Networked Terrorist Cell: Jamaat Ul-Fuqra

¶ … Networked Terrorist Cell: Jamaat Ul-Fuqra

Terrorism, as defined by Merriam-Webster, is the systematic use of terror as a means of coercion.

This is, admittedly, a very broad definition which could apply equally well to conventional warfare. However, terrorism is distinguished from conventional warfare because the actors in terrorism are not sovereign states, but private organizations and individuals. Furthermore, the targets and victims of terrorism are not military combatants or structures, but often unarmed civilians and civil structures. Most importantly, terrorist attacks are not intended to destroy a target's ability to make war, but rather to make a statement by causing discomfort and fear among the citizens of a state.

Although terrorism differs from conventional warfare in many important aspects, it shares the same ultimate purpose: both are intended to advance some political cause or goal. However, not every political cause involves the use of terrorism, far less so than conventional warfare. Certain types of political causes lend themselves to terrorist activity, particularly those where a political cause's supporters believe that they have exhausted alternative means of resolution and where they are outmatched in power by their opposition.

Terrorist groups do not usually refer to themselves as terrorist groups, but often as a political interest groups, rebels, freedom fighters, etc. In the U.S., the most visible terrorists tend to be Jihadic Muslim fighters. Due to U.S. involvement in numerous political disputes in the primarily Muslim Middle East since World War II, some Muslim groups resent the U.S. As a political force and blame the U.S. For many of the region's current problems.

Types of Terrorist Organizations

Because any individual can be a terrorist, terrorist organizations can take on any shape and size. The most basic organizational model is the Lone Wolf terrorist. Lone Wolf terrorists are individuals who act alone, are not funded by other organizations, and are typically residents of the country they operate in. Lone wolf terrorists may not necessarily advance a political cause, but tend to have some grievance with the government or society in general.

Although lone wolf terrorists are a common source of terrorist activity, they are not the dominant source of political terrorism. The more common organizational structure for political terrorists is the hierarchical terrorist organization, often used by paramilitary organizations, religious sects, and public interest groups. These hierarchical terrorist groups contain a hierarchical leadership structure and a centralized command apparatus. Unlike "lone wolf" terrorists, hierarchical terrorist organizations almost always have a political or religious cause to advance. If the political cause is popular among enough individuals organizations, the group will usually receive more lasting publicity than the "lone wolf" terrorist.

The third type of terrorist group is the networked terrorist organization.

These organizations are multi-member and political but do not have a hierarchical leadership structure or formal command apparatus. Instead, the organization is composed of smaller subgroups, cells, which may even organize and finance themselves independently of each other. Though there may be a central command apparatus, these leaders might not give specific orders, but rather define broad objectives to guide the cells.

An increasingly troublesome type of terrorist organization is the sleeper cell terrorist. Sleeper cell terrorists are trained terrorists who are planted inside a country to live amongst the normal population until they are given the signal to commit an act of terrorism. They usually do not know the identity of other sleeper agents or the identity of the leadership. Thus, sleeper cell terrorism utilizes the cooperative elements of a traditional terrorist organization without assuming the risk of being compromised by its own members, as other organizations do.

Jamaat Ul-Fuqra

Jammat Ul-Fuqra is officially a religious sectarian organization, but is also considered a paramilitary organization and a religious cult.

Its stated goal is the purification of Islam through violence.

The group is believed to have been founded by Pakistani cleric Sheikh Mubarak Ali Gilani Hashemi, who lives in Pakistan and founded the group on a trip to the United States in 1980.

Although Jamaat Ul-Fuqra is based out of Pakistan, it operates primarily in the United States, Canada, and the Carribean. Its operations are scattered throughout the United States in rural communes supposedly meant to provide Muslims with a living environment free from destructive secular influences.

Some of these communes are believed to provide paramilitary or terrorist training to its members.

Jamaat Ul-Fuqra members have planned various small-scale acts of religion-directed violence, mainly against Hindu and Jewish interests. Their most well-known, definitely proven attack was the bombing of the Hotel Rajneesh in Portland, OR in 1983. However, they have also attacked other Muslim organizations, such as the Ahmadiyya, whose leader Mozaffar Ahmad was allegedly killed by Jamaat Ul-Fuqra operatives in 1983.

Most importantly, the organization is suspected to be collaborating with or to be under the influence of Al-Qaeda as a sleeper cell or as a training program for Al-Qaeda sleepers.

Stopping Terrorism

Countries worldwide, and the United States especially, have taken dramatic steps to counter terrorism. Legally, the U.S. Government has expanded the jurisdiction and powers of the nation's counterterrorism agencies. After 9/11, President Bush created the Department of Homeland Security, which consolidated a number of previous federal agencies into a superagency focused on fighting terrorism. Also, the U.S. Congress passed the Patriot Act, which gave the federal government unprecedented powers in accessing private information in order to detect covert terrorists.