The anti-state jihadist war front of al-Qaida in Pakistan: A study of the post-9/11 localization strategy of al-Qaida

Abstract: This study explains the post-9/11 localization strategy of al-Qaida by examining its role in anti-state jihad in Pakistan. The central argument of this study is that al-Qaida harnessed the domestic problems of Pakistan to incubate an anti-state jihadist movement in the country, which came to be led by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan. Leveraging a systematized set of narratives of al-Qaida and TTP leaders related to Pakistan, this study details the domestic conditions which led to the launch of war by local jihadists against Pakistan. The study finds that Pakistan’s post 9/11 policies engendered grievances in Islamists parties and jihadist groups, who were attracted to al-Qaida’s call to jihad. This study also shows that al-Qaida devised a careful strategy to channel these grievances in addition to the political and economic problems of Pakistan to harness the anger of Pakistani jihadis and shape the anti-state jihadist movement to its benefit. In turn, the anti-state jihadist movement in Pakistan not only helped al-Qaida in punishing the Pakistani state for its partnership with the US government post 9/11 but also helped support al-Qaida’s war against the US and its allies in Afghanistan and beyond.