Recent Publications

Countering Radicalization and Recruitment to Al-Qaeda: Fighting the War of Deeds
June 1, 2014 — Author: Dr Paul Kamolnick View the Executive SummaryThis Letort Paper proposes that actions, policies, and deeds—those of the U.S. Government and al-Qaeda—be leveraged as a means of delegitimizing al-Qaeda terrorist propaganda. Two chief fronts—changing deeds and challenging deeds—is proposed. Changing deeds requires that the United States... MORE

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The Resurgence of Al-Qaeda in Syria and Iraq
May 1, 2014 — Author: Dr Azeem Ibrahim View the Executive SummaryThe Syrian civil war has allowed al-Qaeda to recover from its setbacks up to 2010. Its main affiliate in the region seems to be testing a new strategy of collaboration with other Salafist-Jihadist groups and a less brutal implementation of Sharia law in areas it controls. In combination, this might... MORE

Lead Me, Follow Me, Or Get Out of My Way: Rethinking and Refining the Civil-Military Relationship
September 1, 2012 — Author: Dr Mark R Shulman This monograph explains why robust civil-military relations matter and discusses how they are evolving. Part I discusses A More Perfect Military: How the Constitution Can Make Our Military Stronger by Diane Mazur, a book that examines the jurisprudence that has reshaped civil-military relations. Mazur maintains that since... MORE

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Delegitimizing Al-Qaeda: A Jihad-Realist Approach
March 1, 2012 — Author: Dr Paul Kamolnick Disrupting, dismantling, and ultimately defeating al-Qaeda based and inspired terrorism is a declared policy of the U.S. Government. Three key strategic objectives have been identified for accomplishing this: attacking al-Qaeda’s terror network, undermining radicalization and recruitment, and hardening homeland defense... MORE

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Op-Ed: Weekend at Osama’s
February 6, 2012 — Dr. Cori E. Dauber Even before Osama bin Laden was killed, the Obama administration began arguing that al-Qaeda was close to final defeat because so many of its senior leaders were now dead largely as a result of drone operations in Afghanistan and Pakistan. But that assessment depends on an awfully narrow definition of “al-Qaeda” — and of “dead.”... MORE

Response to “America’s Flawed Afghanistan Strategy”
October 14, 2010 — MAJ Peter A. Dvorscak Update: Steve Metz responds.Dr. Metz discusses many aspects of the Global War on Terror in his August 2010 SSI Newsletter Op-Ed, but intertwines subjects, such as the Taliban and al Qaeda, without putting the subjects in the proper perspective.He wrote, “Both the Bush and Obama strategies assume al Qaeda needs state support or... MORE

Final Response to “America’s Flawed Afghanistan Strategy”
October 14, 2010 — Dr. Steven Metz MAJ Dvorscak's thoughtful letter makes a number of important and powerful points. In some cases, I suspect that I simply expressed my idea poorly or was limited by time constraints in the extent to which I could explain them. On others, though, we'll agree to disagree.MAJ Dvorscak is exactly right that al Qaeda and the Taliban have... MORE

America’s Flawed Afghanistan Strategy
August 1, 2010 — Author: Dr Steven Metz Each month a member of the SSI faculty writes an editorial for our monthly newsletter. This is the Op-Ed for the August 2010 newsletter.Read Now MORE

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Sufism in Northern Nigeria: A Force for Counter-Radicalization?
May 1, 2010 — Author: Dr Jonathan N C Hill In light of the ongoing threats issued by al-Qaeda (AQ) against the United States and its allies, the need to prevent the radicalization of young Muslim men and women remains as pressing as ever, and perhaps nowhere is this task more urgent than in the countries of West Africa. The global expanse of the ongoing war on... MORE

Strategic Ends in the Middle East
July 1, 2004 — Author: LTC Raymond A Millen Each month a member of the SSI faculty writes an editorial for our monthly newsletter. This is the Op-Ed for the June 2004 newsletter.Read Now MORE