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Returning guest and scholar of the Sahel Alex Thurston joins me to discuss the recently reported death of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb leader Abdelmalek Droukdel. Serendipitously, this subject coincides with Alex's forthcoming (probably in September) book, Jihadists of North Africa and the Sahel: Local Politics and Rebel Groups. He’s also written about Droukdel’s (probable) death at his blog. Twice, actually. We delve into the history of AQIM and the diminishing role it's played as the center of jihadist gravity has shifted from Algeria into the Sahel region. The piece Alex mentions toward the end of the interview on the regional crisis surrounding the Fulani, from anthropologist Modibo Ghaly Cissé, is available here.

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