Criticism and condemnation of al-Qaeda that originate from the worldwide Muslim community present the most formidable challenge to its existence and legitimacy as an organization and movement. There is ample literature that questions whether or not...
Osama bin Laden and Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri enticed tens of thousands of Muslims from around the world to travel to Afghanistan, swear allegiance to bin Laden and the cause of Al Qaeda, fight and even die for that cause. Bin Laden united faithful...
After the events of the 11 September 2001 and the advent of the War on Terrorism focused mainly against Al-Qaeda, interest in studying the Islamic groups has increased. Such enquiries can have a huge impact on both the Muslim World as well as the...
The emergence of non-state actors and sub-national entities on the world stage has presented the established international system with challenges for which it is ill equipped to handle. The historical inclination to resort to military force when...
Since September 11, 2001, the United States government has concentrated many of its resources on combating international terrorism. Military operations have taken place in the Philippines, Afghanistan and Iraq in an effort to destroy terrorist...
A radical Islamic insurgency named Alshabab has appeared in Somalia in recent years. African Union forces, with the support of the international community are actively engaged to defeat this movement. The African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM),...
Egypt has one of the oldest civilizations and proudest national histories in the world with a tradition of a well-maintained, advanced and relevant military force. These experiences provided guidance for developing victory in some of the most...
Prisons and detention centers are recruiting grounds for radical Islamists. The National Military Strategic Plan for the War on Terrorism Campaign Plan does not sufficiently develop a strategy to counter the violent Islamic ideologies in order to...
The United States is a nation at war. It will be a long war. The terrorist attacks on 11 September 2001 were the catalyst that brought the US to this war: the Global War on Terrorism. However, US and coalition responses to Islamic extremism since...
In the words of Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, "The United States, our allies, and our partners face a spectrum of challenges' We must balance strategic risk across the responses, making the best use of the tools at hand within the U.S....
Since the attacks on September 11, 2001, the United States (US) has waged a Global War
on Terror (GWOT) based upon the flawed strategy of countering a tactic, terrorism, as opposed to a strategy built on understanding and identifying its enemy. By...
Usama Bin Laden, the leader of al-Qaeda, declared war on the United States in a statement issued in August 1996. With the words, "It is a duty now on every tribe in the Arab Peninsula to fight in the cause of Allah and to cleanse the land from...
The al Ikhwan al Muslimim, the Society of Muslim Brothers or Muslim Brotherhood, (MB) is an international Islamist organization with over fifty national branches. Its motto reflects its Salafi jihadist motives and methods: "Allah is our objective....
In the summer of 2003, the United States Army was ill prepared to wage an effective counter-insurgency campaign in Iraq. The lack of institutional readiness can be seen in many areas, but one of the most glaring was its utter lack of doctrine...
Al Qaeda is a significant threat to the national security of the United States and its allies. This makes it important for individuals in these countries, both military and civilian, to understand the evolution of this threat. This thesis analyzes...
In the contemporary environment of Global War on Terror, there is a growing perception of a linkage between Islamic teachings and terrorism. The purpose of this thesis is to examine the vulnerability of Islamic doctrine and teachings to...
There are literally hundreds of factions in various countries all over the world that support or have religious ideologies that are considered extreme. They are extreme because they conduct or sponsor violent acts and because they seek to undermine...
Social identity is commonly defined as a person's sense of self. It is derived from a perceived membership in social groups. This monograph examines the impact of Muslim immigrants on the national identity of Great Britain and the difficulty...
In 1979 the age old struggle for the control of Islam between the Shiite and Sunni sects re-emerged in the Middle East. Four events occurred in 1979 that defined the context of contemporary Middle Eastern politics: the Islamic revolution in Iran,...
The top seven myths of U.S. Defense Policy toward the Americas. Frank O. Mora, Ph.D., Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Western Hemisphere, and Nicholas F. Zimmerman, Special Assistant to the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for...