Posted on 07/03/2005 6:11:16 PM PDT by saquin
American troops on the Syrian border are enjoying a battle they have long waited to see - a clash between foreign al-Qa'eda fighters and Iraqi insurgents.
Tribal leaders in Husaybah are attacking followers of Abu Musab Zarqawi, the Jordanian-born terrorist who established the town as an entry point for al-Qa'eda jihadists being smuggled into the country.
The reason, the US military believes, is frustration at the heavy-handed approach of the foreigners, who have kidnapped and assassinated local leaders and imposed a strict Islamic code.
Fighting, which could be clearly heard at night over the weekend, first broke out in May when as many as 50 mortar rounds were fired across the city. But, to the surprise of the American garrison, this time it was not the target.
If a shell landed near the US base, "they'd adjust their fire and not shoot at us", Lt Col Tim Mundy said. "They shot at each other."
The trigger was the assassination of a tribal sheikh, from the Sulaiman tribe, ordered by Zarqawi for inviting senior US marines for lunch. American troops gained an insight into the measures the jihadists had imposed during recent house-to-house searches in nearby towns and villages.
Shops selling music and satellite dishes had been closed. Women were ordered to wear all-enveloping clothing and men forbidden from wearing western clothes.
Anyone considered to be aiding coalition forces was being killed or kidnapped. That included those with links to the government - seen as a US puppet - such as water or electricity officials. As a result local services had collapsed.
Captain Thomas Sibley, intelligence officer of 3rd battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, based in Qaim, said: "People here were committed supporters of the insurgency but you cannot now even get a marriage licence.
"The tribes are the only system or organisation left and they appear to have stepped in.
"In the last week our camp in the town was attacked and the attackers got ambushed on the way back by two machineguns and mortar fire. That is good news for us."
Baghdad recently warned that Iraqi insurgents, many of them nationalists rather than Islamists, and al-Qa'eda cells were working more closely together than in the past. That was brought into doubt when the bodies of three foreigners, believed to be insurgents, were discovered in Ramadi, apparently killed by Iraqis.
But the extent of the jihadist presence in Hasaybah - and therefore the subsequent tension - is unique.
Foreign fighters first started to arrive two years ago after Zarqawi bought properties to use as safe houses for arrivals before they could be funnelled east towards Baghdad and other major cities.
The police fled in November. In mid-June, al-Qa'eda units took over key buildings, including mosques and government offices. "Al-Qa'eda in Iraq" flags were raised.
The city, 240 miles north-west of Baghdad and adjacent to the insurgent centre of Qaim, is so dangerous that soldiers in the US base sleep in bunkers because of mortar and rocket attacks.
Following al-Qa'eda's seizure of the main buildings a number of residents fled. Arkan Salim, 56, who left with his wife and four children, said: "We thought they were patriotic. Now we discovered that they are sick and crazy.
"They interfered in everything, even how we raise our children. They turned the city into hell, and we cannot live in it anymore."
I'm not sure that this is a good thing. I mean, it's nice...but do we really want a civil war? Probably not.
Thanks for this info/map!
I just LOVE that sentence! God Bless our troops. Happy Independence Day!!!
Thank you for the excerpt and the audio. It has been one of my favorite passages from that speech. I'm listening to it now. I want our cowboy back!
Zarqawi, real estate investor -- kaboom!
I think that is actually the 4 th of July, (remember it is England ) ....now it would be nice to know if this is actually going on in July, or whither the reporter is taking us back in time....
I think operation Matador is the first time I heard of the Iraqis turning on the foreigners....and I think that was after April 7.
"I think operation Matador is the first time I heard of the Iraqis turning on the foreigners....and I think that was after April 7."
You are correct. And I had shared some of these details both from Matador as well as Spear some time back with you, Gutcho, and a few others, in three or so posts. Bill Rogilos's forth rail and other blog sites had short blips to this effect.
But is was nice seeing our Freepers having a bit of happy responses for a change!
Watch out for stray fire works! KAboooom.
Bed time.
ping
Tribal leaders in Husaybah are attacking followers of Abu Musab Zarqawi, the Jordanian-born terrorist who established the town as an entry point for al-Qa'eda jihadists being smuggled into the country.
The reason, the US military believes, is frustration at the heavy-handed approach of the foreigners, who have kidnapped and assassinated local leaders and imposed a strict Islamic code.
Watching the Impact on the Comet on the live thread tonight, so staying up a bit longer.
.
Now, ain't Freedom great..?
The BUSH Century =
The 21st Century =
The LIBERTY Century
.
maybe since it has appeared in a major Brit paper the NY Times or Washington Post will let the shepple over here in the States finally know.
For our great fortune the majority of the "shepple" that many freepers like to use them to support their doom and gloom scenarios, do not read the New York Times, or the Washington post, and most importantly the majority of them do not vote.
My goodness!
This is awesome!
PTL!
That is my opinion as well and sure enough this article proves that point. Was so glad to read this after all the negatives we keep seeing.
Surprisingly, the NYT did run a similar story about a week ago.
Really, I fully expect the MSM to pull out all the stops reporting this!/sarcasm off
Marines See Signs Iraq Rebels Are Battling Foreign Fighters
By SABRINA TAVERNISE (NYT) 712 words Late Edition - Final , Section A , Page 6 , Column 5
ABSTRACT - Marines patrolling desert region of Iraq near Syrian border report strange new trend in insurgency: insurgents fighting each other in towns along Euphrates; observations offer new clue in hidden world of insurgency and suggest that there may have been split between Islamic militants and local rebels (M)
Happy 4th of July!
Makes it a little easier on our side. ;-)
ping -- our troops are getting fireworks in Iraq courtesy of the Iraqi terrorists fighting the Foreign terrorists -- LOL.
Makes it a little easier on our side. ;-)
Pretty good 4th of July fireworks for our troops -- they just sit back and watch the fun (but keep away from those stray rounds).
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