2006.03.07: March 7, 2006: Headlines: Figures: COS - Tunisia: Diplomacy: Springfield State Journal Register: Hull says patience will win war on terrorism
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2006.03.07: March 7, 2006: Headlines: Figures: COS - Tunisia: Diplomacy: Springfield State Journal Register: Hull says patience will win war on terrorism
Hull says patience will win war on terrorism
"It is my judgment that the most significant reason why we didn't see a repeat of the Sept. 11 attacks in the United States was because of these efforts in Afghanistan and abroad. It put al-Qaida on the run, so round two was a victory for the United States and its allies," he said. Edmund Hull served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Tunisia and as Ambassador to Yemen.
Hull says patience will win war on terrorism
Hull says patience will win war on terrorism
Former ambassador to Yemen visits UIS
By AMANDA REAVY
STAFF WRITER
Published Tuesday, March 07, 2006
Patience and the resilience of the American people will be required to triumph over al-Qaida and other terrorist organizations, according to Edmund Hull, a Springfield native and former U.S. ambassador to the Republic of Yemen.
"The only way terrorists can win is if we allow ourselves to be terrorized," Hull told a packed Brookens Auditorium Monday night during a World Affairs Council of Central Illinois presentation at the University of Illinois at Springfield.
A 1967 graduate of Griffin High School, Hull is the lecturer of international affairs, diplomat in residence at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University. His topic Monday was "The War on Terrorism: Who is Winning?"
Hull's career in the U.S. Foreign Service includes more than 20 years' experience in the Middle East, in Jerusalem, Cairo, North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula and with the United Nations. He also served as the United States' acting/deputy coordinator for counter-terrorism from 1999 to 2001, during which he spurred implementation of the U.N. Security Council resolution that imposed an arms embargo on the Taliban for its support of al-Qaida and managed the transition of counter-terrorism affairs from the Clinton to the Bush administration.
Hull discussed the idea of the war on terror and how terror is not an adversary but a tactic. He said it's important to focus on the organizations and networks that utilize terror tactics, explaining the "war on terror" to be a war against al-Qaida and its networks.
Hull likened the battle to a 15-round boxing match, describing round one as al-Qaida's formation during the Soviet Union's occupation of Afghanistan and culminating in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
This round was a clear victory for al-Qaida, Hull said, as the organization successfully conducted training and recruitment in remote Afghan camps, formed an alliance with the Taliban and established a sophisticated network throughout the Middle East and Europe.
The Sept. 11 attacks became a defining moment for the current Bush administration and opened the doors for counter-terrorism efforts that were previously a back-burner issue, Hull said.
Therefore, the second round of the "war on terror" found the United States eliminating al-Qaida sanctuaries and training camps in Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom.
Key leaders of the organization also were captured during this round, and the terrorists' financial networks were cut off, leaving them struggling to fulfill planned attacks, he said.
While the U.S. government was reluctant to use force against al-Qaida before the Sept. 11 attacks, that's no longer the case.
"It is my judgment that the most significant reason why we didn't see a repeat of the Sept. 11 attacks in the United States was because of these efforts in Afghanistan and abroad. It put al-Qaida on the run, so round two was a victory for the United States and its allies," he said.
The country is now involved in the third round of the "war on terror," Hull said, and so far, there is no clear winner.
This round consists of the U.S. government shifting its focus from Afghanistan to Iraq and a perceived threat of weapons of mass destruction, which many in the counter-terrorism community saw as a strange choice, Hull said. "The occupation of an Islamic country is a spur to further terrorism," he noted, explaining that the conflict in Iraq is likely to produce a new generation of terrorists the U.S. government will have to deal with.
Today, Hull said, al-Qaida has become a network of autonomous or semi-autonomous cells, as seen in the train attacks in Madrid and the subway bombing in London last July. He also said that European Muslims who feel disenfranchised make the continent a fertile place for terrorist recruitment, and that al-Qaida is effectively using cyberspace to communicate and disperse information and technology.
According to Hull, the U.S. government should remain on the offensive and form anti-terrorism partnerships with its allies. Foreign governments can be more effective against combating terrorists on their own land because they are knowledgeable of the area, its resources and the language, he said.
Hull also emphasized the need for direct diplomacy and independent governance in the Middle East. In addition, the Unites States must be wary of alienating its own Islamic communities, he said.
And U.S. citizens must engage in both physical and psychological hardening by not only fortifying potential terrorist targets but our own willingness to take precautions as well.
"We need to be aware of what's going on, take prudent precautions and then go ahead with our lives," Hull said.
Amanda Reavy can be reached at 788-1525 or amanda.reavy@sj-r.com.
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Story Source: Springfield State Journal Register
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; Figures; COS - Tunisia; Diplomacy; Terrorism; Iraq
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