Article

2007-01-17 Iraq

al-Qaeda has begun to flee Baghdad in advance of the American troop surge

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Posted by Anonymoose 2007-01-17 09:19|| || Front Page|| [6 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 Back before the invasion I postulated that the best strategy Saddam could have employed was totally backing down after the US had spent a ton of money and political capital building up. Lather, rinse, repeat, until Iraq became a political albatross no President wanted to get near.

The same could be worked against the insurgents. Imagine rumors of a surge every once in awhile to cause them to flee like cowards.

Posted by rjschwarz 2007-01-17 13:25|| 2007-01-17 13:25|| Front Page Top

#2 There was an article here the some days ago that the bad guys are finding it difficult to leave their neighborhoods. Once they flee to the provinces this time, how difficult will it be for them to get across the city to return home, in order to resume their nefarious activites?

Posted by trailing wife 2007-01-17 14:24|| 2007-01-17 14:24|| Front Page Top

#3 Well the jihadis that were left were able to carry out a double bombing yesterday at the Univ. so I'm not convinced operation Flee Baghdad is a real order.

Of course it could be that the double bombing was a send off before the fleeing. In that case it would be interesting to see if the Shia terrorist "operation ethnic cleansing" takes a break from their activities.

Posted by mhw 2007-01-17 14:48|| http://hypocrisy-incorporated.blogspot.com/]">[http://hypocrisy-incorporated.blogspot.com/] 2007-01-17 14:48|| Front Page Top

#4 Once the terrs leave and the joint bases are put in place, it is going to be very difficult for them to come back and setup shop again. Also, something that a lot of people seem to forget about the surge : the media lives and reports from Baghdad, not the rest of the country. Some reporters leave Baghdad but most do not. So, if Baghdad calms down for a 6 month period, it makes it difficult for the media to keep hyping the terrs. Plus, that 6 month period gives the US and Iraq time to move more Shia/Kurdish majority units into the Greater Baghdad Zone, thereby cutting off the oxygen to the Sunni/Baathist terrs. The underlying ethnic cleansing by the Shia death squads will continue at a lower rate, and Baghdad's neighborhoods will be effectively segregated by sect before long. That in and of itself will lower the violence level in Baghdad.

Also, the outlying communities are screaming for US/Iraqi troops to protect them from the fleeing terrs, and giving good intel as incentive for that protection. Naked self-interest is driving a lot of decisions in Iraq now, and the possibility of the car-bombings moving to their neighborhoods has many Sunni communities scared to death. Add in the collateral damage from counter-attacks by Iraqi Army units which do NOT pay for damage like the US military does, and the downside for the Baghdad suburban zone of receiving fleeing Sunnis becomes close to unbearable.

Posted by Shieldwolf 2007-01-17 16:58|| 2007-01-17 16:58|| Front Page Top

#5 Al'Qaeda shouldn't be too worried; their allies in the Democrat party are working hard in their support.

Posted by Rob Crawford">Rob Crawford 2007-01-17 17:58|| http://www.kloognome.com/]">[http://www.kloognome.com/] 2007-01-17 17:58|| Front Page Top

#6 This is a great idea. We should do the same.

Posted by John Murtha">John Murtha 2007-01-17 22:55|| http://home.earthlink.net/~sleepyjackal/index.html]">[http://home.earthlink.net/~sleepyjackal/index.html] 2007-01-17 22:55|| Front Page Top

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