Chapter 11
Abu Mohammad al Jawlani
Leader of Jabhat al Nusra. Little is known about Jawlani's background. He is Syrian and left his homeland to fight against U.S. forces in Iraq. He was captured by these forces. After being released from prison, he met Abu Bakr al Baghdadi, joined ISI, and rose through the ranks. Baghdadi sent him to Syria in 2011, where he formed al Nusra. When Baghdadi tried to absorb al Nusra in 2014, Jawlani broke with ISIS and swore allegiance to Zawahiri.
Mullah Omar
Leader of the Taliban
Ibrahim al Asiri
Son of a Saudi Arabian career military officer and AQAP's master bomb maker. Known for perfecting chemical bombs and was behind several regional and international attempted murders.
Nasir al Wuhayshi:
The spiritual leader of AQAP and a former aide to Osama bin Laden. Wuhayshi escaped from a Yemeni prison in 2006 to form al Qaeda in Yemen (AQY). In 2009, AQY merger with Saudi dissidents to form AQAP.
Qasim al Raymi
Became leader of AQAP in june 2015. Escaped from a yemini prison 2006 and formed AQY in 2007 with fellow escapee Nasir al Wuhayshi. Merged AQY with Saudi dissedents in 2009 to form AQAP.
How did bin Laden and Zawahiri create a new organization in Afghanistan?
-Afghanistan attractive to them bc Taliban took power in Kabul and put in strict fundamentalist law. - -
Taqi al-Din Ibn Taymiyya
-Appalled by slaughter, believed the Muslims needed to internally purify themselves -called for jihad, defining it as the destruction of internal heretics and external invaders -Thought that Crusaders/Mongols defeated Islamic armies bc of Muslim sin -Emphasized tawhid: the oneness of God. -Attacked anything not endorsed by Mohammed and first four caliphs. -called for purifying jihad against anyone that went against the faith.
What resulted from the declaration of war and the alliance against Jews and crusaders?
-Bombings of US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. Demonstrated how group could operate a cell in country hundreds of miles away -
How did the Soviet Afghan War give rise to al Qaeda?
-Traced to Cold War, hatred of Communists and the US began using radicals against Soviets -Working with Pakistani Inter Service Intelligence (ISI), Saudi and Islamic charities, US funneled weapons to mujahedeen. -Post cold war, they believed the war should be focused on other enemies: the West, "heretical" Muslim governments
Abu Musab al Suri
-popularized "leaderless resistance": small isolated cells/person acting alone attacking a perceived enemy -al Suri disgusted by unsuccessful strategy/leadership of Osama Bin Laden -wrote A Call to Global Islamic Resistance -called for jihad on an individual level -Simply attack a target, any target in the world, for victory -2 concepts dominate his way of thinking Individual action: must remain isolated/secretive Location: geographically, jihadists should operate in areas of world that can sustain terrorism and guerrilla war -First section of text: military manual, expose/convert people to militancy -al Suri equates the struggle against the US and allies with "light gang warfare" -involves urban terrorism and covert attacks -Jihad should take place on many fronts in all parts of the world -killing anyone=justified bc all non muslism are the enemy
Mohammed ibn Abdul Wahhab
-started a purification movement in Arabia -influenced by ibn Taymiyya, preached a puritanic strain of Islam that sought to rid Islam of practices added after the first few decades post Mohammed's death. -dominates theology of Saudi Arabia and Gulf States today. -critics claim that this intolerant puritanism is responsible for Jahadi Salafism -militant followers have forced their puritanical views on those who disagree with them
Sayyid Qutb
-studied in the US 1948-1950 -became a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, arrested after the Brotherhood tried to overthrow Egyptian Government. -published book Milestones in 1965 -outlines theology/ideology of jihadist movement -popularized militant ideas, formed a militant wing of the Muslim Brotherhood
Abu Bakr Naji
-wrote Management of Savagery -explains the unbridled violence of groups like ISIS -Explains why it is necessary to create an Islamic state -calls for organizing well managed, functioning governing institutions -calls for war against all enemies -the state must be brutal and savage to its people who resist.
What are the core beliefs of the ISIS interpretation of Islam?
1. Associate only w/ "true" Muslisms 2. Break ties w/ anyone who questions narrow interpretations of Islam 3. Base governments on a Salafi interpretation of Islamic Law 4. Eliminate any resistance to narrow theology; such resistance is apostasy 5. Kill Shi'ites because they are apostates 6. Root out "traitors" to Islam like Hamas and the Muslim brotherhood because they compromise with non Muslims 7. Wage offensive jihad against idolatry whenever it is found
Haqqani network
A family in the tribal area of Pakistan that has relations with several militant groups and the ISI. The Haqqani family is involved in organized crime, legitimate businesses, the ISI, and terrorism groups. It is the major power broker in the tribal region.
Jammu and Kashmir
A mountainous region in northern India claimed by both India and Pakistan. It has been the site of heavy fighting during three wars between India and Pakistan in 1947-1948, 1971, and 1999. Kashmir is artificially divided by a line of control (LOC), with Pakistani forces to the north and India's to the south. India and Pakistan made strides toward peace after 2003, but many observers believe that the ISI supports jihadist operations in the area.
Anwar al-Awlaki
American born muslim cleric that headed up AQAP in yemen, online magazine Inspire, top Al Qaeda recruiter (skilled speaker, American citizen spoke fluent english and arabic) Inspired: underwear bomber and The Fort Hood attack
Mokhtar Belmokhtar
An Algerian jihadist and organized crime figure. Belmokhtar fought in the Soviet Afghan War and Algerian Civil War. He joined the salafi call for preaching and combat and later AQIM. He later broke with AQIM
Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi
An Iraqi Sunni who joined the resistance against the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003. He may have been a violent radical before the invasion. Regardless, after being held in prison by U.S. forces, he became a hardened radical. He emerged as a leader of AQI, but unlike Zarqawi, he was articulate and charismatic. He assumed control of the ISI in 2010, entered the Syrian civil war, and changed ISI to ISIS. Abu Mohammed al Adnani declared him caliph of the Islamic State in June 2014.
World Islamic Front against Jews and Crusaders
An organization created in 1998 by Osama bin Laden and Ayman al Zawahiri. It represents a variety of jihadist groups that issued a united front against Jews and the West. It is commonly called al Qaeda.
Muslim Brotherhood
An organization founded by Hassan al Banna in 1928 to recapture the spirit and religious purity of the period of Mohammed and the four Rightly Guided caliphs. The Brotherhood seeks to create a single Muslim nation through education and religious reform. A militant wing founded by Sayyid Qutb sought the same objective through violence. Hamas, a group that defines itself as the Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, has rejected the multinational approach in favor of creating a Muslim Palestine.
Why would apocalyptic ideas be attractive to Jihadi Salafists?
Jihadi Salafism includes an apocalyptic interpretation of Islam that believes that Salafis are called to usher in final days of creation
Red Mosque
Lal masjid, located in Islamabad, with a madrassa and a school for women. It taught militant theology. The government ordered the mosque closed in 2007. This resulted in a shootout and a standoff. Government forces stormed the mosque on July 2007, killing more than 100 students. One of the leaders, Abdul Rashid Ghazi, was killed. His brother Maulana Abdul Aziz, the mosques other leader, was captured while trying to escape in women's clothing.
9/11 Commission
National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States; this bipartisan, independent group was authorized by Congress and President Bush in 2002 to study the circumstances surrounding the September 11 terrorist attacks, including preparedness and the immediate response. Its 2004 report includes recommendations designed to guard against future attacks.
Inter service Intelligence
The Pakistani domestic and foreign intelligence service, created by the British in 1948. Supporters claim that it centralizes Pakistan's intelligence. Critics maintain that it operates like an independent state and supports terrorist groups.
Abdullah Azzam
The Palestinian leader of Hizb ul Tahrir and the spiritual mentor of bin Laden. Inspired by Qutb's writings, believe that a purified form of Islam was the solution.
Abu Omar al-Baghdadi
The first leader of the Islamic State of Iraq who took command after Abu Musab al Zarqawi was killed in 2006. Little is known about his background, and U.S. military forces once believed he was a factious character. He was killed in an American strike in 2010.
Desert Storm
The military code name for the January-February offensive in the 1991 Gulf War.
Abu Musab al-Zarqawi
a Jordanian criminal who converted to Jihadi Salafism after trip to Afghanistan in 1989. His radicalism increased after serving a sentence in a Jordanian prison from 1993-1999. He returned to Afghanistan in 1999 and moved to Iraq after the US invasion in 2003. Founded al Qaeda in Iraq.
What is Jihadi Salfism?
a puritanical strain of Sunni Islam. Militant adherents of its most extreme form believe that Muslims must follow a narrow Salafist interpretation of religion. They also maintain that "true" Muslims can declare "false" Muslims heretics, and Shi'ites and nonbelievers are to be eliminated.
AQAP stands for
al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula
Sayyid Imam al Shariff
one of Egypt's leading militants in 1980. While jailed, he embraced Islam and renounced the violence of al Qaeda-style militancy. He is viewed as a traitor by violent jihadists. He has provided much of the information we have about religious militancy, and he continues to publish works denouncing it. While maintaining his anti-Western and antigovernment views, he sees jihad as a necessary part of Islam. Al Qaeda's version, he claims, violates the morality of Islamic law.
Desert Shield
the name of the defensive phase of the international coalition created by George HW Bush after Iraq invaded Kuwait. Aim to stop further Iraqi attacks and to liberate Kuwait. It lasted until coalition forces could begin an offensive against Iraq in Jan 1991