Highlights:
− Al-Qaeda leader Abu Laith al-Libi was killed in Pakistan in late January 2008
− Death of a top al Qaeda leader will likely not impact group’s operations capabilities and strategy
− Technology dependency and usage will maintain al-Qaeda’s recruiting and propaganda abilities
The death of senior al-Qaeda leader Abu Laith al-Libi was confirmed Thursday January 31, 2008 by US counter-terrorism officials. Al-Libi was killed either late January 28th or early January 29th, by what is reported have been a US led missile strike into the remote area of North Waziristan, Pakistan. Prior to his death, al-Libi had been on several terrorist most wanted lists, and was seen as one of al-Qaeda’s top field commanders and spokesmen.
Although seen as a blow to the al-Qaeda organization’s leadership, the death of Abu al-Libi is unlikely to diminish al-Qaeda’s ability to organize and conduct attacks in the future.
Al-Libi’s Role and Expertise
Abu Laith al-Libi was born in Libya around 1967. He joined the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group and led terrorist attacks in North Africa and the Middle East. The Libyan Islamic Fighting Group officially became a part of al-Qaeda in November 2007. However, Al-Libi had been connected to al-Qaeda much longer and likely played a major role in linking the two groups. Recently he had been considered to be the commander of al-Qaeda military forces in Afghanistan, and many of his operations involved remnants of the Taliban near Afghanistan’s eastern border. Additionally, he is thought to have been a terror training camp director.
Al-Libi also played an important role as a spokesman. He has appeared several times in videos alongside top al-Qaeda leaders, and has also been prominent in several Internet propaganda releases. In the past few years al-Qaeda has placed an increased priority on using advanced technology as a means of communication and recruitment, and al-Libi’s role in connecting multiple terrorist networks represented this change.
Scope of Loss
The death of Abu Laith al-Libi can be viewed as a victory for US counter-terrorism operations for several reasons. One of al-Libi’s major roles was to identify potential leaders and fill the positions of other al-Qaeda leaders that were killed or relieved of command.
In this way he helped organize and draw the network together and now al-Qaeda must find someone to fill this critical coordination position. He was also an effective spokesman for recruitment efforts and operations distribution, and al-Qaeda will be set back by the loss of his abilities.
Decentralization and Technology Impact
However, the loss of al-Libi’s capabilities as a recruiter and administrator is diminished by the rapid decentralization of the terrorist networks in which he was involved. This is a result of al-Qaeda’s increased reliance on technology. Internet access allows terrorists to communicate with one another instantly, and allows interested individual members to act independently, regardless of location. Laptops, cameras, and DVD burners are cheaper than ever, and can allow anyone to produce propaganda and recruitment videos.
Al-Libi will probably be missed as an operations commander more than any other role he performed. Al-Libi had many years of experience as a terrorist and brought a wide-range of skills to his position, including
• was believed to be directing training camps;
• coordinated and conducted operations with the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group in North Africa;
• fought the Soviets in Afghanistan during the 1980’s;
• had been involved with multiple networks in al-Qaeda’s fight against US forces; and
• was extremely knowledgeable about suicide bombing missions.
Al-Libi’s experience made him a valuable leader of terrorist operations for al-Qaeda, and his persuasiveness had broad appeal within the terrorist organization. However, with the expanding use of technology and the Internet, the ability to replace al-Libi will be achieved much faster.
Future Impact
The death of Abu Laith al-Libi is important because it is a disruption in al-Qaeda operations, particularly training and combat missions. However, his death alone will not be enough to cause any sort of prolonged decrease in terrorist activity. He was experienced and very effective at his position, but his empty seat will be filled, and the fight will continue.
