Terrorism

Kataib Hezbollah is the premier fasail (armed group) in Iraq, operating under the direct under-command of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps - Qods Force. It has a wide range of cells undertaking kinetic, media and social operations, some of which are bankrolled by the Iraqi state.

Ashab al-Kahf is the first and best-known of the facade groups used by Iran-backed militias to selectively conceal their involvement in operations. Ashab al-Kahf historically has a strong connection to Asaib Ahl al-Haq.

Since losing its territorial base, the group has shown troubling signs of recovery amid a deteriorating situation at al-Hawl refugee camp.

Iraqi militias value legitimacy and try to portray themselves as acting within the law, so evidence-based approaches can be very effective at reining in those who attack on Tehran’s behalf.

The political fallout from a recent speech by the Lebanese Armed Forces commander gives Washington and its partners a golden opportunity to prod the country from crisis management toward actual solutions.

Despite accusations by leftist politicians, Ennahda’s commitment to national security has not wavered since it turned on the jihadi movement, but the party still needs to define what it means by “Muslim Democracy.”

Three veteran counterterrorism practitioners from recent administrations take stock of America’s overall strategy, foreign posture, and domestic threats at the dawn of the Biden presidency.

The shift away from a U.S.-led military posture will require that Washington repair its damaged credibility with allies abroad. A major task at home will be disentangling counterterrorism budgets from the military budgets on which they have long been grafted.

Three Lebanese experts explore Beirut’s precarious politics, Hezbollah’s continued ability to evade accountability, and the Biden administration’s options.