Guy Taylor
Articles by Guy Taylor
Iraqi-Kurd feud escalates, but U.S. hopes to defuse tensions
The Trump administration is struggling to prevent a new powder keg from exploding in Iraq, where violence between the central government in Baghdad and the nation's Kurds in the north has displaced more than 180,000 people since the failed Kurdish independence push in September. Published November 2, 2017
North Korea threat looms over Donald Trump’s Asia trip
The North Korean nuclear menace threatens to overshadow a large and diverse agenda as President Trump embarks Friday on the first major Asia visit of his presidency -- an 11-day tour to include stops in five countries, a high-stakes summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping and a possible meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Published November 1, 2017
Masoud Barzani’s resignation leads to Kurdish infighting
Friction between Iraqi Kurdish political factions soared Monday, a day after longtime regional leader Masoud Barzani announced his resignation following weeks of turmoil surrounding his failed push for an independent Kurdistan. Published October 30, 2017
Bob Corker, Donald Trump feud to fuel foreign policy power plays
President Trump has dubbed him "Liddle Bob Corker" on Twitter, but the Tennessee Republican still wields big-time influence over American foreign policy. Published October 29, 2017
Yemen sanctions by U.S. backed by country’s Arab neighbors
Qatar joined other Arab powers Wednesday in a U.S.-backed push to level fresh sanctions against individuals and organizations accused of financing the Islamic State and al Qaeda in Yemen -- an unexpected shift by the tiny Persian Gulf nation that has been diplomatically blackballed by its Arab neighbors for allegedly supporting terrorists. Published October 25, 2017
ISIS fighters return to home countries by thousands
Thousands of foreign fighters who flocked to fight with Islamic State in its Syrian and Iraqi strongholds have returned to their home countries as the terrorist group's territory shrinks, according to an extensive survey from a private security-intelligence firm, which also found that Russia has been the No. 1 source country of foreign fighters. Published October 24, 2017
Russia is No. 1 source country for ISIS foreign fighters: Report
Russia has been the No. 1 source country of foreign fighters for the Islamic State, according to a new report by a private security-intelligence firm, which also claims that thousands of the terror group's fighters have returned to their home countries after losing territory in Syria and Iraq. Published October 24, 2017
Hillary Clinton, Russia uranium case informant’s testimony urged
A controversial 2010 deal that cleared the way for a Kremlin-backed company to gain control of a huge chunk of America's uranium supply is getting new scrutiny as a Capitol Hill inquiry gears up to probe the Obama administration's suspected silencing of an FBI informant who reportedly had information on high-level corruption by Russian nuclear officials who engineered the deal. Published October 23, 2017
U.S. programming in Arabic may soon see overhaul
The stylistic look of the U.S. government's Arabic-language news operation in the Middle East is outdated. Neither the programming nor the social media push behind it is aggressive enough to sway Arab public opinion about America's position in the region. Published October 19, 2017
Sawab Center, Muslim-run messaging center, wages cyberwar on ISIS
Inside a nondescript building here, moderate Muslims have been waging a bare-knuckle information war against the Islamic State for the past two years, establishing deep contacts with Facebook, Twitter and other social media companies to scrub jihadi propaganda from the internet. Published October 19, 2017
Vladimir Putin’s rage triggered by President Obama’s diplomatic moves
In interview after interview with top U.S. intelligence officials and foreign diplomats about the downward spiral in U.S.-Russian relations, one date keeps resurfacing: January 2012. Published October 18, 2017
Zied Ladhairi says Tunisia’s economic success critical to its survival
The tiny North African nation of Tunisia has overcome tremendous security odds to uphold a fragile democracy since 2011, but it now needs serious economic growth to thrive as the lone success story of the otherwise ill-fated Arab Spring. Published October 15, 2017
Tensions soar between Kurds and Baghdad
Fears of a new civil war in Iraq -- pitting the autonomous Kurdish region against the Iraqi central government -- reached new heights Friday, with both sides engaging in tense troop movements around the disputed oil-rich city of Kirkuk. Published October 13, 2017
Donald Trump’s decision on Iran nuclear deal brings uncertainty
President Trump will take a leap into the diplomatic unknown Friday if -- as expected -- he strikes a blow at the 2015 deal that the Obama administration and other global powers reached with Iran to curb its nuclear activities. Published October 12, 2017
ISIS draws battle to Libya; U.S. military responds
The U.S. military is ramping up operations and bombing raids against the Islamic State in Libya, where the terrorist group's fighters have increasingly found refuge as their territorial base shrinks in Syria and Iraq. Published October 11, 2017
U.S. officials ramp up rhetoric against Iran-backed Hezbollah
U.S. officials elevated their public condemnation of Hezbollah on Tuesday, adding two of the Iran-backed terror group's top operatives to a special State Department most-wanted list and asserting that all of the group's factions -- even those holding political office in Lebanon -- are part of the same terrorist operation. Published October 10, 2017
Iran’s hard-liners hit back as Trump weighs nuclear deal fate
As Iranian leaders weigh how to respond to President Trump's expected move to decertify the 2015 nuclear deal, hardliners in Tehran are seizing the moment of uncertainty to target Washington with a new dose of harsh rhetoric. Published October 9, 2017
After Donald Trump’s threats, Iran signals willingness to talk about ballistic missile
Iran is signaling that it is open to diplomatic talks on its ballistic missile arsenal after increasing threats by President Trump to pull out of the nuclear deal that the Obama administration and other world powers reached with the Islamic republic in 2015. Published October 6, 2017
U.S., Russia use military ‘deconfliction’ phone 20 times a day
It's an ordinary-looking, 1990s-era black plastic telephone, but it's one that American military commanders here rely on daily to prevent the outbreak of World War III. Published October 5, 2017
Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar puts U.S. in Persian Gulf allies’ conflict
It's a sweltering 104 degrees outside, and that's not counting the geopolitical heat that swirls around this once-classified yet massive U.S. Air Force hub located in the heart of the Persian Gulf. Published October 5, 2017