Is America Safe?

Seven years after 9/11, al Qaida and its allies are gaining ground across the region. Bin Laden and his inner circle have established new bases inside Pakistan , where they plotted deadly attacks in London and Madrid , and where U.S. intelligence officials say they're plotting new attacks and training recruits. This year Taliban has carried out their most lethal attacks against foreign troops, launching coordinated strikes in different areas that combine regular attackers and suicide bombers. Last month over a two-day period the insurgents hit a major U.S. base in eastern Afghanistan with at least 10 suicide bombers and a ground force and ambushed a French-Afghan patrol near Kabul. The insurgents' strategy has two major goals: to erode popular support for the U.S.-backed governments in Islamabad and Kabul and to undermine popular backing in the United States and allied countries for continuing the mission in Afghanistan . They appear to be succeeding, with recent polls in Britain , France , Holland and Canada showing majorities favoring troop withdrawals. How can you blame them, when they see no progress in the control over the Taliban?