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In reply to the discussion: A Question [View all]

muriel_volestrangler

(101,160 posts)
52. Juan Cole: Islamic State of Iraq & Levant too Extreme for al-Qaeda (Not the Onion)
Thu Aug 28, 2014, 09:33 AM
Aug 2014
By Juan Cole | Feb. 4, 2014

Ayman al-Zawahiri, now the leader of the international terrorist organization, al-Qaeda, has disavowed the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). ISIL (also called ISIS, substituting Syria for ‘Levant’) controls Falluja and part of Ramadi in Iraq, along with parts of Aleppo and its hinterland in Syria. It has been involved in a sanguinary battle with other Sunni extremist militias in northern Syria, including Jabhat al-Nusra (the Succor Front) for several weeks, which has left 2000 dead at a time when the Baath regime of Bashar al-Assad has regrouped and launched assaults on the rebels. I found the Arabic text with an Arabic web site search but am not linking for obvious reasons.

Al-Zawahiri said, “Al-Qaeda al-Jihad announces that it has no link to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. It did not create it, did not invest it with authority, did not consult with it, and did not express approval of it. Rather, al-Qaeda ordered it to stop its actions. Therefore, it is not an al-Qaeda affiliate, no organizational relationship binds the two, and al-Qaeda is not responsible for its behavior.”
...
The letter underlines what I have been saying for some time, which is that it is a mistake to see the so-called al-Qaeda affiliates as the same sort of phenomenon as core al-Qaeda. It is clear that ISIL does not have a reporting line to al-Zawahiri and has repeatedly just blown him off. The same is true of the other “affiliates.” These radical Sunnis just declare an al-Qaeda affiliation to increase the fear with which they are viewed. It isn’t organizational, and al-Zawahiri has admitted as much. That isn’t to deny that some core al-Qaeda operatives have occasionally shown up in the affiliates, or that al-Zawahiri tries to communicate to them. But he can’t give them orders. Moreover, they are interested in the ‘near enemy,’ in taking on regional leaders like Bashar al-Assad in Syria or PM Nouri al-Maliki in Iraq. With the exception of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula in Yemen (AQAP), they don’t seem interested in hitting US targets, and that kind of thing seems to have tapered off in AQAP in any case.

ISIL is a nasty piece of business, a kind of religious/ political license for serial killing. So is al-Qaeda. But that the latter is embarrassed about the former is telling.

http://www.juancole.com/2014/02/islamic-levant-extreme.html
A Question [View all] H2O Man Aug 2014 OP
Erect Bogeyman, wave flag, declare we need protection, give more money to the MIC. Tierra_y_Libertad Aug 2014 #1
Right! H2O Man Aug 2014 #16
That is the same impression I get. Enthusiast Aug 2014 #49
No, H2O Man, we must not. elleng Aug 2014 #2
It's our oil. H2O Man Aug 2014 #17
Covering all of our bases, no matter which group we end up attacking, or both.... NYC_SKP Aug 2014 #3
Oh, beautiful! H2O Man Aug 2014 #18
omg....I never knew that... Thanks! KoKo Aug 2014 #22
Edited subject line: Reagan met with the Mujahadeen but the quote is about the Contras in Nicaragua. scarletwoman Aug 2014 #39
Excellent clarification, thanks! NYC_SKP Aug 2014 #43
Yeah, that picture has been spread around quite a lot, unfortunately. scarletwoman Aug 2014 #44
No, Reagan did not meet with the Taliban. former9thward Aug 2014 #47
You are correct - I misspoke (miswrote?)! scarletwoman Aug 2014 #55
That picture has been debunked so many times. former9thward Aug 2014 #45
Misleading image removed, reply edited. NYC_SKP Aug 2014 #46
Reagan really wasn't very well informed. Enthusiast Aug 2014 #50
plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose alsame Aug 2014 #4
You're not the only one wondering about this 'new, much meaner, more brutal remember the sabrina 1 Aug 2014 #5
Were you here on DU for the "Fat Osama, Skinny Osama" Latest Video Debate? KoKo Aug 2014 #19
Yes, I remember the 'fat' Osama and the 'thin' Osama, the dark and the grey bearded sabrina 1 Aug 2014 #56
So much fear-mongering going on in the media. R.Quinn Aug 2014 #6
Somehow the answer is always "we have to go back in" phantom power Aug 2014 #7
The people running ISIS do not hate us. MH1 Aug 2014 #8
The programming of America is at full throttle. The propaganda is rife on MSNBC today. ChisolmTrailDem Aug 2014 #9
Haven't learned the lesson yet... jtuck004 Aug 2014 #10
if we don't watch out, we'll soon be arming al Qaeda to defeat ISIS. Voice for Peace Aug 2014 #11
bringing back the old "enemy of my enemy is my friend" days rurallib Aug 2014 #15
I think they've told us so many stories, THEY can't remember who is who so you may sabrina 1 Aug 2014 #40
al-Qaeda, ISIS, and the wheel. All inventions, but only one benefits humankind. nt valerief Aug 2014 #12
I'm remembering the IRA bombings way back in the day. eggplant Aug 2014 #13
The IRA H2O Man Aug 2014 #14
Heh. I knew I'd be opening a can of worms here. eggplant Aug 2014 #30
No, not at all. H2O Man Aug 2014 #31
I'M NOT SHOUTING! eggplant Aug 2014 #32
Yes, they were ... sabrina 1 Aug 2014 #36
Wait till America no longer cares about Islamic Terrorists.... Spitfire of ATJ Aug 2014 #20
You eloquently put into words what I have thinking. madfloridian Aug 2014 #21
Thank you! H2O Man Aug 2014 #26
al Qisis whatchamacallit Aug 2014 #23
Hell freaking NO, we don't need to go!!! lark Aug 2014 #24
Yes, we must. You seem confused. "Reports that say...that something hasn't happened Zorra Aug 2014 #25
Beautiful! H2O Man Aug 2014 #28
There is an other possibility. zeemike Aug 2014 #27
Evidently, you were not aware that the head imam in Saudi Arabia declared that ISIS . . . Major Hogwash Aug 2014 #29
As far as I can tell, Blue_Tires Aug 2014 #33
Your First Point Seems To Define . . . ProfessorGAC Aug 2014 #53
Why is this back on page 3? madfloridian Aug 2014 #34
I think of it as an old Johnny Carson routine: scarletwoman Aug 2014 #35
Lol! Good one! sabrina 1 Aug 2014 #41
This had been a long steady march to war. morningfog Aug 2014 #37
The American Prayer... RagAss Aug 2014 #38
The drums of war are beating ever louder - Again. suffragette Aug 2014 #42
Even dear Rachel is calling out the wusses. GeorgeGist Aug 2014 #48
There is no hope. Amonester Aug 2014 #51
Juan Cole: Islamic State of Iraq & Levant too Extreme for al-Qaeda (Not the Onion) muriel_volestrangler Aug 2014 #52
It reminds me of the children's song: I know an old lady who swallowed a fly - myrna minx Aug 2014 #54
Okay, that's a long post and I read it all... Chan790 Aug 2014 #57
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