Journal of International Studies

While it’s not uncommon to see Ayman al-Zawahiri wagging his finger in a quarterly or semi-annual propaganda video spewing the usual anti-American rhetoric, it is unusual to see al Qaeda leaders issuing guidance and directives to subordinates in publicly available guidelines.  As-Sahab Media, an al Qaeda media outlet, recently  released Zawahiri’s “General Guidelines for Jihad” in both Arabic and English . Zawahiri has issued public edicts to followers before, but this latest installment feels quite different and its delivery and content suggests several changes and tensions that may be afoot inside al Qaeda global organization.  First, let’s explore why Zawahiri would issue public rather than private guidance to the global jihadi community. Normally, al Qaeda might broadcast strategic vision publicly, but reserve directives and corrective guidance via secure communications.  The most famous intercept of these private communications comes from  Zawahiri’s 2...

The End of Hypocrisy By Henry Farrell and Martha Finnemore Foreign Affairs In one of this week’s most talked about articles, Farrell and Finnemore assess the real threat leakers like Snowden and Manning pose to American diplomacy. Rather than a direct assault on national security, they argue that leakers compromise the U.S.’s ability to act hypocritically and get away with it. Al Qaeda’s Teenage Fan Club By Hannah Lucinda Smith Vice Al Qaeda’s success in Syria is as much about savvy marketing strategy as it is about political vision. Smith describes how moderate, even friendly, young men are joining extreme jihadist forces. On the Ground with Syria’s News Struggle By Matthew Shaer New Republic Shaer explores Reyhanli, a town bordering Syria that was once a backwater and has now become the hub of many Syrian citizen journalists. Through accounts given by citizen journalists, Shaer reflects on the difficulties and increased dangers of the Syrian media en...

On Monday (28/10/2013)  an SUV carrying three individuals drove through Tiananmen Square, killing themselves and two others while injuring scores more. It was initially unclear whether the incident was an accident or a deliberate attack. Although China has kept tight-lipped about the incident, Reuters is reporting , citing unnamed Chinese officials, that Beijing now believes that it was a suicide attack. Reuters asserts that Chinese authorities believe the assailants were from China’s restive Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region and they are currently searching for two Uyghurs in connection with the attack. Although violence has long plagued the ethnic conflict, there are a number of reasons why Beijing is especially worried about this purported attack. First, the incident occurred in one of the most heavily guarded areas of the capital. Although there were major bombing attacks in Beijing in the 1990s that the Chinese government attributed to Muslim separatist gro...