Al Qaeda Gang Theory Essay
4/26/2010
Gang Theory
Al-Qaeda
In 1988, one of the most dangerous criminal organizations in the world was formed. They call themselves al-Qaeda, which translates from Arabic to “The Base”, and originated in Afghanistan. Al-Qaeda is an international terrorist organization and are considered the top threat to the United States of America. The biggest attack that the group has planted was the events of September 11, 2001. When the U.S. responded with the War on Terror in Afghanistan, al-Qaeda relocated to Pakistan. Intelligence agencies have found that the organization is slowly regrouping and regaining strength of Afghanistan borders.
History of Al-Qaeda There is no exact date to which al-Qaeda was formed, but researchers say it …show more content…
was sometime around August of 1988 by Osama Bin Laden. It is formed by Islamic “Holy Warriors” and its main purpose in 1988 was to help fight off the Soviets in Afghanistan. According to GlobalSecurity.org, “al-Qaeda helped finance, recruit, transport and train thousands of fighters from dozens of countries to be part of an Afghan resistance to defeat the Soviet Union.” The groups current goal is a “global jihad”: to rid all Muslim countries, which is what they see as an influence of the West, and replace them with Islamic regimes. Since the early 90’s, Bin Laden and his associates have launched many attacks all over the World, including two separate events at the World Trade Center. On February 26, 1993 a bomb exploded in a garage underneath the World Trade Center, killing 6 people and injuring over 1,000 others. Eight years later on September 11, 2001, another attack is plotted on the World Trade Center resulting in close to 3,000 casualties. Bin Laden and al-Qaeda have performed many bombings and attacks on U.S. embassies in the small amount of years they have been together.
Leadership and Membership The specific structure of al-Qaeda is currently unknown, however there is a broad understanding of how they operate.
Osama bin Laden is the Senior Operations Chief of al-Qaeda and is advised by a Shura Council, which is estimated to be twenty to thirty senior leaders. Ayman al-Zawahiri is the groups Deputy Operations Chief and is bin Laden’s top lieutenant. Abu Musab al-Zarawi was the Senior Leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq but it is believed that his house was hit with missiles and he was succeeded by Abu Ayyub al-Masri. Al-Qaeda also has sections in North Africa, which is led by explosive expert Abdelmalek Droukdel, and in Yemeni which is run by Nasser al-Wahishi. According to Council on Foreign Relations, “U.S. officials say many of al-Qaeda’s top officials are their custody,” but as we all know, Osama bin Laden is still on the run. It is unknown how many members are currently in al-Qaeda, but it is estimated to be somewhere in the thousands. Members must be Islamic and have one goal in life: to spread militant Islam world wide. Their purpose in life is to overtake all Muslim countries and spread this “global jihad” in violent ways. Many of these members either go to prison, or are killed performing their
duties.
Alliances and Identifiers Al-Qaeda is associated with many other terrorist groups and Islamic organizations, including: Egyptian Islamic Jihad, The Libyan Islamic Fighting Group, Islamic Army of Aden, Armed Islamic Group, Jeemah Islamiya, and many others. These groups all share al-Qaeda’s Sunni Islam fundamental views. Some exports believe that since al-Qaeda lost its base in Afghanistan they will rely on other groups to carry out their objectives, but say that al-Qaeda’s Iraqi branch is still the most “capable affiliate.” Al-Qaeda does not have any specific tattoo’s or identifiers which is why they are so difficult to identify. Many members look like your average Middle-Eastern person which is why these people have suffered from so much prejudice in the U.S. since the attacks of 9/11
Gang Discipline and Criminality Most members that enter al-Qaeda are determined to execute the jobs that they are required to perform, therefore the group does not have many inter-group problems. Their criminal activities include assassination, bombing, hijacking, kidnapping and suicide attacks. They have a desire to obtain and use biological, chemical and nuclear weapons. Targets of al-Qaeda include America and many other Western interests such as Jewish and Muslim groups. In the early 90’s, al-Qaeda’s “Encyclopedia of the Afghan Jihad”, which is a detailed guide on how to use handguns, explosives, and biological and chemical weapons, was created in print and on CD. Some deadly attacks that this group has performed include: a suicide bombing in an attempt to kill Pakistan’s Prime Minister in 2007, the attack on the world’s largest petroleum facility in 2006, the 2004 attack on Madrid public trains that killed 200 people and injured 1400, and the tragic events of September 11, 2001 in New York City. In conclusion, al-Qaeda is obviously one of the most dangerous and deadly criminal organizations in this World. Their members are fearless and will do whatever it takes to execute their duties, even if it takes their own life. Although the War on Terror has pushed al-Qaeda away from Afghanistan, it has not taken the risk of the organization away from the World. They are still very active and can strike at any time. Many of their violent attacks come when people least expect it, and usually end with a big amount of dead civilians. Our troops are fighting every day to try to control these terrorists, but many escape from custody and we should be aware that we are still at risk to this aggressive terrorist group.
Works Cited
"Al-Qaeda (a.k.a. Al-Qaida, Al-Qa 'ida)." Council on Foreign Relations. Web. 18 Apr. 2010. .
"Al-Qaeda." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 27 Mar. 2010. . "Al-Qaida." Blog. Web. 18 Apr. 2010.
.
"Al-Qaeda History." Frances Farmers Revenge. Web. 18 Apr. 2010. .
Gang Theory
Al-Qaeda
In 1988, one of the most dangerous criminal organizations in the world was formed. They call themselves al-Qaeda, which translates from Arabic to “The Base”, and originated in Afghanistan. Al-Qaeda is an international terrorist organization and are considered the top threat to the United States of America. The biggest attack that the group has planted was the events of September 11, 2001. When the U.S. responded with the War on Terror in Afghanistan, al-Qaeda relocated to Pakistan. Intelligence agencies have found that the organization is slowly regrouping and regaining strength of Afghanistan borders.
History of Al-Qaeda There is no exact date to which al-Qaeda was formed, but researchers say it …show more content…
was sometime around August of 1988 by Osama Bin Laden. It is formed by Islamic “Holy Warriors” and its main purpose in 1988 was to help fight off the Soviets in Afghanistan. According to GlobalSecurity.org, “al-Qaeda helped finance, recruit, transport and train thousands of fighters from dozens of countries to be part of an Afghan resistance to defeat the Soviet Union.” The groups current goal is a “global jihad”: to rid all Muslim countries, which is what they see as an influence of the West, and replace them with Islamic regimes. Since the early 90’s, Bin Laden and his associates have launched many attacks all over the World, including two separate events at the World Trade Center. On February 26, 1993 a bomb exploded in a garage underneath the World Trade Center, killing 6 people and injuring over 1,000 others. Eight years later on September 11, 2001, another attack is plotted on the World Trade Center resulting in close to 3,000 casualties. Bin Laden and al-Qaeda have performed many bombings and attacks on U.S. embassies in the small amount of years they have been together.
Leadership and Membership The specific structure of al-Qaeda is currently unknown, however there is a broad understanding of how they operate.
Osama bin Laden is the Senior Operations Chief of al-Qaeda and is advised by a Shura Council, which is estimated to be twenty to thirty senior leaders. Ayman al-Zawahiri is the groups Deputy Operations Chief and is bin Laden’s top lieutenant. Abu Musab al-Zarawi was the Senior Leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq but it is believed that his house was hit with missiles and he was succeeded by Abu Ayyub al-Masri. Al-Qaeda also has sections in North Africa, which is led by explosive expert Abdelmalek Droukdel, and in Yemeni which is run by Nasser al-Wahishi. According to Council on Foreign Relations, “U.S. officials say many of al-Qaeda’s top officials are their custody,” but as we all know, Osama bin Laden is still on the run. It is unknown how many members are currently in al-Qaeda, but it is estimated to be somewhere in the thousands. Members must be Islamic and have one goal in life: to spread militant Islam world wide. Their purpose in life is to overtake all Muslim countries and spread this “global jihad” in violent ways. Many of these members either go to prison, or are killed performing their
duties.
Alliances and Identifiers Al-Qaeda is associated with many other terrorist groups and Islamic organizations, including: Egyptian Islamic Jihad, The Libyan Islamic Fighting Group, Islamic Army of Aden, Armed Islamic Group, Jeemah Islamiya, and many others. These groups all share al-Qaeda’s Sunni Islam fundamental views. Some exports believe that since al-Qaeda lost its base in Afghanistan they will rely on other groups to carry out their objectives, but say that al-Qaeda’s Iraqi branch is still the most “capable affiliate.” Al-Qaeda does not have any specific tattoo’s or identifiers which is why they are so difficult to identify. Many members look like your average Middle-Eastern person which is why these people have suffered from so much prejudice in the U.S. since the attacks of 9/11
Gang Discipline and Criminality Most members that enter al-Qaeda are determined to execute the jobs that they are required to perform, therefore the group does not have many inter-group problems. Their criminal activities include assassination, bombing, hijacking, kidnapping and suicide attacks. They have a desire to obtain and use biological, chemical and nuclear weapons. Targets of al-Qaeda include America and many other Western interests such as Jewish and Muslim groups. In the early 90’s, al-Qaeda’s “Encyclopedia of the Afghan Jihad”, which is a detailed guide on how to use handguns, explosives, and biological and chemical weapons, was created in print and on CD. Some deadly attacks that this group has performed include: a suicide bombing in an attempt to kill Pakistan’s Prime Minister in 2007, the attack on the world’s largest petroleum facility in 2006, the 2004 attack on Madrid public trains that killed 200 people and injured 1400, and the tragic events of September 11, 2001 in New York City. In conclusion, al-Qaeda is obviously one of the most dangerous and deadly criminal organizations in this World. Their members are fearless and will do whatever it takes to execute their duties, even if it takes their own life. Although the War on Terror has pushed al-Qaeda away from Afghanistan, it has not taken the risk of the organization away from the World. They are still very active and can strike at any time. Many of their violent attacks come when people least expect it, and usually end with a big amount of dead civilians. Our troops are fighting every day to try to control these terrorists, but many escape from custody and we should be aware that we are still at risk to this aggressive terrorist group.
Works Cited
"Al-Qaeda (a.k.a. Al-Qaida, Al-Qa 'ida)." Council on Foreign Relations. Web. 18 Apr. 2010. .
"Al-Qaeda." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 27 Mar. 2010. . "Al-Qaida." Blog. Web. 18 Apr. 2010.
.
"Al-Qaeda History." Frances Farmers Revenge. Web. 18 Apr. 2010. .