home > by issue > terrorism > terrorism and technology > Inspiring Terror
Email
| Prepared by: | Eben Kaplan |
|---|
Ayman al-Zawahiri's videos often air on Arabic news outlets. (Photo: AP/al-Jazeera)
With much of its leadership captured or killed, its financial networks disrupted, and the sanctuary offered by the Taliban government gone, al-Qaeda has been forced to adapt. Osama bin Laden and his deputy, Ayman al-Zawahiri, now appear less like generals and more like talking heads, disseminating their violent ideology via satellite television (Terrorism Focus) in hopes of inspiring others to do their bidding. As this new Backgrounder explains, al-Qaeda has become more of an ideological movement than an organization.
This ideology, which some experts have dubbed "al-Qaedaism" (Freedom Institute), has manifested itself as self-generating terrorist cells around the world. U.S. authorities say the most recent example is the "Miami Seven" (Stratfor), a group of men arrested June 22 for conspiring to attack Chicago's Sears Tower, among other targets. FBI officials characterized the threat the group posed as "more aspirational than operational." Another variant may have emerged in Canada, where officials last month arrested seventeen men in an alleged plot to bomb several buildings in southern Ontario (Terrorism Focus).
Law enforcement officials say they thwarted these plots, but similar terrorist cells have succeeded in major European cities. The group that carried out suicide bombings in London's mass transit system (BBC) last July stands as the most obvious example. Though al-Qaeda claimed responsibility for the attacks, the official report to the British House of Commons found "no firm evidence to corroborate this claim" (PDF).
Though some say the loss of its operations base in Afghanistan makes al-Qaeda less dangerous than it was five years ago, others point to its ability to inspire terror as evidence of its staying power. Jason Burke, a terrorism expert and reporter for Britain's Observer newspaper asks, "What's easier to fight, an organization or an idea?" Indeed, efforts to counter al-Qaeda's ideological appeal have lagged far behind the military component of the "war on terror." Particular evidence of this can be found just a click away. As this Backgrounder explains, the web provides terrorist leaders with a medium to broadcast their message to a global audience with virtual impunity. A CRS Report (PDF) analyzes such statements, which offer insight into al-Qaeda's overriding ideology.
Weigh in on this issue by emailing CFR.org.
CFR offers a variety of email newsletters about up-to-date CFR.org material on what’s happening around the world.
Enter your email address and click 'Go' to subscribe.
CFR Experts are based in CFR’s New York and Washington offices. Each expert's bio page contains his or her contact information, professional and educational history, links to publications and current research, a downloadable one-page biographical narrative, and a high-definition photo.
Identifying international threats and acting on them may be the most difficult job for U.S. policymakers. This report
provides an actionable road map for managing international threats before they erupt into crises and makes a strong case that preventive action is not a luxury but a necessity.
For more than a decade, the United States has mostly watched from the sidelines as Asian countries organize themselves into an alphabet soup of new multilateral groups. In this report, the authors review the relationship between pan-Asian and trans-Pacific institutions and suggest policy guidelines for a new U.S. approach to this new Asian landscape.
Complete list of Council Special Reports
Start-Up Nation addresses the trillion-dollar question: How is it that Israel—a country of 7.1 million, only sixty years old, surrounded by enemies— produces more start-up companies than large, peaceful, and stable nations like Japan, China, India, Korea, Canada, and the UK? With the insights of geopolitical experts and investors, the authors examine this nation’s adversity-driven culture to answer this question and offer prescriptions for a global economy on the rebound.
In Forces of Fortune, Vali Nasr presents a paradigm-changing revelation that will transform the understanding of the Muslim world at large. He reveals that there is a vital but unseen rising force in the Islamic world—a new business-minded middle class—that is building a vibrant new Muslim world economy and that holds the key to winning the cold war against Iran and extremists.
In Cuba: What Everyone Needs to Know, Julia E. Sweig presents a remarkably accessible portrait of Cuba's unique place on the world stage over the past fifty years, including its internal politics, its often fraught relationship with the United States, and its shifting relationship with the global community.
Complete list of CFR Books
Copyright 2009 by the Council on Foreign Relations. All Rights Reserved.
Global Economy 