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http://www.defenselink.mil/Blog_files/Blog%20assets/AQIcommander_diary_translation.pdf
(Unclassified translation)
http://www.defenselink.mil/Blog_files/Blog%20assets/AQIcommander_diary_original.pdf
(Original document)

Note: The following text is a quote:

http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=48914

Al Qaeda Leader’s Diary Reveals Organization’s Decline

By Seaman William Selby, USN
Special to American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Feb. 9, 2008 – U.S. troops found a diary belonging to an al Qaeda in Iraq leader that has Coalition forces believing the terrorist organization is “on its heels,” a senior military official in Baghdad said this morning.

Soldiers of the 101st Airborne Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team on Nov. 3, 2007, captured a diary belonging to Abu Tariq, an al Qaeda emir in control of five battalions within two sectors, U.S. Air Force Col. Donald J. Bacon, a Multinational Force Iraq spokesman, told online journalists and “bloggers” during a conference call.

The soldiers found the diary during a patrol conducted about 15 kilometers south of Balad. Bacon said the 16-page diary contains records about man power, operations, weapons, and finances, and it shows that al Qaeda is hurting badly in the belts of Baghdad.

“There were 600 al-Qaeda members in this sector, now there (are) 20 or less,” said Bacon.

In the diary, Tariq describes each battalion’s number decline and goes on to describe the 4th battalion as “scoundrels, sectarians and nonbelievers.” Tariq attributes his terrorist organization’s decline in large part to groups of concerned local citizens, who are also known as the Sons of Iraq.

Many high-ranking al Qaeda members, including Osama Bin Laden, have spoken out about the negative impact that the concerned local citizens groups have had on their organization. As a result, the concerned local citizens are being attacked more frequently by the terrorists, Bacon said.

Nevertheless, Bacon said the numbers of concerned local citizens are growing, which indicates that they are less afraid of al-Qaeda.

“Right now there (are) approximately 77,500 CLC’s with 135 different initiatives, and more and more are being hired,” Bacon said.

Bacon said he believes the diary is also in part a will of sorts, in case anything was to happen to Tariq.

“He wanted to keep a clear record,” Bacon said.

Bacon said he believes the diary is indicative of some other areas in Iraq but not all of Iraq. He cautioned that al Qaeda is still a dangerous enemy.

“We still believe they are our number one threat,” said Bacon.

“There is a 90 percent decline of violence in Anbar but we are still fighting them in Diala,” he added. “They still have the capacity and the will but we have the momentum.”

Bacon noted, however, that “overall levels of violence in Iraq are down, and we are seeing positive trends.”

(U.S. Navy Seaman William Selby works for the New Media branch of American Forces Information Service.)

More Details UPDATE:

Note: The folllowing blog entry is a quote:

http://www.thememriblog.org/blog_personal/en/5238.htm

Iraqi Defense Ministry Warns: Al-Qaeda Kidnapping Children

An Iraqi Defense Ministry spokesman warned this week, on February 6, of increasing kidnappings of children by Al-Qaeda.

The spokesman noted that a raid of an Al-Qaeda base by Iraqi security forces in the Diyala region turned up films and documents showing the use of children for terrorist purposes.

He said that Iraqi forces had arrested a number of kidnappers, and that their interrogations had led to the uncovering of an Al-Qaeda network in Kirkuk involved in these kidnappings.

He presented the use of children and women for terror operations as “the beginning of the end of Al-Qaeda in Iraq,” because it showed that its ranks were thinning.

Source: Al-Mada, Iraq, February 6, 2008

Posted at: 2008-02-08