ISLAMIC CIVIL WAR

New York Post ^ | 16 November 2003 | JIM HOAGLAND

[Lando Lincoln]

THE blood that the bombers of al Qaeda shed in the Saudi capital of Riyadh belonged primarily to Lebanese, Egyptian and other Arab families observing the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. They were victims of a well-planned mass murder that has brought al Qaeda's war home, where it will be won or lost. The U.S.-led invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq have put a misleading veneer on the overlapping political and civil wars that have roiled the Persian Gulf region for three decades. These conflicts swirl within Islam and within individual nations of the greater Middle East, which must finally come to terms with the direct dangers posed by al Qaeda and its loose network of nihilistic terrorists.

[Cicero]

Yes, to a degree this is a civil war within Islam. But I would take no comfort in that.

The American Civil War, tragic as it was, led to a sudden spurt of scientific and industrial development, railroad and factory building, which brought America into the status of world powers in a short time.

Earlier, the French Revolution, with many of the characteristics of a civil war, led to Napolean and the near conquest of Europe.

The Russian Revolution, or civil war, led to the Communist Empire.

The British Civil War, or Puritan Revolution, led to the rise of the market economy, the industrial age, and modernity.

The Roman Civil war led to the triumph of Augustine and the Roman Empire.

So, please don't think it's comforting that the Arabs are fighting among themselves. The victors in this internal struggle, if history is any guide, will be those who are fiercest and most determined. In my book, that's the fundamentalists.

Perhaps this revolution will fail, or will issue in something different from what its leaders expect, as often happens. But we are in for intertesting times. The British finally contained Napoleon, but it was a terrible struggle. America finally contained the USSR, but it took 70 years. It's clear that militant Islam is resurgent once more, after sleeping for a century or two, and that we have no choice but to fight it.

If the Democrats take over and we slack off, it will only make the battle longer and more difficult. They will not leave us alone. Or, of course, we could lose if we lack the will and courage to prevail.

[Senator Goldwater]

"The victors in this internal struggle, if history is any guide, will be those who are fiercest and most determined. In my book, that's the fundamentalists"

That's with whom we are at war, and we are more determined and fierce than they are.

At present.

[tet68]

When Saud begins beheading terrorists, it will be a start.
Gitmo will then be a paradise in comparison.
Tough choice for the human-rights crowd.

[gaspar]

Correct. Hoagland, usually a cautious journalist, did not get the full picture. The compound was reportedly attacked because of the large presence of Lebanese Christians in it. One who would deny the existence of an ongoing religious war does so at the peril of one's own reputation.