Sean Wood
U.S. Aid for France: Involvement in Recent Paris Attacks
“The Treaty of Alliance with France was signed on February 6, 1778, creating a military
alliance between the United States and France… (Library of Congress).” Assistance from the
United States for Paris, is not only a historical obligation, but a duty of the American People.
France, “America’s ‘oldest ally’ (Ball)”, backed the United States during the Revolution; Now is
the time to return the favor. Syria, believed to contain major ISIS leaders, and a majority of their
affiliates, was the home territory for al-Qaeda, the terrorist organization that launched attacks on
the World Trade Center on September 11th, 2001. “The Islamic State (ISIS) stands with al-Qaeda
as one of the most dangerous jihadist groups, after its gains in Syria and Iraq (BBC (b)).” The
United States is notorious for staying out of Eastern and Middle-Eastern conflicts; Obama should
have used his Presidential power of the Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) and
deployed troops in February of 2015 after the killing of Kayla Mueller, an American citizen held
hostage by ISIS. “This was, after all, the organization that was holding her against her will. That
means they were responsible for her safety and well-being, and they are therefore responsible for
her death (Shoichet).” Taking action is now a necessity, and the longer the United States waits,
the worse matters will become. “France now looks like being the US’s only major international
partner in any possible strike on Syria (Ball).” The nations of the world continue to ignore the
fact that terrorist organizations are at an all-time high at the moment, and attacks such as these
could cause another World War if not dealt with in a timely fashion.
“Shootings and bomb blasts left at least 129 people dead and hundreds wounded, with
more than 100 in a critical condition (BBC (a)).” A total of at least 229 casualties is an execution
that Paris and The United States cannot ignore, as well as the entire world. Other nations are
fully aware of the terrorist attacks that just occurred, and they are taking a neutral stand. Six
planned attacks happened in one night, causing mass fear and chaos across the globe and
grieving for every citizen in Paris, France. “France is pulling out all the stops as Francois
Hollande scrambles to fulfil his ambitious pledge to build a global military coalition to defeat
Islamic State following the Paris attacks (Tisdall).” President Hollande of France will stop at
