Michael Scheuer, who was the ex-head of the CIA’s unit to capture Osama Bin Laden and in speaking in the Hay-on-Wye Festival, said that both the President as well as politicians such as David Cameron has ‘no idea’ how to deal with the war on terror. In addition to these remarks, he also clearly stated that the reason for the conflict in the Middle East is because of United States foreign policy.
He also said that despite what the politicians (and the President) would have people believe, it has nothing to do with democracy, election or even liberty as extremists have no interest in Western culture.
However, the reason for the animosity stems from the presence of the United States in Afghanistan, the support of Saudi Arabia and Israel, and this is why the United States will continue to be attacked in the future.
Mr. Scheuer was with the unit that was tracking Osama which he left two years ago, only to be called back as an adviser recently. His experiences as a part of this unit on the hunt for Osama has been crafted into a book, Imperial Hubris: Why the West is losing the War on Terrorism.
He also said that Obama can be considered to be the reason why a fresh wave of recruits will join the Al Qaeda as his speech on May 19 this year was a declaration of cultural war on Islam. And in being asked by an audience member as to what his advice to Obama would be, he said “to tell the truth” about the conflict in the Middle East which has lasted for so many years.