World War IV

The term World War IV was coined by Professor Eliot Cohen from Johns Hopkins School for Advanced International Studies, and used most frequently by R. James Woolsey (Director of the Central Intelligence Agency 1993-1995) in reference to the current US-led War on Terrorism (World War III being the Cold War). However, it is not a widely used term by politicians or the press.

Arguments over World War IV

Woolsey argues that World War IV is a war against terrorism, but also a war for democracy and freedom against three distinct Middle Eastern groups:

  1. Shi'a Islamic fundamentalists (the "Mullahcracy" of Iran as well as Hizbollah);
  2. Pan-Arab social nationalists (such as the former Ba'athists of Saddam Hussein's Iraq)
  3. Wahhabi terrorists (including Al-Qaeda and other spin-offs from the Muslim Brotherhood).