Articles

Jihadists focus on prison breaks By Peter Bergen, CNN National Security Analyst, and Bailey Cahall, Special to CNN updated 2:53 PM EDT, Wed July 31, 2013 Taliban claims responsibility for raid STORY HIGHLIGHTS A Taliban commander leads prison attack in Pakistan, freeing 250 inmates Peter Bergen: Jihadists have conducted jailbreaks in Middle East and South […]

Al Qaeda’s kinder, gentler image makeover By Peter Bergen, CNN National Security Analyst, and Jennifer Rowland, Special to CNN updated 10:43 AM EDT, Wed July 31, 2013 Al Nusra fighters stand ready to fight Syrian regime forces near Aleppo in April. Al Nusra has pledged allegiance to al Qaeda. STORY HIGHLIGHTS Writers: Al Qaeda posting […]

New view of drone death toll By Peter Bergen and Jennifer Rowland updated 3:33 PM EDT, Fri July 26, 2013 Obama defends drone program STORY HIGHLIGHTS U.S. drone program is especially controversial in Pakistan Peter Bergen: A leaked report suggests fewer civilian drone deaths than previously reported Pakistan’s new prime minister opposes drone program, cites […]

Al Qaeda in Yemen: On the ropes By Peter Bergen and Jennifer Rowland updated 12:48 PM EDT, Thu July 18, 2013 Pictured is Said al-Shihri, a commander in al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, from a video posted on October 6, 2010. STORY HIGHLIGHTS Al Qaeda affiliate in Yemen confirms death of a key leader […]

From Benghazi to Boston: The state of the jihad By Peter Bergen, CNN National Security Analyst updated 10:15 AM EDT, Tue July 16, 2013 Vice President Joe Biden, left, President Barack Obama, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, second from right, watch the mission to capture Osama bin Laden from the Situation Room in the […]

Abandon Afghanistan? A dumb idea By Peter Bergen, CNN National Security Analyst updated 1:54 PM EDT, Tue July 9, 2013 U.S. Marines patrol Afghanistan’s Helmand province in June 2012. Afghans fear the United States will abandon them again. STORY HIGHLIGHTS White House mulling withdrawing all U.S. troops from Afghanistan, official said Peter Bergen said the […]

By Peter Bergen, CNN National Security Analyst Editor’s note: Peter Bergen is CNN’s national security analyst, a director at the New America Foundation, and author of Manhunt: The Ten-Year Search for bin Laden from 9/11 to Abbottabad. (CNN) — On Monday, Pakistan’s long-awaited report into the death of Osama bin Laden in the city of […]

Falling under the spell of a slain terrorist By Peter Bergen and David Sterman updated 7:32 PM EDT, Fri June 28, 2013 This video image released courtesy of SITE Intelligence Group, shows a never-before-released pictures of Anwar al-Awlaki, who was killed in a CIA drone strike on September 30, 2011. STORY HIGHLIGHTS Anwar al-Awlaki was […]

Obama’s goal in Africa: Counter China By Peter Bergen, CNN National Security Analyst updated 9:40 AM EDT, Wed June 26, 2013 President Barack Obama speaks with Ghanaian President John Atta-Mills at Osu Castle, the government headquarters and a former slave trading fort, in Accra, Ghana, on July 11, 2009. STORY HIGHLIGHTS President Obama is visiting […]

What U.S. learned from listening in on terror group calls By Peter Bergen and David Sterman updated 8:49 AM EDT, Wed June 19, 2013 NSA discloses foiled terror plots STORY HIGHLIGHTS NSA chief offered information on yield from monitoring phone calls Peter Bergen says in two cases, NSA heard of plans to support terror groups […]