Anwar al-Awlaki’s Ties to Extremists
In the Counter Extremism Project’s online resource, Anwar al-Awlaki’s Ties to Extremists, CEP has counted 99 extremists with ties to Anwar al-Awlaki.
Anwar al-Awlaki
Anwar al-Awlaki was a U.S.-Yemeni dual citizen and longtime cleric, propagandist, and operative for al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). On September 30, 2011, Awlaki was targeted and killed in Yemen in the first U.S. drone strike to deliberately target a U.S. citizen. While he was alive, Awlaki directed a number of terrorist plots against the United States, and disseminated English- and Arabic-language videos, audio recordings, and articles online.
Anwar al-Awlaki on YouTube
YouTube's features has served to lure users to extremist content on YouTube, despite CEP's calls for YouTube to cease hosting Awlaki content.
Anwar al-Awlaki and Google’s Counter-Narrative Program
In February 2016, Google (YouTube’s parent company) announced plans to divert its users away from extremist content towards counter-narratives meant to challenge the appeal of extremist material.
News and Blogs
The Counter Extremism Project Presents
Enduring Music: Compositions from the Holocaust
Location:
Eisenhower Theater
Tuesday January 27, 2026 7:30p.m.
Marking International Holocaust Remembrance Day, the Counter Extremism Project's ARCHER at House 88 presents a landmark concert of music composed in ghettos and death camps, performed in defiance of resurgent antisemitism. Curated with world renowned composer, conductor, and musicologist Francesco Lotoro, the program restores classical, folk, and popular works, many written on scraps of paper or recalled from memory, to public consciousness. Featuring world and U.S. premieres from Lotoro's archive, this concert honors a repertoire that endured against unimaginable evil.