Abu Musab al-Suri – Released?

[Valin]

Jarret Brachman.net:

1/11/12

* Rumor on the boards the past couple weeks has it that Abu Musab al-Suri has been released. IMHO, if this is true, it would be a disaster for the United States. Here’s why:

Suri literally wrote the book on decentralized violent extremism. He understood Maoist encirclement strategy and was able to apply it to helping al-Qaida transcend itself from a group to a network to a global ideology. Suri believed in the persuasive power of education. He was a pioneer in the use of new media technology.

Anwar al-Awlaki and Samir Khan would not have been able to accomplish what they did without Suri’s body of work. Awlaki was never the arch nemesis that we painted him to be. Yes, he was compelling for the global media to hype. Sure, he resonated with the emotionally bruised Western fencesitter. But he was painting by number on a worksheet that had been already drafted by Suri. Samir Khan just helped to translate that image into digital pixels.

I have been warning quietly for some time now that the release of Suri could breathe life into the global al-Qaida support movement in a way for which we are not prepared. The mere symbolism of his freedom will galvanize the online community. His videos are already being re-uploaded. His audios, re-posted. His books and articles are going to find their way back to the top of jihadi must-read lists.

(Snip)



(Note: * link by me)

Architect of Global Jihad: The Life of Al Qaeda Strategist Abu Mus'ab Al-Suri
Brynjar Lia

Review

Brynjar Lia has written an impressively authoritative biography of one of contemporary jihad's most important and influential thinkers. In Architect of Global Jihad, Lia charts the rise and consequences of Abu Mus'ab al-Suri's prominence in al-Qaeda and how his worldview continues to shape and define the movement's strategy and tactics. This work is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand al-Qaeda's violent struggle and its likely future trajectory.
(Bruce Hoffman, professor, Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University, and senior fellow, Combating Terrorism Center