BAGHDAD - A letter allegedly written by a member of Al Qaeda in Iraq to its country head Abu Mosab Al Zarqawi suggests that there was dissent in the ranks of fighters operating out of Mosul, according to excerpts provided in a statement by the US military on Saturday.
In the letter that the US says it discovered July 27 during a raid on a home in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, the author Abu Zayd complained of poor local leadership in the organization and the mistreatment of foreign fighters.
This is a clarification of what has become of the situation in Mosul, and it is no secret to you the noticeable decrease in the attacks carried out by the mujahideen from not long ago when Mosul was in the hands of the mujahideen, wrote Abu Zayd.
The most recent wave of bloody attacks in the city occurred in late June.
Among the charges Abu Zayd levels at the leadership, according to the summary provided by the statement, are the incompetence of the Mosul leadership, disobedience of troops and the squandering of funds.
His woes include the deplorable conditions suffered by non-Iraqi fighters including bad pay, housing problems and marginalisation within the organisation. The statement did not give Abu Zayds nationality.
It also said attacks lack diversity and that there was a focus on quantity not quality.
A similar letter by a cell leader who fought in Fallujah was found in May in Baghdad, said the statement.
The tone of the excerpts provided from Abu Zayds letter is markedly different from the expressions of pride and strength of Al Qaeda in messages that claim responsibility for attacks and appear on web sites used by Islamists.
The authenticity of those messages, and that attributed to Abu Zayd, could not be verified.
The statement also said six terrorist suspects were detained in the raid.