Can't find the link now, but I read earlier today that Sharon plans on the unilateral withdrawal from Gaza, including dismantling all settlements. Big news.
The mantra amongst the lefties on Saddam seems to be it's merely symbolic, and doesn't matter because 'hes only one man.' Of course they're wrong, he's not only one man, he's THE man, and this is the best thing to happen for us. The insurgency depends upon a sympathetic, supportive population to give them shelter and aid. That support comes from the Sunni tribes and clans that benefitted from Saddam's rule, and hope to have their good fortune returned with Saddam back in power. Before Saddam was captured, it was worth the risk. Now that there is no hope of his return, the support in the Triangle will probably evaporate.
Already happening:
worldtribune.com
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U.S. flooded with post-Saddam tips from 'Sunni Triangle'
SPECIAL TO WORLD TRIBUNE.COM
Tuesday, December 16, 2003
The U.S. military has detected an increase in Iraqi Sunni cooperation in wake of the capture of Saddam Hussein.
U.S. officials said military units in central and northern Iraq have been flooded by tips from Iraqis on Saddam loyalists and insurgency operatives. They said Iraqis have also been responsive to U.S. patrols in towns and cities in the Sunni Triangle.
On Monday, the U.S. Army's 1st Armored Division captured an Iraqi described as a high-ranking official from the Saddam regime. Several other unidentified regime figures were said to have been captured and interrogated.
[Sunni attacks, however, continued on Iraqi police forces. On Monday, two car bombs were detonated in the Baghdad area, killing 10 people, Middle East Newsline reported.]
The U.S. Army's 82nd Airborne Division has reported increased cooperation with Iraqi residents in the Anbar Province. The division, as part of the "Task Force All American," said the cooperation facilitated a search operation for insurgents in the Anbar province. In some cases, Iraqis cooperated in locating and identifying insurgents.
U.S. Central Command officials said the task force conducted 25 tactical checkpoints and eight cordon-and-search operations over Monday. The division also completed 169 patrols, including 13 joint patrols with the Iraqi Border Guard and Iraqi police.
Some of these patrols came under attack by Sunni insurgents, officials said. But the rapid response of the task force as well as cooperation of Iraqi pedestrians led to the killing of three and capture of 16 insurgents. A U.S. soldier was also killed.
[On Tuesday, Israel disclosed that it sought to assassinate Saddam in 1992 during his stay in Tikrit. Officials said the operation was suspended after an Israeli training exercise for special operations forces went awry and five soldiers were killed.]
Iraqi cooperation was also reported amid Operation Panther Backroads, meant to disrupt insurgency movement and halt smuggling. The mission was launched on Monday by the airborne division's 3rd Brigade and so far two insurgents were killed and 13 others were captured.
But U.S. commanders said information obtained from Iraqis as well as from records seized from Saddam's lair near Tikrit have provided alerts on Sunni attacks. They said the documents in Saddam's briefcase provided information on the structure of the Sunni insurgency.
The capture of Saddam could also lead to a crisis in funding for the insurgency, commanders said. They said although the Sunni insurgency has adequate amounts of weapons and bombs, Saddam loyalists are expected to encounter a funding shortfall by early 2004 as the United States exchanges Iraq's currency. |
