[Part I of this article can be read at http://www.israelnationalnews.com/article.php3?id=3671.]
Along comes Prof. Yonah Alexander, a leading expert on terrorism and director of the Inter-Universities Center for Terrorism Studies, who in an interview recently said he believes it is only a matter of time before groups like al-Qaeda will use non-conventional weapons to propagate their Jihadist ideology and undermine Western Society. Alexander feels that Al-Qaeda's next theater of operations will be Europe, where they have established an extensive network.
What he doesn't say is that besides the terror network they've set up, Muslims have been converting Europeans in droves to Islam.
In the United Kingdom, according to the first authoritative study of the phenomenon, carried in the Sunday Times on February 22, some of Britain's top landowners, celebrities, as well as the offspring of senior establishment figures, have embraced Islam after being disillusioned with Western values. For example, Jonathan Birt, the son of Lord Birt, former director-general of the BBC, and Emma Clark, the granddaughter of former liberal Prime Minister Herbert Asquith, are only two of 14,000 mostly-elite, white Britons who have converted to Islam recently, according to the Sunday Times. Emma Clark said, "We're all the rage, I hope it's not a passing fashion."
Islam has even received formal acceptance at the heart of the British Establishment. The Queen recently approved new arrangements to allow Muslim staff at Buckingham Palace time off to attend Friday prayers at a mosque. A member of staff in the finance department was the first to take advantage of it.
Many converts have been inspired by the pro-Islamic writings of Charles Le Gai Eaton, a former Foreign Office diplomat. "I have received letters from people who are put off by the wishy-washy standards of contemporary Christianity and they are looking for a religion which does not compromise too much with the modern world," said Eaton, who is author of Islam and the Destiny of Man.
There have been several cases in the last couple of years, of converts to Islam helping in the terror effort; for example, there was the British "shoe bomber" and a British convert who planned on carrying out a Hizbollah attack in Israel. Both were captured before they could carry out their operations.
Alexander continued, "We can expect to see an escalation in terrorism on a global scale with a continuation of conventional acts of terror, such as suicide bombings and shooting, as well as mega-terror like September 11 in the US and March 11 in Spain. There will also be a move towards the use of non-conventional weapons: biological, chemical, nuclear, as in dirty bombs, and cyber-terrorism, whereby perpetrators will try to disrupt power supplies and air traffic, for example, at the touch of a button."
He cited the examples of the anthrax attacks in the US after September 11, 2001, reports that Al-Qaeda was trying to produce ricin, and the unsuccessful attempt to blow up the Pi Glilot fuel and gas storage depot in Israel as an indication toward the future. "According to the studies we have conducted, we can expect a continuation of bus bombings like the ones that have occurred in Israel, as well as attempts to strike at chemical plants and infrastructure targets and super-terrorism with non-conventional weapons," said Alexander.
Beheadings, disgusting abuse of human remains, suicide bombings and now mass genocidal terror?
In predicting that international terrorism will expand and intensify, Alexander referred to numerous disputes throughout the world, such as those in Chechnya, Kashmir, Afghanistan, the Middle East and South America. He forgot to mention the Philippines and South Asia.
Notice most of these places include Muslims on one side of the conflict...
Yet, I feel Alexander is mistaken when he said, "Islam has been hijacked and taken hostage by extremists who are using it to serve their own interests." Suicide bombings against Israelis regularly garner 50-80% support amongst "Palestinians".
This is the same line of reasoning that George Bush and others have been using to divide the Arab/Islamic world into friends and foes. I don't agree. I believe the Jihadists speak for real Islam, as originally set out by Mohammed and his barbarian hordes. Islam started out as an Arab Imperialist movement, and has only put a thin veneer of "religion" over it. Notice, they started in Arabia and ended up ruling everything throughout the Middle East and North Africa, up to Spain and Southern France by the 700s. The Jihadists openly state that they want to introduce a worldwide caliphate; i.e., global Islamic conquest. But this has always been "traditional" Islam's ultimate goal, too.
"What concerns many is the expansion of international networks as seen after the Madrid bombings, when links were discovered between Spanish citizens and people in North Africa, Asia and with various other groups like Hamas," Alexander explained.
Because they draw from Muslim communities throughout the world, every Muslim is a potential Jihadist.
Discussing why experts feel that international terrorism will continue to expand, Alexander pointed to, "the education of hatred, including anti-Semitism, that we see all the time on various Internet sites."
Recent studies in Europe have shown that anti-Israel activities by Arabs and Muslims have led to greater anti-Semitism in Europe. Arabs and Muslims carry out most attacks on Jews throughout Europe, and the atmosphere of Judeopathy they create, encourages both indigenous far-right elements and far-left anti-globalization activists to voice their own hatred of Jews and Israel.
Alexander asked whether nations should give in to terrorism and whether civilization would survive in the event of the use of non-conventional weapons. He answered that submission only further motivates the terrorists and their leaders, while survival would depend on nations taking all necessary steps to reduce the risks: "Dealing with terrorism requires a broad range of responses, starting with clear and coherent policies. It is necessary to have quality intelligence, as well as law enforcement, the military, and the means to counter technological and cyber-terrorism."
What he doesn't suggest is the need to suppress Islam itself...
"To this end, some innocent civilians might be harmed, but, make no mistake, this is war and to fight it, nations have to pool their resources. No nation can deal with the problem unilaterally. In the past, terrorism was regarded as a tactical rather than a strategic threat, but it has become a permanent fixture and a challenge to the strategic interests of nations. In fact," said Alexander, "it represents the most threatening challenge to civilization in the 21st century. The question of survival will depend to a great extent on how civilized society tackles this threat."
There you have it, the ultimate question, "How will civilized society tackle this threat?"
Jews, and especially Israel, are on the front lines of this global war against Jihadist terror. Israel, in its battles with the "Palestinians", is showing leadership. The Muslims have a saying, "First the Saturday people [the Jews], and then the Sunday people [the Christians]." Europe till now has sat relatively quiet, trying to wait it out, hoping it will go away. But America, who has been attacked, is fighting back.
The Islamic barbarians are knocking at the gates of Jerusalem, the gates of Europe, and have attacked the towers of America.
Will we let them in?
(c) 2004/5764 Pasko
Along comes Prof. Yonah Alexander, a leading expert on terrorism and director of the Inter-Universities Center for Terrorism Studies, who in an interview recently said he believes it is only a matter of time before groups like al-Qaeda will use non-conventional weapons to propagate their Jihadist ideology and undermine Western Society. Alexander feels that Al-Qaeda's next theater of operations will be Europe, where they have established an extensive network.
What he doesn't say is that besides the terror network they've set up, Muslims have been converting Europeans in droves to Islam.
In the United Kingdom, according to the first authoritative study of the phenomenon, carried in the Sunday Times on February 22, some of Britain's top landowners, celebrities, as well as the offspring of senior establishment figures, have embraced Islam after being disillusioned with Western values. For example, Jonathan Birt, the son of Lord Birt, former director-general of the BBC, and Emma Clark, the granddaughter of former liberal Prime Minister Herbert Asquith, are only two of 14,000 mostly-elite, white Britons who have converted to Islam recently, according to the Sunday Times. Emma Clark said, "We're all the rage, I hope it's not a passing fashion."
Islam has even received formal acceptance at the heart of the British Establishment. The Queen recently approved new arrangements to allow Muslim staff at Buckingham Palace time off to attend Friday prayers at a mosque. A member of staff in the finance department was the first to take advantage of it.
Many converts have been inspired by the pro-Islamic writings of Charles Le Gai Eaton, a former Foreign Office diplomat. "I have received letters from people who are put off by the wishy-washy standards of contemporary Christianity and they are looking for a religion which does not compromise too much with the modern world," said Eaton, who is author of Islam and the Destiny of Man.
There have been several cases in the last couple of years, of converts to Islam helping in the terror effort; for example, there was the British "shoe bomber" and a British convert who planned on carrying out a Hizbollah attack in Israel. Both were captured before they could carry out their operations.
Alexander continued, "We can expect to see an escalation in terrorism on a global scale with a continuation of conventional acts of terror, such as suicide bombings and shooting, as well as mega-terror like September 11 in the US and March 11 in Spain. There will also be a move towards the use of non-conventional weapons: biological, chemical, nuclear, as in dirty bombs, and cyber-terrorism, whereby perpetrators will try to disrupt power supplies and air traffic, for example, at the touch of a button."
He cited the examples of the anthrax attacks in the US after September 11, 2001, reports that Al-Qaeda was trying to produce ricin, and the unsuccessful attempt to blow up the Pi Glilot fuel and gas storage depot in Israel as an indication toward the future. "According to the studies we have conducted, we can expect a continuation of bus bombings like the ones that have occurred in Israel, as well as attempts to strike at chemical plants and infrastructure targets and super-terrorism with non-conventional weapons," said Alexander.
Beheadings, disgusting abuse of human remains, suicide bombings and now mass genocidal terror?
In predicting that international terrorism will expand and intensify, Alexander referred to numerous disputes throughout the world, such as those in Chechnya, Kashmir, Afghanistan, the Middle East and South America. He forgot to mention the Philippines and South Asia.
Notice most of these places include Muslims on one side of the conflict...
Yet, I feel Alexander is mistaken when he said, "Islam has been hijacked and taken hostage by extremists who are using it to serve their own interests." Suicide bombings against Israelis regularly garner 50-80% support amongst "Palestinians".
This is the same line of reasoning that George Bush and others have been using to divide the Arab/Islamic world into friends and foes. I don't agree. I believe the Jihadists speak for real Islam, as originally set out by Mohammed and his barbarian hordes. Islam started out as an Arab Imperialist movement, and has only put a thin veneer of "religion" over it. Notice, they started in Arabia and ended up ruling everything throughout the Middle East and North Africa, up to Spain and Southern France by the 700s. The Jihadists openly state that they want to introduce a worldwide caliphate; i.e., global Islamic conquest. But this has always been "traditional" Islam's ultimate goal, too.
"What concerns many is the expansion of international networks as seen after the Madrid bombings, when links were discovered between Spanish citizens and people in North Africa, Asia and with various other groups like Hamas," Alexander explained.
Because they draw from Muslim communities throughout the world, every Muslim is a potential Jihadist.
Discussing why experts feel that international terrorism will continue to expand, Alexander pointed to, "the education of hatred, including anti-Semitism, that we see all the time on various Internet sites."
Recent studies in Europe have shown that anti-Israel activities by Arabs and Muslims have led to greater anti-Semitism in Europe. Arabs and Muslims carry out most attacks on Jews throughout Europe, and the atmosphere of Judeopathy they create, encourages both indigenous far-right elements and far-left anti-globalization activists to voice their own hatred of Jews and Israel.
Alexander asked whether nations should give in to terrorism and whether civilization would survive in the event of the use of non-conventional weapons. He answered that submission only further motivates the terrorists and their leaders, while survival would depend on nations taking all necessary steps to reduce the risks: "Dealing with terrorism requires a broad range of responses, starting with clear and coherent policies. It is necessary to have quality intelligence, as well as law enforcement, the military, and the means to counter technological and cyber-terrorism."
What he doesn't suggest is the need to suppress Islam itself...
"To this end, some innocent civilians might be harmed, but, make no mistake, this is war and to fight it, nations have to pool their resources. No nation can deal with the problem unilaterally. In the past, terrorism was regarded as a tactical rather than a strategic threat, but it has become a permanent fixture and a challenge to the strategic interests of nations. In fact," said Alexander, "it represents the most threatening challenge to civilization in the 21st century. The question of survival will depend to a great extent on how civilized society tackles this threat."
There you have it, the ultimate question, "How will civilized society tackle this threat?"
Jews, and especially Israel, are on the front lines of this global war against Jihadist terror. Israel, in its battles with the "Palestinians", is showing leadership. The Muslims have a saying, "First the Saturday people [the Jews], and then the Sunday people [the Christians]." Europe till now has sat relatively quiet, trying to wait it out, hoping it will go away. But America, who has been attacked, is fighting back.
The Islamic barbarians are knocking at the gates of Jerusalem, the gates of Europe, and have attacked the towers of America.
Will we let them in?
(c) 2004/5764 Pasko