9/11 - fifteen years later
This
Sunday the USA observes the 15th anniversary of 9/11. The attacks on the soil
of the USA was committed not by a hostile state but reportedly by non-state Muslim
zealots that were affiliated with OBL's al-Qaeda. Nearly 3000 individuals
of all faiths died in the attacks.
Since
the militant group was based in Afghanistan the mineral rich country was attacked
on October 7, 2001 as a retaliation by President George W. Bush. The Taliban regime
of Mullah Omar was soon toppled with massive bombing campaigns from the joint
Anglo-American forces. Nearly a quarter million innocent Afghan civilians who
had no connection with 9/11 were pulverized in the USA-led barbarity.
Next,
Saddam Hussein’s Iraq, which had no connection with 9/11, was invaded. President
Bush gave a new meaning to the word savagery. Truly, never before had humanity
seen so much brutality and plundering, especially in the post-World War II era by
a government that touted itself as the model of greatness. Probably, a million
Iraqi civilians were butchered by Bush and his forces. [Note: Some reliable
estimates like the Opinion Research Business (ORB) poll
conducted 12–19 August 2007 estimated 1,033,000 violent deaths due to the Iraq
War. The range given was 946,000 to 1,120,000 deaths.] The Ba’athist regime in
Iraq (like the Taliban in Afghanistan) was replaced by a puppet government.
Saddam
Hussein was hanged in Iraq. OBL was killed in May 2011 in a raid inside
Pakistan. And Mullah Omar reportedly died a natural death inside Afghanistan. Hostile
regimes were replaced by friendlier ones to the USA but the elusive peace and
security, let alone democracy, never set in. And as it appears, such goals were
not even planned or intended by the US-led invaders. Out of all the chaos which
have set in, deadlier foes than al Qaeda have emerged posing greater threat to
the security not only to the entire region but even to the West.
A
resurgent Taliban continues to challenge the authority of the elected
government in Afghanistan where the latter controls more than half the
territory (and that so only during the daytime); a quarter of Afghanistan
remains a contested territory. A small contingent of American forces continue
to provide air support and train Afghan government forces.
Inside
Iraq and Syria, with its successful terrorist attacks and the capacity to hold
on to conquered territories, Daesh has emerged as a challenge not only to the
current governments in those two countries, but to all people – Muslims and
non-Muslims alike.
The
Arab spring blossomed and withered; the desire for a people’s participatory
democracy has been ruthlessly subdued in all but Tunisia. Thousands of
political dissidents have been executed while another tens of thousands continue
to rot in Sisi’s neo-Pharaonic Egypt. Tens of thousands of unarmed civilians
have been murdered in US drone attacks in places like Pakistan, Yemen and
Somalia.
Back
here in the USA, the political news about the coming presidential election dominates
the headlines. In spite of all of the talk about 9/11, many
elements of the attacks and the actions leading up to them have receded from
the public memory. Remarkably, fifteen years of investigation have failed to determine
how the hijackers were able to get into the cockpits of the four commercial
airliners. Conspiracy theories continue to remain a vibrant source of
information about the attack for many internet-surfers.
When the 9/11 report was released by the US government in
2004, 28 pages of material remained classified and the subject of intense
speculation about their contents. Those pages, which were released in July,
showed multiple
links to associates of Saudi Arabian Prince Bandar bin Sultan, ex-ambassador
to the United States. The documents, as USA TODAY reported in July, "Show
possible conduits of money from the Saudi royal family to Saudis living in the
United States and two of the hijackers in San Diego." The pages were
not released, because the details contained in them had not been confirmed or
shown to be relevant to the 9/11 attacks. Fifteen of the 19 hijackers were from
Saudi Arabia.
To embarrass now the Obama Administration in the election
year, the U.S.
House of Representatives has unanimously
passed the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA). The bill
passed by unanimous voice vote, as it did in the Senate back in May.
The
bill allows families of victims of the 9/11 attack to sue Saudi Arabia in US
courts over the attack, based on evidence that the Saudi government played a
role in supporting al-Qaeda in the lead-up to the attack. President Obama repeatedly
vowed to the veto the bill if it got through Congress, claiming “taxpayers” are
at risk.
It
is likely that Saudi Arabia will retaliate any such court verdicts. As far back
as April, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir threatened to deliberately
collapse the US treasury market in retaliation for the bill by selling some
$750 billion in Saudi-held assets on the market. Jubeir’s initial threat was
followed almost immediately by a chorus of officials coming out against the
bill.
Unanimous
yes votes in both houses of Congress, however, put President Obama in a tricky
situation, as
he faces what could easily be the first successful veto override of his
presidency. Though it is believed some Democrats won’t challenge the president,
and will thus switch sides on the veto override vote, there are strong
indications that there may still be enough left to override the veto.
It
remains to be seen if the Saudi government follows through with threats to the
US Treasury market. As noted by experts, the market has already been absorbing steady
sales out of eastern Asia, particularly from China, and would likely be
unable to absorb another $750 billion debt dump.
Fifteen years later, the USA remains a highly divided nation
with no peace and security at home - especially, for many Afro-Americans and
most religious minorities. In the last few weeks alone, 3 Bangladeshis got
killed in New York City alone, which can only be described as hate crimes. With
Donald Trump as a presidential candidate for the Republican Party, fascism
seems to be making serious inroads within the American political landscape –
further eroding the already weakened cohesion within the society and making
many jittery or nervous.
It’s a nervous time for many Muslims who were apprehensive
about the reaction of racist and bigot Americans should this year’s Eid-il-Adha
fall on Sunday, September 11. [Fortunately for them, it fell on Monday, September
12.] But even then, don’t be surprised if somewhere in this so-called land of
the free, some minorities would face harassment for wearing hijab or ethnic
dress, or for just looking like a Muslim. That is a sad commentary that is
close to the reality in today’s America!
With the specter of violence everywhere, our world seems a
more dangerous place today than it was 15 years ago. Bush’s Global War on
Terror (piggy-backed by Obama) has unleashed the real beast free making life
worthless. While the mass murdering war-lords and -criminals remain
secure and protected, most of today’s victims don’t know why they are getting
killed. And regrettably, the UN remains ineffectual to curb such victimization
of the innocent people.
That sums up the saga of our time!
Comments
Post a Comment