The dreadful events of September 11th 2001 can never be in any way condoned. My heart goes out to those who lost relatives and friends on that day. But I believe the so-called "War on Terrorism" waged by the USA against Afghanistan is the self-interested effort of a rich nation to manipulate a very poor one. Paul Foot outlines why there is no case for America's military action and some of the alternative moves that could be made.

There is and will be no justice done as a result of the bombings. I expect many people will disagree with me, but I feel strongly that this war is wrong. There is a vast humanitarian crisis about to explode in Afghanistan, and the Western governments do not care. This will kill many more people than the September 11th atrocities. Will thousands more civilian deaths make anyone feel better? I don't think so. It will certainly expose the bombing campaign as a foolish attempt at revenge.

America is not exactly in a position to wage a 'just' war. Its foreign policy has exacerbated trouble in many of the world's hotspots. It is likely to come out of this campaign with even more enemies than before, warns George Galloway MP. But then he, like others, knew the terrible events of September 11th were always possible in the light of America's foreign policy.

If you wish to read more about it then please try some of the links below.

• George Monbiot reflects on whether we have really 'won' when Kabul was taken by the Northern Alliance, 15th November 2001.
• George Monbiot again, on that old chestnut, America and oil, 23rd October 2001.
• Noam Chomsky on the New War Against Terror, 24th October.
• George Galloway MP is known to be one of the best-informed MPs on the subject of the Middle East. Read his speech to the House of Commons on 2nd November.
• US military aggression in The Gulf. Galloway describes his first-hand experience, 20th November 2001.
• Felicity Lawrence writes about the terrible conditions in Afghanistan, and People Not Profit look at the War and the wider picture.
• The Guardian: Afghanistan.
• Fifteen reasons to be angry - United Nations data makes for uncomfortable reading.
• Comment, debate and analysis of the 'War on Terrorism' after the terrorist attacks in the USA on Sept 11th 2001 from top independent website Urban75.com
• The horrors of the B-52s and comment on the Israel-Palestine conflict by Middle East veteran Robert Fisk, 4th December.
• Thousands will die from cluster bombs (BBC, 2nd December). But will anyone care? Thousands die in the World Trade Centre and its the biggest news for a century. American planes bomb a rocky, mountainous Middle Eastern country and no-one gives a sh*t. Why?
• Cluster bombs and the myth of "targeted bombing". Innocent people are already dying and suffering horrific injuries. Justin Huggler of the Independent, 27th November.
• Madaleine Bunting writes: "Coverage of this war has played down the civilian deaths and 4 million refugees. Yes, FOUR MILLION. Read the article.
• The American Government like to make out they are the "good guys" fighting terrorism. It's bollocks. Bianca Jagger, long time human rights campaigner, tells a very different story in The Guardian, December 8th.
• More than 3,500 civilians have been killed in Afghanistan by US Bombs, according to a study released 10 December by Marc W. Herold, Professor of Economics, International Relations, and Women's Studies at the University of New Hampshire. Read the article.
• "Children here deserve a better future " - a brief statement by Carol Bellamy, UNICEF executive director, during her visit to Afghanistan

Bill Clinton gave the Richard Dimbleby lecture in London on 14th December 2001. Before you dismiss him as an irrelevant sex-crazed party animal, it is worthwhile reading his speech, in which he made a few points.

"if you don't want to live with barbed wire around your children and grandchildren for the next hundred years, then it's not enough to defeat the terrorist. We have to make a world where there are far fewer terrorists, where there are fewer potential terrorists and more partners. And that responsibility falls primarily upon the wealthy nations, to spread the benefits and shrink the burdens. "

This is a message that the rich nations, especially America, don't want to hear. But there is no point ignoring it. He also discusses ways to combat poverty and disease. Read the full transcript.

Telegraph photographer Paul Glover donated this image of Afghan refugees to Unicef's Afghanistan Crisis Children's Appeal.

       

Click the image to read more about it.

As you tuck into your huge Christmas meal, open all those lovely, shiny presents or writhe with guilt at the amount you spent on yourself, try some of the links to organisations running appeals to help the people of Afghanistan and those affected by the attacks on September 11th.

Save the Children: Emergency Afghanistan appeal and donation page

Oxfam: working in Afghanistan

Christian Aid in Afghanistan

British Red Cross: Afghan crisis and British Red Cross donation page

Tearfund: Afghan crisis appeal and donation page (secure server)

Concern: appeal for people of Afghanistan, an organisation based in Dublin, Ireland.

September 11 Fund - helping those affected by the attacks on September 11th.

AfghanAid

Afghan Women's Mission

Human Rights Watch: Afghanistan

Some facts, December 2001

Money raised by UK and American citizens for victims of September 11th - �900m
Money raised by UK and American citizens for Afghanistan refugees - �14 m

Number of civilians killed in World Trade Centre - 3,234
Number of civilians killed in Afghanistan by U.S. Bombs - 3,767

More facts, May 2002

Number of US bombs dropped on Afghanistan since November 2001: 22,000
Proportion of bombs that may have missed their target: 1 in 4 (25%)

July 2002

Amount spent on the campaign in Afghanistan to date: $19,000 million.
The number of people killed in Afghanistan by US bombing will, of course have increased since the figure given at the end of 2001. Particularly heartbreaking was the 'accidental' bombing of a family wedding.

11th September 2002

One year after the atrocities in America, the airwaves and newspapers are saturated with accounts, coverage, opinion and comment on the event and its aftermath. As America is building towards an invasion of Iraq - a move that is likely to provoke more violence and death than I wish to imagine - there are some enlightened voices among the many.

Renowned historian Simon Schama on the questions Americans should be asking on the anniversary of September 11.

On the anniversary of the attacks in New York and Washington, former US President Bill Clinton says we can only counter the threat of terrorism by reparing the widening rift between the haves and the have-nots of our planet. He still has some very relevant things to say in this article for the Guardian.

A lack of progress lifting Afghanistan from real poverty and starvation could lead to more trouble. Read the article (Jason Burke for The Observer).

Using military force to remove Saddam from control in Iraq might have consquences beyond the country's borders. Peter Beaumont describes the possible 'blowback' if we get rid of Saddam Hussein.


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