[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 41, Number 43 (Monday, October 31, 2005)]
[Pages 1610-1617]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks on the War on Terror in Norfolk, Virginia

October 28, 2005

    The President. Thank you all. Thank you all very much. Please be 
seated. Thanks for the warm welcome. Thanks for the chance to get out of 
Washington. [Laughter]
    It is great to be here in the Commonwealth of Virginia. You had a 
lot of history in this part of the world. This part of the country was 
home to the first English-speaking colony on the continent, birthplace 
of representative government in America, and the site of George 
Washington's victory in the Revolutionary War. I call him the first 
George W. [Laughter]
    In the 21st century, the tradition of patriotism and freedom still 
runs strong here in the Hampton Roads. I know there's a lot of folks 
here in our military who live here, and I know there's a lot of veterans 
live here. So the first thing I want to say is to those who wear the 
uniform: This country is with you, and the Commander in Chief is 
incredibly proud of you. And to the veterans: Thanks for setting such a 
good example. I'm proud of your service.
    Dee, thanks for the introduction, and thanks for the invitation. I 
want to thank Jack Hornbeck as well. I appreciate so very much the 
Senator from the great State--or the Commonwealth of Virginia, is here, 
George Allen. Thanks for coming, George. And Congresswoman Thelma Drake 
is with us. Thanks for coming. I appreciate you being here, honored 
you're here.
    Mayor, thanks for coming. I appreciate Mayor Fraim. He's here from 
the city of Norfolk. He's a--the only thing I told him is--he didn't ask 
for my advice, but I gave it anyway--I said, ``Fill the potholes.'' 
[Laughter] Thanks for serving. I appreciate your serving, Mayor. Thanks 
for greeting me today. I want to thank all the local and State officials 
who've joined us.
    I want to thank the military commanders who are here: Lieutenant 
General Anthony Jones and Lieutenant General Mark Curran, Lieutenant 
General Bob Wagner, Major General Jim Soligan. Thank you all for being 
here. John McCarthy, Major General McCarthy of the Marine Corps, Rear 
Admiral John Acton, Rear Admiral Steve Turcotte, I'm honored you all 
took time to come.
    I appreciate the foreign officers here. I appreciate you being here. 
I appreciate the jointness that we're working on and the transformation 
they're working on together to make sure that we're able to keep the 
peace. This is an important mission. I want to thank Admiral Sir Mark 
Stanhope. He's the Deputy Supreme Allied Commander of Transformation, in 
the United Kingdom's Royal Navy. I appreciate Lieutenant General Michel 
Maisonneuve. She's [He's] * in the Canadian Air Force. She's [He's] * 
NATO Headquarters Supreme Allied Commander Transformation Chief of 
Staff. Thank you all for being here. Thanks for being such strong allies 
in the cause of peace.
    * White House correction.
    I appreciate the vibrancy of the community in which you live. This 
is a good place to live. It's a good place to find work. It's a good 
place to realize your dreams. It's a place where people understand that 
in order to make sure that our society stays vibrant and people can 
realize their dreams, we got to face squarely the threats that our 
Nation deals with. People here, I think, understand this fact, that 
America is engaged in the first war of the 21st century and that the 
stakes could not be higher.
    On the morning of September the 11th, 2001, we saw the destruction 
that the terrorists intend for this Nation. We know they want to strike 
again. And our Nation has made a clear choice: We will confront this 
mortal danger to all humanity. And we will

[[Page 1611]]

not tire, and we will not rest until the war on terror is won.
    In the 4 years since September the 11th, the evil that reached our 
shores has reappeared on other days, in other places--in Mombasa and 
Casablanca and Riyadh and Jakarta and Istanbul and Madrid, in Beslan and 
Taba and Netanya and Baghdad and elsewhere. In the past few months, we 
have seen a new terror offensive with attacks on London and Sharm el-
Sheikh and a deadly bombing in Bali once again.
    Audience member. Mr. President, war is terror.
    Audience members. Boo-o-o!
    The President. All these separate images of destruction and 
suffering that we see on the news can seem like random and isolated acts 
of madness. Innocent men, women, and children have died simply because 
they boarded the wrong train or worked in the wrong building. They have 
died because they checked into the wrong hotel. Yet while the killers 
choose their victims indiscriminately, their attacks serve a clear and 
focused ideology, a set of beliefs and goals that are evil but not 
insane.
    Some call this evil Islamic radicalism; others, militant jihadism; 
and still others, Islamofascism. Whatever it's called, this ideology is 
very different from the religion of Islam. This form of radicalism 
exploits Islam to serve a violent and political vision, the 
establishment--by terrorism, subversion, and insurgency--of a 
totalitarian empire that denies all political and religious freedom. 
These extremists distort the idea of jihad into a call for terrorist 
murder against Christians and Hindus and Jews and also against Muslims 
who do not share their radical vision, whom they regard as heretics.
    Many militants are part of a global, borderless terrorist 
organizations like Al Qaida, which spreads propaganda and provides 
financing and technical assistance to local extremists and conducts 
dramatic and brutal operations like the attacks of September the 11th. 
Other militants are found in regional groups, often associated with Al 
Qaida, paramilitary insurgencies and separatist movements in places like 
Somalia, the Philippines, and Pakistan and Chechnya and Kashmir and 
Algeria. Still others spring up in local cells, inspired by Islamic 
radicalism but not centrally controlled or directed. Islamic radicalism 
is more like a loose network with military branches than an army under a 
single command. Yet these operatives, fighting on scattered 
battlefields, share a similar ideology and vision for our world.
    We know the vision of the radicals because they have openly stated 
it in videos, in audiotapes, and letters and declarations and web sites. 
First, these extremists want to end American and Western influence in 
the broader Middle East, because we stand for democracy and peace and we 
stand in the way of their ambitions. Al Qaida's leader, Usama bin Laden, 
has called on Muslims to dedicate, their ``resources, sons, and money to 
driving the infidels out of their lands.'' The tactics of Al Qaida and 
other Islamic extremists have been consistent for a quarter-century: 
They hit us, and they expect us to run. Earlier this month, the world 
learned of a letter written by Al Qaida's number two leader, a man named 
Zawahiri. He wrote this letter to his chief deputy in Iraq, the 
terrorist Zarqawi. In it, Zawahiri points to the Vietnam war as a model 
for Al Qaida. Zawahiri writes, ``The aftermath of the collapse of 
American power in Vietnam and how they ran and left their agents is 
noteworthy.'' The terrorists witnessed a similar response after the 
attacks on American troops in Beirut in 1983 and Mogadishu in 1993. They 
believe that America can be made to run again, only this time on a 
larger scale with greater consequences.
    Second, the militant network wants to use the vacuum created by an 
American retreat to gain control of a country, a base from which to 
launch attacks and to conduct their war against nonradical Muslim 
governments. Over the past few decades, radicals have specifically 
targeted Egypt and Saudi Arabia and Pakistan and Jordan for potential 
takeover. They achieved their goal, for a time, in Afghanistan, and now 
they have set their sights on Iraq. In his recent letter, Zawahiri 
writes that Al Qaida views Iraq as, ``the place for the greatest 
battle.'' The terrorists regard Iraq as the central front in their war 
against humanity, and we must recognize Iraq as the central front in our 
war against terror.

[[Page 1612]]

    Third, these militants believe that controlling one country will 
rally the Muslim masses, enabling them to overthrow all moderate 
governments in the region and establish a radical Islamic empire that 
spans from Spain to Indonesia. Zawahiri writes that the terrorists, 
quote, ``must not have their mission end with the expulsion of Americans 
from Iraq.'' He goes on to say, ``The jihad . . . requires several 
incremental goals. . . . Expel the Americans from Iraq. . . . Establish 
an Islamic authority over as much territory as you can to spread its 
power in Iraq. . . . Extend the jihad wave to the secular countries 
neighboring Iraq.'' * With the greater economic, military, and political 
power they seek, the terrorists would be able to achieve their stated 
agenda, to develop weapons of mass destruction, to destroy Israel, to 
intimidate Europe, to assault the American people, and to blackmail our 
Government into isolation.
    * Ellipsis added by the White House.
    Some might be tempted to dismiss these goals as fanatical or 
extreme. They are fanatical and extreme, but they should not be 
dismissed. Our enemy is utterly committed. As Zawahiri [Zarqawi] ** has 
vowed, ``We will either achieve victory over the human race, or we will 
pass to the eternal life.'' And the civilized world knows very well that 
other fanatics in history, from Hitler to Stalin to Pol Pot, consumed 
whole nations in war and genocide before leaving the stage of history. 
Evil men, obsessed with ambition and unburdened by conscience, must be 
taken very seriously--and we must stop them before their crimes can 
multiply.
    ** White House correction.
    Defeating the militant network is difficult, because it thrives like 
a parasite on the suffering and frustration of others. The radicals 
exploit local conflicts to build a culture of victimization in which 
someone else is always to blame and violence is always the solution. 
They exploit resentful and disillusioned young men and women, recruiting 
them through radical mosques as pawns of terror. And they exploit modern 
technology to multiply their destructive power. Instead of attending 
faraway training camps, recruits can now access online training 
libraries to learn how to build a roadside bomb or fire a
rocket-propelled grenade, and this further spreads the threat of 
violence, even within peaceful democratic societies.
    The influence of Islamic radicalism is also magnified by helpers and 
enablers. They have been sheltered by authoritarian regimes, allies of 
convenience like Syria and Iran, that share the goal of hurting America 
and modern Muslim governments and that use terrorist propaganda to blame 
their own failures on the West, on America, and on the Jews. The 
radicals depend on front operations, such as corrupted charities, which 
direct money to terrorist activity. They are strengthened by those who 
aggressively fund the spread of radical and intolerant versions of Islam 
in unstable parts of the world. The militants are aided as well by 
elements of the Arab news media that incite hatred and anti-Semitism, 
that feed conspiracy theories and speak of a so-called American ``war on 
Islam,'' with seldom a word about American action to protect Muslims in 
Afghanistan and Bosnia and Somalia and Kosovo and Kuwait and Iraq and 
with seldom a word about our generous assistance to Muslims recovering 
from natural disasters in places like Indonesia and Pakistan.
    Some have also argued that extremism has been strengthened by the 
actions of our coalition in Iraq, claiming that our presence in that 
country has somehow caused or triggered the rage of radicals. I would 
remind them that we were not in Iraq on September the 11th, 2001, and Al 
Qaida attacked us anyway. The hatred of the radicals existed before Iraq 
was an issue, and it will exist after Iraq is no longer an excuse. The 
Government of Russia did not support Operation Iraqi Freedom, and yet 
the militants killed more than 150 Russian schoolchildren in Beslan.
    Over the years, these extremists have used a litany of excuses for 
violence: The Israeli presence on the West Bank or the U.S. presence in 
Saudi Arabia or the defeat of the Taliban or the Crusades of a thousand 
years ago.
    In fact, we're not facing a set of grievances that can be soothed 
and addressed. We're facing a radical ideology with inalterable 
objectives, to enslave whole nations and intimidate the world. No act of 
ours invited the rage of killers, and no consequence, bribe,

[[Page 1613]]

or act of appeasement would change or limit their plans of murder.
    On the contrary, they target nations whose behavior they believe 
they can change through violence. Against such an enemy, there is only 
one effective response. We will never back down; we will never give in; 
and we will never accept anything less than complete victory.
    The murderous ideology of the Islamic radicals is the great 
challenge of our new century. Yet in many ways, this fight resembles the 
struggle against communism in the last century. Like the ideology of 
communism, Islamic radicalism is elitist, led by a self-appointed 
vanguard that presumes to speak for the Muslim masses. Bin Laden says 
his own role is to tell Muslims, ``what is good for them and what is 
not.'' And what this man who grew up in wealth and privilege considers 
good for poor Muslims is that they become killers and suicide bombers. 
He assures them that this is the road to paradise, though he never 
offers to go along for the ride. [Laughter]
    Like the ideology of communism, our new enemy teaches that innocent 
individuals can be sacrificed to serve a political vision. And this 
explains their cold-blooded contempt for human life. We have seen it in 
the murders of Daniel Pearl, Nicholas Berg, and Margaret Hassan and many 
others. In a courtroom in the Netherlands, the killer of Theo van Gogh 
turned to the victim's grieving mother and said, ``I don't feel your 
pain, because I believe you are an infidel.'' And in spite of this 
veneer of religious rhetoric, most of the victims claimed by the 
militants are fellow Muslims.
    In an Al Qaida attack on two Baghdad hotels this week, the targets 
were journalists and innocent Iraqis. When unsuspecting hotel guests are 
blown up in their rooms or 25 Iraqi children are killed in a bombing or 
Iraqi teachers are executed at their school or hospital workers are 
killed caring for the wounded, this is murder, pure and simple--the 
total rejection of justice and honor and morality and religion. These 
militants are not just the enemies of America or the enemies of Iraq; 
they are the enemies of Islam and the enemies of humanity. And we have 
seen this kind of shameless cruelty before in the heartless zealotry 
that led to the gulags, the Cultural Revolution, and the Killing Fields.
    Like the ideology of communism, our new enemy pursues totalitarian 
aims. Its leaders pretend to be an aggrieved party, representing the 
powerless against imperial enemies. In truth, they have endless 
ambitions of imperial domination, and they wish to make everyone 
powerless except themselves. Under their rule, they have banned books 
and desecrated historical monuments and brutalized women. They seek to 
end dissent in every form, to control every aspect of life, and to rule 
the soul itself. While promising a future of justice and holiness, the 
terrorists are preparing a future of oppression and misery.
    Like the ideology of communism, our new enemy is dismissive of free 
peoples, claiming that men and women who live in liberty are weak and 
decadent. Zarqawi has said that Americans are, and I quote, ``the most 
cowardly of God's creatures.'' But let us be clear. It is cowardice that 
seeks to kill children and the elderly with car bombs and cuts the 
throat of a bound captive and targets worshipers leaving a mosque. It is 
courage that liberated more than 50 million people from tyranny. It is 
courage that keeps an untiring vigil against the enemies of a rising 
democracy. And it is courage in the cause of freedom that will once 
again destroy the enemies of freedom.
    And Islamic radicalism, like the ideology of communism, contains 
inherent contradictions that doom it to failure. By fearing freedom--by 
distrusting human creativity and punishing change and limiting the 
contributions of half of the population, this ideology undermines the 
very qualities that make human progress possible and human societies 
successful. The only thing modern about the militants' vision is the 
weapons they want to use against us. The rest of their grim vision is 
defined by a warped image of the past, a declaration of war on the idea 
of progress itself. And whatever lies ahead in the war against this 
ideology, the outcome is not in doubt: Those who despise freedom and 
progress have condemned themselves to isolation, decline, and collapse. 
Because free peoples believe in the future, free peoples will own the 
future.

[[Page 1614]]

    We didn't ask for this global struggle, but we are answering 
history's call with confidence and a comprehensive strategy. Defeating a 
broad and adaptive network requires patience and constant pressure and 
strong partners in Europe, in the Middle East, and North Africa and Asia 
and beyond. Working with these partners, we are disrupting militant 
conspiracies, destroying their ability to make war, and are working to 
give millions in a troubled region of the world a hopeful alternative to 
resentment and violence.
    First, we're determined to prevent the attacks of terrorist networks 
before they occur. We are reorganizing the Government to give this 
Nation a broad and coordinated homeland defense. We are reforming our 
intelligence agencies for the incredibly difficult task of tracking 
enemy activity, based on information that often comes in small fragments 
from widely scattered sources, both here and abroad. And we're acting, 
along with governments from many countries, to destroy the terrorist 
networks and incapacitate their leaders.
    Together with our coalition partners, we have disrupted a number of 
serious Al Qaida plots since September the 11th, including several Al 
Qaida plots to attack inside the United States. Our coalition against 
terror has killed or captured nearly all those directly responsible for 
the September the 11th attacks. We've killed or captured most of bin 
Laden's senior deputies: Al Qaida's managers and operatives in more than 
24 countries; the mastermind of the U.S.S. Cole bombing, who was the 
chief Al Qaida operations--chief of Al Qaida operations in the Persian 
Gulf; we captured the mastermind of the bombings in Jakarta and Bali; a 
senior Zarqawi terrorist planner, who was planning attacks in Turkey; 
and many of Al Qaida's senior leaders in Saudi Arabia. Because of this 
steady progress, the enemy is wounded, but the enemy is still capable of 
global operations. Our commitment is clear: We will not relent until the 
organized international terror networks are exposed and broken and until 
their leaders are held to account for their murder.
    Secondly, we're determined to deny weapons of mass destruction to 
outlaw regimes and to their terrorist allies, who would use them without 
hesitation. The United States, working with Great Britain and Pakistan 
and other nations, has exposed and disrupted a major black-market 
operation in nuclear technology led by A.Q. Khan. Libya has abandoned 
its chemical and nuclear weapons programs as well as its long-range 
ballistic missiles. And in the last year, America and our partners in 
the Proliferation Security Initiative have stopped more than a dozen 
shipments of suspected weapons technology, including equipment for 
Iran's ballistic missile program. This progress has reduced the danger 
to free nations, but it has not removed it. Evil men who want to use 
horrendous weapons against us are working in deadly earnest to gain 
them. And we are working urgently to keep weapons of mass murder out of 
the hands of the fanatics.
    Third, we're determined to deny radical groups the support and 
sanctuary of outlaw regimes. State sponsors like Syria and Iran have a 
long history of collaboration with terrorists, and they deserve no 
patience from the victims of terror. The United States makes no 
distinction between those who commit acts of terror and those who 
support and harbor them, because they are equally guilty of murder.
    Fourth, we're determined to deny the militants control of any nation 
which they would use as a home base and a launching pad for terror. This 
mission has brought new and urgent responsibilities to our Armed Forces 
and to all of you. American troops are fighting beside Afghan partners 
with remnants of the Taliban and their Al Qaida allies. We are working 
with President Musharraf to oppose and isolate the militants in 
Pakistan. We're fighting the regime remnants and terrorists in Iraq. The 
terrorist goal is to overthrow a rising democracy, claim a strategic 
country as a haven for terror, destabilize the Middle East, and strike 
America and free nations with ever-increasing violence. That's their 
goal. Our goal is to defeat the terrorists and their allies at the heart 
of their power, so we will defeat the enemy in Iraq.
    Our coalition, along with our Iraqi allies, is moving forward with a 
comprehensive plan. As Secretary Rice explained last week, our strategy 
is to clear, hold, and build. We

[[Page 1615]]

are working to clear areas from terrorist control, to hold those areas 
securely, and to build lasting and democratic Iraqi institutions. In 
recent weeks, American and Iraqi troops have conducted several major 
assaults to clear out enemy fighters in western Iraq and to help shut 
down terrorist entry routes from Syria. During one raid, our forces 
killed a Zarqawi henchman named Abu Abdullah, who was responsible for 
attacks on American troops and innocent Iraqis. We also killed a 
terrorist named Abu Dua, who had been helping terrorists enter Iraq from 
Syria. Thousands of Iraqi forces have been participating in our 
operations, and many have remained in the cities along with coalition 
forces to hold onto our gains and prevent the enemy from returning. 
Iraqi forces are using their local expertise to maintain security and 
make tangible improvements in the lives of their fellow Iraqis.
    At the same time, Iraqis are making inspiring progress toward 
building a lasting democracy. Earlier this month, millions of Iraqis 
turned out to vote on a constitution that guarantees fundamental 
freedoms and lays the foundation for lasting democracy. And this week, 
the Iraqi elections commission certified passage of that constitution. 
Many more Sunnis participated in this vote than in January's historic 
elections, and the level of violence was dramatically lower. With their 
courageous vote, the Iraqis have once again proved their determination 
to build a democracy united against extremism and violence. An 85-year-
old Iraqi woman cast a ballot in favor of the constitution after her son 
carried her to the polls on his back. And here's what she said, ``I went 
out to vote for it because I want the future to be safe and peaceful for 
my sons and my grandchildren.''
    The work ahead involves great risk for Iraqis and for American and 
coalition forces. We have lost some of the Nation's finest men and women 
in the war on terror. Each of these men and women left grieving families 
and left loved ones back home. Each of these patriots left a legacy that 
will allow generations of their fellow Americans to enjoy the blessings 
of liberty. Each loss is heartbreaking. And the best way to honor the 
sacrifices of our fallen troops is to complete the mission and lay the 
foundation of peace by spreading freedom.
    Wars are not won without sacrifice, and this war will require more 
sacrifice, more time, and more resolve. The terrorists are as brutal an 
enemy as we have ever faced, unconstrained by any notion of common 
humanity or by the rules of warfare. No one should underestimate the 
difficulties ahead, nor should they overlook the advantages we bring to 
this fight.
    Some observers look at the job ahead and adopt a self-defeating 
pessimism. It is not justified. With every random bombing and with every 
funeral of a child, it becomes more clear that the extremists are not 
patriots or resistance fighters; they are murderers at war with the 
Iraqi people themselves. In contrast, the elected leaders of Iraq are 
proving to be strong and steadfast. By any standard or precedent of 
history, Iraq has made incredible political progress from tyranny to 
liberation, to national elections, to the ratification of a 
constitution--in the space of 2\1/2\ years. And with our help, the Iraqi 
military is gaining new capabilities and new confidence with every 
passing month. At the time of our Fallujah operations nearly a year ago, 
there were only a few Iraqi army battalions in combat. Today there are 
nearly 90 Iraqi army battalions fighting the terrorists alongside our 
forces. General David Petraeus says, ``Iraqis are in the fight. They are 
fighting and dying for their country, and they are fighting increasingly 
well,'' he says. The progress isn't easy, but it is steady. And no fair-
minded person should ignore or deny or dismiss the achievements of the 
Iraqi people.
    Some observers question the durability of democracy in Iraq. They 
underestimate the power and appeal of freedom. We've heard it suggested 
that Iraq's democracy must be on shaky ground because Iraqis are arguing 
with each other. [Laughter] But that's the essence of democracy: You 
make your case; you debate with those you disagree with; you build a 
consensus by persuasion; and you answer to the will of the people. We've 
heard it said that the Shi'a, the Sunnis, and the Kurds of Iraq are too 
divided to form a lasting democracy. In fact, democratic federalism is 
the best hope for unifying a diverse population because a federal 
constitutional

[[Page 1616]]

system respects the rights and religious traditions of all citizens, 
while giving all minorities, including the Sunnis, a stake and a voice 
in the future of their country. It is true that the seeds of freedom 
have only recently been planted in Iraq, but democracy, when it grows, 
is not a fragile flower. It's a healthy, sturdy tree. As Americans, we 
believe that people everywhere prefer freedom to slavery and that 
liberty, once chosen, improves the lives of all. And so we're confident, 
as our coalition and the Iraqi people each do their part, Iraqi 
democracy will succeed.
    Some observers also claim that America would be better off by 
cutting our losses and leaving Iraq now. This is a dangerous illusion, 
refuted with a simple question: Would the United States and other free 
nations be more safe or less safe with Zarqawi and bin Laden in control 
of Iraq, its people, and its resources? Having removed a dictator who 
hated free peoples, we will not stand by as a new set of killers, 
dedicated to the destruction of our country, seizes control of Iraq by 
violence.
    There is always a temptation, in the middle of a long struggle, to 
seek the quiet life, to escape the duties and problems in the world, and 
to hope the enemy grows weary of fanaticism and tired of murder. That 
would be a pleasant world, but it's not the world we live in. The enemy 
is never tired, never sated, never content with yesterday's brutality. 
This enemy considers every retreat of the civilized world as an 
invitation to greater violence. In Iraq, there is no peace without 
victory, and so we will keep our nerve and win that victory.
    The fifth element of our strategy in the war on terror is to deny 
the militants future recruits by replacing hatred and resentment with 
democracy and hope across the broader Middle East. This is a difficult 
and long-term project, yet there is no alternative to it. Our future and 
the future of that region are linked. If the broader Middle East is left 
to grow in bitterness, if countries remain in misery, while radicals 
stir the resentments of millions, then that part of the world will be a 
source of endless conflict and mounting danger, in our generation and 
for the next. If the peoples of that region are permitted to choose 
their own destiny and advance by their own energy and participation as 
free men and women, then the extremists will be marginalized, and the 
flow of violent radicalism to the rest of the world will slow and 
eventually end. By standing for the hope and freedom of others, we make 
our own freedom more secure.
    America is making this stand in practical ways. We are encouraging 
our friends in the Middle East, including Egypt and Saudi Arabia, to 
take the path of reform, to strengthen their own societies in the fight 
against terror by respecting the rights and choices of their people. We 
are standing with dissidents and exiles against oppressive regimes, 
because we know that the dissidents of today will be the democratic 
leaders of tomorrow. We are making our case through public diplomacy, 
stating clearly and confidently our belief in self-determination and the 
rule of law and religious freedom and equal rights for women, beliefs 
that are right and true in every land and in every culture.
    And as we do our part to confront radicalism, we know that the most 
vital work will be done within the Islamic world itself. And this work 
has begun. Many Muslim scholars have publicly condemned terrorism, often 
citing Chapter 5, Verse 32 of the Koran, which states that killing an 
innocent human being is like killing all of humanity, and saving the 
life of one person is like saving all of humanity. After the attacks in 
London on July the 7th, an imam in the United Arab Emirates declared, 
``Whoever does such a thing is not a Muslim nor a religious person.'' 
The time has come for all responsible Islamic leaders to join in 
denouncing an ideology that exploits Islam for political ends and 
defiles a noble faith.
    Many people of the Muslim faith are proving their commitment at 
great personal risk. Everywhere we have engaged the fight against 
extremism, Muslim allies have stood up and joined the fight, becoming 
partners in a vital cause. Afghan troops are in combat against Taliban 
remnants. Iraqi soldiers are sacrificing to defeat Al Qaida in their own 
country. These brave citizens know the stakes: The survival of their own 
liberty, the future of their own region, the justice and humanity of 
their own tradition, and we are proud to stand beside them.

[[Page 1617]]

    With the rise of a deadly enemy and the unfolding of a global 
ideological struggle, our time in history will be remembered for new 
challenges and unprecedented dangers. And yet the fight we have joined 
is also the current expression of an ancient struggle between those who 
put their faith in dictators and those who put their faith in the 
people. Throughout history, tyrants and would-be tyrants have always 
claimed that murder is justified to serve their grand vision, and they 
end up alienating decent people across the globe. Tyrants and would-be 
tyrants have always claimed that regimented societies are strong and 
pure, until those societies collapse in corruption and decay. And 
tyrants and would-be tyrants have always claimed that free men and women 
are weak and decadent, until the day that free men and women defeat 
them.
    We don't know the course of our own struggle, where it will take us, 
or the sacrifices that might lie ahead. But we do know, however, that 
the defense of freedom is worth our sacrifice. We do know the love of 
freedom is the mightiest force of history. And we do know the cause of 
freedom will once again prevail.
    Thank you for having me. May God bless you all.

Note: The President spoke at 10:07 a.m. at Chrysler Hall. In his 
remarks, he referred to D. R. ``Dee'' Carpenter III, chair, and John A. 
``Jack'' Hornbeck, Jr., president and chief executive officer, Hampton 
Roads Chamber of Commerce; Mayor Paul D. Fraim of Norfolk, VA; Lt. Gen. 
Anthony R. Jones, USA, deputy commanding general and chief of staff, and 
Lt. Gen. John M. ``Mark'' Curran, USA, deputy commanding general, 
Futures, and director, Futures Center, United States Army Training and 
Doctrine Command; Lt. Gen. Robert W. Wagner, USA, acting commander, and 
Maj. Gen. James N. Soligan, USAF, chief of staff, United States Joint 
Forces Command; Maj. Gen. John J. McCarthy, USMC, deputy commander, 
Marine Forces Atlantic, Marine Forces South, and Marine Forces Europe; 
Rear Adm. John C. Acton, USCG, deputy area commander, Mobilization and 
Reserve Affairs, Atlantic Area; Rear Adm. Stephen A. Turcotte, USN, 
commander, Navy Region Mid-Atlantic; Lt. Gen. J.O. Michel Maisonneuve, 
Canadian Army, chief of staff to the Supreme Allied Commander, 
Transformation, North Atlantic Treaty Organization; Ayman Al-Zawahiri, 
founder of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad and senior Al Qaida associate; 
senior Al Qaida associate Abu Musab Al Zarqawi; Mohammed Bouyeri, who 
was convicted of the murder of Theo van Gogh; Anneke van Gogh, mother of 
Theo van Gogh; Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, Al Qaida's chief of operations 
for the Persian Gulf; Nurjaman Riduan Isamuddin (also known as Hambali), 
Al Qaida's chief operational planner in Southeast Asia; A.Q. Khan, 
former head of Pakistan's nuclear weapons program; President Pervez 
Musharraf of Pakistan; Lt. Gen. David H. Petraeus, USA, former 
commander, Multi-National Security Transition Command--Iraq; and former 
President Saddam Hussein of Iraq.