Peter Bergen Quotes

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About Peter Bergen

Peter Bergen (born December 13, 1962) is an American journalist, CNN national security analyst, documentary filmmaker, and distinguished scholar at the New America Foundation's International Security program. Known for his extensive work on terrorism and counterterrorism, he has authored several influential books that have shaped contemporary discourse. Bergen was born in London, England to American parents and spent much of his early childhood in India, Pakistan, and Iran. These international experiences provided him with a unique perspective, fostering an understanding of different cultures and global issues from an early age. He holds a Bachelor's degree from the University of Cambridge, England and a Master's degree from Oxford University, where he was a Rhodes Scholar. Bergen began his journalism career at ABC News in 1987. In 1994, while working as a producer for CNN, he conducted the first American television interview with Osama bin Laden, which became a pivotal moment in his career. This encounter laid the groundwork for Bergen's exploration of terrorism and its roots. Bergen has authored several significant books, including "Holy War, Inc." (2001), an examination of global jihadist movements, and "The Osama bin Laden I Know" (2006), a biography of the Al-Qaeda leader based on his interviews with bin Laden. His most recent book, "United States of Jihad: Inside America's Homegrown Terrorists" (2018), explores homegrown extremism in the United States. Throughout his career, Bergen has been recognized for his contributions to journalism and counterterrorism research. He is a frequent contributor to major publications such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Atlantic. His work serves as an essential resource in understanding global terrorism and its impact on contemporary politics and security.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"Al-Qaeda's strategy is to create a narrative of injustice against Muslims and then exploit that narrative."

This quote by Peter Bergen highlights Al-Qaeda's tactical approach, which involves crafting and propagating a narrative portraying perceived injustices against Muslims as a means to rally support for their cause. The strategy relies on exploiting the emotions of marginalized communities and using the sense of grievance to fuel extremist ideologies and actions. It is important to understand this dynamic, as it helps in countering such radicalization by addressing root causes, promoting peaceful dialogue, and challenging extremist narratives with truthful and empathetic communication.

"Bin Laden's strategy was to do something spectacular that would create fear and attract headlines around the world."

This quote highlights the strategic approach of Osama bin Laden, revealing his intent to orchestrate significant events that would instill widespread fear and capture global attention. By carrying out "spectacular" acts of terrorism, he aimed to manipulate public perception and leverage media coverage to further his extremist ideology.

"The Arab world has gone from being ruled by military dictatorships for decades, to having popular uprisings in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Yemen and Syria."

This quote by Peter Bergen highlights the significant shift in power dynamics within the Arab world during the early 21st century. It underscores the transition from long-standing military dictatorships to popular uprisings or revolutions, which occurred in multiple countries such as Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Yemen, and Syria. This change represents a move towards greater democracy, self-determination, and grassroots political action within these Arab nations. The quote also implies that the Arab Spring, as this period is often referred to, was a transformative time for the Arab world, albeit with complex outcomes that continue to unfold.

"Osama bin Laden was an exceptionally charismatic leader who knew how to inspire his followers with a passionate, apocalyptic vision of jihad."

This quote suggests that Osama bin Laden was not only a powerful orator but also possessed the ability to evoke intense devotion among his followers. He achieved this by presenting an impassioned, end-of-the-world (apocalyptic) narrative of jihad (holy struggle), which resonated with those who shared similar beliefs and motivations. The charisma he demonstrated in articulating this vision effectively mobilized and motivated extremists to carry out acts of violence in the name of their cause.

"Al-Qaeda's leaders have shown themselves to be remarkably adaptable over the years, constantly reinventing themselves and their strategies to stay one step ahead of their enemies."

This quote highlights Al-Qaeda's ability to evolve and adapt in response to changing circumstances. The "remarkable adaptability" referred to here means that the organization has shown a knack for transforming itself and modifying its strategies, thus staying one step ahead of those trying to counter them. This flexibility is crucial in understanding Al-Qaeda's longevity and resilience as a global terror network.

Hydrogen peroxide-based bombs were used in the London bombings in 2005; in al Qaeda's foiled plot to attack subways in New York City in 2009 and also in the ISIS-directed Paris attacks in 2015 and the ISIS-directed attacks in Brussels a year later.

- Peter Bergen

City, London, Year, Year Later

Will there be a political backlash against British Prime Minister Theresa May, whose ruling Conservative Party is traditionally seen as 'stronger' on terrorism than its main rival, the Labour Party?

- Peter Bergen

Conservative, Prime, Labour Party

Mateen pledged allegiance to ISIS during his attack, the worst terror attack on American soil since 9/11.

- Peter Bergen

American, Allegiance, Terror, Pledged

In 2016, Washington and its coalition partners conducted more than 7,000 strikes in Iraq and Syria. And in Libya, the United States has conducted more than 350 air strikes since August as part of its military campaign against ISIS there.

- Peter Bergen

More, United, United States, August

Abedi appears to be one of the many thousands of Western Muslims who have embraced militant Islam, often as a way of trying to resolve the tension between their split identities.

- Peter Bergen

Resolve, Tension, Appears, Militant

When news of the first plane's hitting the World Trade Center reached them, bin Laden's followers exploded with joy. But shrewder members of al-Qaeda and the Taliban leadership in Afghanistan realized that the attacks might not be the stunning victory that bin Laden, and many in the West, took them to be.

- Peter Bergen

Plane, World Trade Center, Bin

In February 2016, Russia arrested seven alleged ISIS militants who were plotting attacks in St. Petersburg and Moscow. The group included Russians and Central Asians and a ringleader who had come from Turkey.

- Peter Bergen

Asians, Arrested, Russians, Plotting

An intelligence officer and historian, Rayburn published a 2014 book, 'Iraq After America,' which is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand how Iraq descended into chaos in the years after the American troop withdrawal at the end of 2011.

- Peter Bergen

Book, American, Officer, Troop

It is hard to imagine two more final endings to the 'war on terror' than the popular revolts against the authoritarian regimes in the Middle East and the death of bin Laden.

- Peter Bergen

Middle, Imagine, Terror, Authoritarian

The 9/11 attack itself played out around the world, with planning meetings in Malaysia, operatives taking flight lessons in the United States, coordination by plot leaders based in Hamburg, and money transfers from Dubai - activities overseen by al-Qaeda's senior command from secure bases in Afghanistan.

- Peter Bergen

Flight, United, Leaders, Bases

As Michael Scheuer, who ran the C.I.A.'s bin Laden unit until 1999, has pointed out, if bin Laden believed in Christmas, the Iraq war would be his perfect present from Santa Claus. The 9/11 attacks and the subsequent war in Afghanistan severely damaged bin Laden's organization.

- Peter Bergen

Perfect, Out, Bin, Pointed

Mohammed Taheri-Azar, a naturalized U.S. citizen hailing from Iran, crashed his SUV into a crowd at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2006, injuring nine people.

- Peter Bergen

Citizen, Nine, Carolina, Chapel Hill

My quest to meet Osama bin Laden began in North London early in 1997. In the Dollis Hill section, I contacted Khaled al-Fauwaz, the spokesman for a Saudi opposition group, the Advice and Reformation Committee, which bin Laden had founded.

- Peter Bergen

Advice, London, Bin, Reformation

In 1999, NATO did impose a no-fly zone in Kosovo without seeking a U.N. resolution to carry out air strikes on Serbian forces.

- Peter Bergen

Resolution, Seeking, Air, Kosovo

When ISIS and al Qaeda have attacked or plotted attacks in the West in the past decade or so, they have invariably used hydrogen peroxide-based bombs because acquiring military-grade explosives or dynamite is nearly impossible for would-be terrorists in Western countries.

- Peter Bergen

Decade, Nearly, Bombs, Western Countries

The senior director at the NSC for the Middle East is retired Col. Derek Harvey, an Arabic-speaking intelligence officer with a Ph.D. who served as the head of the U.S. military cell examining the insurgency in Iraq in 2003.

- Peter Bergen

Director, Middle, Officer, Insurgency

Typically, terrorist attacks produce a rally-around-the flag effect as was the case after 9/11 and the huge outpouring of public support that then-President George W. Bush garnered.

- Peter Bergen

Flag, George W. Bush, Bush, Public Support

Bin Laden had come to the delusional conclusion that the United States was as weak as the Soviet Union had once been.

- Peter Bergen

United, Been, United States, Delusional

The sitting prime minister, Jose Aznar, who had strongly backed the U.S.-led Iraq War, was unseated by a challenger who then pulled Spanish troops out of Iraq. The Madrid terrorist attacks are generally regarded as being the key to why Aznar, who had been leading in the polls, was defeated.

- Peter Bergen

Defeated, Been, Backed, Madrid

Afghanistan's winters in the north are legendarily harsh, and southern Afghanistan, by contrast, is bleak desert. These difficulties are compounded by the fact that Afghanistan is one of the world's most heavily mined countries.

- Peter Bergen

Fact, Southern, North, Compounded

In one notorious episode in 2002, in the holy city of Mecca, the religious police prevented girls from fleeing a school that was on fire because they were not properly dressed.

- Peter Bergen

Holy, Religious, Notorious, Mecca

The Sunni militants that make up ISIS are not the underlying problem in Syria and Iraq, but rather they are a symptom of other deeper problems.

- Peter Bergen

Other, Rather, Iraq, Sunni

Bin Laden was intelligent, well-informed, and low key. The people around him treated him with great deference, calling him 'sheikh,' a term of respect.

- Peter Bergen

Treated, Well-Informed, Bin, Key

A key to McMaster's thinking is his 1997 book, 'Dereliction of Duty: Lyndon Johnson, Robert McNamara, the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Lies that Led to Vietnam.'

- Peter Bergen

Book, Vietnam, Joint, Key

In the past, Joint Special Operations Command, or JSOC, of which SEAL Team 6 is a key component, has only launched ground raids in Yemen when the lives of hostages held by al Qaeda seemed at risk.

- Peter Bergen

Seal, Joint, Held, Key

When Abu Zubaydah was shown a series of photos of al Qaeda members by Soufan, he identified one of them as the operational commander of 9/11, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.

- Peter Bergen

Them, Operational, Al, Identified

Using vehicles as weapons is a tactic that has often used by Palestinian terrorists to target Israelis, but in 2014, an ISIS spokesman had encouraged such vehicular attacks in the West, saying of ISIS' enemies, 'Run him over with your car.'

- Peter Bergen

Vehicles, Had, Terrorists, Israelis

Ground operations are inherently very risky in Yemen. The two previous JSOC raids in Yemen were both in 2014.

- Peter Bergen

Very, Previous, Inherently, Yemen

In Yemen, the United States conducted more drone strikes in 2016 than any year except 2012, the peak of the campaign in the country, according to data collected by New America.

- Peter Bergen

New, Country, United States, Yemen

Officials in the George W. Bush administration later criticized the cruise missile strikes that were ordered by President Bill Clinton in Afghanistan in 1998 as only 'pounding sand.'

- Peter Bergen

Ordered, George W. Bush, Pounding

On November 28, 2016, Abdul Razak Ali Artan, an 18-year-old legal resident of the United States whose family was originally from Somalia, used a car to mow down a group of people at the Ohio State University.

- Peter Bergen

University, United, November, State University

The documentary feature film 'Legion of Brothers' tells the stories of the handful of U.S. Special Forces soldiers who, shortly after the 9/11 attacks, went into Taliban-controlled Afghanistan and, within a matter of weeks, overthrew the Taliban regime.

- Peter Bergen

Soldiers, Brothers, Weeks, Taliban

Sheikh Rahman's fatwa was the first time that anyone associated with al Qaeda had given religious sanction to attacks on American aviation, shipping and economic targets.

- Peter Bergen

Religious, Had, Given, Qaeda

The special reverence that al Qaeda had for Sheikh Rahman was underlined by a two-hour propaganda videotape that the group's media division released in the spring of 2001, when the 9/11 attacks were in their final planning phase.

- Peter Bergen

Media, Division, Had, Qaeda

The American incarceration of Sheikh Rahman was a hot-button issue for al Qaeda for many years.

- Peter Bergen

Incarceration, Issue, Qaeda

McMaster, 54, is the smartest and most capable military officer of his generation, one who has not only led American victories on the battlefields of the 1991 Gulf War and of the Iraq War, but also holds a Ph.D. in history.

- Peter Bergen

Capable, Victories, Officer, Gulf

Abu Musab al-Suri is someone I got to know pretty well because he's a Syrian. Very bright guy, lived in London. He actually was the person who took myself and correspondent Peter Arnett and the cameraman, Peter Juvenal, to interview bin Laden for his first TV interview.

- Peter Bergen

London, Very, TV, Abu

The Turkish government will never tolerate the creation of a Kurdish state.

- Peter Bergen

Government, Never, Will, Tolerate

The money that bin Laden inherited was about 20 million dollars over the course of many years, not the much larger sums some have suggested. In 1994, his family cut him off.

- Peter Bergen

Some, Over, Larger, Million Dollars

The Russians have been waging wars with these separatists since the 19th century, but for obvious reasons, Chechen separatist terrorism tends to be carried out by Chechens.

- Peter Bergen

Been, Carried, Russians, Waging

Sanctions on Pakistan have been part of the troubled U.S.-Pakistan relationship in the past and should not be considered as an option in the future.

- Peter Bergen

Past, In The Past, Been, Sanctions

Syrian refugees fleeing to Europe do not go through anything like the rigorous process experienced by those who are coming to the States, and the volume of Syrians fleeing to Europe is orders of magnitude larger than it is to the United States.

- Peter Bergen

Process, Through, Larger, Orders

Assad owes his continuation in power to the intervention of Russia in 2015 to prop up his regime.

- Peter Bergen

Russia, Owes, His, Prop

Both China and Russia felt duped by the U.N. 'no-fly' zone resolution regarding Libya in 2011 that eventually led to the ouster of Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi. China and Russia had abstained from the Libyan resolution, and neither country plans to make what they regard as a similar mistake again.

- Peter Bergen

Country, Eventually, Led, Libya

As early as 1993, members of bin Laden's group had been planning an attack on the American Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya.

- Peter Bergen

Been, Had, Bin, Embassy

A decade and a half ago, the U.S. Air Force dropped massive 15,000-pound 'Daisy Cutter' bombs on the Tora Bora complex where Osama bin Laden was hiding in December 2001.

- Peter Bergen

Decade, Half, Bin, December

Anne Richard, a senior U.S. State Department official, testified at a Senate Homeland Security Committee hearing in November 2015 that any Syrian refugee trying to get into the United States is scrutinized by officials from the National Counterterrorism Center, FBI, Department of Homeland Security, State Department and Pentagon.

- Peter Bergen

United, Homeland, November, Department

Between November 23, 2002, and January 11, 2003, al-Qahtani was interrogated for 48 days at Guantanamo more or less continuously, kept awake for much of that time by loud music being blasted when he was falling asleep, doused with water and subjected to cold temperatures, kept naked and forced to perform tricks as if he were a dog.

- Peter Bergen

Cold, November, Forced, January

Bannon should never have had a permanent seat on the NSC, as he is a political operative, and the NSC has traditionally been a place where American interests are considered rather than narrow Republican or Democratic interests.

- Peter Bergen

Been, Rather, Considered, American Interests

The thing that's very puzzling to somebody who's been in Pakistan repeatedly since 1983 is lots of people live in compounds with high walls in Pakistan. I mean, that's so completely routine. In fact, you know, it would be un-routine to have the reverse.

- Peter Bergen

Fact, Been, Very, Compounds

America has not traditionally been the cramped, frightened country of Trump's executive order that bans Syrian refugees.

- Peter Bergen

Country, Executive, Syrian, Frightened

Al-Qaeda, which means 'the base' in English, lost its base and training camps in Afghanistan, while its leaders were on the run, captured, or dead. One year after the 9/11 attacks, al-Qaeda was still on life support.

- Peter Bergen

Still, Which, Means, Base

When it comes to the greater Middle East, McMaster brings to the table his own deep knowledge of Iraq and Afghanistan, countries where he served for many years.

- Peter Bergen

Deep, Own, Middle, Table

ISIS despises the Russian government for its support of the Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, and so it's no surprise that ISIS began targeting Russia in 2015, around the same time that Russia first intervened in the Syrian civil war.

- Peter Bergen

Around, Syrian, Targeting, Despises

9/11 was a sort of hinge event in American history, and all jihadi terrorist plots or attacks are kind of filtered through that lens.

- Peter Bergen

Kind, Through, Hinge, Plots

'Zero Dark Thirty' is a great piece of filmmaking and does a valuable public service by raising difficult questions most Hollywood movies shy away from, but as of this writing, it seems that one of its central themes - that torture was instrumental to tracking down bin Laden - is not supported by the facts.

- Peter Bergen

Shy, Hollywood, Away, Instrumental

What bin Laden had hoped to achieve in Afghanistan in the post-9/11 period, which was to drag the United States into a protracted guerrilla war like the one he had fought against the Soviets, never happened. Instead, that protracted guerrilla war is now playing out in Iraq, in the heart of the Middle East.

- Peter Bergen

United, Hoped, Bin, Soviets

If the Arab Spring was a large nail in the coffin of al-Qaeda's ideology, the death of bin Laden was an equally large nail in the coffin of al-Qaeda the organization.

- Peter Bergen

Death, Nail, Large, Arab

One of the themes of 'The Longest War,' my book, which came out before the Arab spring happened, was how al-Qaida and bin Laden was losing the war of ideas in the Muslim world, not because the United States was winning them, but because al-Qaida was simply losing them.

- Peter Bergen

Muslim, Before, Longest, Arab

Because 9/11 was carried out by 19 foreign-born Arab hijackers, many assume that all terrorists who attack the West are foreigners.

- Peter Bergen

Foreigners, Carried, Many, Arab

Compounding Iraq's problem is that its economy is highly dependent on oil.

- Peter Bergen

Problem, Oil, Compounding, Highly

It is in American and Afghan interests for the U.S. to stay in Afghanistan so it doesn't turn into Iraq circa 2014, with the Taliban controlling much of the country while hosting a strong presence of ISIS and al-Qaeda as well as every other jihadist group of note.

- Peter Bergen

Strong, Country, Note, Controlling

Before 9/11, al-Qaeda was an organization of global reach.

- Peter Bergen

Organization, Reach, Before, Al-Qaeda

Contrary to what the Americans frequently reiterated, al-Qaeda did not have any relationship with Saddam Hussein or his regime.

- Peter Bergen

Hussein, Regime, Frequently, Al-Qaeda

Bin Laden's role in the war against the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan in the 1980s had made him a hero around the Middle East.

- Peter Bergen

Middle, Role, Occupation, 1980s

The hard reality is that attacks by vehicles in public places are very hard to defend against in a free and open society. The best defense against such attacks is good intelligence, and that often comes from inside the Muslim community.

- Peter Bergen

Against, Muslim, Very, Open Society

The Green Berets of U.S. Special Forces 5th Group - known as 'the Legion' - who led the anti-Taliban campaign represent a textbook case of a successful Special Forces campaign.

- Peter Bergen

Green, Textbook, Led, Group

In mid-November 2001, as they moved toward the city of Kandahar, the Taliban's de facto capital in southern Afghanistan, Amerine's team called in airstrikes against advancing Taliban units and more or less obliterated a Taliban column of a thousand men that had been dispatched from Kandahar. It was the Taliban's final play to remain in power.

- Peter Bergen

Play, Southern, Capital, Taliban

Sheikh Rahman had a doctorate in Islamic jurisprudence from al-Azhar University in Cairo, the Harvard of Islamic thought. He also had a long history of guiding terrorist groups.

- Peter Bergen

Thought, University, Islamic, Jurisprudence

There are all sorts of despicable people who journalists have done interviews with, and it's been useful. Isn't more information better than less information?

- Peter Bergen

More, Been, Less, Despicable

The commonly accepted definition of terrorism is that it is politically motivated violence directed at civilians by entities other than a state. These kind of attacks can come from the far right, the far left, racists of every stripe, as well as jihadists.

- Peter Bergen

Other, Far Right, Racists

A little exposure to a city like Sulaimani will help Trump understand that the Middle East is a much more complex place than he seems to believe. Perhaps Trump could even give a speech at the American University in Sulaimani, just as President Obama did at Cairo University early in his first term.

- Peter Bergen

City, University, Trump, First Term

The reason that attacks by American terrorists who are not jihadist militants are sometimes not called 'terrorism' is, in part, because in the United States, terrorism is a crime which has to be in some way be associated with a 'designated' terrorist group such as ISIS.

- Peter Bergen

Reason, Some, United, Terrorist

The only lethal terrorist to immigrate to the United States as an adult and conduct an attack shortly after arriving is Tashfeen Malik, who was born in Pakistan.

- Peter Bergen

Born, United, United States, Terrorist

Again and again since 9/11, terror attacks in the West have been carried out by second-generation Muslims who are citizens of the very country they are attacking.

- Peter Bergen

Country, Very, Carried, Attacking

In the public's mind, Special Forces are often confused with the 'door kickers' of Special Operations Forces - such as SEAL Team 6 and Delta Force - who are the United States' elite counterterrorism operators.

- Peter Bergen

Mind, Door, United States, Counterterrorism

Candidate Trump had previously opined that 'Islam hates us' and had called for 'the total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States,' an argument he has since modified and moderated.

- Peter Bergen

United, Trump, United States, Entering

On the campaign trail, candidate Trump occasionally raised the idea of creating 'safe zones' for Syrian civilians.

- Peter Bergen

Trail, Syrian, Civilians, Occasionally

More than a decade and half after 9/11, U.S. military actions in countries such as Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan and several other Muslim nations are governed by the Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) that was passed in the days immediately after 9/11.

- Peter Bergen

Decade, Other, Half, Governed

It's much harder to detect a lone wolf than it is somebody who's associated with a larger organization who's having planning meetings and making phone calls to people in the organization. And so that is really how the jihad has really developed in the United States.

- Peter Bergen

United, Larger, Lone, Harder

The Trump administration launched the cruise missile strikes in Syria, an act of war, without a U.N. resolution or Congressional authorization.

- Peter Bergen

Trump, Congressional, Syria, Strikes

Western Mosul is the historic heart of one of the oldest cities in the world. Its narrow streets and alleyways are impassable for armored vehicles.

- Peter Bergen

Streets, Historic, Cities, Oldest

Donald Trump's own mother Mary escaped the bone-crushing poverty of Scotland's remote Outer Hebrides for the promise of New York in 1929.

- Peter Bergen

New, Trump, Donald, Scotland

Security services, from Afghanistan to the United States, should be alert throughout the Ramadan period, but especially on the 27th day of the holy month.

- Peter Bergen

Holy, United States, Period, Alert

Incompetence is a better explanation than conspiracy in most human activity.

- Peter Bergen

Better, Conspiracy, Most, Human Activity

Because of the 9/11 attacks, the framing of terrorism by politicians, the media, and the public too often in the past decade and a half has been that it is Islamist political violence that is the terrorism we need to be concerned about.

- Peter Bergen

Decade, In The Past, Been, Politicians

If a parent knows that their kid is suddenly becoming infatuated with ISIS, they face a very difficult choice, which is, you know, do I - what do I do?

- Peter Bergen

Parent, Very, Which, Suddenly

In late May 2016, an ISIS spokesman called for attacks in the West during the month of Ramadan.

- Peter Bergen

Late, Month, May, Spokesman

Bin Laden studied economics and public administration before he turned to a life of jihad.

- Peter Bergen

Economics, Public, Turned, Bin

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