Commentary

Safe for the moment

A BRIEF SUMMARY:

I couldn’t resist commenting on the latest terror plot foiled by anti-mayhem squads coordinating from all corners of the globe.

The scope of the effort is quite impressive. The security effects will prove to be fleeting.

The president says they(the extremist evil-doers) hate us because of our freedom. I say it’s decades of intrusive US foreign policy in the Middle East capped off by the bungled occupation of Iraq, two thousand years quarreling over who God granted title of the Holy Land to, and the lack of economic opportunity most Muslims face in Europe.

The religious real estate nonsense is a non-starter, but a change in US policy in the region, and the purchase of a clue by the Europeans could go a long way toward reducing the levels of insanity and violence.

THE COMPLETE COMMENTARY:

Police in London detained 24 suspects who were allegedly plotting air-borne martyrdom missions targeting US airliners. The arrests were made after Pakistani officials brought in 17 people for questioning, five of whom had received bomb-making lessons at an al Qaeda training camp.

The plan centered on combining peroxide-based liquids hidden in the false bottoms of drink containers and igniting them with flash bulbs from disposable cameras or using the current created by portable electronic devices.

By now everyone has heard of the ban on certain cosmetic products and carry-on liquids at London and US airports. The terror alert was also raised on Thursday to the highest level on both sides of the Atlantic, although it was knocked down a notch today.

What is alarming in this case is the similarity between those recently apprehended and the London bombers who killed 52 in an attack on the mass transit system last July. In that martyrdom mission, three of the four were Muslims of Pakistani origin- one was a Muslim from Jamaica. Of the 19 plotters whose assets were seized by the Bank of England, most were British Muslims of Pakistani descent, and at least three were converts to Islam.

Both plots involved homemade explosives and were designed to cause extensive civilian casualties on mass transit systems. The differences lie in scope and funding. The July 2005 attack was relatively simple and inexpensive . The ambitious nature of the current plot has led many in the intelligence community to believe that the participants received financial and operational assistance from outside the UK.

Authorities are now focusing their attention on Jamaat ud Dawa, a Pakistani charity that
is a front for a militant group fighting India in Kashmir. This organization is active in London, Birmingham and Manchester, and has raised funds to aid Pakistani victims of the most recent earthquake in Kashmir. Pakistani officials believe that some of this relief money was diverted to the suspects involved in the airline-bombing plot.

Jamaat ud Dawa is also designated by the US as a terrorist organization, and is believed to be the successor to Laskar-e-Taibi, which was shut down by the Pakistani government
in 2002 under pressure from the US.

What does all of this mean? In my opinion the disruption of this plot is just another finger in the dike. The idea of downing civilian aircraft using suicide bombers dates back to the 1995 Bojinka plot conceived by Ramzi Ahmed Yousef (1993 World Trade Center attack), and Khalid Sheik Mohammed (9/11 architect, now in US custody). These attempts will continue. Each new generation of extremist has the determination of those preceding it. The Islamic charities that fund martyrdom operations are entrenched in many European Muslim societies, and they offer assistance in the form of social welfare. They can be seen both as protectors of the Muslim community and leaders in the fight against injustice.

This one case involved hundreds of investigators on three continents, and required months of investigative work. British and American officials believe there are still participants out there, and some may be waiting until the dust settles before acting.

The current approach has seemed to work only because several plots have been foiled, and there has been no major attack on US soil since 2001. But, Spain and England were targets of
significant attacks in the last two years. India also experienced a coordinated attack on the transit system in the city of Mumbai that killed close to 200 people.

If the status quo remains with regard to US involvement in the Middle East, and European governments continue to ignore the poverty and overall lack of opportunity facing their large Muslim minorities, the extremist’s appeal will never be extinguished.

I am not blind to the problem of state-sponsored terrorism. Iran is a not just a regional security concern; through proxy militias it can wield its influence far and wide. But, like those who fund primarily Sunni martyrdom operations, the Iranian government uses discontent and anger with the west to prop itself up and further its goals while robbing citizens of their rights.

A strategy targeting the source of resentment will reduce the allure of the false prophets and sponsors of destruction. They really have nothing to offer other than a violent express trip to the 7th century. America and Europe have extensive education programs and economies that offer opportunity for men and women alike. It is time to promote what we have to offer, and make it universally available. This will expose the extremists as nothing more than selfish thugs who promote their own agenda at the expense of everyone else.

© 2006 Splendid Marbles.