Posted on 03/29/2003 11:30:48 AM PST by Asher
'MORE SUICIDE ATTACKS'
The suicide bombing which killed four American troops is "just the beginning" Iraq's vice president has said.
The attack, described by Iraqi TV as the "Blessed beginning on the road of martyrdom" against the US, was the first instance of a suicide bombing since the war began
But Iraqi vice president Taha Yassin Ramadan has threatened more will follow.
He said: "This is just the beginning. You'll hear more pleasant news later.
"It will be routine military policy. We will use any means to kill our enemy in our land and we will follow the enemy into its land.
"The United States will turn the whole world to martyrs against it. What do they expect? The Arabs and Muslims are not allowed to develp missiles and bombs as powerful as theirs."
The bombing happened on Saturday at a road checkpoint north of Najaf.
US military Captain Andrew Wallace said the four victims were part of the 1st Brigade, 3rd Infantry Divison.
Sky News reporter Collin Brazier said the driver of a taxi had pulled up at the checkpoint.
"Two soldiers went to the front of the car, two to the rear. The driver beckoned to them and there was an explosion. All the soldiers were killed," said Brazier.
"This marks a significant change of tactics."
The suicide bomber, named as non-commissioned army officer Ali Jaafar al-Noamani, has been awarded two posthumous medals by Saddam Hussein.
Last Updated: 18:54 UK, Saturday March 29, 2003
It worked very well. Their best weapon, and it nearly stopped the invasion of Japanese-held territory. Too bad they weren't flying taxicabs.
Why does he have to send one of his p!$$ boys now? Hmmm?
Don't expect to see Peter Jennings ask this question on the evening news. He'll only ask it of the American President (as in, "Where is the President at this time of crisis? His people want to see him and be reassured, some presidents do this sort of thing well while others...< roll eyes > do not." (loosely paraphrased from his 9/11 tirade).
As a Canadian citizen, Petah is just as much in his place asking this of Saddam as he is in asking it of the American President.
What an excellent way to describe it.
Absolutely. It's all a part of that cosmic good vs. evil thing going on. For even though this nation has slipped a long way from its Christian roots, in the eyes of the world it's them vs. anything they perceive as being representative of the Judeo-Christian system. IOW, Israel and the U.S. In a way, all this is not surprising—in another way, it's stunning just how quickly this vitriolic hatred is growing and revealing itself more by the day.
MM
The argument for ambiguity is getting weaker and weaker. It used to be that one could say that if everything were fully acknowledged, the public would force the U.S. into a dangerously premature war with Iraq. Now, however, the war is on.
So, what would happen at this stage if the ambiguities were resolved? I don't think it would drive public opinion to take a stance on specific military questions, such as an invasion of Baghdad. At this point, is it only about protecting the stock market? (I wouldn't minimize the importance of the stock market, but still....)
That's right, join the civilized world and maybe we'll let you keep some of these toys. Until then - damn straight we don't want you having any of them.
For one thing, it would make it very, very difficult for Bush to cut a deal with Hussein where he gets to leave the the country. And, even though nobody wants to admit it or talk about it, that is our best hope, and perhaps are only hope, for an end to this conflict that does not involve massive allied civilian casualties.
I'm not talking about the overtly antiwar crowd, but the mass of people in the center, and even many conservatives. They're going along with the President for now (this shows up as a high level of support in the polls, but I think the support is relatively shallow). If things get sticky, Pres. Bush is going to have to provide a more cogent, to-the-point rationale to avoid losing public support. I hope it won't be too late at that point; it would be less convincing then than now, since at a later date it might be portrayable as a supposed act of desperation.
(By the way, one can't judge public sentiment via FreeRepublic; FR is definitely not a representative sample of the U.S. population)
Agreed. This dude just signed his own death warrant.
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