9/11: Eleven Years Later
On this the eleventh anniversary of the terrorist attacks on New York, Washington and Pennsylvania, America pauses to honor those lost and the families affected that tragic day. It is a moment to honor the firefighters, police, medical workers and other first responders who showed unparalleled bravery that morning, as well as the men and women in the military, intelligence and law enforcement communities who have sacrificed so much to keep us safe over the past eleven years. This is also a moment to review the current state of the fight against al Qaeda and the progress America has made defeating our enemy while strengthening itself at home.
Al Qaeda central is on the ropes, its ability to produce global revolution discounted. The decimation of the organization’s leadership receives much attention – including the death of Osama bin Laden – however, this is part of a broader counterterrorism strategy that has proven results, leaving the core of the organization in shambles. In a speech last year the president’s top advisor on counterterrorism, John Brennan, outlined successes on multiple fronts: “With allies and partners, we have thwarted attacks around the world. We have disrupted plots here at home, including the plan of Najibullah Zazi, trained by al-Qa’ida to bomb the New York subway. We have affected al-Qa’ida’s ability to attract new recruits. We’ve made it harder for them to hide and transfer money, and pushed al-Qa’ida’s finances to its weakest point in years… we’ve shown al-Qa’ida that it will enjoy no safe haven, and we have made it harder than ever for them to move, to communicate, to train, and to plot.”
Terrorism experts Brian Fishman and Phillip Mudd explain the current state of the organization: “al
Qaeda’s core organization in Pakistan is battered, the effort to spur homegrown jihadists in
the West has faltered, and its regional affiliates are more often losing ground than gaining it…
Some affiliates remain focused on local agendas; others have been crippled by their own mistakes and
operational successes against them. Two legs of al Qaeda’s three-legged stool, the core group
in Pakistan-Afghanistan and the affiliates, are weak. The third leg, so-called homegrown jihadists,
has not shown the capability to pose more than a modest threat. Al Qaeda’s allies are lethal
and broadly dispersed, but they show little sign of producing the global revolution they espouse.”
[John Brennan, 6/29/11.
Brian Fishman and Phillip Mudd, 2/24/12]
U.S. continues to face a real but weakened threat, as counterterrorism officials and law enforcement work vigilantly to keep Americans safe. Fishman and Mudd add, “None of this is to say that al Qaeda is dead. Jihadists in Iraq are aggressively eyeing Syria, where sectarian dynamics and escalating violence offer the group an opportunity to project influence. Besides the still-dangerous al-Shabab in Somalia, al Qaeda’s Yemeni affiliate has proved resilient and forceful locally, and the allied group Ansar al-Sharia has proved its ability to take and hold territory amid the country’s political unrest.”
However, counterterrorism officials and law enforcement work tirelessly and vigilantly to keep Americans safe. As former 9/11 Commissioner Richard Ben-Veniste explains, “[T]he bipartisan 9/11 Commission made a number of recommendations to make us safer. Most of our suggestions have been incorporated into the fabric of our national defense. We are more alert, more interconnected, more willing to share information and better able to gather and exploit intelligence than we were 10 years ago. At long last, Osama bin Laden has been subtracted from the equation.” [Brian Fishman and Phillip Mudd, 2/24/12. Richard Ben-Veniste, 8/23/11]
Strength and determination are core American attributes, as the country is reminded on this anniversary. As homeland security expert Stephen Flynn explains, “Resilience has historically been one of the United States’ great national strengths. It was the quality that helped tame a raw continent and then allowed the country to cope with the extraordinary challenges that occasionally placed the American experiment in peril.” We honor the sacrifice of those we have lost by refusing to see ourselves as victims. As President Obama said today marking the anniversary at the Pentagon, “through their sacrifice, they helped us make the America we are today — an America that has emerged even stronger… Eleven years ago, memorial services were held for Americans of different races and creeds, backgrounds and beliefs. And yet, instead of turning us against each other, tragedy has brought us together… So as painful as this day is and always will be, it leaves us with a lesson that no single event can ever destroy who we are. No act of terrorism can ever change what we stand for. Instead, we recommit ourselves to the values that we believe in, holding firmly, without wavering, to the hope that we confess.” [Stephen Flynn, Foreign Affairs, March/April 2008. Barack Obama, 9/11/12]
What We’re Reading
New intelligence from the UN atomic agency suggests Iran has advanced its work to build a nuclear weapon.
Diplomats from Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Iran met in Egypt to discuss the Syrian crisis.
Yemen’s defense minister survived a car bombing that killed 11 others.
China sent patrol ships to islands disputed with Japan in the East China Sea.
North Korea agreed to accept humanitarian aid in the wake of floods and typhoons, according to reports from South Korean officials.
Venezuela dropped charges against the 15-member crew of a U.S.-flagged cargo ship detained on suspected arms trafficking.
Greek officials continue negotiations on an 11 billion euro package of budget cuts to enable their next allotment of bailout money.
Spain’s prime minster rejected outside conditions over a possible bailout from the European Central Bank.
International leaders called the election of Hassan Sheikh Mohamud a “great step forward” for Somalia.
A detainee held at the Guantánamo Bay prison has died.
Commentary of the Day
Juliette Kayyem discusses why the “Never Again” phrase, common after 9/11, should not be used.
Khaled Fattah explains why the Yemeni model of transition of power would not work in Syria.
The New York Times Editorial Board assesses the renewed sectarian tensions in Iraq after the conviction of Tariq al-Hashimi.
