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Lessons Learned: the failed jihad in Syria
Austin Bay reports on declassified, captured Al Qaeda documents that shed light on the long war - and on the extent of their planning and strategy. Short excerpt - RTWT:

On page 11 — the failure of Muslim organizations to instill genuine “hard militancy.” This puts the Cartoon Wars in a new light. Al Qaeda has had ten to fifteen years to “harden” these organizations.

Inability to transform civilian Islamic missionary groups into military organizations capable of resistance and self defense:
This could be the most valuable lesson relating to the Islamic missionary groups in the Arab & Moslem countries. The battle may have erupted unexpectedly; however a large sector of the Moslems (Especially the leaders) knew that it was inevitable, those leaders did not prepare nor plan. Those missionary groups brought their peaceful missionary style and methods to the fight, the sheik failed miserably when he wore the general’s hat. It is astonishing to see and hear leaders of Moslem organizations preaching jihad and claiming that dieing for “Allah” is their ultimate wish, yet they fail for tens of years to instruct religiously and train militarily for that fight, they could not produce documents for emergency (e.g. passports), or save money for tough times. They were unable to mobilize effectively and in a hurry, those organizations were ineffective and eventually collapsed.

But to Al Qaeda’s strategists, Syria proved to them that some form of Islamist revolution would work...


Posted by: lotp 2006-02-21
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=143323