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ISIS will only be stopped when it is destroyed

Throughout Europe on Tuesday afternoon, heads of state made pledges similar to that from German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Her country stands in “full solidarity” with Belgium, where 31 people were killed and nearly 200 wounded in bombings by Islamic terrorists, Merkel said.

European Union leaders promised to use “all necessary means” to defend member states against terrorists. They will be “united and firm,” they insisted.

But will they? And, more important to Americans, how will the U.S. government react to what happened in Belgium?

With one important exception – Russian intervention in Syria – action against Islamic terrorists has been primarily defensive for several years. President Barack Obama still will not refer to the threat as “Islamic terrorism.” For most of his seven years in office, he spoke of containing, not destroying, terrorist groups.

What happened Tuesday was a clear warning from the Islamic State to leaders in Belgium and elsewhere: Become too aggressive in fighting us, and suffer the consequences. The bombings occurred just after Belgian police arrested an IS operative who was involved in the massive attack last year in Paris.

Islamic terrorist leaders want those they would destroy to remain on the defensive, like sitting ducks.

For too long, leaders in this country and many others have obliged them.

As long as that continues, Islamic terrorists will be able to stage attacks like those in Brussels and Paris – and in the United States. Civilized people will be safe from them only when the organized murderers are destroyed.

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