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War on Terror

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This article is about the international military campaign. For other uses, see War on Terror (disambiguation).
War on Terror
Clockwise from top left: Aftermath of the September 11 attacks; American infantry in Afghanistan; an American soldier and Afghan interpreter in Zabul Province, Afghanistan; explosion of an Iraqi car bomb in Baghdad
Clockwise from top left: Aftermath of the September 11 attacks; American infantry in Afghanistan; an American soldier and Afghan interpreter in Zabul Province, Afghanistan; explosion of an Iraqi car bomb in Baghdad.
Date 11 September 2001 – present
(15 years, 8 months and 1 day)[note 1]
Location Global (esp. in the Greater Middle East)
Status NATO-led international involvement in Afghanistan (2001–2014)

Insurgency in Yemen (1992–2015):[note 2]

Iraq War (2003–2011):

War in North-West Pakistan (2004–present):

  • Ongoing insurgency
  • Large part of FATA under Taliban control
  • Shifting public support for the Pakistani government
  • Killing of Osama bin Laden
  • Drone strikes being conducted by the CIA

International campaign against ISIL (2014–present):

Other:
Belligerents
Main participants:
 United States (leader)
 United Kingdom
 France
 Russia
 China[1][2]

Other countries:

(* note: most contributing nations are included in the international operations)

 Main targets:

Flag of Taliban.svg Taliban
East Turkestan Islamic Movement
Commanders and leaders
George W. Bush
(President 2001–2009)
Barack Obama
(President 2009–2017)
Donald Trump
(President 2017–present)
Tony Blair
(Prime Minister 1997–2007)
Gordon Brown
(Prime Minister 2007–2010)
David Cameron
(Prime Minister 2010–2016)
Theresa May
(Prime Minister 2016–present)
Jacques Chirac (President 1995–2007)
Nicolas Sarkozy (President 2007–2012)
François Hollande(President 2012–present)
Vladimir Putin
(President 2000–2008, 2012–present)
Dmitry Medvedev
(President 2008–2012)
Jiang Zemin
(President 2001–2003)
Hu Jintao
(President 2003–2013)
Xi Jinping
(President 2013–present)

 al-Qaeda

Osama bin Laden †
(Founder and first Emir of al-Qaeda)
Ayman al-Zawahiri
(Current Emir of al-Qaeda)
Saif al-Adel
(al-Qaeda Military Chief)
Abu Musab al-Zarqawi †
(Emir of al-Qaeda in Iraq)
Ilyas Kashmiri †
(Commander of Lashkar al-Zil)
Qasim al-Raymi
(Emir of AQAP)
Abdelmalek Droukdel
(Emir of AQIM)
Mokhtar Belmokhtar †
(Emir of AQWA)
Asim Umar
(Emir of AQIS)
Ahmad Umar
(Emir of al-Shabaab)
Abu Mohammad al-Julani
(Emir of al-Nusra Front)
Muhsin al-Fadhli †
(Leader of Khorasan Group)[37]

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant

Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi
(Caliph of ISIL)
Abu Ala al-Afri †
(Deputy Emir of ISIL)[38][39][40]
Abu Muslim al-Turkmani †
(Deputy Leader, Iraq)[41]
Abu Suleiman al-Naser †
(Head of War Council)[42]
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant Abu Mohammad al-Adnani †
(Spokesperson for ISIL)
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant Abu Omar al-Shishani †
(Senior ISIL commander)
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant Abu Nabil al-Anbari †(ISIL Emir of North Africa)
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant Abu Abdullah al-Filipini (ISIL Emir of the Philippines)
Mohammed Abdullah
(ISIL Emir of Derna)
Ali Al Qarqaa
(ISIL Emir of Nofaliya)
Hafiz Saeed Khan  †[43](ISIL Emir of Wilayat Khorasan)
Usman Ghazi[44][45]
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant Abubakar Shekau[46]
(Emir of Boko Haram)

Taliban

Mohammed Omar
(1st Supreme Commander of the Taliban) †
Akhtar Mansour
(2nd Supreme Commander of the Taliban) †
Hibatullah Akhundzada
(Current & 3rd Supreme Commander of the Taliban)
Quetta Shura
(Senior Taliban council)

Abdul Ghani Baradar
Obaidullah Akhund †
Mohammad Fazl
Dadullah Akhund †

Tehrik-i-Taliban

Maulana Fazlullah
(Emir of Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan)

Haqqani Network

Jalaluddin Haqqani †
(leader of the Haqqani network)
Sirajuddin Haqqani

East Turkestan Islamic Movement

Abdul Haq
(Emir of the East Turkestan Islamic Movement)

Abdullah Mansour
(Emir of the East Turkestan Islamic Movement)

The War on Terror (WoT), also known as the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), is a metaphor of war referring to the international military campaign that started after the September 11th attacks on the United States.[47] U.S. PresidentGeorge W. Bush first used the term “War on Terror” on 20 September 2001.[47] The Bush administration and the Western media have since used the term to argue a global military, political, legal, and conceptual struggle against both terrorist organizations and against the regimes accused of supporting them. It was originally used with a particular focus on countries associated with Islamic terrorist organizations including al-Qaeda and like-minded organizations.

In 2013, President Barack Obama announced that the United States was no longer pursuing a War on Terror, as the military focus should be on specific enemies rather than a tactic. He stated, “We must define our effort not as a boundless ‘Global War on Terror,’ but rather as a series of persistent, targeted efforts to dismantle specific networks of violent extremists that threaten America.”[48]

In 2017 Donald Trump assumed presidency of the United States and vowed that the fight against ISIL is his number one priority.[49][50] A series of airstrikes were carried out at an ISIL stronghold in Syria in March 2017 and the Trump Administration announced the sending of more troops to ISIL-held territories in the Middle East to continue the fight against the terrorist organization.[51][52][53] Trump has also agreed to work together and carry joint operations with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the ongoing war on terror.[54]

Etymology[edit source]

Letter from Barack Obama indicating appropriation of Congressional funds for “Overseas Contingency Operations/Global War on Terrorism”

The phrase “War on Terror” has been used to specifically refer to the ongoing military campaign led by the U.S., UK and their allies against organizations and regimes identified by them as terrorist, and usually excludes other independent counter-terrorist operations and campaigns such as those by Russia and India. The conflict has also been referred to by names other than the War on Terror. It has also been known as:

History of the name[edit source]

In 1984, the Reagan Administration used the term “war against terrorism” as part of an effort to pass legislation that was designed to freeze assets of terrorist groups and marshal the forces of government against them. Author Shane Harris asserts this was a reaction to the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing, which killed 241 U.S. and 58 French peacekeepers.[62]

The concept of America at war with terrorism may have begun on 11 September 2001 when Tom Brokaw, having just witnessed the collapse of one of the towers of the World Trade Center, declared “Terrorists have declared war on [America].”[63]

On 16 September 2001, at Camp David, President George W. Bush used the phrase war on terrorism in an unscripted and controversial comment when he said, “This crusade – this war on terrorism – is going to take a while, … “[64] Bush later apologized for this remark due to the negative connotations the term crusade has to people, e.g. of the Muslim faith. The word crusade was not used again.[65] On 20 September 2001, during a televised address to a joint session of Congress, Bush stated that “(o)ur ‘war on terror’ begins with al-Qaeda, but it does not end there. It will not end until every terrorist group of global reach has been found, stopped, and defeated.”[66]

In April 2007, the British government announced publicly that it was abandoning the use of the phrase “War on Terror” as they found it to be less than helpful.[67] This was explained more recently by Lady Eliza Manningham-Buller. In her 2011 Reith lecture, the former head of MI5 said that the 9/11 attacks were “a crime, not an act of war. So I never felt it helpful to refer to a war on terror.”[68]

U.S. President Barack Obama has rarely used the term, but in his inaugural address on 20 January 2009, he stated: “Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred.”[69] In March 2009 the Defense Department officially changed the name of operations from “Global War on Terror” to “Overseas Contingency Operation” (OCO).[70] In March 2009, the Obama administration requested that Pentagon staff members avoid the use of the term and instead to use “Overseas Contingency Operation”.[70] Basic objectives of the Bush administration “war on terror”, such as targeting al Qaeda and building international counterterrorism alliances, remain in place.[71][72] In December 2012, Jeh Johnson, the General Counsel of the Department of Defense, stated that the military fight would be replaced by a law enforcement operation when speaking at Oxford University,[73] predicting that al Qaeda will be so weakened to be ineffective, and has been “effectively destroyed”, and thus the conflict will not be an armed conflict under international law.[74] In May 2013, Obama stated that the goal is “to dismantle specific networks of violent extremists that threaten America”;[75] which coincided with the U.S. Office of Management and Budget having changed the wording from “Overseas Contingency Operations” to “Countering Violent Extremism” in 2010.[76]

The rhetorical war on terror[edit source]

Because the actions involved in the “war on terrorism” are diffuse, and the criteria for inclusion are unclear. Political theorist Richard Jackson has argued that “the ‘war on terrorism’ therefore, is simultaneously a set of actual practices—wars, covert operations, agencies, and institutions—and an accompanying series of assumptions, beliefs, justifications, and narratives—it is an entire language or discourse.”[77] Jackson cites among many examples a statement by John Ashcroft that “the attacks of September 11 drew a bright line of demarcation between the civil and the savage”.[78]Administration officials also described “terrorists” as hateful, treacherous, barbarous, mad, twisted, perverted, without faith, parasitical, inhuman, and, most commonly, evil.[79] Americans, in contrast, were described as brave, loving, generous, strong, resourceful, heroic, and respectful of human rights.[80]

Both the term and the policies it denotes have been a source of ongoing controversy, as critics argue it has been used to justify unilateral preventive war, human rights abuses and other violations of international law.[81][82]

Background[edit source]

Precursor to the 11 September attacks[edit source]

See also: Terrorism and List of terrorist incidents

The origins of al-Qaeda can be traced to the Soviet war in Afghanistan (December 1979 – February 1989). The United States, United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and the People’s Republic of China supported the Islamist Afghan mujahadeen guerillas against the military forces of the Soviet Union and the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan. A small number of “Afghan Arab” volunteers joined the fight against the Soviets, including Osama bin Laden, but there is no evidence they received any external assistance.[83] In May 1996 the group World Islamic Front for Jihad Against Jews and Crusaders (WIFJAJC), sponsored by bin Laden (and later re-formed as al-Qaeda), started forming a large base of operations in Afghanistan, where the Islamist extremist regime of the Taliban had seized power earlier in the year.[84] In February 1998, Osama bin Laden signed a fatwā, as head of al-Qaeda, declaring war on the West and Israel,[85][86] later in May of that same year al-Qaeda released a video declaring war on the U.S. and the West.[87][88]

On 7 August 1998, al-Qaeda struck the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, killing 224 people, including 12 Americans.[89] In retaliation, U.S. President Bill Clinton launched Operation Infinite Reach, a bombing campaign in Sudan and Afghanistan against targets the U.S. asserted were associated with WIFJAJC,[90][91] although others have questioned whether a pharmaceutical plant in Sudan was used as a chemical warfare facility. The plant produced much of the region’s antimalarial drugs[92] and around 50% of Sudan’s pharmaceutical needs.[93] The strikes failed to kill any leaders of WIFJAJC or the Taliban.[92]

Next came the 2000 millennium attack plots, which included an attempted bombing of Los Angeles International Airport. On 12 October 2000, the USS Cole bombing occurred near the port of Yemen, and 17 U.S. Navy sailors were killed.[94]

September 11, 2001, attacks[edit source]

Main article: September 11 attacks

On the morning of September 11, 2001, 19 men affiliated with al-Qaeda hijacked four airliners all bound for California. Once the hijackers assumed control of the airliners, they told the passengers that they had a bomb on board and would spare the lives of passengers and crew once their demands were met – no passenger and crew actually suspected that they would use the airliners as suicide weapons since it had never happened before in history, and many previous hijacking attempts had been resolved with the passengers and crew escaping unharmed after obeying the hijackers.[95][96] The hijackers – members of al-Qaeda’s Hamburg cell –[97] intentionally crashed two airliners into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City. Both buildings collapsed within two hours from fire damage related to the crashes, destroying nearby buildings and damaging others. The hijackers crashed a third airliner into the Pentagon in Arlington County, Virginia, just outside Washington D.C. The fourth plane crashed into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after some of its passengers and flight crew attempted to retake control of the plane, which the hijackers had redirected toward Washington D.C., to target the White House or the U.S. Capitol. None of the flights had any survivors. A total of 2,977 victims and the 19 hijackers perished in the attacks.[98]

U.S. objectives[edit source]

  NATO
  Trans-Sahara initiative
  Major military operations (Afghanistan • Pakistan • Iraq • Somalia • Yemen)
  Other allies involved in major operations

Circle Burgundy Solid.svg Major terrorist attacks by al-Qaeda and affiliated groups: 1.1998 United States embassy bombings • 2. 11 September attacks 2001 • 3. Bali bombings 2002• 4. Madrid bombings 2004 • 5. London bombings 2005 • 6. Mumbai attacks 2008

The Authorization for the use of Military Force Against Terrorists or “AUMF” was made law on 14 September 2001, to authorize the use of United States Armed Forces against those responsible for the attacks on 11 September 2001. It authorized the President to use all necessary and appropriate force against those nations, organizations, or persons he determines planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on 11 September 2001, or harbored such organizations or persons, to prevent any future acts of international terrorism against the United States by such nations, organizations or individuals. Congress declares this is intended to constitute specific statutory authorization within the meaning of section 5(b) of the War Powers Resolution of 1973.

The George W. Bush administration defined the following objectives in the War on Terror:[99]

  1. Defeat terrorists such as Osama bin Laden, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and demolish their organizations
  2. Identify, locate and demolish terrorists along with their organizations
  3. Deny sponsorship, support and sanctuary to terrorists
    1. End the state sponsorship of terrorism
    2. Establish and maintain an international standard of accountability concerning combating terrorism
    3. Strengthen and sustain the international effort to combat terrorism
    4. Work with willing and able states
    5. Enable weak states
    6. Persuade reluctant states
    7. Compel unwilling states
    8. Interdict and disorder Material support for terrorists
    9. Abolish terrorist sanctuaries and havens
  4. Diminish the underlying conditions that terrorists seek to exploit
    1. Partner with the international community to strengthen weak states and prevent (re)emergence of terrorism
    2. Win the war of ideals
  5. Defend U.S. citizens and interests at home and abroad
    1. Integrate the National Strategy for Homeland Security
    2. Attain domain awareness
    3. Enhance measures to ensure the integrity, reliability, and availability of critical, physical, and information-based infrastructures at home and abroad
    4. Implement measures to protect U.S. citizens abroad
    5. Ensure an integrated incident management capability

Afghanistan[edit source]

U.S. Army soldier of the 10th Mountain Division in Nuristan Province, June 2007

Operation Enduring Freedom[edit source]

Main article: Operation Enduring Freedom

Campaign streamer awarded to units who have participated in Operation Enduring Freedom

Operation Enduring Freedom is the official name used by the Bush administration for the War in Afghanistan, together with three smaller military actions, under the umbrella of the Global War on Terror. These global operations are intended to seek out and destroy any al-Qaeda fighters or affiliates.

Operation Enduring Freedom – Afghanistan[edit source]

Main article: War in Afghanistan (2001–2014)
See also: War in Afghanistan (2015–present) and List of military operations in the war in Afghanistan (2001–2014)

On 20 September 2001, in the wake of the 11 September attacks, George W. Bush delivered an ultimatum to the Taliban government of Afghanistan, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, to turn over Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda leaders operating in the country or face attack.[66] The Taliban demanded evidence of bin Laden’s link to the 11 September attacks and, if such evidence warranted a trial, they offered to handle such a trial in an Islamic Court.[100] The U.S. refused to provide any evidence.

Subsequently, in October 2001, U.S. forces (with UK and coalition allies) invaded Afghanistan to oust the Taliban regime. On 7 October 2001, the official invasion began with British and U.S. forces conducting airstrike campaigns over enemy targets. Kabul, the capital city of Afghanistan, fell by mid-November. The remaining al-Qaeda and Taliban remnants fell back to the rugged mountains of eastern Afghanistan, mainly Tora Bora. In December, Coalition forces (the U.S. and its allies) fought within that region. It is believed that Osama bin Laden escaped into Pakistan during the battle.[101][102]

In March 2002, the U.S. and other NATO and non-NATO forces launched Operation Anaconda with the goal of destroying any remaining al-Qaeda and Taliban forces in the Shah-i-Kot Valley and Arma Mountains of Afghanistan. The Taliban suffered heavy casualties and evacuated the region.[103]

The Taliban regrouped in western Pakistan and began to unleash an insurgent-style offensive against Coalition forces in late 2002.[104] Throughout southern and eastern Afghanistan, firefights broke out between the surging Taliban and Coalition forces. Coalition forces responded with a series of military offensives and an increase of troops in Afghanistan. In February 2010, Coalition forces launched Operation Moshtarak in southern Afghanistan along with other military offensives in the hopes that they would destroy the Taliban insurgency once and for all.[105] Peace talks are also underway between Taliban affiliated fighters and Coalition forces.[106] In September 2014, Afghanistan and the United States signed a security agreement, which permits the United States and NATO forces to remain in Afghanistan until at least 2024.[107] The United States and other NATO and non-NATO forces are planning to withdraw;[108] with the Taliban claiming it has defeated the United States and NATO,[109] and the Obama Administration viewing it as a victory.[110] In December 2014, ISAF encasing its colors, and Resolute Support began as the NATO operation in Afghanistan.[111]Continued United States operations within Afghanistan will continue under the name “Operation Freedom’s Sentinel”.[112]

International Security Assistance Force[edit source]

Main article: International Security Assistance Force

Map of countries contributing troops to ISAF as of 5 March 2010. Major contributors (over 1000 troops) in dark green, other contributors in light green, and former contributors in magenta.

December 2001 saw the creation of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) to assist the Afghan Transitional Administration and the first post-Taliban elected government. With a renewed Taliban insurgency, it was announced in 2006 that ISAF would replace the U.S. troops in the province as part of Operation Enduring Freedom.

The British 16th Air Assault Brigade (later reinforced by Royal Marines) formed the core of the force in southern Afghanistan, along with troops and helicopters from Australia, Canada and the Netherlands. The initial force consisted of roughly 3,300 British, 2,000 Canadian, 1,400 from the Netherlands and 240 from Australia, along with special forces from Denmark and Estonia and small contingents from other nations. The monthly supply of cargo containers through Pakistani route to ISAF in Afghanistan is over 4,000 costing around 12 billion in Pakistani Rupees.[113][114][115][116][117]

Iraq and Syria[edit source]

Further information: Iraq War and the War on Terror

A British C-130J Hercules aircraft launches flare countermeasures before being the first coalition aircraft to land on the newly reopened military runway at Baghdad International Airport

Iraq had been listed as a State sponsor of terrorism by the U.S. since 1990,[118] when Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait. Iraq had also been on the list from 1979 to 1982; it was removed so that the U.S. could provide material support to Iraq in its war with Iran. Hussein’s regime had proven to be a problem for the UN and Iraq’s neighbors due to its use of chemical weapons against Iranians and Kurds in the 1980s.

Iraqi no-fly zones[edit source]

Following the ceasefire agreement that suspended hostilities (but not officially ended) in the 1991 Gulf War, the United States and its allies instituted and began patrolling Iraqi no-fly zones, to protect Iraq’s Kurdish and Shi’a Arab population—both of which suffered attacks from the Hussein regime before and after the Gulf War—in Iraq’s northern and southern regions, respectively. U.S. forces continued in combat zone deployments through November 1995 and launched Operation Desert Fox against Iraq in 1998 after it failed to meet U.S. demands for “unconditional cooperation” in weapons inspections.[119]

In the aftermath of Operation Desert Fox, during December 1998, Iraq announced that it would no longer respect the no-fly zones and resumed its attempts to shoot down U.S. aircraft.

Operation Iraqi Freedom[edit source]

Main article: Iraq War

The Iraq War began in March 2003 with an air campaign, which was immediately followed by a U.S.-led ground invasion. The Bush administration stated the invasion was the “serious consequences” spoken of in the UNSC Resolution 1441, partially by Iraq possessing weapons of mass destruction. The Bush administration also stated the Iraq war was part of the War on Terror; something later questioned or contested.

The first ground attack came at the Battle of Umm Qasr on 21 March 2003 when a combined force of British, American and Polish forces seized control of the port city of Umm Qasr.[120] Baghdad, Iraq’s capital city, fell to American troops in April 2003 and Saddam Hussein’s government quickly dissolved.[121] On 1 May 2003, Bush announced that major combat operations in Iraq had ended.[122] However, an insurgency arose against the U.S.-led coalition and the newly developing Iraqi military and post-Saddam government. The rebellion, which included al-Qaeda-affiliated groups, led to far more coalition casualties than the invasion. Other elements of the insurgency were led by fugitive members of President Hussein’s Ba’ath regime, which included Iraqi nationalists and pan-Arabists. Many insurgency leaders are Islamists and claim to be fighting a religious war to reestablish the Islamic Caliphate of centuries past.[123] Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was captured by U.S. forces in December 2003. He was executed in 2006.

In 2004, the insurgent forces grew stronger. The U.S. conducted attacks on insurgent strongholds in cities like Najaf and Fallujah.

In January 2007, President Bush presented a new strategy for Operation Iraqi Freedom based upon counter-insurgency theories and tactics developed by General David Petraeus. The Iraq War troop surge of 2007 was part of this “new way forward” and, along with U.S. backing of Sunni groups it had previously sought to defeat, has been credited with a widely recognized dramatic decrease in violence by up to 80%.

Operation New Dawn[edit source]

The war entered a new phase on 1 September 2010,[124] with the official end of U.S. combat operations. The last U.S. troops exited Iraq on 18 December 2011.[125]

Operation Inherent Resolve (Syria and Iraq)[edit source]

Main articles: Military intervention against ISIL, Timeline of the Iraq War (2014), Spillover of the Syrian Civil War, American-led intervention in Syria, American-led intervention in Iraq (2014–present), and List of wars and battles involving ISIL

Tomahawk missiles being fired from USS Philippine Sea and USS Arleigh Burke at IS targets in Syria

In a major split in the ranks of Al Qaeda’s organization, the Iraqi franchise, known as Al Qaeda in Iraq covertly invaded Syria and the Levant and began participating in the ongoing Syrian Civil War, gaining enough support and strength to re-invade Iraq’s western provinces under the name of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS/ISIL), taking over much of the country in a blitzkrieg-like action and combining the Iraq insurgency and Syrian Civil War into a single conflict.[126] Due to their extreme brutality and a complete change in their overall ideology, Al Qaeda’s core organization in Central Asia eventually denounced ISIS and directed their affiliates to cut off all ties with this organization.[127] Many analysts[who?] believe that because of this schism, Al Qaeda and ISIL are now in a competition to retain the title of the world’s most powerful terrorist organization.[128]

The Obama administration began to re-engage in Iraq with a series of airstrikes aimed at ISIS starting on 10 August 2014.[129] On 9 September 2014, President Obama said that he had the authority he needed to take action to destroy the militant group known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, citing the 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force Against Terrorists, and thus did not require additional approval from Congress.[130] The following day on 10 September 2014 President Barack Obama made a televised speech about ISIL, which he stated: “Our objective is clear: We will degrade, and ultimately destroy, ISIL through a comprehensive and sustained counter-terrorism strategy”.[131] Obama has authorized the deployment of additional U.S. Forces into Iraq, as well as authorizing direct military operations against ISIL within Syria.[131]On the night of 21/22 September the United States, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the UAE, Jordan and Qatar started air attacks against ISIS in Syria.[citation needed]

In October 2014, it was reported that the U.S. Department of Defense considers military operations against ISIL as being under Operation Enduring Freedom in regards to campaign medal awarding.[132] On 15 October, the military intervention became known as “Operation Inherent Resolve”.[133]

Pakistan[edit source]

Main article: Pakistan’s role in the War on Terror
See also: Pakistan–United States relations, Pakistan and state-sponsored terrorism, War in North-West Pakistan, Drone strikes in Pakistan, and Death of Osama bin Laden

Following the 11 September 2001 attacks, former President of Pakistan Pervez Musharraf sided with the U.S. against the Taliban government in Afghanistan after an ultimatum by then U.S. President George W. Bush. Musharraf agreed to give the U.S. the use of three airbases for Operation Enduring Freedom. United States Secretary of State Colin Powell and other U.S. administration officials met with Musharraf. On 19 September 2001, Musharraf addressed the people of Pakistan and stated that, while he opposed military tactics against the Taliban, Pakistan risked being endangered by an alliance of India and the U.S. if it did not cooperate. In 2006, Musharraf testified that this stance was pressured by threats from the U.S., and revealed in his memoirs that he had “war-gamed” the United States as an adversary and decided that it would end in a loss for Pakistan.[134]

On 12 January 2002, Musharraf gave a speech against Islamic extremism. He unequivocally condemned all acts of terrorism and pledged to combat Islamic extremism and lawlessness within Pakistan itself. He stated that his government was committed to rooting out extremism and made it clear that the banned militant organizations would not be allowed to resurface under any new name. He said, “the recent decision to ban extremist groups promoting militancy was taken in the national interest after thorough consultations. It was not taken under any foreign influence”.[135]

In 2002, the Musharraf-led government took a firm stand against the jihadi organizations and groups promoting extremism, and arrested Maulana Masood Azhar, head of the Jaish-e-Mohammed, and Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, chief of the Lashkar-e-Taiba, and took dozens of activists into custody. An official ban was imposed on the groups on 12 January.[136] Later that year, the Saudi born Zayn al-Abidn Muhammed Hasayn Abu Zubaydah was arrested by Pakistani officials during a series of joint U.S.-Pakistan raids. Zubaydah is said to have been a high-ranking al-Qaeda official with the title of operations chief and in charge of running al-Qaeda training camps.[137] Other prominent al-Qaeda members were arrested in the following two years, namely Ramzi bin al-Shibh, who is known to have been a financial backer of al-Qaeda operations, and Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who at the time of his capture was the third highest-ranking official in al-Qaeda and had been directly in charge of the planning for the 11 September attacks.

In 2004, the Pakistan Army launched a campaign in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan’s Waziristan region, sending in 80,000 troops. The goal of the conflict was to remove the al-Qaeda and Taliban forces in the area.

After the fall of the Taliban regime, many members of the Taliban resistance fled to the Northern border region of Afghanistan and Pakistan where the Pakistani army had previously little control. With the logistics and air support of the United States, the Pakistani Army captured or killed numerous al-Qaeda operatives such as Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, wanted for his involvement in the USS Cole bombing, the Bojinka plot, and the killing of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl.

The United States has carried out a campaign of Drone attacks on targets all over the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. However, the Pakistani Taliban still operates there. To this day it is estimated that 15 U.S. soldiers were killed while fighting al-Qaeda and Taliban remnants in Pakistan since the War on Terror began.[138]

Osama bin Laden, who was of many founders of al-Qaeda, his wife, and son, were all killed on 2 May 2011, during a raid conducted by the United States special operations forces in Abbottabad, Pakistan.[139]

The use of drones by the Central Intelligence Agency in Pakistan to carry out operations associated with the Global War on Terror sparks debate over sovereignty and the laws of war. The U.S. Government uses the CIA rather than the U.S. Air Force for strikes in Pakistan to avoid breaching sovereignty through military invasion. The United States was criticized by[according to whom?] a report on drone warfare and aerial sovereignty for abusing the term ‘Global War on Terror’ to carry out military operations through government agencies without formally declaring war.

In the three years before the attacks of 11 September, Pakistan received approximately US$9 million in American military aid. In the three years after, the number increased to US$4.2 billion, making it the country with the maximum funding post 9/11.

Baluchistan[edit source]

Brahamdagh Bugti stated in a 2008 interview that he would accept aid from India, Afghanistan, and Iran in defending Baluchistan.[140] Pakistan has repeatedly accused India of supporting Baloch rebels,[141][142] and Wright-Neville writes that outside Pakistan, some Western observers also believe that India secretly funds the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA).[143]

The uprising in Baluchistan started after Pakistan invaded and occupied the territory in 1948. Various NGOs have reported human rights violations in committed by Pakistani armed forces. According to reports, approximately 18,000 Baluch residents are reportedly missing and about 2000 have been killed.[144]

Trans-Sahara (Northern Africa)[edit source]

Operation Enduring Freedom – Trans Sahara[edit source]

Main article: Operation Enduring Freedom – Trans Sahara
Northern Mali conflict.svg

Operation Enduring Freedom – Trans Sahara (OEF-TS) is the name of the military operation conducted by the U.S. and partner nations in the Sahara/Sahel region of Africa, consisting of counter-terrorism efforts and policing of arms and drug trafficking across central Africa.

The conflict in northern Mali began in January 2012 with radical Islamists (affiliated to al-Qaeda) advancing into northern Mali. The Malian government had a hard time maintaining full control over their country. The fledgling government requested support from the international community on combating the Islamic militants. In January 2013, France intervened on behalf of the Malian government’s request and deployed troops into the region. They launched Operation Serval on 11 January 2013, with the hopes of dislodging the al-Qaeda affiliated groups from northern Mali.[145]

Horn of Africa and the Red Sea[edit source]

Operation Enduring Freedom – Horn of Africa[edit source]

Main article: Operation Enduring Freedom – Horn of Africa
See also: War in Somalia (2006–2009), War in Somalia (2009–present), and Piracy off the coast of Somalia

This extension of Operation Enduring Freedom was titled OEF-HOA. Unlike other operations contained in Operation Enduring Freedom, OEF-HOA does not have a specific organization as a target. OEF-HOA instead focuses its efforts to disrupt and detect militant activities in the region and to work with willing governments to prevent the reemergence of militant cells and activities.[146]

In October 2002, the Combined Joint Task Force – Horn of Africa (CJTF-HOA) was established in Djibouti at Camp Lemonnier.[147] It contains approximately 2,000 personnel including U.S. military and special operations forces (SOF) and coalition force members, Combined Task Force 150 (CTF-150).

Task Force 150 consists of ships from a shifting group of nations, including Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Pakistan, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. The primary goal of the coalition forces is to monitor, inspect, board and stop suspected shipments from entering the Horn of Africa region and affecting the United States’ Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Included in the operation is the training of selected armed forces units of the countries of Djibouti, Kenya and Ethiopia in counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency tactics. Humanitarian efforts conducted by CJTF-HOA include rebuilding of schools and medical clinics and providing medical services to those countries whose forces are being trained.

The program expands as part of the Trans-Saharan Counterterrorism Initiative as CJTF personnel also assist in training the armed forces of Chad, Niger, Mauritania and Mali. However, the War on Terror does not include Sudan, where over 400,000 have died in an ongoing civil war.

On 1 July 2006, a Web-posted message purportedly written by Osama bin Laden urged Somalis to build an Islamic state in the country and warned western governments that the al-Qaeda network would fight against them if they intervened there.[148]

Somalia has been considered a “failed state” because its official central government was weak, dominated by warlords and unable to exert effective control over the country. Beginning in mid-2006, the Islamic Courts Union (ICU), an Islamist faction campaigning on a restoration of “law and order” through Sharia law, had rapidly taken control of much of southern Somalia.

On 14 December 2006, the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Jendayi Frazer claimed al-Qaeda cell operatives were controlling the Islamic Courts Union, a claim denied by the ICU.[149]

By late 2006, the UN-backed Transitional Federal Government (TFG) of Somalia had seen its power effectively limited to Baidoa, while the Islamic Courts Union controlled the majority of southern Somalia, including the capital of Mogadishu. On 20 December 2006, the Islamic Courts Union launched an offensive on the government stronghold of Baidoa and saw early gains before Ethiopia intervened for the government.

By 26 December, the Islamic Courts Union retreated towards Mogadishu, before again retreating as TFG/Ethiopian troops neared, leaving them to take Mogadishu with no resistance. The ICU then fled to Kismayo, where they fought Ethiopian/TFG forces in the Battle of Jilib.

The Prime Minister of Somalia claimed that three “terror suspects” from the 1998 United States embassy bombings are being sheltered in Kismayo.[150] On 30 December 2006, al-Qaeda deputy leader Ayman al-Zawahiri called upon Muslims worldwide to fight against Ethiopia and the TFG in Somalia.[151]

On 8 January 2007, the U.S. launched the Battle of Ras Kamboni by bombing Ras Kamboni using AC-130 gunships.[152]

On 14 September 2009, U.S. Special Forces killed two men and wounded and captured two others near the Somali village of Baarawe. Witnesses claim that helicopters used for the operation launched from French-flagged warships, but that could not be confirmed. A Somali-based al-Qaida affiliated group, the Al-Shabaab, has verified the death of “sheik commander” Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan along with an unspecified number of militants.[153] Nabhan, a Kenyan, was wanted in connection with the 2002 Mombasa attacks.[154]

Philippines[edit source]

Operation Enduring Freedom – Philippines[edit source]

Main article: Operation Enduring Freedom – Philippines

U.S. Special Forces soldier and infantrymen of the Philippine Army

In January 2002, the United States Special Operations Command, Pacific deployed to the Philippines to advise and assist the Armed Forces of the Philippines in combating Filipino Islamist groups.[155] The operations were mainly focused on removing the Abu Sayyaf group and Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) from their stronghold on the island of Basilan.[156] The second portion of the operation was conducted as a humanitarian program called “Operation Smiles”. The goal of the program was to provide medical care and services to the region of Basilan as part of a “Hearts and Minds” program.[157][158] Joint Special Operations Task Force – Philippines disbanded in June 2014,[159]ending a successful 12-year mission.[160] After JSOTF-P had disbanded, as late as November 2014, American forces continued to operate in the Philippines under the name “PACOM Augmentation Team”, until February 24, 2015.[161][162]

Yemen[edit source]

Main article: Al-Qaeda insurgency in Yemen

The United States has also conducted a series of military strikes on al-Qaeda militants in Yemen since the War on Terror began.[163] Yemen has a weak central government and a powerful tribal system that leaves large lawless areas open for militant training and operations. Al-Qaeda has a strong presence in the country.[164] On 31 March 2011, AQAP declared the Al-Qaeda Emirate in Yemen after its captured most of Abyan Governorate.[165]

The U.S., in an effort to support Yemeni counter-terrorism efforts, has increased their military aid package to Yemen from less than $11 million in 2006 to more than $70 million in 2009, as well as providing up to $121 million for development over the next three years.[166]

U.S. Allies in the Middle East[edit source]

Israel[edit source]

Further information: Category:Counter-terrorism in Israel

Israel has been fighting terrorist groups such Hezbollah, Hamas, and Islamic Jihad, who are all Iran’s proxies aimed at Iran’s objective to destroy Israel. According to the Clarion Project: “Since 1979, Iran has been responsible for countless terrorist plots, directly through regime agents or indirectly through proxies like Hamas and Hezbollah.[167] In 2006, U.S. President [George W Bush] said that Israel’s war on terrorist group Hezbollah was part of war on terror.[168]

Saudi Arabia[edit source]

Further information: List of terrorist incidents in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia witnessed multiple terror attacks from different groups such as Al-Queda whos leader Osama Bin Laden delcared war on the Saudi government. On June 16, 1996, the Khobar Towers bombing took place in Saudi Arabia that killed 19 U.S. soldiers. It is widely thought that Iran orchestrated it. The 9/11 Commission concluded that Hezbollah, likely with the support of the Iranian regime, was the perpetrator. It said there are “signs” that Al-Qaeda also played a role.[167]

Libya[edit source]

Main articles: 2011 military intervention in Libya, Factional violence in Libya (2011–14), and Libyan Civil War (2014–present)

On 19 March 2011, a multi-state coalition began a military action in Libya, ostensibly to implement United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973. The United Nations Intent and Voting was to have “an immediate ceasefire in Libya, including an end to the current attacks against civilians, which it said might constitute crimes against humanity” … “imposing a ban on all flights in the country’s airspace – a no-fly zone – and tightened sanctions on the Qadhafi regime and its supporters.” The resolution was taken in response to events during the Libyan Civil War,[169] and military operations began, with American and British naval forces firing over 110 Tomahawk cruise missiles,[170] the French Air Force, British Royal Air Force, and Royal Canadian Air Force[171] undertaking sorties across Libya and a naval blockade by Coalition forces.[172] French jets launched air strikes against Libyan Army tanks and vehicles.[173][174] The Libyan government response to the campaign was totally ineffectual, with Gaddafi’s forces not managing to shoot down a single NATO plane despite the country possessing 30 heavy SAM batteries, 17 medium SAM batteries, 55 light SAM batteries (a total of 400-450 launchers, including 130-150 SA-6 launchers and some SA-8 launchers), and 440-600 short-range air-defense guns.[175][176] The official names for the interventions by the coalition members are Opération Harmattan by France; Operation Ellamy by the United Kingdom; Operation Mobile for the Canadian participation and Operation Odyssey Dawn for the United States.[177]

From the beginning of the intervention, the initial coalition of Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Italy, Norway, Qatar, Spain, UK and US[178][179][180][181][182] expanded to nineteen states, with newer states mostly enforcing the no-fly zone and naval blockade or providing military logistical assistance. The effort was initially largely led by France and the United Kingdom, with command shared with the United States. NATO took control of the arms embargo on 23 March, named Operation Unified Protector. An attempt to unify the military leadership of the air campaign (while keeping political and strategic control with a small group), first failed over objections by the French, German, and Turkish governments.[183][184] On 24 March, NATO agreed to take control of the no-fly zone, while command of targeting ground units remains with coalition forces.[185][186][187] The handover occurred on 31 March 2011 at 06:00 UTC (08:00 local time). NATO flew 26,500 sorties since it took charge of the Libya mission on 31 March 2011.

Fighting in Libya ended in late October following the death of Muammar Gaddafi, and NATO stated it would end operations over Libya on 31 October 2011. Libya’s new government requested its mission to be extended to the end of the year,[188] but on 27 October, the Security Council voted to end NATO’s mandate for military action on 31 October.[189]

An AV-8B Harrier takes off from the flight deck of the USS Wasp during Operation Odyssey Lightning, August 8, 2016.

NBC News reported that in mid-2014, ISIS had about 1,000 fighters in Libya. Taking advantage of a power vacuum in the center of the country, far from the major cities of Tripoli and Benghazi, ISIS expanded rapidly over the next 18 months. Local militants were joined by jihadists from the rest of North Africa, the Middle East, Europe and the Caucasus. The force absorbed or defeated other Islamist groups inside Libya and the central ISIS leadership in Raqqa, Syria, began urging foreign recruits to head for Libya instead of Syria. ISIS seized control of the coastal city of Sirte in early 2015 and then began to expand to the east and south. By the beginning of 2016, it had effective control of 120 to 150 miles of coastline and portions of the interior and had reached Eastern Libya’s major population center, Benghazi. In spring 2016, AFRICOM estimated that ISIS had about 5,000 fighters in its stronghold of Sirte.[190]

However, the indigenous rebel groups who had staked their claims to Libya and turned their weapons on ISIS — with the help of airstrikes by Western forces, including U.S. drones, the Libyan population resented the outsiders who wanted to establish a fundamentalist regime on their soil. Militias loyal to the new Libyan unity government, plus a separate and rival force loyal to a former officer in the Qaddafi regime, launched an assault on ISIS outposts in Sirte and the surrounding areas that lasted for months. According to U.S. military estimates, ISIS ranks shrank to somewhere between a few hundred and 2,000 fighters. In August 2016, the U.S. military began airstrikes that, along with continued pressure on the ground from the Libyan militias, pushed the remaining ISIS fighters back into Sirte, In all, U.S. drones and planes hit ISIS nearly 590 times, the Libyan militias reclaimed the city in mid-December.[190] On January 18, 2017, ABC News reported that two USAF B-2 bombers struck two ISIS camps 28 miles south of Sirte, the airstrikes targeted between 80 and 100 ISIS fighters in multiple camps, an unmanned aircraft also participated in the airstrikes. NBC News reported that as many as 90 ISIS fighters were killed in the strike, a U.S. defense official said that “This was the largest remaining ISIS presence in Libya,” and that “They have been largely marginalized, but I am hesitant to say they have been eliminated in Libya.”[190]

Other military operations[edit source]

Operation Active Endeavour[edit source]

Main article: Operation Active Endeavour

Operation Active Endeavour is a naval operation of NATO started in October 2001 in response to the 11 September attacks. It operates in the Mediterranean and is designed to prevent the movement of militants or weapons of mass destruction and to enhance the security of shipping in general.[191]

Fighting in Kashmir[edit source]

Main article: Kashmir conflict

Political Map: the Kashmir region districts

In a ‘Letter to American People’ written by Osama bin Laden in 2002, he stated that one of the reasons he was fighting America is because of its support of India on the Kashmir issue.[192][193] While on a trip to Delhi in 2002, U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld suggested that Al-Qaeda was active in Kashmir, though he did not have any hard evidence.[194][195] In 2002, The Christian Science Monitor published an article claiming that Al-Qaeda and its affiliates were “thriving” in Pakistan-administered Kashmir with the tacit approval of Pakistan’s National Intelligence agency Inter-Services Intelligence.[196] A team of Special Air Service and Delta Force was sent into Indian-administered Kashmir in 2002 to hunt for Osama bin Laden after reports that he was being sheltered by the Kashmiri militant group Harkat-ul-Mujahideen.[197] U.S. officials believed that Al-Qaeda was helping organize a campaign of terror in Kashmir to provoke conflict between India and Pakistan. Fazlur Rehman Khalil, the leader of the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, signed al-Qaeda’s 1998 declaration of holy war, which called on Muslims to attack all Americans and their allies.[198] Indian sources claimed that In 2006, Al-Qaeda claimed they had established a wing in Kashmir; this worried the Indian government.[199] India also argued that Al-Qaeda has strong ties with the Kashmir militant groups Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed in Pakistan.[200] While on a visit to Pakistan in January 2010, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates stated that Al-Qaeda was seeking to destabilize the region and planning to provoke a nuclear war between India and Pakistan.[201]

In September 2009, a U.S. Drone strike reportedly killed Ilyas Kashmiri, who was the chief of Harkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami, a Kashmiri militant group associated with Al-Qaeda.[202][203] Kashmiri was described by Bruce Riedel as a ‘prominent’ Al-Qaeda member,[204] while others described him as the head of military operations for Al-Qaeda.[205] Waziristan had now become the new battlefield for Kashmiri militants, who were now fighting NATO in support of Al-Qaeda.[206] On 8 July 2012, Al-Badar Mujahideen, a breakaway faction of Kashmir centric terror group Hizbul Mujahideen, on the conclusion of their two-day Shuhada Conference called for a mobilization of resources for continuation of jihad in Kashmir.[207]

American military intervention in Cameroon[edit source]

In October 2015, the US began deploying 300 soldiers[208] to Cameroon, with the invitation of the Cameroonian government, to support African forces in a non-combat role in their fight against ISIS insurgency in that country. The troops’ primary missions will revolve around providing intelligence support to local forces as well as conducting reconnaissance flights.[209]

International military support[edit source]

Main articles: Participants in Operation Enduring Freedom and Multi-National Force – Iraq
See also: Coalition combat operations in Afghanistan in 2008 and Afghan War order of battle 2012

The United Kingdom is the second largest contributor of troops in Afghanistan

The invasion of Afghanistan is seen to have been the first action of this war, and initially involved forces from the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Afghan Northern Alliance. Since the initial invasion period, these forces were augmented by troops and aircraft from Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Italy, Netherlands, New Zealand and Norway amongst others. In 2006, there were about 33,000 troops in Afghanistan.

On 12 September 2001, less than 24 hours after the 11 September attacks in New York City and Washington, D.C., NATO invoked Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty and declared the attacks to be an attack against all 19 NATO member countries. Australian Prime Minister John Howard also stated that Australia would invoke the ANZUS Treaty along similar lines.[210]

In the following months, NATO took a broad range of measures to respond to the threat of terrorism. On 22 November 2002, the member states of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC) decided on a Partnership Action Plan against Terrorism, which explicitly states, “[The] EAPC States are committed to the protection and promotion of fundamental freedoms and human rights, as well as the rule of law, in combating terrorism.”[211] NATO started naval operations in the Mediterranean Sea designed to prevent the movement of terrorists or weapons of mass destruction as well as to enhance the security of shipping in general called Operation Active Endeavour.

Support for the U.S. cooled when America made clear its determination to invade Iraq in late 2002. Even so, many of the “coalition of the willing” countries that unconditionally supported the U.S.-led military action have sent troops to Afghanistan, particular neighboring Pakistan, which has disowned its earlier support for the Taliban and contributed tens of thousands of soldiers to the conflict. Pakistan was also engaged in the War in North-West Pakistan (Waziristan War). Supported by U.S. intelligence, Pakistan was attempting to remove the Taliban insurgency and al-Qaeda element from the northern tribal areas.[212]

Terrorist attacks and failed plots since 9/11[edit source]

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Al-Qaeda[edit source]

Main article: al-Qaeda

Since 9/11, Al-Qaeda and other affiliated radical Islamist groups have executed attacks in several parts of the world where conflicts are not taking place. Whereas countries like Pakistan have suffered hundreds of attacks killing tens of thousands and displacing much more.

There may also have been several additional planned attacks that were not successful.

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL)[edit source]

Main article: Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant

So far, there has been only one failed plot by ISIL:[citation needed]

Post 9/11 events inside the United States[edit source]

Main article: Patriot Act
Further information: Detentions following the September 11 attacks and Aftermath of the September 11 attacks

A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement helicopter patrols the airspace over New York City

In addition to military efforts abroad, in the aftermath of 9/11, the Bush Administration increased domestic efforts to prevent future attacks. Various government bureaucracies that handled security and military functions were reorganized. A new cabinet-level agency called the United States Department of Homeland Security was created in November 2002 to lead and coordinate the largest reorganization of the U.S. federal government since the consolidation of the armed forces into the Department of Defense.[citation needed]

The Justice Department launched the National Security Entry-Exit Registration System for certain male non-citizens in the U.S., requiring them to register in person at offices of the Immigration and Naturalization Service.

The USA PATRIOT Act of October 2001 dramatically reduces restrictions on law enforcement agencies’ ability to search telephone, e-mail communications, medical, financial, and other records; eases restrictions on foreign intelligence gathering within the United States; expands the Secretary of the Treasury‘s authority to regulate financial transactions, particularly those involving foreign individuals and entities; and broadens the discretion of law enforcement and immigration authorities in detaining and deporting immigrants suspected of terrorism-related acts. The act also expanded the definition of terrorism to include domestic terrorism, thus enlarging the number of activities to which the USA PATRIOT Act’s expanded law enforcement powers could be applied. A new Terrorist Finance Tracking Program monitored the movements of terrorists’ financial resources (discontinued after being revealed by The New York Times). Global telecommunication usage, including those with no links to terrorism,[218] is being collected and monitored through the NSA electronic surveillance program. The Patriot Act is still in effect.

Political interest groups have stated that these laws remove important restrictions on governmental authority, and are a dangerous encroachment on civil liberties, possible unconstitutional violations of the Fourth Amendment. On 30 July 2003, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed the first legal challenge against Section 215 of the Patriot Act, claiming that it allows the FBI to violate a citizen’s First Amendment rights, Fourth Amendment rights, and right to due process, by granting the government the right to search a person’s business, bookstore, and library records in a terrorist investigation, without disclosing to the individual that records were being searched.[219] Also, governing bodies in many communities have passed symbolic resolutions against the act.

John Walker Lindh was captured as an enemy combatant during the United States’ 2001 invasion of Afghanistan

In a speech on 9 June 2005, Bush said that the USA PATRIOT Act had been used to bring charges against more than 400 suspects, more than half of whom had been convicted. Meanwhile, the ACLU quoted Justice Department figures showing that 7,000 people have complained of abuse of the Act.

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) began an initiative in early 2002 with the creation of the Total Information Awareness program, designed to promote information technologies that could be used in counter-terrorism. This program, facing criticism, has since been defunded by Congress.

By 2003, 12 major conventions and protocols were designed to combat terrorism. These were adopted and ratified by many states. These conventions require states to co-operate on principal issues regarding unlawful seizure of aircraft, the physical protection of nuclear materials, and the freezing of assets of militant networks.[220]

In 2005, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 1624 concerning incitement to commit acts of terrorism and the obligations of countries to comply with international human rights laws.[221] Although both resolutions require mandatory annual reports on counter-terrorism activities by adopting nations, the United States and Israel have both declined to submit reports. In the same year, the United States Department of Defense and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff issued a planning document, by the name “National Military Strategic Plan for the War on Terrorism”, which stated that it constituted the “comprehensive military plan to prosecute the Global War on Terror for the Armed Forces of the United States…including the findings and recommendations of the 9/11 Commission and a rigorous examination with the Department of Defense”.

On 9 January 2007, the House of Representatives passed a bill, by a vote of 299–128, enacting many of the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission The bill passed in the U.S. Senate,[222] by a vote of 60–38, on 13 March 2007 and it was signed into law on 3 August 2007 by President Bush. It became Public Law 110-53. In July 2012, U.S. Senate passed a resolution urging that the Haqqani Network be designated a foreign terrorist organization.[223]

The Office of Strategic Influence was secretly created after 9/11 for the purpose of coordinating propaganda efforts but was closed soon after being discovered. The Bush administration implemented the Continuity of Operations Plan (or Continuity of Government) to ensure that U.S. government would be able to continue in catastrophic circumstances.

Since 9/11, extremists made various attempts to attack the United States, with varying levels of organization and skill. For example, vigilant passengers aboard a transatlantic flight prevented Richard Reid, in 2001, and Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, in 2009, from detonating an explosive device.

Other terrorist plots have been stopped by federal agencies using new legal powers and investigative tools, sometimes in cooperation with foreign governments.[citation needed]

Such thwarted attacks include:

The Obama administration has promised the closing of the Guantanamo Bay detention camp, increased the number of troops in Afghanistan, and promised the withdrawal of its forces from Iraq.

Casualties[edit source]

According to Joshua Goldstein, an international relations professor at the American University, The Global War on Terror has seen fewer war deaths than any other decade in the past century.[224]

There is no widely agreed on figure for the number of people that have been killed so far in the War on Terror as it has been defined by the Bush Administration to include the war in Afghanistan, the war in Iraq, and operations elsewhere. The International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War and the Physicians for Social Responsibility and Physicians for Global Survival give total estimates ranging from 1.3 million to 2 million casualties.[225] Some estimates for regional conflicts include the following:

Child killed by a car bomb in Kirkuk, July 2011

File:CollateralMurder.ogv

Footage of leaked Apache gunship strike in Baghdad, July 2007

  • Iraq: 62,570 to 1,124,000
Main article: Casualties of the Iraq War
  • Iraq Body Count project documented 110,937–121,227 civilian deaths from violence from March 2003 to December 2012.[226][227][228]
  • 110,600 deaths in total according to the Associated Press from March 2003 to April 2009.[229]
  • 151,000 deaths in total according to the Iraq Family Health Survey.[230]
  • Opinion Research Business (ORB) poll conducted 12–19 August 2007 estimated 1,033,000 violent deaths due to the Iraq War. The range given was 946,000 to 1,120,000 deaths. A nationally representative sample of approximately 2,000 Iraqi adults answered whether any members of their household (living under their roof) were killed due to the Iraq War. 22% of the respondents had lost one or more household members. ORB reported that “48% died from a gunshot wound, 20% from the impact of a car bomb, 9% from aerial bombardment, 6% as a result of an accident and 6% from another blast/ordnance.”[231][232][233]
  • Between 392,979 and 942,636 estimated Iraqi (655,000 with a confidence interval of 95%), civilian and combatant, according to the second Lancet survey of mortality.
  • A minimum of 62,570 civilian deaths reported in the mass media up to 28 April 2007 according to Iraq Body Count project.[234]
  • 4,409 U.S. military dead (929 non-hostile deaths), and 31,926 wounded in action during Operation Iraqi Freedom.[235] 66 U.S. Military Dead (28 non-hostile deaths), and 295 wounded in action during Operation New Dawn.[235]
  • Afghanistan: between 10,960 and 249,000[236]
Main article: Civilian casualties of the War in Afghanistan (2001–present)
  • According to Marc W. Herold’s extensive database,[238] between 3,100 and 3,600 civilians were directly killed by U.S. Operation Enduring Freedom bombing and Special Forces attacks between 7 October 2001 and 3 June 2003. This estimate counts only “impact deaths”—deaths that occurred in the immediate aftermath of an explosion or shooting—and does not count deaths that occurred later as a result of injuries sustained, or deaths that occurred as an indirect consequence of the U.S. airstrikes and invasion.
  • In a pair of January 2002 studies, Carl Conetta of the Project on Defense Alternatives estimates that “at least” 4,200–4,500 civilians were killed by mid-January 2002 as a result of the war and Coalition airstrikes, both directly as casualties of the aerial bombing campaign, and indirectly in the resulting humanitarian crisis.
  • His first study, “Operation Enduring Freedom: Why a Higher Rate of Civilian Bombing Casualties?”,[241] released 18 January 2002, estimates that, at the low end, “at least” 1,000–1,300 civilians were directly killed in the aerial bombing campaign in just the three months between 7 October 2001 to 1 January 2002. The author found it impossible to provide an upper-end estimate to direct civilian casualties from the Operation Enduring Freedom bombing campaign that he noted as having an increased use of cluster bombs.[242] In this lower-end estimate, only Western press sources were used for hard numbers, while heavy “reduction factors” were applied to Afghan government reports so that their estimates were reduced by as much as 75%.[243]
  • In his companion study, “Strange Victory: A critical appraisal of Operation Enduring Freedom and the Afghanistan war”,[244] released 30 January 2002, Conetta estimates that “at least” 3,200 more Afghans died by mid-January 2002, of “starvation, exposure, associated illnesses, or injury sustained while in flight from war zones”, as a result of the war and Coalition airstrikes.
  • In similar numbers, a Los Angeles Times review of U.S., British, and Pakistani newspapers and international wire services found that between 1,067 and 1,201 direct civilian deaths were reported by those news organizations during the five months from 7 October 2001 to 28 February 2002. This review excluded all civilian deaths in Afghanistan that did not get reported by U.S., British, or Pakistani news, excluded 497 deaths that did get reported in U.S., British, and Pakistani news but that were not specifically identified as civilian or military, and excluded 754 civilian deaths that were reported by the Taliban but not independently confirmed.[245]
  • 2,046 U.S. military dead (339 non-hostile deaths), and 18,201 wounded in action.[235]
  • Pakistan: Between 1467 and 2334 people were killed in U.S. drone attacks as of 6 May 2011. Tens of thousands have been killed by terrorist attacks, millions displaced.
Main articles: Drone attacks in Pakistan and Terrorism in Pakistan
  • Somalia: 7,000+
  • In December 2007, The Elman Peace and Human Rights Organization said it had verified 6,500 civilian deaths, 8,516 people wounded, and 1.5 million displaced from homes in Mogadishu alone during the year 2007.[247]
  • USA

Total American casualties from the War on Terror
(this includes fighting throughout the world):

 This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (August 2016) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
U.S. Military killed 7,008[235]
U.S. Military wounded 50,422[235]
U.S. DoD Civilians killed 16[235]
U.S. Civilians killed (includes 9/11 and after) 3,000 +
U.S. Civilians wounded/injured 6,000 +
Total Americans killed (military and civilian) 10,008 +
Total Americans wounded/injured 56,422 +

[251][252][253][254][255]

The United States Department of Veterans Affairs has diagnosed more than 200,000 American veterans with PTSD since 2001.[256]

  • Yemen
Main article: Terrorism in Yemen

Total terrorist casualties[edit source]

On December 7, 2015, the Washington post reported that since 2001, in five theaters of the war (Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen, Syria and Somalia) that the total number of terrorists killed ranges from 65,800 to 88,600, with Obama administration being responsible for between 30,000 and 33,000.[257]

Costs[edit source]

A March 2011 Congressional report[258] estimated spending related to the war through the fiscal year 2011 at $1.2 trillion, and that spending through 2021 assuming a reduction to 45,000 troops would be $1.8 trillion. A June 2011 academic report[258] covering additional areas of spending related to the war estimated it through 2011 at $2.7 trillion, and long-term spending at $5.4 trillion including interest.[note 4]

According to the Soufan Group in July 2015, the United States government spends $9.4 million per day in operations against ISIS in Syria and Iraq.[259]

Expense CRS/CBO (Billions US$):[260][261][262] Watson (Billions constant US$):[263]
FY2001-FY2011
War appropriations to DoD 1208.1 1311.5
War appropriations to DoS/USAID 66.7 74.2
VA Medical 8.4 13.7
VA disability 18.9
Interest paid on DoD war appropriations 185.4
Additions to DoD base spending 362.2–652.4
Additions to Homeland Security base spending 401.2
Social costs to veterans and military families to date 295-400
Subtotal: 1283.2 2662.1–3057.3
FY2012-future
FY2012 DoD request 118.4
FY2012 DoS/USAID request 12.1
Projected 2013–2015 war spending 168.6
Projected 2016–2020 war spending 155
Projected obligations for veterans’ care to 2051 589–934
Additional interest payments to 2020 1000
Subtotal: 454.1 2043.1–2388.1
Total: 1737.3 4705.2–5445.4

Criticism[edit source]

Main article: Criticism of the War on Terror

Participants in a rally, dressed as hooded detainees

Criticism of the War on Terror addressed the issues, morality, efficiency, economics, and other questions surrounding the War on Terror and made against the phrase itself, calling it a misnomer. The notion of a “war” against “terrorism” has proven highly contentious, with critics charging that it has been exploited by participating governments to pursue long-standing policy/military objectives,[264] reduce civil liberties,[265] and infringe upon human rights. It is argued that the term war is not appropriate in this context (as in War on Drugs) since there is no identifiable enemy and that it is unlikely international terrorism can be brought to an end by military means.[266]

Other critics, such as Francis Fukuyama, note that “terrorism” is not an enemy, but a tactic; calling it a “war on terror”, obscures differences between conflicts such as anti-occupation insurgents and international mujahideen. With a military presence in Iraq and Afghanistan and its associated collateral damage, Shirley Williams maintains this increases resentment and terrorist threats against the West.[267] There is also perceived U.S. hypocrisy,[268][269] media-induced hysteria,[270] and that differences in foreign and security policy have damaged America’s reputation internationally.[271]

Other Wars on Terror[edit source]

In the 2010s, China has also been engaged in its War on Terror, predominantly a domestic campaign in response to violent actions by Uighur separatist movements in the Xinjiang conflict.[272] This campaign was widely criticized in international media due to the perception that it unfairly targets and persecutes Chinese Muslims,[273] potentially resulting in a negative backlash from China‘s predominantly Muslim Uighur population.

Russia has also been engaged on its own, also largely internally focused, counter-terrorism campaign often termed a war on terror, during the Second Chechen War, the Insurgency in the North Caucasus, and the Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War.[274] Like China‘s war on terror, Russia‘s has also been focused on separatist and Islamist movements that use political violence to achieve their ends.[275]

Abu Sayyaf

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about the Filipino Islamist group. For individuals known as Abu Sayyaf and other uses, see Abu Sayyaf (disambiguation).
Abu Sayyaf
Participant in the Moro conflict in the Philippines, the Cross border attacks in Sabah and
the Global War on Terrorism
AQMI Flag asymmetric.svg

The Black Standard of ISIL, which was adopted by Abu Sayyaf
Active 1991[1]–present
Ideology Islamism
Islamic fundamentalism
Leaders Abdurajik Abubakar Janjalani  †[2]
Khadaffy Janjalani  †[3]
Radullan Sahiron[4][5]
Isnilon Totoni Hapilon[6][7]
Mahmur Japuri †[8]
Headquarters Jolo, Sulu, Philippines
Area of operations Philippines, Malaysia
Strength unknown
Part of  Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
Allies 14K Triad[9]
al-Qaeda (formerly)
Opponents Philippines Government of the Philippines[10]

Abu Sayyaf (Listeni/ˌɑːbuː/ /sɑːˌjɔːf/; Arabic: جماعة أبو سياف‎‎; Jamāʿat Abū Sayyāf, ASG; Filipino: Grupong Abu Sayyaf)[21] is a Jihadist terror group based in and around Jolo and Basilan islands in the southwestern part of the Philippines, where for more than four decades, Moro groups have been engaged in an insurgency for an independent province in the country. The group is considered violent,[22] and was responsible for the Philippines‘ worst terrorist attack, the bombing of Superferry 14 in 2004, which killed 116 people.[23] The name of the group is derived from the Arabic abu (Arabic: أبو‎‎) (“father of”), and sayyaf (Arabic: سيّاف‎‎) (“swordsmith”).[24] As of 2012, the group was estimated to have between 200 and 400 members,[25] down from 1,250 in 2000.[26] They use mostly improvised explosive devices, mortars, and automatic rifles.

Since its inception in 1991, the group has carried out bombings, kidnappings, assassinations, and extortion[27] in what they describe as their fight for an independent Islamic province in the Philippines.[28] They have also been involved in criminal activities, including kidnapping, rape, child sexual assault, forced marriage,[29] drive-by shootings, extortion, and drug trafficking,[30] and the goals of the group “appear to have alternated over time between criminal objectives and a more ideological intent”.[25]

The group has been designated as a terrorist group by the United Nations, Australia,[11] Canada,[12] Indonesia,[13]Malaysia,[14] the Philippines,[10] United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom,[15] and the United States.[16][28] In 2002, fighting Abu Sayyaf became a mission of the American military’s Operation Enduring Freedom and part of the Global War on Terrorism.[31][32] Several hundred United States soldiers are also stationed in the area to mainly train local forces in counter terror and counter guerrilla operations, but, as a status of forces agreement and under Philippine law, they are not allowed to engage in direct combat.[32]

The group was founded by Abdurajik Abubakar Janjalani, and led after his death in 1998 by his younger brother Khadaffy Janjalani who was killed in 2007. On 23 July 2014, Abu Sayyaf leader Isnilon Totoni Hapilon swore an oath of loyalty to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of ISIL.[6] In September 2014, the group began kidnapping people to ransom, in the name of ISIL.[33][34]

Background and history

In the early 1970s, the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) was the main Muslim rebel groups fighting in Basilan and Mindanao in the southern Philippines.[28] Abdurajik Abubakar Janjalani, the older brother of Khadaffy Janjalani, had been a teacher from Basilan, who later studied Islamic theology and Arabic in Libya, Syria and Saudi Arabia during the 1980s.[35][36] Abdurajik then went to Afghanistan to fight against the Soviet Union and the Afghan government during the Soviet war in Afghanistan in the 1980s. During that period, he is alleged to have met Osama Bin Laden and been given $6 million to establish a more Islamic group with the MNLF in the southern Philippines, made up of members of the extant MNLF.[37] By then, as a political solution in the southern Philippines, ARMM had been established in 1989. Both Abdurajik Abubakar and his younger brother who succeeded him were natives of Isabela City, currently one of the poorest cities of the Philippines. Located on the North-Western part of the island of Basilan, Isabela is also the capital of Basilan province, across the Isabela Channel from the Malamwi Island. But Isabela City is administered under the Zamboanga Peninsula political region north of the island of Basilan, while the rest of the island province of Basilan is now (since 1996) governed as part of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) to the east.

Abdurajik Abubakar Janjalani leadership (1989–1998)

MNLF had moderated into an established political government, the ARMM. It was established in 1989, fully institutionalised by 1996 and which eventually became the ruling government in southern Mindanao. When Abdurajik Abubakar Janjalani returned home to Basilan island in 1990, he gathered radical members of the old MNLF who wanted to resume armed struggle for an independent Islamic state and in 1991 established the Abu Sayyaf.[28] Janjalani was provided some funding by a Saudi Islamist, Mohammed Jamal Khalifa, who came to the Philippines in 1987 or 1988 and was head of the Philippine branch of the International Islamic Relief Organization foundation. A defector from Abu Sayyaf told Filipino authorities, “The IIRO was behind the construction of Mosques, school buildings and other livelihood projects” but only “in areas penetrated, highly influenced and controlled by the Abu Sayyaf.” According to the defector “Only 10 to 30% of the foreign funding goes to the legitimate relief and livelihood projects and the rest go to terrorist operations”.[38][39][40][41] Khalifa had married a local woman, Alice “Jameelah” Yabo.[42]

By 1995 Abu Sayyaf was active in large scale bombings and attacks in the Philippines. The Abu Sayyaf’s first attack was the assault on the town of Ipil in Mindanao in April 1995. This year also marked the escape of 20-year-old Khadaffy Janjalani from Camp Crame in Manila along with another member named Jovenal Bruno. On 18 December 1998, Abdurajik Abubakar Janjalani was killed in a gun battle with the Philippine National Police on Basilan Island.[43] He is thought to have been about age 39 at the time of his death.[36] The death of Aburajik Abubakar Janjalani marked a turning point in Abu Sayyaf operations, shifting from its ideological focus to more general kidnappings, murders and robberies, as the younger brother Khadaffy Janjalani succeeded Abdurajak. Consequently, being on the social or political division line, Basilan, Jolo and Sulu have seen some of the fiercest fighting between government troops and the Muslim separatist group Abu Sayyaf through the early 1990s. The Abu Sayyaf primarily operates in the southern Philippines with members travelling to Manila and other provinces in the country. It was reported that Abu Sayyaf had begun expanding into neighbouring Malaysia and Indonesia by the early 1990s. The Abu Sayyaf is one of the smallest, but strongest of the Islamist separatist groups in the Philippines. Some Abu Sayyaf members have studied or worked in Saudi Arabia and developed ties to mujahadeen while fighting and training in the war against the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.[35] Abu Sayyaf proclaimed themselves as mujahideen and freedom fighters but are not supported by many people in the Philippines including its Muslim clerics.

Khadaffy Janjalani leadership (1999–2007)

Until his death in a gunbattle on 4 September 2006, Khaddafy Janjalani was considered the nominal leader of the group by the Armed Forces of the Philippines. The 23-year-old Khadaffy Janjalani then took leadership of one of Abu Sayyaf’s factions in an internecine struggle.[43][44] He then worked to consolidate his leadership of the Abu Sayyaf, causing the group to appear inactive for a period. After Janjalani’s leadership was secured, the Abu Sayyaf began a new strategy, as they proceeded to take hostages. The group’s motive for kidnapping became more financial than religious during the period of Khadaffy’s leadership, according to locals in the areas associated with Abu Sayyaf. The hostage money is probably the method of financing of the group.[37]

Isnilon Totoni Hapilon, one of the FBI Most Wanted Terrorists who is a member of Abu Sayyaf.

The group expanded its operations to Malaysia in 2000 when it abducted foreigners from two resorts. This action was condemned by most leaders in the Islamic world. It was also responsible for the kidnapping and murder of more than 30 foreigners and Christian clerics and workers, including Martin and Gracia Burnham.[45][46] A commander named Abu Sabaya was killed in 2002 while trying to evade forces.[47] Galib Andang, one of the leaders of the group, was captured in Sulu in December 2003.[43][45][48][49] An explosion at a military base in Jolo on 18 February 2006 was blamed on Abu Sayyaf by Brig. General Alexander Aleo, an Army officer.[50] Khadaffy Janjalani was indicted in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia for his alleged involvement in terrorist attacks, including hostage taking by Abu Sayyaf and murder, against United States nationals and other foreign nationals in and around the Republic of the Philippines.[51] Consequently, on 24 February 2006, Janjalani was among six fugitives in the second and most recent group of indicted fugitives to be added to the FBI Most Wanted Terrorists list along with two fellow members of the Abu Sayyaf, including Isnilon Totoni Hapilon and Jainal Antel Sali, Jr.[52][53]

Photograph of Jainal Antel Sali, Jr. in 2006. Sali was later killed during a heavy gunfight with the Philippine authorities in 2007.

On 13 December 2006, it was reported that Abu Sayyaf members may have been planning attacks during the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in the Philippines. The group was reported to have been training alongside Jemaah Islamiyah militants. The plot was reported to have involved detonating a car bomb in Cebu City where the summit was scheduled to take place.[54] On 27 December, the Philippine military reported that Janjalani’s remains had been recovered near Patikul, in Jolo in the southern Philippines and that DNA tests had been ordered to confirm the discovery. He was allegedly shot in the neck in an encounter with government troops on September on Luba Hills, Patikul town in Sulu.

Present time (2010–present)

In a video published in the summer of 2014, senior Abu Sayyaf leader Isnilon Hapilon and other masked men swear their allegiance or “bay’ah” to the “Islamic State” (ISIS) caliph. “We pledge to obey him on anything which our hearts desire or not and to value him more than anyone else. We will not take any emir (leader) other than him unless we see in him any obvious act of disbelief that could be questioned by Allah in the hereafter.”[55] For many years prior to this Islamic State’s competitor, Al Qaeda, had the support of Abu Sayyaf “through various connections.”[55] Observers were sceptical of whether the pledge would lead to Abu Sayyaf becoming an ISIS outpost in Southeast Asia, or was simply a way for the group to taking advantage of the international publicity Islamic State is getting.[55]

Supporters and funding

Abdurajik Abubakar Janjalani’s first recruits were soldiers of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). However, both MNLF and MILF deny having any links with Abu Sayyaf. Both officially distance themselves from Abu Sayyaf because of its attacks on civilians and its supposed profiteering. The Philippine military, however, has claimed that elements of both groups provide support to the Abu Sayyaf. The group was originally not thought to receive funding from outside sources, but intelligence reports from the United States, Indonesia and Australia have found intermittent ties to the Indonesian Jemaah Islamiyah terrorist group,[56] and the Philippine government considers the Abu Sayyaf as a part of Jemaah Islamiyah.[43] The government also notes that initial funding for ASG in the 1990s came from al-Qaeda through the brother-in-law of Osama bin Laden, Mohammed Jamal Khalifa, through Islamic charities in the region.[43][57][58][59][60]

Al-Qaeda-affiliated terrorist Ramzi Yousef operated in the Philippines in the mid-1990s and trained Abu Sayyaf soldiers.[61] The 2002 edition of the United State Department’s Patterns of Global Terrorism mention links to Al-Qaeda. Continuing ties to Islamist groups in the Middle East indicate that al-Qaeda may be continuing support.[36][62][63] As of mid 2005, Jemaah Islamiyah personnel reportedly had trained about 60 Abu Sayyarf cadre in bomb assembling and detonations.[64][65][66]

Funding

The group obtains most of its financing through ransom and extortion.[34][67] One report estimated its revenues from ransom payments in 2000 alone between $10 and $25 million. According to the State Department, it may also receive funding from radical Islamic benefactors in the Middle East and South Asia. It was reported that Libya facilitated ransom payments to Abu Sayyaf. Libya was also suggested that Libyan money could possibly be channelled to Abu Sayyaf.[68] Russian intelligence agencies connected with Victor Bout‘s planes have reportedly provided Abu Sayyaf with arms.[69][70] In 2014 and since, kidnapping for ransom hasbeen the primary means of funding.[71]

Motivation, beliefs, targets

Filipino Islamist guerillas such as Abu Sayyaf, have been described as “rooted in a distinct class made up of closely knit networks built through marriage of important families through socioeconomic backgrounds and family structures,” according to Michael Buehler, a lecturer in comparative politics at the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies. This tight-knit, familial structure provides resilience but also limits their ability to expand.[55] The commander of the Philippines military’s Western Mindanao Command Lieutenant General Rustico Guerrero, also describes Abu Sayyaf as “a local group with a local agenda.”[55] Two kidnapping victims, (Martin and Gracia Burnham) who were kept in captivity by ASG for over a year, “gently engaged their captors in theological discussion” and found Abu Sayyaf fighters to be unfamiliar with the Qur’an. They had only “a sketchy” notion of Islam, which they saw as “a set of behavioural rules, to be violated when it suited them”, according to author Mark Bowden. As “holy warriors, they were justified in kidnapping, killing and stealing. Having sex with women captives was justified by their claiming them as “wives”.[72]

Unlike the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and Moro National Liberation Front, the group is not recognised by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, and according to author Dr Robert (Bob) East, was seen as “nothing more than a criminal operation” at least prior to 2001.[73] A Center for Strategic and International Studies report by Jack Fellman notes the political rather than religious motivation of ASG. He quotes ASG leader Khadaffy Janjalain’s statement that his brother (the former leader of ASG) was right to split from the more moderate MNLF because “up to now, nothing came out” of attempts to gain more autonomy for Moro Muslims. This suggests, Fellman believes, that ASG “is merely the latest, albeit most violent, iteration of Moro political dissatisfaction that has existed for the last several decades”.[74]

Most Abu Sayyaf members are also “shabu” (methamphetamine) users as been revealed from surviving hostages who saw Abu Sayyaf members taking shabu as well from military findings who found drug packets in many of the abandoned Abu Sayyaf nests that justified their motivation as extreme like criminals and terrorists than truly fighting for religion and their region future.[75][76] Although if one Abu Sayyaf spokesman claimed he is representing the whole group, its spokesman also lack of knowledge of the activities on other members as the group was separated into many small group with their own leader just like the MNLF as been discovered by a Malaysian journalist, who see the spokesman known as Abu Rami seems did not know the news of their fellow members deaths.[77]

Targets

Most of the Abu Sayyaf victims have been Filipinos. However, Australian, British, Canadian, Chinese, French, German, Indonesian and Malaysian tourists, businessmen, sailors, fishermen and police as well as Vietnamese fishermen and sailors have been targeted.[17][18] Americans in particular have been targeted for political and nationalistic reasons. A spokesman for the Abu Sayyaf has stated that, “We have been trying hard to get an American because they may think we are afraid of them”. He added, “We want to fight the American people”.[78] In 1993, Abu Sayyaf kidnapped an American Bible translator in the southern Philippines. In 2000, Abu Sayyaf captured an American Muslim visiting Jolo and demanded that the United States release Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman and Ramzi Yousef, who were jailed for their involvement in the World Trade Center bombing of 1993. A Japanese businessman was killed when a Cebu to Tokyo Philippine Airlines flight was bombed on 10 December 1994 by Abu Sayyaf.[79] While the body of 73-year-old Korean hostage Nwi Seong Hong, who had been held by Abu Sayyaf since 24 January 2015 was found in late November of the same year.[80][81][82]

Crimes and terrorism

Main article: Timeline of Abu Sayyaf attacks

Abu Sayyaf has carried out numerous bombings, kidnappings, assassinations, and extortion activities[27] in what they describe as their fight for an independent Islamic province in the Philippines.[28] These include the 2000 Sipadan kidnappings, the 2001 Dos Palmas kidnappings and the 2004 SuperFerry 14 bombing.

Kidnappings

Although the group has engaged in kidnapping hostages to be exchanged for ransom for many years, this means of funding grew dramatically beginning in 2014, providing funds for the group’s rapid growth.[71]

In the Philippines

Journalists abducted since 2000

ABS-CBN‘s Newsbreak reported that Abu Sayyaf abducted at least 20 journalists since 2000 (mostly foreign journalists) and all of them were eventually released upon payment of ransom.

Ces Drilon and cameramen Jimmy Encarnacion and Angelo Valderama were the latest of its kidnap victims. The journalists held captive were

  1. GMA-7 television reporter Susan Enriquez (April 2000, Basilan, a few days);
  2. 10 Foreign journalists (7 German, 1 French, 1 Australian and 1 Danish, in May 2000, Jolo, for 10 hours);
  3. German Andreas Lorenz of the magazine Der Spiegel (July 2000, Jolo, for 25 days; he was also kidnapped in May);
  4. French television reporter Maryse Burgot and cameraman Jean-Jacques Le Garrec and sound technician Roland Madura (July 2000, Jolo, for 2 months);
  5. ABS-CBN television reporter Maan Macapagal and cameraman Val Cuenca (July 2000, Jolo, for 4 days);
  6. Philippine Daily Inquirer contributor and Net 25 television reporter Arlyn de la Cruz (January 2002, Zamboanga, for 3 months)
  7. GMA-7 television reporter Carlo Lorenzo and cameraman Gilbert Ordiales (September 2002, Jolo, for 6 days).[83]
Jeffrey Schilling

Jeffrey Schilling, an American citizen and Muslim convert, was held by Abu Sayyaf for 8 months after being captured while visiting a terrorist camp with his wife, Ivy Osani. Abu Sayyaf demanded a $10 million ransom for his release, but Schilling escaped after more than 7 months and was picked up by the Philippine Marine Corps on 12 April 2001.[84][85]Many commentators have been critical of Schilling, who had reportedly walked into the camp. Schilling claims to have been invited by his wife’s distant cousin who was a member of Abu Sayyaf.[86]

Martin and Gracia Burnham
See also: Dos Palmas kidnappings

On 27 May 2001, an Abu Sayyaf raid kidnapped about 20 people from Dos Palmas, an expensive resort in Honda Bay, to the north of Puerto Princesa City on the island of Palawan, which had been “considered completely safe”. The most “valuable” of the hostages were three North Americans, Martin and Gracia Burnham, a missionary couple, and Guillermo Sobero, a Peruvian-American tourist who was later beheaded by Abu Sayyaf, for whom Abu Sayyaf demanded $1 million in ransom.[87] The hostages and hostage-takers then returned hundreds of kilometres back across the Sulu Sea to the Abu Sayyaf’s territories in Mindanao.[88] According to author Mark Bowden, the leader of the raid was Abu Sabaya. According to Gracia Burnham, she told her husband “to identify his kidnappers” to authorities “as ‘the Osama bin Laden Group,’ but Burnham was unfamiliar with that name and stuck with” Abu Sayyaf. After returning to Mindanao, Abu Sayyaf operatives conducted numerous raids, including one that culminated in the Siege of Lamitan and “one at a coconut plantation called Golden Harvest; they took about 15 people captive there and later used bolo knives to hack the heads off two men. The number of hostages waxed and waned as some were ransomed and released, new ones were taken and others were killed.”[88]

On 7 June 2002, about a year after the raid, Philippine army troops conducted a rescue operation in which two of the three hostages held, Martin Burnham and Filipino nurse, Ediborah Yap, were killed. The remaining hostage was wounded and the hostage takers escaped. In July 2004, Gracia Burnham testified at a trial of eight Abu Sayyaf members and identified six of the suspects as being her erstwhile captors, including Alhamzer Limbong, Abdul Azan Diamla, Abu Khari Moctar, Bas Ishmael, Alzen Jandul, and Dazid Baize. “The eight suspects sat silently during her three-hour testimony, separated from her by a wooden grill. They face the death sentence if found guilty of kidnapping for ransom. The trial began this year and is not expected to end for several months.”[89] Alhamzer Limbong was later killed in a prison uprising.[90] Gracia Burnham has claimed that Philippine military officials were colluding with her captors, saying that the Armed Forces of the Philippines “didn’t pursue us…As time went on, we noticed that they never pursued us”.[91]

2009 Red Cross kidnapping

On 15 January 2009, Abu Sayyaf kidnapped International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) delegates in Patikul, Sulu province, Philippines. The three ICRC workers had finished conducting field work in Sulu province, located in the southwest of the country, when they were abducted by an unknown group, later confirmed as Abu Sayyaf leader Albader Parad‘s group. Parad himself was said to be involved in the kidnapping.[92] All three workers were eventually released. According to a CNN story, Parad was reportedly killed, along with five other militants, in an assault raid by Philippine marines in Sulu province on Sunday, 21 February 2010.

Warren Rodwell

Survivor Warren Rodwell (2010) prior to abduction by Abu Sayyaf

Warren Richard Rodwell (born 16 June 1958[93] Homebush NSW)[94] a former soldier[95] in the Australian Army, and university English teacher,[96] grew up in Tamworth NSW.[97] He was shot through the right hand when seized[98] from his home at Ipil, Zamboanga Sibugay on the island of Mindanao in the southern Philippines on 5 December 2011[99] by Abu Sayyaf (ASG) militants.[100] Rodwell later had to have a finger amputated.[101]

The ASG threatened to behead Rodwell[102] if their ransom demand for $US2 million was not paid.[103] Both the Philippine and Australian governments had strict policies of refusing to pay ransoms.[104] Australia formed a multi-agency task force to assist the Philippine authorities, and liaise with Rodwell’s family.[105] A news blackout was imposed.[106] Filipino politicians helped negotiate the release.[107]After the payment of $AUD94,000[108] for “board and lodging” expenses[109] by his siblings, Rodwell was released 472 days later on 23 March 2013.[110] The incumbent Australian prime minister praised the Philippines government for securing Rodwell’s release. Tribute was also made to Australian officials from the Department of Foreign Affairs, the Australian Federal Police and Defence.[111] Rodwell subsequently returned to Australia.[112]

As part of the 2015 Australia Day Honours, Australian Army Lieutenant Colonel Paul Joseph Barta was awarded the Conspicuous Service Cross (CSC) for outstanding devotion to duty as the Assistant Defence Attaché Manila during the Australian whole of government response to the Rodwell kidnap for ransom (and immediately following, the devastation of Typhoon Haiyan). At the 2015 Australian Federal Police Foundation Day award ceremony in Canberra, fourteen AFP members received the Commissioners’ Group Citation for Conspicuous Conduct for their work in support of the Philippine National Police and Australian Government efforts to release Australian man Warren Rodwell.[113] By the end of his 15 months as a hostage in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, Rodwell had lost about 30 kilograms in weight due to starvation,[114] In popular culture, Blue Mountains (Sydney) techno Cowpunk band Mad Cowboy Disease composed, performed and released songs written by Rodwell, based on his ordeal ; Situation Not Normal,[115]Our Sibling Hearts[116] and Eyes of Lies[117]

Rodwell’s biography 472 Days Captive of the Abu Sayyaf – The Survival of Australian Warren Rodwell by independent researcher Dr Robert (Bob) East was published by Cambridge Scholars Publishing, United Kingdom (2015) ISBN 1-4438-7058-7.[118] A subsequent book review by Assistant Professor Francis C. Domingo was published by Ateneo de Manila University in the journal Philippine Studies: Historical and Ethnographic Viewpoints – Volume 64, Number 2 (June 2016) ISSN 2244-1093 (Pages 317 – 320).[119]Domingo states that the biography’s main contribution lies in the operational methods and practices of the Abu Sayyaf Group, as well as a focus on the physical, mental, and psychological aspects of Rodwell’s survival techniques.

Award-winning Filipino journalist and CEO of Rappler,[120] Maria A. Ressa wrote at some length about the Warren Rodwell case in the 2013 international edition of her Imperial College Press – published book From Bin Laden to Facebook: 10 Days of Abduction, 10 Years of Terrorism ISBN 978-1-908979-53-7[121] (Refer to Pages 265 – 271) Crowdsourcing for ransom, and social media (such as, Facebook and YouTube) were used by Abu Sayyaf during negotiations. The author asserts on Page 270; “Social media is changing what was once a closed dialogue between kidnappers, their victims and governments.” Also, Colonel (reserve) in the Israel Defence Forces and research fellow at the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism (ICT), Dr Shaul Shay, analysed the Warren Rodwell terror abduction in: Global Jihad and The Tactic of Terror Abduction : A Comprehensive Review of Islamic Terrorist Organisations. ISBN 978-1-84519-611-0 (Refer to Chapter 10) (Sussex Academic Press).[122]

Counter-terrorism analyst Dr Edward Mickolus wrote in Terrorism, 2013-2015: A Worldwide Chronology ISBN 978-1-4766-6437-8. [123] (Pp 218 & 530) (McFarland & Company publisher) of the arrest on 16 June 2014 of two Abu Sayyaf suspects, Jimmy Nurilla (alias Doc) and Bakrin Haris. Both reportedly [124] worked under Basilan-based Abu Sayyaf leader Khair Mundos and Furuji Indama. Authorities believed Nurilla and Haris took part in the kidnapping of Australian Warren Rodwell in 2011, as well as USA citizen Gerfa Yeatts Lunsman and her son Kevin in 2012.

In January 2015, Mindanao Examiner newspaper reported the arrest of Barahama Ali[125] kidnap gang sub-leaders linked to the kidnapping of Warren Rodwell, who was seized by at least 5 gunmen (disguised as policemen), and eventually handed over or sold by the kidnappers to the Abu Sayyaf in Basilan province.[126] In May, ex-Philippine National Police (PNP) officer Jun A. Malban was arrested in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia for the crime of “Kidnapping for Ransom” after Rodwell identified him as the negotiator/spokesperson of the Abu Sayyaf Group during his captivity. Further PNP investigation revealed that Malban is the cousin of Abu Sayyaf leaders Khair Mundos and his brother Borhan Mundos. (Both were arrested in 2014).[127] The director of the Anti-Kidnapping Group (AKG) stated that Malban’s arrest resulted from close co-ordination by the PNP, National Bureau of Investigation (Philippines) and Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission with the Malaysian counterparts and through Interpol.[128]

In August 2015, Edeliza Sumbahon Ulep,[129] alias Gina Perez, was arrested at Trento, Agusan del Sur during a joint manhunt operation by police and military units. Ulep was tagged as the ransom courier of the Abu Sayyaf bandits in Zamboanga Sibugay in the kidnapping of Rodwell.[130]

In August 2016, The Manila Times reported the arrest of the kidnap-for-ransom group of Barahama Alih sub-leader, Hasim Calon alias Husien (also a notorious provincial drug dealer), in his hideout in Tenan village in Ipil town. Hasim Calon was involved in the abduction of Warren Rodwell. Earlier in 2016, police forces killed Waning Abdulsalam. a former leader of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, in the village of Singkilon in the town of Naga, Zamboanga Sibugay. Abdulsalam was one of the most wanted criminals in southern Philippines, and connected also to the Abu Sayyaf. He was linked to the kidnappings of Rodwell in 2011, Irish missionary Michael Sinnott in 2009 in Pagadian City, and Italian Catholic priest Giancarlo Bossi in Zamboanga del Sur’s Payao town in 2007.[131]

2015 Samal Island kidnappings

On 21 September 2015, Canadians Robert Hall and John Ridsdel, as well as Norwegian Kjartan Sekkingstad, and (Hall’s girlfriend) Marites Flor; a Filipino woman, were all abducted from an upscale resort complex on the Philippine island of Samal near Davao in south eastern Mindanao.[132] Ridsdel was beheaded by Abu Sayyaf on 25 April 2016 following a ransom deadline.[133][134] ASG reportedly demanded more than $8.1 million for Ridsdel and the others. Former Canadian politician Bob Rae (and friend of Ridsdel), worked with the family to try to secure his release. Rae stated that the Canadian government was “very directly involved” in helping Ridsdel’s family deal with the kidnappers. Abu Sayyaf refused to lower their demand.[135]

On 3 May 2016, a video of the Ridsdel execution was released, along with a new set of demands for the remaining hostages.[136][137] A masked captor said, “Note to the Philippine government and to the Canadian government: The lesson is clear. John Ridsdel has been beheaded. Now there are three remaining captives here. If you procrastinate once again the negotiations, we will behead this all anytime”.[138]

On 15 May, media reports advised that Canadian Robert Hall had appeared in a new video, announcing that he and Norwegian Kjartan Sekkingstad would be decapitated at 3pm on Monday 13 June 2016 if a ransom of $16 million is not paid. Both hostages wore orange coveralls, similar to hostages in videos produced by ISIL, to which Abu Sayyaf had previously pledged allegiance.[139] The deadline passed. Robert Hall was beheaded.[140]

Canadian newspaper Toronto Star published (from 30 November – 7 December 2016) “Held Hostage”,[141] an eight-part investigation into what really happens when a Canadian is taken hostage abroad. The Star revealed “a system ripe for overhaul”, and ways Canada can change its approach, so it may be more effectively prepared in future.[142]

On 24 June, Abu Sayyaf released Filipina Marites Flor. She was subsequently flown to Davao to meet President-elect Rodrigo Duterte. Duterte said he directed negotiations with the Abu Sayyaf. He did not elaborate.[143]

On 17 September 2016, remaining hostage Norwegian Kjartan Sekkingstad was released on Jolo island. Abu Ramie, an ASG spokesman, claimed $638,000 was paid as ransom.[144] Sekkingstad subsequently returned to Norway.[145]

In Malaysia

See also: Cross border attacks in Sabah
2000 Sipadan kidnappings
Main article: 2000 Sipadan kidnappings

On 3 May 2000, Abu Sayyaf guerillas occupied the Malaysian dive resort island Sipadan and took 21 hostages, including 10 tourists and 11 resort workers – 19 non-Filipino nationals in total. The hostages were taken to an Abu Sayyaf base in Jolo, Sulu.[146] Two Muslim Malaysians were released soon after, however Abu Sayyaf made various demands for the release of several prisoners, including 1993 World Trade Center bomber Ramzi Yousef and $2.4 million. In July, a Filipino television evangelist and 12 of members of the Jesus Miracle Crusade Church offered their help and went as mediators for the relief of other hostages.[147] They, three French television crew members and a German journalist, all visiting Abu Sayyaf on Jolo, were also taken hostage.[148] Most hostages were released in August and September 2000, partly due to mediation by Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and an offer of $25 million in “development aid”.[149]

Abu Sayyaf conducted a second raid on the island of Pandanan near Sipadan on 10 September and seized three more Malaysians.[150] The Philippine army launched a major offensive on 16 September 2000, rescuing all remaining hostages, except Filipino dive instructor Roland Ullah. He was eventually freed in 2003.[146] Abu Sayyaf coordinated with the Chinese 14K Triad gang in carrying out the kidnappings.[151] The 14K Triad has militarily supported Abu Sayyaf.[9]

2013 Pom Pom kidnappings

On 15 November 2013, Abu Sayyaf militants raided a resort on a Malaysian island of Pom Pom in Semporna, Sabah.[152][153] During the ambush, Taiwanese citizen Chang An-wei was kidnapped and her husband, Hsu Li-min, was killed.[154] Chang was taken to the Sulu Archipelago in the southern Philippines.[152] Gene Yu, an American and former US Army Special Forces captain was instrumental in negotiating, locating and working to free Taiwanese citizen Chang An-wei from Abu Sayyaf militants with Filipino special forces and private security contractors in 2013. Chang was freed in Sulu Province and returned to Taiwan on 21 December.[155][156][157]

2014 Singamata resort, Baik Island and Kampung Air Sapang fish farm kidnappings

On 2 April 2014, a group believed to originate from Abu Sayyaf militants raided a resort off Semporna, Sabah.[158][159] During the raid, Gao Huayun, a Chinese tourist from Shanghai and Marcy Dayawan, a Filipino resort worker who was on the resort were kidnapped and taken to the Sulu Archipelago.[158][160] The two hostages were later rescued after a collaboration between the Malaysian and the Philippines security forces.[161][162] On 6 May, a group comprising five Abu Sayyaf gunmen raided a Malaysian fish farm in Baik Island, Sabah and kidnapped the fish farm manager, after which the hostage was brought to Jolo island.[163][164] He was later freed on July with the help of Malaysian negotiators.[165] On 16 June, two gunmen believed to be from the Abu Sayyaf group kidnapped another Chinese fish farm manager and one Filipino in Kampung Air Sapang, Kunak, Sabah.[166][167] One of the kidnap victims, a Filipino fish farm worker, managed to escape and went missing.[168][169] Meanwhile, the fish farm manager was taken to Jolo.[170] He was later released on 10 December.[171] The Malaysian authorities have identified five Filipinos, the “Muktadir brothers”, as behind all of the kidnapping cases. They then sell their hostages to the Abu Sayyaf group.[172]

Of all the five Muktadil brothers: Mindas Muktadil was killed by Philippine police in Jolo in May 2015, Kadafi Muktadil was arrested in late 2015, Nixon Muktadil and Brown Muktadil was killed during an operation by the Philippine military on 27 September 2016 after they resist for arrest,[173][174] while Badong Muktadil succumbed to his injuries during his run after being shot at the time his brothers was killed. His body was discovered in a pump boat in Mususiasi area in Siasi Island, close to Jolo.[175]

2015 Ocean Seafood Restaurant kidnappings

On 15 May 2015, four armed men from the Abu Sayyaf-based group abducted two people in a resort in Sandakan, Sabah and brought them to Parang, Sulu.[176][177] One of the hostage was released on 9 November, after six months in captivity,[178] while another one, Bernard Then, was beheaded due to ransom demands not being met.[179][180]

Philippines and Malaysia waters

2016 local and foreign sailors kidnappings

On 26 March, ten Indonesian sailors were held hostage by Islamist militant group Abu Sayyaf operating in Sulu Archipelago in the southern Philippines. The ten crew members were abducted from the Brahma 12 tugboat and the Anand 12 barge — carrying 7,000 tons of coal — near the country’s southernmost Tawi-Tawi province.[181] The Indonesian vessels were freighting coal from South Borneo heading for Batangas port when hijacked near Sulu waters.

On 1 April, four Malaysian sailors aboard a tugboat from Manila were kidnapped when they arrived near the shore of Ligitan Island. Their companions, three Myanmar nationals and two Indonesians, were unharmed.[182] In the same month, the Indonesian government announced that the company that owned tugboat Brahma 12 had agreed to pay the 50-million-peso ($1 million) ransom demanded for the release of ten Indonesian crew members.[183] On 2 May, the ten Indonesian sailors held hostage were released by their captors.[184] Another four Indonesian sailors were kidnapped when two Indonesian tugboats from Cebu, Henry and Cristi that bore 10 passengers, were attacked by Abu Sayyaf militants on 15 April. While five of the passengers were safe, one was injured after being shot, but he was rescued by operatives from the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) when the vessels arrived in Malaysian waters.[185] The four were released on 11 May with the help of the Philippine government.[186] A group of concerned Filipinos in Sabah has urged the Philippine president-elect Rodrigo Duterte to intervene for the release of four Malaysians held hostage by the Abu Sayyaf. The issue has strained the relationship between the Philippines and Malaysia, and has affected the lives of Filipinos in Sabah.[187] The four Malaysian hostages were released on 8 June after nearly two months in captivity.[188] On 21 June, seven Indonesian sailors aboard a tugboat that passing through the Sulu Archipelago was kidnapped.[189] On 9 July, three Indonesians fishermen was kidnapped near the coast of Lahad Datu, Sabah, Malaysia.[190] On 18 July, five Malaysian sailors were also abducted near the coast of Lahad Datu.[191] Another one Indonesian sailor was kidnapped in the waters of Malaysia on 3 August while leaving other two crews unharmed, the incident was only reported by victims on 5 August.[192]Two of the Indonesian sailor hostages have managed to escape from the Abu Sayyaf after persistent threats of beheading.[193]

On 10 September, three Filipino fishermen was kidnapped on the shores of Pom Pom Island in Sabah, Malaysia.[194][195] The three Indonesians fishermen that were kidnapped on 9 July from Sabah were released on 17 September.[196] Another Indonesian hostage was released on 22 September.[197] On 27 September, one Malaysian boat-skipper was kidnapped from his trawler by seven armed Filipino militants before the group attacked another Indonesian trawler, however, no kidnappings were committed in the second incident.[198] The boat-skipper was released on 1 October, with no ransom having been asked,[199] along with three Indonesians hostages that were released the same day.[200]On 21 October, around 10 Abu Sayyaf militants attack a South Korean-bound vessel named MV Dongbang Gian and abduct a South Korean skipper and a Filipino crewman off Bongao, Tawi-Tawi.[201] On 6 November, a German woman tourist was shot dead while her boyfriend was abducted by Abu Sayyaf militants from their yacht off Tanjong Luuk Pisuk in Sabah.[202][203] On 11 November, a Vietnamese vessel MV Royale 16 with 19 sailors on board was attacked by Abu Sayyaf near Basilan, abducting 6 sailors and injuring one. The remaining 13 sailors were released.[204] On 20 November, two Indonesian fishermen was kidnapped by five Abu Sayyaf gunmen off Lahad Datu, Sabah, while Philippine military been informed to intercept the bandit.[205]

Due to the increase of attacks against foreign vessels by Abu Sayyaf, the governments of Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines have agreed to jointly patrol their waters on 5 May 2016.[206] The three countries also have signed another agreement on joint air patrols.[207]

During the first six months of 2016, Abu Sayyaf made $7.3 million, equivalent to Php 353 million, from ransom payoffs according to a Philippine government report.[208]

Beheadings

Main article: Abu Sayyaf beheading incidents

As part of its kidnap-for-ransom operations, the Abu Sayyaf has executed some of their male hostages if ransom demands were not being met.[209] The group had also previously beheaded Christian civilians and other non-believers of Islam without raising any ransoms for their release, simply due to religious affiliation.[210][211]

Bombings

Superferry 14 Bombing

Main article: Superferry 14

Superferry 14 was a large ferry destroyed by a bomb on 27 February 2004, killing 116 people in the Philippines‘ worst terrorist attack and the world’s deadliest terrorist attack at sea.[23] On that day, the 10,192 ton ferry sailed out of Manila with about 900 passengers and crew on board. A television set filled with 8 lb. (4 kilograms) of TNT had been placed on board. 90 minutes out of port, the bomb exploded. 63 people were killed instantly and 53 went missing and presumed dead. Despite claims from terrorist groups, the blast was initially thought to have been an accident caused by a gas explosion. However, after divers righted the ferry five months after it had sunk, they found evidence of a bomb blast. A man called Redendo Cain Dellosa also admitted to planting the bomb on board for Abu Sayyaf. Philippine president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo announced on 11 October 2004 that investigators had concluded the explosion was caused by a bomb.[212] She said six suspects had been arrested in connection with the bombing and that the masterminds, Khadaffy Janjalani and Abu Sulaiman, have been killed. Despite being shed by two of its leaders, the ASG would continue to pose a threat to Philippine security.[213]

2016 Davao City bombing

Main article: 2016 Davao City bombing

On 2 September 2016, an explosion occurred at a night market in Davao City, Philippines resulting in at least 15 deaths and 70 injuries.[214][215] Shortly before the bombing, the Abu Sayyaf has make a threat following the intensified military operation against them.[216][217][218][219] The Abu Sayyaf through one of its spokesperson Abu Rami have claimed responsibility on the attack according to a report released by local radio station, DZMM.[220] The spokesman later denied the report and any of their involvement in the bombing, saying a group that allied to them; the Daulat Ul-Islamiya who responsible to the attack.[221] Although the Abu Sayyaf spokesman have denied their involvement, the Philippine government have put the blame on Abu Sayyaf based on a statement by the country President that stated:

This is not the first time that Davao has been sacrificed to the altar of violence. It’s always connected with Abu Sayyaf before. They gave a warning. We know that.[222]

— Rodrigo Duterte, President of the Philippines

Criticism of attacks against civilians

Condemnation from Muslim countries and organisations

Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi in Qatar has denounced the kidnapping and killings committed by the Abu Sayyaf towards civilians and foreigners, asserting that they are not part of the dispute between the Abu Sayyaf and the Philippines government. He stated that it is shameful to commit such acts in the name of the Islamic faith, saying that such acts produce backlashes against Islam and Muslims worldwide.[223] During the 2000 Sipadan kidnappings, the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) condemned the kidnapping and offered to help secure their release. OIC Secretary General Azeddine Laraki who represents the world’s largest Islamic body, told the Philippine government he was prepared to send an envoy to help save the hostages and issued a statement condemning the rebels. “The Secretary General has pointed out that this operation and the like are rejected by divine laws and that they are neither the appropriate nor correct means to resolve conflicts”, the statement said.[223]

The terrorism to innocent civilians committed by Abu Sayyaf have been condemned by fellow Moro separatists of MNLF and MILF who said the Abu Sayyaf have gone too far from their real paths of struggle, with MILF labelling Abu Sayyaf as “anti-Islam” soon after the beheading of Canadian hostage John Ridsdel in 2016.[20] While MNLF describing the group as “causing chaos to their community”.[224]

The rampant kidnappings have also been heavily criticised by Indonesia.[225] On 14 July 2016, a group of Indonesian protesters gathered in front of the Philippine Embassy in Indonesia, holding banners that read “Go to hell Philippines and Abu Sayyaf” and “Destroy the Philippines and Abu Sayyaf” due to what was seen as the lack of action from the Philippine government who seems cannot defeating the militant on its own and protecting foreign citizens.[226][227] The group demanding there should be a large scale military operation to destroy the Abu Sayyaf, of which the Indonesian military before also have proposing to sent their military to Philippines but were rejected by the Philippine government, citing it is against their constitution.[226][227][228]

Military operation against Abu Sayyaf

The Philippine military has been engaging the Abu Sayyaf since 1990s as part of its operation in Mindanao.[229][230] Under the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte, the Philippine government are interested to make a peace agreement with the Moro separatists of MNLF and MILF, while the Abu Sayyaf are excluded as they was seen no more than a “bunch of criminals” who terrorise innocent civilians.[231] The Philippine government has pledged to destroy the group to maintain the peace in Mindanao. The Philippine military has intensified their operation more since 2003 following the arrest of a Filipino-American who been alleged to have selling illegal weapons to the group. The suspect has been tagged by the United States authorities as “one of the United States most wanted fugitives” which he was then deported by the Philippine government to facing legal action in the United States.[232]

On 29 July 2016, the Philippine military gained control of one of the Abu Sayyaf strongholds in Tipo-Tipo, Basilan. The Philippine military has pledged that they will continue with more major operations to eliminate the Abu Sayyaf group.[216][233] The Philippine security forces also collaborating with neighbouring Malaysia and Indonesia to maintains the security in the Sulu Sea.[234][235] On 25 August, President Duterte ordered the group to be “destroyed” after a teenager was beheaded by the extremist group.[216] Since the incident, the Philippine military sent thousands more troops to fight and destroy the Abu Sayyaf.[219] The Filipino Army Major Filemon Tan said, “The order of the president is to search and destroy the Abu Sayyaf so that’s what we are doing”.[236] Both MNLF and MILF also have since helping the government forces to suppress extremism in Mindanao which affecting the peace process for both groups as both want to end their decades wars.[19][20][224]

The Indonesian government have proposing before to stationed their army in Mindanao to launch major operation in the southern Philippines to destroy the Abu Sayyaf.[237] The Indonesian government has calling both Malaysian and Philippine armies to launch a combined land attacks together on Mindanao in every Abu Sayyaf nests to wipe them out, while at the same time urging the Philippine government to give a law relaxation to both Indonesia and Malaysia military forces to enter the Philippines territory.[238][239] The Vietnamese military has also start to holding military exercise and precaution against the Abu Sayyaf (more known locally as “pirates” by the Vietnamese) following the repeat kidnappings of Malaysian and Indonesian sailors by the group.[240] As the Abu Sayyaf is divided between different leaders, the Philippine military has provided one battalion to go against each group.[241] On 9 September, following the meeting between President Duterte and Indonesian President of Joko Widodo, an agreement was reached to pursue the Abu Sayyaf for their persistent terrorism. The Philippine President said in a statement:

We agreed to encourage the earliest and effective implementation of cooperative frameworks to address security issues in maritime areas of common concern. We expressed commitment to take all necessary measures to ensure security in the Sulu Sea and maritime areas of common concern. There will be some interdiction by their armed forces and our armed forces and that is not really a warning but just a statement that we have decided to end this problem once and for all. Unlike the previous agreement with our neighbours, this time we will allows our neighbours to chase ships and pursue them even when they are in Philippine waters – “until such time that there is a competent Philippine authority who will take over in the chase. Maybe what’s in my mind really is the hot pursuit and if the hot pursuit is done in the high seas, in the international waters, they can and they can even arrest or destroy them if they present a violent resistance”. Malaysia will also be involved in this co-operation.[242]

— Rodrigo Duterte, President of the Philippines

However, despite the permission that have been granted by the Philippine government, the government of Indonesia decided to not launching any military operation to southern Philippines, citing the reason was due to there have been enough military personnel been deployed by the Philippine government, with the Malaysian side also shared the similar view to not sending their armies.[243] The Philippine military chief Ricardo Visaya had warned the Abu Sayyaf that they will continue with more further major military operation to stop the rampant lawlessness in the southern Philippines islands. The military chief had giving a notice to any Abu Sayyaf members to surrender or “neutralised”, a term that means getting killed, apprehended or arrested.[244] A mayor in Sumisip of Basilan has support the calling, saying:

It’s time to end this terrorist problem in our country. We want to make Basilan a peaceful place to live so that development will prosper. We are closely working with the [military] to decimate all these terrorist groups.

— Gulam S. Salliman-Hataman, Sumisip Mayor.

This was responded by around 20 Abu Sayyaf who have surrender and giving their arms to the Philippine military in Sumisip on 22 September.[245] A day before, the Philippine armed forces confiscated a total of 200 speedboats used by the Abu Sayyaf in Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi and Zamboanga.[246] President Duterte have reminded that there will be “no amnesty” for Abu Sayyaf despite a proposal by Nur Misuari, the leader of MNLF to include Abu Sayyaf in peace talks as the group have killed too many innocent peoples. The President has told that he will stick to his position for the group to be destroyed.[247] On 27 September, another largest attempt for the smuggling of weapons to the Abu Sayyaf group were busted by the Philippine National Police in San Juan City, Philippines with the arrestment of four people.[248] Until 14 October, the Philippine military has launched 579 massive military operations, 426 of which were focused “to neutralise” the group members. Of all the total operations, 54 lead to armed engagements resulting to 56 Abu Sayyaf members been killed, 21 surrendered, 17 arrested while 94 being neutralised.[249][250] The total Abu Sayyaf fatalities then increase to 102, with seven more apprehended and a total of 130 been neutralised. Several notable Abu Sayyaf leaders killed during the ongoing operations including Nelson Muktadil, Braun Muktadil, their sub-leader Mohammad Said, Jamiri Jawhari, Musanna Jamiri and the group spokesman Abu Rami.[251] In addition, another 165 fast boats that being used by the Abu Sayyaf for their transport and for their kidnappings activities were also confiscated by the military.[252] Until 13 April 2017, a total of 50 more members of the Abu Sayyaf group have surrendered to the Philippine authorities.[251]

On 26 November, Duterte stated that he will open to peace talks with the Abu Sayyaf group (as he did with the MNLF and MILF by offering federalism as a possible solution)[253]while continue fighting against the Maute group,[254] a move that were criticised by Philippine analyst as it would be used by extreme rebels to claim for legitimacy as a group.[255]In a statement, the President said:

“ I can bomb more if I want to. At the end of the day, what can I say to the Filipino? That we have wiped out almost all of our Yakan, Sama, Tausūg brothers? Even those not connected with the violence now? Either we talk, if you want autonomy or if you want something else, federalism, I am ready. I am committed to (a) federalism set-up to appease the Moro.[253][256] ”

His statements were also criticised by the country media as leading to a confusion whether he want to make peace talks with the group that have taken so many innocent lives or continue fighting against them,[257] with the Philippine government have been criticised for unable to stop the rampant lawlessness in Mindanao until this day especially with the formation of another IS-linked group, the Maute.[258] On 7 December, Duterte told the Indonesian and Malaysian leaders that “they can bomb the Abu Sayyaf along with the hostages if the Abu Sayyaf continue to present persistent threats and the hostages should already know that there is repeated warnings to not go there”.[259]

See also