Salafism in the Ideological Discourse of Al-Qaeda on the Example of Islamic Primary Sources

With the increasing importance of the Islamic factor in the modern world, the spread of a reformist radical thought in the Muslim community that was brought up by such groups as Al-Qaeda is evident. The actions of Al-Qaeda are justified by its members and leaders through their specific interpretation of the Quran and Sunnah, which is considered to be Salafist. The present study aims to identify the role of Salafism in the ideological discourse of Al-Qaeda through the legacy of Islamic primary sources. While a number of researches was conducted on the jihadist aspect of Al-Qaeda’s ideology, none of them shows the influence of the Salafist method of interpretation of the Quran and Sunnah in Al-Qaeda’s ideological discourse, therefore the study covers this question. In addition to academic interest, the study of Salafism is of practical importance, helping not only to understand certain elements of building a radical religious discourse but also to provide a necessary foundation for building a preventive policy against the dissemination of extremist ideas with the purpose of further recruitment of new acolytes. Keywords: Al-Qaeda, extremism, Salafism, the Quran and Sunnah