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| Volume XVI, Fall 2009, Number 3 |
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EXCERPT
Adam Gadahn and Al-Qaeda's Internet Strategy
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| George Michael |
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Dr. Michael is an associate professor of administration of justice and
political science at the University of Virginia’s College at Wise. He is
the author of The Enemy of My Enemy: The Alarming Convergence of
Militant Islam and the Extreme Right, Willis Carto and the American Far
Right, and Theology of Hate: A History of the World Church of the Creator.
In May 2004, the FBI announced that
it was searching for Adam Yahiye
Gadahn, a 25-year-old American,
for his suspected role as an al-Qaeda
operative. A few months later, a 75-minute
videotape was released in which a masked
man calling himself “Azzam the American”
claimed to be a member of al Qaeda and
threatened that “the streets of America”
would “run red with blood.” In an interview
on the tape, he explained his motivation
for joining the terrorist organization.
In recent years, Gadahn, a modern-day
Tokyo Rose of sorts, has become somewhat
of a celebrity on Internet sites such as You-
Tube and has emerged as one of the leading
voices of As-Sahab, al-Qaeda’s media arm.
Amazingly, the young native of California
and convert to Islam was able to
ingratiate himself into the highest echelons
of al-Qaeda. A seemingly alienated youth,
he underwent a radicalization process and
made his way to Pakistan, where he was
recruited and served as a translator. Over
the years, his various video pronouncements
suggest a change in al-Qaeda’s
strategy. Al-Qaeda has effectively been
transformed from a centralized hierarchy
to more of a communications hub that
exhorts jihadist cells and Islamist lone
wolves to commit acts of terrorism and
resistance on their own initiative without
central direction from the organization.
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