Bin Laden’s role in the war against the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan in the 1980s had made him a hero around the Middle East. Peter Bergen Read Quote
Afghanistan’s winters in the north are legendarily harsh, and southern Afghanistan, by contrast, is bleak desert. These difficulties are compounded by the fact that Afghanistan is one of the world’s most heavily mined countries. Peter Bergen Read Quote
Because of the 9/11 attacks, the framing of terrorism by politicians, the media, and the public too often in the past decade and a half has been that it is Islamist political violence that is the terrorism we need to be concerned about. Peter Bergen Read Quote
Will there be a political backlash against British Prime Minister Theresa May, whose ruling Conservative Party is traditionally seen as ‘stronger’ on terrorism than its main rival, the Labour Party? Peter Bergen Read Quote
The sitting prime minister, Jose Aznar, who had strongly backed the U.S.-led Iraq War, was unseated by a challenger who then pulled Spanish troops out of Iraq. The Madrid terrorist attacks are generally regarded as being the key to why Aznar, who had been leading in the polls, was defeated. Peter Bergen Read Quote
The hard reality is that attacks by vehicles in public places are very hard to defend against in a free and open society. The best defense against such attacks is good intelligence, and that often comes from inside the Muslim community. Peter Bergen Read Quote
In late May 2016, an ISIS spokesman called for attacks in the West during the month of Ramadan. Peter Bergen Read Quote
Mateen pledged allegiance to ISIS during his attack, the worst terror attack on American soil since 9/11. Peter Bergen Read Quote
Security services, from Afghanistan to the United States, should be alert throughout the Ramadan period, but especially on the 27th day of the holy month. Peter Bergen Read Quote
