Posted on 10/27/2007 12:51:54 PM PDT by Chi-townChief
On October 22nd, Osama bin Laden admitted that al Qaeda had lost its war in Iraq. In an audiotape speech titled "Message to the people of Iraq," bin Laden complains of disunity and poor use of resources. He admits that al Qaeda made mistakes, and that all Sunni Arabs must unite to defeat the foreigners and Shia Moslems. What bin Laden is most upset about is the large number of Sunni Arab terrorists who have switched sides in Iraq. This has actually been going on for a while. Tribal leaders and warlords in the west (Anbar province) have been turning on terrorist groups, especially al Qaeda, for several years. While bin Laden appeals for unity, he shows only a superficial appreciation of what is actually going on in Iraq.
Bin Laden doesn't discuss how the Americans defeated him. It was done with data. Years of collecting data on the bad guys paid off. Month by month, the picture of the enemy became clearer. This was literally the case, with some of the intelligence software that created visual representations of what was known of the enemy, and how reliable it was. The picture was clear enough to maneuver key enemy factions into positions that make them easier to run down.
Saddam's henchmen, the main enemy, were no dummies. They were smart enough, and resourceful enough, to build a police state apparatus that kept Saddam in power for over three decades. However, for the last three years, that talent has been applied to keeping the henchmen alive and out of jail. But three years of fighting has reduced the original 100,000 or so core Saddam thugs, to a few thousand diehards. Three years ago, there were hundreds of thousands of allies and supporters from the Sunni minority (then, about five million people, now, less than half that), who wanted to be back in charge. Now the remaining Sunni Arabs just want to be left in peace. Thus the Sunni nationalists of in the Baghdad suburbs are shooting at, and turning in, their old allies from Saddams Baath party and secret police. This isn't easy for some of these guys, but it's seen as a matter of survival. While the fighting in and around Baghdad is officially about rooting out al Qaeda, and hard core terrorists, it's also about taking down the Baath party bankers and organizers who have been sustaining the bombers with cash, information and encouragement.
Bin Laden can't openly talk about any of this, because that would be admitting he had made a deal with the devil back in 2004, when al Qaeda and the Iraqi Sunni Arab terrorists united. The Baath party has always been secular. Not exactly anti-religion, but not something al Qaeda could openly embrace. Many of the Iraqi Sunni Arab terrorists are religious, but not religious enough for the al Qaeda hard core. And it's the hard liners that usually set the agenda. That's a fatal flaw with groups that depend on terrorism to keep the fight going. Cracking down on the hard core requires more clout and muscle than al Qaeda possesses these days. And that's another unspoken reason by bin Laden is singing the blues.
Bin Laden's latest audio recording brought forth a furious reaction from many of his followers. The main complaint was that only excerpts of the message were being reported on by the Arab media, and that if the entire message were put out there, the excerpts would not appear so damaging. The excerpts concentrated on bin Laden admitting mistakes, criticizing al Qaeda operations in Iraq and urging Islamic radicals to get their act together.
Al Qaeda is under a lot of pressure of late. In addition to defeat in Iraq, the organization is being battered in North Africa, South East Asia, Somalia, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Bin Laden has not got any good news to talk about, and that's what's really got his followers angry.
Has someone sent Harry Reid a memo on this???
I would love to get his reaction to this news...
Secretly Harry Reid (or hell, maybe openly, we’ll have to see) is saddened that they could not do more to help OBL in his insurgency efforts...
Then form a panel of has been liberal politicians to determine where we went wrong. /s
Mr. bin Laden, the war is lost.
Bin Ladin defeated in Iraq. It’s Bush’s fault I tell you.
Reid is about to implode!
Did Osama also denounce Rush Limbaugh for his attack on phony soldiers?
Great post.
They stand for nothing,let us make sure in "08" that their party becomes nothing.
bump
And they're far more patient and tenacious than Al Qaeda. Don't expect them to raise the white flag anytime soon.
You are so right....Apathy by the voters is what
defeats us Republicans..we must get out the vote..JK
Funny, Pelosi, Reid, Murtha, are more clueless than OBL
They still think he's winning
When will the msm acknowledge that al Qaeda is in quite a quagmire in Iraq? And, if truth be told, in Afghanistan, as well.
Don't worry, the "I'll stay home unless/if [fill in the blank] is nominated" crowd is just blowing smoke. After a few months of contemplating the possiblity a Hillary Presidency and listening to her screeching voice they'll reconsider their position. ....although perhaps not publicly.
54 weeks from now, If W is sitting on a stable Iraq, the "war is lost" Rats will be very sad.
Reid is so grief-stricken he is on “suicide” watch...
“Reid is so grief-stricken he is on “suicide” watch...”
LOL! He should be!
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