“Iraq broke our back in terms of counterterrorism. There's no doubt about it. The first thing, though, that hurt us was the fact that the U.S. military was absolutely unprepared to do anything on 9/11 - or 9/12 or 9/13. And by the time we actually attacked Afghanistan, al Qaeda and the Taliban had dispersed.” FirstsFactsTermHurtDoubtMilitaryIraqBrokeNo DoubtAlsAfghanistanAl QaedaTalibanUnprepared Author:Michael Scheuer
“I think we'll see it mostly in the United States. We're getting to the point where al Qaeda is ready to again attack us inside America. I think we're basically defenseless.” ThinkingStatesAmericaUnitedUnited StatesReadyAlsAl QaedaDefenseless Author:Michael Scheuer
“There is a direct correlation between what al Qaeda says and what it does. And the one thing that has been the gold standard of correlation has been bin Laden's 1995 - or was it 1996? - pledge that every attack is going to be more powerful than the last. If you go back to the first attack in Yemen in 1992 and chart it out, every attack has been more powerful, more destructive than the last one.” IfsFirstsDoeHas BeensLastsPowerfulOne ThingStandardsDirectGoldDestructiveAlsPledgeBin LadenAl QaedaCorrelationGold StandardYemen Author:Michael Scheuer
“In terms of Iraq, al Qaeda valued Iraq because we destroyed a government it wanted destroyed and because we put soldiers on the ground and forces that they could attack. Al Qaeda is basically an insurgent organization that was formed on the model of the Afghan groups. And being bred in that war, they value a contiguous safe haven as much as anything else.” WarGovernmentWantedValuesForceTermGroupsHavensSafeModelsOrganizationSoldierIraqDestroyedAlsAl QaedaInsurgentSafe HavenAfghan Author:Michael Scheuer
“Iraq, for the first time, gives al Qaeda and its allies contiguous safe-haven territory to train and launch attacks into the Levant. First into Jordan and Syria, and then into Lebanon, and virtually and ultimately into Israel and probably Egypt too. It also gives them haven to eventually work their way toward Turkey and into the Arabian Peninsula.” WayGivingFirstsHavensSafeFirst TimeTrainIraqIsraelAlsTerritoryAlliesSyriaEgyptTurkeysJordanAl QaedaLebanonSafe HavenArabianPeninsulas Author:Michael Scheuer
“We have not destroyed al Qaeda, so we still have that to worry about. We have its traditional allies, the Kashmiri groups, the groups that are operating now in Iraq, and now we have a third tier of threat amongst the Muslims that live in the West and who are inspired to do something against the West by the example of the other two tiers.” StillsTwoWorryGroupsExampleThirdsThreatWestInspiredIraqTraditionalDestroyedAlsAlliesAl Qaeda Author:Michael Scheuer
“Initial incompetence is not a reason to be dismissive of capabilities. Al Qaeda itself was incompetent when it started as a terrorist organization. And clearly it's gone from blowing themselves up to knocking down the World Trade Center.” WorldReasonGoneOrganizationTradeTerroristAlsCapabilityInitialsKnockingAl QaedaIncompetenceIncompetentWorld TradeWorld Trade Center Author:Michael Scheuer
“No one should be surprised when Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda detonate a weapon of mass destruction in the United States. I don't believe in inevitability. But I think it's pretty close to being inevitable.” ThinkingShouldBelieveStatesUnitedUnited StatesWeaponsMassDestructionDon't BelieveInevitableAlsBin LadenWeapons Of Mass DestructionMass DestructionAl QaedaInevitabilityOsama Bin Laden Author:Michael Scheuer
