An overview of Challenges posed by Al Qaeda
Al Qaeda is widely known for its 2001 attack on America. The 9/11 attack was quite devastating that President George W. Bush declared war on terrorism. Because of years of relentless fight by the U.S and its allied intelligence units in the world, Al Qaeda is today a shell of what it used to be. President Obama’s administration launched a scathing war on the group and in 2011, the US seals killed its leader Osama Bin Laden in Afghanistan. However, many people contend that Mr. Bin Laden had massive impact on the U.S and in the world. Following the deaths of thousands of innocent Americans and other nationals, the U.S went ahead to spend more than a trillion dollars to establish a homeland security alone. It is important to note that the challenges posed by Al Qaeda today are real even after the death of its leader, almost five years ago.
Economic Challenges posed by Al Qaeda
Americans have and millions of other people around the world have dearly paid the price. Governments spend huge sums of money to secure their security instead of focusing on development issues. Al Qaeda pumped terrorism fear in the world, scaring common citizens and putting pressure of presidents to crack the hard nut of combating global terrorism. In the U.S alone for example, what the government spends on security is a pointer to the overblown terror thereat that rules the mind of many.
Today, many Americans are willing to pay more in form of taxes to have the government secure its people against Al Qaeda and other organized terror groups in the world. Because of the high security alert and fear that Al Qaeda caused in America, the government’s expenditure on infrastructural development went up. For example, if the government plans to construct an airport or bridge, it must factor in the security challenges posed by Al Qaeda in its final budget. Since the emergence of Al Qaeda in the late 90s when it launched deadly attacks in Kenya and Tanzania, travel alerts and spending long hours at airports because of security checks remains the order of the day in America and in many other parts of the world.
Al Qaeda’s Global Threat
While it is true that America successfully assassinated Osama Bin Laden, it is equally undeniable that the terror group exists. Following the blow that dented its structure, the movement shifted its attention from South and Central Asia to Yemen and Somalia in Africa. In Somalia, a militant group called al Shabaab joined Al Qaeda with the intention of conquering the government and thwarting military efforts to restore order in the war-torn nation. Even though it is not clear if the entire terror outfit endorsed the union, it is clear that Al Qaeda likely considers a large section of Somalia as its own.
The challenges posed by Al Qaeda cut across borders. However, with the world’s attention on its insurgencies, with its top commanders on the list of most wanted people by America, the group is unable to replicate the operations it carried out in the United States and Europe. Weakened and disorganized, Al Qaeda now makes pleas to individuals and supporters to execute lone-wolf attacks, most of which go unanswered.
The challenges posed by Al Qaeda after the death of Osama
Even after the death of Osama in May 2011, Al Qaeda poses real and imaginary threats to America and the rest of the world. Despite its dismantled structure and weakened network, Western governments and the media are still worried that the group might one day execute its propaganda of turning New York into a city of blood.
The death of Bin Laden may have weakened the network, but did not eliminate all the challenges posed by Al Qaeda. The group still pursues its quest to destroy the interests of America and other Western countries. The intention of killing Americans and their allies is not vested in Al Qaeda commanders alone. Individual Muslim extremists can still cause havoc in the world. This gives America a costly challenge of being prepared for attacks through increased surveillance and better intelligence everywhere.
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References:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/23/opinion/23iht-edmccants23.html?_r=0
https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/south-asia/2011-09-01/al-qaedas-challenge
http://www.internationalpolicydigest.org/2014/02/04/al-qaedas-continued-challenge/
http://www.terrorismanalysts.com/pt/index.php/pot/article/view/forest-perception-challenges/html
http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2013/07/global_al_qaeda_affi.php
http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2014/9/11/al-qaeda-vs-islamicstate.html