Friday marks 25 years since the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon. The attacks transformed international security and launched the US-led war on terror. The US invaded Afghanistan in pursuit of Al-Qaeda and toppled the Taliban regime for refusing to hand over Osama bin Laden and his associates.

Twenty-five years later, the Taliban are back in power, the US has left Afghanistan, and Al-Qaeda remains closely allied with the Taliban government. Yet global militancy has changed significantly in this period, and it no longer defines international security. US-China competition has replaced the war on terror as Washington’s organizing priority, and counterterrorism has slipped to a second-tier concern as resources and attention shift toward countering China’s rise.

The most significant development in global militancy over these 25 years has been the split between Al-Qaeda and Daesh. Daesh broke away in 2014 and soon eclipsed its parent as the world’s most prominent terrorist group, a serious blow to the global militant movement. Since then, the core leadership of both groups has weakened while their regional affiliates have grown stronger, keeping their respective brands alive.

By one measure, both groups are past their prime: their attacks no longer dominate global headlines. For terrorist groups, publicity is........

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