THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA
An Online Journal of Political Commentary & Analysis
Volume XI, Issue # 125, May 14, 2009
Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr., Editor
Government Committed to & Acting in Accord with Conservative Principles
Ensures a Nation's Strength, Progress, & Prosperity
ISLAMIST TERRORISM, TERROR & IRAQ:
A BRIEFING BY SHIMSHON ISSAKI
Summary Account by Dr. David J. Rusin
AL-QA'IDA & THE GLOBAL ISLAMIST JIHAD: THE GLOBAL TERROR WAR THAT AL-QA'IDA HAS BEEN WAGING
DURING THE PAST TWO DECADES -- AL-QA'IDA'S LONGTERM WAR AIMS -- PROBLEMS THAT THE ISLAMIST TERROR
NETWORKS ARE CREATING FOR AMERICA & THE WEST IN THE MIDDLE EAST & SOUTH CENTRAL ASIA -- BARRIERS
HINDERING U.S. INTELLIGENCE WORK IN THE FOURTH WORLD WAR -- OBSTACLES TO U.S.-ISRAELI INTELLIGENCE
COOPERATION
FULL STORY:
Shimshon Issaki is a leading expert on Islamic terrorism. He served for 44 years in the Israeli Defense Forces and other
Israeli security agencies as an intelligence analyst and operations officer, retiring with a rank equivalent to brigadier
general. His new book, Terror and Iraq: How We Can Better Combat Islamic Terrorism, evaluates al-Qai'da's
strategies and tactics. On April 30, 2009, Mr. Issaki addressed the Middle East Forum via conference call.
Shimshon Issaki opened with a holistic overview of al-Qai'da, from its roots in the battle against the Soviets in
Afghanistan to its far-reaching terrorist activities during the past two decades.
According to Mr. Issaki, al-Qai'da opposes Christians, Jews, and even other Muslims who do not subscribe to Osama
bin Laden's Wahhabi ideology; it seeks to attack and "overthrow all regimes that are non-Muslim," or that adhere to an
unacceptable brand of Islam. Its preferred instrument is terrorism.
Mr. Issaki claimed that 9/11 could have been averted "if things had been done in the right way," but he sees similar
barriers hindering intelligence work seven years later. In particular, he stated that U.S. President Barack Hussein
Obama's release of documents on enhanced interrogation techniques has done "irreversible damage to security
because [terrorists] are learning how to behave" during questioning.
Asked whether American-Israeli intelligence cooperation has changed since President Obama took office, Issaki
reported that it remains "very good," since "the interests [of the U.S.A. and Israel] are the same interests, the targets
are the same targets, and the experience is the same experience."
However, he noted that significant differences of opinion between the United States and Israel have emerged over
Iran, Hamas, and other strategic issues. Mr. Issaki said that the Obama administration may be "correct to explore all
the possibilities. But where is the time limit? For how long?" He lamented that nothing has been done to deal with
Iran since the U.S. presidential election of 2008.
Finally, Mr. Issaki warned that al-Qai'da's demise in Iraq has been greatly exaggerated. Recent events show that the
organization still is capable of generating chaos there, to the undisputed benefit of Iran.
LINKS TO RELATED TOPICS:
Islamism & Jihadism -- The Threat of Radical Islam
Page Three
Page Two
Page One
The Middle East & the Problem of Iraq
Page Two
Page One
The Problem of Rogue States:
Iraq as a Case History
National Strategy for Victory in Iraq
Israel & the Arabs -- The Israeli-Arab Conflict
American Foreign Policy -- The Middle East
Middle East -- Arabs, Arab States,
& Their Middle Eastern Neighbors
International Politics & World Disorder:
War, Peace, & Geopolitics in the Real World:
Foreign Affairs & U.S. National Security
Page Two
Page One
Islamist Terrorist Attacks on the U.S.A.
Osama bin Laden & the Islamist Declaration of War
Against the U.S.A. & Western Civilization
Islamist International Terrorism &
U.S. Intelligence Agencies
Counterterrorism & U.S. National Security
U.S. National Security Strategy
Dr. David J. Rusin is a Philadelphia-based editor for Pajamas Media and a research associate at Islamist
Watch and the Middle East Forum. Dr. Rusin holds a Ph.D. in Physics and Astronomy from the University of
Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The foregoing summary account by Dr. Rusin can be found on the Internet website maintained by the Middle
East Forum, a foreign policy think tank which seeks to define and promote American interests in the Middle East,
defining U.S. interests to include fighting radical Islam, working for Palestinian Arab acceptance of the State of
Israel, improving the management of U.S. efforts to promote constitutional democracy in the Middle East,
reducing America's energy dependence on the Middle East, more robustly asserting U.S. interests vis-à-vis Saudi
Arabia, and countering the Iranian threat.
(Article URL: http://www.meforum.org/article/2136/ islamist-terrorism-terror-and-iraq)
Republished with Permission of the Middle East Forum
Reprinted from the Middle East Forum News
mefnews@meforum.org (MEF NEWS)
May 14, 2009
Return to Top of Page
Go to the WEBSITE INDEX
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA,
Public Issues & Political Controversies
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA
Most Recent Articles
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA,
Volume XI, 2009
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA,
Subject Matter Highlights
Return to POLITICAL EDUCATION Homepage
CONTACT & ACCESS INFORMATION
This is not a commercial website. The sole purpose of the website is to share with interested persons information regarding civics,
civic and social education, political science, government, politics, law, constitutional law and history, public policy, and political
philosophy and history, as well as current and recent political developments, public issues, and political controversies.
POLITICAL EDUCATION, CONSERVATIVE ANALYSIS
POLITICS, SOCIETY, & THE SOVEREIGN STATE
Website of Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr.
Government, Politics, Public Policy, Legal Issues, Constitutional Law, Government & the Economy, Cultural Values, Foreign Affairs,
International Relations, Military Defense & National Security, Geopolitics, Terrorism & Homeland Security, American National Interests,
Political Systems & Processes, Political Institutions, Political Ideologies, & Political Philosophy
INDEX FOR THE ENTIRE WEBSITE
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA
An Online Journal of Political Commentary & Analysis
Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr., Editor
Conservative & Free-Market Analysis of Government, Politics & Public Policy, Covering Political, Legal, Constitutional, Economic,
Cultural, Military, International, Strategic, & Geopolitical Issues
Conservative Government Ensures a Nation's Strength, Progress, & Prosperity