Charles ListerVerified account

@Charles_Lister

Senior Fellow & Director of Extremism & Counterterrorism . Author of T/RT≠ endorsement

Washington DC/London/Istanbul
mei.edu/profile/charle…
Joined January 2012
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  1. Pinned Tweet
    Apr 9

    NEW - My latest on escalating dynamics between & in : - "The days of ‘rolling back’ in are gone. Containment & deterrence may be all that's left. And the situation is too dangerous for to kick down the road.”

    25 replies 118 retweets 126 likes
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  2. 20 hours ago

    I'm glad the (& ) is giving this some coverage - it’s been happening for days now. Some of Liwa Abu Fadl al-Abbas is already integrated in Republican Guard in & some fronts from al-Khader have gone into SAA’s 4th & 5th Divisions.

    Iran-backed fighters switch to Syrian Uniforms to Avoid Israeli Strikes, Rebels Say via
    4 replies 36 retweets 37 likes
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  3. 22 hours ago

    Unless you're violently anti- & glorify the ’s sociopolitical vision as an ideal for all to aim towards, one somehow acquires the “anti-” label. Nothing could be further from the truth. Critiquing a relationship with is *not* in any way being anti-.

    15 replies 15 retweets 28 likes
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  4. 22 hours ago

    : For more on where I’m coming from on all of this (, , , U.S. counter- strategy etc.), see this thread:

    U.S. counter- strategy & its insistence on ignoring/denying the ’s roots helped give birth to problems like today. Everything was driven by short-term objectives, with their…
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    2 replies 4 retweets 3 likes
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  5. 22 hours ago

    : As an analyst of terrorist groups, I did see a certain irony & short-sightedness in the words of one top, serving U.S. official, “allying with a terrorist group () to fight another terrorist group ().” It’s got nothing to do with any position on , whatsoever.

    2 replies 5 retweets 10 likes
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  6. 22 hours ago

    My critique has always been about the imbalance/s created in northern by U.S. counter- policy. The was/is the - all U.S. officials admit that in private. That didn’t necessarily have to preclude working with them, but ignoring it caused big, big problems.

    1 reply 6 retweets 11 likes
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  7. 22 hours ago

    It’s extraordinary just how much BS gets created in people’s minds. I never once expressed “support” for ’s operation. - Did I say it was inevitable? Yes. - Did I observe it & comment on its advance vis-a-vis broader dynamics (i.e. my job)? Yes.

    Lister wholeheartedly and without any reservation supported the Turkish and Jihadist invasion of the calm and peaceful Afrin, now he says he is depressed because of the ongoing ethnic cleansing. …
    3 replies 3 retweets 26 likes
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  8. 23 hours ago

    Don’t discount these internal nuances as irrelevant - there are lessons to learn here. It’s also certainly not the end of this internal challenge. NW will face more concerted challenges ahead & ’s response to those will determine the nature of its continued evolution.

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  9. 23 hours ago

    : Now, ’s Sharia Office - ordinarily expected to embrace more fundamentalist, doctrinal positions - has stepped up in public to defend ’s politically-focused agenda & relations with foreign governments as something guided by ‘flexibility’ in the Sharia & jihad.

    2 replies 1 retweet 3 likes
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  10. 23 hours ago

    : That statement, from ’s Political Office - which I’m told - is empowered by HTS leader to drive a more politically-active, “mature” stance - was aggressively derided by jihadi figures inside & outside (incl. senior HTS figures) for being ‘nationalistic.'

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  11. 23 hours ago

    : ’s Political Office - led by Dr. Yousef al-Hajar - which maintains open channels to & issued a statement critiquing the AQ designation for “double standards” & "lack of research”. It ended with a call for U.S. evidence & a warning to avoid ’s errors.

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  12. 23 hours ago

    Most recently, the U.S. decision to (a) include within Nusra’s terrorist designation & thus (b) label it as an Al-Qaeda affiliate, has opened up old wounds - for an [politically-focused] leadership who’ve staked their investment on being something [slightly] different.

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  13. 23 hours ago

    : ’s distancing from Al-Qaeda’s command - peaking w. both sides’ acknowledgement, incl. that of , of a break - was also a truly challenging issue for ’s internal unity. There have been sizable defections. The conflict w. Ahrar al-Sham was similarly divisive.

    1 reply 2 retweets 1 like
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  14. 23 hours ago

    : For a long time, the issues have focused on relationships (w. , Ahrar, Al-Qaeda & foreign gov'ts - & etc.) ’s military operations & coordination with was deeply controversial internally - it was opposed by many, especially military figures.

    2 replies 3 likes
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  15. 23 hours ago

    : That subtlety has slowly eroded in recent months, as geopolitical shifts & the reality of ‘revolutionary’ struggle has dawned on those on the ground, in NW . It’s becoming increasingly ‘real’ & openly divisive, as ’s politically-leaning leaders now consolidate.

    1 reply 1 retweet
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  16. 23 hours ago

    I’ve frequently spoken/written about //’s struggles to maintain internal unity amid its leadership’s attempts to remain dedicated to their “jihadist” cause & identity whilst pursuing a -focused, “populist” narrative direction. It’s been very real, but subtle.

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  17. Retweeted
    Jun 8

    U.S. counter- strategy & its insistence on ignoring/denying the ’s roots helped give birth to problems like today. Everything was driven by short-term objectives, with their long-term implications constantly swept aside as inconvenient distractions. Now look.

    It never had to be like this - so damn depressing & frustrating. - "'Nothing is ours anymore': forced out…
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    5 replies 10 retweets 19 likes
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  18. Retweeted
    Jun 8

    My latest research paper, in which me and compare and contrast the in-theatre communication strategies of and in . Top line: It's not just that's good at propaganda - we've been ignoring at our peril.

    5 replies 124 retweets 161 likes
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  19. Jun 8

    Great piece by my colleague Bilal Saab: - “’s Options in S. ” ’s proposal for Syria’s south appears to lack Iranian buy-in & it's primarily ’s calculations that'll decide whether - conflict spirals out of control.

    1 reply 5 retweets 5 likes
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  20. Jun 8

    : While watching things develop in northern over the years, my over-riding critique was of how short-termist U.S. counter- strategy had been in design. Why? Because that, by itself *guaranteed* yet more sources of instability. = That’s being born out every day.

    1 reply 1 retweet 8 likes
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  21. Jun 8

    : Now, w. ’s territorial control at all-time low & wanting to leave ASAP, what has U.S strategy given to the ? An unprecedented rise in influence '14-18, followed by an unsaid reality: ‘you’ll soon be on your own.’ = = = outreach

    1 reply 5 retweets 7 likes
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