Editorial: Secure Iraq’s borders

Monday, Nov. 14, 2005 | 8:50 a.m.

If there can be a more wanted man in the world than Osama bin Laden, it is Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the leader of al-Qaida in Iraq. His group has claimed responsibility for the three hotel bombings in Amman, Jordan, on Wednesday that killed at least 60 people and wounded dozens of others. And it is Zarqawi and his ruthless, fanatical followers who have been behind much of the enemy activity in Iraq that has resulted in the deaths of more than 2,055 American troops.

Although they included three Americans, the people killed and wounded in Wednesday's attack were mostly Arab civilians, including many members of a wedding party. According to a report by Cox News Service, Zarqawi tried to head off criticism by Arabs by linking the hotels to NATO forces, Israelis, Americans and other Westerners, including contractors, journalists and aid workers who frequently travel back and forth between Iraq and Jordan.

Zarqawi was obviously confident that Arabs would forgive the killing of their own people if it meant a blow had been struck against foreigners in their lands. The terrorist leader has reason to believe this would be true. The Cox report cited a public opinion poll taken in Jordan this past July. The poll, conducted by the Pew Research Center, showed 60 percent of Jordanians expressing support for bin Laden and a slight majority supporting violence against civilian targets. The story said other polls show that 80 percent of Jordanians oppose their government's support of the Iraq war.

Although many Jordanians are now protesting against Zarqawi, people in the greater Arab world have yet to convincingly renounce him, bin Laden and the other Muslim terrorists. Until this begins happening, the terrorists may be emboldened to again strike an Arab target outside of Iraq, in an effort to widen the insurgency against the United States.

The United States must quickly find a way to stop the exportation of terrorism from Iraq (the suicide bombers used in Wednesday's attack were Iraqis). It is clear that Iraq's borders must be secured, both from enemy fighters seeping in and terrorists getting out. The fireball that is now Iraq must be contained, or no country's borders will be safe.