Many experts have been saying this for years, but now the National Intelligence Estimate, the classified assessment that represents the consensus view of U.S. government intelligence agencies, is saying it as well. Here, from a story to appear in tomorrow's New York Times, it is:
A stark assessment of terrorism trends by American intelligence agencies has found that the American invasion and occupation of Iraq has helped spawn a new generation of Islamic radicalism and that the overall terrorist threat has grown since the Sept. 11 attacks.
President Bush has said just the opposite many times. For example, in a speech at the National Endowment for Democracy on October 6, 2005, he stated, "The terrorists regard Iraq as the central front in their war against humanity. And we must recognize Iraq as the central front in our war on terror."
How will the Iraq fiasco be justified now?