ABSTRACT
The fusion of globalization and terrorism in the twenty-first century has created a new, adaptable and complex form of ‘networked’ asymmetric adversary. For al-Qaeda and its successor affiliates, the Internet has become not just a virtual sanctuary, where every dimension of the global jihad is taking place online. In many ways cyberspace has created a virtual university of jihad with advice available anytime to any militant and it has vastly expanded the potential audience and modes of interaction. It was also always more than a functional tool to enhance communication, promote ideology, recruit, fundraise and even train new adherents. For al-Qaeda and its progeny, cyberspace constitutes a form of central nervous system as it remains critical to its viability in terms of structure and even more as a movement. Some have even argued that al-Qaeda has become the ‘first guerrilla movement in history to migrate from physical space to cyberspace’ (Coll and Glasser 2005).
