Al-Qaeda

Al-Qaeda ({{lang-ar|???????}}, al-Q??idah; "the foundation" or "the base") is the name given to an international Islamic fundamentalist campaign comprised of independent and collaborative cells that all profess the same cause of reducing outside influence upon Islamic affairs. Though al-Qaeda is philosophically heterogeneous, prominent members of the movement are considered to have Salafi beliefs. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8524679

Overview

Although "al-Qaeda" is the name of the organization used in popular culture, the organization rarely uses the name to refer to itself. In formal communications Bin Laden has called the organization the International Front for Jihad against the Jews and Crusaders. Indeed the use of the name "al-Qaeda" dates from early 2001, when the American government decided to prosecute Bin Laden in his absence and had to use anti-Mafia laws that required the existence of a named criminal organisation. Bin Laden himself said in 2001, "We used to call the training camp al-Qaeda . And the name stayed." http://archives.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/asiapcf/south/02/05/binladen.transcript/index.html.

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Al-Qaeda's philosophical inspiration comes from the writings of Sayed Qutb, a prominent thinker from the Muslim Brotherhood, whose essays inspired most of the principal militant Islamist movements in the Middle East today. Though it adheres to no particular sect, in general its philosophy is Salafist. Various traits have been found that are close to the ancient Hassan-i-Sabah cult. According to an article in The Times:

Related Topics:
Sayed Qutb - Muslim Brotherhood - Salafist - Hassan-i-Sabah - Cult - The Times

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:Like other cults, such as Jim Jones's People's Temple, the Heaven's Gate sect or the Order of the Solar Temple, members are persuaded to give up their own lives for the promise of a paradise beyond. This technique was used a millennium ago by Hassan i Sabbah, a mystic, alchemist and master terrorist on whom bin Laden probably models himself. Hassan's Order of Assassins was made up of suicide killers with poisoned daggers who believed that their leader had the key to the gates of Heaven.http://www.rickross.com/reference/alqaeda/alqaeda19.html

Related Topics:
Jim Jones - Heaven's Gate - Order of the Solar Temple - Hassan i Sabbah - Order of Assassins

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According to statements broadcast by al-Qaeda on the internet and on satellite TV channels, the ultimate goal of al-Qaeda is to re-establish the Caliphate across the Islamic world, by working with allied Islamic extremist groups to overthrow secular or Western-supported regimes. Anti-"semitic" and anti-Israeli sentiments are often expressed by al-Qaeda members in those speeches and messages.

Related Topics:
Caliphate - Anti-"semitic"

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Al-Qaeda believes that western governments, and particularly the American government, interfere in the affairs of Islamic nations against the interests of Muslims. Their grievances have included: the provision of economic and military support to regimes perceived by al-Qaeda as oppressive of Muslims (particularly the US and its support for Israel), the vetoing of United Nations condemnations of Israel, attempts to influence the affairs of Islamic governments and communities, direct support by means of arms or loans for anti-Islamist Arab regimes, troop presence in Muslim countries (especially Saudi Arabia), and (although al-Qaeda has a long history of opposition to Saddam Hussein) the American and British 2003 invasion of Iraq.

Related Topics:
Saddam Hussein - 2003 invasion of Iraq

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Besides the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., al-Qaeda is believed to have been implicitly involved in the 1998 U.S. embassy bombings in Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar-Es-Salaam, Tanzania, the attack on the USS Cole, the 7 July 2005 London bombings, as well as many attacks on people in and of other nations around the world.

Related Topics:
September 11, 2001, attacks - World Trade Center - New York - The Pentagon - Washington, D.C. - 1998 U.S. embassy bombings - Nairobi - Kenya - Dar-Es-Salaam - Tanzania - Attack on the USS Cole - 7 July 2005 London bombings

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The military leader of al-Qaeda is widely reported to have been Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, who was arrested in Pakistan in 2003. Its previous military leader, Mohammed Atef, was killed in a U.S. bombing raid on Afghanistan in late 2001.

Related Topics:
Khalid Shaikh Mohammed - Pakistan - 2003 - Mohammed Atef - Afghanistan - 2001

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