One of the very serious consequenses of the disenfranchisement of large groups in the post-Colonial era, which began roughly in the years following WWII, is that generations of these groups have now lived thier entire lives either as refugees, literally growing up in camps (which is the status of the Palestinians, since they were displaced, first by the Zionist movement, ie the return of Jews to their point of historic orgin, and then by the creation of the state of Israel), former pawns of the Cold War powers (this is the status of Iranians, since the USA supported the Shah prior to his fall, and the Iraquis, and of Afghanistan, which contains conflicting factions, each of which had support from opposing super powers), or victims of domestic political instability (with opposite sides, more often than not, fueled by support from opposing super powers) that followed the withdrawal of stable colonial administration (Algeria, Lebanon, the majority of governments in Africa)…In addition, the distribution of wealth and resources among the countries of these regions is unequal- -most of the unrest originates,understandably, from areas where wealth and resources are sparse…Though the Arab world is often considered as a more or less cohesive group of nations, this is not the case, as many conflicting interests divide them: those with oil rely (primarily) on a steady flow of Western (ie American and European) currency to maintain the high standard of living enjoyed by their citizens that has allowed their governments or kingdoms to remain stable, even if they do philosophically sympathize with their less fortunate neighbors. Those with less, strategically located, had brokered their location and numbers to the highest bidder, but with the end of the Cold War, this source of stability has disappeared. The thorny problem of political instability within Israel only complicates matters–recently, the Barak government fell in large part because of what Israeli conservatives felt were too many concessions to the Palestinians, chief among these is the possibility of allowing actual Palestinian self-rule; the installation of Sharon at the head of their government guarenteed that those who favored a hard-line, unyielding approach would determine Israeli policy, dooming the already dim prospects of the peace process in the near term. Politically, the Palestine Liberation Organization has been recognized as the voice of the Palestinians; the military arm of this is the Palistine Liberation Army; the radical and most militant is Hamas. The task of Yassir Arafat, as head of the Palestinians, is nearly impossible: to lead his people to statehood in a location which is controlled by another country. Each time the Arab world or elements thereof have engaged Israel militarillyin support of Palestine, they have actually lost more than they began with because of the superior use of military power by Israel…this is how the state of Israel confirmed its existance in 1948, and how Israel gained control, in the Six-Day War of 1967, of the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and the Golan Heights, which are of vital strategic importance, as they overlook and therefore guarentee domination over positions from which enemy attacks might originate. Borders have been negotiated and renegotiated and zones of control (such as the Gaza Strip and the West Bank) have changed hands (among Israeli, Palestinian, and UN forces) as the “peace process” has progressed or regressed…The Palestinians and Israel both claim Jerusalem, and both do so on religious as well as political grounds, an item of disagreement that has proved completely unsolveable. The Israeli / Palestinian conflict, the latest incarnation of which has been the “infantadah” waged by ordinary Palestinians against the Israelis serves to fuel the fires of political unrest in countries in the region that are not stable; some leaders seek to offer an alternative to dependence on the “imperial powers” of the West by appealing to the most basic sense of nationalism on the part of their citizens (as in Iraq); others embrace the rise of the Islamic fundamentism, which on religious grounds has determined the West (led by the USA) as unholy and evil, and have declared a “jihad” or holy war; those who join it and sacrifice their lives to martyrdom are assured an afterlife of glory in paradise, an appealing alternative compared to the misery they have known in this life. Of course, very few states are willing to overtly condone the use of terrorism, but the knowledge that states such as Libya, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Cuba are known to provide training and safe harbor to terrorist groups are reasons why these countries have been ostracized and shunned by the West and (overtly) by those whose interests are joined with the West. Terrorism is a sensational and relatively economical tactic (economical compared to the substantial resources necessary to wage traditional warefare) used to make a point or achieve infamy in the name of a cause (usually political; in the use of modern terrorism, sometimes the religious and political are merged)…those who embrace terrorism are made up largely of individuals who have grown up amidst a sense of powerlessness, desperation, complete frustration, and hopelessness, resulting in the belief that they have nothing to lose. If they have accepted the views of the radical fundamentalists, they also believe that glory awaits them if they give up thier lives as martyrs. Those who train and harbor them are cold, calculating, devious, and in many cases extremely intelligent. Often, they operate for hire, and several have achieved a level of infamy that has rendered them legendary, as did Carlos, “the Jackal”, Abu Nidal (mastermind of the 1972 Munich Olympics massacre), and lately, the Saudi exile, Osama bin-Laden. The difficulty with formulating a response to any act of terrorism, let alone one as bold and blatant as this, is that it is difficult to wage war on an enemy who has no face, no country, and no fear. The ability to address the root causes of the dissatisfaction which gives rise to the phenomenon of terrorism is an elusive goal at best, and even if achievable, would likely take as many generations to achieve as it has taken terrorists to develop, study, and perfect their art.
