Flashpoint Senior Partner Evan Kohlmann Testifies Before House Homeland Security Committee

Written by Administrator Tuesday, 22 November 2011 23:31

On May 25, 2011, Flashpoint Senior Partner Evan Kohlmann testified before the House Homeland Security Committee during a hearing entitled, "Threats to the American Homeland after Killing Bin Laden: An Assessment." In his testimony, Kohlmann wrote, "Were we still stuck in October 2001," the killing of Usama Bin Laden "might be the end of the narrative for Bin Laden's jihadi movement. However, much has indeed changed in the world since those early days of the battle against Al-Qaida. The gaps in Al-Qaida's central leadership created by the deaths of former luminaries like Abu Hafs al-Masri and Abu Laith al-Liby have been filled by new younger figures like Abu Yahya al-Liby. With the blessings of Bin Laden and Ayman al- Zawahiri, regional Al-Qaida leaderships have emerged in critical locations such as Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, and North Africa. Meanwhile, a new generation of homegrown 'lone wolf'-style jihadists has emerged (including many U.S. and European nationals) who may lack the military skills to plan the next 9/11, but whose passion for violence and bloodshed can nonetheless have deadly consequences."