Fighting Terror: Where US Went Wrong

April 29, 2007

by Dr. Khaled Batarfi

“Why most terrorists these days are Muslims?” my American friend asked.

I answered: “When did that start? Ten years ago? Why do you think? Because they hate your freedom, democracy and prosperity? You have been free, democratic and prosperous even more in the past, why now all of a sudden? And why against the US, not Switzerland or Sweden, who, by the way, has more freedom, democracy and prosperity? America is an intelligent nation. After any school shooting, the whole country asks: Why? They go all ways by all means looking for answers. Academia, media and every intellectual and intelligence circle investigate the latest shooting at Virginia Tech.

After 9/11, the question was briefly asked and the answer came too fast and short: They hate us because we are better and superior. The next question was: “How to respond?” The road to revenge exhausted all curiosity and energy. The first question was lost in battle cries, and buried under the debris of bombs and destroyed human lives. As a result, it became a self-fulfilling prophecy — a vicious circle, like in gang warfare: They hate us, we hate them back; they hit us, we hit them back. It gets worse in time with no end in sight.

My friend retorted: The War on Terror is a “war of necessity.” We didn’t declare it on Muslims, they did.

I explained: First Muslims, per se, never declared a war on USA. It was a grand mistake to call the response to Al-Qaeda attack a “crusade”. In wars, it is wise to limit your enemies and fronts. In this case, the enemy was a few hundred members of an isolated organization. Making your war a response to “Islamic fascism” puts you in conflict with 1,300 million Muslims.

Instead of isolating your enemy, you became his best recruiter. With every bystander killed in Afghanistan, Iraq and Lebanon, and every home destroyed and land occupied, you prove your enemy’s point — that you are part of a Zionist-Christian crusade to recolonize the Islamic world, starting with its heart.

Assuming such fight can be ever won is another grand miscalculation. Just like a war on evil, poverty or hunger, the war on terror is an open-ended campaign. In the process, the self-righteous become worse than his demonized enemy — resorting to the same methods of terrorizing and intimidation with much more efficiency. The distinction between the good and evil becomes less and less clear as the war of attrition drives both down the hellish road of killing and destruction.

This building up of hate, revenge and anger is poisoning future generations. No power America and allies may muster would be able to prepare an antidote to it.

Remember you have 1,300 million Muslims in the world. Even if 99 percent of them accepted your domination and hegemony, a resisting 1 percent means 13 million potential Mujahedeen. If the few thousands today are a nightmare, imagine the situation if the rest who are scattered all over the globe join the fight.

Also remember, foreign conflicts are not far from home any more. Unlike those you fought before, this war started in your backyard. Worse, it is not against a traditional enemy you may crush or scare with your mighty armies. How can you squash the invisible or frighten seekers of their own demise or those who have nothing to lose?

My friend was distraught and frustrated. “What can we do to root out the bad weeds and keep the rest happy? How can we make it clear to Muslims that we are only after the bad and ugly?” he asked.

— Let’s start by being good and beautiful. I am pretty sure this whole business of war on terror is not well intentioned — not if Israel and neocon supporters are behind it. You can fool all people sometimes, or some people all the time, but it is impossible to fool all Muslims all the time.

“What do you suggest, then?”

— Decide first that you want the best for all, not just yourself and allies. Sincerely, ask for forgiveness from innocent victims and seek their help to right past wrongs. Work hand in hand with friends and foes to solve common problems — most are bad news for all. For example, it is not in the best interest of any, including Iran and Syria, to have a civil war in Iraq. If sincere call for cooperation to face this danger came from America and neutral powers, like Russia and China, it is hard for concerned neighbors to refuse to join hands.

“This simple?! And we could all live happy ever after?”

— The road of a thousand miles starts with one small step, as the Chinese proverb goes. Replacing the “Ugly American” with “Pretty Woman” is a “Great Leap Forward.”