al-Qaeda wins if it becomes the beacon of hope for Islam. al-Qaeda loses if it becomes the enemy of Islam – or, as the Sunnis in Iraq recently chanted in the streets of Ramadi, al-Qaeda becomes the enemy of Allah. al-Qaeda is NOT becoming the beacon of hope for Islam and IS becoming the enemy of Islam. And in Iraq this debacle for al-Qaeda has already incurred and is being cemented by al-Qaeda’s bloody atrocities against Muslims, as stated by a Lebanese newspaper:

In 2005, a violent conflict started between Albu Mahal and Al-Karabla, two major Sunni Arab tribes populating the remote area around Qaim in Anbar Province. One of these tribes supported Al-Qaeda in Iraq. Both tribes were hostile to the Americans and to the Iraqi government. The Americans and the Iraqi government assessed this to be a normal tribal conflict. Later developments revealed that neither Al-Qaeda in Iraq nor the Iraqi government nor the Americans recognized that it reflected a drastic change in the political dynamics that would shape the new phase of the Iraqi conflict.

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It was only months later that a group of tribal leaders, supported by the Americans and the Iraqi government, publicly challenged Al-Qaeda in Iraq. They announced the formation of a tribal or salvation council with the primary objective of “liberating” Anbar from Al-Qaeda in Iraq. Sunni political parties and groups such as the Muslim Scholars Association (a hard-line Sunni organization that supports insurgents and refuses to participate in the political process), and the Al-Tawafuq front (the biggest Sunni political bloc in the Iraqi Council of Representatives) sharply criticized the members of this council and predicted its failure. They were mostly motivated by the threat posed by the salvation council to their position as sole representatives of the Iraqi Sunni community, of which the population of Anbar constitutes a principal component.

After months of clashes, it was clear that Al-Qaeda in Iraq was losing the battle in Anbar. Peace and stability were brought back to the province in almost no time. The success in Anbar has stimulated other tribes and groups to challenge and fight Al-Qaeda in Iraq in other parts of Iraq. Local tribes and insurgent groups like the Islamic Army and the 1920s Brigades in Sunni-dominated Baghdad districts, Salaheddin Province and Diyala Province entered the fight against Al-Qaeda in Iraq. By the fall of 2007, it was clear that there was a significant shift in the Sunni community position against Al-Qaeda in Iraq.

The shift this year has turned Iraq from a war against Americans to a war against al-Qaeda. Iraq is now fighting al-Qaeda, swearing on the Koran to destroy it for the atrocities it committed on fellow Muslims.

True, at one point some distressed Sunnis welcomed Al-Qaeda in Iraq, but it was only a matter of months before they concluded that it was better to participate in a Shiite-dominated government than to be under Al-Qaeda in Iraq control.

Second, Al-Qaeda in Iraq’s strategy is to incite sectarian violence in Iraq. The aftermath of the Samarra Golden Mosque blast in 2006 was ironic. Al-Qaeda in Iraq succeeded in that attack to provoke the Shiite Mehdi Army militia. But the latter’s retaliation attacks proved to the Sunnis that although Al-Qaeda in Iraq could attack Shiites it could not protect the Sunnis from Shiite counterattacks.

Third, the sectarian attacks and counterattacks incited by Al-Qaeda in Iraq caused the Sunni areas to become isolated from Shiite areas, thereby damaging the Sunni economy. And lastly, military operations in Al-Qaeda in Iraq-controlled areas caused huge losses in property and nearly brought daily life to a halt.

Summary: al-Qaeda is a poison the kills Islam and Muslims. And the story of al-Qaeda crimes against Muslims will be repeated for ages, as long as the witness survive to tell of the horrors of al-Qaeda. What does this mean? It means all the conventional wisdom about Iraq, the Middle East and Muslims needs to be thrown out the window. It is useless now.