SUBSCRIBER+EXCLUSIVE REPORTING — In the days after Hamas fighters launched a terrorist attack in Israel in October, an illicit amphetamine known as Captagon was reportedly found in […] More
OPINION — When will the U.S. learn the lessons of Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan? Operation Inherent Resolve has been underway since 2014, in the Iraq/Syria […] More
Cipher Brief Expert John McLaughlin is former Acting Director of the CIA, former Deputy CIA Director and is the Distinguished Practitioner in Residence at the […] More
The Cipher Brief is a non-political media outlet focused on publishing expert perspectives on national security issues. We are committed to presenting multiple opinions to […] More
Bottom Line Up Front Even as Syrian strongman Bashar al-Assad appears closer to prevailing in the country’s nearly decade-long civil war, there are new […] More
The global pandemic caused by COVID-19 has added a significant layer of uncertainty to an already complicated situation in the Middle East. The Cipher Brief […] More
Bottom Line Up Front The United States is looking to consolidate and expand its presence in the eastern provinces of Deir al-Zour and al-Hasakah, […] More
Cipher Brief Expert John McLaughlin is a distinguished practitioner in residence at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. He served as the Deputy […] More
Bottom Line Up Front Following intensified fighting in Syria between Turkey and the Assad regime, thousands of refugees are fleeing the country in an […] More
OPINION — On 19 December 2018, President Donald Trump announced a withdrawal of American Troops from Syria, setting off fierce criticism that led to the […] More
Bottom Line Up Front Iran’s intervention in Syria’s civil war has provided Tehran with the ability to support its closest regional allies while simultaneously […] More
Cipher Brief Expert John McLaughlin is a distinguished practitioner in residence at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. He served as the Deputy […] More
Bottom Line Up Front Dozens of Turkish soldiers were killed in an airstrike on Thursday in a development that threatens to drastically escalate the […] More
Bottom Line Up Front Since the caliphate collapsed, several European nations of captured foreign fighters and associated women and children have refused to deal […] More
Bottom Line Up Front The nine year-long Syrian civil war continues to rage, with most of the intense fighting taking place in northwestern Syria […] More
The Cipher Brief’s Open Source Trend Line Report utilizes open source data on a quarterly basis to track trends around the world that impact national […] More
OPINION — It has been several years since I thought deeply about Syria. And that is a shame, given my long time affection for the […] More
The Cipher Brief’s NEW Open Source Collection Report (OSINT) uses open source data to track trends around the world that impact national and global security. […] More
OPINION — President Trump’s sending U.S. military troops to control the oil fields in northern Syria can only be interpreted as introducing financial deal-making into […] More
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