(AINA) -- According to Assyrian Christian leaders in Iraq (AINA 5-10-2007), the future existence of Iraq's dwindling Christian population hangs in the balance as violence continues unabated. Moreover, direct blame has been leveled at Iraqi governmental as well as Coalition forces' inaction in the face of mounting attacks against Christian population centers.

The primary focus of the community's concerns now centers on the deteriorating security situation of the Assyrian (also known as Chaldean and Syriac) Christians in the Dora neighborhood of Baghdad. The Dora neighborhood lies 10 kilometers southwest of Baghdad. Prior to the war, the predominantly Christian neighborhood was home to over 5000 Christian households. Since the war and the subsequent insurgency, the overwhelming majority have fled the area.

Some observers have noted that the recent threats and attacks have escalated proportionately as the "surge" has increased pressure on insurgents. On May 18, St. George Church was burned down by Islamist arsonists (AINA 5-18-2007). The same church had survived an earlier bombing along with 5 other churches on October 16, 2004 (AINA 10-16-2004). On May 20, Fr. Hanna was kidnapped in Baghdad (AINA 5-20-2007). In April, Christian residents of Dora were given an ultimatum to either pay the jizya (AINA 4-17-2007, 3-18-2007), a "protection" tax demanded by the Koran, convert to Islam, or leave. Those choosing to leave were reportedly not allowed to take their possessions with them as these were said to "now belong to the mosque" (AINA 5-18-2007). At least 21 families unable to circumvent the insurgent forces besieging the neighborhood have found refuge in nearby churches. The May 20 church burning has heightened fears that even churches are no longer safe for Assyrian Christians.

On May 18, the Patriarch of the Ancient Church of the East, Mar Addai II reportedly stated that "only the families that agree to give a daughter or sister in marriage to a Muslim can remain" (AINA 5-18-2007). Moreover, homes not yet expropriated by force are being increasingly legally signed over by family members of hostages in exchange for their relatives' release.

Despite numerous appeals to US and Iraqi government forces, Christian community leaders have not seen repeated assurances of assistance materialize. As one observer angrily noted, "Whether unwilling or unable, Iraqi forces along with Coalition forces have refused to assist us in any meaningful way. We have had numerous meetings with Iraqi and American security forces to underscore the severity of the crisis facing our people and yet have not had any response."

Already viewed with suspicion by the Islamist insurgents as co-religionists and collaborators with US "occupation" forces, Assyrian Christians have often borne the brunt of reprisals by Islamists. In a rare condemnation, the Assyrian Patriarch of the Chaldean Church, Mar Emmanuel Delly lashed out against US forces who occupied Babel College, the former theological center of the Chaldean Church, without the Church's consent (AINA 5-8-2007). Mar Delly chastised the Iraqi government as well as "all those in power who did nothing and are doing nothing to stop this tragedy." One observer added, "not only aren't the Americans helping us, but they are fueling the reprisals against us by operating out of Babel College."

Although some concentrations of Assyrians remain in the Baghdad area, including Hai Al-athuriyeen (Assyrian quarter), Al-jam'iya, and Al-sihha, the vast majority of the population in the country has been decimated. According to the United Nations, more than half have already left the country entirely, with still more joining the ranks of the internally displaced. In Basra, Iraq's second largest city to the south, the Christian community has almost entirely vanished. In Karkuk, Assyrians live under political pressure from Kurdish groups and under fear of all out civil strife. In Mosul, rising fundamentalism and sectarianism has caused many to flee.

In the only relatively stable area to the north, many Assyrian Christians are settling in the ancient historic heartland of Assyria, in the Nineveh Plain. But here as well, Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) paramilitary forces harass, intimidate, and sometimes assassinate Assyrian leaders not toeing the KDP line. One leader summarized that "The KDP has opportunistically used the current crisis to squash any independent Assyrian political expression and representation." Assyrians are referred to as "Christian Kurds" and assistance is contingent on agreement to incorporate the last remaining Assyrian region into a wider Kurdish occupied region.

In a bid to extend the occupation westward towards the Syrian border, the KDP has combined a "carrot" approach of assistance to a select group of refugees with a "heavy stick" of violence towards those who aspire to independent political expression. One leader lamented regarding the precarious position of Assyrian Christians inside Iraq by saying "Whereas the Islamists are attacking Assyrian population centers, the Behdanani Kurds of the KDP are attacking and subjugating Assyrian identity and national aspirations."

Forced to choose between Islamist terror and Kurdification, the overwhelming majority of Assyrian Christians have simply voted with their feet and left the country entirely. With over half of the population now gone, the term genocide has slowly begun to creep into the war's lexicon. According to Jackie Bejan, a prominent Assyrian American activist, "There are many who think that we are now witnessing another cycle of Genocide, very similar to the one inflicted upon our people in 1915 by the Ottoman Turks [and Kurds]...What is happening now to the Iraqi Christians and other minorities is certainly and rapidly approaching all requirements and measurements of the most horrific crime against humanity, Genocide."

Bill Weinberg, editor of the online journal WW4Report.com, squarely blames the US by describing "the inescapable reality that United States intervention created the current crisis, now approaching the genocidal threshold." Moreover, "Even if the aim was to control Iraq's oil under a stable, compliant regime, the result has been Yazidis massacred, Assyrian churches bombed, the majority of Mandeans forced into exile in neighboring countries." Finally, "more disturbingly, the United States is now presiding over the re-emergence of genocide..."

There is widespread concern about the real danger that the community will lose its critical mass and will be unable to sustain itself. One observer lamented, "By design or by neglect, the net effect is the same, the potentially irreversible loss of the indigenous Christian community in Iraq. Unless something is done and quickly the lasting legacy of this war will be the genocide of the Christians and other minorities of Iraq."

Assyrian leaders are demanding immediate assistance to the besieged Dora residents. If US and Iraqi forces are genuinely unable to secure the Dora neighborhood of Baghdad, then Assyrian Christian residents wanting to flee ought to be assisted with a secure evacuation for resettlement in the Nineveh Plain in an Assyrian secured Safe Haven or Administrative Area free of KDP occupation with adequate resources to allow them to remain and survive within the country.

TERRORISM INTELLIGENCE REPORT
05.30.2007

The Challenge of the Lone Wolf
By Fred Burton

Historically, gunmen and bombers who act on their own -- lone wolves -- have posed a significant threat in the United States. Indeed, from the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln to the slaying of music legend John Lennon they have presented a far more deadly threat to prominent people in the United States than have militant groups. Additionally, as demonstrated by cases such as the 1991 Luby's restaurant shooting in Killeen, Texas, or the recent Virginia Tech massacre, they also pose a grave danger to ordinary Americans.

Due to their often solitary, withdrawn nature, lone wolves present unique problems for security and law enforcement, as their very qualities make it hard for law enforcement or protective security details to gather intelligence regarding their intentions. That said, however, they are not impossible to guard against. Lone wolves frequently take actions in advance of an attack that make them vulnerable to detection by a proactive, protective intelligence program that incorporates investigation and countersurveillance.

Although they most often are male, there is no single profile of the lone wolf. Some are ideologically motivated, some are religiously inspired, some are mentally disturbed, and still others can have a combination of these other factors.

On the ideological side are some leaders (especially among far-right extremists) who promote the concept of "leaderless resistance." This idea perhaps was most widely promulgated by former Klansman Louis Beam. In a February 1992 essay, Beam outlines a plan to overhaul the white supremacist movement -- calling for the formation of small, autonomous cells that were to be driven by ideology rather than act under the direction of membership groups. Beam's argument was that this leaderless resistance would have superior operational security and be more successful in conducting attacks than the membership groups, which he believed (correctly) were filled with informants.
In his essay, Beam envisioned a two-tiered approach to the revolutionary struggle. One tier would be the above-ground "organs of information," which would "distribute information using newspapers, leaflets, computers, etc." The organs of information were not to conduct any illegal activities. The second tier would be made up of individual operators and small "phantom" cells that would conduct attacks. These people were to remain low-key and anonymous, with no traceable connections to the above-ground activists. Beam wrote, "It becomes the responsibility of the individual to acquire the necessary skills and information as to what is to be done."

Perhaps one of the most prolific, and least known, ideological lone wolf terrorists was neo-Nazi Joseph Paul Franklin, who conducted a string of arsons and shootings from 1977 to 1980 in an effort to spark a race war in the United States. Franklin, who frequently targeted mixed-race couples, killed at least 20 people during his attacks, which by his own account also included failed assassination attempts against Hustler magazine publisher Larry Flint and then-National Urban League President Vernon Jordan.

Included in the religious realm are "Phineas Priests," people who believe they have been chosen by God and set apart to act as his "agents of vengeance" on Earth. Phineas Priests frequently conduct attacks against abortion providers and homosexuals -- targets they believe have violated biblical law. Phineas Priests derive their name from Phinehas, an Old Testament character who killed an Israelite man and a Midianite woman and who was credited with stopping the idolatry brought into the midst of the Israelites by Midianite women.

Most Phineas Priests, including Buford Furrow and Eric Rudolph, are adherents to the racist and anti-Semitic Christian Identity religion. Christian Identity, however, does not have a monopoly on religiously motivated lone wolves. Radical Roman Catholics like JamesKopp, Protestants such as Paul Hill and Muslims like Mir Amal Kansi and D.C. Sniper John Allen Muhammad also have committed religiously motivated attacks.

Though many, if not most, of the ideologically and religiously motivated lone wolves exhibit some degree of mental illness, other mentally ill attackers have no ideological or religious motivation. Some of these individuals "go postal" and commit their attacks at work, while others attack at malls or schools. Unlike the ideological (and even some of the religious) lone wolves, who purposefully choose the leaderless resistance model to thwart law enforcement, the mentally disturbed are generally self-motivated and self-contained.
Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme and Sara Jane Moore, both serving life sentences for attempting to assassinate U.S. President Gerald Ford during separate incidents, are two rare female lone wolves. Fromme, a follower of jailed cult leader Charles Manson, pointed a loaded pistol at Ford in Sacramento, Calif., on Sept. 5, 1975, but was wrestled to the ground by a Secret Service agent before she could fire a shot. Seventeen days later, Moore, an accountant and political radical, fired one shot at Ford after he left the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco, but missed.

The Problem for Police

A prime example of the problem lone wolves pose for police is Unabomber Theodore Kaczynski, who began sending improvised explosive devices in 1978 but was not arrested until 1996. During those 18 years, Kaczynski sent 16 devices, several of which either did not explode or did not function as designed. Although this allowed authorities to recover a large quantity of physical evidence, Kaczynski's isolation kept him from being identified. It was only after the publication of Kaczynski's "Unabomber Manifesto" in 1995 that his brother came forward to the FBI and identified him as a possible suspect.

When investigating a militant organization it is possible for law enforcement or intelligence agencies to plant informants within the group. Even small, insular groups are vulnerable because it is not uncommon for one or more members of the group to get cold feet and inform authorities about the group's plans to commit acts of violence. With a lone wolf, however, there is no such possibility of infiltration or betrayal. If the suspect never discusses his or her plans with anyone else, he or she can easily fly under law enforcement radar. In most cases, these kinds of individuals can be highly successful in carrying out an attack, especially against vulnerable soft targets.

Mentally disturbed lone wolves pose particular problems because they often have an extremely narrow focus of interest and cannot be diverted to an easier target by heightened security measures. There are some notable exceptions to this, however. For example, Furrow conducted surveillance on several Jewish targets and bypassed some of them because he considered their security to be too tight, and Franklin diverted from the Rev. Jesse Jackson to Jordan after he found Jackson's security to be too robust for his purposes.

Mentally disturbed lone wolves also frequently have an almost total disregard for the consequences of their actions, and quite often show no concern about escaping after they attack, as exemplified by John Hinckley, who did not attempt to flee after attempting to assassinate President Ronald Reagan in 1981. Frequently, as in the case of Virginia Tech shooter Seung-Hui Cho and Luby's shooter George Hennard, the attacker will commit suicide.

When lone wolves do choose to escape and conduct a string of attacks, their anonymous nature and isolation frequently complicates the situation for law enforcement, especially if they take efforts to conceal their identities and minimize the amount of physical evidence they leave. For example, Franklin was able to operate for three years before he was identified and arrested because he spaced his attacks apart in terms of geography and time, and frequently changed his vehicles, weapons and appearance. In fact, it was only after his arrest and confession that the full scope of his activities was realized. Rudolph also traveled great distances between targets and took efforts to alter his appearance.

The Threat

Because of this history, and the problems lone wolves pose for them, local, state and federal law enforcement sources say they are particularly concerned about the threat of individual extremists. This is not exclusively a big-city problem, as several lone wolf incidents have occurred outside of major metropolitan areas, in suburbs or smaller cities. Federal counterterrorism sources, citing the relative ease of attacking in a public place -- as demonstrated at Virginia Tech and other locations -- have expressed serious concern about the possibility of similar assaults being perpetrated by an Islamist militant or a white supremacist. The logic is that if a mentally disturbed individual can execute such an attack, what prevents an ideologically inspired terrorist from doing the same -- or worse?
Because lone wolves are widely dispersed throughout the United States and are distributed across the ideological and social spectrum, it is especially challenging for law enforcement to identify them before they act. The same is true of potential lone wolf extremists. Moreover, it is extremely difficult to differentiate between those extremists who intend to commit attacks from those who simply preach hate or hold radical beliefs (things that are not in themselves illegal). Therefore, authorities must spend a great deal of time and resources looking for individuals who might be moving from radical beliefs to radical actions in an attempt to single out likely lone wolves before they strike. With such a large universe of potential suspects, that is akin to looking for a needle in a haystack.

Rearing their Heads
There are some signals that can be watched for in connection with lone wolves. In fact, in retrospect, the majority of lone wolves came to the attention of authorities at some point before their attack. Frequently in workplace violence and school shooting cases, the perpetrators are found to have had prior brushes with the law and/or the mental health system. Attempting to sort lone wolves out from the heavy stream of people who come to the attention of the police and mental health professionals, however, is another difficult search through a very large haystack.
These individuals, though, often frequently exhibit behaviors by which they reveal themselves.

Lone wolves, especially mentally disturbed ones, frequently attempt to make written or telephonic contact with their targets before making physical contact. It is at this time that they can be identified and investigated by security or law enforcement personnel. Monitoring the tenor of the contacts from such individuals can also help to indicate their future intentions and provide indications of a deteriorating mental state.
Another sign of a possible lone wolf is when a dedicated and committed extremist suddenly quits a membership group and goes into "radio silence mode." For example, Bob Matthews and three other members "left" the National Alliance in 1983 to form the domestic terrorist group "The Order." In 1999, World Church of the Creator member Benjamin Smith, who had been named "Creator of the Year" for his zeal and dedication, left the group shortly before going on a three-day shooting spree in Illinois and Indiana that randomly targeted racial and ethnic minorities. Smith killed two people and wounded nine before committing suicide while being chased by police.
Perhaps the most common time that lone wolf assailants self-identify -- and the point at which they are most vulnerable to being identified before an attack -- is when they are conducting pre-operational surveillance of their potential targets; when they are stalking, in other words. Since pre-operational surveillance involves establishing patterns, potential attackers will stalk their targets several times. Thus, each time they improve the chance they will be observed, especially if the target is employing countersurveillance operations in search of such threats.
Countersurveillance -- the process of detecting and mitigating hostile surveillance -- is an important aspect of counterterrorism and security operations. Good countersurveillance is proactive, meaning it provides a means to prevent an attack from happening. This can be a group effort performed by a dedicated countersurveillance team, or it can be done by individuals who simply make the effort to be aware of their surroundings and watch for people or vehicles that seem out of place.
Lone wolves are especially vulnerable to detection during the surveillance phase because they do not have others to assist them. Conducting solo surveillance against a moving target is one of the hardest tasks any professional surveillance operative can be tasked with, and is even more difficult for an amateur. In a solo surveillance, the operative is forced to reveal himself repeatedly over time and distance, and in different environments. Also, a person unskilled in the art of surveillance, especially one who is mentally disturbed, will frequently commit many errors of demeanor. Thus, their odd behavior and crude surveillance technique -- they frequently stalk and lurk -- make them easy to pick out.
Because of this, countersurveillance -- whether by law enforcement, intelligence agencies, corporations or individuals -- is a critical means of spotting lone wolves during the target selection and planning stage, the time the operation is most vulnerable to detection and interdiction. It is important to be able to recognize hostile surveillance by a lone wolf before the next phase of the attack cycle begins -- because once the actual attack is in progress, it cannot be undone.

U.S., Iraqi Troops Seize 47 in Iraq Operations
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, May 30, 2007 – Iraqi and coalition forces captured 47 suspected terrorists, including some suspected terror-cell chieftains, and seized contraband weaponry during operations across Iraq over the past few days, military officials reported.

Coalition forces detained 30 suspected terrorists in operations around Iraq today.
During operations this morning in Baghdad, Mosul, and Anbar and Salah ad Din provinces coalition troops rounded up 28 suspected terrorists.
-- Coalition troops detained two suspected terrorists during morning operations in the Sadr City section of Baghdad.
-- In Mosul, coalition forces detained four suspected terrorists, including an individual believed to be the key al Qaeda link in the city.
-- During morning raids in Anbar province, coalition troops detained 14 suspected terrorists believed to have al Qaeda ties associated with transport of money, weapons and foreign fighters into Iraq.
-- Coalition raids in Salah ad Din province nabbed three suspected terrorists. A discovered weapons cache produced mortars, small arms and a heavy machine gun.
-- Coalition forces captured five suspected terrorists in Sadr City. Individuals detained are believed to be members of a secret terror cell linked to the transport of explosively formed ordnance and insurgents from Iran into Iraq.
"This morning we removed numerous, abhorrent terrorists from the Iraqi population," Army Lt. Col. Christopher Garver, Multinational Force Iraq spokesman, said. "Our operations will continue to seek out these lawless and dangerous terrorists."
The capture of weapons traffickers in Sadr City is sure to disrupt the flow of weapons into Iraq, he said. "We will continue to target terrorists who aid the trafficking of deadly weapons that threaten the safety and security of innocent Iraqis," Garver said.
In another operation today, coalition troops detained two suspected terrorists, found weapons and seized a local vehicle after coming under attack near Az-Zaidon, Iraq, west of Baghdad.
American soldiers with the 10th Mountain Division's 2nd Brigade Combat Team spotted a possible improvised explosive device connection wire and followed it to a small shack. A man ran from the shack upon the soldiers' approach. The soldiers then came under small-arms fire. One insurgent was killed and another was wounded during the ensuring firefight.
Upon a search of nearby vehicles, the soldiers found a rifle, a rocket-propelled-grenade launcher, falsified identification documents, six cell phones, a cordless phone, a box of ammunition, and some AK-47 rifle magazines.
A pickup truck then bore down on the soldiers at high speed. The soldiers fired on the truck and disabled it. Three men fled the truck. Upon searching the truck the soldiers found a 9 mm pistol. Another nearby pickup truck was searched, and it yielded a spool of copper wire. The truck was confiscated for further investigation.
In other news from Iraq, Iraqi special operations troops detained two people, including a suspected terror cell leader, during a morning raid yesterday in the Baghdad area. The accused terrorist is suspected of running a kidnapping and assassination network in the Baghdad area. The cell is believed to have abducted an Iraqi nuclear power scientist and of complicity in the murders of two senior Iraqi government officials.
Elsewhere, Iraqi troops captured 15 other terrorists during three operations conducted May 26-28 in central Iraq.
-- Iraqi special operations forces seized four people suspected of killing and torturing civilians, as well as forcing them out of their homes in the Baghdad area during a May 28 raid.
-- Iraqi soldiers captured eight suspected terrorists during a May 27 raid.
-- Iraqi soldiers detained three suspected terrorists and destroyed a car bomb and several large weapons caches during a May 26 raid.
(Compiled from Multinational Force Iraq and Multinational Corps Iraq news releases.)

General Works to Dispel Myths About Iraq
By Sgt. Sara Wood, USA
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, May 30, 2007 – A U.S. general serving with Multinational Force Iraq recently took time out of his mid-deployment leave to let the American public know that the situation in Iraq is different from what they might think.

Army Brig. Gen. Steven Anderson, deputy chief of staff for resources and sustainment, today spoke with representatives of veterans service organizations, outlining a speech he gave earlier at James Madison University about what he believes are 10 myths about the conflict in Iraq.
"There are some signs that our new strategy is working," Anderson said in a teleconference from Baghdad. "It's going to be a long, hot summer, and it won't be really until the end of it that we'll be able to evaluate it. There is plenty of opportunity, and plenty of reason to be cautiously optimistic about what's going on over there."
The 10 myths, as outlined by Anderson, are:
-- The war in Iraq is about oil;
-- The U.S. is fighting alone in Iraq;
-- Iraq is engulfed in a full-scale civil war;
-- The Iraqis were better off under Saddam Hussein than under the new government;
-- The Iraqi government is ineffective;
-- Economic development is non-existent in Iraq;
-- Contractors cost the U.S. government too much money;
-- U.S. troops aren't properly equipped;
-- Morale is low among U.S. troops; and
-- The U.S. has lost in Iraq.
None of these myths is true, Anderson said, and the situation in Iraq is much better than is often reported here.
The war in Iraq is essentially a fight against religious extremists, Anderson said. And while oil is an important element in the situation, it is not the key element. "It is essentially about freedom and peace and democracy, in my opinion," he said.
The United States is not alone in the fight, Anderson said. About 32 countries are contributing troops to the fight in Iraq, and about 40 countries are providing contractors and logistics support.
"It's truly a coalition of many nations, and all of them are committed equally to helping the Iraqis build their security forces and counter violence and empower the Iraqis to eventually take control and secure their nation," he said.
While violence levels in Iraq still are unacceptable, the situation is not a full-scale civil war, Anderson said. The fight involves religious extremists on the fringe and does not involve large-scale force-on-force combat, he pointed out.
The existence in Iraq of free speech, a free press and a democratically elected government are all signs that the Iraqi people are better off now than they were under Saddam, Anderson said. In addition, major improvements in the country's infrastructure have improved the people's quality of life, he said. Sewer, water, trash and electricity services all are improving, and the coalition has built almost 1,000 schools, renovated 97 railway stations, built 51 primary health care centers, and renovated 32 hospitals.
The Iraqi government does have room for improvement, but it is still a young democracy and it has made significant progress since its inception, Anderson said. Four of Iraq's 18 provinces are now completely under provincial-government control for security, and their ability to provide services to the people is improving.
"Do they need to get better? Absolutely," he said. "But are there signs that they are getting better? Absolutely."
The signs of economic progress in Iraq are very encouraging, Anderson said. The Iraqi economy has cut inflation in half; the gross domestic product increased 40 percent in 2006 and is projected to grow more in 2007; the per capita income has doubled; and the economy is getting foreign investments. The United States is working with the government to reduce corruption in the economy, improve oil exports, and revitalize Iraqi businesses, he said.
"One need only to go to a place like Irbil, up north in Kurdistan, to see (what's) possible -- an Iraqi city that is vibrant, has high employment and a flourishing economy," Anderson said. "It's almost like walking down the streets of a typical European city, with restaurants and shops and car dealerships. It's a thriving place, and I believe that is a demonstration of what is possible hopefully in the very, very near term."
Contractors are valuable contributors to the coalition mission in Iraq and have actually increased their services while reducing costs over the years, Anderson said. In addition, contractors, many of whom are from countries besides the U.S., risk their lives every day alongside coalition troops, he said. "I believe that they are patriots in every sense of the word," he said of the contractors who serve in Iraq.
Although the enemy is adaptive and constantly changes tactics to defeat U.S. defenses, U.S. troops are extremely well outfitted and receive the latest technologies to protect them, Anderson said. Body armor is provided to every troop who deploys, and vehicle armor is constantly upgraded as technologies become available, he said. In addition, Iraqi troops are becoming increasingly well equipped. They have armored vehicles, mortars, helicopters and aircraft, and the government is spending $7 billion this year to improve their equipment, he said.
Retention rates among deployed troops prove that morale is high, Anderson said. The troops know that many Americans don't support the war, but they continue to see the outpouring of support for those who fight, he said.
"This new generation of kids is unbelievable, and I think they are representing Americans extremely well," he said. "They're disciplined and compassionate; they don't pull the trigger indiscriminately; and they go truly overboard to protect citizens and respect Islamic culture."
The new operational strategy for Iraq is still in the initial stages, but there are encouraging signs already, Anderson said. Coalition and Iraqi forces will, for the first time, have enough troops to secure areas of Baghdad after clearing them of insurgents. More soldiers in an area does mean more opportunities for conflict with the enemy, so leaders expect the situation will get worse before it gets better, but they believe the new strategy can work, he said.
"We understand that the military cannot win the war (on its own), but we're certainly not losing it," he said. "We can only help set the conditions for a political solution; we understand that.
"We must continue to apply all of our political, military and diplomatic, economic and informational power to this fight," he continued. "We understand that this is the defining international event of our time. We absolutely understand that we must win this struggle and that we must prevail, and I'm optimistic that the opportunity still exists in order to do that."

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