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| Iraq |
| Al-Qaeda assassinating Sunni tribal sheikhs to prevent peaceful end to insurgency |
| 2006-02-19 |
| Insurgents are targeting tribal sheiks and other Sunni Arab community leaders, seeking to undermine U.S. efforts to enlist them in weakening the rebellion, U.S. and Iraqi officials say. American officials have been saying for months that force alone cannot end the insurgency. Instead, they believe a deal with Sunni Arabs willing to lay down their arms and join the political process offers the best way to peace. At first, U.S. overtures were met with cold indifference in Ramadi – effectively the capital of Iraq's insurgency. But in late November, tribal chiefs, religious leaders, former army officers and hundreds of ordinary Iraqis met with U.S. commanders in Ramadi for a conference promoted as a public discussion on how to get the Americans out of Iraq. For the first time key religious and tribal leaders negotiated in earnest on key points, U.S. commanders said, progress that led to the creation of a negotiating team – the Anbar Security Council. Sunni Arabs – the community supporting the backbone of the insurgency – were finally at the bargaining table. But the insurgents have struck back. Within weeks, three sheiks, including one prominent leader on the council, Nasr al-Fahdawi, were assassinated. Another sheik escaped death when his house was bombed while he was away. U.S. officials maintain that the attacks are a sign of desperation by insurgents fearful of Sunni Arabs joining the political process. “They're grasping for straws. They're attacking the sheiks ... because they know they've worn out their welcome,” said Marine Lt. Col. Roger Turner, who commands the 3rd Battalion, 7th Regiment. “These guys are now trying to spoil (negotiations) and they know that if Sunnis start participating, which they're doing, they'll lose their grip.” Following the November meeting, the sheiks gave their blessing to recruitment drives for soldiers and police. About 1,100 men applied for defunct police forces in early January. The sheiks' clout was on display – only dozens of Iraqis had responded to previous recruitment drives. Then, on Jan. 5, insurgents sent a man with explosives strapped to his body into a line of police recruits in Ramadi, killing 58 Iraqis and two U.S. troops. The message reverberated across Ramadi. “It's slowed down the process,” Turner said of the insurgent attacks. “I'd say it's affected it but it hasn't stopped it ... the recruiting is slower but it's still coming.” The U.S. military says about 3,000 recruits or former officers have so far applied for police jobs across Anbar. Hundreds of them have recently been sent to police academies in Baghdad and Jordan. Officials hope to eventually field a force of about 11,300 policemen across the province, where virtually all local police departments have disintegrated due to opposition to the government and fear of insurgent attacks. At the heart of the fierce response was the desire to crush the emergence of any Iraqi security forces, which U.S. commanders hope will take control of more security responsibility in Anbar province this year. Insurgents had largely refrained from attacking polling stations during national elections in December, but insurgent leaders believed the sheiks had crossed a line by endorsing Sunni membership in the Iraqi security forces. The insurgents' willingness to confront leaders of ancient tribes either showed their confidence or a brash disregard for respected local leaders. U.S. commanders hope the strategy will backfire, but some also fear that the attacks may have been internal coups orchestrated by upstart tribesmen. Some Iraqi officials, for example, suspect that pro- al-Qaeda in Iraq members of Sheik Nasr's own family killed him and that a blood feud could sprout from the assassination. Meanwhile, insurgents have stepped up a scorched earth strategy to undermine the Anbar provincial government. A major telecommunications center was burned down this month, leaving Ramadi with no local phone service. Newspapers are rarely sold and national television networks often do not reach Ramadi. Power plants have also been targeted in the past. Nevertheless, local Iraqi officials say they will persevere with their contacts with the Americans and their Iraqi partners. U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad has offered to help free up reconstruction funds for the province, U.S. commanders say. Anbar Gov. Maamoun Sami Rashid al-Alwani said the provincial security council has asked for several key concessions: for Anbar residents to fill half of a locally based Iraqi army division and for expedited efforts to rebuild police forces. Maamoun said residents preferred local troops to patrol this area because Iraqi soldiers currently in the province are mostly Shiite and have mistreated them. But Maamoun also warned that some members of the security council were losing interest in negotiations because “the government is not listening to them.” Some U.S. officials said the council was also waiting for the new parliament to take office, which has triple the number of Sunni Arabs compared to the former legislature. “Whoever doesn't want this province stabilized doesn't answer fast. Whoever wants this province stabilized should answer fast,” Maamoun said. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |