ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION Despite political rhetoric, the war against the al-Qaeda (AQ) organization is not a war on religion, although religion plays a part in the terrorist’s motivations. Both Christianity and Islam have long had extremists in their ranks out of fervor in belief or corruption in ideology. However, the modern-day clash between al-Qaeda and the West is neither about religious dominance, invasion, and conversion nor about murder for murder’s sake. Like all terrorist actions, the AQ operational philosophy is to create a climate of political change in which the selection of asymmetric power, in this case terrorism, favors the weaker of the two combatant parties. The al-Qaeda organization views itself as a global insurgent force. It is effecting political change and recruiting new followers, one man at a time, by popularizing terric inspirational acts of “ self-sacrice” against its enemies; the West sees this through suicide bombings.
