al Qaeda

The creation of al Qaeda may be traced back to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in December 1979. The struggle between the Soviets and the Muslim fighters, the Mujahideen, became the root of the modern global jihadist movement, as notable Islamist activists like Abdullah Azzam called for Muslims worldwide to unite in support of their brethren in Afghanistan. In 1984, Azzam issued a fatwa (religious decree), declaring that the infidels had invaded Muslim territory and degraded Muslim inhabitants. He claimed that fighting the Soviets was the duty of all Muslims throughout the world. As a result, a flow of foreign fighters journeyed to join the fight against the “communist infidels.” Among them was Osama bin Laden, whose participation in the infamous 1987 Battle of Jaji ...