In various terrorism cases in the US, Britain and Canada, suspects have claimed a devotion to Anwar Al-Awlaki— an eloquent Muslim cleric based in Yemen. Mr. Awlaki has gained much attention, for his involvement with terrorists including Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the Nigerian responsible for the bombing attempt of an airplane headed to Detroit and three 9/11 hijackers. However, Mr. Awlaki has also gained much attention for the way in which he indoctrinated these individuals—relying primarily on the web as a tool for radicalization.
Adding another, although not uncommon, twist to the story, Anwar Al-Awlaki is an American citizen. Al-Awlaki represents a growing trend in terrorist actions affecting the US, where the majority of threats are originating internally.
Al-Awlaki was born in Las Cruces, New Mexico in 1971 while his father, Nasser Al-Awlaki, was completing his master’s degree in Agricultural Economics at New Mexico State University. His family returned to Yemen in 1978, where Nasser Al-Awlaki would serve as Agricultural Minister and President of Sanaa University. Anwar would remain in Yemen for 11 years.
In 1991, however, Al-Awlaki returned to the US for his graduate studies, receiving an MA in Education Leadership from San Diego State University and a PhD in Human Resource Development at George Washington University. During his studies, Anwar continued to remain involved in the Islamic community, working as an Imam at Rabat Mosque in San Diego, and at Dar Al Higrah Islamic Center in Verginia.
Looked at superficially, Anwar Al-Awlaki’s biography appears to be that of just another American of foreign descent, who kept strong ties to his country of origin but also excelled within American institutions. After all, hyphenated American identities are rather common in the “melting pot nation” and most Americans are able to reconcile their multiple cultures.
However, that appears to have just been a façade, for it was during his return to the US, whilst pursuing graduate studies, that Mr. Awlaki first come into contact with three of the 9/11 hijackers. It was also during his time in San Diego that Al-Awlaki served as Vice President of the Charitable Society for Social Welfare (CSSW) which was later confirmed to be a front organization to funnel money to terrorists by FBI agent Brian Murphey during a 2004 terrorism trial.
Anwar Al-Awlaki’s links to terrorist organizations have since grown alongside his popularity amongst English-speaking Muslims. How and why this Yemeni-American came to support fundamentalist movements is unclear. It appears as though, despite what were described as neutral sermons whilst an Imam in the US, he already had ties to terrorist organizations.
It was in 2002, however, in the aftermath of 9/11, that Al-Awlaki left the US for the UK, citing a climate of fear and intimidation. After spending several months in Britain he returned to Yemen with his wife and five children, where he taught at Imam University. His involvement with Imam University was also controversial, if not only for only it being headed by Al-Zindin, branded a terrorist by the US and the UN, but also because it is believed that most of the school’s courses are based on radical Islamic beliefs.
What is clear in the evolution of Al-Awlaki’s path to radicalization is that since his move to Yemen, he has become more overt in his criticisms of the West and his support for violence. This has been partly associated to the 18 months he spent in a Yemeni Prison.
On August 31, Al-Awlaki was arrested by Yemeni authorities on charges of kidnapping a teenager for ransom and being involved in an Al-Qaeda plot to kidnap a US military attaché. Al-Awlaki, on the other hand, has blamed the US for pressuring Yemeni authorities to arrest him. After 18 months in prison, having been interrogated by the FBI for his links to terrorist groups, and especially his knowledge of 9/11, Al-Awlaki was finally released.
But as his influence over terrorists like Major Nidal Malik Hassan, and most recently Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, it has become clear that he understands his responsibility of Jihad as that of a recruiter and supporter.
In line with this beleif, last year Mr. Awlaki exchanged public letters on the web with Al Shabaab, a Somali an Islamist terrorist organization which has attracted recruits among young Somali-Americans. He told his audience ‘their success depends on your support. It is the responsibility of the ummah to help them with men and money.’
Al-Shabaab, however, is not his only link with an organized terrorist group. Al-Qaeda’s increasing influence in Yemen, has also brought these two together. It has been reported that Mr. Awlaki has provided al-Qaeda members in Yemen with the protection of his powerful tribe, the Awlakis, against the government.
Yet, despite his significant involvement with terrorist organizations, the major concern that he seems to be instilling is with regards to his powers of persuasion. According to the New York Times, experts believe that his persuasive endorsement of violence as a religious duty, ‘in colloquial, American-accented English has helped push a series of Western Muslims into terrorism.’
‘Al-Awlaki condenses the Al-Qaeda philosophy into digestible, well-written treatises,’ said Evan Kohlamnn, a counterterrorism researcher. His fluency in English, his unabashed advocacy of jihad and mujahideen organizations, and his Web-savvy approach are a powerful combination.
Although his website has been taken down, there is still growing concern over the influence of his Facebook page, and other publications including a text entitled “44 Ways to support Jihad.”
But beyond his ability to persuade individuals to join the jihadi cause, Mr. Awlaki sheds light on an important issue. His case and that of his disciples, so to speak, provide interesting insight into the processes that might lead individuals to become radicalized.
A perfect example of this case is the course of events that linked Mr. Awlaki with the shootings in Fort Hood last year. In July, Mr. Awlaki posted an attack on his web site denouncing Muslim soldiers who would fight against other Muslims. ‘A Muslim soldier who follows orders to kill Muslims is a heartless beast, bent of evil, who sells his religion for a few dollars.’ After the shootings he called Major Hasan a hero. It does not take much effort to see that his condemnations implied that Muslims who were not pro-actively fighting against American efforts in the War on Terror, were bad Muslims.
By simplifying the teachings of the Koran into a simple “if you are not with us you are against us,” Mr. Awlaki tapped into an important weak spot in American policy. The story of Mr. Awlaki and Major Hassan indicate that the US is facing a similar problem at home as it is abroad. A major flaw in their efforts up until recently has been the failure to win “the hearts and minds” of those being affected by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The same can be said of the lesser integrated Muslim Americans. Keenly aware of this issue, Al-Awlaki has been successful in recruiting an often ignored demographic.
This group might feel a conflict with regards to their duties as a Muslim, and their status as Americans. If not well integrated into American society, it is easy to see why Al-Awlaki has been able to win over impressionable and confused American Muslims with the accusations that they are not fulfilling their religious duties. How to avoid the radicalization of these “miss-integrated” foreigners is an important question that the American government should address as a means to combating Mr. Awlaki’s influence.
As for Awlaki himself, the Yemeni government has been attempting to trace him since his disappearance in March 2009. He was believed to be hiding in Yemen’s Shabwa or Mareb regions, but sources believed him dead as a result of an air strike by Yemeni Air force against an Al-Qaeda meeting on December 24, 2009. These claims, however, have been largely refuted and the search for him continues.
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