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Middlemen
Undercutting the middle management of terrorist groups is an important tool in disrupting the leadership and operations of the organization. In Org Chart we looked at the effect Coalition operations have had on al Qaeda in Iraq’s leadership. While the senior-most leaders of al Qaeda in Iraq (Zarqawi, his deputy, media and military commanders, as well as his brigade commanders) have not been killed or captured, the organization’s middle management has been decimated, with well over 66% of Zarqawi’s lieutenants either killed or captured. This means less experienced operatives will take their place, weakening the effectiveness of the organization over…
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The Message
“People are dead because of what this son of a bitch said. How could he be credible now?” – Pentagon spokesman Lawrence DiRita on the unnamed source who reported Qur’ans were desecrated in Camp X-Ray The Newsweek report of Qur’ans being flushed down the toilet in Guantanamo Bay to “torture” al Qaeda inmates was based on uncorroborated information obtained from an unnamed source. Newsweek issued an explanation and tepid apology for reporting this story. At least 15 people have died in violent demonstrations in Afghanistan, and much ill will against the United States has accumulated. Newsweek’s shoddy reporting harkens us…
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Wounded Z?
Rumors that al Qaeda in Iraq Commander Abu Musab al-Zarqawi has been wounded in combat during the battles in Qaim have taken on a new life. Early last week an Iraqi officer reported Zarqawi was seriously wounded, if not dead already. The Times Online has details of the purported visit by Zarqawi to a hospital in Ramadi (note that Iraqi blogger Hammorabi reported on this hospital visit on Thursday): According to the doctor, Zarqawi was escorted into Ramadi general hospital by smartly dressed men. “He was bleeding heavily and his escorts were well dressed with a look about them that…
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Mission Completed?
The US military has released a statement that Operation Matador is over: “Marines, sailors and soldiers from Regimental Combat Team-2, 2nd Marine Division successfully completed Operation Matador today, concluding a seven-day operation securing objectives in and around the Euphrates River cities of Karabilah, Ramana and Ubaydi, near the Syrian border,” a statement said. The curious portion of this statement is that there is no mention of operations in the city of Qaim, even though heavy fighting has occurred there. It is unlikely the fighting is over. Matador has moved from the offensive stage of the operation (positioning and maneuvering the…
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Fight Amongst Yourselves
US Marines have encircled the town of Ubaydi and are beginning to root out the insurgents. In the town of Qaim, an interesting development has emerged. The insurgents are preparing for an American assualt on the city by creating checkpoints and fighting positions. It was reported earlier that the leaders of Qaim requested American intervention, and now it seems that insurgent factions cannot tolerate each other, and have turned their weapons on one another: Rival groups of insurgents also are fighting among themselves in the nearby town of Qaim, trading mortar, rocket and machine gun fire almost nightly, Pool said.…
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Fire at Will
The hunt for al Qaeda continues in Pakistan. Less than two weeks after the capture of senior al Qaeda operative Abu Farraj al-Libbi, yet another operative has been taken down in Pakistan (hat tip to Justin C.): Haitham al-Yemeni, a native of Yemen known for his bomb-making skills, had been tracked for some time in the hope that he would help lead the United States to al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, intelligence officials said. But with the recent capture in northwest Pakistan of Abu Faraj al-Libbi, thought to be al Qaeda’s No. 3 man, officials worried al-Yemeni would soon…
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Intensity
The media reports from Matador have been confused at best during the course of the operation. Initial reports indicated combat occurred only north of the Euphrates River, while later accounts indicated the push occurred both north and south of the river, driving east to west. At no point was this anomaly explained and there were no serious attempts by the media outlets to explain the overall nature and scale of the operation. Several accounts, such as this one from ABC News, contradict themselves by reporting the “U.S. Assault Intensifies at Syria Border” (the title of the article) while claiming the…
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Org Chart
Note: The Organizational Chart for al Qaeda in Iraq is now avaliable for viewing, click here to see the PDF. The document is also available for download via The Counterterrorism Blog. Evan Kohlmann of Global Terror Alert and The Counterterrorism Blog has allowed me to preview a graphic of the organizational structure of al Qaeda in Iraq. This fascinating document details the leadership of al Qaeda in Iraq and shows the command structure and related military wings. The chart also illustrates the status of al Qaeda’s lieutenants – killed, captured or wanted. As it stands, of the 42 known high…
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Zarqawi: All’s Well in Qaim and Elsewhere
Al Qaeda’s Commander in Iraq weighs in the events of the past several days, including the operations in Western Iraq, the arrest of his lieutenant and the reports of the influx of foreign fighters into Iraq. Evan Kohlmann provides translations for the communiqu
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Pushing Westward, Winning Hearts and Minds
“We are glad the Americans are here.” The Marines’ drive westward in Operation Matador appears to be almost complete. Solomon Moore, a reporter for the Los Angeles Times, describes the tragic death of Marines from Lima Company of the 3rd Battalion, 25th Regiment (3/25) whose amphibious vehicle was struck by either a landmine or IED. Several Marines perished in the ensuing fire. Elements of the 3/25 Marines are engaged in the town of Abu Hardan, a town south of the Euphrates River and directly east of Qaim on the Syrian border. These units started from the west near Ubaydi, and…
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Another Ratline
Operation Matador has yielded little new information in the past 24 hours (Chester provides a roundup of some available news). The Washington Post rehashes the fierce fight in between Marines and terrorists in Ubaydi. This story has repeatedly made the rounds, and with a title of “Demise of a Hard-Fighting Squad” and a byline of “Marines Who Survived Ambush Are Killed, Wounded in Blast” one wonders if the purpose is to project defeat or weakness. Zarqawi has reportedly released a new statement calling the assault on al Qaeda strongholds in Western Iraq “good news” but a full translation is not…
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Grist for the Mill
Captain’s Quarters links to an Adkronos International article stating Zarqawi may have been seriously wounded or perhaps killed during Operation Matador. The source is an Iraqi Colonel: The Jordanian militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi is “serious injured, possibly dead” according to Colonel Fouad Hani Hassan, commander of the fifth division of the Iraqi armed forces, cited by ‘Elaph’, a popular website in the Arab world. Al-Zarqawi, considered al Qaeda’s leader in Iraq, is believed to have been injured in the major offensive US-led forces have been carrying out in the western Anbar province over the last few days. I agree with…
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Foreign Elements
The Marines are methodically pushing westward, conducting detailed searches in the towns along the Euphrates. The Marines are driving the insurgents and terrorists towards the blocking force of the Marines in the 2nd Battalion, 2nd Regiment in Qaim and the platoon(s) providing over watch along the ridge overlooking Rabit. Col. Bob Chase reports the local population is proving helpful; “We are getting a lot of information from the locals in the area and a very positive reception. They are giving up locations of where these people are hiding out, and each one drives another operation.” The Washington Post details the…
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The Matador’s Sword
Click this link to see the map of the area of operations. This map highlights (in pink) the towns where fighting was reported and was shamelessly copied from Belmont Club. Operation Matador is being carried out by three companies of Marines with an attached armored company, making it an armored battalion (Chester has more on the Marine units). This battalion will be supported by Air Force, Army and Marine aviation units consisting of Cobra and Apache helicopters, C-130 Spectre gunships, fighter-bombers such as F-18s and F-16s, and a host of unmanned aerial vehicles such as the new ScanEagle man-portable drones.…
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Bringing It On
The Coalition effort to interdict, deny and destroy the insurgent’s capabilities in the Western regions of Iraq bordering Syria is dubbed Operation Matador. Colonel Bob Chase, the chief of operations for the Second Marine Division, reports that insurgents are standing their ground and fighting, and all the better: “When we get there, they are deciding to fight, and as such they are dying As marines we’d rather engage them that way than through an I.E.D The enemy honestly felt that they had a sense of security up there It had been a safe haven, and a lot of folks up…
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Further Breaks
The Coalition’s tempo of operations is increasing just as the insurgency steps up their violent attacks on Iraqi security services and civilians. In a series of raids over the weekend, over 109 terrorists were killed or captured, and several large weapons caches have been uncovered. Nabil Badriyah Al Nasiri, the leader of the terrorist group Al-Muqaferin, which has links to al Qaeda, has turned himself in after many of his associates were captured in Bayji. The New York Times states that the bulk of the materials and men used in the insurgency are being funneled from outside the country; “Insurgents…
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The Breaks
The US military believes the picture of Abu Musab al-Zarwaqi’s al Qaeda in Iraq network is improving, and they are working to dismantle it. While Task Force 626 has the specific mandate to hunt Zarqawi and his key lieutenants, the bulk of US forces are hunting his mules. Zarwaqi’s command apparatus has suffered from these efforts: While U.S. Special Forces try to learn more about al-Zarqawi, most U.S. troops in Iraq focus instead on the insurgents believed to report to him and mastermind operations carried out in his name. Nevertheless, with each capture or trove of insurgent information uncovered, U.S.…
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Spring Cleaning in Pakistan
We are continuing to see the benefits from the arrest of Abu Farraj al-Libbi, al Qaeda’s commander of operations. Austin Bay states his capture has created a “cascading effect” – a landslide of information created by exploiting the intelligence obtained from al-Libbi. His personal notebook has been obtained and is being torn apart by US intelligence: U.S. officials are working feverishly to decipher numbers and apparent codes in a notebook retrieved from suspected al Qaeda leader Abu Farraj al-Libbi, ABC News has learned… Sources said officials believe al-Libbi’s seized notebook contains “hot” contact information. They said officials are hopeful the…
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Yesterday’s Men
The arrest of Abu Farraj al-Libbi has already produced results. Well over two dozen al Qaeda operatives have been arrested based on the intelligence gathered from interrogations. Thirteen other al Qaeda members, including 10 Uzbuk, Chechan and Afghan nationals, have been arrested in the Bajaur Agency, but it is claimed these arrests are not related to al-Libbi’s capture. The Pakistani security forces have put a dent in several al Qaeda cells, and all is not as quiet as claimed in Pakistan’s western tribal areas. The status of al-Libbi’s detention is uncertain at this time as the Pakistanis have not decided…
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Number Three?
Al Qaeda’s latest military commander, Abu Farraj al-Libbi has been captured in the lawless regions of Pakistan’s North West Frontier Province. al-Libbi was al Qaeda’s third in command, after Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri, and was the prot
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al Qaeda’s Mess in Mesopotamia
A recently intercepted letter believed to be addressed to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi provides valuable insight into the mindset of the middle ranks of al Qaeda in Iraq and their perception of the organization’s leadership, effectiveness and the morale of the jihadis. Evan Kohlmann of Global Terror Alert and the Counterterrorism Blog provides a complete translation of the text, some of which is excerpted below. He notes that the letter was written by “Abu Asim al-Yemeni al-Qusaymi, a purported representative of Al-Qaida’s Committee in Iraq.” The fact that al-Qusaymi is a representative of the Committee is important as he will have…
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Nosferatu
The antiwar Left continues to lament the American involvement in Iraq and support the “morally acceptable” Iraqi “resistance” as a “legitimate expression of Iraqi self-determination” . In doing so, they knowingly align themselves with the forces of darkness. Ansar al-Sunnah, an Islamist Iraqi terrorist group that has pledged fealty to al Qaeda sanctions the operations of the most barbaric nature. Charles Johnson reports on a MEMRI TV translation of the Al-Iraqiya TV program that airs the confessions of captured terrorists. This particular terrorist cell whips, murders, dismembers and guts a captured policeman to rig him as a bomb: Interviewer: To…
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The Draft
The antiwar movement continues to support the Iraqi insurgents despite the abject violence and terrorism they direct against the Iraqi people. Arthur Chrenkoff points to a post by Mike Whitney of the Axis of Logic, extolling the virtues of the Iraqi insurgency and decrying the actions of the American hegemon: The greatest moral quandary of our day is whether we, as Americans, support the Iraqi insurgency. It’s an issue that has caused anti-war Leftists the same pangs of conscience that many felt 30 years ago in their opposition to the Vietnam War. The specter of disloyalty weighs heavily on all…
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An Empty Insurgency
While the Iraqi insurgency has shown an aptitude for dispensing violence, the question remains as to what exactly the insurgents and al Qaeda have to offer as an alternative political plan. Donald Sensing weighs in with an insightful post (which must be read in full), comparing the Iraqi insurgency and the strategy advocated by Carlos Marighella in the Minimanual of the Urban Guerrilla. Marighella believed that abject violence would lead to brutal repression by state security forces, and drive the people to support the insurgency. Reverend Sensing rightly points out that the alternative to the elected government is a return…
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Transitions
The hunt for Zarqawi continues, while the Iraqi government moves forward in establishing the transitional government. Raids are being conducted in the town of Ramadi, and reports indicate US and Iraqi forces have sealed exits to the city. Meanwhile a Ramadi hospital is searched based on intelligence that Zarqawi was there. The search came up empty handed. Dan Darling, terrorism analyst, the blogosphere’s terrorologist and fellow Winds of Change team member, reports on the intelligence information recovered from Zarqawi’s laptop. According to Mr. Darling, Zarqawi is using PGP (Pretty Good Privacy) encryption, which apparently can be cracked (with much effort)…
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Of Pirates and Terrorists
An often overlooked theater in the Global War on Terror is the world’s oceans, a vital highway of the globalized world economy. Al Qaeda has shown an interest in attacking shipping in the past, including the failed attack on the USS The Sullivans and the successful attack on the USS Cole in 2000, and the successful attack on the French oil tanker Limburg in 2002. Attacks on shipping allows al Qaeda to disrupt the global economy, divert resources to protect the seas, and serves as vehicle for recruiting (the video from the USS Cole attack was used extensively in al…
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The Net
Task Force 626, a streamlined version of Task Force 121 that captured Saddam Hussein and killed his sons, believes they are on the trail of Zarqawi. Marine Gen. Sattler divulged several weeks ago that Zarqawi was close to capture several times by the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force stations in the restive al-Anbar province, and ABC News follows up with a report that Zarqawi was nearly detained in Ramadi (hat tip to Chester): On Feb. 20, the alleged terror mastermind was heading to a secret meeting in Ramadi, just west of Fallujah, where he used to base his operations, the official…
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The Desired Effect
Iraq’s insurgency is only as strong its local Sunni supporters will allow it to be. Without the local support infrastructure of the Sunni tribes, the foreign terrorists of al Qaeda will have an increasingly difficult time mounting effective large scale attacks against Coalition forces and the Iraqi government. Arthur Chenkoff’s special correspondent Haider Ajina reports two large Sunni political parties that sat out of January’s elections have had a change of heart, and will participate in the next round: “The following is a translation of a headline and article in the April 23rd Edition of the Iraqi Arabic newspaper Nahrain:…
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The Greatness of God?
Ansar al-Sunnah (Islamic Army in Iraq), an ally of al Qaeda in Iraq, has claimed credit for shooting down a privately owned Bulgarian Mi-8 helicopter. While the exact cause of the downing has not been determined (machinegun fire, RPG or surface-to-air missile), the most likely cause would be an RPG directed at the tail rotor of the helicopter. This is a technique perfected by al Qaeda, who trained Somali Islamists of al-Itihaad al-Islamiya in the infamous “Black Hawk Down” battle in Mogadishu, Somalia in 1993: Because intelligence had determined that the RPGs did not represent an air defense threat, the…
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Desperate Taliban
Coalition forces mount Operation Vigilance in Afghanistan to preempt potential Taliban and al Qaeda offensives that may be planned for the spring. According to Lt. Gen. David Barno, the senior commander in Afghanistan, the terrorists have lost the initiative after 3 ½ years of fighting and successful elections last fall, and are “desperate” to regain it: “As these terrorist capabilities grow more and more limited, the hard-core fanatics will grow more and more desperate to try and do something to change the course of events in Afghanistan Terrorists here in Afghanistan want to reassert themselves and I expect that they will…
