From CNN:
Al Qaeda in Iraq’s No. 2 operative was killed during a raid by coalition and Iraqi forces, a U.S. Defense Department official said Tuesday.
Abu Azzam, a “significant” figure in the al Qaeda network in Iraq, was slain early Sunday in Baghdad during a joint operation, a military official spokesman in Iraq said.
Azzam had a personal relationship with terrorist leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and held senior positions in the al Qaeda in Iraq network in Baghdad and Falluja, he said.
“This creates a void for al Qaeda in Iraq, in their leadership, for a while,” the spokesman said.
According to the military, Azzam and another man fired at coalition forces as they entered a residential high-rise apartment just before 5 a.m. The forces killed Azzam and wounded the other man.
Two women were not injured, the spokesman said.
The military spokesman said Azzam’s full name is Abdulla Najim Abdulla Mohammed al-Juwari and he also went by the name of Abu Salwa.
U.S. and Iraqi forces have launched several raids in recent weeks aimed at disrupting al Qaeda in Iraq, which is led by al-Zarqawi.
U.S. and Iraqi officials announced last week that two men described as top al Qaeda leaders in the northern city of Mosul were captured during a September 5 raid.
The throngs of throw-back anti-war protesters can chant and shout and draw their placards and bare their fat, pendulous breasts all they want, but the fact of the matter is, Iraq is moving more and more toward a functional democracy each day. Soon, the Constitution will either be ratified or reworked toward ratification; the insurgency will be weakened considerably by the emergence of a stronger Iraqi army and intelligence service able to blend with the landscape, working in conjunction with US forces—who themselves will then be able to draw down their numbers and turn their attention to the border: Syria and Iran.
Why anybody other than those averse to any show of American power—nevermind that it is being used for spreading a culture of self-determination while protecting our own national interests—would object to such a thing is beyond me. After all, it is one thing to be anti-war. But it is quite another to be pro-totalitarian.
The majority of Americans, who follow politics only peripherally, are clearly going to be influenced by the media portrayal of the Iraq campaign; they have no other frame of reference, after all—which is why I predict we’ll see a corresponding bump in Bush’s approval numbers if the Iraq Constitution is ratified and the press gives it the coverage they know such a thing would deserve.
Harder to understand, though, are those on the left who are so totally immersed in politics and who are nevertheless calling for the immediate withdrawal of troops—and for a ratcheting up the anti-war rhetoric—, in an effort to make it happen, particularly when their efforts could be put to better use supporting the fledgling Iraqi democracy by turning their vitriol against the insurgents, who rely on propaganda to recruit and survive, instead of saving it for the Bushies.
But at least these useful idiots are leaving a written record behind this time. Which, thank Al Gore for that.
I question the timing. BECAUSE OF THE HYPOCRISY!
You’re talking about Waddard, right?
I sincerely believe that a decent working definition of the Left is, “That portion of the political spectrum defined by a morbid, pathological, and obsessive fear and hatred of economic freedom.”
This phobia binds the Left and Al Qaida.
You had me at “fat, pendulous breasts”.
Jeff,
I saw this story briefly mentioned on FOX.com yesterday. I was not shocked to see the lack of coverage a story of this magnitude received. I believe CINDY received more press. But what do you expect these days…….
*After all, it is one thing to be anti-war. But it is quite another to be pro-totalitarian. *
I suspect quite a few of them don’t actually know totalitarian means. “Anti-war” is easy for them to understand so they just embrace that.
The really infuriating thing, though, is that the “written record” will never, EVER matter for these people or the media. All of it will go down the meory hole despite all the evidence hiding in plain sight.
It happened with all the people who were ass-backwards wrong on everything from Vietnam to the Soviet Union to global cooling. But being a leftist means never having to say you’re sorry.
At least Azzam got to see Cindy speak one more time before he died, as per his Make A Wish Foundation request. Hey, you don’t suppose his mum might camp out in a ditch next to Zarqawi’s hideout for a month? I suppose the stench of decapitated corpse might be a bit too much to bear, but Zarkie owes her a little face time if you ask me.
Hey, Mr. Protein, your real name isn’t Tony Danza, is it?
If Al Gore looked into the future 10 years ago and saw Protein Wisdom, would he still invent the internet?
As per Iowahawk, recruitment for suicide bombers is really down once they found out the virgins in paradise look like this.
Damn, now we’ve killed 100,001!
I’m wondering if the press will cover the ratification of the Iraqi Consistitution with the same
pen-knife flashlightspotlight they used to cover the Afghan elections…The “written record” doesn’t cut any ice right now. The recent revelations and backtracking only induce more denial and hatred. Just go over to John Cole’s site sometime and look at the comments there. If you point out that the State of LA was keeping the Red Cross out and link directly to the Red Cross site, the response is, “So what. I don’t believe the Red Cross.”
Hell, they’re defending Broussard, saying that he just got his days mixed up. Correcting the record for the truly indoctrinated, no matter how many facts you have, is an impossibility.
Could have at least provided an ugly mammary alert, TerryH.
Fat, pendulous breasts indeed.
You know, Terry, you might want to slap a “NSFW” on yer comment when you post a link like that.
Not that it matters for me, seeing as how I work from home, but still.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to put on some pants.
Pendulous or ponderous?
The gasbag on the right (the one with the big gasbags) appears to be taking a hot dog like a biker chick. But it’s hard to tell.
Ooops:
takingfellatingI dunno – the one laying on the flag is kinda cute.
Ewwwwww!!!
Uh, Farmer Joe…according to the caption, the girl lying on the flag is nine years old.
(TW = “girl.” Spooky!)
Jeff, you should see the coverage the BBC gave the story. After a few words they went straight back to how bad things are. We used to hang people for writing news like that.
I ran across this on Potein Wisdom minutes after posting this on my blog—a great article on how Al Qaeda treats its own “fighters” like dogs, in order to advance their own goals. It’s a great day for humanity when the masterminds behind these crimes get what they deserve.
Here’s something for the written record.
D’OH! That’s what I get for not reading the caption.
TW: Stand. In the place where I live, or in the corner?
But, uh, what are those women doing exposing themselves in front of a nine-year-old? (Nine-year-olds, Dude.)
TW: Stood. Weird.
Hail al-Qaeda! Immortal Al-Qaeda!
We shall never be destroyed!
Cut off a head, and ten thousand shall take its place —
oh, wait… that was some other group?
Al Qaeda’s got a lot of #2’s!
That’s ‘cause al Qaeda is full of ‘em…