The abduction of two French journalists in Iraq citing the new French law against head-scarves in public places as the reason marks a new chapter in the ongoing US-led 'global war on terrorism'. Considering that France, along with Germany, was more sympathetic to Iraq under Saddam Hussein when US launched the 'Second Gulf War', it also marks a new phase in the 'international jihad' after 9/11. <br /> <br /> True, President Bush did commit the initial faux pas that 9/11 was a part of the 'clash of civilisations'. Not only did he correct himself immediately, the US also provided critics with enough justification to move away from cultural causes, and target it politically. Those not satisfied with words have been resorting to guerilla warfare inside Iraq. Some of them have also successfully used acts of terrorism like abduction and beheading of hostages to try stall the perceived economic agenda behind the Iraq War. <br /> <br /> In a way, such hostage-taking has put paid to arguments that nations should 'claim their share' in the 'development-dividend' flowing from the Iraq War by sending troops to join the battle-fatigued Americans in the troubled nation. The abduction of Indian truck-drivers, and their Egyptian and Kenyan counterparts, was a case in point. So was the beheading of 12 Nepalese hostages which coincided with the release of the three Indians. Considering that Muslims and Islamic nations were also among the victims to a greater or lesser degree in such hostage-taking, the question of religion and civilisation had been kept away. 'American interests' and 'pro-American nations and individuals' alone were seen as the targets. It's another matter, the slaying of the 12 Nepalese hostages may have caused eyebrows to rise. <br /> <br /> It's in this background that the abduction of the two French journalists needs to be viewed. In this case, the abductors have cited reasons going beyond anti-Americanism or 'military occupation' of their country as justification for their act. In turn, this would show that the abductors are jihadis who are using the prevailing confusion and consequent lawlessness in Iraq to wage their wars that go beyond targetting the US for the 'occupation'. Alternatively, 'international jihadis' of the Al-Qaeda type could be using the occasion to add a dose religion and faith to home-brewed patriotism and militant adventurism. They did so in Soviet-occupied Afghanistan, and succeeded, as well. <br /> <br /> It's anybody's guess why the French authorities and the nation's politicians should have chosen such a difficult and undefined moment in world history as this one to introduce a law that is as symbolic as the symbolism that it seeks to erase. The fact remains that the French law bars not only Islamic head-scarves, but also similar symbols of Sikhism Judaism - and even Christianity. Hindus wearing traditional religious marks on their foreheads too may be frowned upon. At the end of the day, it is a domestic law that the French have given unto themselves. <br /> <br /> The 9/11 phenomenon proved that the jihadis knew how to use the symbols of the West, against it with devastating effect. Going beyond the use of aircraft and the targetting of all-American symbols like the 'World Trade Centre' and the Pentagon, they also showed a mastery of the western PR effort. The by-now-forgotten first aircraft-hit on the 'Twin Towers' was thus an 'open invitation' for the international media to capture the more devastating second hit 'Live' for all the world to watch in horror and disbelief. By recoiling under the impact and expectedly holding back visuals of the massive rescue and relief efforts that followed, the US only let the imagery of the 'Twin Tower crash' etched in living memory. <br /> <br /> Maybe, the Al-Qaeda and Osama bin-Laden picked up a few hints from their 'American handlers' at the height of their combined battle against the Soviet occupation forces in Afghanistan. If nations of the world have to isolate terrorism from religion and culture, they need to do, or not do things, that would otherwise establish such linkages in the impressionable minds of the emerging groups of jihadis. They need to educate themselves as they tend to educate Islamic nations and their populations. They need to recognise that they are still in the midst of a war, triggered by 9/11 this time, but as a continuation of the long-forgotten wars from very distant and not-so-distant past. <br /> <br /> To the extent, the West in general and the US in particular need to remember that their purported efforts at ushering in democracy and enlightenment to the Islamic world need not be a one-way street. It can be knife that cuts both ways. <br /> <br /> <br /> <em>* Views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Observer Research Foundation.</em>
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