Reality check in France
PARIS — Have the London bombings and the second failed attempts in the British capital finally awakened the French to the gathering threat of radical Islamic terrorism? And have the aftershocks of these attacks moreover convinced the USA, Britain and France that closer intelligence cooperation is not an option but a necessity?
France and indeed much of Western Europe faces a real and present danger of Islamic extremism and jihadi terrorism. Ironically the French probably know this better than anyone given their sanguinary experiences with Algerian nationalist terrorism in the 1950’s, Islamic radicalism in the 1980’s and into the 1990’s. Even today the police presence in Paris is augmented by military backup in key locations.
Who can forget that France probably has the most experience with this form of bombings—one as recently as the 1995 commuter train bombing RER St. Michel in the heart of Paris? So to say glibly that the French don’t care is simply wrong. They understand the threat perhaps too well. And this secret fear has dampened their enthusiasm for wider cooperation with the U.S. and UK and moreover influenced their foreign policies.
Specifically following the second abortive wave of attacks in Britain, the French daily Le Figaro headlined, “France under video surveillance” and described a new get tough policy by the Chirac government to expand security by placing video surveillance cameras on all Paris busses by the end of the year. Given the genuine effectiveness of London’s surveillance system in catching suspects, along with an impressively successful effort by the British police, the French will begin installing 4,000 video cameras in Paris.
As Le Figaro says, since the 1995 train bombings there has been widespread use of video cameras in Paris in train stations, public buildings and garages. Presently there are 20,500 such hidden eyes in Paris. But beyond the tactics of thwarting terror, there must be a wider strategy.
Even before the July 7th London bombings there were meetings among American, British, and French political and security officials to recalibrate the struggle against militant Islamic fundamentalists. Increasingly the focus is to reach out to moderate Muslims as to isolate the hard-line extremists. The French have long pursued this nuanced course with mixed results.
According to the Financial Times of London, a high ranking U.S. intelligence official commented, “Conviction has been growing steadily and strongly here that we need to come out of the tactical phase of this war and into a strategic phase which would include this outreach to the Muslim world and it would make sense to structure this in some way with a couple of allies, particularly the French, who understand this world so well.”
Franco Frattini, the European Union Justice commissioner stated, “Our goal is to isolate the extremists and work with the supporters of moderate Islam.”
Nicolas Sarkozy France’s dynamic Minister of the Interior has expelled eleven radical Islamic clerics and vows to keep the pressure on militants in mosques. At the same time the Interior Ministry fears that French Muslims who have gone to Iraq under the Al Qaida recruiting banner may return here and link forces with the traditional Algerian Islamic cells. Minister Sarkozy prefers a tough pro active policy against militants while at the same time courting moderate Muslims.
Given the reality that a sizable minority (10-15 percent) of the French population is Muslim with entire quarters of French cities inhabited by Arabs, many of whom are second or third generation French, the government is challenged by potential domestic instability.
While most Muslims in France traditionally were law abiding and loyal to the ideals of the republic, many of the young clearly feel alienated from both French and North African society. Such dysfunctional youth are often attracted to a variety of paths ranging from gangs, crime, or Islamic fundamentalism. Some use the excuse of the Iraq war to mobilize militants; a decade ago the Bosnian conflict provided such inspiration as did Afghanistan in the 1980’s.
For Europe and America certainly nuance in policy and perceptions abroad are important in dealing with the terrorist threat. Phraseology replacing the words terror with extremism can have some effect. Outreach to Muslim moderates is crucial. But at the end of the day the Islamic jihadis who blow up a bus or a train could care less what we call them. Solving that security threat goes well beyond words.
John J. Metzler is a U.N. correspondent covering diplomatic and defense
issues. He writes weekly for World Tribune.com.  |
