Six years after the attacks of September 11, FP looks back at some of the critical essays and arguments that shaped the international debate on the war on terror.
The Day Nothing Much Changed, by William J. Dobson We were told the world would never be the same. But did 9/11 actually alter the state of global affairs? For all the sound and fury, the world looks much like it did on September 10.
The Terrorism Index In the third Terrorism Index, more than 100 of America’s most respected foreign-policy experts see a world that is growing more dangerous, a national security strategy in disrepair, and a war in Iraq that is alarmingly off course.
The Bomb in the Backyard, by Peter D. Zimmerman and Jeffrey G. Lewis Osama bin Laden has not yet succeeded in launching a nuclear attack. But it isn’t because he can’t. With enriched uranium, a handful of military supplies available on the Internet, and a small team of terrorists, he could assemble a nuclear bomb in a matter of months. This is how it will happen.
Think Again: 9/11, by Juan Cole The attacks on the United States were neither a clash of civilizations nor an unqualified success for al Qaeda. They were, however, a clash of policy that continues to this day. As al Qaeda struggles to strike again, the United States wrestles with a confused war on terror that won’t end until Americans are forced to choose between Medicare and missiles.
Think Again: Islamist Terrorism, by C. Christine Fair and Husain Haqqani Pundits and politicians of all stripes are quick to offer their wisdom on what fuels Islamist terrorism. It just so happens that much of what they say is wrong. Poverty doesn’t produce terrorists, a solution to the Israel-Palestine problem isn’t a cure-all, and young Muslim men aren’t the most likely to turn to terror. If we are going to fight a war on terror, the least we can do is understand who we are fighting.
Wanted: Spies Unlike Us, by Robert Baer The CIA must cultivate foreign sources, reward service overseas, and tap America’s top students to once again get good information on enemies of the United States.
How to Save Saudi Arabia, by F. Gregory Gause III To survive, the monarchy must battle the militants, reassure the religious establishment, and give the middle class a taste of democracy.
Think Again: Al Qaeda, by Jason Burke The mere mention of al Qaeda conjures images of an efficient terrorist network guided by a powerful criminal mastermind. Yet al Qaeda is more lethal as an ideology than as an organization. “Al Qaedaism” will continue to attract supporters in the years to come—whether Osama bin Laden is around to lead them or not.
Islam’s Medieval Outposts, by Husain Haqqani For centuries, young men have gathered at Islamic seminaries to escape Western influences and quietly study Islamic texts that have been handed down unchanged through the ages. But over the last two decades, revolution, Great Power politics, and poverty have combined to give the fundamentalist teachings at some of these madrasas a violent twist. And now, in one of globalization’s deadlier ironies, these “universities of jihad” are spreading their medieval theology worldwide.
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