Monday July 2, 2007

Column:

The terrorists who perpetrated the attacks in London and Glasgow were midgets compared to Mohamed Atta and his 9-11 plotters. And we should thank God for that.

Mohammed Atta performed his duty as a true disciple of al Qaeda. He was true not only to the spirit of the cause, but to the letter of the cause. Like Atta, these homegrown terrorists pledged allegiance to al Qaeda and dedicated themselves to the ultimate mission and to the cause of the Islamic revolution and of terror. Like Atta, these terrorists were in pursuit of Jihad, they wanted to destroy the enemies of Islam, they wanted to destroy the West.

Unlike Atta these terrorists did not do their homework. And that is why, from start to finish, their missions were - there is no better or polite way to describe it - botched.

The London and Glasgow terrorists undertook jobs for which they were unprepared and untrained. They lacked sophistication and savvy. They were amateurs, and for that the Western world should be grateful. These terrorists could not even read and follow directions.

Al Qaeda makes it simple. Al Qaeda makes it seem like following the dots. On al Qaeda websites and in an al Qaeda CD pack are point by point directions on perpetrating an attack. On assembling a car bomb. On preparing an explosive belt. On detonating a bomb. The directions are clearly posted. The directions are posted by al Qaeda on their Arab language websites. Point by point, item by item.

It is not rocket science, it is like following a tried and true recipe.

One of the most important items on the al Qaeda list for a successful terrorist attack is to park the vehicle legally. Two Mercedes cars were used in the attempted bombing of London. Both vehicles attracted the attention of authorities because they were not properly, legally, parked. We can laugh about it now, but one of the vehicles had even been towed away.

Once the vehicle is legally parked, if the intent is to perpetrate a "non-martyr attack" as these men intended, al Qaeda instructions say to walk away calmly, slowly, nonchalantly, not to arouse any interest or suspicion. But first, follow the instructions and properly attach the detonator, in this case the cell phone device. These guys could not even do that. Not only were they amateur and inept, they were undisciplined. The phone did not go off. One of the terrorists got into an accident and fled the scene.

The three Glasgow terrorists were equally unprepared for their attack. They could not manage to get the Jeep 4x4 through the glass door. They could not ignite themselves and they could not properly and effectively set off the explosives. As a result, one terrorist was killed by accident in the accident and the fire they succeeded in igniting, another was burned and hospitalized and the third was simply arrested, unharmed and healthy. Only five people in the Glasgow airport required medical treatment and that was for were light injuries and shock. That hardly makes for a successful terrorist attack.

Every so often we read and hear news reports of premature suicide car bombings. The public gets the impression that the bombings were premature, that there were malfunctions, that the bombs went off before arriving at their intended destinations. Actually, those bombs went off just as planned. Just as planned by the handlers of the terrorist martyrs, that is. Not as planned by the naïve and now dead perpetrators of the attacks.

Handlers would set the explosives to ignite early, before the drivers chickened out or flubbed their missions. Handlers turned their recruits into unknowing suicide bombers. According to the master plan, even if the terrorists were blown up in the middle of nowhere, a point was still being made. It was still a horrifically threatening and intimidating act of terror.

The al Qaeda play book suggests that ideal targets are theaters, stadiums and large celebrations. It recommends placing explosives in specific locations including and especially at exits. It tells the reader/future potential terrorist to go on practice runs and scope target sites to best understand how to avoid being checked. It warns never to speed. Never to arouse suspicion.

But driving a car laden with explosives and nails into a crowded mass of innocent people takes real training and some serious nerves. Parking that car and walking away, acting as if nothing is about to happen so as not to attract attention in a busy area takes good acting skills. Walking nonchalantly into a crowded and public space in which you are not welcome is not a simple thing to do. Not very many people can pull it off successfully. So the handlers just help the plan along.

But al Qaeda knows what it is doing. The al Qaeda website uses information that was gleaned from Iraq, a place where al Qaeda has a lot of experience. Al Qaeda commanders in Iraq wanted to help others, to give them the benefit of their knowledge and their expertise. But you can never replace experience. And experience, not intention, is what was missing in London and in Glasgow. Don't forget that it is also easier to find legal parking in downtown Baghdad than in downtown London.

The frightening reality is that had these terrorists gotten it right there would have been countless injuries and hundreds of deaths. Thank God these terrorists were inept - but we cannot rely on ineptitude for too much longer.

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