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Why Al Qaeda Refuses to Die

Why Al Qaeda Refuses to Die

Armed masked men stand guard as Osama bin-Laden (C) and Ayman Al-Zawahiri (L) address a news conference May 26, 1998 in Afghanistan.

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Photo by Getty Images

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DEEP DIVE — More than two decades after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Al Qaeda is not only alive — it has adapted, expanded, and quietly embedded itself into global jihadist networks. Despite relentless international efforts to dismantle it, the group continues to act as an umbrella foralmost all other terror outfits. Why? Because Al Qaeda fights a war that is not bound by time, territory, or conventional milestones. Its promise is not any type of material gain - it is the afterlife. This piece unpacks how a doctrine of “endless jihad,” combined with calculated deception and deep infiltration into allied groups like the Taliban, has allowed Al Qaeda to persist in the shadows — undeterred, underestimated, and still dangerously relevant.

Ideological Coherence: Commitment to the Hereafter

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