Publication

This report provides a theoretical framework, drawing on scholarly approaches including organization and agency theory, to predict where terrorist groups such as al-Qaida face their greatest challenges in conducting operations. The authors stress that al-Qaida's difficulties lie in the operational environment, particularly in terms of maintaining situational awareness, controlling the use of violence to achieve specified political ends, and preventing local authorities from degrading the group’s capabilities. A case study on jihad in Syria during the 1970s is used to illustrate these challenges.