One year later

The Al Qaeda, too, was believed to have been beaten and rendered unable to undertake co-ordinated terrorist actions. Yet the bulk of its leadership 8212; including Osama bin-Laden 8212; is alive and free. Hundreds of people who constituted the cadres of the most dreaded terrorist organisation in the world are at large, mostly in Pakistan, and possibly aligned with other jehadi organisations. The global networks of this organisation have undoubtedly come under severe pressure; but they are not anywhere near decimation. In essence, the war against terror is a war at the ideological level. It is far from transparent that adequate emphasis is being given to the shaping of ideas that reject the use of violence for political ends, especially in the name of religion. Continued international co-operation and concerted action would be needed for the final victory. And the shift of focus to a war against Saddam Hussein at this stage risks weakening sustained international action against global terrorism.

It is one of the ironies of present day life that Pakistan, which was responsible for actually training and equipping jehadi terrorism which spread far and wide, actually emerged a winner in the global war against terrorism. There is little evidence that it has given up its basic policy of pursuit of terror as an instrument of state policy. It is also not clear how far Pakistan will move in actually eradicating jehadi terrorism and its manifestations that have taken roots in its society, promoted as it has been by state agencies. Terrorism in India has essentially emanated from across the borders although many of the conditions that have facilitated its growth are indigenous. What we need to remember is that our own war against terrorism would take a long time to conclude successfully, and this would be deeply influenced by our own ability to eliminate the factors that tend to promote religious extremism and parochial ideologies.