Losing hearts and minds in the Middle East

The bombs are bombing

Excerpts:

AFTER years of al-Qaeda terror attacks in which thousands have been killed, many of them Muslims - the people they wish to recruit - voices of dissent are starting to be heard in the Middle East.

As moderate Muslims dare to protest at daily death tolls, even the prospect of one of Osama bin Laden's most feared cohorts, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, being handed over is being discussed.

Faced with the unprecedented outburst of fury among Muslims over its latest atrocity, al-Qaeda's concern about reaction in the Middle East was evident last week when it came the closest yet to an apology.

It offered an "explanation" for one of worst attacks to hit Jordan in modern history, in which suicide bombers turned wedding parties into scenes of destruction, killing at least 60 people and injuring 96 at international hotels in Amman...

Al-Qaeda's volte-face was caused by an unprecedented emotional outpouring of anger against the terrorist organisation in Jordan. On Thursday thousands of Jordanians protested across the country to denounce the head of the al-Qaeda terrorist group in Iraq, Zarqawi, America's most wanted enemy. They marched through Amman chanting: "Burn in hell, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi!"

There were even larger demonstrations on Friday after the weekly midday mosque sermons in Amman and at a mass funeral for victims. "We came to support our nation and our unity," said Ibrahim Haniya, 22, who marched with a group of friends. "These bombers didn't differentiate between Muslims, Christians or Jews. They were against the world."

"The country is experiencing solidarity," said Mustafa Hamarneh, director of the Centre for Strategic Studies in Amman. "On the TV, on the radio, everyone is condemning the attacks in the strongest terms, including the Muslim Brotherhood, to show their solidarity with the rest of the population."

Diplomats say a key question is whether al-Qaeda has over-reached itself. "They have clearly been stung by the reaction on the streets in Jordan," said one diplomat with knowledge of the region.

I say:

Terrorism has always been a PR ploy. The point of terorrism is to terrorize. If your victims aren't terrorized, you've not only failed, but you've made yourself new enemies.

Meanwhile in Indonesia

Excerpt:

The head of Indonesia's largest Muslim organization condemned suicide bombings on Sunday, and warned that terrorism was hurting the reputation of Islam as well as making life difficult for its followers.

The remarks by Hazyim Muzadi will cheer proponents of Islamic moderation in the world's most populous Muslim nation, where some clerics resist denouncing terrorism for fear of being seen as subservient to the United States.

I say:

Coalitions are made by the recognition of a common enemy. I see a coalition brewing against Islamist terrorism, one that will include most Arabs and Muslims.

When this thing started at the Munich Olympics, it was mainly against the Jews. Then it expanded into an attack against Western civilization in general. Payback for the "tragedy of Andalusia" as bin Laden so memorably put it. Talk about your sore losers. Gradually, because of a hangover of Soviet influence, it became a jihad against America in particular.

While Clinton was taking up space in the Oval Office, terrorist attacks against the US were met with half measures or ignored altogether. The enemy grew ever bolder; the attacks got bigger, and finally came 9-11, with nearly three thousand innocents slaughtered.

The trouble with terrorism is that different people react to it in different ways. The cowardly are terrorized, and seek to appease the terrorists. Those with spines just get pissed off. Al Qaeda's big mistake on 9-11 was not grasping the fact that Clinton was gone, that Bush was a different sort of man, and the American people were getting fed up.

They can't change their strategy now. It's too late. Besides, terrorism is all they know. So they slaughter for all its worth, and hope it starts working again. It worked in Madrid. But it's not working anywhere else.



Angelfire link (turn off Javascript to avoid popups)

Freenet: /SSK@jbf~W~x49RjZfyJwplqwurpNmg0PAgM/marlowe/politics.world.html#20051113