Al-Qa'ida's (mis)Adventures
in the Horn of Africa

browser friendly report| complete .pdf file list

The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point is pleased to present the report, Al-Qa'ida's (mis)Adventures in the Horn of Africa. Based on a collection of al-Qa'ida documents recently released from the Department of Defense's Harmony Database, this report provides an analysis of al-Qa'ida's early operations in the Horn of Africa. These documents, captured in the course of operations supporting the Global War on Terror, have never before been available to the academic and policy community. Al-Qa'ida's (mis)Adventures in the Horn of Africa includes a theoretically informed analysis of al-Qa'ida's successes and failures while operating in Somalia between 1992 and 1994. Case studies on Somalia and Kenya provide a historical and current analysis of al-Qa'ida's operations in the Horn. Our theoretical analysis and case studies inform policy recommendations on how the U.S. and its coalition partners might address the threat of terrorism in failed and weak states within the Horn of Africa and globally. We have provided brief summaries of each of the released documents with full text translations in English and the original document in Arabic. We hope this report will serve as a useful resource in our collective efforts to better understand and combat al-Qa'ida and its affiliated movements.

The views expressed in this report are those of the authors and not of the U.S. Military Academy, the Department of the Army, or any other agency of the U.S. Government.

The report is available in two formats: for browser viewing or as a .pdf. Above you will see the link to the .pdf report as well as .pdf versions of all the Harmony documents used in the report. The browser-viewable version is below.

For the complete study and document summaries, click here.

Foreword

Executive Summary

Part I

Introduction: al-Qa'ida's Operational Plan in the Horn of Africa

Theoretical Framework: The Challenges of Weak and Failed States

Case Study: Somalia

Case Study: Kenya

Conclusion: Key Issues and Policy Recommendations

Part I Appendicies

Appendix A: Case studies of regional terrorist groups

I. Al-Ittihad al-Islami (AIAI)

II. Eritrean Islamic Jihad

Appendix B: Cast of Characters from the Horn of Africa

I. Abdullah Muhammed Fazul

II. Abu Hafs al-Masri

III. Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys

IV. Saif al-Adel

V. Lesser Members/Affiliates of al-Qa'ida

Appendix C: Notes and Interviews from Kenya

I. Notes on Ras Kiamboni

II. Sample of Kenyan Muslim views

III. Confession of Omar Said Omar

IV. Written Statement of Mombasa Muslim Leaders

Part II

Introduction to the Harmony Database and Ongoing Efforts

Harmony Document List and Summaries