THE TERROR MASTERS REVISITED Michael A. Ledeen - Benador Associates

THE TERROR MASTERS REVISITED - Michael A. Ledeen - Benador Associates


{We are experiencing some flaws in this blogging system this morning. If the links act up, and you want to read Michael Ledeen's article, note that it was first published in National Review Online, 16 August 2004.}

My sole contact with Michael Ledeen has been through reading his articles and seeing his occasional appearances on television interviews. In every case, I have been impressed that this is one guy who knows what he is talking about, and I have found that his articles are always worth reading. This one is no exception.

Here is some red meat from Ledeen's article.

"...It has been quite clear for some time now that al Qaeda and the other major terrorist groups — Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad, Hamas, Jamaa, etc. — are all working together, and have been ever since we went into Afghanistan. The cooperation increased in the run-up to Operation Iraqi Freedom, and was only possible because the regimes who gave the bulk of the operational support to the terrorists — Syria, Iran, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia — worked closely to coordinate the anti-American jihad. That coordination has, for the most part, continued (note the visit of Bashar Assad to Tehran at the time of the turnover of "sovereignty" in Iraq. At those meetings, Syria and Iran agreed on a five-point plan to attack us in Iraq, Europe, and at home, and to do everything possible — including massive efforts to get the price of oil as high as they can — to defeat President Bush in November's elections). This helps understand the coordination between, say, attacks by the forces of Moqtada al Sadr and Baathist "loyalists." The infrastructure was created before we ever arrived in Iraq. In order to conceal their activities from us, the Iranians have deployed several deceptive myths. The two most effective are "al Qaeda" and "Zarqawi."

"The organizing center is ... a "directorate" located in Iran, that works closely with Iranian intelligence organizations, including the Revolutionary Guards. Those organizations, in turn, work with their counterparts in other friendly countries. "

In short, the terrorism plaguing us is STATE SPONSORED. This fact is hardly new, but it seldom gets stressed. The center of the problem is IRAN. The satellite centers are SAUDI ARABIA and SYRIA. Neutralizing these centers pretty much ends the terrorism sponsoring problem. Such neutralizing means completely flattening structures and facilities and depopulating vast areas where the leaders hang out, not "surgical strikes." We must push them back to the 7th century A.D., which they so pine for anyway. It would mean taking IRANIAN and SAUDI ARABIAN oil as hostage. Petrodollars are the major source of funding. We can do this from the sea and from Iraq, and it means endless devastation until we have unconditional surrender.

It should also mean taking out QOM, MECCA, and MEDINA, and any other "holy" Islamic sites. All we need to do is to destroy the shrines, as opposed to taking out the populace. As Victor Mordecai pointed out, broadcasts within the Middle East constantly refer to relative power. Their "Allahu Akbar," means "Allah is greater," not Allah is great. The question becomes, greater than what? They mean quite specifically that their Allah is greater than the Christian and Jewish God. Many of them on air indicate that nuclear destruction of Jerusalem means "Allahu Akbar." They also say that devastating Medina and Mecca would mean that the Christian and Jewish God is greater, and they would then give up Islam and convert. Note that Mordecai is reporting, not opining.

Part of taking out Syria would involve leveling the Bekaa Valley, the breeding ground of so much terrorist training and supplies.

Think about it.