U.S. intelligence and media reports often make a fundamental mistake about “terrorists” in the Middle East, says Gregory Johnsen, former Fulbright Scholar in Yemen and well-informed author. IOW, he’s not a Washington armchair pundit.
This mistake is this, Johnsen says.
Americans fail to distinguish between jihadists who are waging war against local dictatorships or rivals (like ISIS) and those waging war against the West and planning attacks on Americans or Europeans.
Case in point: Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, otherwise known as AQAP. They’re the outfit that dressed the underwear bomber for his abortive flight to the United States.
They’re not focused on the United States any more, Johnsen reports.
AQAP’s domestic reach and recruits have grown significantly in recent years, but the international terrorist side has withered. The group might look and sound more dangerous than ever, but it is actually a much different organization today than it was a decade ago.
This mistake makes the jihadists who do pose a danger to the United States look much stronger and more active than they actually are. This mistake drives media coverage and undeclared drone wars.
Source: The Two Faces of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula
