ForeignPolicy.com: A Web of Lone Wolves (Ft. Hood)

By Evan Kohlmann

The editors at the magazine Foreign Policy kindly invited me to contribute commentary on the fallout from the massacre at Ft. Hood and revelations about the online terror ties of Maj. Malik Nidal Hasan:

Upon learning of the reported "missed" link between the alleged culprit responsible for the massacre at Ft. Hood -- Maj. Malik Nidal Hasan -- and Anwar al Awlaki, my heart sank for a multitude of reasons. Al Awlaki is an infamous character in the halls of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and he has been for several years at least. The cleric's recurring presence again in the Ft. Hood case seems to be powerful and disturbing evidence of how fringe extremists -- who otherwise might remain in obscurity with no real means of living out their private jihadi fantasies -- are quite literally being equipped for battle by so-called "theological" advisors known only to them through the Internet. In short, it is a reminder of how real online terrorism networks have become...