I wanted the “Al-Aqsa Flood” to turn – from day one – into a new September 11, to create the political and moral justification, for Israel, the United States, and some Western governments, for the measures that will be taken, including the bombing of civilians, the invasion of Gaza, the elimination of Hamas and its rule, and unprecedented American military support. , the return of forces to the region, the spending of American taxpayers’ money, the mobilization of popular support and Western governments behind Israel, and most importantly, fanning the fire of civilizational conflict with the Islamic world, the intensity of which subsided after the announcement of the end of the September era.
Following the 2021 US withdrawal from Afghanistan, it was a given in 2001 that the United States would defend itself against terrorist attacks by Al-Qaeda, and in doing so, it was able to draw on symbolic and material support from many countries around the world. This was the goal of the Israeli September 11.
But what are the similarities and differences between the two events despite sharing employment goals? Another question: Are we in the process of inaugurating a new era in September that imposes its features and characteristics on the relationship of the Islamic world with the West, or are we facing a pivotal event in this relationship whose repercussions can be contained?
Israeli September…a representative metaphor
One of the similarities here is, of course, the blatant intelligence failure of the Zionist entity, and the fact that a group with limited capabilities and capabilities inflicted great harm on a force that is incomparable to it in any way. This is what he called: “The strength of weakness and the weakness of strength.” The shock of the flood on Saturday, October 7, gave way to Israeli anger, as well as American anger in September – which is a danger to Israel – as Biden sees it – as it was to America; Although it was corrected later. The United States has spent two decades fighting non-state movements, as Israel has been doing for fifty years, that is, since the October 1973 War, which was the last regular war with them.
What happened in Israel looks like it was intended to be another 9/11, not only because of the high death toll, but because these actions appear designed by Hamas to destabilize and disorient wider society. In the September era, the United States lost a great deal of trust due to arrogance, unilateral action, disregard for international law, and war crimes for which it has not yet been held accountable. It is clear that Israel is on the same path, despite the warnings it received from the American President.
Biden warned Israel against an emotional response to the events of October 7; That is, carrying out a large-scale land and air invasion and occupation of Gaza, reminding it of the transgressions of the United States after September 11. The United States, after two decades of failed wars, knows this truth better than most, and today it must prevent its ally from falling into the same trap.
As it was said about the American September: “It is the day on which we will look back and divide the times before and after,” I believe this applies to Israel and the region as well. The event is over a period of time, and its repercussions will expand in the future. The American September later revealed forces opposing American global influence, such as Russia and China, and gave great impetus to ISIS. The Israeli September will be the spark from which a new path of instability in the region will be launched, and from the current pain, forces opposing Western influence will emerge.
It can be said: The discussion of goals and the declaration of victory in the two campaigns, and the combat doctrine associated with them, calls for in-depth discussion.
Combat doctrine
Is it offensive or preventive? Is it a war against non-governmental groups spread across many parts, or a confrontation of an insurgency that has a social incubator that supports and protects it? Another question: Can the United States claim that it won the war on terrorism, while it lost the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq?
The answer is complex. It was victorious when it prevented a large-scale terrorist attack on American soil, and reduced its American victims to a large extent, but this is an aspect of victory that cannot be said with certainty without talking about the cost and repercussions.
The extensive US campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq were based on a preventive doctrine, as Bush said in 2007: “We will fight them there so that we do not have to confront them in the United States of America,” which is the same on which Biden based his position, as appeared in his speech on Thursday, October 19, where he Security for Americans is achieved through deterrence abroad. “American alliances are what keeps us in America safe,” Biden said. “Putting all of that at risk, if we withdraw from Ukraine, if we turn our back on Israel, is not worth it.”
But what makes the war on “terrorism” different from other wars is that victory was not based on achieving a positive result. The goal was to prevent attacks. In these wars; Victory does not come when you destroy your opponent’s army or seize its capital, as happened in World War II (1939-1945); But this happens when nothing happens.
The American September witnessed a decline in democracy and an alliance with tyrants in the region to confront terrorism, and I believe – from reading the position of some Arab countries – that this alliance will expand to confront the resistance. The next alliance is the alliance of tyrants and normalizers, which will combine tyranny and anti-resistance
How then to declare victory?
Israel’s victory is achieved by eliminating Hamas in Gaza, installing an authority that prevents the possibility of a repeat attack on it again, and restoring deterrence that collapsed with the start of the “Al-Aqsa Flood.” The question remains: What about the continuation of resistance, as long as the Palestinians do not obtain their legitimate rights? What about their supporters, including Palestinians, Arabs and Muslims? What about the broader circles of supporters in many parts of the world – especially in the West – whose governments support Israel?
With the “Al-Aqsa Flood”, the West failed to win the Islamic world, as it failed before in the September era, and the failure of the ability of the United States and its allies to build states after demolishing them and change regimes from the outside was proven, and Israel will also fail to impose a new regime in Gaza, which did not succeed. The Afghan Karzai, and I also think that the “Palestinian Karzai” will not succeed, even if Israel tightens its grip on the Gaza Strip.
The war between Hamas and Israel is forcing the Biden administration to send more forces and military capabilities to the region, once again refocusing US policy towards the Middle East, at a time when it had hoped to focus on potential threats from China and Russia. Fearing the possible expansion of the conflict sparked by Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7, and the possible expansion of the war and the involvement of Hezbollah in Lebanon; In recent weeks, the Biden administration has reestablished some of its military presence in the region.
Although the recent US deployments of naval assets, fighter squadrons, and support forces were intended to be temporary; The crisis does not appear to be short-lived. This conflict may force the United States to rethink how it uses its military forces in the Middle East, and is a test of how the Pentagon continues to support Ukraine, and how to deal with China, which the Defense Department has described as its top long-term priority.
“The strategic importance of the Middle East means that the United States needs to maintain a greater daily presence, especially with a focus on Tehran,” some former American military commanders say. It began in September 2011 with the invasion of Afghanistan and the elimination of the Taliban’s rule, but it did not stop over the course of twenty years. Only two years later was the invasion of Iraq, and its operations expanded to include many other countries such as Yemen, Somalia…etc. It is expected that, after Israel and its Western governments’ allies, and with the complicity of some Arab governments, eliminate Hamas in Gaza, its conflict with the so-called “axis of resistance” in the region will extend to include all its parties.
The American September witnessed a decline in democracy and an alliance with tyrants in the region to confront terrorism. I believe – by reading the position of some Arab countries – that this alliance will expand to include resistance as well. The next alliance is the alliance of tyrants and normalizers, which will combine tyranny and anti-resistance.
In September, we witnessed the Islamic world being held responsible for terrorism. With the Israelis we witness the Palestinians’ responsibility for Hamas. Israeli President Isaac Herzog considered all Palestinians responsible for what Hamas did. He said: “It is clear – and unequivocally – that there is an entire nation that bears responsibility” for the Hamas attack, and that “it is not true that civilians are not involved.”
One of the types of metaphor in Arabic literature – which is an eloquent simile – is the deletion of one of its two ends (the likened and the likened). The similarities in the representational metaphor are complex and not simple, but the word representational also refers to the colloquial meaning among the Egyptians that refers to falsity and unreality. You are acting against me in the sense that you are not telling the truth. The Israeli September 11 is a misleading metaphor in many respects because there are fundamental differences, which is what I devote my next article to.
