Book Description
"The new Trump Administration, as well as our European allies and Arab partners, need to fundamentally rethink key aspects of their struggle against terrorism and Islamic extremism. They need to see it as an enduring threat that will be present for at least the coming decade, regardless of what happens to ISIS, ISIL, or Daesh. They need to consider how this threat is tied to the confrontation between Iran and most Arab states, and the growing tensions between Sunnis, Shi'ites, and other minorities. They need to stop thinking largely in terms of terrorism and consider the threat posed in terms of insurgency and efforts to seize control of largely Muslim states. They also need to address the fact that any strategy based on counterterrorism alone will fail unless they also cooperate in addressing the causes of terrorism, insurgency, and unrest. The United States has made progress in improving its homeland defenses and international counterterrorism efforts. It has restructured its security partnerships with largely Muslim states to help give the same emphasis to counterterrorism that they have given to military security. The United States is also making major progress in defeating the ability of ISIS to hold territory, act as a protostate, and provide a sanctuary for training fighters and efforts to widen its grasp and number of affiliates. The threat of Islamist terrorism within the United States and Europe has been all too real, but it has only been a limited aspect of a far more serious series of threats it poses within the Islamic world. The fight is primarily a fight between moderate governments and popular majorities committed to Islam's traditional values and extremists seeking to use almost any form of violence -- and mix of terrorism and asymmetric warfare -- to seize power. It is a 'clash within a civilization' and not a 'clash between civilizations'"--Executive summary.