While the world rejoices victory over terrorism, i sat down thinking once again. It kept bothering me how Osama bin laden was the most wanted man and how he was termed a terrorist. what is a terrorist.
A 2003 study by Jeffrey Record for the US Army quoted a source (Schmid and Jongman 1988) that counted 109 definitions of terrorism that covered a total of 22 different definitional elements. Record continued "Terrorism expert Walter Laqueur also has counted over 100 definitions and concludes that the 'only general characteristic generally agreed upon is that terrorism involves violence and the threat of violence.' Yet terrorism is hardly the only enterprise involving violence and the threat of violence. So does war, coercive diplomacy, and bar room brawls".
As Bruce Hoffman has noted: "terrorism is a pejorative term. It is a word with intrinsically negative connotations that is generally applied to one's enemies and opponents, or to those with whom one disagrees and would otherwise prefer to ignore. Hence the decision to call someone or label some organization 'terrorist' becomes almost unavoidably subjective, depending largely on whether one sympathizes with or opposes the person/group/cause concerned. If one identifies with the victim of the violence, for example, then the act is terrorism. If, however, one identifies with the perpetrator, the violent act is regarded in a more sympathetic, if not positive (or, at the worst, an ambivalent) light; and it is not terrorism." For this and for political reasons, many news sources (such as Reuters) avoid using this term, opting instead for less accusatory words like "bombers", "militants", etc.
Hoffman nailed the subject or should rather say the definition of terrorism. While in todays world it is the media who defines who is a terrorist and who's not, it is essential for us to go back in to time and see the reasons what made Osama bin laden.
After leaving college in 1979 bin Laden joined Abdullah Azzam to fight the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan and lived for a time in Peshawar. From 1979 through 1989 under U.S. Presidents Carter and Reagan, the United States Central Intelligence Agency provided overt and covert financial aid, arms and training to Osama's Islamic Jihad Mujahideen through Operation Cyclone, and the Reagan Doctrine. President Reagan often praised the Mujahideen as Afghanistan's "Freedom Fighters."
By 1984, with Azzam, bin Laden established Maktab al-Khadamat, which funneled money, arms and Muslim fighters from around the Arabic world into the Afghan war. Through al-Khadamat, bin Laden's inherited family fortune paid for air tickets and accommodation, dealt with paperwork with Pakistani authorities and provided other such services for the jihad fighters. Osama established a camp in Afghanistan and with other volunteers fought the Soviets.
It was during his time in Peshawar that he began wearing camouflage-print jackets and carrying a captured Soviet assault rifle, which urban legends claimed he had obtained by killing a Russian soldier with his bare hands.
The same goverment that once praised the efforts of Mujahideen in their efforts to back of the russian invasion created a guriella force only to abandon it once its purpose was accomplished.
Following the Soviet Union's withdrawal from Afghanistan in February 1989, Osama bin Laden returned to Saudi Arabia in 1990 as a hero of jihad, who along with his Arab legion, "had brought down the mighty superpower" of the Soviet Union.
The Iraqi invasion of Kuwait under Saddam Hussein on August 2, 1990 put the Saudi kingdom and the House of Saud at risk, with Iraqi forces on the Saudi border and Saddam's appeal to pan-Arabism potentially inciting internal dissent. bin Laden met with King Fahd, and Saudi Defense Minister Sultan, telling them not to depend on non-Muslim assistance from the United States and others, offering to help defend Saudi Arabia with his mujahideen. Bin Laden's offer was rebuffed, and after the Saudi monarchy invited the deployment of U.S. troops in Saudi territory, Osama publicly denounced Saudi Arabia's dependence on the U.S. military. Osama believed the presence of foreign troops in the "land of the two mosques" (Mecca and Medina) profaned sacred soil. Bin Laden's criticism of the Saudi monarchy led that government to attempt to silence him.
Shortly after Saudi Arabia invited U.S. troops into Saudi Arabia, bin Laden turned his attention to attacks on the West. On November 8, 1990, the FBI raided the New Jersey home of El Sayyid Nosair, an associate of al Qaeda operative Ali Mohamed, discovering copious evidence of terrorist plots, including plans to blow up New York City skyscrapers. This marked the earliest discovery of al Qaeda terrorist plans outside of Muslim countries.
While the plans were discovered as early as 1990 to blow down the NY sky scrapers , the USA goverment did little as to curb down the inevitable threat only to be surprised on 9/11/2001. Eleven years after, it had knowledge of the full plot, declaring war on Afganistan.
Why did Osama Bin laden turn against the Americans, because he had realized in his war against the soviets, how Americans used the native population for their own advantage and all he had done was to try and stop the western world from taking over the black gold mines. He understood that the middle east once captured by the united nations will face the same fate as afganistan had .
He did what he wanted to do, bieng labeled as terrorist. The question however remains, can we hold him liable for his actions. He was just doing what any one of us would have done if an enemy entered our house, attack. While his religious views allowed sacrifice of civilians he chose to destroy the symbols of the american Monarchy ,the twin towers.
Over the years in its raid of afganistan millions of people are either dead or homeless by the hands of American troops. Going back to the definiton of hoffman, in this case american forces are the terrorists who on pretext of capturing Osama bin laden have over the years plundered Afganistan.
Going back in history, it can be seen that world war two ended by the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Japan had attacked the pearl harbour. a military attack held on military outpost of the americans. the cost was paid by millions of japanese civilians who no only died in the attack but had to bear the consequences of radiation for many more years to come . Drawing similarities between the two attacks the NY twin tower and the Atom bomb, the twin tower attacks had far lesser impact on the normal lively hood of people in the United states and yet America launched a full fledged war against a nation. While it may sound pretty anti - american but the fact is USA has always retaliated at a much larger scale, when ever such a thing has happened .
While the next destination of the American forces is Libya, that is right now going through a civil war, why is the USA concerned, remains a question except the fact that more recently, americans were on the verge of using their own oil reserves. It would be interesting to observe, that the reason for which the war was launched , now that it has be obliterated, will the war end or Afganistan like, iraq before will satisfy the greed of the american colgomerates who in the name of rebuilding will control the resources, ruling the nation.Freedom, a term used so vehemantly used, what does it mean if all we believe is what is fed to us through news footage and people on the streets waving the flag.
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