What Zawahiri's Message Says About Obama and Al Qaeda

Today, Al Qaeda's number 2, Ayman al-Zawahiri, released his first message since the election.  As the AP reported he

used a racial epithet to insult Barack Obama in a message posted Wednesday, describing the president-elect in demeaning terms that imply he does the bidding of whites.

Zawahiri also challenged Obama's policy on Afghanistan and Pakistan saying

Be aware that the dogs of Afghanistan have found the flesh of your soldiers to be delicious, so send thousands after thousands to them

The press is reporting this as Al Qaeda's first direct challenge to Obama.  But what does it actually say about Al Qaeda?  More than anything it demonstrates that Al Qaeda is genuinely concerned about an Obama presidency and views it as a strategic threat to its existence.

First and foremost, Al Qaeda is an organization that thrives on propaganda.  It paints the United States as an evil empire that oppresses its own minorities and has little regard for the rest of the world.  Al Qaeda uses these types of narratives to raise funds and recruit.  The Bush administration played right into this trap.  Its "with us or against us" mentality and  invasion of Iraq damaged America's image around the world and reinforced Al Qaeda's narrative. 

But Al Qaeda's narrative is now under siege and it's clearly uncertain about how to react.  The election of the first African American President, one with a Muslim father, flies in the face of this narrative.  It shows America as an open and tolerant society - not the oppressive empire Al Qaeda would like to portray.  In fact, the overwhelmingly positive international reaction to Obama's election is proof of the the threat Al Qaeda faces. As a 29 year old at a Bangkok Starbucks explained,

What an inspiration. He is the first truly global US president the world has ever had. He had an Asian childhood, African parentage and has a Middle Eastern name. He is a truly global president.

Thus, it's not surprising that Zawahiri has resorted to calling Obama a "house negro" to try and paint him as just another American President.  But this is clearly more a defensive and weak message than effective propaganda that might actually work.

Moreover, Zawahiri's message about Afghanistan and Pakistan portrays a certain level of nervousness over an administration that is actually going to go after the real terrorist haven on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border.  Al Qaeda viewed the invasion of Iraq as a positive creating a recruiting and training ground for terrorists. As a 2006 National Intelligence Estimate explained (PDF)

The Iraq conflict has become the "cause celebre" for jihadists, breeding a deep resentment of US involvement in the Muslim world and cultivating supporters for the global jihadist movement.

Now, the U.S. is once again focused on the area of the world that the Intelligence Community agrees represents the most the direct threat to the homeland.  It is the area of the world, which was the source of the 9/11 attacks and has been the source of just about every other major plot against a Western target over the past few years. This should raise some serious concerns for Al Qaeda's central leadership - especially since most of them are in fact believed to be hiding in the Pakistan-Afghanistan borderlands. 

Comments

[Old-Surveyor]

Spin it any way you want! America is going to be challanged not only economicly but militarliy as well My prayer is that what you say is not spin but he has the knowledge and ability to come through for all of us.

[fiberoptimist]

You say Osama. We say Obama. Osama, Obama. Obama, Osama. Let's call the whole thing off.

[Meyer259]

Why is this Guy Still Alive? After 7 Years and a Trillion Dollars he's still alive. We should put a $1Bil bounty on Their heads. For this kind of money someone is bound to produce. Even the Strongest Ideology has a Price.

[sustainable]

hey you can't say that, ask any International Human Rights court - this guys got rights.

[HoraceOvidson]

Al-Z's remarks make AQ seem ridiculous and cartoonish. If they don't watch out, AQ guys might find themselves laughed out of existence, like the KKK was when its members found themselves depicted as ghosts in the comics.

[Meyer259]

Al-Qaeda says that they want us out of Iraq and Afghanastan, ot they will attack us. Didn't they attack us before we were there? They wanted us out of Saudi Arabia before 9/11, now they don't even mention it. These guys are sounding idiotic and desparate. We should be able to crush them, with the help of the rest of the middle east.

[Zork4]

They don't mention it because the Bush admin quietly moved the bases out, reputedly at the request of the Saudi royal family. There isn't much US military presence in Saudi now, it's mostly Kuwait.

And you are right that they are sounding idiotic and desperate. Where do they get off calling an American President-elect a "house slave". Do they think that will gain them popularity? Weird.

Once Obama (or HRC) gets a deal on Kashmir with India so that Pakistan--and particularly the ISI, who see the fundamentalists as allies against India--will be free to deal with fundamentalist radicals in the tribal territories, Al-Quaeda will have to move to Yemen or Somalia (if they can escape) where they will be much much more vulnerable.

The age of Fundamentalism must come to an end and that goes for the Christian Fundamentalists, Hindu Fundamentalists, Socialist Fundamentalists, Conservative Fundamentalists. What works is what matters and we have got to find a way to get along on this planet.

[Meyer259]

Obama will have a New Credibility with Mainstream Muslem Leaders. This is what Al-Qaeda Fears most. More Muslems are turning against Al-Qaeda. At this point Al-Qaeda has killed more muslems than Americans. Even though he is a Christain, his Last Name is an asset. They are getting tired of having their children and grandmothers maimed by Al-Qaeda..If Obama plays it right and gets the Islamic leaders on his side, he will win the war on terror. There is No other way.

[Mason]

Re-establishing and normalizing relations with Iran will forge a bond with the Shia who have more reasons to fear Al Quaeda than we do since Al Quaeda lives and functions in the same part of the world and is as dedicated to exterminating them as it is Christians and Jews. An added and more important benefit of such an alliance is that it would put pressure on Israel to agree to the creation and recognition of an independent Palestine, which is the only thing preventing all of the other countries in the Middle East from recognizing Israel's right to exist.

If Al Quaeda is concerned about its future now, imagine the panic that will set in, if the root cause of most of the turmoil in the Middle East (the Palestinianian question) is resolved and all of the countries, including Israel, are at peace. A lasting peace in Iraq would be within reach leaving only Al Quaeda and its brother in arms, the Taliban, to deal with.

[plhooboy]

wasn't zawahiri the guy who murdered Anwar Sadat in 1981?
Enough said.

[nefertiti]

No, Al zawahiri did not kill AL Saadat . It was Khaldi islambouli who did .

[Janiece59]

We have been an evil empire that suppresses our own minorities with no regard for the rest of the world. If you really look at history, this nation has committed many crimes against humanity, the sooner you realize it the sooner you can stand up and force it to stop. The government is on the verge of making you work for as little as we have stood by and allowed others to do. You can't escape Karma and our complacency is the part we've all played in this downfall. Only through educating yourself beyond Fox news will you ever reverse the tides. We are a nation supposedly of the people but the people have watched American Idol and let polititcians and the financial institutes run a muck in our name. Religion of the fear based variety has been duped and used to help forward their agenda and it's been swallowed hook line and sinker. The only way to emerge from this is to Unite as a force more powerful through each and every one of us learning to be OK with a world of different people and begin focusing on the greater growth and good for all people in all countries. I love what this country stands for but we have stopped standing for what this country could and should be. I hope to see peace in my life and I hope to see world wide injustice disappear but if we just sit there it will not happen.

[Meyer259]

I see your point, but, there is no country as diverse as ours. With this diversity come a lots of problems. When in New York, you can go to Chinatown walk a block to little Italy, go to 47th where Arabs and Jews do business with each other, go to Harlem African Americans, Brooklyn Russians, Wall Street etc. This isn't total Nirvana; however, everyone gets along pretty well. I think the World can Learn from this Ongoing experiment called America.

[Zork4]

You are right about New York but New York isn't America. America is deeply divided as we saw during the election when some of the lies being told about Obama had a ready audience. Yes, the world can learn much from America, but most people around the world know way more about America than Americans do about the rest of the world.

In the mid-nineties a poll was taken of members of Congress and less than 50% had passports. You wouldn't find the governing class of any other democratic country with such little experience of the world.

For decades, American actions abroad have been justified by the phrase "protecting American interests". Check the opinion of two-time Medal of Honor winner Marine General Smedley Butler to see how long this has been going on and just what those interests really are. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smedley_Butler

[Mason]

I love New York, but I live in Western Kentucky, which is in the Bible Belt. Anyone not born and raised in Paducah where I live, always will be considered an outsider and regarded with suspicion and distrust even if they were born and raised in a town twenty miles away.

People here are extremely threatened by the possibility of diversity. They want outsider money but they sure don't want outsiders to settle here.

Not much of an experiment going on here in this exceedingly quiet backwater of the gene pool in which I regrettably find myself stranded.

[Esdellee]

You make me feel so tongue tied. Anybody listening out there? That was just so eloquent. D'accord!
EE

[dragonlady620]

The last election defiinitely is a step in the right direction.

[ResidentChimpinExile]

We'll see if Zawahiri has Obama pegged or not. Verbal bandinage from either side is irrelavant. You can be sure the terrorists will challenge Obama with action and then we will see who is kidding whom.

[GingersPawPaws]

OK I want to make several points here,
Bin is Not dead, so lets quit teasing ourselves with that False prophecy now, We must Prepare for the Worse case scenario in this matter. Assume he is alive and go Find his A$$ like Obama says!
#2 had Bush done what he said We were going to do in the First place (get Osama Bin-Laden) & those who are/were terrorizing us, most of this Crap would not be happening or would not be as bad! Whats this Crap they released Prisoners who were supposed Terrorists?
I do not Understand Why we cant impeach Bush Still to this day!!! And if We were to Impeach Bush does he still get the Retirement Paycheck or would he lose that? How does that work? And Bush Caused all this BS to happen to us and now Our economy is going to Hell in a hand basket made by Him, His Money alone would take care of the $700.Bailout and then get Chaney to pay the Auto workers CARE Package!! ( being Sarcastic of course) However isn't that a nice thought!! So Tax Payers have to put the Car industry back on the map as well? If so, We should all Get a Free Vehicle!!

[dragonlady620]

My understanding is that impeachment proceedings can go forward even after the incumbent leaves office.

[dlo2]

Al Qaida is as deluded and pathetic if they fail to see that the next president is an enlightened human being and Al Qaida's antagonism to our best and brightest will lead to the final fall of their organizati­on...unles­s the so-called recent "communication" of a pseudo "al qaida" is really some neocons here in disguise.

[ultrabop]

Profound. They can't blame America if Obama behaves himself and acts human. What a pawn W has been to every bad influence in the world. No wonder the Europeans wouldn't shake his hand. The question becomes what is al-Quaida really about? Is it a case of jidhadists from the old war against the Soviets needing endless war to feed their popularity among the Muslim hordes? Are they feeding on the rush of revolution? Can they only justify their existence by the presence of war? They are as deluded as George W. Bush.

[eggman]

Bush wasn't a pawn. Like AQ, he needs an enemy to be relevant. Keeps the money flowing to Halliburton, pushes gas prices up, allows suspension of the Constitution, pulls in right-wing votes. Why would he want to catch OBL and bring the good times to an end?

[Forester]

A boogyman is the first thing politicians need to have power.
This has been true since Roman times.

The GOP uses gays and illegal aliens and socialists
The dems use racists and fundamentalists and rich folks
Osama uses the great satan of the west

Without an "other", there can be no "us".

etc etc

[Star2000dancer]

Was'nt the crusades fighting muslims too?

[sepiasiren]

Maybe now we can all start working together and realize we have a common enemy and it isn't each other...

[gmlaster]

They're worried. The Bin Laden gang has been painting America as a racist country, but our election of a black president has totally destroyed that argument. The fact that he is loved by millions around the world has created a public relations nightmare for Al Qaeda. They thrived on the conflict Bush created, but the rest of the world is starving for the olive branch that Obama is extending. Terrorize now and the world sides with Obama.

A peaceful America with a universally-loved president makes it a helluva lot harder to convince the gullible and the stupid to blow themselves up in protest. It's altogether possible that the worldwide Obama hopefest has also infiltrated their ranks, and has had a greater affect on their soldiers than they had anticipated. If you're a soldier who joined Al Qaeda to fight against a president who bombs your family, now you're suddenly faced with a president who wants to end the bloodshed and deal fairly with your people. What do you do? Keep blowing yourselves up or talk peace?

They'd better start thinking peace because Obama has sent a very quiet but ominous message to Al Qaeda that we're coming for them. The blood of 3,200 Americans has been crying out for justice for the last eight years and payment is long overdue.

[killmenow]

Jeez, what a moving comment. From your keypad to God's screen. Now if only Sean Hannity, Mark Levin, Rush Limbaugh, et al could start thinking the way you so well express our hope that Al Qaeda along with the rest of the world starts thinking... PEACE!

[ultrabop]

They'll keep blowing themselves up regardless. It's a quick passage to heaven.