The John Batchelor Show

VIDEO: 15 Years Later

September 13, 2016

Monday 12 September 2016 / Hour 1, Block A: Tom Joscelyn, Long War Journal senior editor & FDD, in re: The Egyptian al Zawahiri, the most underrated jihadi of all time: he’s still standing, has been hunted by world intell svcs since the 1980s and here in 2016 we’re still speaking of him, and he’s in control of large forces; an evil genius. After al Baghdadi left al Qaeda, Zawahiri went on to build the largest standing paramilitary army perhaps in the world.   Al Q has loyal followers from West Africa through the Levant and down to Southeast Asia.
Not enough attention has been given to him and his organization; we face a very dangerous foe.  Recruit foreign fighters and draw out some via social media. But al Q plan ins long-term: inculcate local forces to their ideology – Mahgreb, East Arica, Levant,  et al.  Shebaab: in August 2010, Bill Roggio reported that Shebaab was already in al Qaeda even though al Q and Shebaab were committed to keeping that fact secret. Al Q is on the march and raising armies.  [Note: much strategic info on al Qaeda in this segment; pls listen to the podcast for considerable data.]
Fifteen years after the 9/11 attacks, al Qaeda fights on.  Fifteen years after 9/11, Al Qaeda remains a threat to the West despite not carrying out a large-scale attack in years. The group is waging insurgencies in several countries and is far larger than it was on 9/11.
The Iraqi Shiite militia leader Akram al Kabi has met with top Iranian government official in Iran. Kabi, who’s a member of the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces that has become an official part of the Iraqi government, boldly proclaimed his allegiance to Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei