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Posted on 12/25/2003 9:57:53 AM PST by JohnHuang2
'PSSSST, jihad this way," hissed the al-Qaeda recruiter, enlisting another rookie into the global terror war against the United States, our interests and supporters. After two years, al-Qaeda and its allies continue to find new foot soldiers to wage a jihad against the West.
Italian police, for instance, made multiple arrests in the last few weeks related to jihadist recruiting networks for Iraq (by al-Qaeda franchise Ansar al Islam) and presumably elsewhere. The network had recruited at least 200 Islamic militants, 70 of them from Italy.
Italian authorities say an Arab male suicide bomber from Italy helped conduct the attack on the U.N. headquarters in August that killed 22, including U.N. envoy, Sergio de Mello. And another from Italy attacked the al Rasheed hotel in October, where Deputy Secretary of Defense Wolfowitz stayed during a visit to Iraq.
Terrorist recruiting often comes through Islamic religious schools and mosques, as well as through Web sites and Internet chat rooms. And the new recruits are coming from the darnedest places, in addition to Italy: France, Germany, Britain, Spain, Norway, Canada and the United States.
Arab Muslim males living abroad are one natural recruitment target, but some others are more surprising: young Caucasians, Latinos, Black Muslims and even women. Legal residents and travelers with valid passports are especially appealing for al-Qaeda's recruit because they arouse less suspicion and can move more freely across international borders.
Elsewhere in Europe, pockets of potential trouble exist.
Officials believe that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed used a number of non-Arab Europeans, including Swiss and Spaniards, to support the Tunisian synagogue suicide bomber Nizar Nawar and confuse authorities.
In the United States, Jose Padilla, a Latino gang member convert originally from New York, was arrested in May 2002 in Chicago for plotting to detonate a "dirty bomb" in the United States. He was reportedly recruited by Osama bin Laden's top lieutenant, Abu Zubaydah, and was directed by Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. (Zubaydah was arrested in March in Pakistan.)
The vast majority of Islamic converts, of course, don't become terrorists. But we should be aware that the pool of suspects isn't limited to Arab males from the Middle East.
Law-enforcement officials note that many converts are ferociously ideological and anxious to show their zeal and worth to their new faith, including joining a jihad. Osama bin Laden reportedly views converts as an especially potent weapon and a unique talent pool for the cause.
Perhaps the most surprising trend is the uptick in women terrorists. Islamist groups have long opposed female martyrs, but women are increasingly undertaking violent terrorist acts, according to Harvard University's Jessica Stern, a well-known terrorist expert. Because women are less prone to violence, they usually raise less concern among security personnel, making them ideal recruits for al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups, Stern adds.
All of this is not to say that everyone is suspect. But we do need to remain vigilant (especially during the holiday season). Though two-thirds of al-Qaeda's senior leadership have been killed or detained since 9/11, a new generation of jihadis is stepping up to the plate for a swing at the ball. Sometimes these rookies hardly resemble the old team, but they're just as dangerous.
We must adapt, just as our enemy is adapting. And, unfortunately, thinking outside the box for us is a continuing requirement, not a luxury, in the War on Terror.
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Wonder what the ghost of Charles DeGaulle now thinks of "Algeria es Francais" as a national policy?
We can ban smoking, but not Jihad?
Anybody espousing Jihad anywhere in the US should be locked up.
It would take a medieval toughness and ruthlessness to eliminate muslim plaque from the face of the earth.
From the beginning I have been impressed by the fact that our enemy fights from a position of severe weakness, his ad hoc use of weapons of considerable explosive power notwithstanding. That doesn't mean that I don't think he deserves to be defeated. He certainly does. But I think it's useful to keep some perspective on his actual ability to back up his fiery rhetoric with real success on the battlefield. That is an ability he certainly doesn't have, and has no real prospect of getting anytime soon.
Fighting the last war as usual.
We face "asymmetrical warfare" and the rag-tag army is equipped with Semtex, germs, chemical weapons, and possibly nukes. We know they can take out airliners and military helicopters and then fade into the background.
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Which is why I advocated--and continue to advocate:
1. Sealing the borders--as far as possible--using National Guard troops.
2. Sending 100-kT "love taps" to all capitals of terror-supporting states.
3. Revoking all visas of citizens of terror-supporting states.
4. Rounding up and deporting all illegal aliens--including persons who will not leave voluntarily when their visas are revoked.
5. Stopping the issuance of visas to citizens of terrorist states.
6. Profiling to the max.
7. Performing detailed background checks on all "naturalized citizens" originating in terrorist-supporting states.
8. A crash course to use nuclear power and methane clathrates to wean ourselves from foreign oil.
9. A total embargo on trade and travel to/from any terrorist supporting states. Let them live without Western technology of any type--including medicine, computers, television, radio, electricity, etc. Take out their satellites and all media (propaganda) outlets. Wipe them from the internet. Any nation (such as France) attempting to continue trade should have their planes/ships destroyed instanter.
But this is "too extreme" and therefore one fine day, smallpox will be released in Denver, the Sears Tower will come down, and the Golden Gate bridge will be demolished.
--Boris
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