Yesterday’s monstrous twin bombings in Uganda which have resulted in the deaths of at least seventy-four people (the death toll may still rise) have understandably been blamed on East African Al-Qa’ida franchises.
The BBC reports that:
“In particular, the attack on the Ethiopian Village restaurant raised suspicions of al-Shabab involvement: Addis Ababa backs Somalia’s government against the rebels.”
The Ethiopian invasion of Somalia in 2006 which overthrew the Islamic Courts Union was backed by the United States. As the Guardian columnist Seumas Milne observed earlier this year in an article entitled ‘Terror is the price of support for despots and dictators’, US policy in the region has had very negative consequences:
“Greater western military intervention in both countries [Yemen and Somalia] will certainly make the problem worse. In Somalia, it has already done so, after the US-backed Ethiopian invasion of 2006 overthrew the relatively pragmatic Islamic Courts Union and spawned the more extreme, al-Qaida-linked Shabab movement, now in control of large parts of the country.”
Inayat's Corner 
Inayat, so let me get this straight: you’re blaming US foreign policy in the Horn of Africa for the recent atrocity in Uganda? Did you also blame Australian foreign policy on East Timor for the Bali nightclub bombings? Or perhaps British foreign policy in Afghanistan and Iraq for the 7/7 attacks in London? Come to think of it, the answer to all these questions is probably “yes”. Just the same argument as that Stalinist Rip van Winkle and apologist for terrorism, Seumas Milne, writing in that nihilistic and degenerate left-wing organ, The Guardian.
Count: There really is no question any longer that the UK’s involvement in the wars in Afghanistan and especially Iraq have undermined our security and increased the terror threat against us. As the current Justice Secretary, Ken Clarke, stated not long after the 7/7 terrorist attacks, Tony Blair (along with his tiny band of deluded supporters) must be the only people left in this country who still believe that our foreign policy has nothing to do with this.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4203296.stm
Inayat, do you include the Kosovo Albanians amongst Tony Blair’s “tiny band of deluded supporters”? They sure looked happy to see him, didn’t they? After all, he was at the forefront of the West’s intervention to prevent Serb extremists committing further genocide against the Muslims of the Balkans. Leftists, on the other hand, generally supported Serbia and think that the West’s intervention in the Balkans was criminal; they’re a contrary bunch, aren’t they?
Count: The enthusiasts for the Iraq war often bring up the issue of intervention in Kosova as some kind of ace up their sleeve but the matter was explained well by Robin Cook in his superb resignation speech on the eve of the illegal Iraq war:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/2859431.stm
‘I have heard some parallels between military action in these circumstances and the military action that we took in Kosovo. There was no doubt about the multilateral support that we had for the action that we took in Kosovo.
‘It was supported by NATO; it was supported by the European Union; it was supported by every single one of the seven neighbours in the region. France and Germany were our active allies.
‘It is precisely because we have none of that support in this case that it was all the more important to get agreement in the Security Council as the last hope of demonstrating international agreement.
‘The legal basis for our action in Kosovo was the need to respond to an urgent and compelling humanitarian crisis.
‘Our difficulty in getting support this time is that neither the international community nor the British public is persuaded that there is an urgent and compelling reason for this military action in Iraq.’
Inayat, let’s stick to the point: many on the left, particularly the hard left, were vehemently against NATO’s actions against Slobodan Milošević’s rump Yugoslavia in order to save the Kosovo Albanians; this is something they probably won’t bring up in when in the company of their Islamist friends.
Incidentally, Albanians in general are very pro-Israeli and Albania proper has excellent relations with Israel.
Here is an interesting article entitled “An Israeli in Kosovo”: http://www.michaeltotten.com/archives/2008/08/an-israeli-in-k.php
Count: It is you who at the start of this thread who seemed to deny whether US foreign policy in the Middle East and East Africa had any connection with the terror thread from AQ. What on earth has this to do with Albania? I am sure the Israelis are over the moon that they have some friends in Albania!
what part of US foreign policy is responsible for jihadist bombings in indonesia?
John: There is a CNN article from Nov 2002 in which AQ are quoted as accepting responsibility for the Bali bombing and blaming it on the ‘Crusader-Zionist alliance’:
http://archives.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/asiapcf/southeast/11/07/bali.bombings.qaeda/index.html
The Bali bombings were inexcusable and utterly unjustifiable. I have read elsewhere that they were targeted at Australian holidaymakers in revenge for Australia’s support for the Afghanistan war and the fact that it sent troops over there.
“I have read elsewhere that they were targeted at Australian holidaymakers in revenge for Australia’s support for the Afghanistan war and the fact that it sent troops over there.”
One of the main reasons why Australians would be a target by jihadists would be due to their support in ending the occupation of East Timor.
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2002/11/13/1037080786315.html
If they do use Afghanistan as a justification it should be immediately pointed out to them that the Afghan people feel that the invasion was a good thing and do not want foreign forces to leave yet.
Click to access 11_01_10_afghanpoll.pdf
Obviously those who commit terrorist atrocities do so for they are attracted towards violence especially self-righteous violence and create a fantasy in their heads to justify their violent actions. Providing facts to dispel their fantasy will at least help to act as some bit of a deterrence.
“‘Terror is the price of support for despots and dictators’, US policy in the region has had very negative consequences:”
Unlikely, many terrorists themselves support despotic governments, for example Bin Laden supported the Taliban also I fail to see what would be achieved if the US treated very country in the region in the same way that it treats Iran.
Inayat, with regard to Israelis “being over the moon” because they have some friends in Albania, you may be astonished to know that Israel actually has friends all over the world. In the part of Asia where I currently live, it certainly has. And although it may seem like it at times, please believe me that a significant number of people in the UK and elsewhere do not all think like the Guardianistas (or useful idiots as possibly think of them) with whom you associate. Look at me: I’m neither Jewish nor Israeli, but I can clearly see that the demonization of Israel, and Jews in general, currently being brought about out by the worldwide Islamist-leftist axis is unfair, shameful and just plain evil.
p.s. Inayat, just in case you get withdrawal symptoms over the lack of input to your blog from me over the next few weeks, please note that I shall be on vacation. Shalom, or sampai jumpa lagi as we say in Indonesia.
The count of Monte Cristo is certainly living in a bubble. Israel, who has committed more human rights abuses than every other nation on this Earth put together has in fact received widespread condemnation in all parts of this world. I would love to know which particular Asian country the Count lives within his own bubble of Israeli supporting rhetoric. Israel has murdered more civilians than the whole of Al-Qaeda atrocities outside of Afghanistan and Iraq in the last few years, if you were to go back to the inception of the 2nd intifada, Lebanon genocide and Gaza genocide. And of course, Israel’s far right stance akin to Apartheid South Africa is hardly a regime that the Count and others should be proud of supporting.
I like the mentioning of “Jews” by the Count as well. Note, there are many orthodox Jews that abhor the far right stance of Israel. I would think the demonisation of “Muslims” by the neo-conservative-Zionist axis which is so well-entrenched within the media and certain sectors of Government, old and new , is more prominent. As Inayat so correctly points out neo-cons and others with their vitriolic quotes in regard to Muslims should consider what would happen if the word “Jew” were to be replaced with “Muslim” and that would apply to popular newspapers such as “The News of the World” and “Daily Mail”. Recent laws passed in Western Europe regarding Niqabs and Minarets is the greatest testament to the existence of raw Islamaphobia in this part of the world without any true understanding of the religion or its people, in so called progressive, secular “democracies”. Demonisation of Islam is inherent in the West. The utter confusion and a lack of understanding of the religion’s true teachings are not only present amongst young misguided Islamic radicals but amongst so-called “intelligent” mainstream journalists and media people having created useless, meaningless words such as “Islamist” and “Jihadist”.
Here’s an example of mainstream demonisation of Muslims made into a bit of parody in this BBC 4 programme. I don’t think the “Islamist-Left-Wing” axis would get away with something like this if they were to attack “Jews” in the same vein.
Very funny: