al-Qaeda
an international terrorist network established around 1988 by Osama bin Laden. Al-Qaeda, which means the Base, was responsible for the September 11, 2001, attacks, among many others. In recent years, its core leadership has operated out of Pakistan, though it has affiliate terrorist groups in many countries. The network adheres to a fundamentalist Islamic ideology that aims to eliminate Western influence on Islamic countries and replace those countries’ governments with regimes based on Islamic law.