27th November 2009
Handing the Terrorists the Victory
Mark Hanson
How does terrorism achieve its aims? The word itself gives us good indication: the aim is not a military victory, but to instil fear and terror into its target.
The aim of the IRA during the troubles was to wear down the British people and government into submitting to its demands. It certainly got attention, yet both people and government remained stoic in their resistance, only willing to give ground if it was reasonable and promoted peace.
Yet the current terrorist threat from violent Islamic jihad has solicited a different response.
It is perhaps worth making clear the distinction between violent jihad and its more peace-loving cousin. All Muslims are engaged in jihad (which means “struggle”), yet a significant number focus on the inner struggle, the attempt to bring their own souls into greater submission to their god. Yet another significant group believe in violent jihad, whereby the Islamic world is enlarged by fighting those nations that do not adhere to Islam. It is violent jihad that poses the greatest threat.
The aim of violent jihadist terrorism is not, however, a military conquest of the West. It cannot achieve that, and must either wait until Iran or another Islamic power is stronger militarily, or engage in the policy of terror.
A primary purpose of violent jihad is to cower the West into abandoning the principles that it is founded on. Liberal democracies are anathema to Islam, and the desire of jihadists is to do away with liberal democracies. If the principles of liberty and democratic expression can be demonstrated to have failed, the ultimate aim of a worldwide Islamic state will be greatly furthered.
The UK Government should know that these are the jihadist’s aims, yet it has, again and again, played into their hands. The very foundations of British law are being swept aside to combat the terrorist threat. Constitutional principles are being ignored. The government, though in an unenviable position after 9/11 and 7/7, has begun the process of dismantling the British model of liberal democracy. The terrorists are, in fact, winning this “war on terror” as every British citizen is regarded as a potential “enemy within”.
