Regardless of what is said against the United States, it has kept its word on pursuing what it called “the war against terrorism.” Its efforts have not solely been confined to the battlefield in Afghanistan, but are now wide-ranging and diversified. Without offering solid information or logical justification, Washington has effectively pulled together a spectrum of forces and countries and demonstrated its ability to inflict psychological defeats on many rulers, especially in the Arab and Muslim world. It has yet to prove its effectiveness in not only dismantling the infrastructure of al-Qa’eda and the Taliban, but also in addressing the underlying causes of terrorism.

The United States has, hitherto, refrained from addressing these causes and concentrated its efforts on countering the symptoms; and through this process has compromised the principles of justice, human rights and the rule of law.

It is difficult to forecast the end results of the campaign, but what worries observers and strategists is that the U.S. may have implanted seeds that could lead to more serious acts of terrorism that may be committed in the future - not only by religious fanatics and zealots but even by anti-American Westerners. It is too simplistic to view the phenomenon of Charles J. Bishop as an isolated incident. To many, it is a symptom of the new generation of disenchanted Americans who object to American policies at home and abroad. For a teenager like Mr. Bishop to kill himself by flying a small Cessna 172R aircraft into the 42-storey tower of the Bank of America in the center of Tampa, Florida - in the name of Osama bin Laden - is an act that should be taken more seriously than just merely brushing it off as “foul play” on the part of a teenager.

The U.S. is now fully engaged in a worldwide war against “terrorism,” which is often given an arbitrary definition. While the military war still rages against unspecified targets in Afghanistan, new targets are being sought elsewhere. It is becoming a nerve-wracking exercise for the American pilots, who feel they have run out of targets - many of which may have been hit several times. The massive military machine is being deployed against nothing more than sand and rocks in the middle of nowhere, while the intended targets have disappeared.  U.S. President George W. Bush stated that he wanted bin Laden “dead or alive,” but he is proving to be more elusive than the U.S. expected. Those of his followers who survived the killing fields of the American carpet-bombing have apparently disappeared amid the confusion and anarchy that swept the Afghan cities and countryside over the past few weeks.

The Taliban leadership is mostly at large, much to the annoyance of the Americans who wanted them arrested and tried. The most senior Taliban leader in the hands of the U.S. government is Mulla Abdul Salaam Zaeef, who was handed over to them by Pakistan after they refused
his asylum application. When eight Taliban officials gave themselves up to the officials of the Northern Alliance last week, they were swiftly set free by the government, which made the U.S. furious.

These developments have serious implications for the strategy of the U.S. First, the Afghans will become increasingly independent in their decisions and will not give in easily to American pressures. Second, the threat of further terrorist acts against the U.S. are likely to continue whether or not al-Qa'eda and the Taliban remain, especially if the U.S. persists in its policy of ignoring the calls to deal with the roots of terrorism. Third, the apparent dominance of the United States in world affairs outside the remits of the United Nations is likely to provoke an international backlash among Europe, Russia, China and the Third World. Finally, the polarisation of the world on cultural and ethnic bases, as a result of the events of September 11th and their consequences, is gradually eroding the achievements of the past few years, especially with respect to inter-civilisational and inter-religious dialogue.

The Arab and Muslim world has been the loser in the current crisis. While the masses have continued their fraternal attitudes towards the American people, they view the U.S. foreign policy, especially with regards to the Zionist entity of Israel, as detrimental to their interests. While the U.S., U.K. and other countries may have avoided attacking Islam as a religion, their policy of targeting Islamic movements without logical distinction has led to a new form of Islamophobia in the Western media. Meanwhile, some Arab governments have succumbed to American pressures and have started economic and political campaigns against groups and individuals.

Last month, the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates announced its decision to freeze the assets of 14 persons and establishments doing business with the bank. This came after financial institutions were required to search for and freeze the accounts, investments and deposits of 128 persons and organizations accused of having links to “terrorist” groups. The Bahraini authorities took similar steps by freezing "two suspicious accounts," in accordance with the dictates of the U.S., "to drain the financial resources of groups suspected of involvement in terrorism." The U.S. has said that it has uncovered such accounts in the Gulf. The Bahraini authorities are now waiting for more clarifications from Washington. The order to freeze the two accounts in Bahrain coincided with a conference in Manama on countering money laundering in the world.

American success in imposing the issue of terrorism on a global scale is evident from the numerous meetings, conferences and statements on the issue. Almost every regional or international meeting that was held in the past few months addressed the issue of terrorism and issued statements designed to appease the United States. The Asia Pacific Economic Corporation (APEC), the Shanghai Group (comprising six nations), the seven East African countries that met in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum over the past few days as well as many other forums, have addressed terrorism in line with American policies. However, most related the anti-American tendency among “terrorist groups” to Washington's foreign policies and its close alliance with Israel.

Less than three weeks prior to the atrocities of September 11th, the U.S. vetoed an attempt at the United Nations summit on racism in Durban, South Africa, to equate Zionism with racism. Last month it also vetoed an attempt to send international observers to protect the Palestinians from Israeli terrorism.

These policies are not conducive to international peace and security. The fight against terrorism must be rigorous, comprehensive, logical and just. It has to be conducted under the auspices of the United Nations and with the full participation of Arab and Muslim countries – the main losers from the one-sided American ‘crusade.’

Among the most important underlying causes of violence are the injustices committed against many people around the world, the lack of democratic practices in the Muslim world, the uneven distribution of wealth and American support for the illegal Israeli occupation of Palestine. The hope is that by cleverly addressing these causes, a better world will emerge, free of the evils of terrorism.

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