US terror report misses the point
By Ramzy Baroud
Asia Times
The various data provided in the US State Department's annual terrorism report for 2007 point towards some interesting, if not puzzling conclusions. The much-publicized document, made available on April 30 through the State Department's website, makes no secret of the fact that al-Qaeda is back, strong as ever. It also suggests that violence worldwide is nowhere near subsiding, despite President George W Bush's repeated assurances regarding the success of his "war on terror".
But will the report inspire a serious reflection of the country's detrimental foreign policy, and its role in the current situation?
Let's look at some of the data.
To start with, take Pakistan. Al-Qaeda or al-Qaeda-inspired attacks in the country more than doubled (from 375 to 877) between 2006 and 2007. These attacks have claimed the lives of 1,335 people, compared to 335 in a previous report. That is a jump of almost 300%.
Then there's Afghanistan, which was supposedly "liberated" shortly after September 11, 2001. The number of attacks reported in this country experienced a sharp increase by 16% in 2007. The 1,127 violent incidents killing 1,966 people also represents a significant surge of violence in comparison to 2006's 1,257 deaths.
There have also been many other violent incidents around the world, including but not limited to North Africa, and the terrorist bombings in Algeria in particular.
But this is barely half the story - or 40% of it, if we want to be as specific as the terrorism report. Iraq accounted for 60% of worldwide terrorism fatalities.
Considering that the horrifying violence currently witnessed in Iraq was unheard of prior to the US invasion of 2003, will the Bush administration take a moment to connect the dots? Even a third-grader could figure this one out: the US occupation was a major, if not sole factor in Iraq's relentless bloodbath. To right the wrong in Iraq, the US military should clearly just withdraw, and Bush - or whoever next claims the White House - should stop fabricating pretexts to justify the prolonged mission.
On May 1, 2003, Bush declared the end of major combat operations in Iraq. As he stood on the deck of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln a huge banner behind him bore the words "Mission Accomplished". The New York Times then wrote, "The Bush administration is planning to withdraw most United States combat forces from Iraq over the next several months and wants to shrink the American military presence to less than two divisions by the fall."
(Continued here.)
Asia Times
The various data provided in the US State Department's annual terrorism report for 2007 point towards some interesting, if not puzzling conclusions. The much-publicized document, made available on April 30 through the State Department's website, makes no secret of the fact that al-Qaeda is back, strong as ever. It also suggests that violence worldwide is nowhere near subsiding, despite President George W Bush's repeated assurances regarding the success of his "war on terror".
But will the report inspire a serious reflection of the country's detrimental foreign policy, and its role in the current situation?
Let's look at some of the data.
To start with, take Pakistan. Al-Qaeda or al-Qaeda-inspired attacks in the country more than doubled (from 375 to 877) between 2006 and 2007. These attacks have claimed the lives of 1,335 people, compared to 335 in a previous report. That is a jump of almost 300%.
Then there's Afghanistan, which was supposedly "liberated" shortly after September 11, 2001. The number of attacks reported in this country experienced a sharp increase by 16% in 2007. The 1,127 violent incidents killing 1,966 people also represents a significant surge of violence in comparison to 2006's 1,257 deaths.
There have also been many other violent incidents around the world, including but not limited to North Africa, and the terrorist bombings in Algeria in particular.
But this is barely half the story - or 40% of it, if we want to be as specific as the terrorism report. Iraq accounted for 60% of worldwide terrorism fatalities.
Considering that the horrifying violence currently witnessed in Iraq was unheard of prior to the US invasion of 2003, will the Bush administration take a moment to connect the dots? Even a third-grader could figure this one out: the US occupation was a major, if not sole factor in Iraq's relentless bloodbath. To right the wrong in Iraq, the US military should clearly just withdraw, and Bush - or whoever next claims the White House - should stop fabricating pretexts to justify the prolonged mission.
On May 1, 2003, Bush declared the end of major combat operations in Iraq. As he stood on the deck of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln a huge banner behind him bore the words "Mission Accomplished". The New York Times then wrote, "The Bush administration is planning to withdraw most United States combat forces from Iraq over the next several months and wants to shrink the American military presence to less than two divisions by the fall."
(Continued here.)
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