by Gregg Roman
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Defeating jihadists isn't rocket science but it is not a walk in
the park either
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As my French friends, colleagues, and
acquaintances agonize over what is to be done in the aftermath of the Paris
attacks, the best advice I can think of is to look at Israel.
This tragedy was not "France's 9/11."
Al-Qaeda effectively depleted its stateside human assets in that attack and
never regained the ability to strike the American heartland. This is France's
Al-Aqsa Intifada – unfortunately, more of the same is absolutely going to
follow. Whatever one's political predisposition to Israel's counterterrorism
policies may be, its success fighting Islamist terror over the past two decades
is the only real-world model for overcoming the specific challenges France now
faces.
Here are some of the main takeaways.
First, it's time to sacrifice some freedoms of
convenience. Most Israelis don't know what it's like to walk into a mid-size
concert venue of the kind targeted in France without passing through a metal
detector and their government intends to keep it that way. They may gripe about
it, but they would feel less free if their government wasn't
inconveniencing them on a daily basis.
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Go ahead and profile ... the jihadists bent on
terrorizing France have some obvious commonalities.
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Second, go ahead and profile. All of the
jihadists bent on terrorizing France have some obvious commonalities. The
reason Israel's Ben Gurion International Airport is considered the gold
standard of airline security is that Israeli screeners are encouraged to
single out passengers for extra scrutiny on the basis of religion, age, gender,
and so forth, while waving the vast majority through terminals more quickly.
Not even the most seasoned terrorist is likely to take the risk of running this
gauntlet if he knows for certain he's going to find himself in
a room full of inquisitive Israelis.
Third, recognize that deterrence isn't fair.
Since it's impossible to dissuade suicide bombers with the threat of certain
death or bodily harm, you have to threaten things they care about. Israel's
policy of demolishing the family homes of Palestinian terrorists may not be
altogether "just," but it's necessary to counter the overwhelmingly
positive social approval and financial benefits these families receive for contributing
"martyrs" to the cause.
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If
being related to a terrorist isn't already a deeply unpleasant experience in
France, make it so.
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If being related to a terrorist isn't already a
deeply unpleasant experience in France, make it so. Understand that it's
neither possible nor desirable to ensure that terrorists are the only ones
paying a price for their terrorism. Make whatever efforts to avoid harming
innocents are consistent with your values, but don't let the backlash from
armchair counter-terrorists and Francophobes abroad dictate policy.
Fourth, target the brains behind terrorist
infrastructure. Go after the people responsible for recruiting, financing,
training, motivating, and directing jihadists, not just the foot soldiers.
Prosecute them if you can, but if they're overseas don't be afraid to dispense
swifter justice. Though controversial when Israel first adopted targeted
killing as a counterterrorism tool, most governments (including most notably
the Obama administration) now recognize its effectiveness. The number of
fatalities from suicide bombings in Israel dropped from hundreds in 2002 to
zero in 2010.
Fifth, fight the incitement. Americans can still
afford to pretend that Islamist hate speech and indoctrination has little to do
with terrorist violence, but France can't. The French government took a step in
the right direction when it deported 40 Islamists accused of incitement in June
of this year. It needs to go further. Instead of avoiding the banlieues,
rings of Muslim majority neighborhoods around French cities that are
impoverished, crime-ridden, and blighted, gendarmeries and intelligence
services should sweep into these suburbs and place community centers, mosques,
and high rises under surveillance. Checkpoints should be setup at the entrances
to Islamist havens and searches conducted on those commuting in and out of
these areas.
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France must control its borders if it wishes
to avoid a repeat of Friday's terror attacks.
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Sixth, France must prioritize national security
interests over sectarian grievances. It's understandable that French Muslims
are frustrated by their socio-economic marginalization, and there is surely
room for improvement in how the authorities treat this estranged minority. But
the rights and wrongs of this issue don't diminish France's right to defend
itself or alter fundamental realities about what it takes to do that.
Finally, at the risk of belaboring the obvious,
France must control and monitor its borders if it wishes to avoid a repeat of
Friday's terror attacks. The ability of at least one of the attackers to claim
refugee status in Greece and move onto France was an intelligence failure of
the highest degree. As Sweden, Germany, Austria, and other countries reconsider
Schengen, an agreement that allows uninhibited movement around Europe, so too
should France. The French Interior ministry instituted border controls
immediately after the attack. This change should be permanent.
As President François Hollande declared after
the attacks, France is reeling from an "act of war," not a crime
wave. Israel has demonstrated that it is possible to win such wars, but this
isn't for the faint-hearted.
Gregg Roman is director of
the Middle East Forum.
