Alex Constantine - June 11, 2010
Ersun Warnke | Salem-News.com | Jun-03-2010
Anwar al-Awlaki received some press coverage recently when the U.S. Government declared that they had put out a hit on him. Al-Awlaki has documented connections to several 9/11 hijackers and to Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hassan. The “Times Square Unexplosive Device Planter” Faisal Shahad claims to have been inspired by him.
What is less covered in the media is that other so called “jihadis” have declared him to be a CIA agent.
SalafiMahaj, an organization of “mainstream” Muslim religious leaders in Britain, published a 130 page criticism of al-Awlaki entitle “Anwar al-Awlaki and His Errors in the Issue of Jihad.” Most of the paper is debate on religious points, but it does include a few gems on al-Awlaki’s past and the perception of him in the Muslim community, both jihadi and mainstream.
A Critique of the Methodology of Manhaj of Anwar al-'Awlaki and his Errors in the Fiqh of Jihad
From that paper:
When one listens to the earlier lectures and khutab of 'Awlaki it is immediate noticeable that he was ... appealing to Middle-Class Muslim professional in the US."
"Awlaki can be seen in ... the PBS documentary Muhammad: Legacy of a Prophet (2003) giving a khutbah [religious speech] in an American Congress building at Capitol Hill (!!!?) [there emphasis]"
"Hence there has been a clear transition and methodological shift in the procedure of 'Awlaki"
"It is possible at this point [moving to Yemen] 'Awlaki reviewed his methodology to regain credibility after the likes of 'Abdullah Faisal al-Jamayki [Real name Trevor William Forest] in the late 1990s had actually condemned him for spreading 'CIA Islam' and being a 'Murji', 'spy', 'a plant of the government', 'an enemy of Islam' etc. See Faisal's lecture wherein he ... condemns 'Awlaki for being a CIA agent."
"Al-Awlaki is not known for having participated in any 'jihad' whatsoever and this is what has to be highlighted. For he calls to it and hypes up his audiences with it, yet the question has to be asked: upon which battlefield has he fought?"
On the connection between intelligence agencies and jihadis:
"The likes of Omar Bakri, Abu Qatadah al-Filistini, Abu Hamza and a whole host of other takfiri-jihadis [takfiris are muslims who accuse other muslims of being apostates or non-believers, in this context to justify killing them] are well-known for their meetings with not even the police, but with Intelligence Services! Some of them have even been protected and sheltered by them! As in the case of Abu Qatadah al-Filistini after 9/11 which is perhaps the most well-known example in the UK of being sheltered by intelligence services!"
Al-Awlaki is a U.S. Citizen who pursued a Doctorate in Education at George Washington University in Washington D.C. George Washington University is known for having close ties to the intelligence community, the most public of which is that GWU maintains the National Security Archive.
The Washington Post has reported that George Washington University has CIA employees teaching courses on their campus, as part of the CIA’s “Officers in Residence” program.
It is generally safe to assume that the unofficial programs of intelligence are greater in scale than their official public programs, as the public programs are only set up in order to provide cover for the unofficial secret ones (i.e. if the press asks “are CIA agents on university campuses,” they say, “yes of course, here is the brochure.” Instead of making a false denial, which can be challenged, they reveal a partial truth, which is impossible to disprove.”)
All of this information is in the end rumors and innuendo. However, the official press releases of the U.S. Government on this issue are rumors and innuendo themselves, so it advisable to take them in the context of this broader range of perspectives.
Salem-News.com Business/Economy Reporter Ersun Warncke is a native Oregonian. He has a degree in Economics from Portland State University and studied Law at University of Oregon. At a young age, his career spans a wide variety of fields, from fast food, to union labor, to computer programming. He has published works concerning economics, business, government, and media on blogs for several years. He currently works as an independent software designer specializing in web based applications, open source software, and peer-to-peer (P2P) applications.
http://www.salem-news.com/articles/june032010/al-awlaki-critique-ew.php