Terrorism as a Manageable Risk – Think Again
21 Sep 2012
The killing of Osama bin Laden marked a turning point in our most recent "Age of Terror", at least symbolically. A symbolic turn, however, is not tantamount to victory. While Western publics have grown increasingly tired of high-profile military and counterterrorism operations overseas, especially in the face of genuine economic distress at home, some experts believe that Al Qaeda-affiliated and inspired organizations still pose a significant threat. Indeed, Thomas Joscelyn (see his influential external pageLong War Journal) argues that they continue to make genuine progress across the Middle East and North Africa, most notably in Mali, Somalia, Syria and Yemen. And despite the United States’ ongoing campaign of targeted attacks against its senior leaders, Al Qaeda remains influential within the Afghan and Pakistani heartlands. In the following video, Joscelyn affirms that Al Qaeda did not suffer a mortal blow with the death of Osama bin Laden and traces the organization's current dynamics.
