While you puzzle through that headline, guess who said this:
“We have to rebuild a national Iraqi army, not built on sects, but the same way they built up the Anbar police,” he said. “They must be well-armed, so they will be able to protect the country and all the American interests in the area. We also have to make a friendship treaty based on mutual respect between the two parties, and then the United States will be able to withdraw from Iraq, if they wish, and we will succeed in Iraq the same way America succeeded in Japan and Germany.”
Dick Cheney? Condi Rice? Doug Feith? Bill Kristol?
 Nope. An Iraqi, Sheik Ahmad al-Rishawi, leader of the Anbar Awakening and brother of its martyred founder, Sheik Sattar al-Rishawi.
I know I already linked this yesterday, but it really deserved more attention. Incredibly, the sheik is actually offering to send troops to found a new Awakening movement in AQ’s refuge along the Pakistan/Afghan border.
The leader of the tribal confederation that has fought to expel Al Qaeda from most of Iraq’s Anbar province is offering his men to help gin up a rebellion against Osama bin Laden’s organization along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border.
…
A possible strategy for defeating Al Qaeda would be an effort there along the lines of the Anbar awakening to win over the tribes that offer Osama bin Laden’s group protection and safe haven.“Al Qaeda is an ideology,” Sheik Ahmad said. “We can defeat them inside Iraq and we can defeat them in any country.”
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Lets hope these trends continue and we eventually get to a point where even an Obama presidency can’t/won’t undo this progress.Â
Dave (or anyone) – What do you make of the recent spate of articles on the internal Jihadi revolt against AQ? TNR had a good one, and Lawrence Wright (whose book, "The Looming Tower" is an essential read) had an outstanding (and lengthy) piece in the New Yorker. I am surprised that I have not seen these discussed more in the blogosphere, but maybe I just haven’t visited the right places.
Not surprising, given AQ’s defeats and the deomnstrated unpopularity of their methods.
Oppressive governments don’t need much popular support. Oppressive wannabes trying to overthrow the current order do.
I doubt it matters much though. They can’t help being who they are.
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