Al-Qaida remains a threat

Opinion: June 14, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

Terrorism specialist John Schindler, the author of “Unholy Terror: Bosnia, Al-Qa’ida, and the Rise of Global Jihad,” is a professor at the U.S. Naval War College. He discussed the changing global danger Americans face with McClatchy-Tribune foreign-affairs columnist John C. Bersia.

Q: What is the terrorist challenge in the summer of 2010?

A: Al-Qaida and associated movements (AQAM) are a global threat, existing almost everywhere there are Muslims. It is not a network, but rather a complex movement based on belief in a virulent, neo-orthodox form of Sunni Islam that seeks political power through the sword. This is a modern belief system, not derived from traditional Islam, and owes a great deal to failed Western ideologies such as communism and fascism.

Q: How has the problem evolved since 9/11?

A: Al-Qaida central, meaning the coterie of experienced jihadists around Osama Bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri, having been on the run for almost nine years, lacks the command and control over their global jihad that it had before the loss of its Afghan sanctuary in late 2001. It is far more difficult for them to execute any kind of “big wedding” like the “planes operation” of 9/11. That is the good news.

Q: And, then, what is the bad?

A: The bad news is that there is an enormous increase in self-styled jihadists around the world, dangerous if often incompetent people, like bomb suspect Faisal Shahzad in Times Square and accused gunman Maj. Nidal Hasan at Fort Hood, (Texas) and sometimes they kill lots of innocent people.

Q: Do we have more support from other countries now than there was during the Bush administration?

A: Almost no states support AQAM. Its support in the Muslim world, once detectable, hardly exists these days, thanks to self-defeating jihadist behavior especially in Iraq, where the AQAM-led insurgency devolved into murder and mayhem under the late and unlamented Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. We ought to always remember that bin Laden’s legionaries have killed many more Muslims than “infidels.” Cooperation in counterterrorism can always be improved. But behind closed doors, most states are willing to work together against AQAM. For example, we have perhaps no better partner in counterterrorism than France, a country many Americans enjoy deriding as “soft” on everything, including terrorism; nothing could be further from the truth.

Q: What are we doing right in the struggle against terrorism?

A: The Obama administration has significantly increased the use of “targeted killings” against AQAM with Predators and other unmanned aerial vehicles. If these are overused, though, it causes unneeded “collateral damage.” We should do it more carefully, whenever possible.

Q: What fixes would you recommend?

A: We are fortunate that America’s Muslim community is much more “moderate” than most such populations in the West today. A few fixes seem obvious. People who advocate the AQAM ideology should not be allowed into the United States. Also, the growth of Islamic extremism in our prisons is very worrisome and needs to be addressed. Practicing religion is a basic American right; supporting political extremism and hate ideologies is not.

Q: How important is it for Americans to understand, accept and prepare themselves psychologically for a long struggle?

A: Progress should be measured in decades, not years. AQAM believes in its ultimate victory, as promised by God. This is another of their delusions to be measured in centuries, not decades. However, there should be no doubt about the ultimate defeat of AQAM and its global jihad. Bin Laden’s political message resonates with few Muslims; certainly not many Muslims seem willing to actually fight on the front lines of their self-styled jihad. That said, patience is required, as achieving victory will be slow and arduous. So, too, is the realization that this struggle will be decided not in Afghanistan or Iraq, but in the West itself, where so many extremists actually reside.

John C. Bersia, who won a Pulitzer Prize in editorial writing for the Orlando Sentinel in 2000, is the special assistant to the president for global perspectives at the University of Central Florida. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune.