Editing Al-Qaeda (section)

=== Attacks on civilians ===
Under the leadership of [[Osama bin Laden]] and [[Ayman al-Zawahiri]], al-Qaeda organization adopted the strategy of targeting [[non-combatant]] civilians of enemy states that indiscriminately attacked Muslims. Following the [[September 11 attacks]], al-Qaeda provided a justification for the killing of non-combatants/civilians, entitled, "A Statement from Qaidat al-Jihad Regarding the Mandates of the Heroes and the Legality of the Operations in New York and Washington". According to a couple of critics, Quintan Wiktorowicz and John Kaltner, it provides "ample theological justification for killing civilians in almost any imaginable situation."<ref name="Wiktorowicz-2003-86">{{cite journal|last1=Wiktorowicz|first1=Quintan|last2=Kaltner|first2=John|title=Killing in the Name of Islam: Al-Qaeda's Justification for September 11|journal=Middle East Policy|date=Summer 2003|volume=X|issue=2|page=86|url=https://www.aclu.org/files/fbimappingfoia/20111110/ACLURM001177.pdf|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://www.aclu.org/files/fbimappingfoia/20111110/ACLURM001177.pdf|archive-date=October 9, 2022|url-status=live|access-date=August 12, 2019}}</ref>

Among these justifications are that America is leading the west in waging a [[War against Islam conspiracy theory|War on Islam]] so that attacks on America are a defense of Islam and any treaties and agreements between Muslim majority states and Western countries that would be violated by attacks are null and void. According to the tract, several conditions allow for the killing of civilians including:
* retaliation for the American war on Islam which al-Qaeda alleges has targeted "Muslim women, children and elderly";
* when it is too difficult to distinguish between non-combatants and combatants when attacking an enemy "stronghold" (''hist'') or non-combatants remain in enemy territory, killing them is allowed;
* those who assist the enemy "in deed, word, mind" are eligible for killing, and this includes the general population in democratic countries because civilians can vote in elections that bring enemies of Islam to power;
* the necessity of killing in the war to protect Islam and Muslims;
* Muhammad, when asked whether the Muslim fighters could use the catapult against the village of [[Ta'if#7th century: Era of Muhammad|Taif]], replied affirmatively, even though the enemy fighters were mixed with a civilian population;
* if the women, children and other protected groups serve as human shields for the enemy;
* if the enemy has broken a treaty, killing of civilians is permitted.<ref name="Wiktorowicz-2003-86" />
Under the leadership of [[Saif al-Adel|Sayf al-Adel]], al-Qaeda's strategy has undergone transformation and the organization has officially renounced the tactic of attacking civilian targets of enemies. In his book ''Free Reading of 33 Strategies of War'' published in 2023, Sayf al-Adel counselled [[Islamism|Islamist]] fighters to prioritize attacking the police forces, military soldiers, state assets of enemy governments, etc. which he described as acceptable targets in military operations. Asserting that attacking women and children of enemies are contrary to Islamic values, Sayf al-Adel asked: "If we target the general public, how can we expect their people to accept our call to [[Islam]]?"<ref>{{Cite news|last=Haid|first=Haid|date=September 26, 2023|title=A book by al-Qaeda's new leader reveals shifting strategies|work=Al Majalla|url=https://en.majalla.com/node/300646/opinion/book-al-qaedas-new-leader-reveals-shifting-strategies|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231028132542/https://en.majalla.com/node/300646/opinion/book-al-qaedas-new-leader-reveals-shifting-strategies|archive-date=October 28, 2023}}</ref>