Why terrorism ?

By Mustafizur Rahman, Dhanmondi, Dhaka
10 May 2004, 18:00 PM
In his letter "Contain terrorism" (DS, April 28), Mr. Siddiqur Rahman pointed out that terrorism has tremendously expanded in various places of the world and that every effort should be made to contain this evil. But he did not mention the reasons behind the increase and expansion of terrorism.

The entire world now sees that at present the main reasons of the escalation of terrorism are the stationing of the US and Western troops in Saudi Arabia and some other Arab and states, invasion and illegal occupation of Iraq by the US and the continuous US support for Israeli state terrorism against the Palestinians. Moreover, most recently the world has seen the pictures of terrible and most inhuman tortures by the US and British soldiers of the Iraqi prisoners of war .

Another major reason behind the increase of terrorism is the double standard of some of the Western countries in their evaluation of different flash-points. The US and those Western countries become alert only when their own interest is at stake, but they do not bother when the stability in other places of the world is at stake.