The documentary program “Frontline” aired a comprehensive set of documentaries on the occasion of Osama bin Laden’s capture and death. It is an excellent collection, a much better resource for this throbbing, restless time than most newspapers and broadcast journalism outlets.
(Though the broadcast is not yet available in its entirety, please find an excerpt that aired on the PBS Newshour as well as links to eye opening, thought provoking online exclusives that attach to that documentary here. Consider for instance, a near tell-all interview with former Afghan intelligence chief Amrullah Saleh, that you’ll find here.)
The strongest story within the multi-narrative piece cobbled together with great finesse is the story of journalist Najibullah Quraishi’s stay behind the lines with an al Qaeda commander and troops, as they train, bargain and wind themselves up for their promised renewed fight with the U.S. and NATO troops. We already know that al Qaeda has always been in a testy relationship with the Taliban; yet they happily join forces to confront the U.S and NATO presence in Afghanistan. At war al Qaeda are friends of the Taliban, even if they are often uneasy political allies.
However, al Qaeda and its members swear fealty to Osama bin Laden. Not to some principle, not to some country or concept-bin Laden, sur tout. With his death-al Qaeda will cast that fact as martyrdom-what of al Qaeda, now, in the near future and in time to come; what will turn up of what we now know as al Qaeda? This, especially as the much noted Arab Spring draws energy from the youth of countries in the wider Middle East, energy that al Qaeda had professed and hoped to monopolize.
A few months ago, I wrote about the early stages of the conflict in Ukraine through the lens of Sun Tzu’s The Art of War. While it appears likely that the war will carry on into the foreseeable future, enough time has passed for us to make an honest assessment of each side’s relative […]
The Ukrainian Army has made dramatic strides in the last few weeks. Ukraine’s tactical commanders have outfoxed their Russian counterparts, and by issuing a feint towards the south the UA has been able to earn substantial gains in the north of their country. The impact of these efforts have been compounded by the steady stream […]
In mid-May the Irish political party, Sinn Féin, won the plurality of seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly. Many American readers might not fully understand the significance of Sinn Féin’s political victory- but rest assured that subjects of the United Kingdom and a wide range of political movements the world over have heard the message […]
The first wave of the Russian offensive in Ukraine has fallen short of Russian autocrat Vladmir Putin’s ambitions. Most analysts deduced that Putin had hoped to achieve a decapitation strike of the Ukrainian government- taking Kiev and replacing Ukrainian President Vladimir Zolinski with a pro-Kremlin voice. Kiev has been threatened repeatedly through the course of […]
On the weekend of March 26th, the notorious MS-13 gang went on a massive killing spree in El Salvador which left more than 70 people dead by Sunday. Even for a country where powerful gangs hold massive sway, this recent tragedy stands out considering that it was the bloodiest day on record since the civil […]
