--- title: "8 Al qaeda Quotes By Michael Scheuer" description: "8 Al qaeda quotes by Michael Scheuer. Plus more from Michael Scheuer and more Al qaeda sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/247/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_iraq-for-the-first-time-gives-al-qaeda-a_115156.jpg" --- > [Iraq, for the first time, gives al Qaeda and its allies contiguous safe-haven territory to train and launch attacks into the Levant.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/iraq-for-the-first-time-gives-al-qaeda-and-its-allies-contiguous-safe/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/247/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_iraq-for-the-first-time-gives-al-qaeda-a_115156.jpg) > [In terms of Iraq, al Qaeda valued Iraq because we destroyed a government it wanted destroyed and because we put soldiers on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/in-terms-of-iraq-al-qaeda-valued-iraq-because-we-destroyed-a/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bdc/michael-scheuer-7471_afghan_in-terms-of-iraq-al-qaeda-valued-iraq-be_897043.png) > [There is a direct correlation between what al Qaeda says and what it does. And the one thing that has been the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/there-is-a-direct-correlation-between-what-al-qaeda-says-and-what-it/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/307/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_there-is-a-direct-correlation-between-wh_1157911.jpg) > [We have not destroyed al Qaeda, so we still have that to worry about. We have its traditional allies, the Kashmiri groups,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/we-have-not-destroyed-al-qaeda-so-we-still-have-that-to-worry-about/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bef/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_we-have-not-destroyed-al-qaeda-so-we-sti_1533015.png) > [No one should be surprised when Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda detonate a weapon of mass destruction in the United States.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/no-one-should-be-surprised-when-osama-bin-laden-and-al-qaeda-detonate/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ced/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_no-one-should-be-surprised-when-osama-bi_1685668.png) > [Initial incompetence is not a reason to be dismissive of capabilities. Al Qaeda itself was incompetent when it started as a terrorist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/initial-incompetence-is-not-a-reason-to-be-dismissive-of-capabilities/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/43a/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_initial-incompetence-is-not-a-reason-to_1811525.jpg) > [Iraq broke our back in terms of counterterrorism. There's no doubt about it. The first thing, though, that hurt us was the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/iraq-broke-our-back-in-terms-of-counterterrorism-there-s-no-doubt/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cd/michael-scheuer-7471_afghanistan_iraq-broke-our-back-in-terms-of-countert_2267875.png) > [I think we'll see it mostly in the United States. We're getting to the point where al Qaeda is ready to again…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/i-think-we-ll-see-it-mostly-in-the-united-states-we-re-getting-to-the/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb2/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_i-think-we-ll-see-it-mostly-in-the-unite_2280110.png) ## Other authors on Al qaeda ## More by Michael Scheuer > [Iraq, for the first time, gives al Qaeda and its allies contiguous safe-haven territory to train and launch attacks into the Levant. First into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/iraq-for-the-first-time-gives-al-qaeda-and-its-allies-contiguous-safe/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) > [Well, there are certain pockets of improvement. The one that I think is most important is that state and local law enforcement levels have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/well-there-are-certain-pockets-of-improvement-the-one-that-i-think-is/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) > [You become an anti-Semite. And as powerful as the Israeli lobby is, the Saudi lobby is just as powerful. In fact, the Saudis probably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/you-become-an-anti-semite-and-as-powerful-as-the-israeli-lobby-is-the/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) > [Without the connotation good or bad, bin Laden's a great man in the sense that he's influenced the course of history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/without-the-connotation-good-or-bad-bin-laden-s-a-great-man-in-the/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) > [I know these days it sounds a little odd, but American governments are very fearful of European reaction. They were afraid we would be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/i-know-these-days-it-sounds-a-little-odd-but-american-governments-are/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) > [The whole importance of Iraq is that we have now created two things. One, Iraq is in the Arab heartland in terms of an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/the-whole-importance-of-iraq-is-that-we-have-now-created-two-things/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) > [Bin Laden does reprehensible activities, and we should surely take care of that by killing him as soon as we can. But he's not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/bin-laden-does-reprehensible-activities-and-we-should-surely-take/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) > [The uniqueness of the unit was more or less that it was focused on a single individual. It was really the first time the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/the-uniqueness-of-the-unit-was-more-or-less-that-it-was-focused-on-a/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) > [I think it's very instructive to look at a man like Ramsey Ahmad Yousef, who almost brought down the World Trade Center in 1993.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/i-think-it-s-very-instructive-to-look-at-a-man-like-ramsey-ahmad/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) > [The treatise found that he was perfectly within his rights to use them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/the-treatise-found-that-he-was-perfectly-within-his-rights-to-use-them/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) > [Every mujahadeen who comes in from outside the country finds an environment where Arabic is spoken. So in that sense, it's a tremendous come-on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/every-mujahadeen-who-comes-in-from-outside-the-country-finds-an/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) > [We've gone thorough religious wars and civil wars. America has gone through slavery, we've all gone through two world wars, segregation. Ultimately it's been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/we-ve-gone-thorough-religious-wars-and-civil-wars-america-has-gone/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) > [I don't know what our capabilities are. If I were there, I think it would be nutty to do that. The only country on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/i-don-t-know-what-our-capabilities-are-if-i-were-there-i-think-it/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) > [One of the reasons they didn't go to Bosnia, bin Laden has explained extensively, was because they couldn't establish a base anywhere. Not in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/one-of-the-reasons-they-didn-t-go-to-bosnia-bin-laden-has-explained/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) > [Where he was, where his cells were, where his logistical channels were, how he communicated. Who his allies were. Who donated to them. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/where-he-was-where-his-cells-were-where-his-logistical-channels-were/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/al-qaeda/michael-scheuer/#itemlist", "name": "8 Al qaeda Quotes By Michael Scheuer", "numberOfItems": 8, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Iraq, for the first time, gives al Qaeda and its allies contiguous safe-haven territory to train and launch attacks into the Levant. First into Jordan and Syria, and then into Lebanon, and virtually and ultimately into Israel and probably Egypt too. It also gives them haven to eventually work their way toward Turkey and into the Arabian Peninsula.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Scheuer" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/iraq-for-the-first-time-gives-al-qaeda-and-its-allies-contiguous-safe/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/247/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_iraq-for-the-first-time-gives-al-qaeda-a_115156.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/247/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_iraq-for-the-first-time-gives-al-qaeda-a_115156.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/247/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_iraq-for-the-first-time-gives-al-qaeda-a_115156.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Iraq, for the first time, gives al Qaeda and its allies contiguous safe-haven territory to train and launch…” — Michael Scheuer", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In terms of Iraq, al Qaeda valued Iraq because we destroyed a government it wanted destroyed and because we put soldiers on the ground and forces that they could attack. Al Qaeda is basically an insurgent organization that was formed on the model of the Afghan groups. And being bred in that war, they value a contiguous safe haven as much as anything else.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Scheuer" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/in-terms-of-iraq-al-qaeda-valued-iraq-because-we-destroyed-a/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bdc/michael-scheuer-7471_afghan_in-terms-of-iraq-al-qaeda-valued-iraq-be_897043.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bdc/michael-scheuer-7471_afghan_in-terms-of-iraq-al-qaeda-valued-iraq-be_897043.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bdc/michael-scheuer-7471_afghan_in-terms-of-iraq-al-qaeda-valued-iraq-be_897043.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In terms of Iraq, al Qaeda valued Iraq because we destroyed a government it wanted destroyed and because we…” — Michael Scheuer", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There is a direct correlation between what al Qaeda says and what it does. And the one thing that has been the gold standard of correlation has been bin Laden's 1995 - or was it 1996? - pledge that every attack is going to be more powerful than the last. If you go back to the first attack in Yemen in 1992 and chart it out, every attack has been more powerful, more destructive than the last one.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Scheuer" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/there-is-a-direct-correlation-between-what-al-qaeda-says-and-what-it/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/307/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_there-is-a-direct-correlation-between-wh_1157911.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/307/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_there-is-a-direct-correlation-between-wh_1157911.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/307/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_there-is-a-direct-correlation-between-wh_1157911.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There is a direct correlation between what al Qaeda says and what it does. 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We have its traditional allies, the Kashmiri groups, the groups that are operating now in Iraq, and now we have a third tier of threat amongst the Muslims that live in the West and who are inspired to do something against the West by the example of the other two tiers.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Scheuer" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/we-have-not-destroyed-al-qaeda-so-we-still-have-that-to-worry-about/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bef/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_we-have-not-destroyed-al-qaeda-so-we-sti_1533015.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bef/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_we-have-not-destroyed-al-qaeda-so-we-sti_1533015.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bef/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_we-have-not-destroyed-al-qaeda-so-we-sti_1533015.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We have not destroyed al Qaeda, so we still have that to worry about. 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But I think it's pretty close to being inevitable.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Scheuer" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/no-one-should-be-surprised-when-osama-bin-laden-and-al-qaeda-detonate/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ced/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_no-one-should-be-surprised-when-osama-bi_1685668.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ced/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_no-one-should-be-surprised-when-osama-bi_1685668.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ced/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_no-one-should-be-surprised-when-osama-bi_1685668.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“No one should be surprised when Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda detonate a weapon of mass destruction in the…” — Michael Scheuer", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 6, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Initial incompetence is not a reason to be dismissive of capabilities. Al Qaeda itself was incompetent when it started as a terrorist organization. And clearly it's gone from blowing themselves up to knocking down the World Trade Center.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Scheuer" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/initial-incompetence-is-not-a-reason-to-be-dismissive-of-capabilities/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/43a/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_initial-incompetence-is-not-a-reason-to_1811525.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/43a/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_initial-incompetence-is-not-a-reason-to_1811525.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/43a/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_initial-incompetence-is-not-a-reason-to_1811525.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Initial incompetence is not a reason to be dismissive of capabilities. 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And by the time we actually attacked Afghanistan, al Qaeda and the Taliban had dispersed.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Scheuer" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/iraq-broke-our-back-in-terms-of-counterterrorism-there-s-no-doubt/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cd/michael-scheuer-7471_afghanistan_iraq-broke-our-back-in-terms-of-countert_2267875.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cd/michael-scheuer-7471_afghanistan_iraq-broke-our-back-in-terms-of-countert_2267875.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cd/michael-scheuer-7471_afghanistan_iraq-broke-our-back-in-terms-of-countert_2267875.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Iraq broke our back in terms of counterterrorism. There's no doubt about it. The first thing, though, that…” — Michael Scheuer", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 8, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think we'll see it mostly in the United States. We're getting to the point where al Qaeda is ready to again attack us inside America. I think we're basically defenseless.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Scheuer" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/i-think-we-ll-see-it-mostly-in-the-united-states-we-re-getting-to-the/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb2/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_i-think-we-ll-see-it-mostly-in-the-unite_2280110.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb2/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_i-think-we-ll-see-it-mostly-in-the-unite_2280110.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb2/michael-scheuer-7471_al-qaeda_i-think-we-ll-see-it-mostly-in-the-unite_2280110.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I think we'll see it mostly in the United States. 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