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Matthew Guard
Prof. Artis
Eng 1201-105
29NOV2015
Al Qaida: Has U.S. Policy Actually Spread Terrorism?
The purpose of terrorism lies not just in the violent act itself. It is in producing terror. It
sets out to inflame, to divide, to produce consequences which they then use to justify further
terror. - Tony Blair
After the terrorist attacks on 9-11-2001, carried out by members of a radical Islamic
terrorist group known as Al-Qaida, the United States realized that the current policy pertaining to
dealing with terrorism would have to change drastically. The potential for further targeting of
America and its interests abroad could no longer be ignored. President George W. Bush wasted
no time in authorizing military force and unleashing a lethal bombing campaign and airborne
operations into the mountainous hell hole that the 9-11 operation had been cooked up in,
Afghanistan. Even with the full might of the United States military scouring villages and clearing
caves deep in the Hindu Kush Mountains, it took the United States ten years to find the
mastermind of the attacks on the twin towers and pentagon, Osama Bin Laden. Bin Laden had
been hiding out in a compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. (Herrington 17) After the death of their
leader, it was believed by President Obama and his administration that Al-Qaida was no longer a
threat, too weak to rebuild its self. Were they right or is Al-Qaida and other terrorist
organizations actually gaining strength?

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The war on terror that began shortly after the attacks on America in 2001, has been a
long, drawn out conflict, which to this day seems to have no end in sight. The U.S. has pumped
billions of dollars and countless lives into turning Afghanistan into a democratic country free of
the reign of tyranny and the iron fist of the Taliban regime. (McCrisken 781) Military operations
have switched to an advisory type role as Afghanistans national army gears up to take control of
its own country. The problem is that the Afghan government is not stepping up to the plate and
our lingering presence in Afghanistan and other parts of the middle east are growing weary of
our presence, creating more and more groups that want to strike fear into the heart of America.
Every drone strike in Yemen or the tribal region of Pakistan, which kills innocent civilians,
creates more and more terrorists hell bent on revenge. (Porter 285)
A problem that always seems to present its self to the U.S. government is the countries
that it decides to do business with, especially when it comes to supplying weapons and military
supplies. The U.S. intervened in the war that Russia carried out in Afghanistan by training and
supplying the rebels fighting against the Russian military. These same fighters are now enemies.
Many of the weapons and supplies given to the Iraqi army and Syrian rebels to help fight against
Al-Qaida and ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) have found their way into the hands of the
very groups we are trying to rid this world of. In this manner we are inadvertently giving these
growing terrorist organizations more resources for their fight against the western world. (Bapat
303)
Our homeland is also part of the battle ground in the war on terror, which is a very
controversial topic. The introduction of the department of homeland security has put some of our
rights as citizens of the United States of America at risk. Government agencies such as the NSA
(National Security Agency) are now monitoring the phone records and internet activities of

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everyday citizens, which has had a negative impact with the American public and achieved little
in thwarting terrorist activities or apprehending terrorist cells. (Alimahomed 82) The intelligence
community that tracks these potential terrorist operative within the United States also are limited
in what they can do as far as identifying an Islamic extremist. The relationship between these
terrorists and their twisted take on the teachings of the Quran are hardly touched on because of
the fear of being accused of discrimination. This inability to address the real problem at hand ties
the hands of the agencies in charge of discovering and tracking would-be terrorists. (Richards
371)
On the international level, the current administration is trying to handle this terrorist
threat with kid gloves. During President Bushs time in office and during the beginning of
Obamas time in office, U.S. policy towards terrorism was hard lined, seeking out targets on kill
lists all over the globe, which proved effective as Al-Qaida was run into the ground and thought
to be all but decimated. President Obama and his Advisors made the mistake of thinking that he
could deal with these terrorist organizations in a rational way. Obama failed to realize the
cultural differences between the west and the Middle East and the determination and devotion
these organizations have towards their end goal, the destruction of the west and the rise of the
world caliphate. (Aysha 193)
The CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) is an independent agency responsible for
providing national security intelligence to senior U.S. policy makers. The agency has proved to
be a key component in tracking down and monitoring terrorist activities abroad. The CIA came
under fire when it was learned they were using harsh interrogation techniques (such as
waterboarding) on captured enemy personnel in order to obtain information from them. This
hurdle has set back the agencys ability to effectively seek out reliably information from local

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informants. The CIA has since claimed to have ceased any kind of interrogation operations and
moved back to more of a static intelligence gathering operation. The CIA continue to track the
movements of groups such as Al-Qaida and the Islamic State and assist in keeping the United
States safe from future attacks. (www.cia.gov)
Islamic extremist attacks are at an all-time high all over the world at this present moment.
The group known as ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) originating out of Syria have grown at
an alarming rate and are laying waste to those who oppose them in Syria, Iraq, Yemen and
Afghanistan. The success of these groups are gaining the attention of would be terrorists, and
recruiting has never been easier for Al-Qaida and ISIS. Lone wolf attacks are now being carried
out across the western world in places such as Chattanooga, TN and Paris, France. This rise in
individual attacks is proving almost impossible to track and prevent. It is safe to say that our
policy on terrorism, both foreign and domestic, needs to be overhauled to deal with this now
constant threat brought on by those who wish to do us harm. (Aysha 200)

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Works Cited
Kurzman, Charles. The Missing Martyrs: Why There Are so Few Muslim Terrorists. Oxford:
Oxford UP, 2011. Web. Oct 25 2015
Bapat, N. A. "Transnational Terrorism, US Military Aid, and the Incentive to Misrepresent."
Journal of Peace Research 48.3 (2011): 303-18. Web. 23 Oct. 2015.
Alimahomed, S. "Homeland Security Inc.: Public Order, Private Profit." Race & Class 55.4
(2014): 82-99. Web. 22 Oct. 2015.
Herrington, Lewis. "British Islamic Extremist Terrorism: The Declining Significance of AlQaeda and Pakistan." International Affairs 91.1 (2015): 17-35. Web. 21 Oct. 2015.
Porter, Patrick. "Long Wars and Long Telegrams: Containing Al-Qaeda." International Affairs
85.2 (2009): 285-305. Web. 20 Oct. 2015.
Aysha, E. E.-D. "September 11 and the Middle East Failure of US 'Soft Power': Globalization
Contra Americanization in the 'New' US Century." International Relations (2005): 193-210. Web.
28 Oct. 2015.
Mccrisken, Trevor. "Ten Years On: Obama's War on Terrorism in Rhetoric and Practice."
International Affairs 87.4 (2011): 781-801. Web. 21 Oct. 2015.
Richards, Anthony. "From Terrorism to radicalization to extremism: Counterterrorism
Imperative or Loss of Focus?" International Affairs 91.2 (2015): 371-80. Web. 21 Oct. 2015.
https://www.cia.gov/index.html (used for interview purposes)

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