Countering Al Qaeda: An Appreciation of the Situation and Suggestions for Strategy

Having achieved its initial goals in the war on terrorism, the United States is now in a second, more complex phase of the campaign. This monograph reviews events since the attacks of September 11, 2001, and discusses the current state of the Al Qaeda organization and the kinds of actions that can be expected of it in the forseeable future . Because Al Qaeda constitutes the most serious immediate threat to the security of the United States, it is imperative that the campaign againt terrorism remain focused and pragmatic. The monograph outlines and describes the essential, central elements that must be emphasized in this campaign, the ultimate aim of which is the destruction of a terrorist enterprise that threatens American security and, by extension the security of the world.