His offer was rebuffed by the Saudi government, which instead sought the aid of the United States. The stationing of U. From , al-Qaeda established its headquarters in Sudan until it was expelled in It then shifted its base to the Taliban -ruled Afghanistan and later expanded to other parts of the world, primarily in the Middle East and South Asia.
The U. In , al-Qaeda carried out the September 11 attacks , resulting in nearly 3, deaths , long-term health consequences of nearby residents , damage to global economic markets , the triggering of drastic geo-political changes as well as generating profound cultural influence across the world.
In , a U. In , al-Qaeda launched its Iraqi regional branch. After pursuing him for almost a decade , the U. Al-Qaeda members believe that a Judeo-Christian alliance led by the United States is waging a war against Islam and conspiring to destroy Islam. The group was then led by Egyptian Ayman al-Zawahiri until he too was killed by the United States in As of [update] , they have reportedly suffered from a deterioration of central command over its regional operations.
Al-Qaeda only indirectly controls its day-to-day operations. Its philosophy calls for the centralization of decision making, while allowing for the decentralization of execution.
At the same time, mid-level organizations were given autonomy, but they had to consult with top management before large-scale attacks and assassinations. Top management included the shura council as well as committees on military operations, finance, and information sharing. Through the information committees of al-Qaeda, Zawahiri placed special emphasis on communicating with his groups. As a result, the leadership has become decentralized, and the organization has become regionalized into several al-Qaeda groups.
