Al-Qaida: More Symbol than Power Factor

Two of the 19 Sept. 11 terrorists had attended his sermons at a mosque in San Diego, California. Now, barely three weeks after the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks, the Americans have killed Anwar al-Awlaki as well. It’s another spectacular blow against militant Islam. After Osama bin Laden, the most prominent “face” of al-Qaida — other than Ayman al-Zawahiri — has been eliminated.

The American-born Awlaki was considered the eloquent English translator of the militant’s extreme ideology and the cleverest recruiter of suicidal would-be terrorists. Many analysts classified him also as an important al-Qaida field commander in the Arabian Peninsula, while others don’t foresee his death having any significant effect on the terror group’s capabilities in Yemen and beyond.

Among all the unknowns, probably the most certain is the fact that al-Qaida has lost its most effective propagandist. But that shouldn’t obscure the fact that the group, in the final analysis, was more a symbol than a source of power. The United States is having a worse time with double-dealing Pakistani security personnel, Wahabist missionaries in the Horn of Africa and the unpredictable zealots in North Africa. Seen in that light, Awlaki’s death represents a success for America, but only on the propaganda level.