Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda

 

Osama bin Laden was a member of a wealthy family from Saudi Arabia with close ties to the royal family. He left college in 1979 to assist the Mujahideen rebels in Afghanistan. He both contributed money and fought in combat against the Soviets. In 1988 he met with other senior members of the Islamic jihadists and made a commitment to continue the jihadist cause elsewhere after the Soviets withdrew. This group would become al Qaeda under bin Laden's leadership.

 

The term jihad is difficult to translate. Literally meaning "struggling with a praiseworthy aim," it's used as a sort of "Holy war", either against one's own evils or against the enemies of Islam. bin Laden believed that the Western world was evil and oppressive to Muslims. An anti-Semetic, he called for the elimination of an Israeli state and the withdrawal of United States influence in the Middle East.

The Taliban

 

The Taliban began as a group of students who originated from Afghanistan but went to school in traditional Islamic schools in Pakistan. After the Soviets had withdrawn and the Soviet-backed government had collapsed, Afghanistan was ruled by several warlords and in-fighting groups. These students were disappointed that no Islamic government had arisen, and formed a group in 1994 that pledged to create one. In the following year, the group had grown substantially as more Afghans and Pakistanis joined them, and it had taken over large parts of the country.

 

On September 27, 1996, the Taliban captured the capital city of Kabul, and established their own government, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.   

Operation Infinite Reach

 

Operation Infinite Reach was a series of  American missile strikes on al Qaeda bases in Afghanistan and a pharmaceutical company in Sudan that was believed to be tied to bin Laden. The attacks were ordered by President Bill Clinton in retaliation to al Qaeda's bombings of two U.S. embassies. This was the only preemptive act of violence that the United States engaged against bin Laden until after the September 11 attacks.

 

Osama bin Laden's survival of the attacks increased his reputation in the Middle East.

September 11, 2001

 

"What the United States is tasting today is nothing compared to what we have tasted for decades. Our umma has known this humiliation and contempt for over eighty years. Its sons are killed, its blood is spilled, its holy sites are attacked, and it is not governed according to Allah's command. Despite this, no one cares," (Hunt) announced Osama bin Laden in the wake of the 9/11 attacks.

 

Bin Laden took refuge in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, who refused to extradite him to the United States for the attack.

 

The effects of these attacks were massive and widespread. The U.S. government launched the War on Terror and invaded Afghanistan a month later in an attempt to dismantle al-Qaeda and the Taliban government.

U.S. Invasion of Afghanistan

 

Following 9/11, President George W. Bush demanded that the Taliban government hand over Osama bin Laden to face trial for the attacks. When the Taliban refused, the U.S. and the United Kingdom launched a military invasion into Afghanistan on October 7, 2001. The invasion's goals were to dismantle Taliban rule of the region and the destruction of al Qaeda. The United States and allied forces were able to quickly drive the Taliban out of Kabul, however, most of the members escaped to Pakistan or retreated into the mountains of Afghanistan. In 2002, they launched an insurgency against the new American-supported Afghani government and Allied forces that continues to this day.

The USA PATRIOT Act

 

Signed into law on October 26, 2001, the “Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001” provided law enforcement like the FBI and CIA with stronger methods of surveillance against terrorist groups. This bill was used to closely monitor anyone who might be a threat, and is criticized as an unconstitutional infringement on the privacy of American citizens.

Guantanamo Bay Detention Center Opens

 

The base at Guantanamo Bay has weathered the ideological turmoil of its island, remaining under the control of the United States for over a century despite the shifting regimes of Cuba. During that time, the U.S. government has used the bay's unique status as “not quite U.S. territory” for legally sensitive operations. Throughout the 1990s the base was used to store Haitian and Cuban refugees intercepted at sea on their way to the U.S.

 

After 9/11, Gitmo was designated to house al-Qaeda detainees in the War on Terror. The detention center opened in January 2002 when the first 20 detainees were transfered there by military guards. Outside of U.S. legal jurisdiction, the detainees were not entitled to the due process of the law or other rights granted in the United States.

Plans to Close Guantanamo Bay

 

The idea of closing Guantanamo Bay was starting to pick up traction in the U.S. in the 2008 Presidential campaigning period. Candidate Barrack Obama was particularly passionate about it, saying, “In the dark halls of Abu Ghraib and the detention cells of Guantánamo, we have compromised our most precious values"(Remarks in Washington, DC: "The War We Need to Win" August 1, 2007).

 

Once President, Obama ordered the closure of Guantanamo Bay, but was met with bipartisan resistance in Congress. However, he did decrease the number of prisoners held from over 200 to in the mid 40s by the end of his presidency.

 

Plans to Close Guantanamo Bay

 

In a major reversal of his predecessor President Barack Obama's policy, President Donald Trump signed a new executive order on January 30, 2018 to keep open the detention facility at Guantánamo Bay and opened the door to sending new prisoners there as well.

 

"I am asking Congress to ensure that in the fight against ISIS and al Qaeda we continue to have all necessary power to detain terrorists wherever we chase them down, wherever we find them. And In many cases for them it will now be Guantánamo bay," Trump said.