry Sergeant turned Engineer Officer. He has worked with the Afghanistan mission since 2002 assisting the most […] More
What We Need to Know About the Taliban and Its Sharia Rule
Cipher Brief Expert Emile Nakhleh is a retired CIA Senior Intelligence Service Officer and founding director of the CIA’s Political Islam Strategic Analysis Program Office. […] More
What Intelligence was there on Afghanistan?
When The Washington Post reported this week that CIA Director William Burns slipped into Afghanistan on Monday to meet with Taliban leader Abdul Ghani Baradar, […] More