After beheading a British
soldier on leave from Afghanistan in broad
daylight, a man justifies
his crime to a TV camera crew. His may the
face of the next phase in
civilization's battle against terrorism
The 'Nexus' of Terrorism in Boston, London and Stockholm (O Globo, Brazil)
"While Obama 'reframes' a war on terror, the challenge seems to be growing. Boston and London show the world a new face - that of the 'lone wolves.' ... The violence in Stockholm began with the death - caused by the police - of a 69-year-old immigrant in a low-income suburb. ... The United States and countries in Europe must expand the efforts of their security agencies to improve preventive action and surveillance and enhance information sharing. They must also carry out government actions that lead to the assimilation of communities excluded due to creed, origin, culture, skin color or any other reason. It's hard, but it's necessary. Segregation assists terror."
Lee Rigby, a British soldier and drummer in the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers, was beheaded on a crowded street near London: Is there a connection between his murder, the Boston Marathon bombings and recent rioting in of all places, Stockholm, Sweden?
Announcing
more limited strategies for combating terrorism, President Barack Obama said
in a speech on Thursday: “We must define the nature and scope of this
struggle, or else it will define us. We have to be mindful of James Madison’s
warning that 'no nation could preserve
its freedom in the midst of continual warfare.' Neither I nor any president can
promise the total defeat of terror. We will never erase the evil that lies in
the hearts of some people …”
The
speech, in which he cited the first legal framework for the use of drones,
occurred less than 40 days after the attacks in Boston (three dead, 170
wounded), one day after Muslims killed a British soldier in London, and the
fourth consecutive evening of violence by immigrants in the poor suburbs of
Stockholm, Sweden. There is a nexus among these events.
While
Obama “reframes” a war on terror, the challenge seems to be growing. Boston and
London show the world a new face - that of the “lone wolves.” These are individuals
that come out of the shadows to commit crimes of vindictiveness - the marginalized
hitting back at a host society seen as the oppressor. Investigators in Boston
reveal a Islamist Chechen cell that broke its bonds with the community and
decided to launch its own jihad. In the London case, it is a young man of Nigerian
descent born in Britain, a Christian who converted to Islam and sought revenge
for his Muslim brothers, and with the help of another man, killed a British
soldier in front of barracks used by troops on leave from Afghanistan.
The
violence in Stockholm began with the death - caused by the police - of a
69-year-old immigrant in a low-income suburb. It is a repeat of the 2011 riots in
the United Kingdom, when the Black drug dealer named Mark Duggan was shot and
killed by police; and 2005 unrest in Paris, when two teens died when they were
electrocuted hiding from a police raid in an outlying suburb.
Outbursts
of violence by European citizens in poor neighborhoods reflect the segregation
of residents who have little chance in the labor market and even face
persecution. In the ghettoes of affluent societies confronting economic crisis,
young people give vent to their frustrations by setting fires and vandalizing.
Coming from different cultures, many of them Islamic, they are easy prey to the
political indoctrination of radical preachers, and the same goes for organizations
or the Internet. These are the environments from which "lone wolves" emerge.
The
United States and countries in Europe must expand the efforts of their security
agencies to improve preventive action and surveillance and enhance information
sharing. They must also carry out government actions that lead to the assimilation
of communities excluded due to creed, origin, culture, skin color or any other
reason. It's hard, but it's necessary. Segregation assists terror.
