The War on Something-ism: 17 Years and Counting

The devastating toll of the September 11, 2001 attacks galvanized the global community to fight Islamic extremism and defeat al-Qaeda. What began in Afghanistan, continues in Iraq and Syria, in Yemen and the Horn of Africa, in Europe. 17 years on, the engagement dubbed “the never-ending war” continues, as religious extremism takes new forms and continues to destabilize the Middle East and North Africa, and continues in Southwest Asia.

The Trump Administration has expressed optimism that victory will be achieved once the remaining Islamic State (ISIS) strongholds are eliminated. However, the intelligence community already sees signs of new extremist groups cropping up in Iraq, ISIS emerging in Afghanistan, extremist strongholds in Syria. Pulling the U.S. out too early and declaring victory without a strategy to win will enable old extremist groups to re-establish their hold on the region and allow new groups to compete for territory.

On September 10, Hudson Institute hosted a panel to discuss the war on terrorism. Panelists will include Thomas Joscelyn, senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies; Bill Roggio, senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies; Hudson Senior Fellow Michael Pregent; Hudson Senior Fellow Michael Doran; and Fox News Chief Intelligence Correspondent Catherine Herridge