OPINION Vol.1, No.1 June 2013 - National Defence University

war against West 13 . Al Qaeda supported Taliban first in their civil war against Northern Alliance
and later against US and in turn had significant influence on it. Jallaluddin Haqqani also
recognized Taliban and remained loyal to them, however, closer relations developed with Al
Qaeda and Taliban when command transferred to his son Sirajuddin Haqqani due to his illness in
2007 14 .Al Qaeda is weakened with most of its camps destroyed and leaders captured or killed,
however, it appears to have preserved at least limited means of regenerating inside Afghanistan as
US continues to draw down.
Al Qaeda Threat in Being (Relatively less Presence / Minor Activities)
Syria. At present different Secular, Islamist parties and Free Syrian Army are operating in Syria
and Al Qaeda is also trying to get their share if they succeed in overthrowing Bashar Al Asad
regime. Secular rebels and Free Syrian Army are worried that Islamists are pulling the rug from
under their feet and expresses their disdain for Al Qaeda and Islamists 15 .
Al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI). Abu Musab al Zarqawi was killed in a US airstrike near Baghdad in
2006, followed by Abu Ayyub al-Masri in 2010. Ibrahim Awwad Ibrahim Ali is leading the
organization at present and has been seeking to re-assert its might in the security vacuum created by
the departing Americans, fragmented government and the surge of Sunni rebels in neighboring Syria.
With recent continued unrest and likely chances of Al Qaeda gaining strength again, US is
persuading Iraq for presence of some marine troops for counter terrorism support.
Muslim Countries with Some Degree of Success against Al Qaeda
Diverse approaches have been adopted by various Muslim countries against Al Qaeda, however,
one thing remained common in all and that was the initial resistance/ closing of eyes to recognition of the
problem until it had a severe blow in that particular country which ultimately committed them and gave
them the will to eradicate the menace.
Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is one of the few countries where fight against extremism has yielded
real success. It effectively adopted a combination of hard approach, a soft approach 16 and increased
international cooperation.
Indonesia. In Indonesia the turning point was 2002 Bali bombing until which Indonesian
government was reluctant to cracking down on local militants suspected of ties with Al Qaeda.
Indonesian government also started cooperation with US and Australian officials in their attempts to
disrupt terrorist networks in Southeast Asia 17 . A strong counter terrorism force was organized,
equipped and trained 18 which effectively eradicated Al Qaeda’s cells and support from its affiliates.
Besides international cooperation, a domestic cooperation within and between government agencies
engaged in fighting terrorism and extremism was ensured. This helped in segregation of violent and
remaining groups and ultimately is involved towards non violent peace process leading towards a
political solution of the problem.
Bangladesh. In Bangladesh, Harkat ul Jihad al Islam and Jamaat ul Mujahideen Bangladesh
worked in 1992 to recruit volunteers to fight in Afghanistan and Kashmir supported by Muslim
NGOs (Servants of Suffering Humanity International etc). However, Media and Intellectuals
thereafter played a very active role against extremism. Ban was imposed on extremist political
parties and strict check on inflow of money in the country. US also assisted in training police forces
in countering terrorism. At present, Islamist extremist organizations generally do not enjoy mass
support.
Impact on Muslims
Muslims Opinion about Al Qaeda. As per polls by Pew Research Center in 2012, Al Qaeda is left
with little support in the Muslim world. Majority of people in Muslim countries like Egypt, Pakistan,
Turkey and Lebanon expressed negative views about Al Qaeda 19 .However, complexity comes in
once we see Muslim’s view towards few of Al Qaeda’s goals like withdrawal of foreign forces from
Muslim countries, keeping western values out of Islamic culture, concept of Sharia, atrocities on
Muslims in Palestine and Kashmir etc where Al Qaeda does enjoy substantial support from Muslims
especially in context of US/ Israel nexus 20 .
Image of Islam. What Al Qaeda has hurt the most is the image of Muslims in the world. Even
Israeli Prime Minister found an opportunity to look for new excuses to evade pressure on the subject
OPINION Vol.1 No.1 14 June 2013