July 24, 2005

Documentation on the Extent of British Islamist Support for Terrorism

Current discussion about the attacks on England are confirming comments I've been making here. In January I reported on the findings of Bat Ye'or, who has been studying Islamic jihad for 30 years. She has written extensively about the non-assimilation of large portions of Muslim populations, who have been permitted to immigrate in large numbers to European nations. She has warned for 30 years about the dire danger this presents to Western societies. She foresaw it because Islamic nations have used identical techniques to conquer countries for centuries.

Just how much trouble Britain is in due to this Islamic strategy of jihad through massive immigration and non-assimilation is documented in this poll -- "One in four Muslims sympathises with motives of terrorists":

• 6% (100,000 people) of British Muslims "insist that the bombings were ... fully justified."
• 24% "have some sympathy with the feelings and motives of those who carried them out."
• 26% "are reluctant" to agree with "Tony Blair's description of the ideas and ideology of the London bombers as "perverted and poisonous'."
• 18% "feels little loyalty towards [Britain] or none at all."
• 32% agree that "Western society is decadent and immoral and that Muslims should seek to bring it to an end. ... Among those who hold this view, almost all go on to say that Muslims should only seek to bring about change by non-violent means but one per cent, about 16,000 individuals, declare themselves willing, possibly even eager, to embrace violence."

Needless to say, this is a huge danger to England. Like many nations before it, England has fallen into the trap of Islamic jihad via massive immigration and non-assimilation. As I've observed recently in the post, "Consequences": 

...it is essential to note that we can't eradicate terrorism by arresting and killing only the terrorists themselves, because the society that produced them can always produce more of them.

...But if there are consequences that affect the larger society that produces terrorists -- the shop-keepers, store-owners, the guys who run the restaurants near the mosques that teach people to kill, the friends who encouraged the killers -- if there are consequences to them personally, that will be another story. ... Then they will have to rethink their support of the killing of women and children.

Terrorism cannot long continue in the face of severe blow-back to the societies that produce the terrorists.

On the plus side, the same poll of British Muslims finds:

• 73% "say they would inform the police if they believed that someone they knew or knew of might be planning a terrorist attack."
• 47% "say they would also go to the police if they believed an imam or other religious person was trying to radicalise young Muslims by preaching hatred against the West."
• 70% "reckon they have a duty to go to the police if they "see something in the community that makes them feel suspicious"."
  

Arrests of British terrorist leaders and a fairly large-scale deportation of their followers may be an example of a way to proceed.

(Hat Tip to commenter Tsar Lazar.)

Newsweek Encourages the Terrorists

This Newsweek article says quite a bit that the terrorists want Newsweek to say.

It Can Happen Anywhere

At least 88 people died in that and two other coordinated blasts that night. Patel, who was back at the Movenpick pool sunning himself the next day, seems resigned to the new facts of global terror in the 21st century: "We can't keep running away. It's life." Kashmira Patel, on the other hand, has nothing like her husband's aplomb. "I'm frightened for everyone," she says. "It can happen to anyone, anywhere."

That seems to be the message that this latest wave of terrorists badly want to drive home. No one is safe. [Italics in original -- ed.]

The article describes terrorism a fact of life. Considering terrorist attacks to be a fact of life is precisely what no one should be doing; we must continue to work hard to put an end to them. Also, the article rewards the terrorists by telling them the attacks communicated their "message" and accomplished something. Newsweek seems to be saying, "Let's have more terrorist attacks so we can sell more magazines."

This comes just a few months after discussion of the January 31st Newsweek fiasco, which made them appear so untrustworthy.

The British Are Already Identifying Point Men in the Most Recent Attacks

There are indications that they knew those involved in the 7-7 attacks on London:

Police now believe some of the men they are pursuing for last week's abortive attacks - on Shepherd's Bush, Oval and Warren Street tube stations and on a No 26 bus in Hackney - attended a whitewater rafting trip at the same centre as two of the 7 July bombers, Mohammad Sidique Khan and Shehzad Tanweer.

Evidence discovered in the rucksacks left behind by the failed bombers led police to three addresses in London. When investigators cross-referenced them with the electoral register they discovered names that tallied with those of individuals who attended the outdoor adventure course in Snowdonia last summer.

The British investigators have been efficient and successful. Let's see if their Egyptian counterparts can approach their success.
 

Remnants of the Taliban are Getting Clobbered in Afghanistan

I had lunch with a British friend yesterday who swore to me, just swore to me that the Taliban were taking over many parts of Afghanistan again. This friend of mine had been a journalist for many years. I wondered what he could be referring to. Judging from this AP article, it appears that he's just totally incorrect:

KABUL, Afghanistan - Fierce fighting in recent months has devastated the ranks of the Taliban, prompting the rebels to recruit children and force some families to provide one son to fight with them, a U.S. commander said Saturday.

...Despite the setback — more than 500 rebels have been killed since March — the militants are likely to step up attacks in the lead-up to crucial Sept. 18 legislative elections,[U.S. Major General Jason Kamiya] said.

"The Taliban and al-Qaida feel that this is their final chance to impede Afghanistan's progress to ... becoming a nation," Kamiya said. "They will challenge us all the way through Sept. 18."