Category: Al-Qaeda

Introduction

Wright has a special way of explaining things. When reading this book, a reader need not have a background knowledge on terrorism, Wright crafts the book in such a way that it consists of a ten page list of the main characters, fifty pages of notes, a list of interviews held, a bibliography and a clear bibliography for those who would love research the topic more.

He also uses pictures of the main characters in the book, so that a reader can see the person being discussed.

The book can be divided into two major parts with the first part focusing on giving the reader a comprehensive background and beginnings of militant Islam and the terror group Al Qaeda. In the books first three chapters, the writer writes bibliographies of three important persons.

He writes about an Egyptian named Qutb who is seen as the father of militant Islam, he also writes about Zawahri who also is an Egyptian and a co founder of Al Qaeda. The last character in the three chapters he talks about is Bin Laden who is the central character of the book.

After reading the first three chapters a reader gets to learn about the internal politics of two most important countries in the history of Al Qaeda: Saudi Arabia and Egypt (Wright, 2006). The author tries to explain how the governments of both countries might have influenced the rise of radical Islam movement. This is helpful for the reader to understand why Al Qaeda is against everything represented by the West.

Through the book, a reader can visit the towns and cities where these men grew up. After writing the bibliographies, the author then looks at the bigger picture and writes two chapters on Saudi Arabia. In these two chapters the writer talks of a spy master, Turki, who is instrumental in the search of bin Laden.

The chapters also discusses the political and social structures of the Saudi Kingdom, the Soviet-Afghan war, the Afghanistan  Pakistan border jihadist movement and lastly how jihadism has spread around the world. Wright at this point builds a strong groundwork so that when he starts to discuss about the Al Qaeda attacks a reader can understand the context.

Wright then takes 200 hundred pages of the book to discuss the American Security and Intelligence agencies, The FBI and CIA. He tells of how the agencies reacted to the first cases of jihadists. This section of the book ends with a chapter dedicated on Osamas life in Sudan (Bergen, 2010).

The second part of the book looks at the Al Qaedas activities in the rest of the world. He begins by writing about how, in 1995, the Al Qaeda raided and bombed a building in Saudi Arabia that was housing Americans in the town of Riyadh. The chapters in this second part of the book are not very detailed and the writer talks of various key players. It is also in this second part we learn of the gruesome murder of tourist by Zawalhri.

The author describes how Zawalhri stormed the Queen Hatchupset temple located in Egypt and killed all the tourists that were there. Wright then looks at the evolution of the terror group Al Qaeda on how they recruit, leadership, and their use of suicide bombers in carrying out their attacks.

He looks and blames the actions of the CIA who had no right to with hold crucial information from the sole mandated agency, the FBI, to carry surveillance on the people who later committed the attacks.

The last two chapters the author talks of the aftermath after the attacks. He explains in heart-wrenching details about the fear and desperation after the attacks. Wright in this book can be praised for his making it compelling and emotional.

Discussion

Al Qaeda is a terrorist group that has been behind many terrorist attacks. The book investigates some of their attacks especially the September 11 carried out in the United States. The author of the book, Lawrence Wright, is a famous writer and for his work, Al Qaeda the Road to 9/11 won him a Pulitzer Prize for general non-fiction.

The book largely focuses on the persons involved in the attack. It covers things like, who they are, reasons that drove them to undertake the attack, and the people they associated with closely. The book begins with Sayyid Qutb who is an Egyptian religious intellect. Sayyid visited the U.S during the 1940s, upon return to his homeland, he became an anti-West activist, and in the end, he became a martyr for his beliefs.

The book also portrays Ayman al-Zawahiri, it looks at his story from upbringing days in Egypt and pursues his life up to the time he participated and became the leader of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad. The Egyptian Islamic Jihad, the book states was later to merge with the Al Qaeda. The author in his book writes the story of head of Al Qaeda, Osama bins Laden.

He traces Osamas childhood in Saudi Arabia where he was born and brought up in a rich family. The book continues to give a detailed account of how Osama participated in the war between Afghanistan and the Soviet Union.

It writes of his role as a financier to terrorist groups, his life in Sudan, his stay in Afghanistan upon his return and his association with the Taliban (Wright, 2006). The book also wraps on the 1998 radical attacks, which were carried out in East African countries as well as the terror campaign done on the USS Cole in the year 2000.

The author also writes of famous American who were involved, particularly Richard A. Clarke who at the time of 9/11 attack was the chief counter terrorism adviser sitting on the U.S National Security Council. The other personality featured in the book is John P. ONeill who was the assistant Deputy Director of Investigation in the FBI.

Until his retire in August 2001, he was actively involved in the hunt for Osama bin Laden. After his retire from the FBI he headed the security of the World Trade Center where he was later to die in the 9/11 attacks (Bergen, 2010).

The book covers some of the problems faced in the fight against terrorism, especially the lack of cooperation between the American Security Agencies, the CIA, and the FBI, which are blamed for not preventing the attacks.

The Looming Tower is a story mostly based on the lives of the people involved in the 9/11 attacks rather than the attack. It focuses on the background and situations that led the perpetrators to plan and stage the attacks.

The title the Looming Tower is described as appearing in the Quran and according to the author Osama had uttered the words before the 9/11 attacks during a wedding he attended. The line is quoted from the fourth Sura of the Holy Quran and Osama is claimed to have said, Wherever you are, death will find you, even in the looming tower.

When Mohamed Atta and his accomplices hijacked a Boeing 767 and flew the plane into the World Trade Center, a tragic story ensued. This attack was so gruesome that years down the line people still cringe at the mention of the events that took place that day.

The events of 9/11 are in many ways a start of a tale or maybe the climax of a story that began years ago in different locations such as Cairo, mosques in Hamburg, streets of Jordan and the town of Greeley. This is a story of how few individuals from impoverished places planned and carried attacks on a world super power.

It is also a story of how some individuals desperately tried to convince the government security agencies of an imminent attack. Many years after the attack questions were still being asked about the why and how a super power like America could fail to prevent it (Filkins, 2006).

The Looming Tower is full of details of how the Al Qaeda had once abandoned plans to stage an attack on American soil owing to the lack of foot soldiers that could pass credibly as westernized Muslims.

Later the Al Qaeda found the credible persons to facilitate the attack in Atta, Ramzi bin al-Shibh, Ziad al-Jarrah and Marwan al-Shehhi, who had been attended schools in the United States. Wright gives accounts of Islamic Militancy in his book and looks at it from the intellectual, religious, and economic situation of the places where the attackers came from.

Wright portrays a picture of Sayyid Qutb the man credited with the rise of modern day Islamist Fundamentalism. He shows Sayyid as a frail, middle-aged scholar who visited the United States and as a student in the university town of Greeley in the 1940s (Bolton, 2008). Sayyid is overwhelmed at the unrestrained luxuries and godlessness of the American culture.

He was disgusted with the American women and how the women freely they expressed their sexuality. He writes, A girl looks at you, appearing as if she were an enchanting nymph or an escaped mermaid, but as she approaches, you sense only the screaming instinct inside her, and you can smell her burning body, not the scent of perfume, but flesh, only flesh. Tasty flesh, truly, but flesh nonetheless.

Later Sayyid upon returning his country he started to write elaborate reasons why the Muslims should rise and wage war against the West and its rotten culture. Years later, the book writes of how Atta openly expressed his disgust for women especially from the West.

The book is based on many interviews, which the author held with various persons. The interviews range from Osamas best friend from school, Jamal Khalifa and Yosri Fouda a reporter working for Al Jazeera. He also writes of the interviews he had with Richard A.

Clarke who worked in the White House as a counter terrorism chief. In his accounts, the author gives the reader an intense view of the terrible events of 9/11. Though the events the author writes in his book have been told many times before, Mr. Wright tells the story with myriad new details.

He gives accounts and describes them in the context of politics and culture. He focuses on the lives and occupation of the key players involved in the attacks while succeeding in writing a historical story that possesses all the propinquity and poignant power of a novel (Wright, 2006).

The author writes that, The charisma and vision of a few individuals shaped the nature of the contest between Islam and the West. He further asserts, While the tectonic plates of history were certainly shifting, promoting a period of conflict between those two cultures.

The emergence of Al Qaeda depended on a unique conjunction of personalities most notably Mr. Zawahri, who promoted the apocalyptic idea that only violence could change history, and Mr. bin Laden, whose global vision and leadership held together an organization that had been bankrupted and thrown into exile (Wright, 2006).

The author suggests that the events of 9/11 were evitable. Unfortunately, through bad luck, indecisiveness of American officials and war between the CIA and FBI contributed to the success of the attack by Al Qaeda.

In contrast to other famous writers who have covered the events of September 1, Wright does not concentrate on the influence the Afghan-Soviet war had on Osama bin laden resolve to join the jihadis. Rather, he draws his stories from documents written in Arabic and carries interviews with jihad activists who offer chronicles of the many things that influence Al Qaeda and the long road against America Osama took.

The book gives a very detailed account of the Al Qaedas way of life, motivations, and doubts. It also goes further to give what each individual member wanted to achieve politically. The author captures certain events that are claimed to have influenced the Islamist Movement such as the execution of Sayyid Qutb by Gamal Abdel Nassers regime in 1966.

In the eyes of the Islamist Movement Sayyid was a martyr and hero, this did not wane but increased their faith in the war against the West. Wright then goes on to describe how Osama, the heir of one the largest family fortune in Arabia, grows from a timid child into a religious adolescent. He says one of the most influential people in Ladens life was a charismatic gym teacher.

This teacher was the one who introduced Osama to the Muslim Brothers Organization. Another person who influences Osama was Mr. Zawahri, who became acquainted with Osama in Peshawar in the early 1980s. Mr. Zawahri was a doctor from Egypt and in the book; he is drawn as the evil mentor who transformed the political view of the Young Saudi.

The author argues that before Osama met Mr. Zawahri, he was not much of a political thinker. The author goes to take a quote from Essam Deraz who was the first biographer of Osama. He says that he once thought Osama had the potential of becoming another Eisenhower, who could turn his celebrity status he had got after fighting in the Afghan- Soviet war into a serene political life (Filkins, 2006).

This is can be seen was not the plan Mr. Zawahiri had for Osama. The writer notes that as a young man, Mr. Zawahri was tortured in the Egyptian prisons and this powered his resolve to fight the Westernized culture. He is credited as pioneering the use of suicide bombers was seen from the start very keen to use biological and chemical weapons (Bolton, 2008).

It took Osama a long time for him to create a plan of action after he left the Afghan-Soviet war. In the time, he was exiled from Saudi Arabia and leaving in Sudan the author says that Osama was wavering the lure of peace being as strong as the battle cry of jihad. Agriculture captivated his imagination. It is further reported he was contemplated of quitting Al Qaeda and going into farming.

The author tells of how after the first Gulf war the continued stay of the American troops in Saudi Arabia gnawed on Osama. He was also aggravated by the invasion of Somalia by American troops who were on a humanitarian relief mission.

The Al Qaeda in 1992 the book claims met and turned from being the anti-communist Islamic army that bin Laden originally envisioned into a terrorist organization bent on attacking the United States (Bolton, 2008).

The book traces not only the evolution of Al Qaeda first as a resistance group to the Soviet and Saddam Hussein and then a sworn enemy of the United States, but also gives the reader a clear picture of life at an Al Qaeda training camp.

The authors description of Osama bin Laden concurs with that made by security experts such as former CIA official Michael Scheuer. He states that Osama was not opposed to the American culture rather he was angry at the American political and military actions it was carrying out in Muslim countries(Bergen, 2010).

The author observes that Osama occasionally allowed his young sons to play Nintendo and in the Al Qaeda training camps, recruits would be allowed to watch Hollywood thrillers. Their favorite movies, as the book says, were those done by Arnold Schwarzenegger and tried to gather tips on being American from them.

One of the many wives Osama had was known to love brand-name cosmetics and lingerie, preferring American products. He also had a wife who had graduated with a doctorate in child psychology (Filkins, 2006).

Wright is categorical in his book blaming former and present administrations for failing to prevent the 9/11. He writes of the failures in the CIA, FBI, and NSA refusal to share information with each other as the main reason the attackers were successful. If the agencies had cooperated, they might have foreseen the entering of two known terrorist in America.

He blames the Bush and Bill Clinton administration of laxity in tackling problem of terrorism in the world. He notes that when Bush entered office terrorism was a low priority to his administration. Like other authors on the issue of terrorism, he criticizes the actions that the Clinton administration took after the 1998 bombing in East Africa.

The administration of the day launched missiles at one of the Al Qaeda training camp located in Afghanistan and desperately failed to kill Osama. The writer notes helped turn Mr. Laden into a global celebrity and this allowed the terrorist to mythologize himself (Bergen, 2010).

Wright writes,  Mr. bin Ladens goal in striking the American embassies and bombing the American destroyer Cole in 2000, was to lure America into the same trap the Soviets had fallen into: Afghanistan.

His strategy was to continually attack until the U.S. forces invaded; then the mujahedeen would swarm upon them and bleed them until the entire American empire fell from its wounds. It had happened to Great Britain and to the Soviet Union. He was certain it would happen to America.

When neither the embassy bombings nor the Cole bombing was enough to provoke a massive retaliation, Mr. Bin Laden decided he would have to create an irresistible outrage.

The outrage in this case happens to be the 9/11 attack. The author continues to write that Laden had gotten what he wanted and cites the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan and the 2003 attack of Iraq as his wins. In both this invasions, the American Army has seen deaths of more than 2500 soldiers, just the thing that Osama fervently wanted (Bolton, 2008).

In the book, the writer portrays what has caused the Islamic militancy. He says at the heart of Islamic militancy lays anger, hatred of modernization, and feeling of humiliation which terrorist group cite as reason for killing.

The author looks at failure of autocratic governments to offer their citizens reasons to face the future as the reasons why some of this terrorists turn to Islam, which offers dignity and hope more so in death. He says that these theological amateur, will turn to be religion extremist and join terror groups (Bergen, 2010). Atta and the hijackers felt this as the Filkins (2006) writes;

Their motivations varied, but they had in common a belief that Islam  pure and primitive, unmitigated by modernity and uncompromised by politics  would cure the wounds that socialism or Arab nationalism had failed to heal. They were angry but powerless in their own countries.

They did not see themselves as terrorists but as revolutionaries who, like all such men throughout history, had been pushed into action by the simple human need for justice. Some had experienced brutal repression; some were simply drawn to bloody chaos. From the beginning of Al Qaeda, there were reformers and there were nihilists.

The dynamic between them was irreconcilable and self-destructive, but events were moving so quickly that it was almost impossible to tell the philosophers from the sociopaths. They were glued together by the charismatic personality of Osama bin Laden, which contained strands, idealism, and nihilism, in a potent mix. (p.3)

The author gives a story of John ONeill who was an FBI agent in the city of New York. He is claimed to have had proof of an imminent attack in America. John ONeill and the team he headed were assigned to trace and find information about Al Qaeda operatives in America. ONeill had the hunch that the Al Qaeda was preparing to stage an attack on the American soil.

He was an ardent investigator and when he saw the agency was not taking him seriously, he quit. After quitting, he said he could not work for a government bureaucracy that did not intend to move quickly to avert an attack as he did desperately trying to do. It is unfortunate that ONeill was among the people who died during the 9/11 he had foreseen.

Other agents in the bureau had premonitions of the Al Qaeda being successful in making attack on America. The supervisor posted in the Minneapolis office was cautioned in the month of August for raising his fears of an attack happening.

He expressed fear that a known Islamic radical was attending a flight school could have been as well planning an attack. When being admonished he retorted, I am trying to keep someone from taking a plane and crashing into the World Trade Center. Astonishing you might say (Filkins, 2006).

The Author talks of how the CIA had information of high level Al Qaeda members had attended a meeting in Malaysia in the early months of 2000. He says they also knew of two of those who attended the meetings had entered America. This two would later play a role and implement the attack as was later uncovered.

The CIA had failed to avail this information the FBI, which is mandated to carry out internal surveillance of known and suspected terrorists. The struggle between the two agencies is highlighted in the book as the author writes of a meeting held prior to the attack. In the meeting CIA analysts are claimed to have dangled pictures of would be attackers at the faces of FBI agents.

When the CIA agents refused to give the information they had on the two, the FBI agents realized they were the same persons they were pursuing and the tension between the two agencies increased. Three months prior to the attack, both agencies held a meeting, which ended in both the FBI and CIA agents shouting at each other.

In the book, the author illustrates a scene where an FBI agent named Ali Soufan reacts after being shown the pictures of the terrorists. Ali Soufan was working on the Al Qaeda case and when on September 12 he was shown the names and pictures of the hijackers, he just rushed into the bathroom and threw up. These people the CIA had information about their activities but refused to share with the FBI (Bergen, 2010).

The writer has covered many things in his book, though it seems he left out some important things such as the hijackings. There is no chapter that the writer explicitly discusses the hijacking as he has on so many things. He takes the reader directly to the jiffy of the blazing towers.

This maybe he did thinking that many other authors had covered it and wanted to be different. The other thing about the book is the way the author draws up verbatim reconstruction of various conversations. He travels a lot in such of this information and writes of conversations that had taken place more than a decade before.

This brings the question of how true and detailed the conversations are because it is hard to believe people have such good memories. The book ends with Zawahri or someone else riding a horse on the border of Afghanistan and Pakistan. This person disappears into the mountains and the book lacks a definitive end. This is a point the author tries to put that the story about the Al Qaeda is still not over (Filkins, 2006).

Conclusion and Recommendation

The book focuses on the lives of two men who have shaped the Al Qaeda. He tells of the Egyptian doctor al- Zawahiri and the life of Osama bin Laden. Wright skillfully dissects the relationship the two have. He gives on one hand the story of the ideologist al-Zawihiri, who is a skilled combatant and on the other hand, he tells the story of the determined and charming Osama bin Laden.

To be noted is that from their first interaction in the 1980s, the author follows how they join to form Al Qaeda and how al-Zawahiri mentors Osama. Wright gives accounts of how the attack affected the United States and the most depressing scene is that of Ali an FBI agent throwing up after realizing the CIA had knowledge of the people responsible.

The book as seen is a magnificent read and ay person looking to learn about the rise of the Al Qaeda should look for this book. The book gives detailed accounts of occurrence that happened before the 9/11 attack. It also looks into the lives of those people who are seen as instrumental in the rise and growth of the terror group.

Wright in his unique intelligent way delivers the occurrences and reasons of the attack on American soil with emotion. The strengths of this book in informing about the road to 9/11 lies in the deep research the writer carried out and the way he reconstructs conversations that had been taken more than a decade ago.

This is also the greatest weakness of the book owing to questions of how true these conversations are because people are not known to have search kind of memory.

References

Bergen. P., (2010). The Longest War: The Enduring Conflict Between America and Al-Qaeda. New York: Simon and Schuster

Bolton, M., (2008). U.S. national security and foreign policymaking after 9/11 present at the recreation. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield.

Filkins, D. (2006). The Plot against America. Retrieved from: https://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/06/books/review/06filkins.html

Wright, L., (2006). The looming tower: Al-Qaeda and the road to 9/11. New York: Vintage Books.

Filkins, D. (2006). Plot against America. Retrieved from: https://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/06/books/review/06filkins.html?pagewanted=2

Introduction

Al-Qaeda is a network of an international alliance of Islamic militant groups that were formed in the late 1980s to advance Islamic fundamentalism. The group has been very active in many countries like Afghanistan. The soviet invasion in Afghanistan can be attributed to the rise and growth of al-Qaeda in Afghanistan when Anti-Muslim afghan guerillas (mujahidin), the Afghan government, and the Soviet forces were involved in the crisis. The invasion by the Soviets led to afghan resistance. The Afghan government received support from the USA, China, and Saudi Arabia. The Mujahidin came from the Middle East to Afghanistan to assist fellow Muslims. Osama Bin Laden founded an organization that could help veterans of the Afghan War in Afghanistan this formed the bases of Al-Qaeda in Afghanistan.. (Biri A. 1998).

Since then the al-Qaeda has continued to regenerate itself in Afghanistan. Their activities are co-coordinated by Mustafa Ahmed Mohammed Uthman Abu al –Yazid who is the leader of the group activities, al-Qaeda had been involved in activities that were believed to assist the Taliban in the Afghan war. Abu- al-Yazid an Afghan, is strongly associated with Osama Bin Laden. It is believed that Al-Qaeda has a strong base in Afghanistan where its members get trained. Osama Bin Laden has been believed as hiding in Afghanistan. Many Al-Qaeda members are believed to use Afghanistan as a hideout on its border with Pakistan.

The links between Taliban and Al-Qaeda

It is widely believed that a link exist between the Taliban’s of Afghanistan and the Al-Qaeda network in terms of leadership, training of its members, and the provision of resources in terms of finances, technology which facilitate the group’s operations.

Al-Qaeda senior leaders have demonstrated in their statements that the two groups are associated. For example, Ayman al-Zawahiri through a speech released by as-sahed media in December 2006, said that al-qaeda’s backing of the Jihad in Afghanistan and Iraq is the most important battlefield. (Kommersant Russia’s Daily online Sep. 29, 2006, ). The United Nations was presented with a report by the U.N experts on terrorism about situations in Iraq and Afghanistan. This report shows that al-Qaeda and the Taliban have strong in the training of its members, the Afghans Taliban get training in al-Qaeda camps in Iraq.

Their relationship includes also the provision of resources among their leaders. “At the meeting [between al-Qaeda and Taliban representatives] according to Taliban sources, Osama Bin laden’s men officially broke some bad news to emissaries from Mullah Mohamed Omar, the elusive leader of Afghanistan ousted fundamentalist regime…” Ayman al-Zawahiri through an interview with Sheikh Ayman al-Zawahiri in Dec. 2006. “…The backing of the Jihad in Afghanistan and Iraq today is to back the most important battlefields in which the crusade against Islam and Muslim is in progress…”(Newsweek Dec.15.2006). Documents that were discovered in Iraq showed relations between Fazlur Rahman to the Taliban and Saddam. The documents describe Rahman as the father of the Taliban and show a close relationship with Mullah Omar of the al-Qaeda leadership.

Al-Qaeda had become powerful enough to attack even the United States

Al-Qaeda had carried a series of attacks that have been directed to the United States and its Interest. On Sept.11, 2001, the group led a series of well-coordinated attacks in the US where Several American airlines flights were hijacked and crashed killing almost 3,000 civilians.

Al-Qaeda network accuses the U.S of supporting Israel, plundering resources of the Middle East, giving support, and dictating policies to legitimate leaders.

Strength is a factor that has enabled the group to be able to attack the US. The group has a large number of members and associates spread in many countries in the world. Al-Qaeda is believed to have many military bases with strength in terms of technology and weapons. The group its members spread in South Asia, South East Asia, and the Middle East.

Conclusion

The al-Qaeda network has a solid financial status as it funds itself from donations from its supporters. They obtain funds from Islamic charitable organizations in an illicit manner. This makes them capable of maintaining and using sophisticated technology in their operations. They communicate, get information, plan, and strikes without being detected. They use forged documents to travel to any part of the world making it easy to carry on with their activities anywhere in the world.

Works cited

“Al-Qaeda Taliban relations” Newsweek 2006.

Biri Abdel, The secret History of Al-Qaeda, 1998.

“UN find link between al-Qaeda and Taliban” Russia’s Daily online. 2006.

“Terrorist organization” 2008.millitary com.resources. Web.

Understanding the Threat of Al Qaeda and various Insurgency groups in northwest Pakistan

While Pakistan cannot be considered a completely lawless state, large sections of its territory, particularly those bordering Afghanistan, are under the control of various insurgency groups particularly the Taliban and Al Qaida which have been labeled an international threat by the U.S. and numerous other foreign governments. Not only that the mountainous region along the northern mountains in Pakistan contains the largest illegal arms market in the world where guns, bullets, and ammunition are made, bought, and sold on an almost daily basis. With Pakistan invariably having little military strength to effectively control its borders as well as various parts of the country this creates a situation where the country could act as a base of operations where insurgency groups can train, stock up on weapons and ammunition and effectively cause bloodshed on various states connected to Pakistan.

The extent of the Security Challenge

What must be understood is that the current pro-democratic uprisings that are engulfing the Middle East have the potential of rapidly spiraling out of control should extremist groups suddenly insert themselves into the various protesting populations. While the regimes that are currently in place are somewhat friendly to various international business interests it cannot be said that the new regimes that will come into power via uprisings will be just as friendly. There is the potential that certain uprisings would themselves be a method by which members of Al Qaeda insert themselves into powerful government positions by which they could dictate the foreign policy of the Arab world. It has already been established that organizations such as Al Qaeda and the Taliban have access to various automatic, semi-automatic, and RPG’s all of which are supplied by Pakistan’s illegal arm’s market. All uprisings require some form of military backing and should members of Al Qaeda pose themselves as members of the uprising with access to weapons it is highly plausible that such individuals would rise quickly to become leaders of the uprisings and thus become part of the new regime once the dust settles and the old regime is no longer in power. While it may be true that Al Qaeda and various insurgency groups are not concentrated primarily in the northwestern region in Pakistan the fact remains that enough individuals are there that the region becomes a haven for various Al Qaeda and Taliban group leaders. During the invasion of Afghanistan and Operation Iraqi Freedom, the U.S. military stated that they would attempt to hunt and destroy every single leader of Al Qaeda and the Taliban in their supposed “war against terror” While to date they have only been marginally successful the fact remains that enough leaders are out there, possibly in Pakistan, that various terror plots can still be planned, funded and carried out by Al Qaeda agents who are under the command of such leaders. The near bombing of a passenger jet over Detroit by an Al Qaeda operative supposedly under order by an Al Qaeda leader is proof enough that should the situation in Pakistan as well as in other countries where such leaders are hiding remain unresolved there continues to remain a significant global threat from terrorism which could affect not only the U.S. but other countries around the world as well.

Current Approaches to dealing with this Security Challenge

Various U.S. military commanders have called Pakistan “the epicenter of terrorism” citing that it is a location where terrorists gather and deploy their forces to carry out acts of terror on civilian populations. As a result, the U.S. has partnered with the Pakistan Intelligence community to track down terrorists in their cells and send in remote-controlled drones or missiles to attack the structures directly. While such methods have been proven to be effective the inherent problem with what the U.S. is doing is that it is fighting an ideology rather than an organization of individuals. As such with all ideologies it can easily be passed down from one person to the next with the succeeding individual being the latest member of the terrorist organization. Domestically Pakistan does not have anywhere near enough resources to deal with the various terror cells in the country due to limited budgets and the fact that the yearly monsoon seasons leave such an impact on the country that the government is usually more concerned with helping victims of typhoons than they are at hunting down Al Qaeda members. Other methods employed have been to place rewards for the capture of information leading to the capture of various terror group leaders, a largely unsuccessful technique. On the other hand, the U.S. and various European countries are trying to build good relations with various sectors in the Middle East by supporting the various uprisings that are occurring which should in theory help to foster better relations in the future.

Flaws in the Approach

The problem with the current approach in dealing with Muslim extremism is that at times foreign actions in Middle Eastern countries, such as those done by the U.S., oftentimes lead to bad relations with various Muslim groups due to the civilian casualties affected by the various interventions the U.S. has done throughout its actions in the Middle East. Not only that targeting terrorists in the mountains in Pakistan is useless when people within your borders can become terrorists themselves as was seen in the potentially horrific Detroit airplane bombing where a U.S. citizen was the primary suspect in the case. To resolve this issue what must be targeted is not the people themselves but rather the ideology they represent. When Al Qaeda started killing Muslims in Muslim countries they lost a lot of support in numerous countries in the Middle East due to their actions. As such to prevent the “beast” so to speak from growing the best way is to first cut off support in the form of tactics aimed at vilifying Al Qaeda and its methods TO the majority of the Muslim population through mass media. such a method has the potential to remove all financial support and prevent more people from joining the ranks of Al Qaeda. Not only does this prevent the organization from growing but eventually it should result in the organization going into remission.

Intensions

This paper focuses on Al-Qaeda, a transnational extremist organization founded in 1988 by Osama bin Laden and unites Islamic extremists and Salafist jihadists. Watching at Al-Qaedas foundation date, it could be noted that it was established during the penultimate year of the Soviet-Afghan War that lasted from 1979 to 1989. The initial purpose of Al-Qaeda was to provide assistance to Muslims in fighting against the Soviet Union. However, after the withdrawal of the Soviet troops from Afghanistan in 1989, the terrorist organization did not dissolve. Instead, the counteraction to the corrupted Islamic regimes and the leaders of foreign states who intervene in the internal affairs of Islamic countries became the purpose of Al-Qaeda. At the same time, there is an opinion that the terrorist organization was founded in order to “challenge the incumbency and authority of rulers in various Middle Eastern countries, including Saudi Arabia” (Haynes, 2005, p. 177). In spite of the various views on the initial motivation for the establishment of Al-Qaeda, it remains evident that, in the early 1990-s, it went global with the aim to change the balance of power between the Islamic and the Western world.

From the paragraph above, it could be inferred that the short-term goals of Al-Qaeda vary in every single case. For instance, during the Soviet-Afghan War, the leaders of the terrorist organization wanted to undermine the forces of the communists (Byman, 2019). In the mid-2010s, the strikes of Islamist radicals in Iraq were organized to inhibit the formation of local armed forces and police (Novenario, 2016). In the long-term perspective, the key objective of Al-Qaedas actions is to show that the West is vulnerable and its armed forces unable to resist the Islamic militants (Novenario, 2016). Apart from that, Al-Qaeda facilitates the further polarization of already tense Shia–Sunni relations.

Undoubtedly, the ideology and the goals of the discussed terrorist organization threaten the entire world. However, during recent years, the Arabian Peninsula could be regarded as the epicenter of events because of the ongoing civil war in Yemen that takes place since 2014. The UAE is engaged in this conflict as a part of the coalition of pro-Hadi forces headed by Saudi Arabia that battles against Yemen’s Shiite rebels. Al-Qaeda, in its turn, acts as the third side of the conflict as it attacks both coalitions to seize territories.

Capabilities

Since there is no precise data on the numbers of Al-Qaeda’s members, the only option is to rely on estimations and predictions. According to Hoffman (2018), its staff consists of approximately 40,000 people. On average, the terrorists are recruited at the age of 22 and undergo training in Afghanistan and Sudan (Bloom, 2017). By the way, the young age of the enlisted members contributes to the overall decline of the organization due to their lack of experience and skills. A range of scholars such as Bloom (2017) and Faria and Arce (2005) inform that terrorists are required by the talent spotters who analyze the visitors of mosques on the extent of commitment to the Islamist faith, their skills, and personality trait.

In addition to that, Bloom (2017) reveals that Al-Qaeda actively engages in its activities school-aged youth from such countries as Afghanistan, Pakistan, Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Palestine, North Africa, and Western Europe. Besides, it is curious to notice that the headhunters pay attention even to the nationality and the skin color of the potential candidates. As Watts (2018) puts it, “the whiter the recruit, the bigger a pain in the ass he will become for the terrorist group he joins” (p. 9). To sum up, Al-Qaeda’s recruiters choose young people with a strong commitment to faith and a range of personal qualities that make them easily manipulated.

Since Al-Qaeda regards itself as a global movement, the Internet is necessary to achieve the global audience. Indeed, this terrorist organization is one of the most active users of a global communications network (Scaife, 2014). The Internet is used not only to conduct cyberattacks. Social media facilitates Al-Qaeda to gain access to a broader audience that could be potentially recruited. Communication between the actual terrorists and people whom they would like to attract is commonly based on intimidation and disinformation (Grosu & Bubuioc, 2017). At this point, it should be noted that the decision to recruit via social media strongly relates to the fact that the organization entices mainly young people because the latter are prone to prefer online communication to the real one.

Talking about the most common method of attack, it worth saying that Al-Qaeda does not use something extraordinary and distinctive from other terrorist organizations. A range of scholars, such as Celso (2014), Bevy (2006), and Smith, Schulze, and Solomon (2020), claim that Al-Qaeda practices traditional terrorist attacks that include suicide bombing in the places of mass congestion of people. However, in recent years, Al-Qaeda also practices cyber-attacks.

Opportunities

As it has already been mentioned in the section dedicated to the intensions of Al-Qaeda, this terrorist organization does pose a threat to the security of the UAE. This threat is exacerbated by the ongoing civil war in Yemen. More precisely, Al-Qaeda is responsible for the conduction of suicide attacks against soldiers from the UAE who were fighting on the territory of Yemen. In addition to that, one could argue that the evidence of the claim that the group threatens the security of the Emirates lies in the fact that two of the hijackers who participated in the attacks on September 11, 2001, were the citizens of the UAE. Notwithstanding these claims, it is essential to notice that the UAE had never witnessed attacks by Al-Qaeda on its territory. What is more, it is highly unlikely that the organization would ever be able to access the country that implements active counter Islamic terrorism policies.

Thinking about the possibility of Al-Qaedas victory, it is essential to pay attention the fact that this fight occurs not between the extremist group and one single state, but between the group and the entire world community. From one point of view, there is some evidence that the number of members is continuously growing, and the organization is obtaining more sophisticated weapons. However, the US and the rest of the world, including also a wide range of international organizations, allocate a significant amount of money on the fight with terrorism. Thus, it could be suggested that in the short-term, Al-Qaeda is able to win some local conflicts or undermine the stability and security of some local troops. Nevertheless, in the long-term perspective, it is impossible to imagine that this terrorist organization would be able to defeat the entire world community.

References

Bevy, L. J. (2006). Al-Qaeda: An organization to be reckoned with. Nova Publishers.

Bloom, M. (2017). Constructing expertise: Terrorist recruitment and “talent spotting” in the PIRA, Al Qaeda, and ISIS. Studies in Conflict & Terrorism, 40(7), 603-623.

Byman, D. (2019). Al Qaeda, the Islamic State, and the global jihadist movement. Oxford University Press.

Celso, A. (2014). Al-Qaeda’s post-9/11 devolution: The failed jihadist struggle against the near and far enemy. Bloomsbury Publishing USA.

Faria, J. R. & Arce, G.D. (2005). Terrorist support and recruitment. Defence and Peace Economics, 16(4), 263–273.

Grosu, R., & Bubuioc, V. (2017). The role of internet and social media in recruitment in certain Islamic terrorist organizations. Cases of Al Qaeda and ISIS. Central and Eastern European e-Dem and e-Gov Days, 325, 179-188.

Haynes, J. (2005). Al Qaeda: ideology and action. Critical Review of International Social and Political Philosophy, 8(2), 177-191.

Hoffman, B. (2018). Al-Qaeda’s Resurrection.Council on Foreign Relations. Web.

Novenario, C. M. I. (2016). Differentiating Al Qaeda and the Islamic State through strategies publicized in Jihadist magazines. Studies in Conflict & Terrorism, 39(11), 953-967.

Scaife, L. (2014). Handbook of social media and the law. CRC Press.

Smith, T., Schulze, K., & Solomon, H. (2020). Exporting global jihad: Volume two: Critical perspectives from Asia and the Americas. In LSE SEAC Workshop-Militant Islamism in Southeast Asia: Militant Islamism in Southeast Asia. IB Tauris.

Watts, C. (2018). Messing with the enemy: Surviving in a social media world of hackers, terrorists, Russians, and fake news. Harper Business.

Introduction

There are many challenges that humanity face and the most severe and threatening one is terrorism. Al Qaeda is believed by many to be a terrorist organization founded more than a decade ago by a huge wealthy Saudi Arabian religious extremist that has grown into a powerful network comprising trained and motivated men in various parts of the world who execute the orders of their leader Osama bin Laden.

It is a term that has been understood in various ways by different people and this paper tries to bring a clear understanding by covering various aspects related to Al Qaeda.

Definition of Terms

Al Qaeda is a multinational support group that funds and organizes the activities of Islamic militants worldwide. Terrorism refers to the illegitimate use of violence against persons or property to threaten governments or communities usually to attain political, religious, or social goals.

The term Al Qaeda comes from the Arabic term qaf-ayn-dal which means a base or foundation. It can also mean a principle a formula or a pattern (Bevy 1).

Background Information

Osama bin Laden, the leader of Al Qaeda started his tricks in 1979 when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan and therefore he decided to move to Afghanistan together with his work personnel and construction tools and machinery with an aim of liberating Afghanistan from the invasion of Soviet Union.

Since Afghanistan had inadequate infrastructure and trained fighting personnel, Osama bin Laden took the opportunity to support them in the fight by solving these problems through establishment of a recruiting office in collaboration with Palestinian leader Adallah Azzam.

The recruitment office was to organize and coordinate recruitment of people from various Muslim countries who were then trained to fight. Most of them came from Saudi Arabia. The Osama group ganged with America and after ten years they managed to sweep off the Soviet Union from Afghanistan.

After the Afghanistan victory, Osama went back to his country but was later denied citizenship in 1994 for being against the government and went to Sudan. Al Qaeda was founded around 1988 by Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan after he broke from the joint group with Adallah Azzam. It has Muslim members through out the world who are networked and cooperate in their operations. Osama utilizes technology like the internet and satellite telephones to coordinate the members who are widely dispersed.

The members are from different countries; Canada, United States, Asia, Europe and the United Arab Emirates etc. Al Qaeda is anti-western and therefore views the United States of America as the biggest enemy towards Islam and has in some instances wanted to take revenge against it by destroying it as it perceive it as the biggest hindrance towards reform among the Muslim communities.

It aims at overthrowing the existing crooked and hierarchical governments of the Muslim states and establishing the Islamic law or Sharia. Osama bin Laden strives at establishing new Islamic groups and reinforcing those that exist and is also involved in the support of the various groups in their fights (Bari 20).

Terrorism

According to Greenberg (3), there are different perceptions towards terrorism. There are those who view it as an act that basis itself on injustice and oppression and hence responds by rebelling in search of justice while others perceive terrorism as an act of violence aimed at achieving political goals.

Causes of Terrorism and Critical Thinking

Identification of the real causes of terrorism is crucial in deciding how to react to incidences of terrorism. The causes may be political, economical or even social related (Rudinow 18). Psychologist states that most but not all terrorists suffer from an anti-social personality disorder and lack empathy towards people but they are not usually mentally ill.

Research shows that different classes of terrorists exist for example there are those who result to terrorism because of low self esteem caused by failure in their lives or poverty and those who are educated and of middle-class. Terrorist also perform their actions to revenge, to show the government that it is powerless, or to attract attention. From a rational view, terrorism is a logical political action. This is seen through the manner in which the terrorists operate for example their timing of their attacks to achieve maximum destruction.

Terrorism is seen as a social action based on a person’s understanding and interpretation of an aspect in relation to other people for example access to certain rights and services, social and political oppression towards the citizens may lead to terrorism due to frustration. Terrorism may also be caused by the desire to maintain identity and autonomy of different groups and in most cases it is a means for survival.

Terrorism manifests itself in a range of ways for instance suicide bombings and tragic actions like the one that occurred on September11, 2001. It is associated with politics and religion/ Islam. Although terrorism is associated with Muslims not all Muslims are terrorists as most of them detest violence and advocate for peace (Blanchard 18).

September 11, 2001 Attack

The al Qaeda has been associated with many attacks for example the 1998 bombings of two U.S. embassies in Africa but the September11, 2001 attack in America is viewed as the sternest attack. It involved the terrorists hijacking four airliners, where two of them caused the destruction of the world trade center twin tower, one hit the pentagon which was a very secure office building and caused great damage while the other one crashed around Pittsburgh after it was hijacked and turned to Washington.

This incident caused death of many people including those in the planes, in the buildings and rescuers causing a lot of chaos and anxiety in the entire nation making most activities to go into a halt. Security actions were taken and the military and navy forces were alerted so that they could offer defense. Strategies of fighting world wide war against terrorism was also established (Grunwald 1).

Terrorist Groups and Tactics

Terrorist make very good use of the media to make their terrorists decisions. They are able to ascertain the level of fear and anxiety among people and the level of preparedness of the government and hence know the best way in which they can carry out their activities against the governments.

The terrorist tactics vary according to the level of training given to the members. The tactics include assassination, hijacking, kidnapping, arson, bombing, taking hostage, use of sophisticated weapons and utilization of modern technology. There are terrorist groups that are state directed; others are state-supported while others are non-state supported (Greenberg 10).

US and Terrorism

Terrorism is still a threat to the United States even though domestic terrorism has greatly reduced. The main reason why the US is the target for various terrorist groups is the ideological differences since the US is the leading capitalist state and has more power and so the terrorists act to counter this. They also believe that the US government has power and can control other governments and so the terrorist groups are not happy about this.

War on Terrorism

The approach taken on the war against terrorism is perceived in a negative manner by most Muslims all over the world as they view the action as a threat towards them and their religion. Muslim societies in Christian- dominated parts of the world still feel that they are not treated equally as the Christians due to their practices of religion and faith. This aspect hinders the success of the war against terrorism since the Muslim communities may not cooperate mainly because they feel they are being undermined.

In the process of combating terrorism action, there is threat assessment based on current data and information, and then the criticality and vulnerability assessment is done based on the threat assessment. Prevention measures in terms of personal and physical security, awareness creation and training is then done. Authority and jurisdiction are exercised and there is also crisis management planning and execution (Jenkins 17).

Conclusion

Terrorism has for a long period caused harm to the society by causing issues like assassination of great leaders, deaths of many citizens and loss of peace of mind among people all in the name of getting good results out of it, for instance, justice in allocation of resources and access of rights by the citizens. Counterterrorism strategies should be established to prevent cases of terrorist attacks as it is usually a loss to the affected nations.

Works Cited

Bari, Abdel. The Secret History of Al Qaeda. 2nd Ed. USA: University of California Press, 2008

Bevy, J. Lawrence. Al-Qaeda: An Organization to Be Reckoned With. New York: Nova Publishers, 2006.

Blanchard, M. Christopher. Al Qaeda: Statements and Evolving Ideology. USA: Diane Publishing, 2010

Greenberg, J. Karen. Al Qaeda Now: Understanding Today’s Terrorists. USA: Cambridge University Press, 2005

Grunwald, Michael. ‘‘Terrorists Hijack 4 Airliners, Destroy World Trade Center, Hit Pentagon; Hundreds Dead.’’ The Washington Post, 2001. Web.

Jenkins, Brian Michael. Countering Al Qaeda: An Appreciation of the Situation and Suggestions for Strategy. California: Rand Corporation, 2002

Rudinow, Joel and Barry E. Vincent. Invitation to Critical Thinking. 6th ed. UK: Cengage Learning, 2007

The essay is a critical analysis of the article titled “Al-Zawahiri appointed al Qaeda’s new leader” which was posted on the jihadist website published on June 16 2011 by the CNN Wire Staff. The article talks about international relationship between American and the Islam community which has been viewed for the past decades as deteriorating as results of terrorism.

It is worth noting that the issue of terrorism has been a hard nut to crack in the entire world and has continued to cause sleepless night to a number of countries (Shimko 127). Since the death of Osama Bin Laden, the leader of al-Qaeda’ the group was reluctant to accept his death.

After consultation and coming to terms with his death, they settled on Al-Zawahiri his long term deputy to take charge of the group, “Hereby the General Command of the Qaeda al-Jihad — and after the end of the consultations — we declare that Sheikh Dr. Abu Muhammad Ayman al-Zawahiri…” (CNN Wire Staff par. 4). The individual has been linked with the attacks in Kenya and Tanzania leaving close to 300 people dead and over 5000 injured.

The United States of America government placed a reward of 25 million dollars for information leading to his arrest. During an attacked launched by the U.S in Afghanistan, his wife and three of his children died.
From the article it is evident that Al-Zawahiri hailed the fallen al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. He said in reference to Osama “went to his God martyred because he said no to America” (CNN Wire Staff par. 5)

The appointed leader had harsh words for the Pakistan government and claimed that Americans are not fighting al Qaeda who will not stop at anything other than confronting their oppressors.

The posting although did not talk of pro-democracy uprising, it is clear that their policies will not be shifted and promised to support such groups as Taliban in fighting NATO and U.S. analysts hold the opinion that Al-Zawahiri will have a difficult task in leading the group. They assert that he has no charisma as that of his predecessor. My view however is contrary to theirs.

Having in mind that he was born in a wealthy family just like Bin Laden, and then he will have an easy time motivate the group and give them direction since Bin Laden did a lot of work in shaping the entire group as well as imposing chain of command. Despite the claim that he commands no loyalty from members, this does not warrant the assumption that he won’t propel the group in carrying out attacks.

In my humble view, the leadership of Al-Zawahiri will definitely worsen the relationship of America with other Islamic countries particularly Egypt where the leader has roots. This rests on the view that the membership of the group will expand making American to receive opposition from all quotas.

Interestingly, it is evident that even after the killing of Osama bin Laden, al Qaeda will not stop on their activities and the chances of them revenging are high. However, it is not easy to establish the timeline for the revenge. This thus calls the American authorities to be on alert at all times and change their strategies for curbing terrorism if need be. The following statement summarizes their desire to revenge, “will remain on the path of righteousness as a coherent, solid, cemented rank…” (CNN Wire Staff par. 10)

References

Shimko, Keith. International relations: Perspective and controversies. New York: Cengage Learning, 2009. Print.

Al-Zawahiri appointed al Qaeda’s new leader, 2011. Web.

Al-Qaeda is one of the most feared terrorist groups in the world. Al-Qaeda traces its origin to the Middle East. People often associate Al-Qaeda with extreme Islamism. This article reviews a book by Fawaz Gerges, “The Rise, and Fall of Al-Qaeda”. The book reflects on issues surrounding the Al-Qaeda. Fawaz uses his mastery and expertise to write a compelling and broad analysis of this terrorist group.

Fawaz gives a detailed account of the origin, functioning, and decline of Al-Qaeda. He starts by explaining the origin of Al-Qaeda. According to him, this terrorist group came into existence in the early 1990s. He continues to document that Al-Qaeda officially united in 1998 after Bin Laden returned to Afghanistan from Sudan.

Fawaz portrays Al-Qaeda as a less dangerous group compared to claims of the West. He writes that the group is losing power. He attributes the overrating of this group by Americans to the entrenched interests of the US. Further, Gerges points out that interests of the west coupled with fear lead to the exaggeration of issues concerning Al-Qaeda. In addition, Gerges highlights the consequences, and implications of this exaggeration. Further, he documents that this exaggeration amplifies the problem.

Gerges argues that the United States has continually interfered with the group. He explains that by sending troops to Saudi Arabia after the Gulf war, the US provoked the Al-Qaeda. Americans after successful scattering the Al-Qaeda and the Taliban did not leave Afghanistan but rather focused attention towards economic resources of the country, and the Middle East as a whole.

He goes on to show how the US in their bid to remove dictators in Mesopotamia gave Al-Qaeda a chance to expand because the US removed of a section of leaders who hated this group. However, the Al-Qaeda started discording the Arabs instead of uniting them. This resulted to Al-Qaeda losing fame among the Arabs for orchestrating violence against Muslims.

Fawaz continues to explain the factors that contributed to Al-Qaeda’s loss of power. In his book, Fawaz explains that the group fell after the 9/11 attacks in the US. Osama failed to listen to warnings issued by the Taliban. In return theTaliban refused to support him.

The Taliban asked Bin Laden to concentrate on eliminating the enemies within Afghanistan borders instead of going after the US. Osama ignored this and continued with the planned attack. Osama’s hope of gaining support from the public did not actualize. Consequently, Bin Laden’s miscalculation and overconfidence saw him fall.

The author continues to write that the group has not risen again. He says that there is a slim chance that Al-Qaeda will revive itself. Moreover, Al-Qaeda cannot get support from either the public in Middle East or the Taliban. According to him, the Taliban is still struggling to recover control over Afghanistan after losing it to Al-Qaeda. Obviously, it is unlikely that the Taliban will allow any other terrorist group to overpower them.

Fawaz ends his book by commenting on the disjuncture between reality and exaggeration of functioning and decline of Al-Qaeda. He points out that fear and continued inclination of counter terrorism have enslaved American elites and the public. He documents that amplifying small pieces of evidence exaggerates the position of Al-Qaeda.

Further, he acknowledges that the famous decline of the group has not eliminated the existing perception of impending threat. Fawaz suggests that Americans should stop using the approach they have been using in the Middle East. He advocates for Americans to use liberal democratic approaches when handling Middle East. Further, he acknowledges that Americans can help in transforming the Middle East.

The most important dimension of this book is its ability to educate readers. Fawaz informs the reader about the origin and decline of the Al-Qaeda. His book is effective in the way that it explains the operations and structure of this terrorist group. Readers learn about the threats posed by the Al-Qaeda, and the steps taken to counter these threats.

Fawaz questions anti-terror policies and the efforts put in place to counter this group in an informed manner. He bases his assertions on concrete data. These systematic approaches allow readers to evaluate the magnitude of the threats posed by Al-Qaeda and the attention focused on these threats.

This book provides a detailed and expansive analysis. The content is relevant and the depth is considerable. The Author addresses development and decline of Al-Qaeda analytically. He conducts several interviews and uses his expertise to base his findings on strengths and weaknesses of the group.

Extensive research is evident in this book. The author uses real life illustrations, and provides evidence to support his arguments. Therefore, his book changes misconceptions of citizens, and the rest of the world threats posed by Al-Qaeda. Additionally, this book is rational. The author acknowledges the current threats and the likelihood of future threats. Further, he suggests possible solutions essential in handling the threats. This allows the readers to analyze the issue and draw conclusions based on their understanding.

Additionally, this book is interesting and enjoyable. The author provides a fascinating account by documenting issues surrounding the Al-Qaeda. He chronologically organizes his ideas and leaves room for criticism. The author successfully manages to capture the attention of the readers.

However, this book has its flaws. The main weakness of this book is Gerges’ attitude to the entire issue. Clearly, he underestimates the threats posed by the Al-Qaeda. Further, he accuses the American government and media of exaggerating this issue. His analysis shows that the group has disoriented and declined. However, readers cannot be sure of this fact. This is because the book conflicts with various reports and findings that other sources provide. Therefore, questions arise on the credibility of these arguments.

Another flaw of this book is Gerges’ limited View on the Al-Qaeda. Fawaz refuses to acknowledge the fact that this terror group has systems that are elaborate, organized, intelligently structured, and controlled for it to function. For instance, we cannot say that Al-Qaeda haphazardly carried out 9/11 attacks. In his book, Fawaz admits that the group is ambitious. However, he denies the fact that it enjoys funding, organized command, control, and training. This shows the writer’s bias on this issue.

In conclusion, this book serves its purpose well. It educates the readers on issues surrounding Al-Qaeda. In addition, it challenges the readers to understand and acknowledge the fact that Al-Qaeda is a security mutant group that does not represent overall Islamist opinion. The author uses elaborate examples, interviews, and evidence to support his work. Further, Gerges’ understanding of Islam helps him tackle this issue with ease. Overall, this book effectively educates readers.

Introduction

The al-Qaeda is, perhaps, the most infamous terrorist group in the world. Its popularity skyrocketed after the group staged massive attacks against the United States during the start of the last decade. The worst of these attacks is perhaps the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Centre, the Pentagon, and a failed attempt to attack that was speculated to have either been targeting the White House or the Capitol Building.

The United States has been trying to stop the activities of the al-Qaeda, but this has been a rather emotional affair than a holistically planned policy. There is a need for a detailed study of the intricacies and dynamics of the al-Qaeda, and implementation of well-calculated measures to ensure that the group is ended effectively (Kurth, 2004, p. 12)

Challenges the U.S. faces in fighting the Al-Qaeda

The Al-Qaeda, and the Islamists associated to group, have been, and still are a great threat to the U.S. and the world at large. Several attempts at stopping the activities of the Al-Qaeda have been made, especially by the U.S. but without much success.

Among the factors that have made the Al-Qaeda thrive amid the commitment by the U.S. to track down its operatives is the fact that the group is characterized by meticulous planning. This is also fortified by the fact that minor terrorist activities carried out by religious extremists have made it harder to keep record of Al-Qaeda activities due to the inability of concerned parties to determine the group responsible for such attacks. Some political analysts argue that the Al-Qaeda has evolved to the extent of being invisible.

This implies that the group, with knowledge of the threat it faces, has undergone substantial changes that make it hard for anti-terrorism crusaders to identify it. The group has severally changed in both structure and form.

This is why the U.S. came up with strategies like ensuring the group lacks finances, reliable territories for regrouping, and even targeting the crème of the group in a bid to cripple its operations. Another great challenge in fighting the Al-Qaeda is that little or no effort has been made to scrutinize the assumptions the U.S. has made in its operations and policies in fighting the group (Musharbash, 2005, p. 1).

Another great challenge in the fight against the Al-Qaeda is the fact that contemporary study on terrorism focuses on the causes of terrorism more than the strategic interventions that can be used to end it. Researchers have done commendable work on suicide bombers, and other signatures of the Al-Qaeda but little or no research has been done on past interventions that have been used to end terrorist groups.

Most of the aforementioned research that has been done is normally spurred by incidences in which terrorist activities are suspected to have taken place. In essence, the achievement of these research activities has been to document the history of terrorism, which, arguably, serves to promote terrorism more than it provides solutions for ending it. There is thus a need for a nuanced approach on the research activities that are related to terrorism, and specifically research that seeks to unravel the mysteries surrounding the Al-Qaeda.

Appropriate research should thus be carried out to establish the strategic measures that can be used against the group, and that can make the activities of the group come to an end. Let us have a look at the similarities and differences of the Al-Qaeda with other terrorist groups, and see whether the interventions that were used to end these terrorist groups can work in the case of Al-Qaeda.

Uniqueness of the Al-Qaeda

The Al-Qaeda is unique as a terrorist group in a number of ways. It is distinguishable from its predecessor terrorist groups in terms of either the degree of damage it does after its attacks or even in terms of its nature per se (Love, 2007, p. 1).

Ability to take different forms

When the war on terrorism intensified after the 9/11 attacks in the United States, the Al-Qaeda that was existent during that time has seemingly ceased to exist. Al-Qaeda can thus be viewed to be presently represented by people with the same viewpoint as the planners of the 9/11 attack.

These people are suspected to be connected by virtual networks strengthened by either their religious affiliations or desire for ungrounded vengeance against the United States. The Al-Qaeda had however made a mistake earlier before the 9/11 attack by being a little too visible for a terrorist organization. This, in turn, led to the success of the efforts that were employed by the U.S. in Afghanistan in a bid to unearth the organization (Probst, 2010, p. 1).

After realizing this mistake, the Al-Qaeda seems to have been transformed to a world-wide organization connected by contemporary technology and sharing the same faith. This is one characteristic of the al-Qaeda that makes it very different from other terrorist groups because previous ones lacked the global reach, complexity and agility exhibited by the al-Qaeda. The group is also unique in its ability to maintain fluid operations while sharing the same goal, and while also using standard operating procedures.

The al-Qaeda can also be viewed as having provided a platform for development of a terrorist organization of a hybrid nature. It is suspected to have alliance with a number of terrorist organizations. It has been established that focussing on the al-Qaeda alone as a group in a bid to end it can potentially lead to failure.

Terrorists who share the same ideologies, and use the tactics developed by al-Qaeda are spread all over the world (Hoffman, 2003, p. 19). Although some people have viewed this as a sign of weakness, it is actually a strength that makes it hard to find strategies for ending the group.

Recruitment

One of the main strengths of al-Qaeda, and which distinguishes it from other terrorist groups is the way it conducts its recruitments. Al-Qaeda takes is more of a social movement than a terrorist organization in as far as its recruitments are concerned. It is common knowledge that the group gets committed members by means of volunteers who are not in any way coerced to be involved in its activities.

Individuals who believe in what the group advocates for, therefore, come in large numbers to be trained by the group, and they are willing to be involved in its activities. This is a feature that is not common among terrorist groups. Normally, terrorist groups and their activities are a result of the schemes of senior members of such groups, and membership to the groups is normally a planned affair that may necessitate some coercion.

However, the al-Qaeda is unique from the aforementioned fact that the members actually join the group instead of being recruited (Riedel, 2010, p. 127). It can thus be argued that the future of the al-Qaeda depends on the extent to which the international community will be able to interfere with its social structure.

Studies on the recruitment of specific members of the al-Qaeda, and their networks have shown that family relationships and friendships are among the most important social links of the al-Qaeda as far as recruitment is concerned. It has also been discovered that currently, a good number of members of the al-Qaeda can be classified as informal members. This is because such members lack both formal training and military camp experiences.

Support

The al-Qaeda has enjoyed varied sources of support for its terrorist activities. Its finances are mainly sourced from charitable organizations or even channelled through the same by the proponents of the ideologies of the group. The group also enjoys substantial amounts of grants, which are especially given to local groups allied to the al-Qaeda, and with terrorist plans that aid the achievements of the objectives of the al-Qaeda.

It is, however, highly suspected that the money used for most operations comes from the group’s kitty, which is thought to be, often times, supplemented by involvement in crime and fraud by some of the organization’s operatives. What makes the al-Qaeda unique among other terrorist groups that have existed in the past is the fact that the organization is like a brand, which can be successfully marketed.

This implies that, even with little sums of money, the al-Qaeda can be able to plan and execute its terrorist activities due to the commitment of it operatives, and the willingness of religious crusaders to join the group when a chance presents itself to them. To evidence this, research has shown that the al-Qaeda spent less than 500,000 USD in planning and executing the 9/11 attack (Kurth, 2004, pp. 36-37).

The organization also enjoys support from its involvement in business. It is suspected that the group operates businesses across the globe, whose profits are mainly used in financing the organization. This can be evidenced by the fact that, despite attempts by the international community to maim the al-Qaeda by freezing its assets, the al-Qaeda has been able to carry out a number of attacks.

It can thus be argued that the involvement of the group in business activities, and its characteristic low cost operations, have enabled the group to be one of its kind. This makes it even more dangerous.

Means of communication

The al-Qaeda has been quick to utilize the communication advantages that are presented by globalization tools. It has, possibly, been able to communicate with target governments, recruits, supporters and other parties using these tools.

Some of these tools include the various communication methods presented by the internet; as well as means of communication availed by mobile telephones. The al-Qaeda does not have unique advantage in using these means of communication since terrorist groups of the past also utilized these means of communication.

However, the group has been exceptionally good in using these tools of communication whose security is jeopardized in target nations. An example the group’s use of globalization tools is the way the group has been using websites in threatening and sending warnings to the American public. It has also used the same in training future members and wooing Islamists to become members of the group. The al-Qaeda has thus been using the internet as an effective medium for waging a psychological war against the United States.

Training has also been enabled by the internet, as the group is able to distribute materials containing warfare tactics to its members through the internet. As a result, physical contact of the recruits and members of the group is no longer necessary. The members are able to perpetuate terrorist activities remotely by the use of contemporary technology (Monaldo, 2005, p. 1). This gives the al-Qaeda great strength as compared to terrorist groups of the past since the latter existed at a time when globalization tools were limited.

Similarities with other terrorist groups

With the al-Qaeda, a focus on the function and structure of the terrorist group is somehow archaic. This is because the environment in which this group currently operates is very dynamic, and thus efforts to establish the controls used by the group and its chain of command will be a tedious, if not impossible task.

This, in turn, makes it difficult to draw parallels between the al-Qaeda and terrorist groups of the past. However, some similarities in other aspects of terrorism practiced by the al-Qaeda and terrorist groups of the past can still be discerned. An analysis of the similarities between the al-Qaeda and its historical counterparts is a very important milestone in determining what has worked in ending terrorist groups, and evaluating the possibility that the same could work for the al-Qaeda.

Among the main similarities of the al-Qaeda and terrorist groups of the past is the fact that the group has developed links all over the world courtesy of its ideologies. Terrorist groups of the past had also developed international links driven by their ideologies. Examples of these groups include the Hezbollah, the PLO and others.

Although the al-Qaeda can be described as having better international ties than its historical counterparts, it can also be ended like the latter. This will, however, require proper planning, and cooperation with international allies on the part of the United States (Curtis, 2002, p. 16).

The organizational structure of the al-Qaeda may also be unique in some way, but much of its characteristics resemble former counterparts. For instance, its characteristic leadership, and initiation of attacks has been existent in former counterparts. This is to say that some terrorist groups of the past were organized such that individual cells could perpetuate attacks on targets. Lessons from the ending of such groups may be applicable in the case of the al-Qaeda.

How the U.S. can end the al-Qaeda

The future of the al-Qaeda is essentially uncertain, especially amid the anxiety with which the west wants to end the organization. However, some predictions can be made, based on the aforementioned characteristics of the group, its networks, and even its terrorism history, and significant events that have occurred in the past.

A specific concern is the fact that during the war in Iraq, some European Muslims allied to recently developed networks were used against the West. Some analysts have therefore worried that the Muslim veterans of the Iraq War may be driven by both religious and personal motives to launch attacks on Western people living in Europe.

Such attacks could take the shape of the 2004 plot by Ansar al-Islam to attack a summit of the NATO members in Turkey. This is because the aforementioned plot is believed to have been developed by a membership consisting of Iraq War veterans.

Although the United States has seemingly been having the misconception that the death of the leader of al-Qaeda, Osama, will end the organization, this is an idea grounded in emotional analysis, and it is bound to lead to disappointment even if Osama is killed.

Of course, there are a myriad of reasons for his pursuit, but it is futile to believe that his capture or death will automatically lead to the end of the al-Qaeda. The organizational structure of the al-Qaeda is the basis for this argument. According to past experience with terrorism, groups that have been brought to an end by the death of their leader had a bureaucratic leadership, and therefore lacked a person to succeed the former (Chossudovsky, 2008, p. 1).

As evidenced in the discussion above, al-Qaeda is characterized with a free membership in which individual cells and remote members can be able to perpetuate attacks against targets. It therefore follows that, in order to end the group, it will take more than the death or capture of Osama Bin Laden.

Regarding the replacement of Osama, the leader has, himself, been very open about it. It is definite that after his demise or capture, the al-Qaeda will get a powerful successor. This is expected given the fact that Osama has made his persona a separate entity from the group. He has lived a life of a person who is ready to die as a martyr for perpetuation of his ideologies and thus there must be a well-laid plan for his succession. In actual fact, the succession plan may have already been initiated.

It is also possible for terrorist organizations to end due to their failure to transit to generations. This is not applicable in al-Qaeda’s case due to the proven ability of the al-Qaeda to transit between generations. The group has already undergone four such transitions. The option of the organization changing its cause into nobler causes like indulgence in politics is also less viable, as the end of the group due to achievement of its objectives is (Burke, 2009, p. 115).

The most viable options for ending the al-Qaeda are therefore an approach aimed at enlarging the inconsistencies existing within the organization, in order to make coordination within the group a nightmare. Thus it will be a mistake on the part of the U.S. government to treat the al-Qaeda as a uniform group in terms of its adherence to the ideologies it tries to uphold. An approach of emphasizing in the loopholes created by the organization’s diversity will be effective in the efforts to end the organization.

Another approach that can be used to make substantial advancements in the efforts to end the al-Qaeda is an approach aimed at reducing the support that the organization enjoys. This can be achieved by collaboration with the international community to ensure that the al-Qaeda is stripped off both passive and active support and popularity (Jenkins, 2002, p. 1). This will ensure that the international mobility of its operatives is efficiently limited or curbed, and that the growth of the organization is checked.

Although this approach is already working against the al-Qaeda, there is need for more nuanced efforts at lobbying members of the international community who have been adamant regarding the al-Qaeda issue. Also important is the interruption of the technical operations of the al-Qaeda like cutting down their communication or using technology to eavesdrop their communication. Other techniques like wiretapping, code breaking and interception can also be used.

Conclusion

From the discussion above, it is evident that the desire by the U.S. to end the al-Qaeda is not an easy task. In order to achieve it, the U.S. must abstain from the use of conventional anti-terrorist methods, and conduct a thorough analysis of the situation before making drastic decisions.

Among the most appropriate methods for ending the group include the implementation of strategies that will increase the non-coherence of the group, and take advantage of its diversity. Also important is the checking of the popularity of the group, and implementing international strategies aimed at making the organization lose all the valuable support it enjoys. This will serve to ensure that virtually all countries in the whole world are no-go zones for the al-Qaeda.

Once this is achieved, it is apparent that the al-Qaeda will lose a substantial number of its worldwide members making it easy to track down the traces of the group that will remain. Also equally important is the interference with the communication intelligence of the group. Technology experts should be utilized in curbing the freedom that the al-Qaeda enjoys on the internet as other conventional methods of communication interference are implemented. The United States should also focus on the routine mistakes that the group may commit.

This is because they offer very good chances for the U.S. to learn the organization, and gain important information that it can use to prevent attacks or even capture masses of al-Qaeda operatives. All-in-all, efforts to stop the operations of the al-Qaeda and any other terrorist group are a worthy cause that should be accorded unanimous support worldwide.

Reference List

Burke, J. (2009). Al-Qaeda: Casting a Shadow of Terror. London. McMillan Publishers.

Chossudovsky, M. (2008). Al Qaeda and the War on Terrorism. Web.

Curtis, G. (2002). A Global Overview of Narcotics-Funded Terrorist and Other Extremist Groups. Web.

Hoffman, B. (2003). Al-Qaeda, Trends in Terrorism and Future Potentialities. Web.

Jenkins, B. (2002). An Appreciation of the Situation and Suggestions for Strategy. Web.

Kurth, C. (2004). Foreign Terrorist Organizations. Web.

Kurth, C. (2006). How Al-Qaeda Ends: The Decline and Demise of Terrorist Groups. International Security, Vol. 31, Number 1, pp. 7-48.

Love, J. (2007). The Future of Al-Qaeda if we Pull Out. Web.

Monaldo, F. (2005). Iraq and Al-Qaeda Connection. Web.

Musharbash, Y. (2005). What al-Qaida Really Wants. Web.

Probst, P. (2010). Al-Qaeda: Its Future and Ours. Web.

Riedel, B. (2010). The Search for Al Qaeda: Its Leadership, Ideology, and Future. New York. Brookings Institution Press.

Introduction

Various variables must be considered when analyzing and laying out strategies for dealing with enemies. These variables of the operational environment include Political, Military, Economic, Social, Infrastructure and Information (PMESII).

Additionally, two other variables i.e. Physical environment and Time (PT) have been added to the Army doctrine. In analyzing the letter from Abu Muhammad to Abu Musab, the way in which these variables present is of crucial importance if any meaningful strategies are to be designed and implemented.

Political Variable

From the letter, it is clear that there are administrative ranks within Al-Qaeda under the general leadership of Bin Laden. Being second in command in the global Al-Qaeda leadership, it is Abu Muhammad’s responsibility to offer guidance to regional leaders and this has clearly presented in this letter.

He details a plan for getting the American forces out of Iraq in order to establish a Muslim led administration, “The second stage: Establish an Islamic authority or amirate…over as much territory as you can to spread its power in Iraq” (2005).

The said strategy is targeted at ensuring political dominance by Al-Qaeda both in Iraq and its neighboring countries. He also goes ahead to detail the strategy for installing the government and explains that once the Americans are sent out of Iraq, the governing authority will be elected by the people; an aspect that has a political bearing. Abu Muhammad requests Abu Musab to give him details regarding the political situation in Iraq (2005). This shows that Al Qaeda is interested in political supremacy more than anything else.

Information Variable

In the introductory part of the letter, Abu Muhammad reveals that he had sent a speech on tape for broadcast to the Al-Jazeera network. He inquires if the entire message was broadcast and promises to provide details of the speech in this particular letter. From this introductory part as well, it is evident that the Al-Qaeda’s most convenient channel of communication is the letter preferably sent through various publications.

It is also clear that any letters sent to the leader, Osama Bin Laden, either pass through the hands of junior officials or Bin Laden reads them first and then communicates the message to his aides, “we received your last published message sent to brother Usama Bin Laden.” (Abu Muhammad, 2005).

Later on in the letter, Abu Muhammad reveals that the greatest challenge that Al Qaeda faces is in the media. He claims that they are in a battle to win the hearts of the people since he perceives the support of the masses as the key driving force in their mission (Abu Muhammad, 2005).

Military Variable

The Al-Qaeda’s intended method of getting the American Forces out of Iraq involves usage of military force. In the letter, Abu Muhammad suggests that in order to get to their goal of forming an Islamic government, they have to start fieldwork immediately “alongside the combat and war.” (2005) He proceeds to propose a combination of military action and political forces in the raid against American forces and advices Abu Musab to ensure that enough support is received from the masses.

Abu Muhammad credits the Jihad as a very successful method of getting to their goal of dominating the Middle East. Even without him categorically stating this, his implied message by virtue of the definition of a Jihad is the use of military attack on forces that don’t share Al-Qaeda’s faith. The proposition that the Mujaheeden should not just stop at chasing away the Americans and “lay down their weapons” (Abu Muhammad, 2005) illustrates the kind of military force that the Alqaeda intends to use in its mission.

Conclusion

In order for the American forces to succeed in keeping the warring zones under check it is imperative that the various variables of the operational environment be given consideration while analyzing messages intercepted between the enemies’s various ranks.

Care should be taken to ensure that all seemingly minute details are properly included in all response decisions against an enemy attack. This is even more crucial when the enemy forces have centers of authority scattered all over the world. It is only by understanding the enemy’s line of thought that proper strategies can be crafted to ensure victory.

Reference

Muhammad, A. (June 18 2005). Personal communication. Abu Musab, 1-10.

This news story gives the press statement issued by the Iraqi Prime Minister, Nouri Maliki, and U.S. officials. The statement said that two officials of al-Qaeda in Iraq, Abu Ayyub al-Masri and Abu Omar al-Baghdad, were killed when Iraqi forces with U.S. support attacked their hideout (“Al-Qaeda in Iraq says leaders dead”; “Iraq al-Qaeda leaders killed in rocket attack”).

The subject matter in this story is that both the U.S. and Iraq saw the killings as a major breakthrough in the War on Terror. This is because the demise of the terrorists was a significant blow to the operations of al-Qaeda in Iraq and in the world.

In reporting this story, the writers of the news articles use selective data in reporting this useful information. The writers pick only information that supports the argument in the story and leaves everything else out. Since al-Qaeda is a global terrorist organization, the deaths of these two men could not have such a huge impact on the operations of the group as postulated by the writers.

The story is believable since it is based on evidence; even al-Qaeda itself acknowledged the death of the two men. In reporting this story, the writes do not ignore counter-arguments. For example, the BBC news reports, “al-Qaeda had tried to camouflage Baghdadi by presenting several people with his name” (“Senior Iraqi al-Qaeda leaders ‘killed,” para. 18). Therefore, they give evidence to support the identity of the terrorists.

Of all the information that has been presented in this story, the writers mainly emphasize on the reduction in al-Qaeda’s influence following the demise of its top leaders. The implication of this story is that we are able to see the growth of democratic principles in Iraq. Following this attack by the Iraqi government, several Iraqis criticized how the attack was handled. Some years back in Iraq, no one could be heard criticizing the Iraqi government.

In presenting the story, the writers present some statements or overtones of values and emotions. For example, an al-Qaeda official was quoted saying, “you can kill our top guy but we’re still around and we’re in control of events” (Rising, para. 26). In this instance, the writer tries to bring the feeling that War on Terror is still something that needs a collaborative effort in order to be won.

Regarding word choice, the writers chose the most appropriate language that is able to persuade the readers to come to terms with the issue at hand. Since in times of war, clarity is usually the first casualty, the writers portrayed vigilance in protecting news statement from collateral damage.

When reporting controversial statements, they preferred quoting the source directly. For example, “Can al-Qaeda pull off…how do Iraqis respond?”(Rising, para. 27). The story is written objectively by paying attention to fairness, factuality, and nonpartisanship. After the two terrorists were killed, the writers quoted response statements from both the Iraqi government officials and the al-Qaeda officials.

This story was written when the Iraqi government, with the support of the U.S., was involved in efforts of reducing the threat that was posed by al-Qaeda in Iraq. Since the announcement was made by the Iraqi Prime Minister, al-Maliki, it indicated the effort its government was making in fighting the insurgents. The writers have given this story against the background of the hotly contested election results in Iraq. After this incident, he gained reputation as the one who can restore stability to the country once again.

Works Cited

“Al-Qaeda in Iraq says leaders dead.” News: Middle East. Aljazeera. 2010. Web.

Galey, Patrick. “Thousands march in Beirut to promote secularism in politics.” Be seen, be on the star scene. The Daily Star. 2010. Web.

“Iraq al-Qaeda leaders killed in rocket attack.” New statesman. New Statesman. 2010. Web.