By: Tashbih Sayyed, Ph. D.
Recent events suggest that radical Islam has won the first round in the US war against it. The evidence of US capitulation is overwhelming; Sunnis in Iraq have successfully prevented the coalition forces and the US backed Iraqi government from establishing even a semblance of secure environment – while the US and US backed Iraqi government has been forced to live in ghettoes ("Green Zone"), the Islamists are directing the course of events outside – Iraqi life and property remains at their mercy. The coalition forces, US and the US backed Iraqi administration have been defeated totally in their objective to prove to the Iraqis that their lives will be better in a post Saddam era - Jobs, education, health facilities, water, electricity, sanitation and practically everything else needed to survive still eludes Iraqis.
The US, it seems, has reached the conclusion that without Radical Islam's blessings the dream to democratize Iraq will remain a dream. There are reports that Iraqi and United States officials are now trying to coax some insurgents into mainstream politics by floating the possibility of an amnesty. In an interview with the BBC, US defense secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, confirmed that "there are continuing contacts" between the Iraqi government and insurgents. According to the Guardian, A Pentagon spokesman said that the Iraqi government had raised the amnesty issue and "we look forward to working closely with the Iraqi government as this idea develops."
The enemy is watching. The US weaknesses are not hidden from him. He is more determined now that the signs of US capitulation are everywhere to be seen. According to Reuters, Iraq's al Qaeda vowed to kill anyone negotiating with the U.S.-backed Iraqi government in a Web statement on Tuesday (June 14, 2005).
Responding to reports that some tribal leaders in Mosul, were seeking talks, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's group warned, "Liars claim that the sheikhs of tribes in Mosul plan to hand over mujahideen (holy fighters) and assist the crusaders and apostates, and we do not know which tribes or sheikhs they speak of." The warning posted on an Islamist Web site said, "We will impose God's punishment on anyone who stands by the crusaders or becomes their ally or supports them."
Underlining the Islamist ethos driving the insurgency, the Al Qaeda Organization for Holy War in Iraq said in a separate Web statement, "We reiterate that there will be no dialogue with the Jews and Christians other than the sound of bullets, blood and fire."
The story in Afghanistan is not very different. The US backed government of President Hamid Karzai remains confined within the boundaries of Kabul, leaving the rest of the country at the mercy of war lords, thugs, criminal gangs and Taliban holy warriors. According to Taliban commander Mullah Akhtar Usmani, Osama bin Laden is in good health and remains in direct command of Taliban forces in Afghanistan. Usmani said Taliban leader Omar was also well. "He is still our commander and we are still getting instructions from him," he said of Omar.
The upsurge in attacks on Afghan officials and the US forces confirm that the Taliban forces are slowly but surely regrouping. And whatever shortcoming there is in Al-Qaeda's revival in Afghanistan will be over come by Pakistan's decision to repatriate remaining Afghan refugees in Pakistan.
And under the cover of refugee repatriation, Pakistan has started the mass-export of al Qaeda operatives back to where they came from – Afghanistan. The UN refugee agency reports that from 2002, nearly 2.4 million Afghan refugees returned home from Pakistan. This week, General Pervez Musharraf gave the remaining estimated 400,000 until June 30 to leave the country or face expulsion. Pakistani authorities claim terrorists are hiding among these Afghan refugees and the expulsion order will deport them too.
DEBKAfile's correspondent quotes diplomatic sources in the capital as referring to the belief of US intelligence agents that al-Qaeda and Taliban operatives who took shelter in Pakistan as refugees are now regrouping and moving back into Afghanistan. Their numbers are small but are expected to swell, posing fresh dangers to the Karzai government's stability in Kabul. American military strength in Afghanistan is not nearly large enough to deal with any major influx.
During my recent visit to Pakistan, I was told by many well informed sources that the Taliban's support among the masses has never waned and Taliban commander Mullah Akhtar Usmani confirmed that assessment. He said that the Taliban were getting increasing support from the Afghan people because of U.S. "brutality against Muslims and their bias against Muslim countries," he said. "The Taliban are everywhere. In some places they are very dominant and in others they are not. They are dominant in the eastern, southern and southwestern provinces," he said.
U.S. and Afghan army commanders say the Taliban are being defeated but insurgent attacks have been on the increase in recent months and 13 U.S. soldiers have been killed since late March. Only today, Wednesday, June 15, 2005, fighting between about 90 suspected Taliban rebels and hundreds of Afghan soldiers and U.S.-led coalition troops left seven insurgents dead and 10 wounded, while a rebel attack on a medical clinic killed a doctor and six others.
According to many Islamists, their violent "politics" have been very successful in convincing the US that it cannot defeat them. Recent statements of US military leadership, public opinion polls and US overtures to appease radical Islam in the Middle East confirm Islamist confidence. Tom Lasseter, longtime Knight Ridder correspondent in Baghdad, wrote for today's papers, "A growing number of senior American military officers in Iraq have concluded that there is no long-term military solution to an insurgency that has killed thousands of Iraqis and more than 1,300 U.S. service members during the past two years. Instead, officers say, the only way to end the guerrilla war is through Iraqi politics."
According to media reports, the Iraqi army is unable (and to some extent, unwilling) to take over the lion's share of military activities for at least two years and perhaps much longer "We have reached a tipping point," Ronald Spector, a military historian at George Washington University, told USA Today's Susan Page. "Even some of those who thought it was a great idea to get rid of Saddam [Hussein] are saying, 'I want our troops home.'" A new Gallup survey finds that 59% of Americans say the United States should withdraw some or all of its troops from Iraq. And, for the first time, most Americans say they would be "upset" if President Bush sent more troops.
The situation in the Palestinian Authority is the same. There too, the Islamist terrorists represented by HAMAS, Islamic Jihad and Martyrs Brigade have successfully planted themselves in positions that the US find difficult to ignore. For Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, these achievements of the Palestinian people are a matter of pride. He said recently, "My election . . . gave me a feeling of great pride—not in myself, but in the Palestinian people."
Radical Islam has every right to be proud of the Palestinian people. It was the Palestinian people who forced Washington not only to ignore their politics of terror and blackmail but reward them with billions of dollars in aid. Washington's pressure on Israel to give the Palestinians what is not theirs is living proof of the success of the Palestinian art of deceit and deception.
The fact that the world finds it convenient to accept Palestinian positions on almost everything and does not pay any attention to their terrorism that has resulted in thousands of Israeli deaths proves that Palestinians have mastered the art of pulling wool over the eyes of the world – they are living testament to the dictum that a lie repeated often enough is eventually accepted as truth.
Palestinians have shown such an extraordinary knack for hoodwinking world opinion that now they lie without thinking – lying appears to be their second nature. This utter disregard for truth was evident in the statement of Palestinian Authority president Abbas, "For the past four years, Israel's daily military incursions and destruction of our infrastructure and institutions have rendered us an impoverished nation."
The Palestinian leader did not feel any shame in hiding the facts that these so called Israeli incursions were in response to Arab acts of terrorism. He chooses to ignore the fact that Arabs have been rendered impoverished nation not because of Israel's actions to secure the lives of its citizens but because of the rampant Arab corruption, inefficiency and unwillingness to work for an honest living.
The Palestinian people's victory is complete; they, with the help of their anti-Semite Arab neighbors, have made the US - the victim of Islamist terrorism herself - to reward terror. Washington, forgetting that Palestinians represent the same anti-Americanism that brought down the World Trade Center, has allowed itself to be used by them to bring down its only friend – Israel. By accepting a two-state solution to the Middle East conflict, the US has contributed more to the weakening of the state of Israel than all the Arab wars to destroy the Jewish state combined.
Under pressure from its Arab "friends" and driven by its desire to regain the friendship of Eurabia, President George W. Bush refuses to see the long term plan to destroy America's only real friend in the Middle East – Israel. Mahmoud Abbas says, "The parameters of my vision of a permanent peace agreement are well-known: a return by Israel to the pre-1967 borders, the sharing of Jerusalem as the capital of two states; a just and agreed solution to the Palestinian refugee problem and a permanent peace treaty between the states of Israel and Palestine based on equality and reciprocity."
It is clear from this statement that the Arab game of deceit and deception will continue until they achieve their vision – the total destruction of the Jewish state. Volumes have been written about the threats that these Abbas parameters pose to the existence of Israel. Arabs having failed miserably in defeating Israel in the battle field have now adopted this game of incremental reduction of Israeli territory. Once achieved, the goal of pushing Israel behind indefensible 1967 borders, they will build up the pressure to push her beyond 1948 limits and then to nothing. President Bush must understand that what Mahmoud Abbas is asking for will in fact, result in the defeat of the US in its war on Islamist terrorism.
In Mahmoud Abbas's demand to share Jerusalem with Jews, there is a ploy to defeat history. History doesn't accord anyone but the Jews, the right to its ownership. "When in 1010 B.C.E., King David brought the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem, Arabs did not exist. When in 597 B.C.E, Nebuchadnezzar, came to Jerusalem, it was a Jewish city. When in 516 B.C, Jews started rebuilding the temple in Jerusalem, Arabs had no idea that Jerusalem existed. Even when the Muslims learned of the term "Masjid-e-Aqsa" (a mosque far away), there was no sign of a Muslim in Jerusalem. It was only when Umer the second Caliph after the death of Prophet Muhammad, extending his Caliphate conquered Jerusalem that the Muslim became aware of its existence.
In my view, the true peace and stability in the Middle East cannot be realized without accepting the fact that "Jerusalem belongs to Israel forever and will no longer be the possession of foreigners." September 11, 2001 has underlined the vitality of recognizing the divine truth that keeping Jerusalem as the united and eternal capital of the Hebrew State is in the interest of world peace.
As far as the two state solution to the Arab Israeli conflict is concerned, the honest observer knows that it is nothing but a very clever design to destroy the Jewish state from the back door. The US, if it wants to defeat radical Islam, must give up its policy of succumbing to Arab blackmail – Appeasement of Arabs may appear to be a good short term tactic but will definitely cause a lot of misery in the long term.
And finally, Mahmoud Abbas's last item in his parameters: the solution to the Palestinian refugee problem. First of all, Arabs have remained "refugees" because they all hoped to see the Jewish state destroyed – it is basically an ultimate fraud and the world has to recognize it as such. Second, if the so called refugees really want to go any where, they have a Palestinian state – Jordan. They should go there. And finally, a Jewish state can remain a Jewish state only so long as Jews inhabit it. Unlike the Wahhabi state of Saudi Arabia which does not even permit non-Wahhabi Muslims to come in, the Jewish state is truly pluralistic and tolerant of peoples of all faiths.
The story of Arab guile and the US gullibility is not complete yet. The air is heavy with the news that Washington is ready to accept HAMAS as a partner in dialogue. It is believed that having failed miserably to even contain the Arab insurgency in Iraq and Afghanistan, the US is now feeling the pressure to bribe Arab terrorists with favors.
What Washington doesn't understand is that bribes, favors and other forms of appeasement only embolden radical Islam. In the eyes of Islamists, all efforts, all signs of decency and appeasement are evidence of weakness. Today, US insistence on including Sunnis in the constitution-making in Iraq, talks of offering Al-Qaeda members a role in Afghan administration and now the acceptance of HAMAS as a partner has convinced radical Islam that the United States of America has lost and its foreign policy has been reduced to face saving and surrender.
Arab terrorism is just another head of radical Islamist Hydra - HAMAS, Al-Qaeda, Hizbollah, Islamic Jihad, the Zarqawi group and their ilk being the other heads. And Washington's efforts to engage them in any kind of partnership will for sure bring more deaths and hardships for the Americans and their allies.
The US overtures to engage radical Islam has given reason to radical Islam to be sure of its victory.
According to Islamists, whereas the US might have failed miserably in breaking the back of radical Islam, American deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan now approaching the 2000 mark have definitely deflated the "crusader spirits." They are convinced that Radical Islam has forced the US to accept its authority and power. According to an Arab commentator, "Talks on accepting Hamas and holding discussions with it cannot be separated from the American desire to start a dialogue with Islamic parties and movements, since they are considered as influential powers in the Arab political scene, following the obstacle encountered by Washington in Iraq and the region."
According to the same commentator, "This notion was transmitted to the countries of the European Union, whose foreign ministers discussed three months ago a document that urges the EU countries to delve into the dialogue issue with Islamic groups in the Middle East."
Watching the way world powers are competing with each other in trying to appease Arab terrorism, Mahmoud Abbas's sense of victory was not misplaced. Aware of the fact that in the "Two nation solution" to the Middle East lies the formula of Israel's destruction, he said, "President Bush has supported our quest for freedom, as he made clear in his vision of a two-state solution to the Middle East conflict. It is a vision that I and the overwhelming majority of Palestinians share."
Those who understand Arab ethos cannot miss the significance of the Palestinian president's statement. And President Bush, I hope, knows the actual nature of Palestinian vision.
The world by now is familiar with the phenomenon of asymmetrical war: in the face of a technologically advanced and militarily formidable west, the less powerful and backward radical Islam has come up with the weapons of terrorism and homicide bombers. The nature of ethereal warfare has caught the modern world napping; modern world has no answer to this barbarism that does not have any face and respects no borders. It can be as sudden as a Californian earthquake and as subtle as vapors in the air. Against this background, Mahmoud Abbas's declaration makes a lot of sense, "But we are not weak: Our strength does not come from military superiority—it comes from convictions", he said. Of course, Palestinians do not need any military superiority. Their convictions – complete destruction of the Jewish state and total annihilation of the Jewish people – gives them so much power that they are dying to murder the Infidels.
It is obvious that someone who has learned to defeat open societies by using weapons of terrorism does not need conventional military superiority. The greatest military power on this earth – the United States of America – is learning this fact in Iraq every day. Palestinians who have mastered the marshal art of homicide bombings do not need military superiority.
Palestinian Authority showed its faith in terrorism when its Foreign Minister Nasser al-Kidwa told Palestinian television that disarming militants was not on the agenda. "The dismantling of armed organizations is not on the table because weapons are legal as long as the occupation exists," he said. "Possession of weapons is a strategic issue as long as there is occupation," al-Kidwa continued, adding that weapons should be organized and not be used to break the law.
The continued PA policy of casting Jewish lands as "occupied" speaks volumes about Palestinian conviction; Arab terrorism will continue so long as Israel exists. That's why Hamas welcomed the comments opposing the disarmament of Islamic Jihad and other militant groups. Hamas spokesman Musheer Masri said Kidwa's comments "reflected the PA's awareness of the nature of the current phase and the highest interests of the Palestinian people." Masri added, "The PA acknowledged that protecting the armed resistance ensures the continuation of national unity."
There is a lesson in all this for the Israeli Prime Minister; Israel will always remain alone in its existential struggles. After thousands of years of living as Dhimmis under anti-Semite peoples, it cannot afford to let the moment slip out of its palm. It must not do to the Jews what the enemies of Jews have been doing to them for millenniums.
Mr. Sharon, please do not set a new example of Jew hatred. If your disengagement plan goes through, it will be the first time Jewish authorities will have followed in the footsteps of Nebuchadnezzar - Jews forcing Jews to leave their homes with no rational justification. Please understand, Israel has no choice but to prove to the world that it really believes in the conclusion that it will never again allow any Nazi to send them to the gas chambers. "Never again" must always be the criteria for any Jewish leader to act.
And since the US faith or the lack of it in human liberty will certainly decide the fate of humanity, the civilized world wants to know: if the US did not have what it takes to finish the war on radical Islam, why did it start it?
(The writer is editor-in-chief of Pakistan Today and Muslim World Today, California-based weekly newspapers, president of Council for Democracy and Tolerance and adjunct fellow of Hudson Institute.)
