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Thursday, June 15, 2006

Austin Bay comments and provides links on the "treasure trove" of information found after (or was some of it before -- see below) the Zarqawi raid: After Zarqawi– raids kill 104 insurgents/Iraqi gov: AQ planned to use Iran-US confrontation (via TigerHawk)

Here's an AP report on the very interesting info (h/t:isirota1965): Papers show 'gloomy' state of insurgency

BAGHDAD, Iraq - A blueprint for trying to start a war between the United States and Iran was among a "huge treasure" of documents found in the hideout of terrorist leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, Iraqi officials said Thursday. The document, purporting to reflect al-Qaida policy and its cooperation with groups loyal to ousted President Saddam Hussein, also appear to show that the insurgency in Iraq was weakening...

...Although the office of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said the document was found in al-Zarqawi's hideout following a June 7 airstrike that killed him, U.S. military spokesman Maj. Gen. William Caldwell said the document had in fact been found in a previous raid as part of an ongoing three-week operation to track al-Zarqawi.

"We can verify that this information did come off some kind of computer asset that was at a safe location," he said. "This was prior to the al-Zarqawi safe house."

The document also said al-Zarqawi planned to try to destroy the relationship between the United States and its Shiite allies in Iraq.

While the coalition was continuing to suffer human losses, "time is now beginning to be of service to the American forces and harmful to the resistance," the document said.

The document said the insurgency was being hurt by, among other things, the U.S. military's program to train Iraqi security forces, by massive arrests and seizures of weapons, by tightening the militants' financial outlets, and by creating divisions within its ranks.

"Generally speaking and despite the gloomy present situation, we find that the best solution in order to get out of this crisis is to involve the U.S. forces in waging a war against another country or any hostile groups," the document said, as quoted by al-Maliki's office.

According to the summary, insurgents were being weakened by operations against them and by their failure to attract recruits. To give new impetus to the insurgency, they would have to change tactics, it added...

3 Comments

Yesterday afternoon on the radio (I'm pretty sure it was Terry Gross on NPR) was interviewing a reporter over in Iraq. They were discussing these findings. Gross asked something like "Isn't this the sort of information that the new Iraq government would WANT to be true? Wouldn't the new president WANT to spread the word that the insurgents were weak and losing?" Talk about a leading question. Gross apparently believes that it's pure propaganda, it's just made up, we should doubt its authenticity. (I've never heard Gross question the authenticity of Al-Quaeda's videos or statements.) I was so annoyed by the question I flipped the radio dial, but I wish I kept listening. So much treasonous behaviour these days.

Yes, he makes some very interesting points there.

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