A major study prepared for the Pentagon has criticized how the Bush administration has focused on using military might to defeat al-Qaeda in the so-called war on terror. The RAND Corporation study concludes that the current strategy for defeating al-Qaeda has failed in diminishing the group’s capabilities. The study recommends a “fundamental rethinking of US strategy” to focus on minimizing overt military action while increasing intelligence collection and partnerships with law enforcement agencies around the world. The co-author of the study, Seth Jones, said, “Terrorists should be perceived and described as criminals, not holy warriors, and our analysis suggests there is no battlefield solution to terrorism.”
