Waq al-Waq | Big Think

Brian O'Neill on Submergence

Gregory Johnsen — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 11:11:07 -0400

Editor's Note: I recently read and subsequently tweeted about Submergence, the new novel by J.M. Ledgard. Then I asked one of the smartest people I know - Brian O'Neill - if he would review the book for Waq al-waq. His review is below and it is my hope that he'll continue to review books for us ...

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The Last Refuge Book Trailer

Gregory Johnsen — Sat, 09 Feb 2013 17:51:53 -0500

This week The Last Refuge: Yemen, al-Qaeda and the Battle for Arabia was released in the UK. For those wanting to get a sense of the book, I urge you to watch this short (1:41) book trailer, which you can view here. And for those in the US and Australia who haven't yet had a chance to ...

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Does the US really try to Capture?

Gregory Johnsen — Sat, 09 Feb 2013 10:02:18 -0500

On Thursday, John Brennan, President Obama's nominee to be the new director of the CIA, went before the Senate Intelligence Committee to answer questions. I watched all three and-a-half hours of the discussion and despite a few moments of genuinely challenging questions I was largely ...

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'Abd al-Rauf al-Dhahab and Bad Intel

Gregory Johnsen — Mon, 31 Dec 2012 11:54:17 -0500

On Christmas Eve, Sudarsan Raghavan of the Washington Post wrote a detailed article about a September air strike in which the US attempted to kill 'Abd al-Rauf al-Dhahab, whom it believes to be a regional al-Qaeda commander. That strike missed al-Dhahab and killed several innocent people and has ...

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Of Threats and Bounties

Gregory Johnsen — Sun, 30 Dec 2012 21:49:47 -0500

On December 23 - the same day the US carried out an apparent drone strike in the al-Baydha governorate of Yemen, apparently targeting 'Abd al-Rauf al-Dhahab - AQAP released a 43 minute video. The video, which is one of the more polished videos I've seen AQAP release, is basically a catalog of ...

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Sowing the Wind: Three years of strikes in Yemen

Gregory Johnsen — Wed, 26 Dec 2012 15:21:18 -0500

Three years ago, on December 17, 2009, the Obama administration launched its first strike on what it believed to be an AQAP training camp in southern Yemen. Unfortunately, what the Obama administration believed to be a terrorist training camp turned out to be a bedouin encampment, and the ...

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Why Did the US kill 'Adnan al-Qadhi?

Gregory Johnsen — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 13:23:12 -0500

US officials continue to maintain as they have publicly for some time that in Yemen the US is only targeting the top 10-15 leaders of AQAP, whom it believes are actively plotting against the US and US interests in Yemen. However, in order to kill these 10-15 individuals the US has carried - by ...

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A Breakdown in Security

Gregory Johnsen — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 13:47:55 -0500

A few weeks ago I wrote a piece about security in Sanaa and my own sense of unease during my last trip to Yemen. That piece drew several comments both here on the blog and in person, where a number of people who know Yemen well pushed back against my sense of safety. It even came up during my ...

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Guest Post: "After the Drone"

Gregory Johnsen — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 18:02:31 -0500

Editor's Note: Today I'm thrilled to have a guest post by Adam Baron, an excellent journalist, who is working and writing from Yemen. Today, he wrote a must-read story on his trip to see the aftermath of the November 7 drone strike that killed 'Adnan al-Qadhi. You can and should read that story ...

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The Yemen Model

Gregory Johnsen — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 15:17:23 -0500

Today I published an op-ed in the NY Times, arguing that the "Yemen model" approach to counterterrorism is deeply flawed. I also suggest a way forward for the Obama administration in selecting a new CIA director. You can read the whole piece here. Fortunately or unfortunately, as the case ...

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