The London bombings, which killed more than fifty people and wounded more than 700, were despicable acts that, like those in Madrid, Bali, the United States and elsewhere, have rightly been condemned by all decent people. But British Prime Minister Tony Blair's claim that the chief motivation of the terrorists was "a desire to impose extremism on the world" rang as hollow as George W. Bush's claim after the September 11 attacks that Islamic terrorists "hate our freedoms."

The rationale for the London attacks appeared plain enough, whoever bore direct responsibility. A previously unknown group calling itself The Secret Organization of Al Qaeda in Europe claimed that the bombings--which officials in London said had been carried out by British-born Muslims--were "in retaliation for the massacres that Britain is committing in Iraq and Afghanistan" and a punishment for Britain's support for Israel.

Viewed in this context, the bombings are another tragic reminder that Bush's invasion of Iraq was an ill-conceived and counterproductive response to 9/11. Instead of helping to win the "war on terror"--a dubious concept--the invasion has become a source of increased Arab anger and Iraq has turned into a training ground for new terrorists, some of them likely drawn from the more than 20 million Muslims who call Europe home. (A classified CIA report completed in May concluded that Iraq might prove more effective than Afghanistan in preparing recruits for acts of urban terror because it provides real-world experience.)

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