Gregory Johnsen
Near East Studies Scholar, Princeton University
Gregory Johnsen, a former Fulbright Fellow in Yemen, is currently a Ph.D. candidate in Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University. Johnsen has written for a variety of publications on Yemen including, among others, Foreign Policy, The American Interest, The Independent, The Boston Globe, and The National. He is the co-founder of Waq al-Waq: Islam and Insurgency in Yemen Blog. In 2009, he was a member of the USAID's conflict assessment team for Yemen.
Brilliance in the morning: The New York Times had an absolutely wonderful op-ed today (some of you may have noticed that I have been strongly disagreeing with Victoria Clark’s piece […]
A year ago I wrote a piece in the National entitled “Yemen’s Coming Power Struggle.”* Much of the article focuses on what I saw then as the coming battle between […]
In casting about for an idea about how to blog on everything that is going on in Yemen, I found this Mareb Press story (Ar.) and I really like how […]
Sanaa University president,Khalid Tamim, has been removed from his post, according to reports in Yemen. News Yemen claims it has been trying to get a hold of him this morning […]
After Mubarak who is the next Middle Eastern leader to go? Some people have been pointing to President Salih and Yemen, but experts on the country have been pouring cold […]
There has been much talk about facebook and twitter revolutions in the Middle East, but given the internet’s rather low infiltration rate in Yemen – I think roughly 200,000 lines* […]
To not even acknowledge the secular tones of the revolution takes a great deal of disillusionment or chutzpah on al-Qaeda's part.
Ok, since I clearly have some time tonight, I was going to post on the new communications bill and the second dust-up between the al-Ahmar boys and Salih loyalists, but […]
In much the same way Hosni Mubarak (former president of Egypt) constantly and consistently made the argument that he was the only thing standing between Egypt and a radical Islamic […]
There have been many things to blog about lately – Salih’s meeting in Amran with shaykhs from Bakil, even while the Hashid governor watched, Bakil.net’s mocking take on Tariq al-Fadhli’s […]
The Yemen expert gives a quick snapshot of the most important things you need to know about the country teetering on the brink of revolt.
Today, the morning after, it is time to ask ourselves some questions about what comes next for the Middle East, especially in Yemen, the base of operations for al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.
Al-Ittihad, a newspaper from the UAE, has a story out today that claims Said Ali al-Shihri was killed when a bomb he was assembling exploded, killing him and wounding five […]
As I read the news today of an alleged US drone crashing and members of AQAP making off with the wreckage, I was reminded of the part in Lawrence Wright’s […]
Note: I had one more Egypt dispatch in my notes to post, but as I left the country and bounced around my new (temporary) home events on the ground have […]
Part II of my notes from Cairo – note this should not be mistake for expert analysis on Egypt. This is simply my notes of my own experiences. Friday Night, […]
I don’t often blog about things other than Yemen, mostly because I dislike reading stuff from people who speak without knowing, and as I have been forced to listen countless […]
Having spent the last few days figuring out a way around the facebook and twitter blocks in Egypt, I’m back and ready to blog ….. about Yemen. There was another […]
Yesterday we talked about the kidnapping of Tawakul Karman (the government has wisely decided to release her today), but I didn’t mention the kidnapping of Taha Husayn Ali Muhsin (Ar.), […]
Two days after Tawakul Karman was profiled by Isobel Coleman in a piece for the Huffington Post, suspected Yemeni security officials, driving in three pick-ups, swooped in and arrested her […]
Many apologies for the delay in postings, other work has gotten in the way, but I promise to be better in the future. It has been an incredibly busy few […]
I almost never understand the media. For instance, at a time when the US is engaged in an excruciating and incredibly long war and is involved in military action in […]
In what can only be described as awkward timing, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited Yemen only a couple of weeks after amendments went to parliament that would allow President […]
Yemen is a confusing place and of all the opaque places within the country my vote for the most confusing is Abyan. Last week we talked about jihadi tensions that […]
Today, Saudi Arabia is out with a new wanted list of 47 men it believes have fled the kingdom and joined the jihad abroad. Many, according to this AFP report, […]
Hours after AQAP pulled off one ambush in Abyan, they were back at it, ambushing another convoy of soldiers this afternoon. This time they attacked a convoy (Ar) that included […]
At 10 am this morning, a group of al-Qaeda fighters shouting Allahu Akbar ambushed a convoy of military vehicles from the Central Security Forces, killing anywhere from 6 to 12 […]
Oh, those Pakistanis. First, they claim that a drone strike killed Fahd al-Qusa and then months later al-Qusa appears safe and sound on the front page of al-Sharq al-Awsat, where […]
One of the regular features of the old Waq al-waq was the day in papers, and as I slowly adjust to the new site I’m bringing it back. We start […]
Several weeks ago the editors at Foreign Policy asked me (and several other people, most of whom are much smarter than me) to participate in a survey on terrorism. The […]