As Michael Scheuer, who ran the C.I.A.'s bin Laden unit until 1999, has pointed out, if bin Laden believed in Christmas, the Iraq war would be his perfect present from Santa Claus. The 9/11 attacks and the subsequent war in Afghanistan severely damaged bin Laden's organization.

In this quote, Peter Bergen references a statement by Michael Scheuer, a former head of the CIA's bin Laden unit, to illustrate how the Iraq war played into the hands of Osama bin Laden. Scheuer’s comment suggests that if bin Laden had believed in Christmas, the Iraq war would have been the ideal gift, implying that the war’s outcomes were beneficial to him and his goals. This highlights the strategic value of the Iraq conflict to bin Laden, as it helped to rally supporters and further his cause in the context of global jihad.

Bergen elaborates that the 9/11 attacks and the resulting war in Afghanistan severely weakened bin Laden’s organization. Despite the initial success of the 9/11 attacks, which put al-Qaeda in the global spotlight, the military response that followed led to significant setbacks for bin Laden and his network. This paradox—how the Iraq war benefited bin Laden while the war on terrorism hurt him—reflects the complex dynamics of the post-9/11 geopolitical environment and how foreign policy decisions can have unintended consequences.

The key idea in this quote is that the Iraq war inadvertently served bin Laden’s purposes by drawing U.S. military resources into a prolonged conflict that diverted attention from efforts to dismantle his network in Afghanistan. The war provided a rallying point for extremists and contributed to further destabilization in the Middle East. Bin Laden was able to use this chaos to his advantage, recruiting more fighters and strengthening his narrative against Western intervention in Muslim countries.

The origin of this quote stems from Peter Bergen’s expertise in terrorism and counterterrorism. As a journalist and analyst, Bergen has studied al-Qaeda extensively and written about the consequences of the U.S. response to terrorism. His reference to Scheuer’s insight reflects a nuanced understanding of the complex relationship between military actions, global terrorism, and the strategic objectives of groups like al-Qaeda.