In The News

The Arab Spring’s Unintended Consequences

Christopher Hill September 29, 2011
As the Arab Spring protests continue, the region endures repression and economic upheaval, to be exacerbated with impending US troop withdrawal from Iraq. Christopher Hill, former US assistant secretary of state for Asia during the Bush administration, links sectarian clashes with US withdrawal in Iraq in a Project Syndicate essay. A US-led international coalition deposed Iraq’s dictator, leading...

The World After 9/11 – Part II

Stephen Tankel September 8, 2011
Al Qaeda made its mark by the dramatic 9/11 attacks, but it’s not alone in developing transnational networks striving for global jihad. This two-part YaleGlobal series analyzes terrorist threats which since 9/11 have sought to end modernization and multicultural societies across Asia and promote inter-religious conflagration. The second and final article analyzes the goals of Lashkar-e-Taiba, or...

The World After 9/11 – Part I

Bruce Riedel September 6, 2011
Ten years ago, a small group of men launched unprecedented terrorist attacks on icons of American power. The dramatic attack by Al Qaeda ushered in an era of seemingly unending war between organized states and shadowy groups. This YaleGlobal series examines the continuing reverberations from the 9/11 attacks, which lured the US into long wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. The US has successfully...

Globalizing Insurgency in Somalia

Christopher Anzalone August 23, 2011
The Somali Al Qaeda–linked insurgent movement al-Shabab has ruled most of southern and central Somalia, including the capital city of Mogadishu, since mid-2008. Originating as the most radical wing of the military arm of the Islamic Courts Union coalition, the movement delivered relative law and order and peace to Somalia in 2006. Since then, al-Shabab has moved ideologically closer to the...

Norway Attacks: Anders Behring Breivik Will Join History's Human Monsters

Henning Mankell July 27, 2011
Those with radical agendas do not trust the pace of political processes or their moderating force. Filled with absolute certainty, clinging to religious or ideological notions, they launch into angry action to implement their ideas. Worse, some like Anders Behring Breivik deliver their messages so out of touch with everyday society with surprising violence. Writing for the Guardian, novelist...

Anders Breivik's Roots in Right-Wing Populism

Frank Patalong July 25, 2011
A bombing-shooting attack in Norway has left more than 70 people dead, mostly teenagers, and prompts nations to reflect on rising right-wing extremism and resentment. Populist opposition to immigration, a fast-changing culture and globalization of the economy is a potent political force. The impact of this cocktail can be seen in a 1500-page online manifesto, largely quoting other right-wing...

Middle-Class Uprising Poses a Global Threat

John Paul Rathbone July 22, 2011
The world’s greatest source of instability might not be terrorism but a middle class angered by vanishing prosperity, the loss of a lifestyle with many comforts and protections, argues John Paul Rathbone for the Financial Times. He points to an observation of journalist Moisés Naím, that most recent conflicts are within rather than between civilizations. In developed and developing countries...