By Sarah V. Dailey
Within two weeks of the terrorist attacks on the United States, President George W. Bush has made several decisions to rebuild the nation. In an address to the nation last Thursday evening, Bush vowed: “I will not yield. I will not rest.”
Though the future of the nation is not quite clear, Bush has made a decision to fight terror throughout the world. He has ordered U.S. military forces to be ready.”The hour is coming when America will act and you will make us proud,” Bush said.
Bush appointed Gov. Tom Ridge of Pennsylvania as head of the newly-created Office of Homeland Security. He will oversee more than a dozen federal agencies, including the CIA and the Department of Defense, in an effort to prevent attacks like those in New York and Washington D.C. Bush also demanded that Afghanistan hand over terrorist kingpin Osama bin Laden, the number one suspect in the attacks on America, and to shut down every terrorist camp in the country or face military attack.
“These demands are not open to negotiation or discussion,” Bush said. “The Taliban (government) must act and act immediately. They will hand over the terrorists or they will share in their fate.” Bush also expressed the fact that the fight facing our country is going to be long.
“Americans should not expect one battle, but a lengthy campaign,” Bush said. “Great harm has been done to us. We have suffered great loss and on our grief and anger we have found our mission and our moment. Freedom and fear are at war.”
Bush addressed every nation, asking them to join in the battle against terrorism. British Prime Minister Tony Blair, along with Saudi Arabia, China and 16 other European nations have pledged to support the U.S.
Bush informed the nation that the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington D.C. would not be the last attack on American soil unless something was done now to stop history from being repeated. Currently, more and more military units are being sent to the Middle East and Southwest Asia. Top Air Force commander Lt. Gen. Charles Wald is stationed at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia and is able to run an air war in the region. Thomas White, Secretary of the Army, has stated that ground troops would also be sent to the area. More than a dozen warplanes and aircraft carriers were dispatched to the Persian Gulf area, and though Defense Department officials stated Wednesday that the U.S. was given permission to operate out of Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, those countries said no agreements were made official with Washington.
Pakistan offered to provide extensive support for U.S. concerning antiterrorist actions. Pakistan president Gen. Pervez Musharraf has agreed to open his airspace to U.S. military aircraft and provide military bases for logistics teams and special forces units involved in possible operations in Afghanistan.
Bush made it clear that all military units would be used in this war.
“We will direct every resource at our command, every means of diplomacy, every tool of intelligence, every instrument of law enforcement, every financial influence and every necessary weapon of war to the disruption and defeat of the global terror network.”
On the other side of the world, Afghanistan’s top Islamic clerics met in a two day conference in Kabul, Afghanistan to make a final decision as to what to do with the U.S. demand for bin Laden. They ruled that the Taliban should persuade bin Laden to leave “in proper time and of his own free will.” The meeting appeared to be a debate between entering a war to defend bin Laden and a step taken to prevent American assault. The clerics said they will not force bin Laden to leave, and also stated that if the U.S. forces attack targets in Afghanistan, they would call for a jihad (holy war). U.S. officials were not satisfied with this decision, claiming it is insufficient.
“We want action, not just statements,” Secretary of State Colin Powell said.
Bush concluded his speech by telling the nation that “the course of this conflict is not known, yet its outcome is certain. In all that lies before us, may God grant us wisdom, and may he watch over the United States of America.”
