President Bush and Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice have both asked European officials to recognize Hezbollah as a terrorist organization. They argued that any group that commits acts of terrorism should be treated as a terrorist group --whether or not it also operates as a political party and/or provides social services.

A large explosion ripped through the streets of Lebanon Monday, killing former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and at least 13 others.The attack came amid mounting pressure on Syria to withdraw its military from Lebanon.Hariri had recently resigned his post in opposition to plans to allow Syrian-supported president Emile Lahoud to extend his term in office.

Saudi Arabia hosted a conference on terrorism in Riyadh, just as two new reports raised questions about the seriousness of the Kingdom's commitment. The Center for Strategic and International Studies issued a study documenting a significant deterioration in Saudi intelligence capabilities in recent years.

Like the Afghans and Palestinians before them, Iraqis held elections this past week – elections that were a clear defeat for the terrorist forces trying to control the region.

This week, German officials stressed the threat to Europe caused by an increasing number of Ansar al-Islam members on the continent.The terrorists, trained in Iraq by the group led by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, were tied to a plot to kill Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi on a recent visit to Germany.Ansar al-Islam operated in Northern Iraq with impunity before the war, and has been one of the driving forces behind the violence plaguing that country since the fall of Saddam.

Terrorists in Saudi Arabia were dealt a heavy blow this past week.Having killed 10 members of al-Qaeda, the Kingdom is taking the threat of Al-Qaeda within its borders seriously.If Saudi Arabia continues to clamp down and eradicate terrorist havens, it could demoralize al-Qaeda, its affiliates and supporters alike.Saudi Arabia has served as the primary hub for al-Qaeda's dissemination of information to members around the globe via the bi-monthly publication Sawt al-Jihad.

Osama bin Laden released another tape this week, bringing the number of messages released since the 9/11 attacks by bin Laden or his top deputy, al-Zawahiri, up to 30 (the largest number of which have appeared in 2004).This bin Laden tape shows two significant changes over previous messages.

Terrorists succeeded in major attacks against U.S. and Iraqi targets in Iraq, resulting in heavy casualties.These attacks are an attempt to disrupt the January elections.Successful elections in Iraq would be a major blow to the terrorists and to anti-democratic forces in the region, just as they were in Afghanistan.If these attacks continue and succeed in disrupting the democratic process, the terrorists will have won a major victory.

News stories around the world highlighted terrorist plots that have been thwarted by security forces–including a Madrid-style train bombing in the UK.It also appears that the U.S. is beginning to act against terrorists that incite violence.

This week, Afghanistan swore in its first popularly elected president, Hamid Karzai.Threats from members of the Taliban and al-Qaeda that they would launch attacks to prevent the ceremony from taking place proved to be as toothless as similar threats voiced prior to the Afghan elections earlier this fall.The dwindling influence of terrorists in the Afghani political sphere is encouraging and could provide a model for upcoming elections in the Palestinian Authority and Iraq, both of which are scheduled to take place in January.

« ... 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 »