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Arab volunteers draw U.S. scrutiny
Edited for length:
CALLING THEMSELVES mujaheddin, or holy warriors, the Arab fighters have come largely over the border from Syria, sometimes by the busload, according to U.S. military intelligence. In Baghdad in the past few days, U.S. officers said, some of these fighters have stormed into private homes and used them to ambush invading U.S. Army and Marine columns, sometimes hiding behind women and children. The Arab fighters have come from Egypt, Sudan, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Algeria, Morocco, Yemen and the Palestinian territories, according to information collected by U.S. officers from prisoner interrogations and other intelligence.
Picking through the pockets of the dead
Three nights ago, a Marine unit captured nine Sudanese fighters, two Syrians and an Egyptian after a firefight on Highway 6 leading into Baghdad, officers said. Most of those taken prisoner so far have been ordinary men with little or no military training, except for some from the Palestinian territories. The arrival of foreigners has strained relations between the United States and Syria, the transit point for most of them. U.S. intelligence concluded that a bus struck near the Iraq-Syria border by U.S. warplanes on March 23 carried Palestinian and other Arab men traveling to Iraq to fight in Iraq’s defense. Top U.S. officials have publicly warned Syria not to come to Iraq’s aid.
Guess that airstrike wasn't a "mistake" after all.
U.S. officers said the guerrillas began coming as soon as war broke out on March 20. “Some are absolutely devoted to anti-Zionism or anti-Americanism,” said a senior officer who asked not to be identified. “Some believe they are coming in solidarity of their Arab brothers.” Others were lured under false pretenses, he said. “They thought they were going to get a wife. . . . A lot of these guys, this isn’t what they signed up for, and they’re pretty upset. They were forced to fight.”
"Hey, where are all the babes?"
In some small towns and along the highways between Kuwait and Baghdad, Arab fighters in pickup trucks have fired assault rifles at tanks and armored vehicles, despite the near certainty of being killed by superior firepower. The U.S. armored vehicles just mow down the attackers, officers said.
Speed bumps
More recently, the Arab guerrillas have made their way to Baghdad, with most of them coming from Yemen and the militant Lebanese group Hezbollah, according to U.S. intelligence.
Marine officers said they hope to stanch the flow of arriving foreigners with quick and decisive military victories in Baghdad. Other officers said they were eager to kill as many of the foreign guerrillas as possible in Iraq because it will prevent terrorist attacks on civilian targets elsewhere. “They should send every volunteer they can think of here,” said Col. Larry Brown, the chief operations officer for the Marines in Iraq. “Let me get ‘em all at once. It’ll simplify my task later.”Amen, Larry.
Posted by: Steve 2003-04-09
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=12768