Non-Subscriber Extract
Editor’s note: sudden, but not unexpected devastation
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| 17 September 2001 |
As this issue was about to go to press, we were overwhelmed by the biggest terrorism event to date — the destruction of the 1,353-foot twin of New York’s World Trade Center and lethal damage outside Washington to the Pentagon building, the heart of the US defence establishment, resulting in the deaths of thousands of US citizens and foreign nationals.
The commandeering of four commercial airliners by suicide-hijackers — two of which crashed into the World Trade Center, a third into the Pentagon and the fourth into the ground in Pennsylvania following a struggle with passengers — caught the intelligence and security establishments by surprise. Intelligence or policy failure, take your pick — because once again Usama bin Ladin is being seen as the prime suspect.
Our April issue in its lead article, ‘Bin Ladin trial highlights US intelligence problems’, pinpointed what the USA has again failed to do — act against Bin Ladin before he strikes again. Also, in our August issue we highlighted the US concern for security against terrorist attacks with an article ‘Defending the homeland becomes a priority for Bush’, but this time there was criticism of the methods proposed and, once again, Bin Ladin was not taken seriously and no-one foresaw the possibility of suicide hijackings of commercial airliners. Above all, the homeland had appeared inviolate.
Our current September issue now has as its lead article, ‘Suicide bombing: the penultimate terrorist act’, which attempts to explain to a Western audience that suicide bombers are not madmen, but part of a carefully planned, desperate resistance. The story was written before the 11 September suicide bombings and was updated with the implications of what happened that fateful day when America’s war with terrorism became a national priority. Reading that article, in combination with the articles on Afghanistan and Israel, should enlighten the reader on the true dimensions of what the USA is facing today.
There is already talk of a massive attack on the Taliban-held portion of Afghanistan with B-52 bombers based on the island of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean and possible ground and air attacks from bases in Tajikistan. Russia has apparently given the green signal to the USA, and Pakistan has been strong-armed into co-operation. After the dust clears from the military campaign that now seems inevitable — even if Bin Ladin’s head is brought on a platter — a thorough analysis of the implications of this new round with Bin Ladin will need to be explored, perhaps in a special issue of Jane’s Terrorism and Security Monitor in October, if events necessitate. Above all, it will remain to be seen if an overwhelming US response to the horrendous acts on 11 September will destroy Bin Ladin or merely sow the seeds for further martyrs to follow him.