April 23, 2008
Hope Springs Eternal: Former Baath and Insurgent Leader Captured?
Are reports that Izzat Ibrahim al-Duri has been captured true? There's not much evidence, but I freakin I hope so.
If he is caught this is very good news. Sunni insurgents have broken into four distinct factions.
There is a faction led by al Qaeda under the banner of the Islamic State of Iraq. Another faction is composed of Islamists sympathetic to al Qaeda's goals, such as Ansar al-Islam, but have broken with the group over tactics and leadership positions. The third group are Arab and Islamic nationalists, many of them under the banner of the Reform and Jihad Movement.
The last group are former nationalists who are now part of the Anbar awakening, such as most of the 1920s Revolution Brigades, and fighting with the U.S. and Iraqi government.
As al Qaeda has become less and less of a threat Arab and Islamic nationalists, have become the primary headache for U.S. forces in Northern and Western Iraq. Over the past few months the number of propaganda videos from al Qaeda in Iraq have decreased dramatically while the number of videos, most of them IED or other attacks against U.S. forces, have increased substantially.
What does this have to do with al-Douri? Al-Douri is said to head up at least one faction within the broader Arab/Islamic nationalist movement. If he is captured, this would be a major psychological blow to the remaining Sunni insurgents.
So, like I said, I hope he's been captured. Knock. On. Wood.
By Rusty at April 23, 2008 06:07 PM | | l digg this
