Three Alabama businessmen have decided to leave Baghdad for a while because they've received word that militias loyal to a controversial Muslim cleric will try to take over the Iraqi capital on Thursday.
"Things are getting hot in Baghdad!" Winton Blount IV wrote in a Sunday e-mail from Amman, Jordan. Blount and his partners, Andy Furr and Danny Campbell, flew to Amman on Saturday after having basically remained in their apartment for 12 consecutive days to stay out of harm's way.
Tensions have been running high in Baghdad because of a recent upsurge in fighting between U.S. and coalition forces and Iraqi insurgents in parts of Iraq, and the growing hostility between the coalition and militias loyal to Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr.
While the Alabamians waited for tensions to subside, Blount said, American, British and Iraqi sources told them that "Baghdad will ignite" on Thursday and that "all shops MUST close and militia will try to take over." Then they saw a senior American military commander, Brig. Gen. Mark Kimmitt, say in a televised press conference that U.S. forces would be waiting for al-Sadr's militia if they made a move on Baghdad.
"This just supported our decision to hit the road for a while," Blount wrote.
Blount has been in Iraq since mid-July. His company, Blount 4 Iraq Construction, has been building or renovating military barracks or other facilities for U.S. troops in the country. At times, the company has employed several hundred Iraqis.
...
---they've received word that militias loyal to a controversial Muslim cleric will try to take over the Iraqi capital on Thursday---
That's a big load straight from the bull!
STRATFOR INTELLIGENCE BRIEF
Al Qaeda's Message: Corporations as Targets?
Summary
Embedded among the wider, Western-oriented message of the latest
purported al Qaeda tape, the speaker mentions Western
corporations. This reference could lead to heightened security in
certain sectors, including weapons manufacturers, media
organizations and firms involved in Iraqi reconstruction.
Analysis
A new taped message purportedly from al Qaeda leader Osama bin
Laden was broadcast April 15 on Arab satellite channel al-
Arabiya. The content of the message broke some new ground for the
organization.
In the past, such messages contained threats of attacks against
Western targets and direct appeals to the Muslim world to rise up
against Western powers and their "collaborators" in the Muslim
world.
The main audience for the April 15 message was the West. The
speaker seemed to address Europeans and Americans directly,
rather than the Muslim world, and the thrust of the message was
political. Rather than looking to instigate (or order) attacks,
or to inspire the larger Islamic world, the speaker's apparent
intention was to appeal to certain strains of isolationism, anti-
corporatism and anti-Semitism already present in Europe and the
United States, in an attempt to promote popular opposition to
U.S. foreign policy. From a tactical level, the hope might be to
increase resistance in the West to Bush administration policies
in Afghanistan, Iraq and Israel and a general "remaking" of the
Middle East. From a larger strategic level, the hope is likely to
promote more widespread opposition to the "adventurism" of the
Bush White House.
Embedded within the wider message was a direct mention of large
weapons and reconstruction companies, which the speaker chastises
for profiting from U.S.-led actions in the Middle East:
"We must take into consideration that this war brings billions of
dollars in profit to the major companies, whether it be those
that produce weapons or those that contribute to reconstruction,
such as the Halliburton Company, etc. Based on this, it is very
clear who is the one benefiting from igniting this war and from
the shedding of blood. It is the warlords, the bloodsuckers, who
are steering the world policy from behind a curtain."
The speaker also specifically mentions "the leading media
companies" as one of the "tools used to deceive and exploit
peoples." Peppered throughout these complaints are references to
the "Zionist lobby" that the speaker also tries to implicate in a
"Jewish conspiracy" tune not unfamiliar in Europe or the United
States.
By implicating such companies in the "oppression" of the Muslim
world by "the White House gang," the speaker appears to
implicitly endorse attacks on Western corporations. In some
respects, this is nothing new. Previous al Qaeda messages have
supported attacks on the public and private sectors, and on
political, military and commercial targets. On its face, the new
message does not specifically call for direct attacks on Western
companies, but rather implicates the firms as collaborators.
That said, the message will lead to heightened security in some
specific corporate sectors -- and, of course, at Halliburton.
Although the main audience was the West, a message claiming to be
from the top spiritual and operational leader of the "jihadist
struggle" will be absorbed in minute detail by Islamists
worldwide looking for guidance and inspiration. The reference to
Western corporations as a legitimate target will not go unnoticed
and could inspire cells within the loose network of Islamists to
act on their own against corporate targets of opportunity. Most
such attacks are likely to originate from local groups only
loosely affiliated -- or even unaffiliated -- with the al Qaeda
leadership.
The message will trigger alarm bells for Halliburton, which is
heavily involved in the Iraqi reconstruction effort and is
present almost everywhere that people are trying to get oil out
of the ground. Beyond Halliburton, there is a rich pool of
potential targets that fit the description. Weapons manufacturers
and defense contractors, as well as large media companies, are
specifically mentioned, as are firms involved in
"reconstruction." This reference likely refers to the many
private contractors active in Afghanistan and Iraq, rebuilding
everything from roads and bridges to power plants, hospitals and
factories.
The speaker on the tape says, "Reaction (by jihadists) comes at
the same level as the original action. Our acts are reaction to
your own acts." Already nervous about the recent spate of
kidnappings in Iraq, contractors might also begin to be wary that
their acts -- such as involvement in reconstruction efforts --
could put them unwittingly on the radar screen of al Qaeda and
affiliated or sympathetic organizations.
Not surprisingly, the latest message is loaded with charges
against the "Zionist lobby," which the speaker calls "one of the
most dangerous and most difficult figures of this group." Jewish
targets -- such as the synagogue in Turkey attacked in November -
- have already been hit. Just this week, further evidence of
Jewish targeting in Europe has emerged. Hungary foiled an alleged
plot April 13 to detonate a bomb at the April 15 opening of a
Holocaust memorial in Budapest that Israeli President Moshe
Katsav was scheduled to attend. Spanish police also reportedly
found plans to attack a Jewish community center in Madrid when
they were searching through the rubble of an apartment where
suspects in the March 11 attacks detonated a bomb to avoid
capture.
It is a logical progression to think that any area in which top
Jewish business leaders or corporations that operate in the
aforementioned sectors intersect would be a highly prized target
for Islamist militants looking to answer bin Laden's call.
(c) 2004 Strategic Forecasting, Inc. All rights reserved.
http://www.stratfor.com I forwarded this to freepers in theater.........Stay safe !
Thankfully, I haven't seen any news of attacks. I certainly hope we have enough ammo around Najaf and Karbala to keep them contained.
Yep, got the info and it sounds about right with local scuttlebutt.
It seems that if one can stay alive and sane that there is good job security with upward mobility over here.
So what if I jump a little when the doors slam just right?
Or I don't take comfort in knowing that it was 'just' an outgoing splash I saw?
Or I avoid objects that protrude from the ground, especially if they weren't there yesterday?
Or powdered eggs actually taste good?
Sunny, windy and warm in Baghdad...just after 12 noon...
After a somewhat bumpy morning, noise-wise, it is pretty quiet right now...
When Winton Blount (I think his grandfather) was running for the Senate a certain G. W. Bush asked to be transferred to Louisiana to work on his campaign.
Glad to see your post Eagle Eye. We want you to stay safe there.
I know Blount personally. Drives a sweet red Ferrari Testarossa.