US Strategy on War against Terror

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KILL THEM ALL – WILL YOU?
U.S STRATEGY ON WAR ON TERROR

By: Najeeb Amer Gul, March 2010
Nine years down the road does someone know, what’s U.S strategy on
War against Terror? Occupying a country here, overthrowing a regime there,
and installing stooge regimes elsewhere – if at all can be termed a strategy,
then perhaps U.S is ubiquitously winning this war. Hence, let all academia
know that rebellions are won by Military means alone. Has the strategy of
“Kill them all worked”? What about the facts? They suggest entirely
opposite ground realities. In Afghanistan Taliban still rule over 70% of the
country, Pakistani Taliban have expanded their influence beyond FATA, Al-
Qaeda’s militants and their ideologues are indoctrinating more youth around
the globe. No doubt battles for Yemen, Somalia and Sudan are yet to begin.
Al-Qaeda’s intelligence apparatus has proved more connoisseurs than CIA’s
top experts on Al-Qaeda – suicide attack on Chapman base in Khost killing
senior analysts is a case in point. Thank heavens the war zones are thousands
of miles away from mainland U.S.
U.S policy makers have somewhat failed to grasp the dynamics of
what they are confronted with. It is not insurgency, neither a war – it is an
ideology, and a phenomenon. The ideology is fought with a counter ideology
and phenomenon you counter by addressing Economic, Social, and Political
(ESP) factors. Usually, ESP factors vary from region to region, yet in the
case of anti U.S resistance, these have become universal. Lack of education,
economic injustices, undemocratic governments around the Muslim world
have produced millions of youth charged with hatred and ready to unleash
their fury – failed in finding opportunities in this world, seeking a better life
hereafter in the heavens – find their salvation in Jihad and martyrdom.
Ruling elite in Muslim world seems least interested albeit incapable of
addressing the ESP issues. After all, they are the only friends that U.S has
made around the Muslim world.
Who are formulating U.S policies? Are they those self proclaimed
experts on Counter Insurgency and Counter Terrorism bent upon portraying
all this ‘War’ (terrorism) and Insurgency? Or they are those pseudo
intellectuals making money by presenting colourful theories, sometime
relating this phenomenon with Mao’s insurgency, sometimes with
Colombia’s FARC, or even describing it similar to Sri Lanka’s LTTE
guerrillas. Yet there are those who insist on being expert on Al-Qaeda,
Taliban, Afghanistan and Pakistan – many of them have perhaps not even
been to this part of the world, let alone having closely interacted with these
people.
The fundamental question that still remains unanswered is “Why
doesn’t U.S get it”? This is not an insurgency that can be won by applying
Mao’s Lines of Operation; it rather calls for a unique strategy for each
theatre, each sector and each pocket. Some may require military surge, while
some may be tackled with socio-political-economic reforms. Mere declaring
it Global Terrorism and Global Insurgency has not worked – hence not
defeated, because all politics is local, no matter how large-scale the terrorism
or insurgency may be, therefore, local political solutions will have to sought
locally. The U.S needs to bring in fundamental shift in strategy by
understanding the real causes behind “terrorism”. Only then an effective
strategy can be shaped and implemented. Unless all elements of U.S national
power are employed in proportion, and deprived masses of Muslim world
are taken on board, this war can not be won – no matter how intense the
surge, and how many more troops deployed overseas. Majority of commonly
perceived Taliban insurgents in actual fact are the Pashtuns fighting for their
share in government – a purely internal problem of Afghanistan. The
Pakistani Taliban are tribal youth fundamentally rose to preserve their tribal
entity and cleanse their areas from Pakistan Army and assist their Pashtun
Afghan brethren against foreign occupiers – not withstanding the connection
of Soviet war in Afghanistan and Al-Qaeda’s exploitation of the situation.
It is time that U.S about faces its policy and the very concept about
War on Terror, only then the world will get rid of this ever growing menace.
Muslim regimes, particularly the Arabs will have to perform fundamental
role in addressing the challenge. Moderate elements in Muslim societies
particularly in Pakistan and elsewhere will have to be backed up.