Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Anbar Awakening Sheik in assassination attempt
Tribal, Security
(Reuters) - A tribal leader in Abu Ghraib west of Baghdad was the target of an attack on Tuesday involving two blasts that killed his son and wounded at least one more person, relatives and a provincial official said. Sheikh Thahir al-Dari's son was killed in a double car bombing, and there were several more casualties, said Ahmed al-Dulaimi, head of the provincial council media office in Anbar.
However a relative of the sheikh, who is a member of a group of tribes who have formed an alliance against al Qaeda, said the son was killed when a rocket propelled grenade hit the car he was in. Another person was wounded in the car. Dari is the head of the al-Zobaie tribe, to which Deputy Prime Minister Salam al-Zobaie belongs. The deputy prime minister was the target of an assassination bid last week.
Suicide bombers have targeted a number of tribal leaders in the anti-Qaeda alliance amid a growing struggle in Anbar between the militant group and tribes who oppose it. Zobaie was wounded in last week's attack at his home in Baghdad. An aide said that suicide bomber was one of his own guards and said the tribe was itself divided between those loyal to the government and those supporting al Qaeda. Zobaie's office said on Tuesday he had recovered and might be discharged from the U.S. military hospital later on Tuesday.
However a relative of the sheikh, who is a member of a group of tribes who have formed an alliance against al Qaeda, said the son was killed when a rocket propelled grenade hit the car he was in. Another person was wounded in the car. Dari is the head of the al-Zobaie tribe, to which Deputy Prime Minister Salam al-Zobaie belongs. The deputy prime minister was the target of an assassination bid last week.
Suicide bombers have targeted a number of tribal leaders in the anti-Qaeda alliance amid a growing struggle in Anbar between the militant group and tribes who oppose it. Zobaie was wounded in last week's attack at his home in Baghdad. An aide said that suicide bomber was one of his own guards and said the tribe was itself divided between those loyal to the government and those supporting al Qaeda. Zobaie's office said on Tuesday he had recovered and might be discharged from the U.S. military hospital later on Tuesday.
COMMENT: There have been several attacks on tribal leaders who have turned against Al-Qaeda. These are likely to continue. However, most of the tribal leaders have had enough of Al-Qaeda and large civilian casualties caused by them as well as loss of their own family members and are likely to continue fighting against them. Their cooperation with Iraqi and U.S. security forces has strengthened the coalition and encouraged many young men to join the security forces in their areas. COMMENT ENDS.
Labels: Abu Ghraib, al-Zobaie tribe, Anbar Awakening, Sheikh Thahir al-Dari
Monday, March 26, 2007
Al-Anbar tribal coalition now counts 41 tribes
Tribal, Insurgency
(AP) - Not long ago it would have been unthinkable: a Sunni sheik allying himself publicly with American forces in a xenophobic city at the epicenter of Iraq's Sunni insurgency. Today, there is a change. Sheik Abdul Sattar al-Rishawi is leading a growing movement of Sunni tribesmen who have turned against al-Qaeda-linked insurgents in Anbar province.
The dramatic shift in alliances may have done more in a few months to ease daily street battles and undercut the insurgency here than American forces have achieved in years with arms. The American commander responsible for Ramadi, Col. John W. Charlton, said the newly friendly sheiks, combined with an aggressive counterinsurgency strategy and the presence of thousands of new Sunni police on the streets, have helped cut attacks in the city by half in recent months.
Al-Rishawi, whose father and three brothers were killed by al-Qaeda assassins, said insurgents were "killing innocent people, anyone suspected of opposing them. They brought us nothing but destruction and we finally said, enough is enough." Al-Rishawi founded the Anbar Salvation Council in September with dozens of Sunni tribes. Many of the new newly friendly leaders are believed to have at least tacitly supported the insurgency in the past, though al-Rishawi said he never did.
His movement, also known as the Anbar Awakening, now counts 41 tribes or sub-tribes from Anbar, though al-Rishawi acknowledges that some groups in the province have yet to join. It's unclear how many that is, or much support the movement really has.
And there is opposition. In November, a top Sunni leader who heads the Association of Muslim Scholars, Sheik Harith al-Dhari, described al-Rishawi's movement as "thieves and bandits." And for at least a year, U.S. forces have also witnessed sporadic firefights between Sunni militias and insurgents in Ramadi, reflecting the growing split among Sunnis. They used to describe such skirmishes as "red on red" fighting -- battles between enemies. Now they call it "red on green."
U.S. Lt. Nathan Strickland, also of the 1-77th, said the sheiks were influenced by the realization that Shiite Iran's regional influence was rising, and "the presence of (Sunni) foreign fighters here was disrupting the traditional local tribal structure." Al-Rishawi and other sheiks urged their tribesmen to join the police force, and 4,500 Sunnis heeded the call in Ramadi alone -- a remarkable feat in a city that had almost no police a year ago.
Local Sunnis have deeply resented the overwhelmingly Shiite Iraqi army units the Shiite-dominated government in Baghdad has deployed here. Sunni tribes have begun to realize that if anybody is going to secure the city, it might as well be the sons of Ramadi, Strickland said.
Also pouring through the streets in police trucks fixed with heavy machine-guns are 2,500 Sunni tribesmen who have joined newly created SWAT team-like paramilitary units. Paid by the Interior Ministry with the blessing of U.S. commanders, the so-called Emergency Response Units are clearly loyal to local sheiks. The ERU members were screened and sent either on 45-day police training courses in Jordan or seven-day courses at a military base in Ramadi -- part of an effort to capitalize on the Awakening movement and make use of them as quickly as possible.
Al-Rishawi, whose father and three brothers were killed by al-Qaeda assassins, said insurgents were "killing innocent people, anyone suspected of opposing them. They brought us nothing but destruction and we finally said, enough is enough." Al-Rishawi founded the Anbar Salvation Council in September with dozens of Sunni tribes. Many of the new newly friendly leaders are believed to have at least tacitly supported the insurgency in the past, though al-Rishawi said he never did.
His movement, also known as the Anbar Awakening, now counts 41 tribes or sub-tribes from Anbar, though al-Rishawi acknowledges that some groups in the province have yet to join. It's unclear how many that is, or much support the movement really has.
And there is opposition. In November, a top Sunni leader who heads the Association of Muslim Scholars, Sheik Harith al-Dhari, described al-Rishawi's movement as "thieves and bandits." And for at least a year, U.S. forces have also witnessed sporadic firefights between Sunni militias and insurgents in Ramadi, reflecting the growing split among Sunnis. They used to describe such skirmishes as "red on red" fighting -- battles between enemies. Now they call it "red on green."
U.S. Lt. Nathan Strickland, also of the 1-77th, said the sheiks were influenced by the realization that Shiite Iran's regional influence was rising, and "the presence of (Sunni) foreign fighters here was disrupting the traditional local tribal structure." Al-Rishawi and other sheiks urged their tribesmen to join the police force, and 4,500 Sunnis heeded the call in Ramadi alone -- a remarkable feat in a city that had almost no police a year ago.
Local Sunnis have deeply resented the overwhelmingly Shiite Iraqi army units the Shiite-dominated government in Baghdad has deployed here. Sunni tribes have begun to realize that if anybody is going to secure the city, it might as well be the sons of Ramadi, Strickland said.
Also pouring through the streets in police trucks fixed with heavy machine-guns are 2,500 Sunni tribesmen who have joined newly created SWAT team-like paramilitary units. Paid by the Interior Ministry with the blessing of U.S. commanders, the so-called Emergency Response Units are clearly loyal to local sheiks. The ERU members were screened and sent either on 45-day police training courses in Jordan or seven-day courses at a military base in Ramadi -- part of an effort to capitalize on the Awakening movement and make use of them as quickly as possible.
Labels: Al-Qaeda, Anbar Awakening, Anbar Salvation Council, Muslim Scholars Association, Ramadi, Sheik Abdul Sattar al-Rishawi, Sheik Harith al-Dhari, Sunni tribes
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Iraqi security forces, tribes kill terrorists in Al-Anbar
Security, Tribes, Insurgency
(AFP) - Iraqi security forces killed 39 "terrorists" in a fierce battle in the western Sunni province of Al-Anbar on Tuesday, a top Iraqi official told AFP. Brigadier General Abdel Karim Khalaf, director of the operations centre in the interior ministry, said seven other militants were arrested, including some Arab nationals. The clashes broke out early Tuesday in Ameriyah, southwest of the former rebel town of Fallujah and the site of a recent chlorine gas attack.
Khalaf said security forces supported by paramilitary units formed by Sunni tribes fought the militants in a battle that lasted several hours. Two top militants, Shakir Hadi Jassim and Mohammed Khamis, were among the dead. About 25 Sunni tribes from Anbar have formed an coalition -- Anbar Awakening -- to take on the militants, largely from the Al-Qaeda network, who are operating in the western province.
These tribes have been sending thousands of young men to join the government security forces or their paramilitary units to cooperate with US and Iraqi commanders to fight insurgents. In response, the insurgents have launched attacks on them and modified their tactics to add gas bombs to their arsenal. On Friday, bombers detonated three dirty bombs in Anbar province poisoning 350 civilians, six American soldiers and killing two policemen.
Khalaf said security forces supported by paramilitary units formed by Sunni tribes fought the militants in a battle that lasted several hours. Two top militants, Shakir Hadi Jassim and Mohammed Khamis, were among the dead. About 25 Sunni tribes from Anbar have formed an coalition -- Anbar Awakening -- to take on the militants, largely from the Al-Qaeda network, who are operating in the western province.
These tribes have been sending thousands of young men to join the government security forces or their paramilitary units to cooperate with US and Iraqi commanders to fight insurgents. In response, the insurgents have launched attacks on them and modified their tactics to add gas bombs to their arsenal. On Friday, bombers detonated three dirty bombs in Anbar province poisoning 350 civilians, six American soldiers and killing two policemen.
COMMENT: One of the bombs was detonated near the house of the leader of Anbar Awakening which would have resulted in retaliation on the insurgents by the tribes. As long as the insurgents continue to carry out mass casualty attacks, more tribes will turn againts them and help the security forces. This unites the tribes against the insurgency instead of assisting it, and decreases inter-tribal fighting as the focus is shifted onto the insurgents. COMMENT ENDS.
Labels: Al Anbar, Al Qaeda, Ameriyah, Anbar Awakening, Brigadier General Abdel Karim Khalaf, Sunni tribes
