by Gregg Roman
Dire lessons for overcoming the specific challenges France now faces.
As my French friends, colleagues, and acquaintances agonize over what is to be done in the aftermath of the Paris attacks, the best advice I can think of is to look at Israel.
This tragedy was not “France’s 9/11.” Al-Qaeda effectively depleted its stateside human assets in that attack and never regained the ability to strike the American heartland. This is France’s Al-Aqsa Intifada – unfortunately, more of the same is absolutely going to follow. Whatever one’s political predisposition to Israeli counterterrorism policies may be, its success fighting Islamist terror over the past two decades is the only real-world model for overcoming the specific challenges France now faces.
Here are some of the main takeaways.
First, it’s time to sacrifice some freedoms of convenience. Most
Israelis don’t know what it’s like to walk into a mid-size concert venue
of the kind targeted in France without passing through a metal detector
and their government intends to keep it that way. They may gripe about
it, but they would feel less free if their government wasn’t inconveniencing them on a daily basis.
Second, go ahead and profile. All of the jihadists bent on terrorizing
France have some obvious commonalities. The reason Israel’s Ben Gurion
International Airport is considered the gold standard of airline
security is that Israeli screeners are encouraged to single out
passengers for extra scrutiny on the basis of religion, age, gender,
and so forth, while waving the vast majority through terminals more
quickly. Not even the most seasoned terrorist is likely to take the
risk of running this gauntlet if he knows for certain he’s going to find himself in a room full of inquisitive Israelis.
Third, recognize that deterrence isn’t fair. Since it’s impossible to
dissuade suicide bombers with the threat of certain death or bodily
harm, you have to threaten things they care about. Israel’s policy of
demolishing the family homes of Palestinian terrorists may not be
altogether “just,” but it’s necessary to counter the overwhelmingly
positive social approval and financial benefits these families receive
for contributing “martyrs” to the cause.
If being related to a terrorist isn’t
already a deeply unpleasant experience in France, make it so. Understand
that it’s neither possible nor desirable to ensure that terrorists are
the only ones paying a price for their terrorism. Make whatever efforts
to avoid harming innocents are consistent with your values, but don’t
let the backlash from armchair counter-terrorists and Francophobes
abroad dictate policy.
Fourth, target
the brains behind terrorist infrastructure. Go after the people
responsible for recruiting, financing, training, motivating and
directing Jihadis, not just the foot soldiers. Prosecute them if you
can, but if they’re overseas don’t be afraid to dispense swifter
justice. Though controversial when Israel first adopted targeted killing
as a counterterrorism tool, most governments (including most notably
the Obama administration) now recognize its effectiveness. The number of
fatalities from suicide bombings in Israel dropped from hundreds in
2002 to zero in 2010.
Fifth, fight the
incitement. Americans can still afford to pretend that Islamist hate
speech and indoctrination has little to do with terrorist violence, but
France can’t. The French government took a step in the right direction
when it deported 40 Islamists accused of incitement in June of this
year. It needs to go further. Instead of avoiding the banlieues,
rings of Muslim majority neighborhoods around French cities that are
impoverished, crime-ridden, and blighted, gendarmeries and intelligence
services should sweep into these suburbs and place community centers,
mosques, and high rises under surveillance. Checkpoints should be setup
at the entrances to Islamist havens and searches conducted on those
commuting in and out of these areas.
Sixth, France must prioritize national security interests over sectarian
grievances. It’s understandable that French Muslims are frustrated by
their socio-economic marginalization, and there is surely room for
improvement in how the authorities treat this estranged minority. But
the rights and wrongs of this issue don’t diminish France’s right to
defend itself or alter fundamental realities about what it takes to do
that.
Finally, at the risk of
belaboring the obvious, France must control and monitor its borders if
it wishes to avoid a repeat of Friday’s terror attacks. The ability of
at least one of the attackers to claim refugee status in Greece and move
onto France was an intelligence failure of the highest degree. As
Sweden, Germany, Austria, and other countries reconsider Schengen, an
agreement that allows uninhibited movement around Europe, so too should
France. The French Interior ministry instituted border controls
immediately after the attack. This change should be permanent.
As President François Hollande declared after the attacks, France is
reeling from an “act of war,” not a crime wave. Israel has demonstrated
that it is possible to win such wars, but this isn’t for the
faint-hearted.
Gregg Roman is Director of the Middle East Forum, a research center headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Source: www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/260805/what-france-can-learn-israel-confronting-islamist-gregg-roman
Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.
No comments:
Post a Comment