The press throws around the acronyms AQIM and AQAP all the time without explanation. Additionally, as a reader of my blog you may have seen these acronyms many times. Here's some information you may find helpful:

AQIM – Al-Qeada in the Islamic Magreb is a Mali-based Islamist militant organization which aims to overthrow the Algerian government and institute an Islamic State. (Maghreb also spelled Maghrib means “West” in Arabic and is the region of North Africa that today includes Algeria, Mauritania, Morocco & Western Sahara, Tunisia, and Libya. At one time it included Moorish Spain.)

AQAP– Al-Qeada in the Arabian Peninsula is an Islamist militant organization primarily active in Yemen and Saudi Arabia. (The Arabian Peninsula is in the north-east of Africa and includes Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Yemen, and Saudi Arabia.)

Sahel – The Sahel is a geographic region that cuts across the north of the African continent and covers parts of Senegal, Mauritania, Mali, Algeria, Niger, Chad, Sudan, South Sudan, and Eritrea.

Algeria

The Unspectacular, Unsophisticated Algerian Hostage Crisis – Scott Stewart (Stratfor) Mokhtar Belmokhtr and his Mulathameen Brigade are associated with AQIM, are active in the Sahel, and are responsible for the recent crisis in Algeria.

The Hostage Kidnapping in Algeria Was Planned Before France's Mali Intervention - Ely Karmon (Jerusalem Post) The decision by the Algerian government to act so quickly was in order to hamper any attempt by the terrorists to blow up this important gas field, as gas and oil exports are the main source of revenue for the government. Another factor was the desire to show the Algerian people the determination of the government to fight the Islamist terrorists at any price to stop the advance of the Islamist wave. The Algerian military's long war against the Islamists since 1992 has cost the lives of 100,000-150,000 Algerians. 

Egypt

Rising concerns over foreign militants in the Sinai as more explosives seized - David Barnett (Long War Journal)

Europe

More Artists Call Out BDS Bullying Italian author Umberto Eco called their ideas "absolutely crazy" and "fundamentally racist." Irish writer Gerard Donovan referred to them as "idiots" who try to bully and cajole and are guilty of "outright intimidation.” The band Dervish was on the receiving end of their “avalanche of negativity”, “venom” and "hatred." (Irish justice minister Alan Shatter described it as "cyberbullying.") And now Jazz musicians Erik Truffaz and Jack Terrasson, and Terrasson's manager Christophe Deghelt are the latest artists to defy and speak out against the anti-Israel boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement. Deghelt writes...(CAMERA) 

Iran

Don't Be Fooled: Iran Wants the Bomb - Ahmad Hashemi (Times of Israel) As a former employee of the Iranian foreign ministry...

Iranian Support for Palestinian Terrorist Organizations (Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center) The military capabilities of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, revealed in Operation Pillar of Defense in Gaza, were the product of massive Iranian support including an arsenal of thousands of rockets, both standard and manufactured by the terrorist organizations themselves (using Iranian technical knowhow).

Israel

Israel's UN Envoy: If Mali Is on France's Doorstep, Gaza Is in Our Living Room- Raphael Ahren (Times of Israel)

Palestinians

Malaysian PM Visits Gaza, Drawing Fire from Abbas - Khaled Abu Toameh (Jerusalem Post) ...Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki plans to visit Gaza next month. 

Palestinian Security Forces Shoot Protesters - Elior Levy (Ynet News)

Qatar

Is Qatar fuelling the crisis in north Mali? - Mark Thompson, Ségolène Allemandou (France24) Last week two French politicians explicitly accused Qatar of giving material support to separatists and Islamists in north Mali, adding fuel to speculation that the Emirate is playing a behind-the-scenes role in spreading Islamic fundamentalism in Africa.

Al Jazeera: Non-Arabs Should Not Be Fooled - Najat Fawzy AlSaied (Gatestone Institute)

United States

Consensus on Iran Sanctions Cripples Iranian Health Sector – (Public Citizen Health Letter- January) There has been a lot of coverage regarding the opposition to Chuck Hagel's nomination to be the next defense secretary. One of the reasons often cited is he was one of two senators to oppose financial sanctions against Iran in 2001 and 2008. For an alternative view on sanctions see the January issue of the Public Citizen Health Letter: Consensus on Iran Sanctions Cripples Iranian Health Sector. The article goes on to remind the reader how ineffective and tragic the use of sanctions were in Iraq in the 1990s.

Why News Coverage of Incitement Matters – (CAMERA) 

Algeria to redefine role of mosques -  Fidet Mansour (Magharebia) The Algerian ministry of religious affairs seeks to train imams to better understand the demands of the times and ward off extremist ideologies.

Cyprus: Russia's Next Lunch?  - Peter Martino (Gatestone Institute) Cypriot banks cater almost exclusively to Russian oligarchs; as a consequence, tiny Cyprus is Russia's largest foreign investor.The impending fall of the Assad regime in Syria is forcing Russian President Vladimir Putin to look for an alternative to Tartus [for Russia's naval base] – leaving him with only one option: Cyprus.

Egyptian democracy workers still on trial for helping U.S. groups  - Nancy A. Youssef and Amina Ismail (McClatchy Newspapers) 

Iran's Ministry of Intelligence and Security: A Profile (Library of Congress)

As per reports in December, Palestinian officials are openly talking about using UNESCO to prohibit Jews from worshiping at Hebron’s Tomb of the Patriarchs. The site has been revered since at least 1000 BC as the burial site of the Hebrew patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their wives.  This is the second holiest site in Judaism after the Western Wall in Jerusalem.
PA: "The Western Wall... no person besides Muslims ever used it as a place of worship, throughout all of history"  - Itamar Marcus and Nan Jacques Zilberdik (PMW)
AFP’s Mosque Muck Up - Pesach Benson (Honest Reporting) It says a lot about AFP that the French wire service labels the Tomb of the Patriarchs a “mosque” in a headline.
EU Speeds Up Aid for Palestinians (AFP) The European Union said Tuesday it was bringing forward to the first quarter of 2013 aid payments of 60 million euros ($80 million) to help the Palestinian Authority finance its budget deficit, pay civil servants and pensions, and provide essential public services. Another 40 million euros will go to UNRWA, paying for education, health, and social services for Palestinian refugees in the West Bank, Gaza, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. (US aid has been held up by Congress and promised aid from Arab countries has yet to materialize.)

Fear of rape 'driving Syria refugee crisis' - Richard Spencer ( The Telegraph)
Syria's Chemical Weapons Who Ends Up with Them?  - Yaakov Lappin (Gatestone Institute)  If the U.S. will not send ground troops into Syria to destroy the chemical weapons there, any of Syria's neighbors, threatened by unconventional weapons, could choose to send in ground troops. Not intervening is not an option: the implications of such weapons in the hands of al Qaeda or Hezbollah speak for themselves.

CAMERA Top Ten MidEast Media Mangles of 2012 - Sarit Catz (CAMERA)

Egypt
Egyptian Lawyers Accuse Muslim Brotherhood Of Taking $1.5 Billion From Obama (AL-MASRY AL-YOUM/Worldcrunch)Report: Egyptian Forces Capture American-Made Anti-Tank, Anti-Aircraft Missiles Headed for Gaza - Joshua Davidovich (Times of Israel) Egyptian Minister Said Sacked for Opposing Iranian Influence - Adiv Sterman (Times of Israel)Egyptian President Morsi: I Want Abdel-Rahman to Be Free - Wolf Blitzer (CNN)


India
MEMRI's South Asia Studies Project Director Tufail Ahmad On Impact Of Democracy On Indian MuslimsThe Role Of The Mumbai-Based Raza Academy In Promoting Islamism- Dr. Mirza A. B. Baig (MEMRI)


Israel
How Will Israel Protect Its Offshore Gas Rigs? - Arie Egozi (Israel Defense)


Mexico
Hizbullah Partners with Mexican Drug Cartels - Eldad Beck (Ynet News)


Palestinians - Hamas, Fatah, Brigades of National Unity, etc.
Abbas Reinstates a Radical Political Doctrine - Lt. Col. (ret.) Jonathan D. Halevi (Institute for Contemporary Affairs-Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs)Press Freedom Group Shocked at Hamas Ban on Israeli Media(Guardian-UK)Arab Media Back Charges of Palestinian War Crimes (Strategy Page)The Palestinian "Holy Trinity": Jesus, Arafat and Abbas - Itamar Marcus and Nan Jacques Zilberdik (Palestinian Media Watch)PA Nabs Members of Group that Declared Intifada - Khaled Abu Toameh (Jerusalem Post)


Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia Detains Dozens for "Plotting to Celebrate Christmas"  (Al-Akhbar-Lebanon)


Syria
Jabhat al-Nusra, a Leading Islamist Group Fighting Assad in Syria - Noman Benotman and Roisin Blake  (Quilliam Foundation)Report: Hizbullah Sent 5,000 Fighters to Help Assad - Elhanan Miller (Times of Israel)


Turkey
Turkey Will Not Accept Iran Possessing Nuclear Weapons (Zaman-Turkey)


United States
Cables Show State Department Disregarded Muslim Brotherhood Threat - John Rossomando (IPT News)