Panag argued that the army had ruled out the presence of alqaeda in indianadministered jammu and kashmir. The essential texts of osama bin ladens terrorist organization ibrahim, raymond on. Al qaeda is responsible for many attacks throughout the world with its extensive and effective networks. Al qaeda is operating a shadow army inside afghanistan to conceal its numbers and the scope of its operations, while the taliban is on the verge of major resurgence as u. He was the first to interview leading commanders of al qaedas socalled shadow army, including siraj haqqani leader of the haqqani network, ilyas kashmiri leader of brigade 3, mullah nazir south waziristan, and qari ziaur rahman. It talks, obviously, mostly about isis, but it does so in a way that incorporates its entire history, including when it.
The resurgence of the taliban and al qaeda from the battle of tora bora in the winter of 2001 to today. This organization is considered as a top threat for the world super power united states of america. The lashkar alzil or shadow army is a paramilitary organization linked to al qaeda and descended from the 055 brigade. The al qaeda reader and millions of other books are available for amazon kindle. The best books on alqaeda recommended by peter taylor. Al qaeda al qaeda training manual inside the terror.
Religion, policy, and counternarratives attempts to interpret militant islam and help american policy makers consider their approaches to the threat zehr begins her book by critiquing both counterinsurgency and counterterrorism strategies, which the united states uses against alqaeda and related groups, from the lens of just war theory. Shrouded as he was for a decade in an apparent cloak of anonymity and obscurity, osama bin laden was by no means an invisible man. Formerly known as brigade 055, the military unit has been rebuilt into a. Casting a shadow of terror, the observers chief reporter, jason burke, looks at the true nature of bin ladens organisation and why the wests. But very little surfaces about a festering insurgency that has been on the go for six years in west africa under the acronym of aqim, or al qaeda in the islamic maghreb. Alqaeda is on the rise again in the shadow of daesh in syria, 16 years after the terrorists shocked the us in the sept. Formerly known as brigade 055, the military unit has been rebuilt into a larger, more effective fighting unit known as the lashkar al zil, or the shadow army, a senior us intelligence official. The cias syria program and the perils of proxies shadow war after fighting al qaeda and its affiliates for a decade and a half, the cia is now helping them gain ground in syria. What to read on bin laden and al qaeda foreign affairs. The primary target is bin ladens egyptian successor, ayman al zawahiri, seen by many as the real brains behind al qaeda, and his lieutenants. The lashkar alzil or shadow army is a paramilitary organization linked to alqaeda and descended from the 055 brigade. Al qaeda has reorganized its notorious paramilitary formations, setting the stage for a dramatic come back. Here is an annotated list of some of the more useful books on those subjects.
Said allibi was killed in a drone strike on 17 december 2009 in north waziristan. The document, which has since been described by the fbi as the. Al qaeda is operating a shadow army inside afghanistan to conceal its numbers and the scope of its operations, while the taliban is on the. Abdullah said allibi is described as being an al qaeda operational leader in pakistan. Buy inside alqaeda and the taliban book online at low. Beyond bin laden and 911 1 by shahzad, syed saleem isbn. This comprehensive, landmark history chronicles our ongoing battle against al qaida, the greatest threat the. These actions primarily involve the central intelligence agency and the us militarys joint special operations command jsoc and are part of a widening effort by obama to decapitate al qaeda.
From the death of bin laden to the rise of the islamic state. This book is very good, i found it extremely entertaining. In 2002, abu ali alharithi, then al qaedas leader in yemen, was killed by an american drone in a strike that was. The essential texts of osama bin ladens terrorist organization.
Alqaeda in the arabian peninsula and in yemen were much more directly involved with bin laden in pakistan. The following excerpts are from a document found by the police in manchester, england, during a search of an al qaeda members home. The al qaeda reader should be required reading for any student of political science who wants to understand terrorism. The book is an unintended indictment of us military and diplomatic officials who insisted on the surge and extensive operations in the flatlands of helmand province while most of al qaeda and the taliban leadership stayed in the mountains through which the durand line passes. When bush said, either you are with us or you are with the terroristsa perfect statement from al qaedas point of viewthe phrasing emerged out of movies he had seen and books he had. Since 911, theres been an outpouring of books about osama bin laden, al qaeda, the september 11th attacks and the war in afghanistan.
In their own words, al qaeda tells the western world why they are attacking western interests and what they want. Alqaeda and the taliban have tactics, strategies and systems that are well explained in this book. Al qaeda has reestablished the predominantly arab and asian paramilitary formation that was formerly known as brigade 055 into a larger, more effective fighting unit known as the lashkar al zil, or shadow army, a senior us intelligence official told the. For more on lashkaralzil, see bill rogio, al qaedas paramilitary shadow army. Alqaeda and the road to 911 by lawrence wright, the panther by nelson demille, the black banners. The true story of radical islam shows islamic militancy to be a far broader phenomenon than previously thought, demolishing the myths that underpin the war on terror prizewinning journalist jason burkes alqaeda now updated with new material on iraq, afghanistan and the july 2005 london bombings is acknowledged to be the most accurate. The longest war also draws on these interviews and looks at al qaeda after 911. The challenge now is to defeat this growing network of affiliates and cells what amounts to alqaedas armies. The best books on alqaeda five books expert recommendations. But very little surfaces about a festering insurgency that has been on the go for six years in west africa under the.
He was ubiquitous and palpable, both in a physical and a cyberspectral form, to the extent that his death took on something of the feel of an exorcism. Ive included a variety of reading, from books ive found particularly insightful to significant. Which books should i read to understand the history of al. At least, it comes closest to the sense of alqaeda that ive arrived at after a lot of library research. Alqaeda on the rise again in shadow of daesh in syria. Al qaeda reforms shadow army 10 feb 2009 were running an excerpted version of the story on this afternoon, but i am posting more valueadded content here.
This book examines alqaeda and its affiliate phenomenon, and attempts to provide an indepth look at several of the more active but. Alqaeda has an organisational structure and it appears that bin laden was still very much involved in it whilst he was in the compound, but all its various affiliates are still going strong. Panag also stated that alqaeda had strong ties with kashmiri militant groups lashkaretaiba and jaishemohammed based in pakistan. Plus, free twoday shipping for six months when you sign up for amazon prime for students. This approach makes for a harder read but allows the different views of bin laden and al qaedas history to shine forth, helping the reader understand the organizations complexity. Inside pakistan, the shadow army has been active in successful taliban campaigns in north and south waziristan, bajaur, peshawar, khyber, and swat. Jason burke, who has written a new book which is only available in the u. But very little surfaces about a festering insurgency that has been on the go for six years in west afr. Insurgencies in iraq, afghanistan, syria, yemen and elsewhere the majority linked to al qaeda are in the news on an almost daily basis. Al qaedas paramilitary shadow army fdds long war journal.
Alqaeda may have started as a small core, but an everexpanding force now fights in its name. The alqaedaization of the taliban can be seen most distinctly in the increasing prominence of lashkaralzil, the elite shadow army comprising a mix of alqaeda foreigners and taliban natives that has carried out many recent successful attacks on nato forces and pakistani army units. Burke is knowledgeable, fair, broad, deep, and occasionally eloquent. The al qaeda diaries as the pakistani soldiers moved into south waziristan, they found something almost as valuable as al qaeda itself. A survey of books about osama bin laden and al qaeda the. Alqaeda was behind the attack, and we were now at war. Years of conflict followed, including war with the soviet union, rise and fall of the taliban, alqaeda and todays insurgency. Alqaedas most potent weapon is an idea that weve been unable to defeat, writes ali soufan, the author of anatomy of terror. Syed saleem shahzad asia times online published some of the best and most insightful articles on terrorism in the past decade. Al qaedas shadow army commander outlines afghan strategy. On a hot summers day in 1996 a plane carrying osama bin laden and a few friends and family landed at a.
Why al qaeda thinks isis has no future out of the spotlight, affiliates of al qaeda appear to be gaining influence by a strategy of gradual persuasion in areas where they operate. Casting a shadow of terror by jason burke world news. Their ideology and actions are fully explored in this book in a detailed manner. Al qaeda is an international terrorist organization, which was formed in august 1988. French military operations against islamic state and alqaeda groups in mali put 30 militants out of action as barkhane builds sahel coalition mechanisms. Al qaeda terrorists lurk in shadows in afghanistan, waiting for u. In afghanistan, the shadow army has conducted operations against coalition and afghan forces in kunar, nuristan, nangahar, kabul, logar, wardak, khost, paktika. This book introduces and examines the new generation of alqaeda leaders who. Al qaedas paramilitary shadow army pakistan defence. If the good news is that alqaida as we knew it does not exist, writes burke, the bad news is that the threat now facing the world is far more dangerous than any single terrorist leader with an. Buy inside alqaeda and the taliban book online at low prices in. He works for the near east section of the african and middle eastern division of the library of congress, where he discovered many of the neverbeforetranslated arabic texts that make up the bulk of the alqaeda reader. Casting a shadow of terror, says we shouldnt blame ourselves for not spotting alqaeda sooner and reminds us that, despite fighting two wars in the middle east, we really dont know what alqaeda is.
I joined the army and served in american special operations units in iraq and. The resurgence of the taliban and al qaeda from the battle of tora bora in the. Al qaeda has reorganized its notorious paramilitary formations that were devastated during the us invasion of afghanistan in 2001 and 2002. The alqaedaization of the taliban can be seen most distinctly in the increasing prominence of lashkaralzil, the elite shadow army comprising a mix of. He was the first to interview leading commanders of al qaeda s socalled shadow army, including siraj haqqani leader of the haqqani network, ilyas kashmiri leader of brigade 3, mullah nazir south waziristan, and qari ziaur rahman kunarnuristanbajaur, and countless others. Lez is well trained and well equipped and has successfully defeated the pakistani army in multiple engagements. Raymond ibrahim is a historian of the middle east and islam. Abdullah said, the commander of the lashkar al zil, or the shadow army, released a statement concerning the status of the fight in afghanistan. Yemeni tribes have an inherent affinity for al qaeda or terrorism. A selection of books related to the wars in iraq and afghanistan. The new commander of al qaedas paramilitary forces that operate in pakistan and afghanistan laid out al qaeda and the talibans strategy to defeat the coalition and afghan government. A string of us airstrikes in late january targeted shabaab fighters in somalias south in support of local national army forces, africom said. Lashkarezil lez is the paramilitary special forces branch of alqaedas base. Insurgencies in iraq, afghanistan, syria, yemen and elsewherethe majority linked to al qaedaare in the news on an almost daily basis.
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