POPULAR SUPPORT
One of the permanent concerns of the urban guerrilla is his identification with popular causes to win public support. Where government actions become inept and corrupt, the urban guerrilla should not hesitate to step in and show that he opposes the government, and thus gain popular sympathy. The present government, for example, imposes heavy financial burdens and excessively high taxes on the people. It is up to the urban guerrilla to attack the dictatorship's tax collection system and to obstruct its financial activities, throwing all the weight of armed action against it.
The urban guerrilla fights not only to upset the tax collection system—the weapon of armed action must also be directed against those government agencies that raise prices and those who direct them as well as against the wealthiest of the national and foreign profiteers and the important property owners. In short, against all those who accumulate huge fortunes out of the high cost of living, the wages of hunger, excessive prices and high rents. Foreign industries, such as refrigeration and other North American plants that monopolize the market and the manufacture of general food supplies, must be systematically attacked by the urban guerrillas. The rebellion of the urban guerrilla and his persistance in intervening in political questions is the best way of insuring popular support for the cause which we defend. We repeat and insist on repeating—it is the way of insuring popular support. As soon as a reasonable portion of the population begins to take seriously the actions of the urban guerrilla, his success is guaranteed.
The government has no alternative except to intensify its repression. The police networks, house searches, the arrest of suspects and innocent persons, and the closing off of streets make life in the city unbearable. The military dictatorship embarks on massive political persecution. Political assassinations and police terror become routine.
In spite of all this, the police systematically fail. The armed forces, the navy and the air force are mobilized to undertake routine police functions, but even so they can find no way to halt guerrilla operations or to wipe out the revolutionary organization, with its fragmented groups that move around and operate throughout the country.
The people refuse to collaborate with the government, and the general sentiment is that this government is unjust, incapable of solving problems, and that it resorts simply to the physical liquidation of its opponents. The political situation in the country is transformed into a military situation in which the "gorillas" appear more and more to be the ones responsible for violence, while the lives of the people grow worse.
When they see the military and the dictatorship on the brink of the abyss, and fearing the consequences of a civil war which is already well underway, the pacifiers (always to be found within the ruling elite) and the opportunists (partisans of nonviolent struggle) join hands and circulate rumors behind the scenes begging the hangmen for elections, "re-democratization", constitutional reforms, and other tripe designed to fool the people and make them stop the rebellion.
But, watching the guerrillas, the people now understand that it is a farce to vote in any elections which have as their sole objective guaranteeing the survival of the dictatorship and covering up its crimes. Attacking wholeheartedly this election farce and the so-called "political solution", which is so appealing to the opportunists, the urban guerrillas must become even more aggressive and active, resorting without pause to sabotage, terrorism, expropriations, assaults, kidnappings, executions, etc. This action answers any attempt to fool the people with the opening of Congress and the reorganization of political parties—parties of the government and of the positions which the government allows—when all the time parliament and the so-called "parties" only function thanks to the permission of the military dictatorship, in a true spectacle of puppets or dogs on a leash.
The role of the urban guerrilla, in order to win the support of the population, is to continue fighting, keeping in mind the interests of the people and heightening the disastrous situation within which the government must act. These are the conditions, harmful to the dictatorship, which permit the guerrillas to open rural warfare in the middle of an uncontrollable urban rebellion.
The urban guerrilla is engaged in revolutionary action for the people, and with them seeks the participation of the people in the struggle against the dictatorship and the liberation of the country. Beginning with the city and the support of the people, the rural guerrilla war develops rapidly, establishing its infrastructure carefully while the urban area continues the rebellion.
Sanitized excerpts from the AQ Manual
Principles of Military Organization
Military Organization has three main principles without which it cannot be established.
Military Organization commander and advisory council
The soldiers (individual members)
A clearly defined strategy
Military Organization Requirements:
The Military Organization dictates a number of requirements to assist it in confrontation and endurance. These are:
Forged documents and counterfeit currency
Apartments and hiding places
Communication means
Transportation means
Information
Arms and ammunition
Transport
Missions Required of the Military Organization:
The main mission for which the Military Organization is responsible is:
The overthrow of the godless regimes and their replacement with an Islamic regime. Other missions consist of the following:
Gathering information about the enemy, the land, the installations, and the neighbors.
Kidnaping enemy personnel, documents, secrets, and arms.
Assassinating enemy personnel as well as foreign tourists.
Freeing the brothers who are captured by the enemy.
5 . Spreading rumors and writing statements that instigate people against the enemy.
Blasting and destroying the places of amusement, immorality, and sin; not a vital target.
Blasting and destroying the embassies and attacking vital economic centers.
8 . Blasting and destroying bridges leading into and out of the cities.
Importance of the Military Organization:
2 . Proper utilization of the individuals' unused capabilities.
3 . Precision in performing tasks, and using collective views on completing a job from all aspects, not just one.
Controlling the work and not fragmenting it or deviating from it.
Achieving long-term goals such as the establishment of an Islamic state and short-term goals such as operations against enemy individuals and sectors.
Establishing the conditions for possible confrontation with the regressive regimes and their persistence.
Financial Security Precautions:
Dividing operational funds into two parts: One part is to be invested in projects that offer financial return, and the other is to be saved and not spent except during operations.
Not placing operational funds [all] in one place.
Not telling the Organization members about the location of the funds.
Having proper protection while carrying large amounts of money.
Leaving the money with non-members and spending it as needed.
Forged Documents (IdentityCards, Records Books, Passports)
The following security precautions should be taken:
Keeping the passport in a safe place so it would not be ceized by the security apparatus, and the brother it belongs to would have to negotiate its return (I'll give you your passport if you give me information)
All documents of the undercover brother, such as identity cards and passport, should be falsified.
3 . When the undercover brother is traveling with a certain identity card or passport, he should know all pertinent [information] such as the name, profession, and place of residence.
The brother who has special work status (commander, communication link,…) should have more than one identity card and passport. He should learn the contents of each, the nature of the [indicated] profession, and the dialect of the residence area listed in thedocument.
The photograph of the brother in these documents should be without a beard. It is preferable that the brother's public photograph [on these documents] be also without a beard. If he already has one [document] showing a photograph with a beard, he should replace it.
When using an identity document in different names, no more than one such document should be carried at one time.
UK/BM-23 TRANSLATION
7 . The validity of the falsified travel documents should always be confirmed.
8 . All falsification matters should be carried out through the command and not haphazardly (procedure control)
9 . Married brothers should not add their wives to their passports.
Security Precautions Related to the Organizations' Given Names:
FOURTH LESSON - Organization MILITARY BASES "APARTMENTS PLACES" - HIDING
UK/BM-25 TRANSLATION
Definition of Bases:
These are apartments, hiding places, command centers, etc. in which secret operations are executed against the enemy. These bases may be in cities, and are [then] called homes or apartments. They may be in mountainous, harsh terrain far from the enemy, and are [then] called hiding places or bases.
During the initial stages, the Military Organization usually uses apartments in cities as places for launching assigned missions, such as collecting information, observing members of the ruling regime, etc.
Hiding places and bases in mountains and harsh terrain are used at later stages, from which Jihad [holy war] groups are dispatched to execute assassination operations of enemy individuals, bomb their centers, and capture their weapons. In some Arab countries such as Egypt, where there are no mountains or harsh terrain, all stages of Jihad work would take place in cities. The opposite was true in Afghanistan, where initially Jihad work was in the cities, then the warriors shifted to mountains and harsh terrain. There, they started battling the Communists.
Security Precautions Related to Apartments:
2 . It is preferable to rent apartments on the ground floor to facilitate escape and digging of trenches.
3 . Preparing secret locations in the apartment for securing documents, records, arms, and other important items.
4 . Preparing ways of vacating the apartment in case of a surprise attack (stands,wooden ladders).
UK/BM-26 TRANSLATION
Under no circumstances should any one know about the apartment except those who use it.
Providing the necessary cover for the people who frequent the apartment (students,workers, employees, etc.)
Avoiding seclusion and isolation from the population and refraining from going to the apartment at suspicious times.
It is preferable to rent these apartments using false names, appropriate cover, and non-Moslem appearance.
A single brother should not rent more than one apartment in the same area, from the same agent, or using the same rental office.
Care should be exercised not to rent apartments that are known to the security apparatus [such as] those used for immoral or prior Jihad activities.
Avoiding police stations and government buildings. Apartments should not be rented near those places.
When renting these apartments, one should avoid isolated or deserted locations so the enemy would not be able to catch those living there easily.
It is preferable to rent apartments in newly developed areas where people do not know one another. Usually, in older quarters people know one another and strangers are easily identified, especially since these quarters have many informers.
Ensuring that there is has been no surveillance prior to the members entering the apartment.
Agreement among those living in the apartment on special ways of knocking on the door and special signs prior to entry into the building’s main gate to indicate to those who wish to enter that the place is safe and not being monitored. Such signs include hanging out a towel, opening a curtain, placing a cushion in a special way, etc.
UK/BM-27 TRANSLATION
If there is a telephone in the apartment, calls should be answered in an agreed-upon manner among those who use the apartment. That would prevent mistakes that would, otherwise, lead to revealing the names and nature of the occupants.
For apartments, replacing the locks and keys with new ones. As for the other entities (camps,shops, mosques), appropriate security precautions should be taken depending on the entity’s importance and role in the work.
Apartments used for undercover work should not be visible from higher apartments in order not to expose the nature of the work.
In a newer apartment, avoid talking loud because prefabricated ceilings and walls [used in the apartments] do not have the same thickness as those in old ones.
It is necessary to have at hand documents supporting the undercover [member]. In the case of a physician, there should be an actual medical diploma, membership in the [medical] union, the government permit, and the rest of the routine procedures known in that country.
The cover should blend well [with the environment]. For example, selecting a doctor’s clinic in an area where there are clinics, or in a location suitable for it.
The cover of those who frequent the location should match the cover of that location. For example, a common laborer should not enter a fancy hotel because that would be suspicious and draw attention.
FIFTH LESSON - MEANS OF COMMUNICATION AND TRANSPORTATION
UK/BM-29 TRANSLATION
In the name of Allah, the merciful and compassionate
Means of Transportation
Introduction:
It is well known that in undercover operations, communication is the mainstay of the movement for rapid accomplishment. However, it is a double-edged sword: It can be to our advantage if we use it well and it can be a knife dug into our back if we do not consider and take the necessary security measures.
Communication Means:
The Military Organization in any Islamic group can, with its modest capabilities, use the following means: 1. The telephone, 2. Meeting in-person, 3. Messenger, 4 . Letters, 5. Some modern devices, such as the facsimile and wireless [communication]. Communication may be within the county, state, or even the country, in which case it is called local communication. When it extends expanded between countries, it is then called international communication.
Secret Communication is Limited to the Following Types:
Common, standby, alarm
Common Communication: It is a communication between two members of the Organization without being monitored by the security apparatus opposing the Organization. The common communication should be done under a certain cover and after inspecting the surveillance situation [by the enemy].
Standby Communication: This replaces common communication when one of the two parties is unable to communicate with the other for some reason.
Alarm Communication: This is used when the opposing security apparatus discovers an undercover activity or some undercover members. Based on this communication, the activity is stopped 'for a while, all matters related to the activity are abandoned,
UK/BM-30 TRANSLATION
and the Organization's members are hidden from the security personnel.
Method of Communication Among Members of the Organization:'
2 . Prior to contacting his members, the commander of the cell[2] should agree with each of them separately (the cell members should never meet all in one place and should not know one another) on a manner and means of communication with each other. Likewise, the chief of the Organization should [use a similar technique] with the branch commanders.
3 . A higher-ranking commander determines the type and method of communication with lower-ranking leaders.
First Means: The Telephone:
Because of significant technological advances, security measures for monitoring the telephone and broadcasting equipment have increased. Monitoring may be done by installing a secondary line or wireless broadcasting device on a telephone that relays the calls to a remote location…That is why the Organization takes security measures among its members who use this means of communication (the telephone).
[2.] Cell or cluster methods should be adopted by the Organization. It should be composed of many cells whose members do not know one another, so that if a cell member is caught the other cells would not be affected, and work would proceed normally.
UK/BM-31 TRANSLATION
Conversation should be coded or in general terms so as not to alert the person monitoring [the telephone].
Periodically examining the telephone wire and the receiver.
Telephone numbers should be memorized and not recorded. If the brother has to write them, he should do so using a code so they do not appear as telephone numbers (figures from a shopping list, etc.)
5 . The telephone caller and person called should mention some words or sentences prior to bringing up the intended subject. The brother who is calling may misdial one of the digits and actually call someone else. The person ‘called may claim that the call is for him, and the calling brother may start telling him work-related issues and reveal many things because of a minor error.
In telephone conversations about undercover work, the voice should be changed and distorted.
When feasible, it is preferable to change telephone lines to allow direct access to local and international calls. That and proper cover facilitate communications and provide security protection not available when the central telephone station in the presence of many employees is used.
When a telephone [line] is identified [by the security apparatus], the command and all parties who were using it should be notified as soon as possible in order to take appropriate measures.
When the command is certain that a particular telephone [line] is being monitored, it can exploit it by providing information that misleads the enemy and benefits the work plan.
UK/BM-32 TRANSLATION
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THE SEVEN SINS OF THE URBAN GUERRILLA
Even when the urban guerrilla applies proper tactics and abides by its security rules, he can still be vulnerable to errors. There is no perfect urban guerrilla. The most he can do is make every effort to diminish the margin of error, since he cannot be perfect. One of the means we should use to diminish the possibility of error is to know thoroughly the seven deadly sins of the urban guerrilla and try to avoid them.
The first sin of the guerrilla is inexperience. The urban guerrilla, blinded by this sin, thinks the enemy is stupid, underestimates the enemy's intelligence, thinks everything is easy and, as a result, leaves evidence that can lead to disaster. Because of his inexperience, the urban guerrilla may also overestimate the forces of the enemy, believing them to be stronger than they really are. Allowing himself to be fooled by this presumption, the urban guerrilla becomes intimidated and remains insecure and indecisive, paralyzed and lacking in audacity.
The second sin of the urban guerrilla is to boast about the actions he has undertaken and to broadcast them to the four winds.
The third sin of the urban guerrilla is vanity. The guerrilla who suffers from this sin tries to solve the problems of the revolution by actions in the city, but without bothering about the beginnings and survival of other guerrillas in other areas. Blinded by success, he winds up organizing an action that he considers decisive and that puts into play the entire resources of the organization. Since we cannot afford to break the guerrilla struggle in the cities while rural guerrilla warfare has not yet erupted, we always run the risk of allowing the enemy to attack us with decisive blows.
The fourth sin of the urban guerrilla is to exaggerate his strength and to undertake actions for which he, as yet, lacks sufficient forces and the required infrastructure.
The fifth sin of the urban guerrilla is rash action. The guerrilla who commits this sin loses patience, suffers an attack of nerves, does not wait for anything, and impetuously throws himself into action, suffering untold defeats.
The sixth sin of the urban guerrilla is to attack the enemy when they are most angry.
The seventh sin of the urban guerrilla is to fail to plan things, and to act spontaneously.