The rigorous security mechanism that had protected him for so long entailed that Ayman al-Zawahiri, though his tried deputy, was not involved in all of “Emir” bin Laden’s decisions (“emir” in this case meaning “commander”). The (primarily digital) documents seized in Abbottabad prove that bin Laden, far from being a symbolic figure, continued to supervise the planning of al-Qaeda terrorism until his death. A Problematic Succession for Central al-Qaeda The situation of the three branches of al-Qaeda, in Iraq, Yemen and the “Islamic Maghreb,” is, however, quite varied. As a young Tunisian stated at the time: “Ben Ali, bin Laden, they’re history.” And the very survival of the organisation founded by bin Laden in 1988 now emerges as an acute issue to his successor at the head of central al-Qaeda. The disappearance of the most wanted person on the planet long mobilised the Western media, whereas it was quickly displaced in the Arab media by other, more pressing developments. On the night of the 1st to the 2nd May 2011, the leader of al-Qaeda was killed by an American commando unit after storming his hideout in Abbottabad, northern Pakistan. No-one knew at the time that this speech was to be bin Laden’s last. There was a staggering discrepancy between the al-Qaeda leader’s discourse, hammering home demands regarding the Indian subcontinent, and the reality of the Arab world, which had entered a revolutionary phase of historical significance. In any case, bin Laden did not have a word to say on the fall of President Ben Ali, overthrown in Tunisia a week earlier by a popular uprising in which Islamists played no role. The aggressiveness of this message is all the more remarkable, considering that the leader of al-Qaeda generally reserved such violence for a demonised “America” accused of all the ills of Islam. On 21 January 2011, Osama bin Laden aired a particularly threatening message directed against France, demanding it immediately withdraw its troops from Afghanistan. Explaining Democratic Stagnation in the Western Balkans Soeren Keil.EU Enlargement in South Eastern Europe: Two Recent Success Stories and Their Implications Kristof Bender.Cyprus-Turkey: Growing Tensions James Ker-Lindsay.The Fragile Balance in Lebanon: Domestic Tension and Foreign Pressure Karam Karam.Syria, Vertigo in the Face of a Radicalised Revolution and an Uncertain Future Lurdes Vidal.Israel/Palestine: A Process of Peace or of Obstacles and Asymmetries? Pere Vilanova. Tunisia and Libya in the Intra-Maghrebi Dynamics of the Arab Spring Mansouria Mokhefi.The Libyan Revolution and the Rise of Local Power Centres Wolfram Lacher.Algeria in the Face of the Arab Spring: Diffuse Pressure and Sustained Resilience Louisa Dris-Aït Hamadouche.Italy: Economic Crisis, Domestic Politics and the International Panorama Lucio Caracciolo.Evolving Greek Politics amidst the Crisis: Destination Unknown Takis S.Elections in Spain: A Political Change in the Framework of a Major International Crisis William Chislett.Human Development & Regional Integration.Prevention of Polarisation and Violent Extremism.Spanish Network of Anna Lindh Foundation.
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