The Search for al Qaeda: Its Leadership, Ideology, and Future

193 Pages·2008·0.83 MB·English

by  Bruce Riedel

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The SEARCH
for AL QAEDA
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The SEARCH
for AL QAEDA
Its Leadership, Ideology,
and Future
BRUCE RIEDEL
brookings institution press
Washington, D.C.
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Copyright © 2008
the brookings institution
1775 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20036
www.brookings.edu
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or
transmitted in any form or by any means without permission in writing
from the Brookings Institution Press.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication data
Riedel, Bruce O.
The search for al Qaeda : its leadership, ideology, and future / Bruce Riedel.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Summary: “Profiles the most important figures in the al Qaeda move-
ment—Osama bin Laden, Ayman Zawahiri, Abu Musaib al Zarqawi, and
Mullah Omar, giving a comprehensive analysis of its origins, leadership,
ideology, and strategy. Focuses more closely on what has happened to
al Qaeda since 9/11 and outlines its ultimate goals”—Provided by publisher.
ISBN 978-0-8157-7414-3 (cloth : alk. paper)
1. Qaida (Organization) 2. Terrorism. 3. Ideology. 4. Leadership. 5.
Zawahiri, Ayman. 6. Bin Laden, Osama, 1957– 7. Muhammad Omar,
Mullah, 1960– 8. Zarqawi, Abu Mus'ab, 1966-2006. I. Title.
HV6432.5.Q2R54 2008
363.325—dc22 2008027655
1 3 5 7 9 8 6 4 2
The paper used in this publication meets minimum requirements of the
American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper
for Printed Library Materials: ANSI Z39.48-1992.
Typeset in Sabon
Composition by Peter Lindeman, OSP Inc.
Arlington, VA
Printed by R. R. Donnelley
Harrisonburg, Virginia
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To my father
Milton A. Riedel
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Contents
Preface ix
one The Manhattan Raid 1
two The Thinker: Zawahiri 14
three The Knight: Osama 37
four The Host: Mullah Omar 61
five The Stranger: Zarqawi 85
six Al Qaeda’s Plans 116
seven How to Defeat al Qaeda 134
Notes 155
Bibliography 167
Index 171
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Preface
A
l Qaeda is the first truly global terrorist organization
in history. Over the past ten years it has carried out acts of catastrophic
terror around the world. From New York to New Delhi, al Qaeda and its
allies have killed thousands of innocents. Using the Internet and cell
phones, it has created franchises throughout the Islamic world and clan-
destine cells in the Muslim diaspora in Europe and elsewhere to build
and deploy a global weapon.
This book attempts to search for al Qaeda and explain the danger it
poses. It relies heavily on al Qaeda’s own words and statements. These are
available on many websites and in various collections of statements. I
have relied primarily on the translations provided by the former Foreign
Broadcast Information Service, now known as the Open Source Center. I
have also benefited from the insights and comments of many colleagues
from my career in the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), both Americans
and others in Europe, the Middle East, and South Asia.
When I joined the CIA in 1977, one of my first mentors was Robert C.
Ames, an officer who had served for years in the Middle East and South
Asia. He taught me many skills but especially a belief in the urgency of
bringing peace to the Levant. Tragically, he was killed in the terrorist attack
on the American Embassy in Beirut on April 18, 1983. Like many other
colleagues in the intelligence community and elsewhere in the U.S. govern-
ment over these twenty-nine years, Bob Ames helped to shape this book.
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