More than six months after the United States killed al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in an airstrike in Kabul, Afghanistan, leadership of the terror group appears to have quietly passed to his heir apparent in Iran.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has entered its twelfth month. Reporting on the conflict understandably focuses on the day-to-day fighting and destruction, but it is important for Americans and U.S. policymakers to understand the larger issues raised by the war and the U.S. role in it. The following Defense Priorities analysis aims to improve understanding of these issues and what U.S. policy should prioritize as the war continues.
Map of Ukraine and contested territories
MULTAN: A Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) terrorist was killed and his three accomplices managed to escape a CTD raid after the exchange of fire in Khanewal on Wednesday.
Islamic State militants have threatened to target Chinese, Indian, and Iranian embassies in Afghanistan in an effort to isolate the Taliban from a handful of countries it counts as diplomatic allies.
Saddam Haftar, the son of Khalifa Haftar, is seeking to take control of banking institutions in eastern Libya to use them as a source of funding to strengthen his power base and pay the salaries of his forces, according to the Africa Intelligence website.
The suicide bombing at a mosque in Pakistan’s Peshawar killed 101 and injured over 200. The Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed responsibility for the bombing.
The suicide bombing in Pakistan’s Peshawar was planned in Afghanistan and the terror plot was funded by a foreign intelligence agency, according to Pakistani investigators on the case.
Saudi Arabia has closed its embassy in Kabul over threats of possible attack and its 14 diplomats, including charge d’affaires Abdullah Fahd al-Kahlani, have moved to Islamabad.
The shifting of the diplomats to Pakistan was confirmed by the highly-placed sources at the Foreign Office and Saudi mission on Tuesday.
China’s efforts to reshape existing global institutions and norms rely on the support of African governments, though this can often be at odds with African citizen interests.
Reshaping global institutions and norms to reflect Chinese perspectives are central to China’s approach to geostrategic competition. This is what the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) refers to as “reform” when calling on China to “take a vigorous part in leading the reform of the global governance system,” (jiji canyu yinling quan qiu zhili ti xì gaige, 积极参与引领全球治理体系改革). This concept was first adopted at the June 2018 Central Foreign Affairs Work Conference—a rarely held strategy session that gives overarching guidance to China’s foreign policy establishment. It is a cornerstone of foreign policy under CCP General Secretary Xi Jinping.
A U.S. general said in a memo on Friday that he believes the country will be at war with China by 2025, according to several news outlets that obtained a copy of the communication, The Hill reported.
“I hope I am wrong,” Gen. Mike Minihan, a four-star Air Force general who leads the Air Mobility Command (AMC), said in the memo to troops under his command, which was first reported by NBC News.
The trip could lead to greater cooperation between India and Egypt on trade, the Suez Canal, green hydrogen and more.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi concluded a three-day visit to India on Friday. Egypt and India upgraded their political, economic and military relations during the trip.