I just read this piece and all I could think of was The Godfather. (For the two people in this world who have not seen the Godfather I am about to reveal a crucial plot point) It was the part where Michael is betrayed by his bodyguard but his wife is in the car when it blows up. Here is the inside story of the assassination of Abu Risha, leader of the Anbar Salvation Front.
He said that al-Barghouti had been in debt to some people in the car smuggling racket in Mosul who were affiliated with al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI). The men in the car smuggling racket had a deal with AQI: the terror group would allow them to operate, guaranteeing their security, and in return they would pass information to AQI about who was in debt to them. The men in the smuggling racket passed on information about al-Barghouti's debt, and AQI told them topressure on him to repay the debt immediately -- something he was unable to do.
This put al-Barghouti in a no-win situation. He couldn't go to the authorities because doing so would have exposed his corruption and illegal activities. Then AQI approached him to offer a way out: they would repay his debt in exchange for al-Barghouti admitting al-Rishawi's assassin to the compound, and not asking too many questions while he was on the way in. In this way, AQI created problems for al-Barghouti in order to proffer the solution.
The more you read about Al Qaeda the more you realize that in many ways these guys operate no different than the average mafioso. Only they are more vicious, religious zealots, and if possible much more evil.
No comments:
Post a Comment