National Intelligence Estimate Shows 'We Are Winning the Battle But Losing the War' on Terrorism, Expert Says

Efforts to counter the radical Islamist ideologies fueling terrorism have been an 'abject failure,' says David Schanzer

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

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Durham, NC -- A report today from the nation’s intelligence agencies provides further proof that the Bush Administration’s efforts to counter the radical Islamist ideologies fueling terrorism have been an “abject failure,” says a terrorism expert.

“On a whole set of issues, ranging from the war in Iraq, to handling of the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict, to dealings with Pakistani President Musharraf, our policies have led to increased hostility toward the United States in the Muslim world and resulted in regions of instability where terrorist organization can find sanctuary and prosper,” said David Schanzer, director of the Triangle Center on Terrorism and Homeland Security, a research organization sponsored by Duke University and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

The agencies’ new formal assessment, known as a National Intelligence Estimate (NIE), showed that U.S. counterterrorism efforts over the past six years have successfully prevented attacks on U.S. soil. “But the NIE confirms that we are failing in our core mission of undermining al-Qaeda and the global radical Islamist movement,” Schanzer said. “We have won many battles but are losing the war.”

“Improved intelligence, law enforcement and anti-financing capabilities here and around the world have damaged al-Qaeda and prevented attacks, but this strategy is incomplete,” said Schanzer, the former Democratic staff director of the House Select Committee on Homeland Security. “We have yet to develop an effective means of undermining the radical ideology that enables al-Qaeda and its affiliated organization to regenerate and grow.

“This failure is reflected in the ongoing violence in Iraq, a portion of which is attributable to al-Qaeda in Iraq, and disturbing incidents throughout the Middle East, East Africa, the Maghreb and Pakistan, including the uprising at the Red Mosque in Islamabad.”