Table of Contents

Introduction

Chapter One: History
What Was Impact of the Anti-Soviet Jihad on the Jihadist Movement?
Did the United States Fund Bin Laden and Al Qaeda?
Why Was Al Qaeda Founded?
What Did Al Qaeda Do in the Sudan?
What Were Al Qaeda's Initial Goals?
Why Did Al Qaeda Focus on the United States?
What Was the Role of Egyptian Militants during Al Qaeda's Formative Years?
What Was Al Qaeda's Relationship with the Taliban before 9/11?

Chapter Two: Key Attacks and Plots
Why Were the 1998 Embassy Attacks So Important?
What Were Al Qaeda's Most Important Attacks before 9/11?
How Did Al Qaeda Carry Out the 9/11 Attacks?
Could the 9/11 attacks have been prevented?
How Did Al Qaeda Justify the 9/11 Attacks?
What was the fallout from the 9/11 attacks for Al Qaeda?
What Attacks Has Al Qaeda Done Since 9/11?

Chapter Three: Strategy and Tactics
What Are Al Qaeda's Goals Today?
Does Al Qaeda Have a Strategy?
How Did Al Qaeda Become a Suicide Bombing Factory?
How Dangerous Are Lone Wolves?
What Do You Learn in an Al Qaeda Training Camp?
Could Al Qaeda Get a Nuclear Weapon?
Should We Laugh at Al Qaeda?

Chapter Four: Ideas and Influences
Key Schools of Thought that Influence Salafi Jihadism
Who Are the Key Thinkers Jihadists Admire and Read?
How Does Al Qaeda Differ from the Muslim Brotherhood?
Why Do Other Jihadists Criticize Al Qaeda?
How Does Al Qaeda Justify Killing Civilians?
What Themes Does Al Qaeda Push in Its Propaganda?

Chapter Five: Organization and Recruitment
Why Was Bin Laden Such an Effective Leader?
How Does Ayman al-Zawahiri differ from Bin Laden?
How Is Al Qaeda Organized?
So Why Does Al Qaeda Make So Many Mistakes?
Is There an Al Qaeda Profile?
How Does Al Qaeda Recruit?
What is the Role of War?
What Is the Role of the Internet?
Where Does Al Qaeda Get Its Money?
How Does Al Qaeda Spend Its Money?

Chapter Six: Friends and Enemies
How Did the 2003 Iraq War Shape Al Qaeda?
How Does Al Qaeda View Iran and the Shi'a?
Is Saudi Arabia Secretly Supporting Al Qaeda?
Why Does Pakistan Support Jihadists?
What Is the Relationship between Pakistan and Al Qaeda?
Why Doesn't Pakistan Cooperate More with the United States?
How Important Is Israel?
How Do Muslims Perceive Al Qaeda and Why Does It Matter?
How Did the Arab Spring Affect Al Qaeda?

Chapter Seven: Beyond the Al Qaeda Core
What Are the Key Al Qaeda Affiliates?
What About Like-Minded but Unaffiliated Groups?
What's In It for Al Qaeda? What's In It for the Affiliates?
What are the limits of cooperation?
Does the Al Qaeda Core control the Salafi-jihadist movement anymore?
So What Do We Talk About When We Talk About Al Qaeda?

Chapter Eight: The Islamic State
Who is Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi?
What Should We Call This Group?
Where Did the Islamic State Come from?
Why Did the Islamic State Fight with Al Qaeda?
What Does the Islamic State Want?
How Strong Is the Islamic State?
How Does the Islamic State Publicize Its Cause?
What is the Khorasan Group?
Is the Islamic State a Terrorist Threat to the American Homeland?
Why Did the United States Go to War with the Islamic State?

Chapter Nine: Counterterrorism
Isn't Diplomacy Worthless when It Comes to Fighting Terror?
What Role Does the Legal System Play?
What about military tribunals, Guantanamo, and other post-9/11 legal measures?
What Is "Rendition" and Why Is It So Controversial?
How Do We Go After Al Qaeda's Money?
What is the Role of Military Force?
What About Drones and Other Air Strikes?
Do Drones and Other Controversial Tools Result in "Blowback?"
How Do We Collect Intelligence on Al Qaeda?
How Do Tools Change When Fighting Affiliate Movements? The Broader Cause as a Whole?
How do we win the war of ideas?
What is the role of allied governments threatened by terrorists?
How Does Al Qaeda Adapt?
How do you counter radicalization?
What threat does Al Qaeda pose today to Europe? To the United States?
Can We Defeat Al Qaeda and the Broader Jihadist Movement?
How Is Fighting the Islamic State Different from Fighting Al Qaeda?

Chapter Ten: Suggestions for Further Reading

Notes
Index

About the Author

Daniel Byman is a Professor in the Security Studies Program at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service and a Senior Fellow in the Center for Middle East Policy at the Brookings Institution. He is also the author of A High Price: The Triumphs and Failures of Israeli Counterterrorism.

Reviews

"Accessible and helpful for those who are new to the subject or would like more background on this terrorist organization." --Library Journal
"[A] good starter for students at many levels interested in gaining a basic understanding of militant Islam" --CHOICE
"Invaluable." --The Boston Globe