al Qaeda DYING

al Qaeda DYING

With the onset of Ramadan, the Muslim religious holiday of fasting and prayer, al Qaeda and the Sunni insurgents have historically increased the number of attacks against Coalition and Iraqi Security Forces. The number of attacks and casualties have traditionally spiked during this time frame as al Qaeda has promoted the notion that “martyrs” killed during the holy month will receive special consideration in paradise upon committing their murders. But since the beginning of Ramadan on September 13, attacks and deaths in Iraq have plummeted.

As of September 30, attacks throughout Iraq have dropped by 38 percent, Brigadier General Mark Gurganus, the ground combat commander in Anbar province reported. In Anbar province, the attacks declined from 415 during one week in 2006 to roughly 90 during the same period this year.

Al Qaeda in Iraq has been largely unable to conduct mass casualty suicide attacks inside Baghdad, and large-scale attacks in the provinces have been rare. The most significant strikes occurred in Diyala and Anbar provinces. But both attacks were related to al Qaeda’s modified Ramadan offensive: a campaign of assassinations targeting tribal leaders organizing their resources to fight al Qaeda in Iraq.......

Insurgent groups continue to turn

Despite al Qaeda in Iraq’s attempts to intimidate tribal leaders, the Awakening and other movements have yet to fold and are continuing to organize against the terror group. As al Qaeda in Iraq attempts to dominate the Sunni insurgency, these insurgent groups also continue to turn on the terror group. The latest group to denounce al Qaeda in Iraq is Asaeb al Iraq al Jihadiya, or the Iraqi Jihad Union, which has espoused an affinity toward al Qaeda in Iraq in the past.

The Iraqi Jihad Union. Click to view.

Evan Kohlmann reported on the Iraqi Jihad Union’s turn against al Qaeda. The Iraqi Jihad Union issued a statement on the Internet denouncing al Qaeda for its excesses against the Sunni people. The insurgent group accused “al Qaeda’s ‘Islamic State of Iraq’ of deliberately killing [Iraqi Jihad Union] fighters in Diyala province and mutilating their bodies,” Kohlmann noted. "To make things worse, [the ISI] dug up their bodies from the graves, further mutilated them, beheaded them, and showed them off from their vehicles while driving through the towns,” the statement said. “[The ISI] even killed our men’s wives and children.”............

By Bill Roggio the Rest:
October 6, 2007 11:12 AM