chicagotribune.com Article: New boss turns the tables on Al Qaeda

Ex-Sunni insurgent becomes U.S. ally

By Liz Sly, Tribune foreign correspondent; Nadeem Majeed contributed to this report
November 22, 2007

BAGHDAD
The once-dreaded Al Qaeda in Iraq stronghold of Amariyah has a new boss, and he's not shy about telling the story of the shootout that turned him into a local legend and helped change the tenor of the Iraq war.

Earlier this year, Abul Abed, a disgruntled Sunni insurgent leader, began secret talks with the Americans about ending Al Qaeda's reign of terror in this run-down, formerly middle-class Baghdad neighborhood, renowned as one of the city's most dangerous. He had been gathering intelligence on the group for months.

One day in late May, he said, he decided it was time to act.

He hailed the car carrying the feared leader of Al Qaeda in the neighborhood, a man known as the White Lion, on one of Amariyah's main streets. "We want you to stop destroying our neighborhood," he told the man.
"Do you know who you are talking to?" said the White Lion, getting out of his car. "I am Al Qaeda. I will destroy even your own houses!"

He pulled out his pistol and shot at Abul Abed. The gun jammed. He reloaded and fired again. Again, the gun jammed.

By this time, Abul Abed said, he had pulled his own gun. He fired once, killing the White Lion.

"I walked over to him, stepped on his hand and took his gun," Abul Abed, which is a nom de guerre, said at his new, pink-painted headquarters in a renovated school in Amariyah, as an American Army captain seated in the corner nodded his head in affirmation of the account. "And then the fight started."

It was the beginning of the end for Al Qaeda in Amariyah. The next day, a firefight erupted. Al Qaeda fighters closed in on Abul Abed. Most of the 150 men who had joined him fled. Holed up in a mosque with fewer than a dozen supporters, Abul Abed thought the end was near.

"The blue carpet was soaked red with blood," he recalled. Then the imam of the mosque called in American help.

A friendship was born.

Now Abul Abed, a swaggering former major in the Iraqi army and reputedly a top leader in the influential Islamic Army insurgent group, reigns supreme in Amariyah -- with considerable help from the U.S. military.

Still wearing the White Lion's pistol tucked into his belt, he commands his own 600-member paramilitary force, called the Knights of Mesopotamia. He receives $460,000 a month from the U.S. military to pay, arm and equip them. They wear crisp olive green uniforms with smart red and yellow badges bearing the Knights' horse-head logo. They are well-armed, and some have flak jackets.But they don't really need them. Since the Knights drove Al Qaeda out of Amariyah after a two-month battle, the neighborhood has become largely safe.

"You can move freely in Amariyah at any time of the day or night," Abul Abed said. "You can even see women without head scarves, wearing tight jeans!"

An 'Awakening' in Iraq

Men like Abul Abed have helped change the face of the war. Following in the footsteps of the late Abdul-Sattar Abu Risha, the tribal leader who led the Sunni revolt that drove Al Qaeda from the base of its operations in Iraq's Anbar province, more than 70,000 people, most of them Sunnis, in 148 groups have joined in the so-called Awakening, or Sahwa, movement, according to the U.S. military, turning against Al Qaeda and turning to the Americans for help.

Since Abul Abed's fight in Amariyah, some of the most feared Baghdad neighborhoods, including Abu Ghraib, Fadhil, Ghazaliyah, Dora and Adhamiyah, have followed suit, forming their own brigades of Knights, welcoming the U.S. military and receiving U.S. money.

Abul Abed is coy about his insurgent connections. He gave his real name as Saad Erebi Ghaffouri al-Obaidi, though he is known across Baghdad as Abul Abed. U.S. officials, Amariyah residents and Sunni leaders say he was a prominent commander in the Islamic Army. He described himself as a former Iraqi army major who "went into business" after the regime fell. He won't say what business.

But he acknowledged that many of his men once fought Americans and now work closely with them.

"They recognize that they made a big mistake," he said. "They realize that they were on the wrong path and that they wasted many chances with what they did.

"The implications of creating this network of trained, armed paramilitaries loyal not to the government but to an assortment of local strongmen have yet to be played out. U.S. officials said they are relieved that the revolution within the Sunni community has helped to sharply reduce the number of attacks. According to the military, attacks in Iraq fell 55 percent between March and October.

The U.S. wants to absorb the Sunnis who have joined the Awakening movement into the Iraqi security forces, but so far the Shiite-led government has hesitated, concerned that they will one day turn against the government. If the government continues to frustrate the Sunnis, U.S. officials are concerned their new allies could go back to the insurgency.

"That's the big intangible that makes me nervous," said Col. Martin Stanton, who oversees the reconciliation and engagement effort. If there is no progress on getting the paramilitaries regular jobs with the security forces and delivering services to Sunni areas, Sunni frustrations will continue to mount, he said.

"The question is, what's the break point? ... How long before people start getting sick of it and start checking out?" he said.

'Americans are our protectors'

Abul Abed said the Sunni revolution has gone too far for that."Americans are our protectors and saviors," he said.

The real enemy of Iraq, he says, now is Iran. He pulled out his mobile phone to show pictures he has saved of the bodies of his four brothers, who were kidnapped and murdered in 2005 by what he suspects was a Shiite death squad with ties to Iran. One of them had a nail driven into his head. Another was missing a hand.

"Even animals wouldn't do that," he said, his face darkening. "Iran is so deeply infiltrated in Iraq, the problem here still cannot be solved. Iran wants to demolish us. If the Americans leave, then you can count Iraq as a second Tehran."


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GI Flyzap!

The stories Iraqis might have with American soldiers are as various as Iraqis and Americans themselves.

Anyway, here's the story behind the title.

At the area's main gate, there is a group of American GI's and local recruits. One day, my father and I went to Baghdad in the morning and came back in the afternoon for his hand's physical therapy. As we were leaving the area, we saw a group of 4-5 US soldiers sitting there at a check point, with one of them holding a fly zapper in his hand, killing (or trying to kill) the flies that were buzzing around, enjoying the warm sun.

My father and I found that view sort of funny, and we went on our way.

When we returned in the afternoon, a woman GI, with the name of Melidona, was carrying the fly zapper and continuing her colleagues' task of zapping the flies. Her name got stuck in my memory because it reminded me of Maradona :) , and also because she was sort of cute and had exceptionally nice hair for a soldier!

Anyhow, this time, it was really funny to see not only one funny thing, but it actually repeated itself; so my father and I had a good laugh about the following scenario:

40 years from now, this Iraq War veteran is sitting in his/her rocking chair, and his/her grandchildren are sitting nearby, and this conversation takes place:

- "Grand-pa/ma?! How was the Iraq War? What did you do there?!"

- "O, kids! If you only knew! I fought a heck-of-a-fight, and won it all single handed. Killed 'em all!"

- "Waw", the children said with eyes wide open. "You killed the bad guys?!"

- "No!", answers the veteran, "I killed flies!! I had a fly zapper in my hand and left none of 'em alive!!!"

Or maybe this veteran would run for President, but in that case his/her file would definitely be better than the current Chief-of-Staff :)

Nevertheless, it was a good idea to zap the flies, though. At least it is something new that could be added to their daily events.

"Who Are You?!"

These times are not so upbeat, to be honest, but the amazing thing about us Iraqis is that we try to find the funny stuff no matter how difficult the times may be.

 

I was visiting my paternal uncle's house and slept over there. Because one of my cousin's husband goes out to work very early in the morning, she had to come with him right after sunrise, so that he drops her at her parents/my uncle's house.

 

Because of the ongoing Iraqi dilemma, my cousin and I have not met since late 2003, then she got married and moved elsewhere.

 

Now in that morning, my other cousin/her brother was sleeping much deeper than me, and we were both in a room very close to the main door of the house, and the woman's husband had dropped her at the door and left.

 

It was around sunrise time when I heard knocking on the window. I looked (without my glasses), saw her and knew she was her. I went to open the door, without the glasses, with my short hair, and unshaved-for-a-couple-of-days beard.

 

When she saw me she said:

- "Excuse me but, who are you?"

 

I was shocked, and was still sleepy.

- "Who am i?"

I said my 1st, 2nd and 3rd names, with a half-smile.

 

She apologized, and said:

- "Hi, how are you? How's uncle?"... etc...

 

After i opened the door, i went back to sleep for another 2 hours, before waking up. After that i had breakfast with those who woke up late, and we were all talking.

 

She explained how she didn't know me by saying that i have become skinnier, had shorter and less hair, and was without glass, in addition to being at unexpected place and time.

 

It was something to laugh at, but it is still sad; because Iraqi families used to frequently meet, and now, because of the terrible conditions, nobody knows their first cousin if they see them by chance. I also felt sad because it really seems that i have changed.

 

Eeeeeh, as an Iraqi song once put it:

"Oumur wit'adda litlatheen... La ya flan..."

Roughly translated as:

"Alas, for we became old, older than 30!"

 

And as Jackie Chan once said:

"Who am i?"

 

:)

Testing (Windows Live Writer)

Hi...

I just downloaded (Windows Live Writer), and this post is published through it.

 

I hope it works!

 

More later...

Guardian Article: US buoyed by fall in Iraqi death attacks

Ordinary Iraqis and American commanders are becoming cautiously optimistic about security

Joshua Partlow and Naseer Nouri in Baghdad
The Observer

From the shop owners selling cigarettes by the light of generators to the military commanders poring over aerial maps, Iraqis and Americans are striving to understand the sharp decrease in violence over the past months and what it might herald for the future of Iraq.

The number of attacks against US soldiers has fallen to levels not seen since before the February 2006 bombing of a Shia shrine in Samarra, which touched off waves of sectarian killing, according to US military statistics. In October, 39 soldiers died, the lowest level since March 2006. Unofficial Health Ministry figures suggest civilian deaths across Iraq rose last month compared with September, but the US military claimed that civilian deaths fell from about 2,800 in January to about 800 in October.

'This trend represents the longest continuous decline in attacks on record and illustrates how our operations have improved security since the surge was emplaced,' Lieutenant General Raymond Odierno, the commander of day-to-day military operations in Iraq, said. The momentum, he added, was 'positive' but 'not yet irreversible'.

But Iraq defies sweeping statements about safety or danger. In part, some credit the reduction to the six-month 'freeze' announced by the radical Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr on the activities of his Mahdi Army militia.

Both Iraqis and coalition soldiers are wrestling with a basic question: is the declining violence a lull in the war or the beginning of a long road to peace?

'My feeling is that this decrease in the violence is temporary,' said Saleh al-Mutlak, who leads the Iraqi Front for National Dialogue political party. 'The US cannot maintain this number of troops in the areas where they are in. And if they do so, there will be no normal life in these areas.'

Abdul Amir Jumaa, a Baghdad shopkeeper, now feels safe enough to travel to wholesalers for crates of lemon soda and cartons of cigarettes, but not to send his daughter back to school, and confident enough to drive his new Peugeot through his own Karrada neighbourhood, but not in the Sunni districts across the Tigris river. His family watches satellite television at home because they are still afraid to venture out to parks or restaurants.

'The people used to talk all about "security is bad, security is bad", but in the past month, everywhere we go, everyone is talking about how things are improving,' he said. 'Before the war, it was still much better than now. It has not got to that level yet.'

In many areas of Iraq, fewer corpses are turning up on the streets. And Baghdad sounds quieter than last year: there are fewer deep, resonating explosions from car bombs, and the once-constant clatter of gunfire has become sporadic.

In Baghdad's Amiriya district, where 14 US soldiers were killed in May alone, there has not been a roadside bomb explosion since 7 August, said Lieutenant Colonel Dale Kuehl, battalion commander in the area. The last mortar or rocket attack was in July. 'Al-Qaeda overplayed their hand in Amiriya and the locals rose up against them,' said Kuehl. 'I have eaten dinner in several homes and even went to a wedding. None of this would have been feasible six months ago.'

He added: 'I hesitate to say we have turned a corner. Insurgencies tend to be fairly resilient and can come back if the underlying causes of the insurgency are not addressed in the political realm.'

Soldiers last winter counted an average of 275 murders a week in northwestern Baghdad; now it's 10 to 15, said Lieutenant Colonel Steven Miska. 'The overall trend is very heartening, but I would definitely shy away from trying to attribute it to one particular thing,' he said. 'There are a lot of factors that play into why we have this relative calm.'

Some say President Bush's decision to send in 30,000 extra soldiers, and the troops' move from sprawling bases to small outposts, has played a role. Others argue that it stemmed mostly from the decision by other Sunni insurgent groups to embrace a partnership with US soldiers and abandon al-Qaeda.

In Diyala province there has been an 'absolutely dramatic decrease of violent acts' since US reinforcements arrived and made an aggressive effort to partner with these resident volunteers, according to US commander Col David Sutherland. 'We're seeing new businesses open every day; the children are back in school,' he said.

But large parts of southern Baghdad remain a battleground where soldiers, Shia militias and al-Qaeda fighters clash. Attacks often pass with little attention outside the neighbourhood in which they occur. Formerly mixed Sunni-Shia areas have become largely the domain of one sect, since millions of Iraqis have fled. 'It's much harder to conduct sectarian cleansing if you've got a homogeneous neighbourhood which has a local volunteer security force which is on the lookout for those people,' Miska said.

Outside Baghdad, many Iraqis live in walled-off neighbourhoods. Basim Hamdi, 32, a Shia merchant from Balad, about 50 miles north of Baghdad, said: 'The security situation in Balad is so bad compared with last year. No one from here can go outside the city except for emergencies, and no Sunni can get in.'

'Violence has not been reduced. This year was the bloodiest for all of the people in Kirkuk,' said Hewa Fatih Abdullah al-Shwani, a Kurdish businessman. He used to travel south to Baghdad and Basra to coordinate cement shipments, but now deals exclusively with Kurdish colleagues or arranges for his merchandise to come from Iran and Turkey.

'I do not see any improvement, because terrorists keep changing their plans,' he said. 'When you arrest a thousand, you will find another thousand more because of unemployment, mistakes, chaos and the weakness of the government.'

© Washington Post

Bush Mentions Amiriya! Dude, We're Famous!!!

Bush: Iraqis Are `taking Back' Iraq
By JENNIFER LOVEN – 3 hours ago

FORT JACKSON, S.C. (AP) — A reopened historic market. A butcher selling more sheep. A parade in Anbar province. Electricity production above the level under Saddam Hussein. President Bush cited such indicators of normal life in Iraq along with evidence of decreased violence to argue Friday that the war is paying dividends.

"They're taking their country back," Bush said of Iraqis. "Slowly but surely the people of Iraq are reclaiming a normal society."

The president addressed a ceremony for 1,300 soldiers graduating from basic training here, many of whom will end up in Iraq. It was his first major speech on the topic since he announced in September that progress from this year's military buildup justifies keeping a large U.S. troop presence in Iraq at least until next summer.

He argued then that continued American sacrifice would create the space Iraqi leaders need to make gains on tamping down the sectarian fighting that leaves Iraq persistently fractured.
On Friday, he argued for continued patience, because even though national leaders have made little more progress since, he said Iraq offers scattered signs of hope.

On the military side, Bush said U.S. deaths in Iraq have fallen to their lowest level since the beginning of 2006 and attacks from deadly improvised explosive devices have fallen by half.
He spent more time detailing progress in other areas. Bush said the Iraqi economy is growing, inflation has been cut in half and electricity production reached its highest level of the war in September. Shiite and Sunni Muslims are cooperating in some local areas, even while their leaders can't agree at the national level, Bush said.

"Our new strategy recognizes that once Iraqis feel safe in their homes and neighborhoods, they can begin to create jobs and opportunities, and that is starting to happen," the president said. "And these changes were made possible by the bravery and determination of our Iraqi partners and the incredible bravery of the men and women of the United States military."

Administration officials acknowledge it is hard to tell whether the progress represents a temporary aberration or the beginning of a sustainable trend. Bush's current plan for the U.S. presence in Iraq calls for troop levels to drop gradually to around 130,000 next summer, with 5,700 U.S. forces coming home by Christmas.

In his remarks, Bush cited instances of normalcy in a country wracked by violence.
"In Baqubah, the historic market has been reopened in a city that had been in a virtual lockdown a few months ago," he said. "In Fallujah, workers have turned an artillery factory into a civilian machine shop employing 600 people.

"In the Baghdad neighborhood of Amiriya, an al-Qaida stronghold until a few months ago, locals have returned and they're reopening their shops," the president said.

Despite differences that have impeded progress in Baghdad, Bush said reconciliation is taking place at the local level. "Many Iraqis are seeing growing cooperation between Shia and Sunnis," he said. "These folks are tired of Al Qaida and they're tired of Iranian-backed extremists, they are weary of fighting and they are determined to give their families a better life."

Still, Bush said parts of Iraq remain plagued by violence and corruption and economic improvements are not shared uniformly across the country.

"Reconciliation at the national level hadn't been what we had hoped it had been by now," the president said.

"While the central government has passed a budget and it's reached out to its neighbors and have begun to share oil revenues with the provinces, the Iraqi parliament still lags in passing key legislation," he said. "Political factions are still failing to make necessary compromises. And that's disappointing and I, of course, made my disappointments clear to the Iraqi leadership."

Before he spoke, he took a tour of the school's "fit-to-win course," which requires recruits to negotiate up to 20 obstacles. He addressed about 180 soldiers at the site deep in the piney woods, telling them he was proud of their efforts and that they would help secure a peaceful future for America. The fort trains 50 percent of all soldiers and 70 percent of the women entering the Army each year.

Also while at the Army facility, he met with the families of 12 soldiers killed in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.