Abdullah Azzam Brigades

The Abdullah Azzam Brigades, which is named after al Qaeda's co-founder and Osama bin Laden's mentor, was formed by Saleh al Qarawi sometime after 2004 as an offshoot of al Qaeda in Iraq, and was tasked with hitting targets in the Levant (Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and the Palestinian Territories) and throughout the Middle East. Abdullah Azzam Brigade is a Sunni Islamist militant group affiliated with Al-Qaeda and the global jihad movement. The group, which began operating in 2009, was founded by Saudi Saleh Al-Qarawi and has local networks in various countries, mainly in Egypt, Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Gaza Strip and Lebanon.

The Abdullah Azzam Brigades, an organization affiliated with Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, Al-Qaeda and the global jihad, claimed responsibility for the terrorist/suicide attack on a Japanese oil tanker in the Gulf (Strait of Hormuz) on August 4, 2010. (Al-Qaeda ally claims tanker attack , 2010) According to a statement released by the organization, the terrorist/suicide attack was carried out by its Arabian Peninsula branch, which refers to itself as the Yusuf al-Ayiri Companies. This attack itself was carried out by a suicide terrorist by the name of Ayyub al-Taishan, who was assisted by other operatives belonging to the organization. Attached to the statement was the terrorist’s photograph, he was dressed in a traditional white robe and headdress, and pointing to a photograph of the tanker on a laptop computer. (Al-Qaeda ally claims tanker attack , 2010)

The terrorist attack was carried out on behalf of the Egyptian blind Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman, who is currently serving a life sentence in the US for his involvement in the first World Trade Center bombings in 1993. The attack was to deteriorate the in...

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...ign Policy Crises and the Resort to Terrorism: A Time-Series Analysis of Conflict Linkages. Journal of Conflict Resolution, Volume 40 No. 2, 320-321.

Riggio, B. (2012, May 24). US adds Abdullah Azzam Brigades to list of terror groups. Retrieved from longwarjournal.org: http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2012/05/us_adds_abdullah_azz_2.php#ixzz2u0pfvfda

Riggio, B. (2014, February 19). Abdullah Azzam Brigades launches double suicide attack on Iranian cultural center in Beirut. Retrieved from Longwarjournal.org: http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2014/02/abdullah_azzam_briga_2.php?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=abdullah-azzam-brigades-launches-double-suicide-attack-on-iranian-cultural-center-in-beirut

Terrorist Designations of the Abdallah Azzam Brigades. (2012, May 24). Retrieved from state.gov: http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2012/05/190810.htm