Towards the end of April this year a new Arabic language web magazine, aimed at the Arab mujahidin fighting in the Caucasus, or sympathisers following the events in the region, appeared on the net entitled Sawt al-Qoqaz (‘The Voice of the Caucasus'). In the last... MORE

The February 13 assassination in Qatar of former Chechen President Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev by Russian agents is one of many challenges to international law posed by the new tactics of the "War on Terrorism." America's doctrine of pre-emptive "defensive" use of force has been enthusiastically taken... MORE

On Tuesday August 24 two Russian passenger jets crashed within three minutes of one another, killing all 90 passengers and crew. They had taken off from the same Moscow airport, but had different destinations: Volgograd and Sochi. After early reticence, the Russian authorities accepted, from... MORE

Viktor Vasilevich Bout, one of the world's most notorious arms merchants with proven links to the Taliban, has become a valued partner of the U.S. as it grapples with the insurgency in Iraq. Bout's airline, British Gulf, flies material into Baghdad International airport for the... MORE

With Russia once again threatening pre-emptive strikes on "terrorist" installations in Georgia's Pankisi Gorge, it seems timely to re-examine the alleged activities of Jordanian terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in the region several years ago. The Pankisi Gorge is a river valley about 34 km long... MORE

Chechen warlord Shamil Basaev is no stranger to violence. In the turbulent world of the northern Caucasus, Basaev has fought in the Abkhaz rebellion of 1992-93, and played a central role in the first Chechen war of 1994-96, the invasion of Dagestan in 1999, and... MORE

Being one of only four countries in the world with a majority of Shiites, Azerbaijan represents an interesting case of secular Shiism surrounded by countries and regions where theocracy and religious movements (both Shiite and Sunni) seem to thrive. After the fall of the Soviet... MORE

Following last week’s deadly explosion in the Moscow subway, Russia’s political leadership, the bulk of the analytical community and ordinary citizens were quick to call the blast the work of Chechen terrorists. Various interest groups have made use of the specter of Chechen terrorism to... MORE

[Dear Readers, The Jamestown Foundation's Spotlight on Terror presents a special analysis of a major diplomatic development related to the war on terror. Two countries aligned with the United States in the war on terror have found a new basis for cooperation in the north... MORE

The Arabic television channel Al Jazeera broadcast an audiotape on December 19, 2003, that was said to be from Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri, the right hand man of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. In it, Zawahiri claimed that his group was chasing Americans everywhere, including... MORE