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Al-Qaeda Sees Golan Heights as Staging Ground for Attacks on Israel

(Ha'aretz) Amos Harel - According to a new comprehensive study on al-Qaeda by Yoram Schweitzer and Aviv Oreg, published through the Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University, al-Qaeda did not suffer an irreversible blow after bin Laden's death in May 2011 and is nowhere near defeat. Al-Qaeda has recovered from the U.S. assassinations of its senior leaders, including Osama bin Laden, and begun to reestablish itself, while concentrating most of its power and efforts in the Syrian civil war. Its leader, Ayman al-Zawahri, considers the Syria-Israel border in the Golan Heights a staging ground for Jihadist activity against Israeli targets - activity that is expected to increase if al-Qaeda and groups affiliated with it win in Syria. In a video released last May, Zawahri claimed that Jihad against Israel is a commandment that every Muslim must fulfill. In order to free Palestine, Zawahri stated, Muslims must go to Syria and use it as a staging ground for Jihad activity against Israel. As soon as Assad falls, Syria will have the optimal conditions for founding an Islamic state, which will attract lots of Muslims looking to practice Jihad against Israel.
2014-01-14 00:00:00
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