Jihad in Russia: the Caucasus Emirate: IISS Strategic Comment

[davidbfpo]

A useful reminder by IISS on what is happening in the region; where the insurgents have caused everyone a few surprises in the past:http://www.iiss.org/publications/str...casus-emirate/

Russia's counter-terrorism effort has assumed greater urgency since the 2014 Winter Olympic Games were awarded to Sochi, a popular resort city in the North Caucasus......(much later)...the Olympic Games have in the past proven to be a highly valued terrorist target, and the 2014 Sochi venue is probably seen by the CE as an opportunity to make its mark on the global stage.

Useful to see where the insurgents have spread and launched attacks, some pre-empted.

Personally I think there has been much hype around the terrorist threat to the Olympics Games.

In due course I will merge this into the main thread on the region and Chechnya.

[bourbon]

I am not convinced that the CE wants to “make its mark on the global stage”.

At the very least, Russia greatly benefits from conflating the CE with the Global Salafi Jihad; and frankly I would not be surprised if they have cynically used jihadis to subvert and undermine the Chechen Independence movement, trading the occasional mass atrocity attack in Russia for territorial integrity in the North Caucasus.