I'm a little late on this one.
I didn't see it last week when it was published, but it's still
relevant. If it's been linked elsewhere, I apologize for my slovenly
habits. If you haven't seen it, well, it seems the average insurgent in
Baghdad has more than a few conflicts to resolve before he protests the
occupation by trying to kill soldiers.
{...}Abu Mujahed, worryingly for the analysts, fits into
none of these easy categories. For a start, he was pro-American before
the invasion. 'The only way to breathe under the old regime was to
watch American films and listen to their music,' he said. He had been a
Bon Jovi fan. 'It gave me a glimpse of a better life. When I heard that
the Americans were coming to liberate Iraq I was very happy. I felt
that I would be able to live well, travel and have freedom. I wanted to
do more sport, get new appliances and a new car and develop my life. I
thought the US would come here and our lives would be changed through
180 degrees.' He spoke of how his faith in the US was shaken when, via
a friend's illicitly imported satellite TV system, he saw 'barbaric,
savage' pictures of civilian casualties of the fighting and bombing.
The next blow came in the conflict's immediate aftermath, as looters
ran unchecked through Baghdad. 'When I saw the American soldiers
watching and doing nothing as people took everything, I began to
suspect the US was not here to help us but to destroy us,' he said.
{...}Their next try was more successful. The lead vehicle of an
American military convoy ran over an anti-tank mine the group had laid
in a road. 'We think we killed the driver,' he said. 'We found the mine
in a house that had been used by the military during the war. The
Americans were not expecting that sort of device.' Over the next months
the group varied the tactics. 'One day we try and snipe them, the next
we use an IED [Improvised Explosive Device], the next a mine. We never
get any orders from anybody. We are just told: "Today you should do
something," but it is up to us to decide what and when.' Black soldiers are a particular target. 'To have Negroes occupying
us is a particular humiliation,' Abu Mujahed said, echoing the profound
racism prevalent in much of the Middle East. 'Sometimes we aborted a
mission because there were no Negroes.' In contrast to many
militants, who have killed hundreds of Iraqis in the last year, Abu
Mujahed said his group was careful not to kill locals. 'We are now
planning to use bigger bombs in central Baghdad. But it is hard because
there are so many civilians.' Support for the militants is far from
universal. They are not attracting new recruits and finances are tight,
he admitted.
Tactics depend on resources. The price of rocket-propelled grenades has
gone up recently as supplies dried up during August's heavy fighting
between Americans and the Mahdi Army in Najaf. The missiles now cost
25,000 Iraqi dinars (around £10) in markets in Sadr City, the northern
Shia Muslim-dominated area of Baghdad - 10 times the immediate post-war
price. The group is restricted to one attack every few days. There are
also spies. He boasted of information from 'friends within the
coalition' and said that his group have executed two suspected
informers within Adhamiya. One was killed less than three weeks ago,
after being under surveillance for a month. 'He had a wife and child
but I did not feel bad. He was a fox. He was made to kneel and shot in
the head.' Other suspected spies have been threatened and fled Baghdad.
And yet, and let's be clear about this, he's only resisting the occupation. His group tries not
to kill innocent civilians. He thinks the other resistance groups are
crap. He thinks Allawi is an American lapdog. In essence, he's not
pleased with his current lot in life. No more, no less. Does he go out
and work hard to make his life better? Does he join the effort to make
Baghdad and the country more secure so the economy can flourish and the
food and money will start rolling in? Nope. He makes the situation
worse with his actions and completely ignores his own complicity in
creating the problem by saying that if everyone had a full belly, no
one would fight. Sheesh. Get a clue.