The Perfect Soldier: Special Operations, Commandos, and the Future of Us Warfare by James F. Dunnigan
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Dirty Little Secrets
The Captured al Qaeda Death List
by James Dunnigan
April 2, 2006
Discussion Board on this DLS topic
Coalition forces in Iraq are believed to
have captured some very sensitive al Qaeda documents. Apparently, one
of these is a "Death List," giving the names of prominent Iraqis of all
factions whom al Qaeda believes opposes its efforts to establish an
Islamist state in the country. Perhaps not surprisingly, many of the
names on the list are of Sunni tribal and religious leaders who have
been less than enthusiastic in their support for al Qaeda. Sadly, a
number of those on the list have already been slain.
Al
Qaeda's assassination campaign against Sunni leaders is one of several
factors that have led to an increase in Sunni militias turning against
the Islamic terrorists. In addition to al Qaeda assassinations,
middle-of-the-road Sunni leaders have been targeted by Shia death
squads, as well as Baath (pro-Saddam) Party groups. That the national
security forces are largely Shia and Kurdish does not go over well
either, particularly since police and army personnel are often not very
gentle in dealing with Sunni civilians. And then there's a rising crime
rate. Sunni militias have already defeated al Qaeda in some parts of
the country, providing encouragement for their expansion.
While
stronger Sunni self-defense forces will probably improve security in
some areas, their existence underscores the inability of the government
to maintain security nation wide, and will probably be an obstacle to
establish a comprehensive national security policy.
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