Describing a Terrorist Organization

Bombings of public places are a national security threat for any nation, and terrorist-centric
organizations such as Al Qaeda have been able to exert pressure on governments in the shape of
these threats. Relevant authorities need to note the threat these organizations pose to peace and
security, which should be taken seriously and flagged for future action. The modus operandi for
these organizations has been to target civilians and public property and cause panic among
policymakers. (Konstantin, 2021). Moreover, social media and other close platforms are frequent
among these organizations to further their message of terror. Recently, Facebook has become a
popular social media platform for publicizing the activities of terrorist organizations.
Kostanian (2021) states that Al Qaeda has hidden propaganda to form a global caliphate system
and take over democracy. This ideology is believed to be fruitful for the Islamic State and can
only be achieved if global superpowers succumb to the demands of terrorist organizations. Their
ideology is centered on using violence to achieve their aims, and civilian losses and casualties
fuel their ambition. They do not pity children, as their ideology stands much higher than justice.
Similarly, terrorist organizations have grown in stature, and there is a glaring threat that chemical
weapons (nuclear warfare) will be used in the future.
The prominence of Al Qaeda cannot be forgotten when the September bombings of the World
Trade Center in the US took place on 11th September 2001. This event led to a global scare of Al
Qaeda in the western world. Whereas numerous lives were lost in the hijacked plane attack, it
was the start of the ideological battle between the Muslim extremists and western governments,
prominently the United States. The Navy Seals' operation to kill Osama Bin Laden, the
mastermind of the 9/11 attacks, was the extent to which the fear of Al Qaeda had spread in the
minds of national governments. It is believed that Al Qaeda, prior to the 9/11 attacks, was funded
from its base in Afghanistan. Later, terrorist cells in other nations resorted to using criminal
activities to raise funds for the attacks. For example, the Madrid train bombings of 2004, which
killed several hundred people, were financed by selling hashish; credit card fraud was used to
finance the transportation bombing of a London train in 2005. (Jacobson, 2010).
Al Qaeda is unpredictable in its actions, as a single leadership group does not control it, and its
operations are due to its core beliefs and values of Islamic ideology. As the group has been able
to perform multiple destination attacks around the world, the overt intention of spreading terror
in the western world cannot be taken lightly by governments. (Ramirez & Robbins, 2017).The
radicalization within the Muslim community is rooted in extremist thoughts of expelling Soviet forces
from Saudi Arabia – the home of Mecca. This ideology became the reason for Jihad in the Middle East,
and the commander-in-chief, Osama Bin Laden, carried it to the hearts of the patriots fighting the war
on Islam (Scheuer, 2011). This reason, carried out within an Islam community's religious sentiments,
brought hundreds of warriors known as Fedayeen, who cared less about their lives and carried out
religious orders for the community.
Jihad, 'the holy war,' became the slogan of the Fedayeen, and it was akin to fighting for the holy land,
Palestine. (Ganor, 2022). Ideologically, the radicalization of Muslims could only have occurred if they
perceived the Western world as a threat to their culture. Al Qaeda successfully got support from the
Muslim community and convinced people that violence must be used to influence the western world.

‌ l Qaeda's strategy was to use Muslim radicalization to fight against non-Muslims, primarily in the
A
United States, which was designed to motivate the adoption of Islamic law throughout all Middle
Eastern countries (Burke, 2019). In addition, the group had already started its strategy toward a violent
expansion of Islam and its global dominance. Additionally, they wanted to drive out American troops
from Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia. The radicalization propaganda could not have been possible without
widespread fear among the western public. However, it was also made possible through the internet for
mass-scale recruiting of Muslim youths in terrorist organizations. For example, the word Jihad has been
able to recruit Muslims from dominant Islamic countries, which include nations such as Pakistan,
Afghanistan, Sudan, Yemen, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia. (Pantucci, 2015).

Media

Terrorist organizations use massive propaganda to publicize fear and garner sympathy from the general
public to aid their operations. These organizations are always looking to find accessible sources to
indoctrinate beliefs and ideas for the public, which would support their cause. Al Qaeda uses the
internet for various reasons, including financing terrorism. Moreover, the hidden propaganda in the
recruitment and training of terrorists is known for publicizing messages on the internet, and Al Qaeda is
not the only organization using the platform. However, similar like-minded terrorist groups are engaged
in using the internet for common goals. (Jacobson, 2010). Social media and various online platforms
have become commonplace for terrorist ideology. In addition, mass-scale recruiting can be quickly done
on online social media websites. For example, Islamic State (IS) was known to social media as a channel
to popularize their brand and elicit social interactions on religious issues. It has been a successful
channel for media interactions for the militant state. (Wakeford & Smith, 2019). Twitter is one of those
mediums where multiple issues of nationalism and radicalism can be openly commented on
simultaneously. Thus, social media is used by terrorist organizations like Al Qaeda to advance their
philosophical ideals and find assistance from their followers. One of the arguable points is the
fascination with terrorist activities. Every form of news can be fascinating for news and media, but
special coverage of terrorism attracts interest on TV from the public. The drama that ensues incites
people to support nationalist sentiments from the terrorists. For instance, when Al Qaeda promotes
Islamic sentiments, the Muslim community cannot stop supporting its cause. Some media coverage has
been alleged to bring a revolutionary mindset among its supporters, and news spread worldwide. The
media has attracted radicalism in the name of terrorism, and Al Qaeda and similar extremist groups
have taken advantage of this sentiment. (Asal & Hoffman, 2016).

On the contrary, media channels have helped a different perspective from the public. This perspective
refers to hatred for terrorist activities. The 9/11 attacks conducted by the Al Qaeda group were strongly
condemned and exposed the notoriety of these types of organizations. In addition, social media
channels have been able to quell rumors by broadcasting authentic news about terrorist organizations.
Furthermore, Television channels have been able to broadcast the insidious intention of terrorist
organizations, and the responses from the public have measured feelings of anger and anxiety.
(Shoshani & Slone, 2008). The emotional messages of the victims of terrorism substantially impact public
emotions and can dissuade people from blindly trusting terrorist organizations. Thus, the media has
been cautioning the general public about terrorist activities and intends to highlight the heinous crimes
performed by these organizations in the name of religion. As terror is synonymous with terrorism, the
public has been frightful of terrorist organizations, including Al Qaeda. In other words, social media and
other media channels have tried to portray good and bad images of terrorist organizations. However, it
depends on the public eye to conceive an accurate picture. Therefore, the media has hindered terrorist
activities with the overall flow of information, but it alone cannot be sufficient to contain people's
perceptions. Nevertheless, the media cannot be blamed for spreading or containing terrorist messages.
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