Jihadists and the Libya Uprising

Moammar Gadhafi's son Seif al-Islam raised the specter of Islamism in a Feb. 20 speech. It is difficult to say at present whether Islamists have been able to establish any strongholds in Libya due to the ongoing unrest. However, if the demonstrations result in anarchy, they would create the kind of chaotic environment in which a jihadist movement thrives. Jihadists could take root in a Libya with no clear government authority, though this prospect represents a possibility rather than an eventuality.