Jun 01 2007
Media Notices Iraq Rising Up Against Al Qaeda – Finally
It has taken a few weeks, but the antique media has finally taken notice of the fact the Iraqi street is rising up – against al Qaeda:
Sunni residents of a west Baghdad neighborhood used assault rifles and a roadside bomb to battle the Sunni insurgent group al-Qaeda in Iraq this week, leaving at least 28 people dead and six injured, residents said Thursday.
The mayor of the Amiriyah neighborhood, Mohammed Abdul Khaliq, said in a telephone interview that residents were rising up to try to expel al-Qaeda in Iraq, which has alienated other Sunnis with its indiscriminate violence and attacks on members of its own sect.
“I think this is going to be the end of the al-Qaeda presence here,” Abdul Khaliq said of the fighting Wednesday and Thursday, which began over accusations that al-Qaeda in Iraq had executed Sunnis without reason.
The Baghdad battle is evidence of a deepening split between some Sunni insurgent groups and al-Qaeda in Iraq, which claims allegiance to Osama bin Laden. Although similar rebellions occurred in Diyala province earlier this year, the fighting this week appears to be the first time the conflict has reached the streets of Baghdad.
Somebody should ask the Surrendercrats if they are supprting our troops now, and backing their success now, and are willing to help foster more support against al Qaeda now – or are they still determined to give al Qaeda a huge victory by pulling our troops out? This is the worst scenario for the Democrats who ended up, all by their own poor judgement, allying with the aspiriations of al Qaeda. They could not see the possibility of winning so they tried to quit. And when Bush said we can succeed the Surrendercrats tried to force us to quit anyway. And now we all can see they were wrong. Dangerously wrong. Iraq is rising up against al Qaeda and making their counry safe – and making their country their own.
Your analysis is naive. The Sunni militias find the al-Qaeda people useful. They are tolerated because they do some of the heavy lifting that the Sunni militias would otherwise have to do all by themselves. Fighters for al-Qaeda kill Americans and Shiites and generally thwart the Shiite government. As soon as the Sunni militias see the al-Qaeda people as not being useful, the Sunni militias will destroy them. This doesn’t represent a change of heart by the Sunnis as much as a cold calculation on their part. I suspect al-Qaeda will still be tolerated where they are more useful than not. That said, both the Sunnis and Shiite militias seem to be moving toward the “don’t kill Iraqis, kill the Americans” stance. There have been public declarations to this effect recently by both sides. I find it hard to see this as an improvement.
Did you actually read this article??? That same Abdul Khaliq says: “But if the Americans interfere, it will blow up, because they are the enemy of us both, and we will unite against them and stop fighting each other,” he said.”
It is Democrats that are pushing for the policies that would make sure that AQ loses and Republicans for the policies that would make sure that AQ wins. At least according to Iraqis quoted in this article. If you think they are wrong, what’s the point of being so glad about them?
Yes I did. I understand what is says. The same was said in Anabr and other places. The point is if Sunni’s knock off al Qaeda, other Sunnis who ARE aligned with us can then work out what is best for Iraq.
Here is your fundamental error. There are few>Sunnis
aligned with us, if by that you mean Sunnis who stand ready to
usher in pro-American Iraq, the original neocon assumption.
And since you believe, unlike the overwhelming majority of Sunnis and Shias, “what is best for Iraq” is for it to be pro-American, there is
a certain amount of circular escapism going on here.
Sunnis aligned mid or longterm with America? None who want to survive after we leave.
The point is if Sunni’s knock off al Qaeda, other Sunnis who ARE aligned with us can then work out what is best for Iraq.
Smart. It’s like the Daily Show strategy: first use SCIRI to wipe out Sunnies, then use Al-Sadr to wipe out SCIRI, then use Kurds to wipe out Al-Sadr, then use Turkey to wipe out Kurds — so that the Amish prevail.
Actually, Bush with his “we’re staying for 50 years” is doing his best to help al Qaeda.
And who are those mythical Sunnies that are aligned with US? There is only tactical alliance, the Sunni politicians in the parliament are probably even more anti-American than anti-AQ insurgents.
Absolutely.
I wonder, truly, if people like Strata realize they are playing a
con game and justifying it on the grounds that any lie that
helps keep our troops in Iraq protects “our’ access to oil, etc,
or if they are “true believers,” convinced ,still, that we are
loved by , in this case , a majority of “freedom-loving” Moslems.
Absolutely.
I wonder, truly, if people like Strata realize they are playing a
con game and justifying it on the grounds that any lie that
helps keep our troops in Iraq protects access to “our” oil, etc,
or if they are “true believers,” convinced ,still, that we are
loved by , in this case , a majority of “freedom-loving” Moslems.
cannothold,
Strata’s views are here in the open in the 3,000 plus posts I have up. And neither silly case you present comes close to reflecting my thoughts. Your scenarios are, shall we say, those of a simple mind.
For years Bush foccussed on foreign “Al Qaeda” in Iraq in his propaganda to the American people, distorting the state of affiars so that Americans would not realize native Sunni Iraqis formed the
dominant bulk of the insurgent attacks on US troops.
I wonder if you can point to any of your “3,000 plus” posts which took him to task for this.