Posted on 01/12/2005 12:15:15 AM PST by Jim Robinson
CAIRO, Egypt (AP) Osama bin Laden has vowed to turn Iraq into the front line of his war against the United States, but Iraqi insurgents seem worried that he's out to hijack their rebellion.
At times, the Iraqis and foreign Muslim militants seem to be competing. Media reports and Web statements have speculated that a Saudi carried out the Dec. 21 suicide bombing of a U.S. mess tent in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul that killed 22 people. But Ansar al-Sunnah, the homegrown group that took responsibility for that deadliest of attacks on a U.S. target in Iraq, named the bomber as Abu Omar of Mosul, a nom de guerre that pointedly claims him as an Iraqi.
Earlier this month, a posting on Ansar al-Sunnah's Web site told foreign militants to stop coming. The group, which defines itself as both nationalist and Islamic, said it needed money, not more recruits.
''We have concrete information that a sharp division is now broiling between'' Iraqis waging a nationalist war and foreign Arabs spurred by militant Islam, said Mouwafak al-Rubaie, the Iraqi government's national security adviser. ''They are more divided than ever.''
Al-Rubaie said one reason was the perception among Iraqis that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the Jordanian militant whom bin Laden endorsed as his deputy in Iraq, was of little help during the American onslaught on the Iraqi insurgent hotbed of Fallujah in November.
''Al-Zarqawi and his group fled Fallujah and let the Iraqis face the attack alone,'' al-Rubaie said in a telephone interview.
Some Iraqis may have drawn parallels between the debacle in Fallujah and what happened to Afghanistan after it became bin Laden's headquarters...
(Excerpt) Read more at boston.com ...
oh, so now its a "rebellion".
The Boston Globe never fails to humor me.
Good morning, Jim.
Yes, and Zarqawi is Luke Skywalker.
For all the press's attempt to claim their is a nationalist "insurgency" of some sort, and of more importance then the foreign Jihadis, you'll note that the former Baathists and the Jihadis work in unison.
Unlike Iran's puppet Sadr, these two supposedly conflicting and separate groups operate in the same areas, so one would expect, were the press's implictations accurate, that these two groups would be fighting each with some regularity...but they don't seem to be.
Of course the mindful observer will remember that the secular Hussein gave Islamist leader Zarqawi sanctury when the latter fled American forces in Afghanistan...
Seems to me it's better if Iraq is the front line of the war and not New York City. It's the bug zapper theory: Let all the terrorists flock to Iraq and the Marines will be there waiting.
"It's the bug zapper theory"
Pentagon staff prefer the term "fly-paper" strategy. Same thing.
oh yeh...
*waves to Jim* Thanks for the site! Your baby killed CBS! Woot!
It what Robert Jensen has been claiming (and cheering for our defeat).
They put the cart before the horse.
Insurgents don't kill civilian children.
Media Schadenfreude and Media Shenanigans PING
As I see it we have two wars going. The first and most difficult is the Sunni and Shi'a dispute for power. The reality is that as soon as the US is out of the picture the Sunni are gone and they know it. How the Kurds will play in this is any ones guess. Mine is that they will cozy up to the Turks and cut an oil deal for military support (treaty).
It seems clear that the Sunni are opposing the elections because it would mean that the US might pull out and leave them at the mercy Shi'a consequently they keep the war going hoping for a miracle. Strange as it may seem we are the only allies the Sunni have.
The second war is the foreign influence that we call terrorist and will disappear once there is stability in the government and the common people cease to support them.
The real solution is to neutralize the formal governments in the middle east and allow the people to restructure according to religion and culture----but for the oil.
Why don't the nationalists VOTE if they're so nationalistic?!
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