Usama bin Ladin ne ya kafa al-Qa‘ida (AQ) a 1988 tare da Larabawan da suka yaƙi rusasshiyar Tarayyar Soviet a Afghanistan. AQ na fafutikar kawar da tasirin Turawan Yamma a ƙasashen Musulmi, da hamɓarar da “kafiran” gwamnatoci a ƙasashen Musulmi, da kafa daular Musulunci da za ta yi aiki da shari’ar Musulunci wadda kuma za ta zama dokar ƙasashe baki ɗaya. Waɗannan ƙudirori ba su sauya ba tun loƙacin da ƙungiyar ta ƙaddamar da yaƙi kan Amurka a 1996. An kashe gomman mayaƙan AQ manya da ƙanana a yaƙi da ta’addanci , amma ta ci gaba da ɗaukar wasu, da tsarawa, da ƙarfafa gwiwa da kuma kai hare-hare. AQ ta yi ƙawance da asu ƙungiyoyin a Gabas ta Tsakiya, da Afirka, da Asiya kuma ƙarfinta ya ta’allaƙa ne kan waɗannan ƙawayen.
AQ ce ke da alhakin kai hare-hare manya da ƙanana. AQ ta kai harin bam uku kan dakarun Amurka a Aden na Yemen a 1992 sannan ta ɗauki alhakin harbo jirgin helikwafta na Amurka da kuma kashe sojoji a Somaliya a 1993. Kazalika AQ ta kai hare-haren bam na Agustan 1998 kan ofisoshin jakadancin Amuka a Nairobi da Dar es Salam, inda aka kashe mutum 224 kuma aka raunata fiye da 5,000. A watan Oktoban 2000, AQ ta kai harin ƙunar-baƙin-wake kan USS Cole a tashar jirgin ruwa ta Aden da wani jirgi cike da abubuwan fashewa da ya kashe sojojin ruwa na Amurka 17 sannan ya jikkata fiye da 30. Ranar 11 ga watan Satumban 2001, mambobin AQ 19 sun yi garkuwa da jiragen fasinja na Amurka huɗu kuma suka faɗo da su – biyu a kan cibiyar kasuwanci ta World Trade Center a Birnin New York, ɗaya a kan Pentagon, ɗayan kuma a cikin wani fili da ke Shanksville a Pennsylvania. Hare-haren 9/11 sun kashe mutum kusan 3,000.
A ranar 8 ga watan Oktoban 1999, Ma’aikatar Harkokin Wajen Amurka ta ayyana AQ a matsayin Ƙungiyar Ta’addanci ta Duniya ƙarƙashin sashe na 219 na Dokar Ƙaura da Zama Ɗan Ƙasa, wadda aka yi wa gyara. A ranar 23 ga watan Satumban 2011, an saka AQ a jerin Annex to Executive Order 13224. Sakamakon hakan, baya ga sauran abubuwa, an hana AQ taɓa duk wata dukiya da ta mallaka ko kadarori da ke ƙarƙashin ikon Amurka, sannan an haramta wa Amukawa yin hulɗar kuɗi da AQ. Bugu da ƙari, laifi ne mutum ya samar ko ya yi yunƙurin samarwa ko ya taimaka wajen samar wa AQ kayan aiki da gangan.
