A Jihad mentor arrested in Jordan - News agency misses the message

Walid Phares,
Senior Fellow, Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, Washington

When I was watching Isam Mohammad Taher al-Barqawi, also known as Sheik Abu Mohammed al-Maqdisi being interviewed on al Jazeera on July 5, just before he was arrested -in real time- by the Jordanian authorities, I was replaying in my mind the arguments displayed by the Salafi ideologues in several spots of the world. Al Maqdisi, although young in age is a refined Jihad mentor. His logic, strategic thinking and smooth talk are found almost systematically in the four corners of the Jihadi world. Before he was noticed by the counter Terrorism community recently, he was shining among the Salafi teachers in the underground world of doctrinal training. No wonder why I often encountered his name while I was reviewing material in Arabic related to three Terrorism cases: The Detroit Terror cell (2002-2003), the Rotterdam Terrorism case (2002-2003), and the Idaho Jihad web site case (2004). All three led me to the same pool of clerics, manuals, tactics and above all strategic doctrines. In the center of these webs, Salafism, and among the names, al Maqdisi.

News agencies got excited that he "taught radical Islamic ideology to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, head of al-Qaeda's branch in Iraq now waging a bloody insurgency against coalition forces" (AP, others). They also rushed to quote al Maqdisi's supporters accusing "Washington of pressuring its longtime Jordanian ally to imprison the cleric despite the fact that he recently questioned the tactics used by Iraq 's bloody insurgency." The AP release, which inspired the rest of mainstream media quoted a sympathiser stating: "The order came from (President) Bush, the supreme master of Arab leaders."

The "story" was loaded with an interesting dramatization. "Hours before his arrest, al-Barqawi preached restraint to Iraq 's insurgents." The AP release, citing his interview on al Jazeera, quotes him: "The number of Iraqis killed in suicide operations has become a tragedy for Iraq's people ... the mujahedeen (holy fighters) must revise their tactics and I must stress that I have reservations about these actions." And to add some ethics to the Jihadi talk, AP stated that Al-Barqawi said he preferred al-Zarqawi reduce suicide attacks so that "no harm would befall Islam, but he did not elaborate," concluded the international news service.

Now, if you are the average American and Western reader or viewer, the story would teach you that a cleric, who was the mentor of a dangerous Terrorist, al Zarqawi, was trying to reason the latter on al Jazeera. But, suddenly the US President pressured his ally the King of Jordan to jail the "moderate cleric." Al Maqdisi, as presented in the AP story is condemning suicide attacks because they are harming the image of Islam. And to stop any question, the news item closes with "he (al Maqdisi) did not elaborate." Voila!

In fact he did elaborate, and did it very well, with all the nuances that come with his smooth but highly ideological Arabic language. Al Maqdisi wasn't primarily convincing al Zarqawi to limit, reduce or stop suicide operations. He was -through al Jazeera- trying to inform others around the Arabic speaking world about the ultimate goal of suicide attacks.

In Salafi strategic thinking, you are allowed to criticize the 10% of the action to legitimize its 90%. Al Maqdisi indeed stated that his “brother” Abu Mus’aab is going “too far” in waging “amaliyat istishadiya” (suicide operations) without a central plan. When you follow the interview thoroughly (and it can be done by going back to the tape), you understand that the main message sent by al Maqdisi is to regroup, re-center and articulate better road maps. The bottom line of his media burst is to address all Salafis worldwide and retrace the path.

If you follow the bigger picture of the inner world of the Jihadists, through hours of tedious listening to the chat rooms and following the debates on the web, you’d understand that the masters of the movement worldwide, are perturbed. Since the democratic elections in Afghanistan and Iraq, waves of questions are fusing the Wahabi universe. “How come millions of Muslims are casting their votes, even after we show them the right path,” shouts Jihadi in the chat rooms. In response, Zarqawi sinks further in boundless Terror. But the mentors of the movement are concerned: There is a problem in the mind of the Jihadists. One of the “mentors” steps in.

Back in October, out of his cell in Jordan, al Maqdisi writes to Zarqawi asking to –read well- “minimize terror attacks to spare the blood of fighters and Muslim money. Adding –read very well- “until a more appropriate time to wage all-out war.” Et voila.

Unfortunately some analysts feeding the news services are more interested in investigating Washington ’s “conspiracies” to silence the “more moderate” Jihadists than in analyzing the real development in the world of Terror! The intellectual damage these “hypotheses” are inflicting on the War on Terror, is incalculable.

So, in a sum, a Jihad mentor was jailed. But al Jazeera got away with precious 30 minutes, of the value of Usama’s 29 minutes aired in February 1998. Al-Maqdisi is in jail, al Jazeera is airing the new strategy worldwide, and the West is sinking in a fog of sensationalism.

Walid Phares
Senior Fellow, Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, Washington