From the Washington Times:
Joint Chiefs of Staff planners have produced a 27-page briefing on the war on terror that seeks to explain how to win the “long war” and says Islamic extremists may be supported by 12 million Muslims worldwide.
Military planners worry that al Qaeda could win if “traditional allies prefer accommodation.”
Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, the document states, “is absolutely committed to his cause. His religious ideology successfully attracts recruits. He has sufficient population base from which to protract the conflict. … Even support of 1 percent of the Muslim population would equate to over 12 million ‘enemies.’ ”
The unclassified production, titled “Fighting the Long War — Military Strategy for the War on Terrorism,” is a component of the Pentagon’s ongoing campaign to explain that a lengthy struggle requires patience from the American people and Congress…
“The United States cannot be defeated militarily,” the briefing says, “the enemy knows this. But consider … terror attacks weaken the world economy. Continued casualties weaken national resolve. Traditional allies prefer accommodation.”
The enemy has “inherent weaknesses,” including “no military capacity to expand their fight beyond terrorist tactics.”
“Marginalizing an ideology requires patience and promoting reform from within,” the briefing said.
Although it is similar to the Cold War, the war on terror has a distinction.
“We cannot discredit all of Islam as we did with communism,” the document says. “It is a divine religion. We can only discredit the violent extremist.”
“Americans will commit to a ‘long war’ if … they are confident our leaders know what they are doing.”