On Wednesday, December 5, The Jamestown Foundation and the Institute for Gulf Affairs co-hosted a conference entitled “The al-Qaeda Triangle: Pakistan, Iraq and Saudi Arabia,” featuring a keynote address by Ahmed Rashid. The event brought together some of the world’s preeminent terrorism analysts—including numerous best-selling authors and political advisors—for a discussion on al-Qaeda’s ideology, logistics and future as a threat vis-à-vis the West, and was attended by nearly 400 policymakers, intelligence officials, academics and other interested individuals. Speakers at the conference included Peter Bergen (pictured), Bruce Hoffman, Daniel Benjamin, Special Advisor to the Iraqi Vice President Zuhair Humadi, Michael Scheuer, Stephen Ulph, Laith Kubba, Hassan Abbas, Marc Sageman, Ali Ibrahim, Brynjar Lia, Ali al-Ahmed and Reidar Visser. Ahmed Rashid delivered the keynote address, entitled “The Crucial Nexus: Pakistan, Afghanistan and the Tribal Areas,” which assessed the current situation on the ground as well as the viability of current Western policies there. Multiple media outlets—including Voice of America—were present at the event, and streaming video will be made available soon under the “Events” tab of the Jamestown website.
