Oahu delegates hear call
for quick mission in IraqAttacks on U.S. forces inspire other
groups, a terrorism expert says
Coalition forces in Iraq must complete work there quickly or risk the possibility of more deadly attacks by groups with ties to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network, according to a terrorism expert.
U.S.-led forces do not have the high-quality intelligence needed to pre-empt attacks in such a hostile environment, said Rohan Gunaratna, an associate professor at the Institute of Defense and Strategic Studies in Singapore and author of the book "Inside Al Qaeda: Global Network of Terror."
"You (the United States) have to lower your profile in Iraq by instituting an Iraqi government as soon as possible," Gunaratna told about 600 delegates attending a homeland security summit in Honolulu on Friday. "The momentum of attacks is inspiring other groups to follow the pattern of attacks in Iraq."
Gunaratna noted that al-Qaida was founded in 1988, but the fight against the group really didn't begin until bombing attacks on U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania 10 years later. In the meantime, the network was able to establish inroads in the United States.
One mistake in trying to combat al-Qaida has been the U.S. government's failure to recognize that it should pour more resources into trying to help the people of the nations where terrorism groups are bred, Gunaratna said.
"Relations have been government to government, not public diplomacy," he said. "You have to invest more in the people and the peoples' organizations."
Gunaratna also warned that even though the United States is aggressively fighting terrorism like never before, there is a tendency to get complacent -- something that would do nothing short of inviting another attack on U.S. soil.
Gunaratna was among the speakers on Friday, the final day of the inaugural Asia-Pacific Homeland Security Summit & Exposition.
The three-day event was attended by some 600 delegates from 19 countries and territories in the Asia and Pacific region.
Gov. Linda Lingle said the conference was successful in bringing attention to Hawaii as a leader in the area of homeland security.
The conference highlighted Hawaii as a state "with a solid understanding of what a complicated and important issue it is and that it's something that goes beyond our borders," she said.
She noted to delegates that the conference came to a close on the same day that Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge, who addressed the summit by video link from Washington, D.C., on Thursday, warned of the potential for terror attacks coinciding with the end of the Muslim holiday of Ramadan.
"This shows how fragile the world is when there are evil people seeking our demise," she said. "They will not stop their campaign of death and destruction until we stop them."
