[traditionalist]

A recent article in the International Herald Tribune reports that Kurdish leaders in Iraq have failed in an attempt to drive al Qaeda out of a mountain stronghold in a northeastern part of the country. Bill Gertz of the Washington Times writes that Arab terrorists linked to the al Qaeda network have tested chemical or biological weapons at a facility in northern Iraq. Bush administration intelligence officials corroborate this, pointing to a group known as Ansar al-Islam.

The New Yorker's Jeffrey Goldberg reported brilliantly on Ansar al-Islam last winter. This is a group of several hundred terrorists who were initially trained and organized by bin Laden troops and co-financed by al Qaeda and Saddam Hussein's secret police. Today their chests swell in the north of Iraq. Defense officials, meanwhile, say they were initially surprised at the large number and senior rank of the al Qaeda operatives moving into Iraq

So the al Qaeda groups in Iraq are all operating in the North. Isn't it funny how the author fails to mention the fact that Saddam does not control Northern Iraq? If this is the best the war party can do, they're really grasping at straws.

[damncat]

The New Yorker's Jeffrey Goldberg reported brilliantly on Ansar al-Islam last winter. This is a group of several hundred terrorists who were initially trained and organized by bin Laden troops and co-financed by al Qaeda and Saddam Hussein's secret police. Today their chests swell in the north of Iraq. Defense officials, meanwhile, say they were initially surprised at the large number and senior rank of the al Qaeda operatives moving into Iraq

Your reading comprehension could use a little expanding. All the facts should be considered when formulating opinions. Don't practice law amigo, attention to detail is extremely important, and omitting facts will find you in contempt.