Female Suicide Bombers

[Roguish Lawyer]

http://www.ict.org.il/

March 7, 2004
Female Suicide Bombers
An Update

Clara Beyler
ICT Researcher

This article suplements an earlier article, “Messengers of Death: female suicide bombers.�
The past year has been characterized by an increase in suicide bombings perpetrated by women. Suicide attacks continued to be conducted by Chechnyan and Palestinian women, but also began to be seen in rather unexpected countries such as Iraq. There was also a thwarted attack in Morocco. Moreover, an FBI report expressed concern over the forming of al-Qaeda female units.

Latest attacks
Chechnya
October 2002 A crowded Moscow theater was overtaken by about 50 abductors, 18 of them women dressed in black and wearing explosive belts. This marked the first time in the history of female suicide terrorism that such a team was established, signaling a shift from an individual action to a group structure.[1] Although large-scale operations occurred in the past, only an small number of women had assumed the role of warriors.[2]

May 12, 2003 Two suicide bombers—one of them a woman—drove an explosives-laden truck into a Chechen government compound, killing more than 60 people.

May 14, 2003 During a busy Muslim festival, a female suicide bomber detonated her explosive belt in an attempt to kill Chechnya’s Moscow-appointed leader, Akhmad Kadyrov. He survived the attack, but the explosion claimed 16 lives and left 145 wounded. A second female suicide bomber killed only herself in a second blast.

June 5, 2003 A Russian Air Force bus was targeted in North Ossetia by a female suicide bomber. Seventeen people died in the attack.

June 20, 2003 In Grozny, a suicide truck bomb perpetrated by a man and a woman targeted Russian Government buildings, killing eight, and wounding 25 people.

July 5, 2003 Two female suicide bombers detonated their bombs 10 minutes apart at a Moscow suburb open-air rock festival, killing 14 people, and wounding 60. Most of the casualties were caused by the second blast, with the first bomber killing only herself. The Russian news agency ITAR-Tass reported that another bomb was discovered at an entrance and defused by the police. A suspect involved in the bombings is still at large.

July 10, 2003 A bomb expert was killed after an apparent mechanical failure prevented a female suicide bomber from detonating her bomb at a downtown Moscow restaurant. The failed attack might be connected to the afore-mentioned July 5th attacks. The female bomber, Zarema Muzhikhoyeva, was arrested and charged with various counts, including terrorism and premeditated murder. More significantly, her arrest and interrogation uncovered information on some elements of the terror group behind the plot. The 22-year-old woman revealed that her intended target was a MacDonald’s restaurant, but she got lost due to her lack of familiarity with the city and eventually entered the closest café, where she tried to detonate the defective bomb and was caught.

July 27, 2003 Southeast of Grozny, a female suicide bomber detonated her explosive charge at a military base, as the son of Mr. Kadyrov was reviewing troops. Interfax News Agency reported that security forces were searching for another female bomber suspected to be on a mission to assassinate Kadyrov.

December 5, 2003 A female suicide bomber blew up in a commuter train in Southern Russia, Killing 42 people and wounding more than 150. Two or three other women were involved in the attack.

December 9, 2003 Two female suicide bombers detonated their charges near the Red Square in the heart of Moscow, killing 6 people and wounding a dozen.


Palestinian suicide attacks
May 19, 2003 19-year-old Hiba Da’arma blew up at the entrance to a mall in Afulah, killing 3 civilians and wounding 83, after being stopped by security guards. The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad took responsibility for the attack, marking the first time the PIJ claimed responsibility for an attack conducted by a woman.[3]

October 4, 2003 A suicide attack was perpetrated in Haifa by a 29-year-old female lawyer in Jenin. The PIJ claimed responsibility for this attack.

Iraq
April 4th 2003 a suicide car bomb attack against coalition forces was carried out by two women, killing three soldiers and wounding two civilians. A videotape subsequantly aired by the Qatar-based Al Jazeera network featured the two women, holding the Quran and a machine gun and expressing their support for Saddam Hussein. Some reports indicate that one of the women might have been pregnant.

Turkey
May 21, 2003 A bomb rocked the Crocodile coffee shop in Ankara frequented by students learning English in nearby private schools, claiming the life of the female terrorist. No one claimed responsibility for the blast. It is still not clear if this was an attempted suicide attack or whether the woman terrorist detonated it in the ladies room while hiding, possibly as a result of being scared off by the presence of a policeman.[4]


Morocco
In the summer of 2003, two teenage girls were arrested in Rabat and sentenced for terrorism offences. According to various reports, the two were on their way to target a liquor store, with some sources suggesting this was possibly a suicide attack plot. The teenagers were influenced by a branch of radical Islam advocated by the Salafi Jihad organization, which has been continuously gaining in strength in some suburbs.



Terror groups’ emerging utilization and justification of women bombers
Terrorist organizations legitimize the use of women as suicide bombers in two ways: by reference to prevalent social norms, and by religious ideology. In a society that welcomes and encourages female suicide bombers, religious legitimization in the form of edicts (fatwas) will further promote an already accepted terror tactic. Yet if fatwas are issued in a society that does not approve of such modus operandi, female suicide bombings are less likely to be promoted.


Palestinian Islamic Jihad
In the early part of 2003, the PIJ announced a strategic shift to a more “liberal� attitude towards women by accepting them as potential suicide bombers. As Col. (Ret.) Yoni Fighel explains, this shift aimed to upgrade the PIJ’s “operational capabilities by the introduction of a new methods to elude Israeli efforts to thwart and profile suicide attackers.�

Accordingly, an active propaganda campaign targeting Palestinian universities and promoted on the PIJ’s web site was launched. An AP translation of some promotional material included the following statement, attributed to a man allegedly training female recruits: “Our women are no longer the type of women who cry or weep. We have martyrdom women now…� [5]

Further religious legitimization was provided last May, when leading Egyptian cleric Yusuf al-Qaradawi, Dean of Islamic Studies at the University of Qatar, issued a fatwa in response to the female suicide bombing in Afula, asserting that “the act is a form of martyrdom for the cause of Allah… [and] that a woman should go out for jihad even without the permission of her husband…� Qaradawi notes that terror groups could benefit because women “may do what is impossible for men to do.� Hence, women are then allowed to violate “Islamic teachings,� avoid wearing the veil, and be without a male escort.[6]

It is also notable that Hamas’ spiritual leader, Sheikh Yassin, condoned the use of women as suicide bombers back in February 2002. At the time, Hamas leaders declared that they had no need of female suicide bombers, as there were enough male volunteers. However, in January 2004, Reem Raiyshi, 22, a married mother of two small children, became the first woman to carry out a suicide bombing on behalf of Hamas. According to a report in Yediot Ahronot, Raiyshi was compelled to perpetrate the terror strike to atone for having betrayed her husband.

Al-Qaida
In March 2003, the FBI expressed its growing concern over the possible change of al-Qaeda’s modus operandi following reports of increased recruitment of women.[7] Also of concern was a unit that formed around a female leader known as Umm Usama (the mother of Usama), who was reported to be in close contact with Usama Bin Laden and making extensive use of the Internet to communicate with her network. According to the London-based Saudi A-Sharq Al-Awsat, the group was modeled after and inspired by the successful integration of women by the Palestinians and Chechens, raising the specter that at some point in the future the practice of female suicide martyrdom could also be emulated.

Another hint of women’s greater involvement in Bin Laden’s group dates back to March 2003, when female Pakistani neurological expert Aafia Siddiqui was sought by the FBI for her alleged links to the terror group.[8] This marked the first time in the aftermath of September 11th that a warrant for a woman was issued in the “War on Terror.�

[continued next post]

[Roguish Lawyer]

[continued from previous post]

The social environment of the female suicide bomber
Chechnya
Reports from various human rights organizations point to the increasing role of women in the economic well being of the family. While women have been forced by societal changes to become breadwinners, they have also sadly adopted other formerly male roles—including that of suicide terrorist.

The “Black Widows,� women whose husbands were killed during the war, are recruited because they are widows and there is no man to protect them anymore. It is only when they become widows that they turn to terrorism, but as will be discussed later, the motives for their involvement are more complex.

Iraq
Out of the numerous attacks launched against coalition forces and civilians to date, only one was conducted by women. However, since there is a high number of readily available male warriors in the country, we can assume that at this point there is no need to recruit female bombers. Hence, no fatwa calling for female suicide actions was issued in the country thus far.
The Palestinian Authority

In the Palestinian territories we have seen active promotion of suicide bombers (male and female), which along with a general climate of martyrdom glorification, serves to reinforce a culture of suicide. For example, on August 15, a Palestinian youth summer camp in Gaza was inaugurated by Fatah members and named after female suicide bomber Ayyat al-Akhras. This marked the second time her name was given to a children’s camp. Moreover, school textbooks inculcate children with hate and encourage death for jihad. In fact, an entire “industry� has developed around the suicide-bombing trend, which features videotapes and posters of the “shaheed� (martyr) and the “shaheeda� (female martyr) that are freely distributed and proudly displayed, as well as “martyr medallions� which are traded by school kids the way children in the West trade baseball or soccer cards.

The motives behind female suicide attacks
The motivation of any suicide bomber, whether male or female, is often open to some interpretation, as the motives cannot be established with certainty. Some factors that come into play include ideological (religious or nationalist), socio-economic (including a financial incentive of special stipends handed out to the families of the bombers), and personal (specific traumas, desire for revenge, or possible psychological predisposition).[9]

In the case of the Palestinian female suicide bomber, two main factors have to be taken into consideration. First is the popular religious belief, shared by both religious and secular Palestinian Muslims, in life after death.[10] Hence, whatever the main incentive for a suicide attack, this basic notion needs to be addressed.

Secondly, while Palestinian women have carried attacks to “atone� for some infringement of propriety, the choice of becoming a suicide bomber is a rational and independent one that a Palestinian woman may make without any coercion. The Palestinian female bomber usually has a future and various paths to choose from, yet she consciously chose to carry out the suicide attack.
Since these women came from every sphere of Palestinian society, it is difficult to draw a profile of the Palestinian female suicide bomber. However, it was discovered that often the bomber’s motivation was to make a statement on behalf of Palestine or Islam, especially in the case of the religious PIJ. Yet it is interesting to note that an alleged female supervisor of a terror camp stated that “Suicide bombings have pulled women out of the boxes created by society—the box of a weeping, wailing creature always crying for help…Can anyone say that men are greater patriots than women?�[11] Also notable is the implied notion that patriotism constitutes a motivation for suicide attacks as opposed to religious Islamic rhetoric.

As noted in “Messengers of Death: female suicide bombers,� women have channeled the frustration stemming from their role in society into ruthless behavior. As highlighted above, instead of being “the weeping and wailing creature� the female Palestinian suicide bomber chooses to become a human bomb, possibly in order to demonstrate that women too can express overwhelming “patriotism� just like their male counterparts. Yet despite these notions, male terrorists are not likely to view the situation similarly and will use females merely because of narrow tactical considerations, without according them a higher social status.
In Chechnya, many reports on the actions of the “Black Widows� indicated that they have acted out of revenge. During the October 2002 theater hostage crisis, Al Jazeera aired a pre-recorded videotape featuring five of the female suicide bombers expressing their willingness and readiness to die, and justifying their acts by claiming that they are “avenging their losses.�

However, the physiological test results of failed suicide bomber Muzhikhoyeva, showed traces of drugs, which may point to a certain degree of coercion. Another interesting point revealed during the interrogation of Muzhikhoyeva was the presence of a female recruiter and trainer; a middle-aged woman referred to as “Lyuba,� who might have been involved in several recent female suicide attacks.[12]

There is also a striking commonality between Chechnyan and Palestinian female suicide bombers: many of these women had family members killed as a result of involvement in terrorist activities. Thus, it is often when they were psychologically weaker that recruiters prey on them as potential suicide bombers. Col. (Ret.) Yoni Fighel adds: “…It is well known that Hamas and the Islamic Jihad use funerals and mourning booths as a potential platform for recruitment.[13] These organizations are able to exploit the emotionally loaded circumstances, when feelings for revenge are high, for their own ends.�[14]


Looking to the future
The use of women—both Chechnyan and Palestinian—as human bombs as a successful modus operandi will likely continue to be an inviting option for terror groups (to a greater extent in Chechnya).[15]

Each Palestinian terror group, whether secular or religious, goes through an internal debate when it comes to including women. On the one hand, the use of women could increase the likelihood of perpetrating a successful terror attack. Yet on the other hand, the involvement of women as suicide bombers could lead to their greater inclusion in terror activity and the possibility of equality with men. The al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, a branch of Arafat’s secular Fatah, and the more religious Palestinian Islamic Jihad have decided to use women, while the Hamas, although officially accepting female participation, never implemented it.
The potentially gravest and recently emerging threat comes in the form of women being utilized by al-Qaida. This concern has been reinforced by the discovery of wigs in one of the group’s caches in Saudi Arabia. Even if terrorists did not intend to carry out attacks disguised as women or using women, the disguise could have served other purposes, such as surveillance of potential targets. Furthermore, we have witnessed a trend of women being more actively involved in bin Laden’s organization, being used as messengers and helping in various logistical tasks. Other information indicates that the women’s position in the group was upgraded, as indicated by an Italian warrant for a Tunisian woman, Bentiwaa Farida Ben Bechir, allegedly active in recruiting suicide bombers to be sent to Iraq among other countries. Ben Bechir’s whereabouts are unknown, amid suggestions that she could have left Europe and gone back to Tunisia.[16]


Conclusions and recommendations
Since terrorists can be very adaptable and are likely to resort to previously successful modus operandi, such as the use of women bombers, counter-terrorism measures have to be adapted and evolve at the same pace. A good example has been the increased recruitment of female guards and screeners in Israel, which enable a stricter security screening of women without compromising their dignity.
However, the best way to counter suicide bombing, whether perpetrated by men or women, is to eradicate the promotion campaign for suicide terrorism. If girls are presented with positive examples that do not glorify violence and death, they are more likely to become productive and positive adults instead of seeking to sow destruction and find glory in a martyr’s death. But in a society where death is more highly regarded than life, a fundamental change must take place first. In order to eliminate the teaching of hate and promotion of violence a shift within society triggered by a committed political leadership is required. The day when posters of suicide bombers are ripped off the walls of public spaces could signal the beginning of a new era of hope and peace. In the meantime, the faces of past suicide bombers are still there.

[Jack Moroney (RIP)]

Interesting article however if you cut through the psyco-babble the real reason probably is more akin to the fact that they realize that with all the male suicide bombers that have gone to paradise that they are running out of virgins. Hence, more females to paradise to correct the imbalance. On a positive note, the use of female suicide bombers cuts down the breeding stock of future idiots with the same genetic abheration.

Jack Moroney
Für die Sicherheit:D

[Radar Rider]

If females are willing to blow themselves up, then so be it. That's one less womb to breed little bastard terrorists. If no innocents are hurt during her "trip to paradise", then it's a win-win situation.

[Jimbo]

How the f did she not mention Sri Lanka in that article? What a dumbass.

[echoes]

Sadly, I have yet to hear of a female suicide bomber , that has had "no innocents hurt during her "trip to paradise".
They, and their male counterparts, have many reasons for blowing themselves to kingdom come, but I do not think
that it is a "win-win situation."
Because innocent children, in the wrong place, at the wrong time, are usually reported as part of the body count.

Where is the logic in that?

Holly

[danjam]

intro: Hello, I recognize a few names here, I served in the idf. I am a civilian as much as one can be in Israel, as such every year I like many do reserve duty.

------------------------------------------------
Life is cheap, Palestinian women killing themselves because they cheated on their husbands or dishonored their family is I guess an easy way out. They probably will be killed by their own family anyway (honor killing).

The same idea applies to the kids that the various terror arms recruit. Having been a witness to a kid come up to us at a check point, most of the kids that have been sent are a bit "slower" than their peers, their family is lower down in the social ladder, or they themselves are teased and want to make up for it.

[NousDefionsDoc]

Welcome danjam. Good to see you again.

[echoes]

Originally posted by danjam
intro: Hello, I recognize a few names here, I served in the idf. I am a civilian as much as one can be in Israel, as such every year I like many do reserve duty.

------------------------------------------------
Life is cheap, Palestinian women killing themselves because they cheated on their husbands or dishonored their family is I guess an easy way out. They probably will be killed by their own family anyway (honor killing).

The same idea applies to the kids that the various terror arms recruit. Having been a witness to a kid come up to us at a check point, most of the kids that have been sent are a bit "slower" than their peers, their family is lower down in the social ladder, or they themselves are teased and want to make up for it.

Sir, welcome, and Thank You for your Bravery, and Service. :)

How sad it is to hear of such stories, of children falling prey to this behavior.

[danjam]

Thankyou very much for your welcome.

In a reply to echoes, it is I that thank your soldiers for fighting for all of us.


We train together, and learn from each other, however I regret that we cannot (publically at least) fight together.

[echoes]

[Originally posted by danjam
"most of the kids that have been sent are a bit "slower" than their peers, their family is lower down in the social ladder, or they themselves are teased and want to make up for it."

Danjam, originally, my post was directed toward the attitude that these female suicide bombers were,
"a womb to breed little bastard terrorists",
and that it was a "win-win" situation.:rolleyes:

Clearly, by You actually being there, and seeing the kids I was speaking of, You shed light on the reality of the situation.

It is especially horrific to learn that these
"kids are a bit slower" than the others, and therefore looked down upon!

That attitude that fuels their behavior is disgusting, and I hope that the Wrath of God is poured out on those people, for causing the kids to feel so ashamed of themselves, that they would feel it was their only way out.

Just my little opinion. And, thanks for "fighting" with US!!!

Holly

[danjam]

It would be wrong for me to generalize that the kids are "slower". This is just because the kid that we encountered was "slow", and the kid that was filmed was also "slow".

We must also remember that their religious leaders condone blowing yourself up to make up for "sins", and encourage the education system to include homicide bombing. If you could just see their TV.

Rantisi, who thankfully was killed last night, was a pediatrician!!!

[NousDefionsDoc]

"a womb to breed little bastard terrorists",
Becoming a terrorist is environmental, not genetic.

[Radar Rider]

Okay, just to clarify my post about breeding terrorists. That was originally written in anger, as homicide bombings, whether perpetrated by a man or a woman, are extraordinarily obscene. Blowing up innocent people, whatever the motivation, is grotesque. I certainly don't like anyone committing such acts. All I was saying is that if they are going to do it (and they're not going to stop), I hope that the bomber is the only victim of the act.

[echoes]

Originally posted by NousDefionsDoc
Becoming a terrorist is environmental, not genetic.

NDD: How true Sir. And sadly, that environment, IMHO, usually involves masses of civilians being blown to pieces...otherwise, they would not do it.

Danjam, as you said: "We must also remember that their religious leaders condone blowing yourself up to make up for "sins", and encourage the education system to include homicide bombing. If you could just see their TV."

That type of environment only adds to my opinion. I can only imagine what they indoctrinate in to those children, on TV.

This brings to mind a quote from the Bible:
"Vengence is Mine, says The Lord...for anyone who harms one hair on a child's head..."

Holly :(

[stuW]

This is my first post, so hopefully I don't find myself with a warning. An article I saw which may appeal to you is below my comments.

It would seem to me that the enemy is not one, but rather a series of enemies with a common strategic goal, but multiple ideologies. Some rationalize a method of attack (suicide bombing, perhaps used against civilians) but disagree over its inputs. This is a process that has started with the founders of il-Ikwan (Muslim Brotherhood) like Sayyid Qutb and Hassan El-Banna, and Abdullah Azzam popularizing the use of Jihad against civilians and non-combatants. I am not familiar (the article doesn't note anyone) coming from Al-Azhar in Cairo, or any of the other top Mosques offering an interpretation on if it is or is not Haram (forbidden) for Muslim women to take their own life to advance Jihad, or simply pick up a sword and fight. Based on my very rudimentary knowledge of Islam and conversations with friends who study at Azhar, this would strike me as highly illegal (the woman and particularly her womb, which grows the size of the Islamic world and its army, is highly valued in Islam) This is a highly dichotomous issue, and it appears these revolutionary women are attempting to rationalize for their own tactical reasons with or without religious support (as appears the case with HAMAS - I am less familiar with the cases in Iraq). Is this a form of Islamic feminism?

stu

http://www.newsweek.com/id/139515/page/1

Al-Qaida's stance on women sparks extremist debate
Al-Qaida's stance on women's role sparks debate among Muslim extremists
LAUREN FRAYER Associated Press Writer
AP
Updated: 12:45 PM ET May 31, 2008

Muslim extremist women are challenging al-Qaida's refusal to include — or at least acknowledge — women in its ranks, in an emotional debate that gives rare insight into the gender conflicts lurking beneath one of the strictest strains of Islam.

In response to a female questioner, al-Qaida No. 2 leader Ayman Al-Zawahri said in April that the terrorist group does not have women. A woman's role, he said on the Internet audio recording, is limited to caring for the homes and children of al-Qaida fighters.

His remarks have since prompted an outcry from fundamentalist women, who are fighting or pleading for the right to be terrorists. The statements have also created some confusion, because in fact suicide bombings by women seem to be on the rise, at least within the Iraq branch of al-Qaida.

A'eeda Dahsheh is a Palestinian mother of four in Lebanon who said she supports al-Zawahri and has chosen to raise children at home as her form of jihad. However, she said, she also supports any woman who chooses instead to take part in terror attacks.

Another woman signed a more than 2,000-word essay of protest online as Rabeebat al-Silah, Arabic for "Companion of Weapons."

"How many times have I wished I were a man ... When Sheikh Ayman al-Zawahri said there are no women in al-Qaida, he saddened and hurt me," wrote "Companion of Weapons," who said she listened to the speech 10 times. "I felt that my heart was about to explode in my chest...I am powerless."

Such postings have appeared anonymously on discussion forums of Web sites that host videos from top al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden. While the most popular site requires names and passwords, many people use only nicknames, making their identities and locations impossible to verify.

However, groups that monitor such sites say the postings appear credible because of the knowledge and passion they betray. Many appear to represent computer-literate women arguing in the most modern of venues — the Internet — for rights within a feudal version of Islam.

"Women were very disappointed because what al-Zawahri said is not what's happening today in the Middle East, especially in Iraq or in Palestinian groups," said Rita Katz, director of the SITE Intelligence Group, an organization that monitors militant Web sites. "Suicide operations are being carried out by women, who play an important role in jihad."

It's not clear how far women play a role in al-Qaida because of the group's amorphous nature.

Terrorism experts believe there are no women in the core leadership ranks around bin Laden and al-Zawahri. But beyond that core, al-Qaida is really a movement with loosely linked offshoots in various countries and sympathizers who may not play a direct role. Women are clearly among these sympathizers, and some are part of the offshoot groups.

In the Iraq branch, for example, women have carried out or attempted at least 20 suicide bombings since 2003. Al-Qaida members suspected of training women to use suicide belts were captured in Iraq at least three times last year, the U.S. military has said.

Hamas, another militant group, is open about using women fighters and disagrees with al-Qaida's stated stance. At least 11 Palestinian women have launched suicide attacks in recent years.

"A lot of the girls I speak to ... want to carry weapons. They live with this great frustration and oppression," said Huda Naim, a prominent women's leader, Hamas member and Palestinian lawmaker in Gaza. "We don't have a special militant wing for women ... but that doesn't mean that we strip women of the right to go to jihad."

Al-Zawahri's remarks show the fine line al-Qaida walks in terms of public relations. In a modern Arab world where women work even in some conservative countries, al-Qaida's attitude could hurt its efforts to win over the public at large. On the other hand, noted SITE director Katz, al-Zawahri has to consider that many al-Qaida supporters, such as the Taliban, do not believe women should play a military role in jihad.

Al-Zawahri's comments came in a two-hour audio recording posted on an Islamic militant Web site, where he answered hundreds of questions sent in by al-Qaida sympathizers. He praised the wives of mujahedeen, or holy warriors. He also said a Muslim woman should "be ready for any service the mujahedeen need from her," but advised against traveling to a war front like Afghanistan without a male guardian.

Al-Zawahri's stance might stem from personal history, as well as religious beliefs. His first wife and at least two of their six children were killed in a U.S. airstrike in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar in 2001. He later accused the U.S. of intentionally targeting women and children in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"I say to you ... (I have) tasted the bitterness of American brutality: my favorite wife's chest was crushed by a concrete ceiling," he wrote in a 2005 letter.

Al-Zawahri's question-and-answer campaign is one sign of al-Qaida's sophistication in using the Web to keep in touch with its popular base, even while its leaders remain in hiding. However, the Internet has also given those disenfranchised by al-Qaida — in this case, women — a voice they never had before.

The Internet is the only "breathing space" for women who are often shrouded in black veils and confined to their homes, "Ossama2001" wrote. She said al-Zawahri's words "opened old wounds" and pleaded with God to liberate women so they can participate in holy war.

Another woman, Umm Farouq, or mother of Farouq, wrote: "I use my pen and words, my honest emotions ... Jihad is not exclusive to men."

Such women are al-Qaida sympathizers who would not feel comfortable expressing themselves with men or others outside their circles, said Dia'a Rashwan, an expert on terrorism and Islamic movements at the Al-Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies in Cairo.

"The Internet gives them the ideal place to write their ideas, while they're hidden far from the world," he said.

Men have also responded to al-Zawahri's remarks. One male Internet poster named Hassan al-Saif asked: "Does our sheik mean that there is no need to use women in our current jihad? Why can we not use them?"

He was in the minority. Dozens of postings were signed by men who agreed with al-Zawahri that women should stick to supporting men and raising children according to militant Islam.

Women bent on becoming militants have at least one place to turn to. A niche magazine called "al-Khansaa" — named for a female poet in pre-Islamic Arabia who wrote lamentations for two brothers killed in battle — has popped up online. The magazine is published by a group that calls itself the "women's information office in the Arab peninsula," and its contents include articles on women's terrorist training camps, according to SITE.

Its first issue, with a hot pink cover and gold embossed lettering, appeared in August 2004 with the lead article "Biography of the Female Mujahedeen."

The article read:

"We will stand, covered by our veils and wrapped in our robes, weapons in hand, our children in our laps, with the Quran and the Sunna (sayings) of the Prophet of Allah directing and guiding us."