The Global War On Terrorism

After the shocking events of September 11th, 2001, America found itself thrust into an entirely new chapter in the geopolitical story of Planet Earth one in which we were facing a decentralized army of groups who sought, by any means necessary, to bring down our country and replace our economic and political dominance with their own. What would come to be known as the global war on terrorism quickly spread across multiple battlefields, with America learning a number of incredibly difficult lessons on waging war in the 21st century. In this article, I will examine the conditions leading up to this conflict, the current state of affairs, and the best solutions for ending hostilities while still preserving our freedoms.

The first incident that sparked the global war on terrorism is generally considered to be the 1993 bombing attempt on the World Trade Center. Islamist militants led by Al-Qaeda failed to destroy the structures with chemical explosives, but followed it up with attacks on American embassies in other countries. In 2001, the 9-11 attacks led to the largest American death count due to an act of war on our soil, and we retaliated with a full-scale military attack on Afghanistan, home country of Al-Qaeda, which we dubbed Operation Enduring Freedom. This did remove the Taliban from power, but the reconstruction phase would be less successful.

Most observers consider the greatest misstep in the global war on terrorism to be Americas subsequent military invasion of Iraq. Under the dubious precedent of intelligence reports that the countrys despotic leader Saddam Hussein was developing nuclear weaponry using yellowcake uranium from Nigeria, a full-scale assault was mounted that removed Hussein from power. However, this distracted the American coalition forces from Afghanistan and surrounding regions, allowing the Taliban to re-secure a position of power in nearby Pakistan and resume their terrorist activities.

After the Bush presidency ended, a major concern of American citizens was how to extricate ourselves from what seemed like a never-ending global war on terrorism while preserving our national security. Barack Obama correctly stated that the situation in Afghanistan was worsening, and Iraq was making decisive steps towards independence. With a policy of increased negotiation and diplomacy, backed up by the power of the United States military, President Obama intends to make dramatic strides in the security and stability of the region. However, the recent Iranian election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad proves that radical Islam is still a very powerful and seductive force in the region. Whether Obama can succeed, especially with all the other problems foreign and domestic that he is facing, will be for history to decide. All we can do is remain vigilant and aware of the myriad threats that creep in the shadows all over the world.