Posted on 03/28/2008 9:30:20 PM PDT by april15Bendovr
The Liberal media has been focused on a so called Gaffe John McCain has made recently in the press.
Example is this IPS news story
http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=41693
POLITICS-US: McCain's Gaffes Reflect Bush's Iran-Qaeda Myth Analysis by Gareth Porter*
WASHINGTON, Mar 21 (IPS) - Sen. John McCain's confusion in recent allegations of Iranian training of al Qaeda fighters in Iraq is the result of a drumbeat of official propaganda about close Iran-al Qaeda ties that the George W. Bush administration and neoconservatives have promoted ever since early 2002.
Funny how the left-wing press is eager to point out a McCain Gaffe when their ratings and newspaper subscriptions are quickly heading south. Could that be due to their incompetence and inability to fact check?
I would like to post some information from articles here and let people decide for themselves if Al Qaeda has links with Iran.
http://www.frontpagemag.com/ARTICLES/Printable.aspx?GUID={9E091170-6A9D-48CA-BC7B-02FF7F84A443
Ansar Al-Islam: Iraq's Al-Qaeda Connection
By Jonathan Schanzer The Washington Institute for Near East Policy | 1/17/2003
"That same month, Jordan’s prime minister announced that al-Qaeda operative Fazel Inzal al-Khalayleh (a.k.a. Abu Mussab al-Zarqawi) had sought refuge with Ansar. Khalayleh had ordered the spring 2002 attack on Salih as well as the October 2002 murder of U.S. Agency for International Development officer Laurence Foley in Amman. Khalayleh’s deputy, Nur ad-Din ash-Shami (a.k.a. Abu Abdullah), was killed in a battle with Kurdish fighters less than two weeks ago. Currently, more than thirty Ansar militants (about twenty of whom are Arab) are incarcerated in Sulaymaniyah. Their testimony has provided clues about the group’s ties to Saddam Husayn, al-Qaeda, Iran, and weapons of mass destruction."
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/news/2005/12/mil-051216-mnfi01.htm
Arrest warrant issued for Iraqi terrorist leader with ties to Zarqawi
Multi-National Force-Iraq
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- On Dec. 4, The Iraqi Central Investigating Court in Baghdad issued an arrest warrant for Mullah Halgurd Al-Khabir, a “Jihadist” terrorist commander, suspected of leading the insurgency against Coalition and Iraqi forces. The arrest warrant states that Al-Khabir is wanted for violation of Iraqi Penal Code 194, committing terrorist acts.
Al-Khabir is the senior leader in Baghdad for the Iraqi based terrorist organization Ansar al-Sunna, and has historical ties to al Qaeda terrorist leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. Khabir replaced the previous commander of Ansar al-Suna, Abdallah Al-Shafi’i, after Shafi’i was killed in December, 2002, in a gun battle with local law enforcement.
Ansar al-Sunna, a terrorist organization with links to terrorists in Syria and Iran, have committed multiple suicide bomb attacks in Iraq that have resulted in the deaths of Coalition Forces, Iraqi Army Soldiers, Iraqi policemen and Iraqi citizens. The majority of these attacks have taken place in Baghdad, Kirkuk and Mosul. Interesting enough Joseph Shahda has found an Al Qaeda document that links Al Qaeda to Ansar Al Islam recently
Al Qaeda Document: Zarqawi Came to Iraq Before The War To Prepare The Fight Against U.S Al Qaeda document | March 16 2008 | jveritas Posted on 03/16/2008 5:49:59 PM EDT by jveritas
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1986706/posts
This document discovered by Joseph off the El-Ekhlaas terrorist forum written by Saif Al Adel who is an Al Qaeda leader.
From translation
"The Americans noticed that the Iranians were having a blind eye against our activities in Iran so they began a media attack against Iran accusing them of helping Al Qaeda and international terrorism."
Maybe our press doesn't have enough common sense to figure out that Iran turning a blind eye means giving a tacit approval for Al Qaeda to conduct terrorism. "Lets see about that?"
Joseph states
"There were many accounts about Zarqawi presence in Iraq before the war in particular in Northern Iraq with “Ansar Al Islam” an active Al Qaeda affiliated terrorist group that was present in the Kurdish areas of Iraq long before the war started. The document also proves that Ansar Al Islam helped Al Qaeda members establish themselves in Iraq before the war started."
Who is Abdullah Shafi’i ?
Newspapers had been reporting the leader of Ansar Al Islam Abdullah Shafi’i was killed in a gunfight without much confirmation including this quote from an article at globalsecurity.org
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/news/2005/12/mil-051216-mnfi01.htm
“Al-Khabir is the senior leader in Baghdad for the Iraqi based terrorist organization Ansar al-Sunna, and has historical ties to al Qaeda terrorist leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. Khabir replaced the previous commander of Ansar al-Suna, Abdallah Al-Shafi’i, after Shafi’i was killed in December, 2002, in a gun battle with local law enforcement.”
Question is why was there still a $50000 reward for his capture
http://counterterrorismblog.org/2005/06/50000_reward_announced_for_ans.php
$50,000 Reward Announced for Ansar al-Sunnah Commander in Iraq
By Evan Kohlmann
This from the Government Communications Directorate of the Republic of Iraq:
(Click to view photo of Abu Abdullah al-Shafi’i, c/o Globalterroralert.com)
“$50,000 Dollar Reward Announced For Ansar al Sunna Terrorist Leader Abu Abdullah Al-Shafi?i”
“The Iraqi government announced a reward of $50,000 U.S. dollars for information leading to the arrest of Abu Abdullah Al Shafi?i, widely believed to be the leader of the terrorist group Ansar al Sunna (AAS). The group has taken credit for numerous bombings, assassinations and other terrorist acts in Mosul, Kirkuk, Irbil and Baghdad. Al Shafi?i played a direct role in organizing and directing attacks that resulted in hundreds of deaths of Iraqi civilians and Iraqi Security Forces. Intelligence sources believe that foreign Arabs under the direct control of Al Shafi?i actively recruit and train terrorists, as well as provide weapons and financial support for terrorist attacks.”
“Purportedly Abu Abdullah al Shafi?i received his terrorist training in Afghanistan at a camp run by terrorist Osama Bin Laden. Al Shafi?I gained control of AAS in early 2003. AAS is an offshoot of the terrorist group, Ansar al-Islam (AAI).? The Origins of AAS date back to 2001 when several militant Islamist groups merged to form the AAI and established a terrorist base near the village of Khurmal, located in the mountains of northern Iraq along the Iranian border. Reports referred that the AAI base was destroyed in 2003 during the last war against Saddam’s Regime. Evidence suggests that prior to its destruction, Al Qaeda terrorists used the Khurmal AAI base for sanctuary.”
Also including this article
http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2005/6/A9667FC0-69A5-4CE3-B1E7-C15FC62F60DE.html
Afghanistan/Iraq: Al-Zarqawi, Al-Qaeda, And The New Islamist Front
Al-Zarqawi has established a vast network of fighters in Iraq and Iraqi authorities have indicated that the network includes Arab nationals as well as Afghan and Pakistani fighters. His Tanzim Qa’idat Al-Jihad fi Bilad Al-Rafidayn allegedly has close ties to the Ansar Al-Sunnah Army, an outgrowth of Ansar Al-Islam. U.S. and Iraqi authorities claim that successes have been made through a string of recent military operations targeting the groups. A Mosul operation on 28 May led to the capture of al-Zarqawi aide Mutlaq Muhammad Mutlaq Abdullah (aka Abu Ra’d). Iraqi Major General Khalil al-Ubaydi announced on 4 June the arrest of an Ansar Al-Sunnah member identified as Mullah Mahdi; al-Ubaydi contended that Mahdi carried out attacks at the direction of al-Zarqawi. Iraqi authorities this week announced a $50,000 reward for information leading to the capture of Ansar Al-Sunnah leader Abu Abdullah al-Shafi’i.
Why was the AP aware of an Al Qaeda linked group in Northern Iraq in 2002 but suddenly now have amnesia?
13 September 2002, Volume 5, Number 29
http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/news/iraq/2002/29-130902.htm
By the beginning of 2002 it was announced that the Jund al-Islam had changed its name to the Supporters of Islam and, in the Arabic nomenclature that has become more common in subsequent reports, Ansar al-Islam. At the same time, they held conciliation talks with the PUK. One result of the change to a less militant name was that the PUK might recognize them as a legal political party, reported “Hawlati” on 14 January 2002. One consequence of the talks between the two groups was that a number of the Afghan-Arabs had left for Baghdad, reported KurdishMedia.com on 1 February 2002. The former Jund admits that it is close to Osama bin Laden. Its Leader, Abu Abdullah al-Shaf’i, explained that the Jund believes in the necessity of retaliation, punishment of those who deviate from Islam, cutting off the hands of thieves, punishing single adulterers with 80 lashes and married adulterers by stoning to death. On the other hand, the PUK is trying to build a modern, civil society in Kurdistan. It is difficult to see any hopes for reconciliation between the parties.
By 3 March, AP reported that the U.S. admitted its awareness that a possible Al-Qaeda-linked group was operating in northern Iraq. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher is quoted as saying that he could not comment on Ansar al-Islam because official information on the matter is based on intelligence and therefore cannot be discussed publicly.
The AP dispatch also cites a recent article in the “New Yorker” suggesting that Al-Qaeda and Baghdad are jointly running the Ansar al-Islam. In addition, the “Kurdistan Observer” of 28 March 2002 cites a Kurdish military commander in Halabcha who expressed the belief that Iraq is funding the group. A “Daily Telegraph” report quotes Carole O’Leary, a professor of Middle Eastern Studies at American University in Washington, who maintains that “Saddam’s supporting Ansar al-Islam would be consistent with his desire to destabilize the Kurdistan Regional Government.”
http://64.233.169.104/search?q=cache:8NkMPLjW5nsJ:www.investigativeproject.org/documents/testimony/35.pdf+state.gov+Abdallah+Al-Shafi%E2%80%99i&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=16&gl=us&client=firefox-a
FFI RAPPORT
JIHAD IN EUROPE - A survey of the motivations for Sunni Islamist terrorism in post-millennium Europe
NESSER Petter
FFI/RAPPORT-2004/01146
11.4.6 Ansar al-Islam
Ansar al-Islam (Followers of Islam) was established in September 2001, by Mullah Krekar (currently under investigation in Norway suspected of being involved in attempted suicide operations in Northern Iraq), and Abu Abdallah al-Shafi (former leader of Jund al-Islam that merged with Krekar’s splinter group from the Kurdish Islamic Movement into Ansar al-Islam). Mullah Krekar was granted asylum in Norway in 1991. Since then he has traveled extensively to the Kurdish controlled areas in Iraq. The question of whether Krekar is an operational leader or a religious guide for Ansar is for the moment highly unclear. There have been various statements released on Islamist web pages claiming that Krekar no longer is the movement’s leader, but such statements might have been issued to take some of the pressure off the Norway-based mullah. Some statements claim he has been replaced with Muhammad Hasan, former leader of the Islamist group Soran Forces, while others claim Abdallah al-Shafi is the current leader of the movement. Al-Shafi was however reportedly killed in unconfirmed press reports in December 2002.323
Interesting how he was reported killed (unconfirmed) with that 50000 dollar reward for his capture?
The real question is how much more evidence does our media need to see or how much do they already know about but refuse to report about pre-war evidence of showing relationships between terrorist groups in Iraq and Al Qaeda?
The whole bunch of steaming pantloads should be deported to France for treason, and for giving aid and comfort to the enemy during a time of war.
They and their anti-Bush, anti-American rhetoric have inspired more fanatic ragheads, and killed more American troops and Iraqi civilians than our President's war plans. By firing up the "fundamentalist" hopes of driving us out of Iraq if the violence keeps ramping up, they have more blood on their hands in this war than they will ever admit to.
They make me sick. Commie liberal pukes.
;-/
Mark Eichenlaub just wrote a great article about the topic
On Saddam’s Order
The Iraqi tyrant didn’t “just” aid anti-American terrorist groups; he explicitly ordered them to attack.
By Mark Eichenlaub
http://article.nationalreview.com/print/?q=NWQzMmY4MGFmZDZkZjZmNTAwYTMzODFhNzllOWVkNDQ=
Here is the link to my article. I’m not sure the one I provided is working properly.
http://cdonohoe.blogtownhall.com/2008/03/28/al_qaeda,_ansar_al_islam_and_zarqawi.thtml
ping
thanks, nice piece
It wasn’t just a gaffe. He allowed Senator Lieberman to correct him into it.
Your article does a great job pointing out the language of defining Saddams relationship with terrorism.
Its sad the game the media is playing with this information.
As if Lieberman really knew what was going on in Iraq.
Mark its like you stated here
http://www.regimeofterror.com/archives/2006/06/ansar_alislam_and_saddam_husse/
Ansar al-Islam and Saddam Hussein's regime
Much has been written about Iraq's possible state-sponsorship of the Islamic militant group , who resided in Northern Iraq between 2001 and 2003, referred to by an assortment of names (Jund al-Islam, Ansar al-Islam, later Ansar al-Sunnah, etc.).
http://counterterrorismblog.org/2007/12/ansar_alsunnah_acknowledges_re.php
Ansar al-Sunnah Acknowledges Relationship with Ansar al-Islam, Reverts to Using Ansar al-Islam Name
By Evan Kohlmann
In recent days, the leader of the Ansar al-Sunnah Army (JAAS)—Commander Abu Abdullah al-Shafi—has issued a fairly remarkable communique that has received little public attention. Ansar al-Sunnah is one of Iraq's most prominent insurgent groups, and has worked more closely with Al-Qaida than any other such organization. For the first time, al-Shafi publicly acknowledged that Ansar al-Sunnah is just another name for Ansar al-Islam, the Kurdish Islamic movement formerly headed by Mullah Krekar. According to al-Shafi:
“Ansar al-Islam was the second-most important target for the American military forces [which invaded Iraq]... On [March 21, 2003], our group engaged in military battles against the American army and its supporters. After a period of fighting back against the American assault, the leadership of Ansar al-Islam decided to withdraw. As a result, the American army and the apostates took control of the area. Shortly thereafter, Allah enabled us to rearrange our movement and we returned in Iraq under the new name of Ansar al-Sunnah. Due to certain realities on the battlefield, we had to expand our operations, while modifying our tactics, in order to confront the American enemy and its supporters... Indeed, with the help of Allah, the mujahideen succeeded in many of the clashes, battles, ambushes, strikes, and suicide attacks. They were also pioneers in using improvised explosive devices (IEDs)... Given our responsibility in maintaining the principles of Islam, the unity of Muslims, and to deal with existential issues that shall determine our survival, we have decided to continue our work under the name of the Ansar al-Islam organization. This name shall be the official name used in all future communiqués and statements…”
Ansar Al Islam is still operating in Iraq. They always issues press releases regarding their terrorist operations.
Ansar Al Islam is still operating in Iraq. They always issue press releases regarding their terrorist operations.
Ansar Al Islam is still operating in Iraq. They always issue press releases regarding their terrorist operations.
Joseph
Ansar al-Sunnah is the group that was always seen with Zarqawi when he was beheading people.
It appears that they share members and are one in the same as Ansar Al-Islam.
Ansar al-Sunnah was the army that worked with Zarqawi threatening the new Iraqi government before elections by killing government officials and striking polling places.
Yes they are the same, they all work for Al Qaeda.
Wouldn’t that mean the Al Qaeda document you found takes the activities of Zarqawi and Al Qaeda right up to the current date?
Yes it does.
Thinking about this as a new topic for a video.
I would like to use some of the comments by Obama in this video talking about Al Qaeda not being in Iraq until we invaded
combined with the video you found about Al Qaeda and Ansar al Islam posted at Regime of terror.
“al Qaeda video documents Hussein era training in Northern Iraq”
http://www.regimeofterror.com/archives/2007/07/al_qaeda_video_documents_husse_1/
What are your thoughts on a segment that would explain the chronological history of Ansar Al Islam from the begining to the present including the Zaqawi relationship and the new al Qaeda document you found Joseph?
would love to get my hands on this original article from the London Arabic daily.
Iraq News Wire #8
http://memri.org/bin/articles.cgi?Page=countries&Area=iraq&ID=INW802
According to the London Arabic daily, Al-Hayat, Jalal Al-Talabani, who controls the border area close to Iran, estimated the number of the Ansar Al-Islam group in northern Iraq at “about 100-120 Arabs who fought in Afghanistan and created an alliance with armed Islamic Kurds…” He said that two active Islamic movements in the area ‘Hamas’ [a group that seceded from the ‘Islamic Movement’ in 1997 and called itself ‘Islamic Hamas in Iraqi Kurdistan’] and a group called ‘Al-Tawhid’ which also joined the alliance. He expressed his opinion that the “Ansar Al-Islam is not a cohesive group because it includes elements who support Al-Qa’ida and others who were trained in Afghanistan but are not pro Al-Qa’ida…” Al-Talabani said that he could not determine whether the alliance had any connections with Saddam Hussein’s regime, but added that there was information that Iraqi intelligence was present in its ranks. [10]
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