How much has Australia committed to fighting Islamic State? Australia has pledged 600 military personnel and up to eight Super Hornets, which is expected to cost up to $500 million per year. There has…
The well-known US security expert, Brian Jenkins, famously declared in 1974, that “terrorism is theatre”. And over the last few weeks, the brutal videotaped beheadings of British and American hostages…
During his recent unannounced visit to Baghdad the US secretary of state John Kerry mentioned that “a new and inclusive Iraqi government has to be the engine of our global strategy” against Islamic State…
There may seem to be no connection between terrorism and cancer. But that is an oversight. If considered closely, it is easy to see that both exhibit loss of control present in “normal” conditions and…
University of Canberra Professorial Fellow Michelle Grattan and Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Nicholas Klomp discuss the week in politics including Australia’s involvement in the Middle East, US President…
It appears that Australia might be put on a higher threat alert level. ASIO director-general David Irvine’s comments on a possible increase in the terrorism threat level (which came into force in 2003…
UPDATED AT 4:30PM AEST: The most interesting part of US President Barack Obama’s much-anticipated televised address today was not the unsurprising news of increased allied strikes against Islamic State…
Why does Australia have a terrorism alert system? And what does it mean if the alert level is increased? The National Terrorism Public Alert System is a way of communicating to the public what the current…
Over recent weeks there has been a constant background noise that Islamic State and its ideology are some sort of throwback to a distant past. It is often framed in language used last week by the deputy…
With Islamic State’s advance in Iraq and Syria gripping the world’s attention, al-Qaeda has been left on the sidelines. That all changed on September 4, as al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri released a 55-minute…
With an unmistakable British accent, the now-infamous Islamic State (IS) fighter thought to have killed journalist James Foley has addressed his second message to US president Barack Obama. IS is trying…
Islamic State’s brutal killing of Steven Sotloff, coming on the heels of James Foley’s execution, is intended to shock and appal. It has done just that. But any response to the executions must recognise…
After weeks of speculation, the UK government has played its hand, revealing the measures it is taking to confront what is apparently “the greatest and deepest terrorist threat” the UK has ever faced…
In the aftermath of James Foley’s killing and the concern that his killer may be from the UK, the right to British citizenship has been placed firmly at the centre of the debate about modern terrorism…
So far, the ongoing discussions about radicalisation of extremists both at home and abroad have tended to emphasise its sociological aspects. It has focused on concepts such as the religion and social…
After the terrorist attacks of 9/11, the US made a point of diversifying its sources of oil to reduce dependence on the Middle East. It was a strategic move which promised a huge boost to West African…
British support for opposition groups fighting against the Assad regime in Syria has waned considerably since the summer of 2013, with the increasing prominence of more radicalised Islamic organisations…
The conflicts in Syria and Iraq are attracting many westerners, including young Australians, as jihadi fighters. Last December, Australian intelligence agencies reported that they were aware of at least…
This week Twitter began suspending accounts related to ISIS (Islamic State in Iraq and al-Sham). This follows an ISIS fighter reportedly posting the photo of the head of a decapitated Iraqi police major…
Only recently, the Pakistani Taliban (TTP) was expected to fall apart: violent rivalries had split the insurgency in two, peace talks with the government had collapsed, and military jets had hit hide-outs…