Maybe it’s Time for a new Comms Policy after Military Raids
OPINION — On 3 February, US forces attacked an ISIS leadership site in Syria, targeting its top leader Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi. In characteristic fashion, […] More
Posts Tagged ‘ISIS’
The Spymaster of Baghdad
BOOK REVIEW: The Spymaster of Baghdad: A True Story of Bravery, Family, and Patriotism in the Battle Against ISIS by Margaret Coker / Dey Street Books […] More
One Year after Killing of Baghdadi, What is the State of the Islamic State?
Bottom Line Up Front One year ago today, U.S. Special Operations Forces hunted down ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, who died after detonating a […] More
ISIS Terrorists Known as ‘The Beatles’ To Face Justice in the United States
Bottom Line Up Front El Shafee Elsheikh and Alexanda Kotey, two ISIS members known as ‘The Beatles,’ will face justice in the United States […] More
Who is the Islamic State’s New Leader?
Bottom Line Up Front On October 26, 2019, U.S. Special Forces launched a major operation that resulted in the death of ISIS leader Abu […] More
An Insider’s Account of Hunting the Caliphate
BOOK REVIEW: Hunting the Caliphate: America’s War on ISIS and the Dawn of the Strike Cell By Dana J.H. Pittard and Wes J. Bryant “The […] More
No Longer Worried About ISIS? Think Again.
The killings of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and his possible deputy by U.S. special operations forces are major losses for the extremists, ones that are likely […] More
Trump and His Oil Fields
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
Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi’s Legacy
The demise of Osama bin Laden in 2011 did not end al-Qaeda. Nor will the apparent demise of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi end the terror of […] More
The Killing of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi
More details are emerging about just how U.S. commandos located and cornered ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi over the weekend as well as questions about […] More
Baghdadi May be Dead, but the So-Called Islamic State Will Live On
Bottom Line Up Front On October 26, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was killed in a raid by U.S. forces in northern Syria near the Turkish […] More
The Regional Impact of al-Baghdadi’s Death
Cipher Brief Expert Norman T. Roule served for 34-years in the Central Intelligence Agency, managing numerous programs relating to Iran and the Middle East. He […] More
What ISIS Leader’s Death Could Mean for Al Qaeda
Bruce Hoffman is a professor at Georgetown University and Visiting Senior Fellow for Counterterrorism and Homeland Security at the Council on Foreign Relations. He has served […] More
Why the U.S. is Losing this War to the Russians
REVIEW: Information Wars: How We Lost the Global Battle Against Disinformation and What We Can Do About It by Richard Stengel “The Cipher Brief has […] More
Forever Enemies and Forever Wars
Gary Grappo is a former U.S. ambassador who served as Minister Counselor for Political Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad; U.S. Ambassador to the […] More
The Far-Reaching Danger of ISIS in Syria
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is defending President Trump’s decision to withdraw support for Kurdish troops in Northeast Syria, saying Turkey has a “legitimate […] More
The Prisoners Dilemma: ISIS After Bagouz
On 23 May, John Walker Lindh was released after spending 17 years in a U.S. prison. The notorious “American Taliban”, convicted of providing support to […] More
ISIS’ Global Spread
ISIS has claimed responsibility for a series of Easter Sunday bombings in Sri Lanka that killed more than 300 people and injured 500 more. A […] More
ISIS’ Shifting Focus
ISIS has claimed responsibility for a series of Easter Sunday bombings in Sri Lanka that killed more than 300 people and injured 500 more. Sri […] More
The Evolving Terrorist Threat
The Cipher Brief was recently invited to take part in the University of New Mexico’s Intelligence Symposium, covering a number of national (and international) security […] More
Syria, ISIS and the Long War
On 23 March, the Syrian Democratic Forces announced the capture of Baghouz, the last remaining ISIS stronghold in Syria. This may arguably mark the end […] More
Avoiding the Next Camp Bucca
Bottom Line Up Front On March 19, the coalition fighting the so-called Islamic State announced it was finally in control of Baghouz, IS’ last […] More
The Islamic State Will Live on Through Its Affiliates
Bottom Line Up Front Even after the collapse of the territorial caliphate in Iraq and Syria, the Islamic State will live on through its […] More
4 Terrorism Questions for former NCTC Director Nicholas Rasmussen
This week’s release of the Intelligence Community’s unclassified Worldwide Threat Assessment made clear which groups the IC believes pose the greatest terrorist threats to the […] More