The Rise Of Al-Qaeda

The Oxford Dictionary defines a terrorist ‘as a person who uses terrorism in the pursuit of political aims’ (Oxford University Press, 2015). Originally used to describe the efforts of French Revolution freedom fighters who battled for democracy (Oxford University Press, 2015), the term ‘terrorist’ is now widely associated with groups in developing countries who use violence and oppressive regimes to communicate their hatred of Western values, such as the Al-Qaeda. When comparing the actions and ideologies of Al-Qaeda to the term ‘freedom fighter,’ overall, the connection is not as strong. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines this term as ‘a person who takes part in a resistance movement against an oppressive political or social establishment’ (Merriam-Webster Incorporated, 2015). Although the Al-Qaeda is a resistance movement fighting to impose a new form of leadership, its methodology and execution of their movement has caused further oppression and suffering, particularly for Muslims. Although Al-Qaeda, to their own members can be considered a group of freedom fighters, their ideologies and actions classify them as a terrorist organisation.
After the loss of its supreme leader, Osama Bin Laden, experts are unsure whether this will weaken their mission and impact on satellite terror cells (Infoplease.com, 2015). However, Pike (2015) affirms the undeniable influence of Al-Qaeda as a terrorist network as it still has autonomous cells in over 100 countries and is financing training and logistical developments for Islamic militants in Afghanistan, Algeria, Bosnia, Chechnya, the Philippines, Somalia and Yemen (Pike, 2015). Regarding Al-Qaeda, President Obama admitted that the ‘principal threat no longer comes from a centralized Al Qaeda leadership [but] from decentralized Al Qaeda affiliates and extremists, many with agendas focused in the countries where they operate’ (Humud, 2015, p.1).The leader of Al-Qaeda, Ayman al-Zawahiri, discussed plans to create a Muslim caliphate in the Indian sub-continent, taking advantage of the fragility of the existing social structure and the large Muslim population (Pike,