The report, released in October 2009, said the increasing Al Qaida
presence has threatened the Western and United Nations presence in Arab
states. Jamestown said Palestinians were undergoing radicalization and
adopting the Al Qaida doctrine of jihad, or holy war.
"Socio-political conditions in these camps, which have been under the
control of the secular Palestinian political organizations, play an
important role in increasing the influence of Salafism," the report said.
In 2009, Al Qaida chief Osama Bin Laden addressed the Palestinians at
least three times and appealed for their participation in his Islamist war
against the West. Bin Laden has urged Palestinians to fight the United
States in Iraq before moving on to Israel.
"They should hasten to take their positions among the ranks of the holy
warriors in Iraq, and through support and trust in Allah," Bin Laden said in
a recent message.
The ruling Fatah movement has lost much of its control over Palestinian
refugee camps, the report said. Jamestown said the Salafist effort began
nearly 25 years ago, and by 2003 Palestinian cells influenced by Al Qaida
were bombing Western businesses in Lebanon.
"The third phase is the emergence of the Salafi-Jihadi ideology as the
primary ideology for Palestinian youth in the camps," the report said. "This
phase is occurring now, as individuals and small groups are increasingly
turning to Salafist militancy."
The biggest target of Al Qaida has been the Palestinian refugee camp of
Ein Hilwe. Ein Hilwe, the largest of the Palestinian refugee camps, was said
to harbor several Al Qaida figures, including Ahmed Abdul Karim Al Saadi,
Haitham Abdul Karim Al Saadi and Saleh Qiblawi. Haitham was identified as a
deputy of the late Al Qaida network chief in Iraq, Abu Mussib Al Zarqawi.
In Syria, Palestinian followers of Al Qaida clashed with Syrian security
forces in October 2008. The unrest was said to have taken place in Syria's
largest refugee camp, Yarmouk.
"When Syria became a transit point for Syrian and Arab fighters aiming
to take up jihad against Americans between 2003 and 2007, there were several
cases of young fighters passing through Yarmouk camp," the report said.
Jamestown also reported an Al Qaida presence in Jordan's Baqaa refugee
camp. The Irbid camp, located near the Syrian border, was also deemed an Al
Qaida stronghold.
"The ties between the Salafi-Jihadis across the Levant region show that
some young men in the refugee camps are inspired and influenced by the late
Abu Mussib Al Zarqawi's ambition of creating a Levantine Salafi-Jihadi
movement," the report said.
