Is the U.S. Winning or Losing the War on Terrorism?
Terrorism remains a high-level threat globally. The U.S., in particular, has had several terror attacks over the years, with the worst hit being the 9/11 attack. Even though the country has not suffered an attack on the same scale, there have been sequential attacks. The fact that terrorism still takes place, whether at a minor or significant level, is an indication that the war on terror is far from over. It is important to note that terrorism activities do not only involve bombing. Other tactics, such as kidnapping for ransom, indiscriminate shooting, are equally used. Winning the war on terrorism would thus not only include dealing with bombings but all forms of terrorist activities. The emergence of smaller terrorist groups and right-wing extremism further poses a challenge to the war on terror (Shea, 2019). In this regard, the U.S. is far from winning the war.
Focusing on domestic terrorism is something that the U.S. has to pay attention to closely. The El Paso incident is evidence of the fact that domestic terrorism is a threat to the U.S. (MacFarquhar, 2020). Over the years, there has been an increase in sympathizers living in the U.S. The majority of these individuals are U.S. immigrants and U.S. citizens. The recruitment of terrorists has also taken on a new dimension. In this regard, terrorists are no longer of Arabian descent.
Doing Things Differently
Terrorism rides on religious extremism as well as an ideological viewpoint (Cordesman, 2006, p2). It, therefore, means that the Arab and Islamic communities have negative perceptions of the U.S. Its intervention through the use of military force only aggravates the situation. Changes in policy execution would go a long way in changing these perceptions. The use of military force only attracts equal retaliation. The intervention policies the U.S. has in the Middle East though commendable should be reviewed, for example. Review, in this case, could mean changing execution strategies and not necessarily changing or doing away with existing policies.
The negative perception of the U.S., for example, is not only political but cultural as well. The Arab world has, over the years, viewed the U.S. as an enemy who needs to be eliminated. Osama Bin Laden had a plan to this effect. Despite his death, the vision and mission are still alive, as indicated by the merging of Al Qaeda with smaller groups (Hoffman, 2016). When such a culture is inculcated, it becomes challenging to deal with as it is handed down to upcoming generations. It is what has been happening as far as furthering the Al Qaeda agenda is concerned. The only way to change this perception would be a change in strategies with the aim of realizing minimal adverse effects on the Arab world (Cordesman, 2006, p3).
As indicated, attacks have been at a lower scale in contrast to the 9/11 terrorist attack. Even though this may be deemed a win, it is not necessarily a win because attacks still take place. Winning the war on terror takes the combined effort of different players (countries). The U.S. invasion of Muslim and Arab countries such as Iraq, Somalia, Syria, to name a few, continues to put the country in harm’s way as far as terrorism is concerned. Winning the war on terror translates to dealing with terrorism by addressing its motivation. By dealing with the motivation behind terrorism, then the war on terrorism will be won. Until strategies change, winning against terrorism will remain elusive.