Former CIA Deputy Director Michael Morell says that the Obama administration and others have “done very, very little to degrade” ISIS’s terror network.
In an interview with CBS News on Tuesday, Morell said that it is “more difficult” for ISIS to conduct attacks in America but “we have to assume that ISIS is in the process of trying to build that network here, or maybe has already built it.” (RELATED: Suicide Bombings At Brussels Airport And Metro)
Explaining the Brussels terrorist attack, Morell said, “I think there’s sort of a macro picture here and a micro picture. The macro picture here is that the network that ISIS has build in Europe is large and it’s sophisticated. As a result of the Paris investigation, we’ve learned that they’ve got bombmakers. We’ve learned that they’ve got forgers. We’ve learned that they’re able to move money. [It’s] a very sophisticated network.”
“After Paris, we’ve done very, very little to degrade that network,” Morell claimed.
“The micro part of the story about what happened today is I think it’s a reflection of the arrest of the logistics chief Abdeslam last Friday. We know that he was involved in additional attack plotting,” Morell said. Adding, “I think when he was arrested the individuals that he was working with decided to move quickly in case he talked to the police. I think what happened today is a reflection of that as well.” (RELATED: Mastermind Behind Paris Attacks Arrested In Brussels)
Host Norah O’Donnell followed up about the possibility of attacks in the United States, and Morell said, “I think it’s more difficult … to put together such a sophisticated network [in America]. Just more difficult, but not impossible. I think we have to assume that ISIS is in the process of trying to build that network here, or maybe has already built it. So, I think we have to act on that and believe that it’s a real possibility.”
O’Donnell then asked Morell to provide an update on the Obama administration’s fight against ISIS and he said, “Well, we picked up the intensity of the fight in Iraq and Syria after Paris but what happened today in Brussels if it does indeed turn out to be ISIS… this is a big victory for them.”
The Washington Free Beacon noted that Morell said, “We’re still not degrading ISIS enough to degrade their ability to attacks us in the West, so this is a big win for them.”