David Morrison, 20 March 2008

Is there a causal link between British military intervention in the Muslim world and terrorism by Muslims in Britain?  That is a vital question. After all, the Government is never done telling us that it is the first duty of government to keep us safe.

Yet, the Prime Minister cannot bring himself to admit the existence of such a link, even though the British intelligence services say:

“We judge that the conflict in Iraq has exacerbated the threat from international terrorism and will continue to have an impact in the long term. It has reinforced the determination of terrorists who were already committed to attacking the West and motivated others who were not.”

Blair cannot bring himself to admit that there is a causal link. For him to do so is to admit that his military interventions in Afghanistan and Iraq, which he justified to counter alleged threats to Britain’s security, have in reality made Britain less safe.

As for the threats to Britain’s security, there were none, neither from al-Qaida in October 2001, nor from Saddam Hussein’s Iraq in March 2003.

That is Blair’s legacy. He has made Britain less safe by his military interventions in Afghanistan and Iraq and, in the process, he has caused the deaths of nearly 200 British soldiers, and hundreds of thousands of Afghans and Iraqis.

That should be engraved on his tombstone.

This pamphlet traces Blair’s deceit about the threats facing Britain in order to take us to war in Afghanistan and Iraq.

It also shows that Bush and Blair misrepresent the objective of al-Qaida, which is not about overthrowing “democracy and freedom” in the West, but about ending Western, especially British and American, interference in the Muslim world. It can be guaranteed that al-Qaida will not attack Sweden.

 As Michael Scheuer, who was the first head of the CIA’s al-Qaida desk, wrote in his bookImperial Hubris: Why the West is losing the War on Terror:

“...the greatest danger for Americans confronting the radical Islamist threat is to believe – at the urging of US leaders – that Muslims attack us for what we are and what we think rather than for what we do.

“Rhetorical political blustering ‘informs’ the public that Islamists are offended by the Western world’s democratic freedoms, civil liberties, intermingling of genders, and separation of church and state. However, although aspects of the modern world may offend conservative Muslims, no Islamist leader has, for example, fomented jihad in order to destroy participatory democracy, the national association of credit unions, or coed universities... “

Al-Qaida’s public statements condemn America’s protection of corrupt Muslim regimes, unqualified support for Israel, the occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan, and a further litany of real-world grievances. Bin Laden’s supporters thus identify their problem and believe its solution lies in war.”

 If the West stops interfering in the Muslim world, then the al-Qaida threat to the West will disappear. It’s as simple as that.

This is a summary of David Morrison's pamphlet "THE BLAIR LEGACY". Read the full pamplet (pdf)...