http://english.daralhayat.com/opinion/OPED/02-2006/Article-20060218-7d7eba7e-c0a8-10ed-0118-a77017d47034/story.html
Ayoon Wa Azan (The Ideology of Terrorism and Killing) Jihad el Khazen Al-Hayat - 18/02/06// A multi-language - including Arabic - internet website communicates the body count in Iraq since the onset of the war. Casualty figures are derived solely from a comprehensive survey of online media reports. Where these sources report differing figures, the range (a minimum and a maximum) are given. The latest available figures for the civilians reported killed by military intervention in Iraq are 28403 civilian casualty at the bare minimum, and 32013 casualty at a threshold. The victims were claimed by US military intervention violating the Geneva Convention and by operations carried out by terrorists claiming to be resistance... The previous figures include, nine members of an Iraqi family killed when American F-14 warplanes bombed and obliterated a home near the northern industrial city of Baiji, about 150 miles north of Baghdad. The warplanes had been pursuing insurgents. Muthanna al-Qaisi, a spokesman for the governor of Salahaddin Province announced the number of casualties and added that three more relatives were wounded. Iraq is witnessing a resistance against occupation, but it is also witnessing a horrific terrorism by the group of al-Zirqawi and others. While resistance is understandable, terrorism against civilians is inadmissible, condemned, and inexcusable. The tragedy of Iraq is that it is being subjected to random sweeping US military operations claiming the lives of innocent civilians, in addition to the terrorism of known terrorists. This is also considered terrorism. A generally acknowledged definition of terrorism is to kill civilians that are not participating in the killing. This means that the Americans practiced terrorism in Baiji, in Falouja, in Ramadi, Anbar, and in every place where they undertook a military operation where civilians were killed. However, we should note that terrorism emanating from any source does not justify the terrorism of another party such as the group of al-Zirqawi. It is no wonder thereafter that the US (and Israel for the same reasons) doesn't want to join the International War Crimes Tribunal, because it knows that its soldiers in Iraq will be referred to this tribunal one day after the other charged with terrorism (this will be also the fate of the Israeli government that killed ten times more Palestinian civilians than Israeli ones in suicide attacks). At the beginning of this month, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Peter Pace, issued a counterterrorism strategy, most of which remained secret. However, some details thereof were leaked to the press. We read that the strategy targets terrorist leaders, their havens, financial networks, their methods of communication and ability to move around the globe. It also aims at gathering information on terrorism personnel and ideology. The strategy acknowledges the adverse effects of the military operations without giving examples as the ones presented in the aforementioned lines from each Iraq city afflicted by a US military intervention. It also does not tackle the issue of torturing prisoners from the Pangram air base in Afghanistan and Abu Ghraib in Iraq, to the Gulf of Guantanamu and every military prison, including the one established by the Central Intelligence Agency in Central Europe, where it transferred detainees by plane. The latest news I have before me is a UN report corroborating the accusation of torturing prisoners in Guantanamu. We may agree with the Americans that terrorism has intensified since President Bush announced his war on terrorism after 9/11, 2001. I also have information about sweeping statistics on insurgent violence in Iraq that were declassified for a Senate hearing appear to portray a rebellion whose ability to mount attacks has steadily grown in the nearly three years since the invasion. The statistics were included in a report written by Joseph A. Christoff, Head of the International Affairs and Trade in the Governmental Accountancy Office. While it appears at a certain point that the operations against the Americans have declined and the US and Iraqi military sources claim that violence is waning, the fact is that the general image shows that there is ongoing insurgent violence. President Bush is still insisting that the Americans are triumphing or will triumph in Iraq. However, I found a troublesome twist in his State of the Union speech, since he seems to have renounced the "war on terrorism." He realized that it is absurd and cannot be won, as long as the American people will oppose any lingering war at the end, and as long as terrorism is not a defined quality or country. It shall remain as long as its causes are there, and even without causes. President Bush said that freedom succeeded, but there are still insurgents fighting. "One of the most importance sources of resistance is radical Islam and the attempt of few to distort a noble religion and turn it into an ideology of war and killing." If President Bush means by radical Islam Osama Ben Laden, Ayman Zawahiri, al-Zirqawi, and similar terrorists, we support him. However, "radical Islam" is a broad expression that may be used against any Islamic party opposing the US policy, especially in countries where the US has strategic interests such as oil. The fact is that the renunciation of the "war on terrorism" gradually took place, and the administration tested other slogans. In October 2005, President George Bush himself spoke before a US democratic institution and pointed out to the "focused ideology" behind the 9/11 terrorism. He said "Some dub it evil radical Islam. Others say that it is an extremist Jihad, while others call it Fascist Islam." I had warned during the past days of "Islamofaschism" as it is promoted by the neo conservatives. However, it seems that "radical Islam" was opted for as a successor to the war on terrorism. I urge President Bush to reconsider his option, especially that he respects and reveres Islam. The expression will be interpreted as another attempt to satirize all Muslims because of a misled and oppressive minority. The most important feature is that the US will not fight terrorism or practice it, and we say "Never forbid something you practice." -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? 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