09/12/2002
EDITORIAL NUMBER=0-10125

BUSH AT PENTAGON

On September 11^th a year ago, terrorists struck the United States. They destroyed the World Trade Center in New York City and damaged the Pentagon outside Washington. More than three-thousand men, women, and children from some ninety countries were killed by al-Qaida terrorists.

But, said President George W. Bush, "They failed. . . .Within hours...the planning began for a military response. Within weeks, commands went forth...that would clear terrorist camps and caves and liberate a nation." Today, Afghanistan is no longer ruled by the Taleban, nor is it a sanctuary for al-Qaida terrorists.

The war on global terrorism is being waged on many fronts. Afghanistan was just the opening battle. The U.S.-led coalition has captured more than two-thousand terrorists. A larger number died in combat. And the coalition has seized millions of dollars in terrorist assets. Terrorists are being tracked down and brought to justice in a number of countries, including Georgia, Yemen, and the Philippines.

"Whatever happened to our nation on a September day," said Mr. Bush, "set in motion the first great struggle of a new century. The enemies who struck us are determined and they are resourceful. They will not be stopped by a sense of decency or a hint of conscience -- but they will be stopped."

Mr. Bush said that the terrorists "are opposed by freedom-loving people in many lands. They are opposed by our allies." And, said President Bush, "as long as terrorists and dictators plot against our lives and our liberty, they will be opposed by the United States Army, Navy, Coast Guard, Air Force, and Marines."

The U.S. will fight as the U.S. always fights. As President Bush put it, "not just for ourselves, but for the security of our friends, and for peace in the world. We fight for the dignity of life against fanatics who feel no shame in murder. We fight to protect the innocent, so that the lawless and the merciless will not inherit the earth."