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The leader of the Sunni terror group and al Qaeda affiliate, Fatah al Islam, and his deputy were killed by Lebanese security forces inside of Lebanon as Abdulrahman Awad and Ghazi Faysal Abdullah were headed to Iraq to join up with al Qaeda in Iraq.
From the report at The Long War Journal:
It is rather interesting how the Lebanese government is pretty quick to crack down on this Sunni terror group while embracing every activity by the Shia terror group, Hezbollah, isn't it?
But what is disturbing about this report is the fact that this fairly influential terror group leader was on his way to hook up with al Qaeda in Iraq. One has to wonder about the timing of this. Do you suppose this a coincidence as we are hearing the announcements of America's last combat brigade being withdrawn out of Iraq?
And unfortunately, one has to look at this fact of Awad's decision to abandon his people and head to Iraq in a larger scope. In other words, how many al Qaeda supporting groups around the world are now doing the same thing - sending jihadis and leaders to Iraq?
The next six to nine months is going to be very telling in Iraq. It's my belief that there IS an invasion of al Qaeda types on their way to Iraq - they have been waiting for the right moment to try and overthrow Iraq one more time and the U.S. withdrawl is the signal to start it all up again. Most U.S. forces left in Iraq are in an advisory role and I believe the al Qaeda jihadis feel there is no way that President Obama would ever resend U.S. troops back in. At the same time, I don't think we'll see some sort of immediate assault on Iraq - the replenishing terrorist and insurgent forces will need upwards of six months to rebuild their networks in the country but in my opinion, we need to focus on Anbar province.
Anbar is where al Qaeda in Iraq took up command central a number of years ago - controlling Ramadi and Fallujah and I believe that they will try this again - it is a distance from the political heads in Baghdad and is often see as the Iraqi "outback." One has to hope to all hell that Iraqi leaders and U.S. leaders haven't forgotten just how difficult it was for U.S. troops to win back Ramadi and Fallujah.
From the report at The Long War Journal:
The leader of a Lebanon-based al Qaeda affiliate has been killed while attempting to travel to Iraq to join the insurgency.
Abdulrahman Awad, the leader of Fatah al Islam, was killed along with his deputy, Ghazi Faysal Abdullah, by Lebanese security forces during a clash in the Bekaa Valley over the weekend.
Fatah al Islam confirmed the deaths of Awad and Abdullah in a statement released on a jihadi website, and said that the two leaders were traveling to Iraq to join up with the Islamic State of Iraq, al Qaeda's front group. The statement was discovered by the SITE Intelligence Group and reported by The Associated Press.
According to the Fatah al Islam statement, Awad, a Palestinian, sent his son to Iraq two months ago to become a suicide bomber. There have been no reports of Palestinian suicide bombers carrying out attacks in Iraq in the past two months.
Fatah al Islam's top leaders are known to have had close links to al Qaeda in Iraq. Shakir al Abssi, the leader of Fatah al Islam up until December 2008, had close ties to Abu Musab al Zarqawi, the deceased leader of al Qaeda in Iraq. Fatah al Islam claimed that Syrian forces killed Abssi in 2008.
It is rather interesting how the Lebanese government is pretty quick to crack down on this Sunni terror group while embracing every activity by the Shia terror group, Hezbollah, isn't it?
But what is disturbing about this report is the fact that this fairly influential terror group leader was on his way to hook up with al Qaeda in Iraq. One has to wonder about the timing of this. Do you suppose this a coincidence as we are hearing the announcements of America's last combat brigade being withdrawn out of Iraq?
And unfortunately, one has to look at this fact of Awad's decision to abandon his people and head to Iraq in a larger scope. In other words, how many al Qaeda supporting groups around the world are now doing the same thing - sending jihadis and leaders to Iraq?
The next six to nine months is going to be very telling in Iraq. It's my belief that there IS an invasion of al Qaeda types on their way to Iraq - they have been waiting for the right moment to try and overthrow Iraq one more time and the U.S. withdrawl is the signal to start it all up again. Most U.S. forces left in Iraq are in an advisory role and I believe the al Qaeda jihadis feel there is no way that President Obama would ever resend U.S. troops back in. At the same time, I don't think we'll see some sort of immediate assault on Iraq - the replenishing terrorist and insurgent forces will need upwards of six months to rebuild their networks in the country but in my opinion, we need to focus on Anbar province.
Anbar is where al Qaeda in Iraq took up command central a number of years ago - controlling Ramadi and Fallujah and I believe that they will try this again - it is a distance from the political heads in Baghdad and is often see as the Iraqi "outback." One has to hope to all hell that Iraqi leaders and U.S. leaders haven't forgotten just how difficult it was for U.S. troops to win back Ramadi and Fallujah.
Fatah al Islam chief killed while traveling to Iraq
The leader of a Lebanon-based al Qaeda affiliate has been killed while attempting to travel to Iraq to join the insurgency.
Abdulrahman Awad, the leader of Fatah al Islam, was killed along with his deputy, Ghazi Faysal Abdullah, by Lebanese security forces during a clash in the Bekaa Valley over the weekend.
Fatah al Islam confirmed the deaths of Awad and Abdullah in a statement released on a jihadi website, and said that the two leaders were traveling to Iraq to join up with the Islamic State of Iraq, al Qaeda's front group. The statement was discovered by the SITE Intelligence Group and reported by The Associated Press.
According to the Fatah al Islam statement, Awad, a Palestinian, sent his son to Iraq two months ago to become a suicide bomber. There have been no reports of Palestinian suicide bombers carrying out attacks in Iraq in the past two months.
Fatah al Islam's top leaders are known to have had close links to al Qaeda in Iraq. Shakir al Abssi, the leader of Fatah al Islam up until December 2008, had close ties to Abu Musab al Zarqawi, the deceased leader of al Qaeda in Iraq. Fatah al Islam claimed that Syrian forces killed Abssi in 2008.
Al Qaeda in Iraq continues to use eastern Syria as a staging ground for foreign terrorists entering Iraq, often with the support of Syria's intelligence service.
Over the past several years, the Lebanese government has sought to dismantle Fatah al Islam. In 2007, the Lebanese military carried out a major offensive against Fatah al Islam in the Nahr al Bared Palestinian refugee camp near Sidon. At least 222 Fatah al Islam terrorists and 171 Lebanese soldiers were killed during the 15-week battle. Two Moroccans were among the Fatah al Islam fighters killed.
Officials fear that Fatah al Islam has penetrated Lebanon's military. In December 2008, a military prosecutor charged 15 troops with plotting attacks against Lebanese soldiers and having links with the terror group. “We suspect they were coordinating their acts with a Fatah al Islam ring based in the Ein al Hilwah Palestinian refugee camp,” the prosecutor said.
A jailbreak in the summer of 2009 also fueled suspicions of inside support for the terror group. Taha al Hajj Suleiman, a Syrian national and spokesman for Fatah al Islam, escaped from a jail in August 2009. Several prison officials were fired after the Interior Ministry found evidence of "deficiencies that might have facilitated the escape.” Suleiman was detained by police one day later.
In August 2007, the US State Department added Fatah al Islam to the list of terror groups under Executive Order 13224. The terror group is known to have plotted to establish an Islamic Emirate in the Tripoli region in Lebanon. Fatah al Islam has also been linked to several terror attacks and plots in the Middle East, including the September 2008 car bombing in Damascus, Syria, that killed 17 people, and plots to blow up trains in Germany and assassinate anti-Syrian politicians in Lebanon. Abssi was convicted, along with Zarqawi, by a Jordanian court for the murder of USAID representative Laurence Foley. Syria refused to extradite Abssi to Jordan.
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