Study: Military Alone Can't Beat Al Qaeda

Better Policing, Intelligence Gathering Should Be Focus, Government-Funded Group Says

(AP)  The United States can defeat al Qaeda if it relies less on force and more on policing and intelligence to root out the terror group's leaders, a new study contends.

"Keep in mind that terrorist groups are not eradicated overnight," said the study by the federally funded Rand research center, an organization that counsels the U.S. Defense Department.

Its report said that the use of military force by the United States or other countries should be reserved for quelling large, well-armed and well-organized insurgencies, and that American officials should stop using the term "war on terror" and replace it with "counterterrorism."

"Terrorists should be perceived and described as criminals, not holy warriors, and our analysis suggests there is no battlefield solution to terrorism," said Seth Jones, the lead author of the study and a Rand political scientist.

"The United States has the necessary instruments to defeat al Qaeda, it just needs to shift its strategy," Jones said.

Nearly every ally, including Britain and Australia, has stopped using "war on terror" to describe strategy against the group headed by Osama bin Laden and considered responsible for the Sept. 11, 2001 suicide attacks at the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon.

Based on an analysis of 648 terrorist groups that existed between 1968 and 2006, the report concluded that a transition to the political process is the most common way such groups end. But the process, found in 43 percent of cases examined, is unlikely with al Qaeda, which has a broad, sweeping agenda, the report said.

The second most common way that terrorist groups end, seen in about 40 percent of the cases, is through police and intelligence services apprehending or killing key leaders, Jones said. Police are particularly effective because their permanent presence in cities helps them gather information, he said.

By contrast, the report said, military force was effective in only 7 percent of the cases.

Jones, in an interview, said, "Even where we found some success against al Qaeda, in Pakistan and Iraq, the military played a background or surrogate role. The bulk of the action was taken by intelligence, police and, in some cases, local forces."

"We are not saying the military should not play a role," he said. "But unless you are talking about large insurgencies, military force should not be the tip of the spear."

The report described al Qaeda as a "strong and competent organization," both before and after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks against the United States. Its goals, the report said, are uniting Muslims to fight the United States and its allies, overthrowing regimes in the Middle East friendly to the West and establishing a pan-Islamic state, or caliphate.

[kollmuss]

Usama Bin Laden is like an evil Aslan from an evil Narnia...

[royalia]

To the comment about Clinton not doing anything about al-Qaeda: Here is a FACT. The Bush Administration had overwhelming inteligence that something major was going to happe. See the following:

http://www.historycommons.org/timeline.jsp?timeline=complete_911_timeline&complete_911_timeline_key_events=complete_911_timeline_key_warnings

Now who failed to act? Also look up the reports about Bush "not interested" in reports about al-Qaeda.

Bush: "Terrorists from Saudi Arabia and trained in Afghanistan just attacked us. Let''s attack Iraq!"

[babooph]

Now they tell us,after failing for longer than WW2 with the most powerful military ever& destroying the future of the US middle class paying for it-anyone able to explain it to Bush ?Maybe a kindergarden teacher is available.

[petro49l]

Bin Laden plans more attacks by Taliban. How many Taliban will be massacred? Osama believes that most rank and file Arabs will be forced or fooled into the war. The Coalition should capture Bin Laden. Osama thinks the region should be purged of common persons. He sees himself as elite and authoritative. In the role of opium mogul, Bin Laden would actively practice terror throughout the world.

[libsluv2spit]

it is just logical that we need to have a strong footing in middle east FOLLOWED by injecting that region with alternatives to islam..IF PEOPLE IN MIDDLE EAST ARE GIVEN A CHANCE..THEY WILL NOT FOLLOW THE LIKES OF OSAMA BIN LADEN..

[obama441]

lazareth go back to your porn sites you *** bum!

[obama441]

I would love to see terrorsalami picking the tomatoes HA,HA that no good fat coward!! probably a d.amn pedophile too sheessh!!

[obama441]

fear,fear, the "terrorist" fear the "illegals"

[obama441]

lazareth really? if terrorsalami weren''t so lazy he would be working the jobs that "they" take from him...

[obama441]

F.CKKEN MEXICAN ILLEGALLS WE DON''''T NEED YOU!!Posted by terrorislamv...

[obama441]

lazareth,terrorislamv talk about TERRORIST sheessh

[obama441]

blacks,mexicans,muslims,and other minorities.Seek out these scumbags and kill them all. Posted by lazareth at 01:14 PM : Jul 29, 2008
another trailer trash...

[mcsuicide247]

terrorislamv - was abused by his parents and so he blames the terrorist and the liberals for his failures in life...

[mcsuicide247]

terrorislamv - go back to your toxic formaldehyde filled FEMA trailer and stay there and don''t ever come out!!

[obama441]

TERRORSALAMI hates blacks,mexicans,muslims,and other minorities.....

[mcsuicide247]

terrorislamv - spreading your propaganda is no better than the terrorist you fear!!

[obama441]

F.CKKEN MEXICAN ILLEGALLS WE DON''T NEED YOU!!Posted by terrorislamv...

[obama441]

terrorislamv go back to rehab 12 steps ....

[mcsuicide247]

terrorislamv - you have failed in life once again...

[mcsuicide247]

terrorislamv - you are a sorry waste of a human....