ISIS, Al Qaeda Franchising Efforts Changed the Face of Terrorism

“Creating franchises among groups claiming affiliation with al Qaeda or the so-called Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is among the biggest change in international terrorism, two leading experts told the Atlantic Council on Thursday.

Bruce Hoffman, director of security programs at Georgetown University, said the United States missed that shift of terrorist groups willing to ‘hitch their fortunes to al Qaeda’s star’ after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on New York and the Pentagon. ‘We made exactly the same mistake’ with groups like Boko Haram in Nigeria, al Shabab in Somalia and others in Egypt and Libya now claiming affiliation with ISIS.”

Source: Panel: ISIS, Al Qaeda Franchising Efforts Changed the Face of Terrorism – USNI News

Date posted: April 3, 2015