Over the weekend, President Trump announced that the leader of ISIS, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, was killed during a raid by US commandos in Syria’s Idlib province. And while Baghdadi’s death is a clear victory in the war on terror, eliminating the leader of ISIS will not eliminate the threat nor defeat the larger Salafi-jihadi movement.

On this episode, Dany and Marc interviewed the New York Times’ Eric Schmitt to learn more about the state of ISIS. The three discuss the American troop withdrawal from northeastern Syria, the relationship between the Islamic State and al Qaeda, and what the international community should do about the thousands of ISIS fighters and families in prisons and refugee camps throughout the region.

Eric Schmitt is a senior writer covering terrorism and national security for the New York Times. Since 2007, he has reported on terrorism issues, with assignments in Pakistan, Afghanistan, North Africa, and Southeast Asia. He is the coauthor of “Counterstrike: The Untold Story of America’s Secret Campaign Against Al Qaeda,” which was published in 2011.

Third-party photos, graphics, and/or video clips in this video may have been cropped or reframed. Third-party photos, graphics, video clips, and/or music may have been edited in a way that does not alter the meaning of the third-party work(s). Music in this video may have been recut from its original arrangement and timing.

In the event this video uses Creative Commons assets: If not noted in the description, titles for Creative Commons assets used in this video can be found at the link provided after each asset.

The use of third-party photos, graphics, video clips, and/or music in this video does not constitute an endorsement from the artists and producers licensing those materials.

AEI operates independently of any political party and does not take institutional positions on any issues. AEI scholars, fellows, and their guests frequently take positions on policy and other issues. When they do, they speak for themselves and not for AEI or its trustees or other scholars or employees.

More information on AEI research integrity can be found here: http://www.aei.org/about/

#aei #news #politics #government #education #podcast