Decoding Al-Qaeda's Strategy : the Deep Battle Against America PDF
Preview Decoding Al-Qaeda's Strategy : the Deep Battle Against America
R y consulting the work of well-known and Decoding B obscure al-Qaeda theoreticians, Praise for Decoding Al-Qaeda’s Strategy y Michael W. S. Ryan finds jihadist ter- a rorism strategy has more in common with the n principles of Maoist guerilla warfare than main- “Michael W. S. Ryan’s illumination of the ideology and strategy of al-Qaeda as seen in Al-Qaeda’s stream Islam. Encouraging strategists and the writings of its key theoreticians is unique and valuable. This is an important and insightful researchers to devote greater attention to jiha- book that provides both new information on al-Qaeda and new commentary on its strategy di ideas rather than jihadist military operations, and how to defeat it.” Ryan builds an effective framework for analyz- —Bruce Riedel, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution Strategy ing al-Qaeda’s plans against America and con- structs a compelling counternarrative to the “Osama Bin Laden is dead, al-Qaeda ‘prime’ in Pakistan is decimated, yet the anti-Western TD West’s supposed “war on Islam.” jihad continues as extremism erupts in Yemen, Libya, Syria, Algeria, and elsewhere. Unless he Ryan examines the Salafist roots of al-Qaeda e K. Ryan wwear .c Tanh amnakftuchlly o, uRry taanc tsichaolw ssu cucse as sweasy w fiothrw satrradt eing ihci sp rthooguregshst,f uwl,e n soenepmole cmoincd aenmanlyesdis t oo fe tnhdisle ss Deco The Deep Battle Against America ifdoeuonldogeyrs a, nOd sthaem cao nBtrinib uLtaiodnesn o fa itnsd m Aosytm faamno auls- net enemy’s doctrine and motivation—the essential first step in combating not just its actions but ed Zawahiri, in a political-military context. He also a ©J pi reads the Arabic-language works of lesser also its ideas. This book is a blueprint for taking our fight to the next level.” n Michael W. S. Ryan, a senior fellow at the B known theoreticians who have played an instru- g Jamestown Foundation, studied Arabic in Egypt —General Michael Hayden, former director of the CIA a mental role in framing al-Qaeda’s so-called war t and received his Ph.D. from Harvard University. tA l of the oppressed. These authors readily cite the e He served as a senior executive in the U.S. “A highly readable account of the evolution of al-Qaeda’s strategic thinking. Drawing upon exist- Al- guerrilla strategies of Mao, Che Guevara, and Departments of State and Defense and as vice ing scholarship and new primary sources, Ryan offers not only a lucid exposé of al-Qaeda’s gQ the mastermind of the Vietnam War, General president of the Millennium Challenge Corpora- key strategic thinkers and their works but also new insight into the logic and rationale inform- aa Giap. They also incorporate the arguments of tion and the Middle East Institute. He lives in ing al-Qaeda’s violent campaigns.” ine American theorists writing on “fourth-generation Virginia. sd warfare.” —Brynjar Lia, Norwegian Defence Research Establishment, author of t Aa Architect of Global Jihad: The Life of Al-Qaeda Strategist Abu Mus’ab Al-Suri m’ Through these texts, readers experience events s as insiders see them, and by concentrating on e “Knowledge of the enemy is essential in any conflict, and Ryan delivers. His analysis of al- r S the activities and pronouncements of al-Qaeda’s i Qaeda’s theology, strategy, tactics, and ability to marshal support even among people who cat thought leaders, especially in Yemen, they dis- r disapprove of its methods is timely, well written, deeply researched, and ultimately reassuring.” cern the direct link between al-Qaeda’s tactics a —Thomas W. Lippman, author of Saudi Arabia on the Edge t and trends in anti-U.S. terrorism. Ryan shows e al-Qaeda’s political-military strategy to be a g revolutionary and largely secular departure from y the classic Muslim conception of jihad, adding CoLUMBiA STUDieS iN TeRRoRiSM AND iRReGULAR WARfARe invaluable dimensions to the operational, psy- chological, and informational strategies already deployed by America’s military in the region. Columbia University Press / New York ISBN: 978-0-231-16384-2 Michael W. S. Ryan www.cup.columbia.edu Jacket design: Fifth Letter 9 780231 163842 Printed in the U.S.A. Decoding Al-Qaeda’s Strategy Columbia Studies in Terrorism and Irregular Warfare Columbia Studies in Terrorism and Irregular Warfare Bruce Hoffman, Series Editor This series seeks to fill a conspicuous gap in the burgeoning literature on ter- rorism, guerrilla warfare, and insurgency. The series adheres to the highest standards of scholarship and discourse and publishes books that elucidate the strategy, operations, means, motivations, and effects posed by terrorist, guer- rilla, and insurgent organizations and movements. It thereby provides a solid and increasingly expanding foundation of knowledge on these subjects for stu- dents, established scholars, and informed reading audiences alike. Ami Pedahzur, The Israeli Secret Services and the Struggle Against Terrorism Ami Pedahzur and Arie Perliger, Jewish Terrorism in Israel Lorenzo Vidino, The New Muslim Brotherhood in the West Erica Chenoweth and Maria J. Stephan, Why Civil Resistance Works: The Strategic Logic of Nonviolent Resistance William C. Banks, New Battlefields/Old Laws: Critical Debates on Asymmetric Warfare Blake W. Mobley, Terrorism and Counterintelligence: How Terrorist Groups Elude Detection Jennifer Morrison Taw, Mission Revolution Guido W. Steinberg, German Jihad: On the Internationalization of Islamist Terrorism Decoding Al-Qaeda’s Strategy The Deep Battle Against America Michael W. S. Ryan Columbia University Press New York Columbia University Press Publishers Since 1893 New York Chichester, West Sussex cup.columbia.edu Copyright © 2013 Columbia University Press All rights reserved Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Ryan, Michael W. S. Decoding Al-Qaeda’s strategy ; the deep battle against America / Michael W. S. Ryan. pages cm. — (Columbia studies in terrorism and irregular warfare) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-231-16384-2 (cloth : alk. paper) —ISBN 978-0-231-53327-0 (e-book) 1. Qaida (Organization) 2. Terrorism—United States—Prevention. 3. Terrorism— Religious aspects—Islam. 4. Jihad. I. Title HV6432.5.Q2R93 2013 363.325—dc23 2012049506 Columbia University Press books are printed on permanent and durable acid-free paper. This book is printed on paper with recycled content. Printed in the United States of America c 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Jacket design: Fifth Letter References to websites (URLs) were accurate at the time of writing. Neither the author nor Columbia University Press is responsible for URLs that may have expired or changed since the manuscript was prepared. For Janet and Thomas Contents Note on Transliteration ix Acknowledgments xi Introduction 1 1 The Historical Roots of Al-Qaeda’s Ideology 17 2 The Leadership Inspires a New Strategy 51 3 Jihad as Revolution 83 4 An Action Plan for Savagery 147 5 The Jihadist Legacy of Abu Mus‘ab al-Suri 193 Conclusion: What It All Means 255 viii—ConTEnTS Appendix 1: Translation of “Revolutionary Wars” 269 Appendix 2: Translation of “Fourth-Generation Warfare” 281 Notes 289 Bibliography 323 Index 335 note on Transliteration I n this book, I have used a simplified version of the U.S. Library of Con- gress system of transliteration. I have not distinguished between long and short vowels nor used subscripted diacritical marks. For the letter ‘ayn, I use the diacritic (‘) in the medial and final positions only, as in shari‘ah and shuru‘. I represent the letter hamza by the diacritic (’) in the medial and final positions only, as in qa’id and liqa’. The definite article is always shown as al and never elided with the previous word. The feminine marker, ta mar- buta, is represented by a final ah; the adjectival -ya followed by ta marbuta is rendered -iyyah. This system is used for proper names unless there is a variant in common use. I have generally rendered Arabic titles for books and articles according to the ordinary system used in English. For names usually pronounced according to the Cairene usage, I have occasionally substituted “g” for the expected “j.”
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