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By: Daniel L. Byman Prepared testimony before the Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and Intelligence of the House Committee on Homeland Security. Chairman King, Ranking Member Higgins, distinguished members of the subcommittee, and subcommittee staff, thank you for the opportunity to testify today. The Islamic State’s influence and model are …

By Pepe Escobar Whatever happens with the nuclear negotiations this summer, and as much as Tehran wants cooperation and not confrontation, Iran is bound to remain — alongside Russia — a key US geostrategic target. As much as US President Barack Obama tried to dismiss it, the Russian sale of the …

Farzin Nadimi To prevent recent airline and shipping incidents from escalating into a wider military confrontation with Iran, all sides will need to exercise great caution in the Persian Gulf and the skies over Yemen. On April 28, Saudi-led coalition aircraft bombed runways at Yemen’s al-Rahaba Airport to …

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has agreed on a concerted effort against terrorism by blacklisting terrorist organizations and individuals, while hailing Saudi Arabia’s efforts in tackling the menace. The decision was taken at the 16th consultative meeting of GCC interior ministers in Doha on Wednesday. Qatari Prime Minister …

By Daniel Depetris Hundreds of air strikes later, Hadi remains in Riyadh and the Houthis remain near Aden. Riyadh needs a new approach. After nearly four weeks of consistent aerial bombardment against Houthi military positions across Yemen, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia — with full backing from its colleagues …

By Patrick Tucker The new cyber strategy could provide allies with Americans’ information gathered under proposed legislation. As Ashton Carter unveiled the Pentagon’s new Cyber Strategy last week, he underscored its importance by revealing that DOD networks had been infiltrated by actors within Russia. The defense secretary did not emphasize a provision …

Aimal Faizi Afghan President Ashraf Ghani is due to begin his first state visit to New Delhi this Monday. Almost seven months after becoming president, the three-day visit is a chance for Ghani to win hearts and minds in New Delhi. Over the last few months, Kabul has sent confusing …

James Denselow As we peer through the fog of war into the heart of the Middle East we see ISIL on the back foot in Iraq and on the front foot in Syria. This month, the loss of Tikrit and simultaneous gains in the heart of Damascus highlighted …

By Glenn Thrush and Anna Palmer There is a growing realization inside Hillary Clinton’s Brooklyn headquarters and among the wider circle of Democratic operatives that coming up with the requisite $1 billion to $2.5 billion in campaign and super PAC cash for the 2016 campaign will be a lot tougher than …