Andrew Sullivan Quotes

Recent action in Syria and Palestine also tell us that the awakening voices of democracy in those regions are occurring, and that those in that region are able to pursue it without being stifled by terrorists that are despotic.

Several experts on the Middle East concur that the Middle East cannot be democratized.

And now when we hear that Iran and Iraq plan to cooperate more closely and that a fundamentalist is coming to power in Tehran - a man about whom we cannot be sure that he is absolutely averse to terrorism - it is very worrisome.

Nevertheless, I do know that we are part of a danger zone, we have military operations in Afghanistan and we're training the Iraqi police force. The terrorists also have us in their sights.

The terrorists know what is at stake, which is why they are pulling out all the stops to derail our efforts. They understand that a free and democratic Iraq is a serious blow to their interests.

It is wrong to claim, as some do, that the motivation of al-Qaeda and its allies is some desire to seek justice in the Middle East ... Al-Qaeda and its allies have no clear demands for the Middle East. The only common thread in their approach is a violent and destructive opposition to democracy in any form. They find democracy in Palestine abhorrent and seek to destroy it

Terrorism and its executioners have their own agenda, entirely independent of the popular will, of democratic considerations or institutions, or of the aspirations and desires of the community they claim to represent. They are defeated, not by the operation of some mystical force called ‘popular will’, but by the force of arms. Their activities are not some convenient substitute for the ballot box; they are an absolute rejection of every value integral to democracy.

One of the greatest fears of the Arab world is a direct conflict between Israel and the Islamic State.

Al Qaeda has overplayed their hand. What the al Qaeda do when they go into a town or village or a neighborhood inside a major city is they get a stranglehold on the people themselves. They force the men to wear beards and the women to be properly costumed and essentially completely covered up.

Hamas and Hezbollah operate within geopolitical norms. They can be negotiated and reasoned with. ISIL is a different animal altogether - a religious cult an order of magnitude more extreme than even the most extreme Islamic groups of the past.

The rise of ISIS has exposed the darkest side of humanity - at times manifesting their violent ideology at our very doorsteps.

We understand that ISIS is a group that's growing in its governance of territory. It's not just Iraq and Syria. They are now a predominant group in Libya. They are beginning to pop up in Afghanistan. They are increasingly involved now in attacks in Yemen. They have Jordan in their sights. This group needs to be confronted with serious proposals.

We often speak of domestic terrorism and hate crimes in the same breath, and there is a fine line between the two, and certainly overlap in some cases.

When an Indian meets a terrorist, we condemn this.

The Taliban is resilient.

Yet while on my trip to the Middle East, the London bombings occurred. This was yet another stark reminder that if we don't fight terrorists abroad, they just get closer to our home.

The rise of ISIS in Iraq is a wider threat to the stability of the Middle East and the West than many realise.

The deadliest foe of democracy is not autocracy but liberty frenzied.

What causes terrorism is disrespect, a lack of justice, and poverty.

There have been linkages between the Iraqi government and al-Qaeda going back more or less a decade.

There are works of fiction which seek to explain jihadi terrorists as the militant wing of Amnesty International. I don't buy that.

I think what Osama bin Laden does is to take the fact that some peoples lack hope and lack opportunity, and twist it to his own ends.

The risk of a terrorist victory is greater when in fighting terror, democracy betrays its own essence.

Al-Qa'ida is the antithesis of the peace, tolerance and humanity that is at the heart of Islam.

What could be better in al-Qaeda's mind than to have India and Pakistan going at each other? What more to further their aims?