Osama Bin Laden: The Development Of Modern Terrorism

Modern terrorism, as deduced from this literature, is acts to violence strategically used by secular groups spanning international borders with the aim of achieving a desired outcome. Further, it can be seen as organized activity whose genesis can be traced back to the 1880’s. From then to now there are identifiable traits and patterns observed from different (terrorist) groups which have allowed for the conceptualization of the term modern terrorism. This concept therefore, can be best explained in the context of being a wave or having a life cycle. That means it is a cycle of activity demarked by phases from inception and expands along the way then eventually it declines. The world, thus far, has experienced four waves of modern

To create terrorism is to create unlawful violence or war that is intentionally targeted to civilians. It can also be defined as a systematic use of terror to induce violent attacks that often lead to war. The network of Al-Qaeda, created by terrorist leader Osama Bin Laden, was formed by the World Islamic Front for Jihad against Jews and their Crusaders. Right after its creation, there were attacks at the US embassies in Kenya in 1998. Bin Laden then planned for the attacks after 2000, as there was an attempt to bomb Los Angeles International Airport but it was stopped. In October 2000, the USS Cole bombing occurred. This was immediately followed by the infamous September 11 2001 terrorist attack. This point in time kickstarted the beginning of wartime in North America.

Like the Bible is the code of conduct by which Christians should wage war, the doctrine of jihad is the rules that the followers of Islam are called to adhere to. In the Quran, jihad is described as a “holy war”, and it is declared that “permission is given to those who fight because they are wronged,” (Irwin 222; The Qur’an Al-Hijr 22:39). While this is true, jihad is also defined as “striving in the path of God.” (Bonner 2). So, it is meant to be something that carries both

One of the world’s deadliest terrorists, Osama bin Laden, has cause havoc throughout the world by committing terror acts carried out by his Islamic extremist group, Al- Qaeda. Bin Laden has caused many problems throughout the world by his terrorism and this all came to an end on May 2, 2011. Seal Team Six was sent into his bunker and put an end to his life and his 10-year hide out after the 9/11 terror attacks on the World Trade Center. Osama has been the leader of Al-Qaeda since 1988 and since then has committed numerous amounts of terror attacks on all parts of the world. Osama bin Laden has developed over time as a leader of Al-Qaeda, and through his beliefs of Muslim brotherhood, he developed into an extreme Islamic terrorist.

The term Jihad is drawn from Arabic to mean struggle. There are many Jihads such as: jihad-al nafs, jihad bil-listen, jihad bil-yad, and others. A common misconception is that jihad means battling for God. However, none of these is ascertainable from the Quran, and thus, this claim is erroneous. This misunderstanding is closely related to the holding that people who die for the sake of God become martyrs. Nevertheless, this is fallacious as the Quran brands one an amateur only in the following circumstances; if one dies on a pilgrimage to Mecca, in car clash when going to the mosque or when a woman dies giving birth. As thus, jihad does not support terrorism or unnecessary battles.

Jihadi Salafism is a medieval interpretation of Islam that was created when Europeans and East Asians threatened Arabs (TERRORISM AND HOMELAND SECURITY, 2015). Jihadi can be tracked back most clearly too Arab reform movements of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The Salafi-jihad is more similar to an ideology than to a religion. Salafi-jihadists try to encourage Muslims to understand that their religion has been on the decrease. In encouraging this they urge Muslims to recognize that the tide has turned, and that Islam is in a constant state of decline in religious, political, military, economic, and cultural terms (Moghadam, 2008). Salafis see themselves as the only “true” Muslims, and they have assumed the authority to denounce fellow

First and foremost, there are at least ten types of jihad in Islamic teachings; terrorism exists as one way to wage jihad. Also there are five pillars of Islam, five things every Muslim should do, jihad is the most important but following the example Muhammad is also important. Now you may be wondering why I told you this, well "jihad" has many meanings, but all of them refer to an internal as well as external effort to be a “good” Muslims, who is striving to inform people about the faith of Islam. All Muslims

According to historian of Islam, Daniel Pipes, "the purpose of jihad is not so much the spread of the Islamic faith, as the expansion of the sphere of influence of a sovereign Muslim power ... Thus, jihad by nature unabashedly aggressive, and its ultimate goal is to achieve the rule of the Muslims of the whole world" . He points out that jihad has always manifested itself in the form of territorial expansion. This Pipes notes that "many scholars and Islamic apologists claim that, according to the ideology of jihad is allowed to conduct only defensive war, or jihad is overwhelmingly non-violent movement

Organize groups such as ISIS and Al Qaida and other Islamic extremists like the Wahhabis seek, kill, and destroy symbols of religion that they believe does not apply to their concept of righteousness. It is through claims of establishing a better society that they are able to recruit new members, it is also through a desire to achieve martyrdom that they are able influence like minded people to join their cause. It is an opportunity for radicals to join in a revolutionary cause, which is the definition that is mostly applied to terrorism today. Hoffman has provided several definitions for terrorism, each one has an underlying theme, and that is to induce terror and to gain support for the rebels who died for their

Jihad – a dispute or war between followers of Islam faith and those who do not follow the Islam faith; a struggle within a Muslim between good and evil (Dictionary)

Terrorism is defined as the calculated use of violence against civilians in order to attain goals that are political or religious or ideological in nature. “History shows, furthermore, that terrorism was by no means the exclusive domain of the revolutionary left and that it had been exercised at least as often by the extreme right fascist, or proto-fascist movements” (Laqueur 10). Terrorism dates back as far as we can remember, but it has been so spread throughout history and not always active that the idea was frequently ignored. As it pops up again and again throughout history people have a, “tendency to regard it as a new phenomenon” (Laqueur 7), because it would be so inactive for long periods of time. The Taliban rose up from Mujahedeen groups that came from villages in southern Qandahar and refugee camps in Pakistan. “Hit operations, military ambushes, bombings, secret kidnappings, and terrorism became a routine part of some Mujahedeen groups” (Nojumi 26). These tactics eventually led to the Taliban taking control of the Afghan government. The political rise of the Taliban was regarded as a phenomenon. While in control the Taliban created a Transit Treaty between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Under this treaty an illegal smuggling network was established. This illegal network created an artificial system that could never establish a stable national economy. “The poor economic condition of the country and the unstable economic condition would cause further political

    When people hear the word Jihad (and they are not Muslim) it automatically sends a chill down their spine. This term has come to mean in the news a religious war against anyone who is not a conservative Muslim . In the Qu’ran (the holy text) it means something very different. They believe that Jihad has a dual meaning, that the person should strengthen their relationship with Allah and teach others about him . In terrorist groups they call for the death of all those who stand in the way of Islam and see the Western world as oppressors of their faith. This frame of mind comes from the push of Christianity into these countries and the formation of Israel.

First, how Western societies in general think about the Muslim Jihad. Among the majority of Westerners, the term "Jihad" often brings up images of Muslim terrorists killing people who disagree with them. Jihad is an emotionally charged word that is heralded by the Western news media in descriptions of Middle East activities. Furthermore, one of the fundamental ideas underlying the argument of those who advocate a clash of civilizations between Islam and the West is the thesis that Islam is a religion that advocates perpetual warfare. This warfare, in their formulation, is what Muslims know as Jihad. According to American historian and writer, Daniel Pipes, “jihad is holy war. Or more precisely: It means the legal, compulsory, communal effort to expand the territories ruled by Muslims at the expense of territories ruled by non-Muslims” (Daniel Pipes, 2002). In other words, the purpose of

Since the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, “terrorism” has been a word that every American has used daily. It has been eleven years since these attacks, and our country is still at war, and we use terms like “acts of terror” to justify our invasion of their civilian space. Personally, I do not care much for conspiracy theories, but I was interested to know a little bit more about the Islamic culture that these “terrorists” stem from. While the majority of the population of Iraq and Afghanistan are practicing Muslims, they can not all be defined as “terrorists.” In all actuality, a lot of them may define Americans and other westernized countries with seemingly unlimited war powers as “terrorist”

The concept of Jihad was not widely known in the western world before the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001. Since then, the word has been woven into what our media and government feed us along with notions of Terrorism, Suicide Bombings, Hamas, Al-Qaeda, Osama Bin Laden, and now, Jihad. Our society hears exhortations resounding from the Middle East calling the people to rise up in Jihad and beat back the imperialist Americans. Yet, if we try to peel back all of these complex layers of information we can we attempt to find out what Jihad really means. Webster’s Dictionary defines Jihad as “a holy war waged on behalf of Islam as a religious duty or a crusade for a principle or belief” (1). Often, media depicts