UBL Speaks and Iraqi Sunnis Respond

UBL just released another audio tape. The tape focuses on Iraq and touches upon Palestine indicating it was made prior to Bhutto's murder. Here is a bit of what he said...

Bin Laden said U.S. and Iraqi officials are seeking to set up a "national unity government" joining the country's Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds.

"Our duty is to foil these dangerous schemes, which try to prevent the establishment of an Islamic state in Iraq, which would be a wall of resistance against American schemes to divide Iraq," he said.

He called on Iraq's Sunni Arabs to rally behind the Islamic State of Iraq, the insurgent umbrella group led by Al Qaeda. Besides the Awakening Councils, some Sunni insurgent groups that continue to fight the Americans have rejected the Islamic State.

Bin Laden said Sunnis should pledge their allegiance to Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, the little known "emir" or leader of the Islamic State of Iraq. U.S. officials have claimed that al-Baghdadi does not exist, saying Al Qaeda created the name to give its coalition the illusion of an Iraqi leadership.

"Failure to give allegiance to the emir after he has been endorsed leads to great evils," bin Laden warned. "Emir Abu Omar would rather have his neck severed than betray the Muslims ... Emir Abu Omar and his brothers are not one of those who accept compromise or meeting the enemy halfway."

Sunni Iraqis gave their emphatic response...

Osama Bin Laden should order al-Qaeda members to stop targeting and killing Iraqi and apologize to the Iraqis for all the horrific crimes committed by the organization members," Salah al-Din awakening council said in a statement issued on Sunday and received by the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).

The announcement came in a reply to audiotape released Saturday purported to be by Osama bin Laden, in which the leader of al-Qaeda warned Iraqi Sunni Muslims against joining awakening council.

The statement pointed out “the crimes committed against Iraqis by those calling him Sheikh Osama was the main motive to establish the awakening councils and was not seeking for money, power or treason for others’ interests”.

In Anbar, the locals were so outraged and disturbed by the heavy handed tactics: cutting off fingers of smokers, raping and killing women who put the wrong sorts of vegetables together, and the worst, inviting families and literally serving their child's head on platter...that this is what lead to the Anbar Awakening.

My favorite broadcaster, Bill O'Reilly, was fond of calling on Iraqis to fight for their own freedom, and I believe this latest statement by Salah Al-Dih is an other example that more and more are.