Middle Ground

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An Afghan Special Forces member attending his Graduation Ceremony in Kabul last week,

on the Last Weekend of the fatal knife attack in Reading, West of London, was an unpleasant reminder that The Threat of terrorism. But what is with the so-called War on Terror, as declared by US President George W Bush in 2001? It is still on? And if not, was it a triumph or a massive waste of money?

Almost 19 years to The Day America was attacked on September 11. September 2001 remain thousands of American soldiers and women stationed in Afghanistan, in Iraq, in The Gulf and in The Horn of Africa. Drone strikes in remote regions of The World continue to be the opponent a suspected terrorist leader; counter-terrorism budget across The World have long been to meet astronomical proportions, a variety of ongoing threats.

Sasha Havliclek, the Executive Director of The Institute for Strategic Dialogue, has been following this War since its inception. She claims that it is The rhetoric was done a difference between the rhetoric and the reality:

"away with The Minute President [Barack] Obama into office came [in 2009], but in reality it was much more continuity than rupture in the tactics of The War on terror. Under the Obama administration, it is known that they upgraded to a massive, Drone-attacks, for example, in Afghanistan and Pakistan. And for all The Talk of America only now. and I think it is a wide perception that this is winding down. we have actually seen a continuing expansion of the US counter-terrorism operations. "

', A determined group of Enemies '

This is a view supported largely by The Man appointed by President Donald Trump as the U.S. State Department coordinator for counterterrorism, Ambassador Nathan Sales . I asked him if this War is over originally by The Bush administration?

"no, The Battle is very much ongoing, we win The Battle , but we remain determined in The Fight against an enemy-or should I say, a determined group of Enemies . "

The Iraqi city of Mosul, the scars of the fighting

still, He refers to the example of the Islamic state (IS), in which the large, multi-national coalition successfully eliminated The Last of the jihadists " physical Caliphate in Baghuz In Syria Last Year , and their leader, Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi. However, affiliates and networks, he says, are still very active all over The World .

On Wednesday, The State Department published its annual country terrorism.

To some in Washington, it all seemed so clear-cut in the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 attacks on the United States .

Announcing the launch of the "War on Terror" at the time, President Bush declared that you are "either With Us or against us". There was no Middle Ground , no allowance made for the fine nuances of the Middle East , with its ever-changing alliances and loyalties. In Iraq, which the United States and great Britain from the Invasion in 2003, this uncompromising position turned potential allies into Enemies , laying the Foundation For Today 's global jihadist movement. Mina Al-Orabi is The Editor of the UAE newspaper The National . She is originally from Mosul, Iraq's second largest city, was destroyed on the ground, to plunge during The Battle , from its streets.

"'In Iraq," she says, "there were clear cases in which the United States under the new Iraqi state. The course is set in the year 2003 the decision to expand The Police and the military, the decision to tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of Young Men out of work... with the idea that they are completely excluded from the country, which became The Nucleus for al-Qaeda in Iraq, And Then the core IS. "

'Far from over'

Other political mistakes have also been made, as a part of this War , which, although later reversed by President Obama, continue to follow today.

The detention of hundreds of suspects without trial in Guantanamo, The Practice of "extraordinary Rendition " - 's blindfolding terrorist suspects and flying them about The World of CIA "black sites" where they were exposed to a longer and "enhanced interrogation".

These have all been used by critics of The West to undermine its moral authority. Ambassador of sales from the U.S. state Department says that "The World has many lessons learned about what works and what doesn't and we we have incorporated these findings into our current approaches".

He is particularly annoyed by those critics of Guantanamo Bay , including Washington's Western partners, who have now abandoned their citizens in desolate camps Strung Out In Syria and Iraq. He says that these countries, you should take it back.

It is impossible to pin down exactly how much of the "War on Terror" has cost, but most estimates place it even in more than US $1 trillion. The bulk of it was spent on "kinetic" military action, as well as intelligence gathering and drone strikes. Only a tiny fraction went in the direction of the prevention of Steering people from The Path of extremism. Shiraz Maher from Kings College London, The Institute for the study of radicalisation, is of the opinion that this War has helped spawn many of today's problems In Society .

"If you look at things, such as the Islamic state In Syria and Iraq, or this kind of thing," he says, "well, then, that the development of a degree of xenophobia in Europe, the development of a degree of mistrust and hostility towards Muslims, which translates into hostility towards refugees and refugee crisis was a result of Syria. So you can see a cascading series of consequences. So I think it's fair to say that the 'War against Terror is far from over, and in a lot of ways. "

So will there ever be an end to this amorphous campaign? It will be crucial "Mission Accomplished" moment that brings the so-called War on Terror to a close? It is unlikely that. Because, like crime, terrorism can only be reduced, what call the officials to "manageable levels". And today there is already a new and emerging threat of right-extremism, something that you probably breathe in New Life , what seems to be A War without end.

counter-terrorism

Source of news: bbc.com