Ireland breaking international law, says Chomsky

Philosopher Noam Chomsky tonight claimed that if Ireland is allowing rendition – the transportation of prisoners for interrogation in other states – by the US, then the Irish state is committing international crime.

Speaking at an Amnesty International lecture in Dublin, he told the audience that the US and Britain are leading terrorist states according to their own definition of terrorism.

The War on Terror could successfully be waged via constructive attempts to stop acting in ways which enhance the threat of violence, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor said.

But invading Iraq was not only an act of international terrorism, it increased the risk of terror and nuclear proliferation, he said.

Professor Chomsky, a long-standing critic of American foreign policy, was addressing the audience on the subject of the War on Terror.

He said the common definition of terror – the use or threat of violence to attain goals which are political, ideological or religious in nature - classified the US as a terrorist given its intervention in Iraq, Cuba, Nicaragua and a number of other countries.

He acknowledged terrorism was a major problem in the world, but said that if the priority of the US and Britain was really to tackle that threat they would not have invaded Iraq.

“We find, very easily, a way to reduce the threat of terror – stop acting in ways that, predictably, enhance the threat,” he said.

“There is extensive supporting evidence to show that – as anticipated – the invasion increased the risk of terror and nuclear proliferation.”

After the invasion, known weapons of mass destruction sites were left unguarded, he said, allowing the theft of equipment for nuclear, chemical and biological weapons for destinations unknown.

Prof Chomsky also said the invasion had intensified feelings of bitter resentment among Arabs towards the West and the ruling elites in the Middle East.

“None of this shows that planners prefer these consequences, of course,” he said.

“Rather they are not of much concern in comparison with much higher priorities that are obscure only to those who would prefer what human rights researchers sometimes call ’intentional ignorance’.”

Asked why he thought the US led the invasion into Iraq, he told the audience that anyone who was not “deeply enfeebled” by intentional ignorance knew it was to take over the Middle Eastern country’s immense resources and gain control of the world’s energy supplies.

“You can’t talk about exit strategies until you answer the question of why the US and Britain are determined not to leave,” he added.

“There are ways to deal constructively with the threat of terror, though not those preferred by ’bin Laden’s indispensable ally’ (the US), or those who try to avoid the real world by striking heroic poses about Islamofascism, or who simply claim that no proposals are made when there are quite straightforward proposals they do not like.

“The constructive ways have to begin with an honest look in the mirror, never an easy task, always a necessary one,” he said.

After a standing ovation from the audience, Prof Chomsky said he supported the day of action planned for March 18 and 19 by the anti-war movement to protest against war in Iraq.