القاعده و مساله جهاد

Al-Qaeda and the Question of Jihad

The emergence of al-Qaeda represented the beginning of a new stage in the life of Radical Sunni Islamism aimed at establishing an Islamic order in the world. The mindset of this transnational organization, which is rooted in the Arab Afghans phenomenon and the years of struggle against the Soviet army, is Salafist based on Ibn Taymieh and Seyed Qutbʹs thoughts. In this paper, the author enumerates three major parameters in the al-Qaeda leadersʹ thinking including Jihad and struggle against paganism, reinventing the past identity (return to the true Islam), and purification of Muslim countries from corrupt rulers. In this relation, the principle of Jihad gains much importance and the outlooks of its leaders in this respect are discussed in detail. A review of such parameters may illuminate the reasons for the revival of Sunni Islamic fundamentalism as well as the challenges ahead of al-Qaeda in the changing contemporary world.