If you don't take the battle to their doorstep, they will surely bring it to yours.
After the Paris attacks, many countries may be still sitting complacently and thinking, 'Oh well! We are safe. Such attacks don't happen in our countries. As long ISIS or whatever does not bother us, why worry about them? Why attack them proactively?' This is the biggest mistake all those countries, especially the western countries that terrorists despise so much, can make. If you don't go after them, they will come after you. As simple as that.
Israel which has been tormented by terrorism ever since its inception has a very simple but powerful counter-terrorism formula. That is to relentlessly go after the terrorist leaders who sit in the comforts of some supporting country and plan this kind of operations. Make their lives really miserable. Kill them by any means. Once people start fearing for their lives and start watching their backs constantly, they can't plan this kind of attacks so easily. They are always worried when the covert operators from some country may target them.
This is exactly what Israel started doing after its athletes were first kidnapped and then killed during Munich Olympics (1972). It went after the PLO terrorist leaders and killed them one after another in spectacular operations all over the world. Last one to perish was Atef Beisiso in 1992. For 20 years Israelis were going after the terrorists responsible for 1972 Olympics massacre planning.
Once Israelis found the effectiveness of this counter-terrorism formula, they kept on improvising it and today their Kidon unit of Mossad has become such a powerful killing machine that it can carry out covert operations anywhere in the world with lethal stealth and precision. That has instilled the fear of GOD in every terrorist, regardless of his affiliation, who sits planning the next operation against Israel. An attack from Israelis is always at the front of his mind and significant portion of his energy and time is spent warding off such attacks. That stunts his ability to attack Israel.
In recent history Israelis killed Imad Mugniyeh, a Hezbollah big-shot, in the heart of Damascus, Syria. Blew up his vehicle. Killed the top weapons procurer of Hamas in Dubai. And many many more operations about which we will never come to know.
So, if anything has to be learned from PARIS attacks is you have to take the fight to them and not wait for it to come to you. Offense is the best defense. And random bombings of ISIS bases won't help much. That will only annihilate their cannon fodder (i.e. cheap worker bees). They can get many more idiots dime a dozen. Surgical covert operations aimed at eliminating the terrorist leadership are needed. Like the one that 'evaporated' Jihadi John of ISIS yesterday.
Look at Israel. No such attacks have happened and my prediction is will never happen there. Not on this scale. During 1990s many suicide bombings happened in Israel but not on this scale of mayhem.
All countries have a lot to learn from Israelis when it comes to counter-terrorism.
(Copied from my Facebook status)
After the Paris attacks, many countries may be still sitting complacently and thinking, 'Oh well! We are safe. Such attacks don't happen in our countries. As long ISIS or whatever does not bother us, why worry about them? Why attack them proactively?' This is the biggest mistake all those countries, especially the western countries that terrorists despise so much, can make. If you don't go after them, they will come after you. As simple as that.
Israel which has been tormented by terrorism ever since its inception has a very simple but powerful counter-terrorism formula. That is to relentlessly go after the terrorist leaders who sit in the comforts of some supporting country and plan this kind of operations. Make their lives really miserable. Kill them by any means. Once people start fearing for their lives and start watching their backs constantly, they can't plan this kind of attacks so easily. They are always worried when the covert operators from some country may target them.
This is exactly what Israel started doing after its athletes were first kidnapped and then killed during Munich Olympics (1972). It went after the PLO terrorist leaders and killed them one after another in spectacular operations all over the world. Last one to perish was Atef Beisiso in 1992. For 20 years Israelis were going after the terrorists responsible for 1972 Olympics massacre planning.
Once Israelis found the effectiveness of this counter-terrorism formula, they kept on improvising it and today their Kidon unit of Mossad has become such a powerful killing machine that it can carry out covert operations anywhere in the world with lethal stealth and precision. That has instilled the fear of GOD in every terrorist, regardless of his affiliation, who sits planning the next operation against Israel. An attack from Israelis is always at the front of his mind and significant portion of his energy and time is spent warding off such attacks. That stunts his ability to attack Israel.
In recent history Israelis killed Imad Mugniyeh, a Hezbollah big-shot, in the heart of Damascus, Syria. Blew up his vehicle. Killed the top weapons procurer of Hamas in Dubai. And many many more operations about which we will never come to know.
So, if anything has to be learned from PARIS attacks is you have to take the fight to them and not wait for it to come to you. Offense is the best defense. And random bombings of ISIS bases won't help much. That will only annihilate their cannon fodder (i.e. cheap worker bees). They can get many more idiots dime a dozen. Surgical covert operations aimed at eliminating the terrorist leadership are needed. Like the one that 'evaporated' Jihadi John of ISIS yesterday.
Look at Israel. No such attacks have happened and my prediction is will never happen there. Not on this scale. During 1990s many suicide bombings happened in Israel but not on this scale of mayhem.
All countries have a lot to learn from Israelis when it comes to counter-terrorism.
(Copied from my Facebook status)
2 comments:
Mahesh, Compliments on a good article. Well, Israelis are sensible citizens. We have idiots and Trojan horses in India. The Indian govt should first eliminate the human-rightists in India and give leakproof cover to the Encounter-specailists. Secondly `sympathetic politicians' too need to be eliminated!
Thanks Sunath Sir. The anger / frustration that a common man feels is understandable. You are right. In India, we do not stand united towards whom we consider as an enemy. We have our own people supporting, doing business with someone the country designates as an enemy. That's why it is harder to get rid of them.
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