Using Al-Qaeda linked fighters to battle IS could succeed: Petraeus

MSN.com ^ | September 2 2015 | AFP

[CorporateStepsister]

Former US military commander David Petraeus said Wednesday fighters from Al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate could be used to take on the Islamic State group as he warned that his nation's hesitation to enforce "red lines" in Syria had damaged US credibility.

The decorated four-star general said a controversial move to harness fighters from a group linked to Al-Qaeda -- which was responsible for the September 11, 2001 attacks -- was "an option that has some prospect for achievement".

Petraeus, who was feted for changing the course of the Iraq war in 2007, said the focus was not on cooperating with the leaders of Al-Qaeda affiliate Al-Nusra Front but with its fighters, using similar strategies from the previous conflict.

"There are elements... who for reasons of opportunism or convenience ended up fighting under Jabhat al-Nusra as they realised that the moderate opposition was not yet sufficiently resourced," he told the Lowy Institute think-tank in Sydney.

[CorporateStepsister]

Good idea.

[cripplecreek]

We never ever learn.

[BenLurkin]

Sometimes the enemy of your enemy — is still your enemy.

[SunkenCiv]

Petraeus: Use Al Qaeda Fighters to Beat ISIS

David Petraeus' bright idea: give terrorists weapons to beat terrorists

[Georgia Girl 2]

This kind of thinking is what results from smoking too much Mexican ditchweed. :-)

[TWhiteBear]

Petraeus is such a stooge.
The nation may have been better off when he was cheating on his wife and banging a Russian spy.
TWB

[BitWielder1]

Arming one enemy to fight another is fraught with certain uncertainties.
Especially in this case, these guys are not natural enemies.
Noting that ISIS was built by warriors who thought Al-Qaeda was too wimpy, they could easily join forces and turn on us with double the strength of either.

[Diogenesis]

Workplace accident?

Amish attack?

Any Girl Scout knows to avoid her molester the second time.

[DoughtyOne]

It would be an even better idea if fighters for al Qaeda and ISIS didn’t switch sides at will.

[pieceofthepuzzle]

This is like chemotherapy. You only use it when you don't have other means to get rid of the cancer, because the chemo has off-target toxicity and could also lead to secondary cancers.

[RJS1950]

Sounds like the trap we fell into in the 80s when we supported and armed the Taliban to defeat the Soviets.

Bad idea.

[PGR88]

The arrogance and willful stupidity of America’s ruling class is beyond comprehension.

[huldah1776]

wouldn’t be having this discussion if the air war was really a war and not just sporadic bombing of empty buildings.

[Seruzawa]

Many years ago when daddy Bush sent the troops to liberate Kuwait I went on record saying that we would rue the day we got so involved in the Middle East. Every occupying power in history has been savaged there. The insane factionalism of the population guarantees that anyone attempting to pacify it will simply get its collective throats cut. Now soemone thinks we can ally with al-Qaeda? One would have to have a college degree to become that stupid.

We don’t need their oil. Eff em.

[TangibleDisgust]

We never ever learn.

^^^ this.

i hate this realpolitik nonsense. we always end up paying a much higher cost later. it would be better to just bomb every muslim military faction everywhere in the world back to the stone age. the Devil has plenty of room for them all down in Hell. that's where they want to go anyway. i say give them all an express one-way ticket to their 72 raisins.

[TangibleDisgust]

It would be an even better idea if fighters for al Qaeda and ISIS didn’t switch sides at will.

you cannot trust them. there is no true honor in the muslim world. those people lie to and deceive "infidels" as a matter of religious principle. anyone who thinks otherwise is a bigger fool than Obama.

[freedomfiter2]

Bad idea. How about we arm the K urds and the Christians.

[cripplecreek]

The Kurds are the only solid allies we have there.