Special report: Tension escalates in Iraq

    OTTAWA, Sept. 16 (Xinhua) -- The West is losing the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan because it does not understand the true motives of terrorists and is thus taking wrong strategies against them, a former analyst of U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) said Sunday.

    The reason for Osama bin Laden and his followers to fight the West is not because of their different values, or because they hate freedom, democracy or gender equality, but rather lies in Western countries' policies in the Middle East, Michael Scheuer, a retired 22-year CIA veteran told Canadian Television during an interview.

    American and the West's unqualified support for Israel, support for tyrannical regimes in the Middle East, and dependence on oil in the region are the real factors behind the terrorist acts of Islamic fundamentalist, he pointed out.

    Western countries so far have not realized or acknowledged these true reasons for terrorism, and so "we're fighting an enemy that doesn't exist," he said, adding "if you don't fight the enemy in the way that he's motivated, you're going to lose."

    He warned the United States should never have entered Iraq and is on the verge of losing the war in that country. He said Western countries like Canada are pursuing wrong strategies in Afghanistan and may also face loss there.

    Canada and its allies have too many agendas in Afghanistan and yet have deployed too few soldiers to carry out the tasks. This has already led to a near-defeat there and if Western countries decide to pull out combat troops it would mean the ultimate triumph of terrorism, he said.

    Scheuer said that victory against Islamic fundamentalists can only come if Canadian, the United States, and other Western governments change strategies and understand what motivates terrorists.

    Scheuer's book "Through Our Enemies' Eyes" was mentioned by Osama bin Laden in a video released last week when the al Qaida leader tried to explain why the West was to lose in fight with him.