"What 95 percent of all suicide attacks have in common, since 1980, is not religion, but a specific strategic motivation to respond to a military intervention, often specifically a military occupation, of territory that the terrorists view as their homeland or prize greatly. From Lebanon and the West Bank in the 80s and 90s, to Iraq and Afghanistan, and up through the Paris suicide attacks we’ve just experienced in the last days, military intervention—and specifically when the military intervention is occupying territory—that’s what prompts suicide terrorism more than anything else."AlterNet
Here’s What a Man Who Studied Every Suicide Attack in the World Says About ISIS’ Motives
Joshua Holland
Well . . . duh. I agree with your quote. But I don't agree with Pape's statement here:
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The U.S. strategy against ISIS is working and it’s putting enormous pressure on ISIS. It’s a strategy of air and ground power, with the ground power coming from local allies—the Kurds and the Shia in the region, and even some Sunnis who are opposed to ISIS. They’re increasingly working with us on the ground while we’re fighting from the air. The problem here is not that we don’t have enough ground forces.
End quote
The US isn't putting enormous pressure on Daesh. Russia is. Notice Pape's push for US ground troops. Jesus.
The terrorism expert I trust is Brian Michael Jenkins, but he refuses to talk to the press these days because they want sensational explanations and are not willing to listen to his explanations of history; Jenkins condemns them all: FOX ABCNBCMSNBC. He has 40 years experience, or it was 40 years a few years ago. He works for the Rand Corporation and appears before the Senate frequently. He maintains the terrorism in the US was worse in the 1970s than today--I remember that--and condemns every group from the Puerto Ricans (FALN) to the Red Whatever (German) to the JDL.
"They’re increasingly working with us on the ground while we’re fighting from the air."
ReplyDeletethat is textbook Special Operations 101... it is driven by the "we're out of money!" falsehood and the source of the current apparent chaos...
FTR here is the statement from ISIS post Paris:
ReplyDeletehttps://ent.siteintelgroup.com/Statements/is-claims-paris-attacks-warns-operation-is-first-of-the-storm.html