The terrorist trap

 

About a year after the 9/11 attacks, I went to hear a renowned liberal author talk about her new book. Much to my dismay, she ditched her planned speech on globalization to talk about George W. Bush’s plan to invade Iraq. 

Unlike her writing, her talking points were bland and not well thought out, but it didn’t matter. She was preaching to the choir. Everyone in this Canadian audience knew the plan to invade a second Middle Eastern country in two years was crazy. 

Now we know for sure. The resources spent, the lives lost, the occupation that’s lasted for over two decades was a mistake. It was clearly an overreach, using an act of terrorism to justify control of an oil-rich country. 

The invasion of Afghanistan, on the other hand, was not questioned. As a country that harboured terrorist groups like Al Qaeda, most nations could support military action. And yet this occupation turned out to be just as futile, with the Taliban returning to power as soon as American soldiers retreated in 2021. 

On a side note, a friend of mine from Pakistan suggested the Taliban is not nearly as bad as what the West has made them out to be. They are representative, generally, of the people they rule. They don’t adhere to the West's progressive values, but that’s typical of the region. He agrees they are not “good,” but neither are the rulers of most Middle Eastern countries presently. 

Like most governments, good or bad, they bring stability to the region and don’t want to attract much international attention. Terrorists and terrorist states, by contrast, thrive on it. 

Hamas clearly wanted a fight. They committed atrocities to demand retribution. And perhaps unwittingly, they have drawn the world’s attention to the plight of the Gaza Strip, an area of the world I knew very little about until a few days ago. 

Over two million people, almost half of them children, live in this incredibly condensed area, barricaded by Israel on one side and the Mediterranean Sea on the other. Their living standards are some of the lowest in the world. With little political autonomy, they are almost entirely dependent on Israel for the essentials of life – food, water, and most electrical power. 

It's easy to understand how this could become a breeding ground for terrorism. Not that it’s justified in the least, but the conditions exist, like in Afghanistan, to feed resentment and hostility. 

Hamas was ruthless in its attack on Israel. Unfortunately, their acts of terror will be quickly forgotten by the Arab world if Israel reduces the Gaza Strip to rubble. The humanitarian crisis that’s unfolding is a gift to extremists worldwide. For those who invaded Israel, who killed without thought, there was no goal to conquer. There was simply one goal: Gain the attention of the world as Israel destroys our people. 

Now the world watches as hundreds of Palestinians perish, most of them unaware of what their dictatorial government was even planning.  

It’s a sad state of affairs that feels inevitable. When countries are attacked, like after 9/11, they fight back. To not act would convey a toleration of barbarism. The public would not stand for it. 

But the quashing of a weaker enemy, without consideration of the innocent, may soon be viewed by the world just as cruel.