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Violence-Oriented Right-Wing Extremist Actors in Russia: Russian Imperial Movement (RIM) – Part 1

During the past decade and a half, extremist non-state actors in Russia have become a central element of the violent transnational right-wing extremist milieu. The Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2014 and particularly its re-invasion of the country in 2022 have afforded these actors far greater opportunities to operate and …

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Violence-Oriented Right-Wing Extremist Actors in Russia: Russian Imperial Movement (RIM) – Part 2

During the past decade and a half, extremist non-state actors in Russia have become a central element of the violent transnational right-wing extremist milieu. The Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2014 and particularly its re-invasion of the country in 2022 have afforded these actors far greater opportunities to operate and …

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Hold, Build, and Strike: A Vision for Rebuilding Ukraine’s Advantage in 2024

This winter, Ukraine’s military is visibly running on fumes, as recent reporting shows M109 Paladin artillery outside Bakhmut receiving only smoke shells for ammunition. When we were last there in November, shell hunger was widespread along the front, and the situation has only gotten worse. Following months of hard fighting, …

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UAE ‘recruited al-Qaeda’ to carry out assassinations in Yemen

A new BBC investigation has found that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) recruited former Al-Qaeda members to provide security in Yemen, and funded American mercenaries to carry out political assasinations in the country. In the report, which was detailed in a documentary released on Monday, a whistleblower told the BBC …

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Ukraine Has Two Specialized Assault Brigades. It Sent One To Avdiivka To Cover The Garrison’s Retreat.

For two years since Russia widened its war on Ukraine, the Ukrainian army’s 110th Mechanized Brigade defended Avdiivka, a Ukrainian stronghold just northwest of Russian-occupied Donetsk in eastern Ukraine. In recent days, however, the survivors of the 2,000-person brigade finally retreated west, escaping a gradual Russian encirclement of the ruined …

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Iran Update, February 13, 2024

Key Takeaways: Southern Gaza Strip: Israel presented a proposal to move displaced Gazans in Rafah to Egyptian-built tent cities in the southwestern Gaza Strip, according to the Wall Street Journal.Negotiations: Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan claimed on February 12 that Egyptian and Qatar mediators believe that the Hamas ceasefire proposal …

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No US troop withdrawal from Iraq or Syria, for now

Iraq sits at a geostrategically significant location in the region and having influence and presence there is very important, says former CENTCOM commander The US military has been bombing Iran-backed targets in three different Middle East countries over the last few weeks, but this hasn’t changed the calculus of Tehran …

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How To React To Iranian Provocations Without Overreacting – OpEd

On January 28, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an Iranian-backed group, launched a successful and lethal drone attack on Tower 22, an American military outpost in northeast Jordan. Three US service members were killed and 47 more wounded. While Iran-backed groups have been attacking US positions across the Middle East …

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In the Caucasus, Another Year of War or Peace

Armenia and Azerbaijan may be nearing a bilateral peace agreement, but the threat of violence persists. A major sticking point is the Zangezur Corridor, where Baku and Moscow may pursue a deal to the detriment of Yerevan and the West. As in Ukraine, so in the South Caucasus, 2024 will …

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Turkey-Based Organization Prepares to Send Flotilla to Gaza

Latest Developments An assembly of international organizations announced on February 10 that it seeks to break Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza by sending a flotilla of humanitarian aid. The assembly, known as the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, aims to ship thousands of tons of international aid to Gaza, according to Zahir …

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