Kurdish Islamic Group Elements Reportedly Break Away To Fight US Troops

Al-Sharq al-Awsat in Arabic ^ | 03/28/2003 | Translated 03/30/2003 | Shirzad Shaykhani

[gaucho]

Group Breaks Away From the Kurdish 'Islamic Group' To Fight the US Forces"

The Iraqi Front -- Al-Sharq al-Awsat has learned that Ali Babir's Islamic Group which two days ago signed an agreement with the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan [PUK] following a mediation by the Kurdish Socialist Party, is facing an internal crisis as a result of the withdrawal of its forces in line with the agreement to areas that are far from its main strongholds in the Halabjah area. Several of the group's leading figures -- these include Dalshar Klary; Mullah Marwan, the former commander of the 2nd Soran force; and another member called Humayd -- have broken away from the group after refusing to obey the orders of the group's amir Ali Babir to pull out from their military positions in those areas.

According to the sources who have provided this information, these breakaway elements believe that the arrival of the US troops in the area is an opportunity to fight them and declare jihad against them instead of vacating the positions ahead of them. They also stress the need to stand by Mullah Krekar's Ansar al-Islam group and support it in its current fight against the US troops and the PUK, and not to leave it to face its fate on its own.

In the security context, a member of Ansar al-Islam blew himself up at 1030 hours yesterday after he was stopped by PUK elements at the checkpoint situated on the Zalm bridge near Halabjah. He was driving a Jeep loaded with highly explosive TNT and, according to an Internal Security source, was aiming to detonate it in one of the residential districts of Halabjah.

[gaucho]

Well, so much for the amnesty that was being extended to them...

[sheik yerbouty]

Promises by jihadists art the hope of fools. We should not be fools.

[RoseofTexas]

You know, I'm begining to suppect these people DON'T want freedom!! Are we fighting a lost cause here? More pictures of Iraqis helping out the USA would be welcomed, but seem there are not many of them! Seeing more Iraqis chanting and celebrating would be nice. I know we are at the first stages of the war, but I sense something is wrong. I hope I'm wrong and we'll see thousands and thousands of Iraqis spewing into the streets with celebration and singing! God I hope I'm wrong in feeling this though! Continue to pray God will strenghten our troops and Victory will soon be at hand!

[egarvue]

I wouldn't put too much faith in this, look at the source. This is nothing but hopeful Muslim propaganda.

[Dog Gone]

And it's not current. US troops are there and reporting no problems.

[DannyTN]

"You know, I'm begining to suppect these people DON'T want freedom!! Are we fighting a lost cause here?"

Most are frightened of Saddam and won't say anything until they know he and his crew are gone for good.

It doesn't matter whether they want freedom or not. What matters is Saddam's support for terrorism. That is the real cause. Liberating the Iraqi people is just a plus. The only difference it makes is the amount of care we take to avoid injuring civilians.

[gaucho]

You know, I'm begining to suppect these people DON'T want freedom!!

A couple of things here. There are two factions of kurds in Northern Iraq. One is aligned with islamic terrorists and the other is PUK (our "friends"). A couple of days ago, PUK was extending an anmesty to the islamic groups after they where defeated in battle. It appears that elements of the islamic factions want to go back to fighting.

Also, there are other reasons why there is a fear of showing support for the troops. Those who do end up dead, like the story about a teenage girl in Basra who was waving a troops and ended up hanging less then an hour later. There is also the fear that if the coalition troops leave, that they will end up dead because they are all being watched. And there is the fear that the US might abandon them like we did in 1992, which resulted in a blood bath in Basra.

[tinamina]

There are two Kurdish factions, one pro-American, including some Christians and one Communist/Islamist.
We trust the one and not the other, of course.

[Terp]

As soon as I read what newspaper put this BS out I just started laughing, come on folks look at the source.

Terp

[sheik yerbouty]

Methinks the population there is much like their sand fuhrer Saddam. A dejihadification program is needed.