Is This the Insurgency's Mastermind?-U.S. officials exaggerate Abu Musab Z

[RamboLiberal]

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/iraq/la-fg-zarqawi7mar07,1,2082606.story?coll=la-home-headlines

<snip>

Almost every day, U.S. officials here display a confiscated letter, allegedly written by Zarqawi, that claims responsibility for 25 suicide attacks and lays out a blueprint for plunging Iraq into sectarian chaos. There is a $10-million price on his head.

But the U.S. has provided little evidence implicating Zarqawi. In one case coalition officials say he plotted, the car bombing of the U.N. headquarters in Baghdad that killed 22 people last year, a U.S. counter-terrorism official said little progress had been made in identifying the culprits.

Although Zarqawi has been identified as a central figure in a multiethnic network whose tentacles reach across Europe and the Middle East, his anointment as an all-powerful kingpin troubles some investigators and experts, who say it distorts the nature of the insurgency in Iraq.

An Iraqi anti-terrorist police commander dismissed the claim in the purported Zarqawi letter that he has carried out 25 "martyrdom operations," which would encompass most major attacks here since the fall.

"They are always exaggerating about Al Qaeda," said Col. Dhia Hussein of the Baghdad anti-terrorism unit. "No witnesses have come and talked to me about Zarqawi. The only thing is that he is mentioned in the newspapers. And a $10-million reward. Who is this man? ... Maybe he exists — such characters exist. But to complete these operations and we don't know, it's impossible."

[necso]

1. The neocons seem to be getting

their (dis)information from debka. Makes one wonder about the extent to which Mossad disinformation (intentional or otherwise) contributed to the whole Iraq debacle.

Don't get me wrong, the Mossad used to be very good. I just think that they have been "captured" by an extremist right wing government (sound familiar?).

[xchrom]

2. indeed, eh?

who knows what's true when touted by this admin and the war in iraq and afghanistan? their lap dogs, the media, simply fetch the message -- nobody that's a reporter{except a notable few} seems to want to give us a real accounting.

[RamboLiberal]

3. Daily Kos is citing this story today

I'm giving it a daytime bump here in DU.

:kick:

[Just Me]

4. This administration exaggerates everything which serves its,...

,...ideological aims. It also covers up the fact that its own past involvements helped to egg on jihadists and other extremists.