Al-Qaeda Attacks
April 28th, 2009
Here is a list of Al-Qaeda’s Attacks:
Archive
Posts Tagged ‘al qaeda’
Terrorism
April 10th, 2009
Terrorism has been a terrible fact of life for many years. It was brought home to millions on the morning of September 11. But why is it that these people want to use terrorism as a way to get their particular ideology across? Well the main answer could be because of their religion. The majority of terrorists in today’s world are of the Islamic faith. They take the Quran literally and believe that they are engaged in a cosmic battle between the forces of Christianity and Islam. These terrorists take the word “jihad” to mean that they must do anything they can for their God known as Allah. This includes the bombing of innocent people, plane hijackings, and killing people who are not Muslims.
Al-Qaeda
March 10th, 2009
Image taken from dhanaan.com
The name Al-Qaeda when translated from Arabic means “the base.” In essence, this means that this organization is the base for terror. Al-Qaeda has become one of the most feared and hated organizations of our time. Under the leadership of Osama bin Laden, these extremists have carried out bombings and attacks in dozens of countries over the years. Their most infamous attack took place on September 11, where more than 3000 people were killed. War was declared on this terror group and is still on going to this day.
What most people forget is that Al-Qaeda is not a bottom-to-top organization. It is a loose alliance of groups that fight under a single name. Each groups goal is to end Islamic oppression in the world and wipe out non-believers of Islam. Together, they unite under one name and commit terrorist attacks around the world in Israel, Europe, and the United States of America. This group began during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan when the CIA gave weapons to Arab Mujahadeen to combat the Russians.
Once the war was over, the armed militias formed together under Osama bin Laden. Bin Laden’s goal was to wipe out what he saw as western oppression of the Arab world. Throughout the nineties, he was financed by many Arab leaders including Saddam Hussein. He used his finances to commit terrorist attacks including bombing the USS Cole, and the attempted destruction of the Twin Towers in the early 1990s. However, Bin Laden and his fellow terrorists sought to attack America at their heart.
For many years they devised a plan to simultaneously attack national landmarks that would kill as many Americans as possible and weaken the morale of the people. On September 11 these attacks were carried out and thousands were killed. Within a month, Coalition forces arrived in Afghanistan and shut down the Al-Qaeda training camps. Al-Qaeda leaders were taken prisoner and the terrorist infrastructure was weakened. Soon it was realized that Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein had financed and supported terrorist organizations and was in possession of weapons of mass destruction.
In 2003, Iraq was invaded. The Iraqi government and army was defeated and freedom came to the Iraqis. However, the situation worsened within a few months. Many American troops were being killed and the weapons of mass destruction were not found. Al-Qaeda insurgents became a major threat to the country and are still threatening the peace of Iraq’s new democracy.
American Airlines Flight 77
January 30th, 2009
Image taken from wikipedia.org
American Airlines Flight 77 was responsible for the attempted destruction of the Pentagon building in Washington D.C. The flight was scheduled to fly from Washington Dulles International Airport to Los Angeles International Airport. After a half hour into the flight, the plane was hijacked by five Al Qaeda terrorists. The hijackers forced their way into the cockpit and made the passengers go to the rear of the plane. The lead hijacker was Hani Hanjour, the most religious of all the hijackers. He flew the plane back towards Washington D.C. aiming to strike at the Pentagon.
Passengers on board the aircraft were able to call their families and notify them that the plane had been hijacked. At 9:37 in the morning, the plane slammed into the side of the Pentagon killing everyone on board. More than 100 people were killed in the building. Within minutes people started crowding the area as firefighters arrived. The building was evacuated and the damaged side was rebuilt within a year. More than a dozen people witnessed the event. Some have speculated that there was no plane, and that it was an intentional explosion. However, no evidence has come out to support this claim.
Ahmed al-Haznawi
January 22nd, 2009
Image taken from wikipedia.org
On September 11, 2001, four men boarded United Airlines Flight 93. They planned to break into the cockpit of the plane and fly it into the Capitol building. One of these men was Ahmed al-Haznawi. He was known as the muscle hijacker. It was his job to subdue the passengers while one of his fellow hijackers took over the plane.
He left his family in 1999, saying he was going to fight in Chechnya. He went to Afghanistan to train in Al-Qaeda camps. He got into the United States living in Florida with his fellow hijackers. On September 11, he boarded United Airlines Flight 93 and overtook the plane. Soon after, the passengers revolted and the plane crashed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania killing everyone on-board.
