For Al-Zarqawi, myth was bigger than the man- Brutal tactics & U.S. propaganda helped his image

msnbc ^ | Updated: 4:02 p.m. ET June 8, 2006 | MSNBC News Services

[dennisw]

DUBAI - Taunting President Bush during the videotaped killing of a sobbing, blindfolded U.S. hostage, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi boasted that the al-Qaida fighters he commanded “love death just like you love life.”

“Killing for the sake of God is their best wish,” the insurgent leader said, drawing a knife to hack off the head of his kneeling victim. “Getting to your soldiers and allies are their happiest moments, and cutting the heads of the criminal infidels is implementing the orders of our Lord.”

By the time he was killed Wednesday in a U.S. airstrike, al-Zarqawi was more powerful as a myth than as a man.

The killings he masterminded were carefully calibrated to have the maximum psychological effect and feed his legend.

His repertoire of violence was a guerrilla version of the “shock and awe” tactics of his American foes. Suicide bombings were planned with great precision but rarely aimed at targets of military value — their symbolic effect was more important.

The killing of hostages was also choreographed for maximum shock value and followed a ritual that became grimly familiar.

Mirror images Victims were dressed in orange clothes to mirror the treatment of prisoners in Guantanamo Bay, and were filmed weeping and pleading for their lives, sometimes caged. Their decapitation — often at the hands of al-Zarqawi himself — was swiftly distributed over the Internet.

With his horror videos — including the beheading of American hostage Nicholas Berg — the Jordanian-born militant seemed to revel in taunting those seeking to catch or eradicate him. His bloodshed made the U.S.-led war on terrorism look impotent to some extent, an impression that the airstrike that killed him helped to dispel.

“It indicates that the intelligence services and police are now more capable of infiltrating the terror groups,”

[Grampa Dave]

A quick pictorial summary of Z Pig's last day on earth and his trip to hell.

Monster betrayed by closest allies (Zarqawi location tipped off by captured deputies) {Why the libs don't want WOT prisoners questioned!}

"Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey...!"

Hi. My name is Abu Boohoo Zarqawi and I'm dead now.

Happy Iraqis celebrate the death of Z Pig:

Which al Qaeda Son of a pig is next? We will find your "Safe House" and send you to hell to be with the Z pig!

When the Z Pig entered hell, he found out that his 72 virgins were clones of Helen Thomas. They are having their way with him now.

No Problem! Here comes your Bomb!

Z Pig! Enjoy your eternity in hell with your special 72 virgins!

[Chicos_Bail_Bonds]

MSNBC...home of Chrissy and Keithy. What else can you say.

[Names Ash Housewares]

"I guess they will be happiest when all of them are dead."

I am for making them all VERY happy then.!

[sheik yerbouty]

Time for a game of buzkashi..

[JustDoItAlways]

Liberal media is already testing out liberal talking points to see how they can turn the good news into bad news.

[Mr. Buzzcut]

You got that. I also heard the media say Zarqawi (after we nailed him) was just a "simpleton" and a fool.

Hell, as soon as we defeated the USSR the media started telling us how she was never really a big threat.

[goldstategop]

All criminals are stupid and yet people seem fascinated how they get away with horrifying of evil. Well folks, it does not take a huge IQ to break the law, to rape, assault, pillage, steal and murder. These people imagine themselves smarter than every one else but at the end, they are brought down by their own hubris. Al Zarqawi's violent end my friends, underlines Teresa Of Avila's observation that evil is the utter negation of nothingness. There is no love or joy there. There is only death. Life is for the living and let's remember that although Man does have free will and we are free to break the Ten Commandments if we want to, God has warned us the price for it will be severe. There is a cost to doing evil that catches up with the perpetrators. It is our task in this world to do good and vanquish evil, to do God's will on earth.

(Denny Crane: "Every one should carry a gun strapped to their waist. We need more - not less guns.")

[roses of sharon]

LOL, Saddam and Sons used and had WMD, and were very dangerous while Clinton was in office.

With Bush he was just an innocent ME bystander!

Any terrorist the US, Canada, or Europe arrested are suddenly "just amateur's", when the years before were spent berating the President on how unsafe the world was since he made all the terrorist's mad.

Zarqawi has been WINNING for 3 years according the the MSM, and now he was just a myth??????????????????????????

The MSM must die, it is the only answer.

[skimask]

How could this current Administration send it's military might against one man, regardless of his crimes, a freedom fighter that Bush and Cheney created? The whole BFEE should be tried in the Hague for murder and war crimes.<sarcasm on

[dennisw]

Z pig has been zotted. Let's get Hormel to make a pork casket to bury him in

[Txsleuth]

That is disgusting!

[A message]

Now that the military, under the command of George Bush, killed him, it turns out that he wasn't even hardly dangerous at all.

Your one sentence sums up completely how pathetic the left and the media have become.

[USFRIENDINVICTORIA]

Picture # 5 is truly jolting!

[bnelson44]

Tell me about it. I get these news reports delivered to my inbox every day. My son is in Baqubah.

[A CA Guy]

When I heard he was dead the first thing that came to mind was whether they got him in California.

We had elections the other day and Democrats had tried to get illegals to vote for Democrats saying they didn't need any papers to vote.

[dennisw]

How could this current Administration send it's military might against one man, regardless of his crimes, a freedom fighter that Bush and Cheney created?

The drive by media called this demonic mass murderer an "insurgent". Part of the Iraqi "resistance". I curse these subversives

[Txsleuth]

OMG....well, I will definitely pray for him...have you heard from him today??

Thank you and your son for ya'lls service to our country..

[Grampa Dave]

Spam him?

[Grampa Dave]

If you think that picture #5 is jolting, imagine what Z Pig felt when he found out his 72 virgins were clones of this beast.

[dennisw]

Z was a cowardly psycho killer. He lusted for blood. Jihadist Islam gave him a time honored raison d'etre for his life of blood