Osama Bin Laden, al-Qaeda

issues: Americans in Saudi Arabia, American presence in Middle East, Israeli-Palestinian conflict, infidel rulers, disunity, caliphate, globalization?

1992: Arab-Afghans disperse from Afghanistan and Pakistan

1992-97 Algerian Civil War

1993-98 Jihad groups in Egypt, Luxor massacre

1992-93 Somalia civil war (American involvement)

1992-95 Bosnia conflict

1992-96 Tajikistan

1995 - present jihad shapes Chechen conflict

1995 forward, Palestinian jihad groups adopt suicide bombing

1993 Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman and first World Trade Towers bombing

1996 forward, jihad groups in Saudi Arabia attack US and Saudi targets

1998 al-Qaeda bombed US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania

2000 al-Aqsa intifada: non-jihad groups, Palestinians from Fatah faction, also adopted suicide bombings.

Sept. 11, 2001 al-Qaeda operatives smashed planes into World Trade Center Towers and the Pentagon

October - December 2001, US/coalition war in Afghanistan against al-Qaeda and the Taliban. 

Ahmad Shah Masood, Northern Alliance

Iraq war issues:

Iraqi National Congress, Ahmed Chalabi, Iyad Allawi and others

Violations of UN resolutions on disarmament

Weapons of Mass Destruction

Connections with or sponsorship of Terrorism

Threat (to which countries?)

Saddam Hussein's misrule

US-led coalition; problem of finding partners

Promises: democracy, freedom, capitalism

Major combat phase: March to May 2003

Coalition Provisional Authority

de-Baathification

"Insurgency" targets:  UN, Shia, Kurds, US and coalition soldiers. 

Public opinion in the Middle East

Abu Ghraib scandal

Election

Who are the insurgents?  What do Iraqis want?  What is the US trying to achieve?