Iraq Issues

   Index for Iraq issues

Iraq leads to less Muslim terror support?

Pew finds sharp decline in Muslim support for suicide bombing (9/23/07)

France to the rescue? (8/27/07)

What is the real cause of terrorism? (7/2/07)

al qaeda is enemy no. one (Bush 6/13/07)

Iraqis say:  "Don't leave" (New York Times 5/29/07)

Surge is working (New York Post 3/26/07)

Insurgent strikes decrease (AHN 3/8/07)

The Iranian connection (CBS News reports comments by Defense Secretary Robert Gates - 2/9/07)

Back from Baghdad (Michelle Malkin - 1/17/07)

Iraq:  Why we must not give up the fight (Joe Fried - 1/16/07)

Is Iraq part of the War on Terrorism?

Quotations from al Qaeda regarding Iraq

Ralph Peters asks, "Where's the civil war?"

Sunnis uniting against al Zarqawi

Is Iraq the reason we are hated?

Do Iraqis want us to leave?

Iraq leads to less Muslim terror support?

When support for terrorism increases in among Muslim populations, the U.S. policy in Iraq is always cited as a major reason.  Using the same logic, should we assume that the U.S. Iraq policy is linked to sharp declines in Muslim support for terror and terrorist organizations such as al qaeda?  A recent Pew 47-nation survey shows dramatic decreases in support for terrorism between 2002 (prior to the Iraq intervention) and 2007 (after the Iraq intervention).  Read more>>

Support for suicide bombing wanes among Muslims (9/23/07)

In its Global Opinion Trends survey, released July 24, 2007, Pew noted sharp declines in support for suicide bombing between 2002 and 2007.  The reported changes are shown below.

In addition, Pew reports a general decline in support for al qaeda leader Osama bin-Laden.  Although Pew does not attempt to explain the reasons behind the decline, it seems reasonable to assume that much of the world is repulsed by the brutal tactics of al qaeda in Iraq and elsewhere.  Although the image of the U.S. has suffered from the war on terror, it is important to remember that the image of the U.S. enemy has also suffered - probably to an even greater extent.  See entire Pew survey at http://pewglobal.org/reports/pdf/257.pdf.

France aid a hopeful sign for Iraq (8/27/07)  France offers diplomatic aid in Iraq

What is the real root of terrorism? (7/2/07)   Former terrorist says western policy is not the root cause of Islamic terrorism>

al qaeda is "public enemy number one" in Iraq (6/13/07) Quoting General Petraeus, President Bush noted that al qaeda is now our main foe in Iraq.  Read more>>

Iraqis say:  "Don't leave" (New York Times 5/29/07) By nearly 2 to 1, Iraqis want the Coalition to stay.  Read more >>

General Petraeus:  Surge is working (New York Post 3/26/07)  "By being in the neighborhoods, getting to know the people and winning their trust, the soldiers have allowed the people to turn against the al Qaeda terrorists, whom they fear and loathe."  Read more >>

Report Says Insurgent Strikes Down 80 Percent In Iraq (AHN 3/8/07)

 So far so good.  "Insurgency strikes down 80 Percent in Iraq," according to U.S. military  Read more

Gates: Iranian Weaponry Found in Iraq (CBS News, 2/9/07)

(CBS/AP) Serial numbers and markings on explosives used in Iraq provide "pretty good" evidence that Iranians are providing either weapons or technology for militants there, Defense Secretary Robert Gates asserted Friday. Link to story>>
 

Back from Baghdad (by Michelle Malkin, 1/17/07)

My HotAir.com colleague Bryan Preston and I are back from Iraq. Thanks to Allah and Ian for holding down the fort at HA and thanks much to guest-bloggers ... for filling in here during my absence.... My syndicated column today provides an overview of the counterinsurgency efforts we witnessed first-hand--and I'm posting the column below, illustrated with photos I took throughout the trip. Link to story>>

Iraq:  Why we must not give up the fight (Commentary by Joe Fried, 1/16/07)

A few observations about Iraq and the larger “War on Terrorism.”

(opinion by Joe Fried)

The decision to invade

The United States should never confront a dangerous tyrant, militarily, until it has first exhausted nonmilitary attempts to deal with him.  In addition, military action should not be used unless the following conditions exist:

1.      The military action is welcomed by a majority of the population (living under the tyrant’s control).

2.      There is legal justification for the intervention.

3.      Our military is capable of succeeding.

4.      It is in our national interest.

All of the above conditions existed with respect to our toppling of the Saddam Hussein regime. 

Read more>>

Is Iraq part of the War on Terrorism? (Opinion by Joe Fried, 9/7/06)

In early September, 2006, President Bush conducted a series of speeches regarding the War on Terrorism - the progress we've made and the challenges that remain.  He stressed that the war in Iraq is a central part of the War on Terrorism - a contention that many people (according to polls) do not agree with. 

While we could argue about the degree of support given to al Qaeda by the former Hussein regime, it is clear that our Islamic terrorist foes decided long ago to make Iraq a new front in their larger struggle.  In August, 2003, a few months after the Coalition forces successfully removed the Hussein regime, al Qaeda commenced its battle for Iraq with ruthless depravity.  Within the span of a few weeks, the Red Cross, the U.N., and a Shi'ite mosque were attacked by suicide bombers.  Since them, al Qaeda has boasted of over 850 viscious suicide attacks, resulting in the deaths of thousands of innocent Iraqis.  Yet, many in America say that Iraq has nothing to do with our terrorist enemies.  How do these facts reconcile?

One has only to consider the words of Bin Laden and al-Zawahiri to see how very important they view Iraq.  As the President stated, Bin Laden has declared Baghdad to be the "Capital of the Caliphate," which would be one mammoth Islamic state comprising over a billion people, and extending from Indonesia to Morocco.  (For more information on the Caliphate, provided by the Christian Science Monitor, click here.)  Bin Laden also proclaimed:  "The war is for you or for us to win.  If we win it, it means your defeat and disgrace forever." 

Ayman al-Zawahiri, the number two man in al Qaeda, stressed the importance of Iraq to its larger goals.  In 2005 he stated that al Qaeda must "Establish An Islamic Authority … Over As Much Territory As You Can To Spread Its Power In Iraq … [And] Extend The Jihad Wave To The Secular Countries Neighboring Iraq."

These words show, irrefutably, that Iraq is at the very epicenter of the war against terrorism. Unfortunately, however, most Americans have not even heard the words spoken by our terrorist foes.  In their reporting on the President's speeches, many in the mainstream media simply paraphrased his statements, left out the Bin Laden and al-Zawahiri quotes, and portrayed the President's remarks as being politically motivated.

There are many aspects of our Iraq policy that can be debated, but there should be no debate on one key point:  Iraq is a vitally important battle in the War on Terrorism, and it is a battle we must win. 

Quotations from al Qaeda

The following are quotations from Bin Laden and al-Zawahiri, as reported on the White House Web site.

Where's my civil war, dude?"

"I'm trying. I've been trying all week. The other day, I drove another 30 miles or so on the streets and alleys of Baghdad. I'm looking for the civil war that The New York Times declared. And I just can't find it." Those are the words of Ralph Peters, a veteran US Army intelligence officer, who is touring Iraq.  His report, posted on March 5, 2006, says that there is reason to be optimistic about the progress we are making in Iraq.  Read full story>>.

  Iraqi tribal chiefs vow to strike al-Qaeda

While most of the main-stream press gets hysterical about a civil war in Iraq (with scant evidence), John Ward Anderson reveals that 300 powerful Sunni tribal leaders in Iraq's western Anbar province, and in an area near Kirkuk, are forming a militia - not to fight each other - to fight al Zarqawi!

According to Maj General Rick Lynch, a U.S. military spokesman, the tribes have already killed 6 of al Zarqawi's deputies since last September.  "The tribal leaders, if you will, said: "OK, that's enough, let's take out Zarqawi and his network and get them out of our cities."

Khalaf al-Fahdawi, a leader of the Sunni Albu Fahd tribe in Anbar, said:  "Forming the group [the militia opposed to al Zarqawi] did not come from nothing.  It came from a need to destroy al Qaeda, which we thought the Marines might have been able to do.  We were wrong..."

Will other media outlets report these findings?  I suspect they will; however, the spin will be that this Sunni militia is just more evidence of the so-called "civil war." 

Read the full story>>.

   Is Iraq the reason we are hated? (1/2/06)

Conventional wisdom says that the Muslim world hates us because George Bush took us into Iraq.  But is this "wisdom" supported by the facts?

While it's true that we are not well-liked by most Muslim nations, there is no clear evidence that our Iraq policy has reduced our popularity.  Indeed, it may have increased it. 

In December 2001 and January 2002, a massive poll of nearly 10,000 residents in 9 Muslim nations was taken by the Gallup Organization.  This poll was taken just 3 or 4 months after 9/11, and more than a year prior to armed intervention in Iraq.  A favorable opinion of the U.S. was held by very small minorities in each of the surveyed nations, as shown below:

Even lower numbers of respondents approved of the U.S. military action in Afghanistan, despite the fact that the U.S. claimed the military action was directed at capturing mastermind of the 9/11 attack -  Osama Bin Laden:

These numbers show a great dislike for the U.S. and its policies, but they can't be blamed on President Bush or his actions in Iraq.  In fact, a later poll, conducted by the Pew Research Center, suggests that our popularity rose slightly - after the invasion of Iraq.  Residents of 6 of the countries surveyed by the Gallup Organization (in 2001/2002) were also surveyed by Pew Research in mid-2005.  The results are shown side-by-side in the table, below:

1. Results for Morocco reflect 2004, rather than 2005.

These results suggest that U.S popularity plummeted in Turkey, but stayed about the same or increased in the other 5 countries.  And, the increases in Pakistan and Indonesia appear to be significant.

And, what about the world's second largest nation -  India?  Because India is not, for the most part, a Muslim nation, it was not included in the Gallup survey of Muslim states.  Nevertheless, we should not be ignorant of the impact of our policies on this nation of over 1 billion people.  After all, it has a population almost as large as that of all Muslim peoples of the world, combined.

The Pew Research polling of India's residents found that the U.S. image improved dramatically between 2002 and 2005.  In 2002 (before the Iraq intervention) 54% of Indians had a positive opinion of the U.S.  That shot up to 71% by May, 2005 - after we intervened in Iraq.  Perhaps India, a nation that has suffered so very much at the hands of Islamic fascists, respects the fact that one nation, the United States, is standing up to those terrorists.

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NOTE:  The 9-nation Gallup Organization poll, released in February, 2002, and the 16-nation Pew Research "Global Attitudes Project" can be found on the respective organization Web sites.

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   Do Iraqis want us to leave? (12/30/05)

Recently, Congressman John Murtha (Democrat of PA), asserted that 80% of Iraqis want us to leave Iraq immediately.  He didn't cite a source for his "80%" citation; however, it is widely assumed that he was referring to a private and unpublished poll, commissioned by the British Ministry of Defense.  According to the British newspaper, The Sunday Telegraph, that poll showed that "82 percent [of Iraqis] are 'strongly opposed' to the presence of coalition troops." 

Before one leaps to conclusions regarding these reported poll findings, two caveats are in order.

1. It is vital to see the actual poll wording before making assumptions regarding what a poll indicates.  If you are skeptical of this fact, I refer you to the case of the conniving (or incompetent) newspaper, USA Today.  (If anyone from USA Today is reading this, please feel free to sue for libel.  We'd love to prove our point in a legal forum.)  USA Today commissioned a poll, and then falsely reported the results of that poll.  For a brief explanation of this sham, please click here>>.
2. Not liking someone is not the same as wanting that person to leave.  I have to admit that I hate going to the dentist.  You might say that I am opposed to her presence.  Nevertheless, I recognize that I NEED to be in her presence - at least now and again.  Likewise, Iraqis are opposed to the presence of Coalition forces - of course.  Anyone would be.  But that is not the same thing as wanting those forces to immediately disappear. 

The distinction between liking someone and wanting them to leave can be demonstrated.  For example, a February, 2004 poll conducted by Oxford Research International showed that more than 56 percent of Iraqis "strongly opposed the presence of Coalition forces in Iraq."  Yet, that same poll showed that only 40% wanted Coalition forces to withdraw once an Iraq government was in place (a full 5 months later), 33% wanted a withdrawal within a year, and 27% wanted a "longer or more open-ended stay."^1.

Another poll, conducted by the Iraq Centre for Research and Strategic Studies in June, 2004, showed the same distinction between the dislike for Coalition forces, and the need for them.  In that poll, only 30% of respondents indicated that they wanted "immediate withdrawal," yet "67% of Iraqis strongly or somewhat oppose the presence of the troops."^2.

In summary, Murtha and other war critics have rushed to a conclusion that can't be supported by the facts.  In general, the numerous Iraqi polls show quite clearly that Iraqis do NOT want Coalition forces to withdraw until violence is significantly reduced. 

1. From the Web site of Project on Defense Alternatives (http://www.comw.org/pda/0501br17append.html).

2. Ibid.

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