Read It And Weep
Famous last words from AQ’s late al-Tunisi, in note to other AQ leaders:
”We are so desperate for your help.”
How about that. AQ emir of foreign jihadis dies cut off and desperate. I thought they were supposed to enjoy dying pointlessly. Surely he could have found a marketplace to explode himself in. Instead, it’s death from above, striking mid-whine, “We are so desperate for help … wish you were here … please send jihadis.” Then kablooey, blast makes the sign of the cross just like Zarqawi got. Do you think they design the bombs to do that on purpose?
AP reports AQI confirms the death with the remarks that Abu Osama al-Tunisi waged jihad “with his tongue and his teeth.”
I’m guessing that sounds better in Arabic than it does in English. Jabbered and bit mightily would be the charitable take on what that’s supposed to mean. Don’t feel like you need to speculate in comments, thanks.
AFP has a little more.
(Brig. Gen Joseph Anderson) said the September 25 strike that killed al-Tunisi was a “significant blow” to al Qaeda in Iraq, which he said has been severely disrupted by US operations and may now be reassessing its position in Iraq.
He said his opinion was that Al-Qaeda will shift its forces from Iraq to Afghanistan, and try to expand its operations there.
“All we can tell you is that by numbers and how the groups are operating in very remote locations and not collaboratively they’re fractured, ruptured, mitigated here. And the question becomes, where would they go? What would they do?” he said.
Anderson detailed a series of raids this month in Baghdad, Mahmudiyah, Yusufiyah and Musayyib in which scores of suspects were detained and nearly 20 others killed. Among those captured were other associates of Tunisi.
The military learned that the Tunisian was meeting with other Al-Qaeda in Iraq members south of Baghdad in the vicinity of Musayyib on Tuesday.
“United States Air Force F-16 aircraft attacked the target,” Anderson told reporters here via video linkup from Baghdad.
“Reporting indicated that several Al-Qaeda members with ties to senior leadership were present at that time. Three were killed, including Tunisi,” he said.
“His presence was confirmed by one of the two detainees from the operation, one who left the target area just prior to the air strike, who we eventually captured minutes later,” he said.
…
Ground forces recovered a handwritten note at the site that was believed to have been written by Tunisi, Anderson said, displaying a slide with photographs of the note.
“The key points in this hand-written note include, he’s surrounded, communications have been cut and he’s desperate for help,” he said.
“What I make of that is that we’re having great success in isolating these pockets,” Anderson said.
He said the surge in US forces since the start of the year had driven Al-Qaeda in Iraq forces out of the Baghdad area into provinces north and west of the capital.
“They are very broken up, very unable to mass, and conducting very isolated operations,” he said.
“And I think what that little note says is that he was very desperate; he wasn’t getting the materials, the supplies, the guidance information; anything he needed.”
Anderson said Tunisi oversaw the movement of foreign fighters in Iraq and hooked them up with cells launching suicide attacks and car bombings in the Baghdad area.
“He was the emir of foreign terrorists in Iraq and, as I stated, part of the inner leadership circle of Al Qaeda in Iraq who had direct contact with Abu Ayyub al-Masri,” Anderson said.
Posted by Jules Crittenden at 10:34 pm on Monday, October 1, 2007
3 Responses to “Read It And Weep”
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October 1st, 2007 at 11:36 pm
It gives one hope. I know they aren’t gone yet, but it’s almost one down, two to go.
October 2nd, 2007 at 7:00 am
We in America have sunk so low. So low. For example, I don’t even feel empathy for that dead murderous terrorist. In fact, there is a little joy in hearing of his death! Hang down your head Tom Dooley :(.
I hope we don’t kill Osama, Zawahiri or Ahmadenijihad soon, because my glee at their deaths would be hard to hide. T’would be embarrassing.
October 2nd, 2007 at 10:50 am
But didn’t Harry (teeth ‘n’ tongues) Reid said “the war is lost’?