Perhaps in an effort to signal an opening for negotiations, Al-Qaeda’s branch in the Sahel declared that French soil is not part of the conflict. For the first time, an al-Qaeda affiliate publicly declared that the ongoing war with France does not include French soil. The most active branches of …

The United States’ counterterrorism efforts in Africa have prioritized security force assistance (SFA), despite its lack of effectiveness in reducing terrorism. Throughout Africa, al-Qaeda affiliates are capitalizing on local political grievances that remain unaddressed in states’ focus on supporting security forces. Because these conflicts are local and/or regional in scope, …

A seemingly emboldened Tehran may be upping its aggressive posture in the region in order to press its nuke talks position and test new leaders in Washington and Jerusalem As the Middle East sweats through an August heatwave, temperatures are rising rapidly in the long-running conflict between Israel and Iran. …