When Trump tapped retired general John Abizaid for ambassador to Saudi Arabia he was likely ignorant of the general's role in originating the sour term "Long War" as it applies to current US efforts in the Middle East and Africa:
Our Man in Riyadh
"But where, you might wonder, did that dour phrase originate? As it happens, General Abizaid himself coined it back in 2004 when he was still an active duty four-star and head of U.S. Central Command, the regional headquarters principally charged with waging that conflict..."
14 years ago, General Abizaid was clear on who his enemy was:
"'Terrorists' per se were not the enemy, he insisted at the time.
"The issue was much bigger than any one organization such as al-Qaeda.
"The real threat facing the United States came from what he called 'Salafist jihadists,' radicalized Sunni Muslims committed by whatever means necessary to propagating a strict and puritanical form of Islam around the world."
John Abizaid is remarkably well prepared for this assignment.
An Arabic speaker with ancestors who migrated from Lebanon, he won a fellowship to study in Jordan and earned a graduate degree in Middle East studies from Harvard.
The one senior military officer who early on demonstrated an understanding of the true nature of the "Long War" has now been posted to what is, in essence, the very center of the enemy's camp.
"Posit, for the sake of discussion, that back in 2004 Abizaid was onto something — as indeed he was. Who then, in this Long War of ours, is our adversary?
"Who is in league with those Salafi jihadists? Who underwrites their cause?
"The answer to those questions is not exactly a mystery.
"It’s the Saudi royal family.
"Were it not for Saudi Arabia’s role in promoting militant Salafism over the course of several decades, it would pose no bigger problem than Cliven Bundy’s bickering with the Bureau of Land Management.
"To put it another way, while the Long War has found U.S. troops fighting the wrong enemy for years on end in places like Iraq and Afghanistan, the nexus of the problem remains Saudi Arabia.
"The Saudis have provided billions to fund madrassas and mosques, spreading Salafism to the far reaches of the Islamic world.
"Next to oil, violent jihadism is Saudi Arabia’s principal export.
"Indeed, the former funds the latter."
Our Man in Riyadh
"But where, you might wonder, did that dour phrase originate? As it happens, General Abizaid himself coined it back in 2004 when he was still an active duty four-star and head of U.S. Central Command, the regional headquarters principally charged with waging that conflict..."
14 years ago, General Abizaid was clear on who his enemy was:
"'Terrorists' per se were not the enemy, he insisted at the time.
"The issue was much bigger than any one organization such as al-Qaeda.
"The real threat facing the United States came from what he called 'Salafist jihadists,' radicalized Sunni Muslims committed by whatever means necessary to propagating a strict and puritanical form of Islam around the world."
John Abizaid is remarkably well prepared for this assignment.
An Arabic speaker with ancestors who migrated from Lebanon, he won a fellowship to study in Jordan and earned a graduate degree in Middle East studies from Harvard.
The one senior military officer who early on demonstrated an understanding of the true nature of the "Long War" has now been posted to what is, in essence, the very center of the enemy's camp.
"Posit, for the sake of discussion, that back in 2004 Abizaid was onto something — as indeed he was. Who then, in this Long War of ours, is our adversary?
"Who is in league with those Salafi jihadists? Who underwrites their cause?
"The answer to those questions is not exactly a mystery.
"It’s the Saudi royal family.
"Were it not for Saudi Arabia’s role in promoting militant Salafism over the course of several decades, it would pose no bigger problem than Cliven Bundy’s bickering with the Bureau of Land Management.
"To put it another way, while the Long War has found U.S. troops fighting the wrong enemy for years on end in places like Iraq and Afghanistan, the nexus of the problem remains Saudi Arabia.
"The Saudis have provided billions to fund madrassas and mosques, spreading Salafism to the far reaches of the Islamic world.
"Next to oil, violent jihadism is Saudi Arabia’s principal export.
"Indeed, the former funds the latter."
