Sunday, January 27, 2008

Heaven's Army

The complexity of the makeup of religious militias and factions within Iraq lies way beyond the simple generalizations repeated by the MSM.

Recall Bush not knowing the distinctions of Shiite and Sunni - Ambassador claims shortly before invasion, Bush didn't know there were two sects of Islam.

Also from the NYTimes in 2006: Can You Tell a Sunni From a Shiite?
"...Do you know the difference between a Sunni and a Shiite?”

...most American officials I’ve interviewed don’t have a clue. That includes not just intelligence and law enforcement officials, but also members of Congress who have important roles overseeing our spy agencies. How can they do their jobs without knowing the basics?
How indeed, but the complexity goes much further. Hearing the broad calls of a 'victory' in Iraq dissipate when the details of all the various factions are known. Most of these guys don't even know what they are talking about or the extent of the complexity of the issue.

From the Gulf News: Cult seeks to incite war among Shiites
Najaf: Security official Abu Ali has reviewed hundreds of documents about the obscure Messianic cult that incited a deadly clash last weekend at the height of Shiites' Ashura holiday.

The group, Abu Ali and other security and government officials say, wants to spark a war among Shiites.

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