Guantanamo Arrests are Stockholm Syndrome
Judging by the hysteria in the American media, Al-Qaeda has a major terror cell operating in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The military has made three arrests, and there are fears that this proves that the Army has been infiltrated. Perhaps the journalists crying "Wolf" should look under their beds for communists while they are at it. These three cases are at best misunderstandings and at worst, examples of the Stockholm syndrome.
First the facts about Al-Qaeda: it is a loose grouping that is bent on the destruction of western civilization for the benefit of a brand of Islam that is unworthy of the name. It exploits the poor, young and naive of the Muslim world for its own irrational ends. It is largely the toy of rich cowards who have others do the killing and dying. It has been unable to effect a single attack in the United States for over two years and has been reduced to fighting its fight at the fringes. As Air Force General Ralph Eberhart told MSNBC, “Most of the varsity players are gone. In most cases, we’re dealing with the junior varsity team or the freshman team."
Army Captain James Yee (an Islamic chaplain), Air Force Senior Airman Ahmad al Halabi, and Ahmed Mehalba (a civilian translator) have been arrested on suspicion really of working for the enemy. None has been convicted, and there is a fair chance that the charges are untrue. If they are true, however, the cases seem unrelated except that each man had reason to come in contact with the prisoners (Al-Qaeda and its stooges) at "Gitmo."
It has been well-documented that there are times when prisoners and guards develop an affinity given their common humanity and their shared situation -- the so-called Stockholm syndrome. In each of these cases, the accused shares a part of his own identity with the prisoners; Captain Yee is a convert to Islam, Airman al Halabi is of Syrian extraction, and Mr. Mehalba is a naturalized US citizen from Egypt. They could well be predisposed to the syndrome (and may have been targeted for investigation on nothing more than their faith or hometown).
To suggest that Al-Qaeda has infiltrated the military, has sleeper cells all over the world, and has the resources to destroy much more than a nightclub in Bali (horrific though that was), is to over-estimate their capabilities, and thereby, undermine western resolve. Until September 11, 2001, the US didn't even know it was in a fight. Since then, the enemy has been unable to mount operations of any kind in the US. The Stockholm explanation is a more likely one than extreme brilliance and ability on the part of people who have shown none in over two years.
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