Posted on 12/23/2006 9:50:49 AM PST by FairOpinion
A group of Sunni tribal chiefs in Iraq say they have caught more than 100 al-Qaeda members in recent months. The tribal chiefs in the Iraqi province of Anbar joined forces in September in an attempt to defeat al-Qaeda.
They set up the Salvation Council for Anbar and claim to have reduced the numbers of weapons and foreign fighters coming into the area.
The restive Sunni dominated area has been a centre of activity for foreign jihadis linked to al-Qaeda.
The head of the council, Sheikh Faisal al-Goud, told the BBC, however, that there were still thousands of al-Qaeda fighters operating in al Anbar province alone.
"We are fighting the terrorists because they have caused the violent chaos in the country, the instability. They are killing innocent Iraqis and killing anyone who wants freedom and peace in Iraq," he explained.
He said that he believed the organisation was responsible for about 30% to 40% of the insurgency in Iraq.
The sheikh said some of the al-Qaeda fighters and weapons came from neighbouring Arab countries, Syria and Saudi Arabia mainly, but some were from more distant Arab countries and from Afghanistan.
Disunity
The big, lawless, largely Sunni province of Anbar, in western Iraq, is one of the key battlegrounds in the insurgency - and pacifying it is one of the toughest challenges facing the American military, BBC Middle East analyst Roger Hardy says.
Among the many armed groups active there - who include former Baathists and criminal gangs - is the Iraqi wing of al-Qaeda.
The group's claims to have killed or captured al-Qaeda fighters are hard to verify, our correspondent says.
Last month they said they had killed 55 fighters in a raid on their stronghold.
Driving a wedge between local Sunnis and the extreme jihadists of al-Qaeda has long been an aim shared by the Americans and the Iraqi government.
But in a sign of how disunited the Sunnis are, a prominent Sunni figure considered close to the insurgency - Sheikh Harith al-Dari of the Muslim Scholars' Association - has criticised the tribesmen as bandits fighting what he called the resistance.
Also note that the head of the council, Sheikh Faisal al-Goud, told the BBC: "We are fighting the terrorists because they have caused the violent chaos in the country, the instability. They are killing innocent Iraqis and killing anyone who wants freedom and peace in Iraq," he explained".
Another thing that MSM omits telling people when they instead try to make people believe that there is a "civil war" in Iraq.
More Iraq good news the MSM doesn't tell us.
In the meantime, this is what the MSM is reporting:
Al-Qaeda Allies Claim Bigger Base of Support in Iraq
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/22/AR2006122201650.html
Forces allied with al-Qaeda in Iraq claimed yesterday to have broadened their base of support among Iraqi Sunnis, saying that 70 percent of tribal sheiks and a number of previously independent insurgent groups have pledged allegiance to what has been called the Islamic State of Iraq under its emir, Abu Omar al-Baghdadi.
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The MSM needs to be renamed to TMP (terrorist mouth-piece)
The news was reported a month ago. Of course the MSM suppressed that, but not before somebody picked it up for FR.
The news a month ago was some other AQ they killed.
"Last month they said they had killed 55 fighters in a raid on their stronghold. "
They killed some more since then.
How do they know they are Alqaida? I have the impression that Alqaida consists of high level planners and financiers and that if a group of fifty is found they will be local hires, not regular Alqaida.
Gee, no kidding the Sunni's are "disunited".
That's because it isn't Sunni vs. Shi'ite. It's insurgent vs. noninsurgent or good vs. bad.
Impossible... according to Nancy Pelosi.
There are a lot of Al Qaeda foreign fighters being sent over from Iran or Syria.
Al Qaeda DOES have "footsoldiers" they do NOT consist of only "chiefs", but we only get a report if a "high level AQ" got killed.
None of the 9-11 hijacking Al Qaeda terrorist murderers were "high level".
"More Iraq good news the MSM doesn't tell us."
BBC has been expelled from the 'mainstream' now?!
Heh. I bet that when that tribal chief caught those AQ, he didn't put them in a tropical detention center where they get three well-balanced, ethnically-sensitive meals a day, a Koran, a chaplain to attend to their spiritual needs, and expensive legal representation. I bet they were just lucky if they got to die fast.
The 911 soldiers were not high level, but were highly trained and indoctrinated local hires. Mercenaries. I assume Alqaida cannot afford to actually use their inner base personnel in terror acts since there actually aren't many of them and they are irreplaceable.
I thought only Iraqi "insurgents" and "freedom fighters" were involved in this war, and Al Qaeda has nothing to do with it?... Oh, wait a minute, I was still reading from the DNC '06 Election talking points. Never mind.
ping
When that Sadar and his-nits all assume room temp that will be very good news
They're doing their damnest to recreate their Vietnam glory days. They are scum.
This just in- The U.N demands that the Sunnis cease and desist stirring up trouble by targetting al Qaeda operatives. http://sacredscoop.com
The BBC is a great example of a traditional mainstream medium which sees a new medium (podcasting).
http://www.webpronews.com/blogtalk/blogtalk/wpn-58-20060123ThePodcastingOpportunityforMainstreamMedia.html
From the mainstream meadia: CNN transcript Aired September 28, 2006
JIM CLANCY, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Meet the new boss. Same as the old boss. The new leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq releases an audiotape with all manner of threats to foreigners and amnesty to Iraqis who join his insurgency.
We're going to begin our report, though, in Iraq. And that 20 minute audiotape that was posted on Islamic Web sites, the speaker makes a conditional amnesty offer to Sunni tribal leaders in the country.
CNN's Michael Ware joins us now from Baghdad.
This offer to tribal leaders, this is a direct bid to compete with the U.S., isn't it?
MICHAEL WARE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, very much, Jim.
Since we saw the first introduction of Al Qaeda in Iraq, or in its first manifestation under Zarqawi, before he joined al Qaeda, there's been frictions between these foreign elements and these very much extremist Sunni elements and the local Iraqis. From the beginning, U.S. forces have been trying to play on that friction.
This statement from the new leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq, Zarqawi's replacement, is just one more twist in this very winding road. He's trying to counter a recent push from Iraqi tribes, vowing allegiance to the Americans and fighting -- agreeing to fight against al Qaeda -- Jim.
CLANCY: Now, in addition to this, he's making a call to kidnap foreigners. He's saying that he wants to exchange them for Egyptian cleric Omar Abdel-Rahman, who is being held over the links to the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center.
When you look at this threat to kidnap foreigners, is it really going to have any impact at this stage?
WARE: Well, I mean, this is the Ramadan offensive. I mean, we expected all of this from al Qaeda and many other groups with the insurgency. This is the traditional spike in attacks in this kind of activity.
So, in calling for a new level of offensive, I mean, I think most alarmingly or most chillingly, from Abu Hamza al-Muhajir, is his call that we will now launch a military campaign to uproot the infidel. He also calls on every free Mujahid (ph) to summon his strength and to take a Christian, imprison them, and trade them for the sheikh. This clearly is him stepping on to the stage and taking things up a little, if not for Ramadan, then beyond -- Jim.
CLANCY: Well, he does make -- and some people perhaps found it surprising -- he does say and admit that 4,000 foreign fighters, more than that number, have been killed.
WARE: Well, we've seen Al Qaeda in Iraq and its early incarnation (INAUDIBLE), under Zarqawi, often publicize its deaths. I mean, they celebrate the deaths of these young men as heroic martyrs.
They're to be honored, and that's what they do. So we have seen them be relatively frank about deaths in battle. We've even seen very sleek documentaries produced by their media wing in dedication memorial to some of the more famous martyrs.
So, here he admits 4,000 have died is not so outside the ballpark of the numbers of foreigners that the U.S. military intelligence believes are entering Iraq every month -- Jim.
Imagine if PravdABDNC was an ally rather than an enemy of the United States of America??
Pray for W and Our Troops
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