The Dynamics of North African Terror

Over the last decade, North Africa’s local extremist violence has become increasingly interwoven with global terrorist operations. Networks of fundraisers, recruiters, and operatives connect North Africans to violent incidents in Europe, Iraq, Afghanistan and beyond. Given the region’s strategic importance and vast quantities of hydrocarbon resources, extremism in North Africa directly affects U.S. national security interests.

To listen to an individual speaker please use the listen link after their name. To listen to a complete panel session please use the links on the lower right or upper left for multimedia.

Agenda

8:45 a.m. Breakfast and Welcome (Listen)
Dr. Jon B. Alterman, Director and Senior Fellow, Middle East Program, CSIS

9:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.
Panel One: The Expanding Reach of Extremist Groups in the Maghreb

• Ambassador Janet Sanderson, Deputy Assistant Secretary  of State for the Arabian Gulf and Maghreb, Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, U.S. Department of State (Listen)
• Mr. Michael Braun, Managing Partner, Spectre Group International (Listen)
• Prof. Jean-Pierre Filiu, Professor of Middle East Studies, Sciences Po (Paris) (Listen)
• Question and Answer (Listen)

Moderator: Dr. Dov Zakheim, former Undersecretary of Defense (Comptroller), and Senior Advisor, CSIS

10:45 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Panel Two: Assessing Strategies for De-radicalization

• Ambassador Vicki Huddleston, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Africa, U.S. Department of Defense (Listen)
• Mr. Craig Whitlock, Pentagon Correspondent, The Washington Post (Listen)
• Dr. Geoff Porter, Director, Middle East and North Africa, Eurasia Group (Listen)
• Question and Answer (Listen)

Moderator: Mr. Haim Malka, Deputy Director and Senior Fellow, Middle East Program, CSIS

12:00 p.m. Lunch

12:30 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Luncheon Keynote Address: Opportunities and Challenges for U.S.-Maghreb Cooperation (Listen)

• Introduction: Dr. John J. Hamre, President and CEO, CSIS
• Keynote Speaker: Ambassador Robert Godec, Principal Deputy Coordinator for Counterterrorism, U.S. Department of State