06/16/2002
EDITORIAL NUMBER=0-09949

LESSONS OF AFGHANISTAN

"Those who harbor and support terrorists are themselves guilty of terrorism, and they can expect to be held accountable." That's how Vice President Dick Cheney summarized the counter-terrorism policy of the United States. "This lesson has already been learned in Afghanistan," Mr. Cheney said, "where the terror camps have been destroyed, and the Taleban regime is out of business, permanently."

In Afghanistan, Mr. Cheney warned, the U.S. and its allies "found confirmation that [Osama] bin Laden and the al-Qaida [terrorist] network were seriously interested in nuclear and radiological weapons, and in biological and chemical agents." In terrorist camps and offices, drawings of American nuclear power plants and public water facilities were discovered, along with maps of American cities and descriptions of popular landmarks in the U.S. and throughout the world. These sites were all potential targets for terrorist attacks.

U.S. authorities are detaining an American citizen, Abdullah al Muhajir. He is suspected of plotting with senior al-Qaida leaders to attack American citizens with what experts call "dirty bombs" -- conventional explosives laced with deadly radioactive material. Arrested last month on his return to the U.S. from Pakistan, al Muhajir, as Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz said, "came into this country with the intention, by various means -- not just dirty bombs -- of killing hundreds and maybe thousands of Americans."

Vice President Cheney said that the U.S. is "especially concerned about any possible linkup between terrorists and regimes that have or seek weapons of mass destruction." In the case of Iraq's ruler, Saddam Hussein, "we have," said Mr. Cheney, "a dictator who is clearly pursuing these deadly capabilities -- defying the United Nations resolutions he agreed to. Moreover, Saddam Hussein has already shown his willingness to use chemical weapons. "He had used them in his war against Iran, and has used them against his own people," Mr. Cheney said.

Afghanistan, Mr. Cheney warned, "is only the beginning of a long and unrelenting effort." Defeating the al-Qaida terror network, with cells in sixty or more countries, will require "the tools of diplomacy, finance, intelligence, law enforcement, and military power." In cooperation with its allies, the U.S., said Vice President Cheney, will "shut down terrorist camps wherever they are . . disrupt terrorist plans . . . find the terrorists one by one, and bring them to justice."