U.S. report says Iraq war has fueled terror threat

[couchcommander]

Reproduced here under the auspices of the Fair Dealings Provision of the Canadian Copyright Act:

http://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/09/24/iraq.main/index.html

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- A classified intelligence report concludes that the Iraq war has worsened the terrorist threat to the United States, U.S. officials told CNN Sunday.

Some intelligence officials have said as much in the past, but the newly revealed document is the first formal report on global trends in terrorism by the National Intelligence Estimate, which is put out by the National Intelligence Council.

The White House Sunday said a New York Times report on the document "is not representative of the complete document."

Beyond that, the White House said it does not comment on classified documents.

Intelligence officials told CNN the report, completed five months ago, said the war and the insurgency are the main recruiting vehicles for new Islamic extremists.

The extremists communicate through various Islamic Web sites and share an ideology with al Qaeda, the officials said.

The document has not been shared with senators because it is classified, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tennessee, told ABC's "This Week."

Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, told CBS' "Face the Nation" that, while he knows nothing about the report, it would not be surprising if the Iraq war was a rallying point for terrorists....

 

[paracowboy]

and in other news, smoking causes cancer.  :

How much time and money was wasted on that? OF COURSE the Iraq conflict serves as a rallying point for the Islamo-wackos. The beauty is that, unlike the conclusions reached in the article, they're all flocking to Iraq and Afghanistan to kill kaffirs, rather than comin' over here to do it.

 

[KevinB]

FWIW -- NIE's are done on all sorts of issues by gov't agencies. They are a report on an issue -- not an entity like CNN seems to claim.  The CIA and NSA are the primary issuer of something like this.  Not like this is a earthshattering revalation.

 

[xmarcx]

and in other news, smoking causes cancer.  :

How much time and money was wasted on that? OF COURSE the Iraq conflict serves as a rallying point for the Islamo-wackos. The beauty is that, unlike the conclusions reached in the article, they're all flocking to Iraq and Afghanistan to kill kaffirs, rather than comin' over here to do it.

+ 1
On a policy level, it's working out exactly like forward defence in the anti-communist era. Draw out those susceptible to the ideology in a foreign conflict like astringing a giant Jihadi pimple! It'll always be easier to kill them over there in open conflict that sniff them out here with police work - with the added benefit of tying up their major leaders and the balance of their resources 'defending' their home turf.

Your wasting your time in the army Para, you should be a poli sci prof somewhere jamming the big picture into the impressionable young minds of the country  ;D

 

[Cliff]

OF COURSE the Iraq conflict serves as a rallying point for the Islamo-wackos.

While I agree that it draws in the terrorist element, it doesn't help in stabalizing Iraq, by the proliferation of new terrorist groups. Kind of a catch 22, since it was inevitable that that was going to happen by going in. 

 

[paracowboy]

hardly "inevitable" by simply "going in". If there had been some differences made in how things were run immediately after the invasion, there would have been far less difficulties.

Of course, it's quite easy to say that here and now, in the comforts of our own homes, with all of the benefits of 3 years experience, isn't it?

 

[Cliff]

hardly "inevitable" by simply "going in".

Yes, things could have been done differently to reduce the proliferation of terorrists, but it still would have happened.

 

[1feral1]

From a view inside the square. The place has its radicals. Many. No where is safe. Nowhere. Some foreign terrs too, as once the fighting stops, the locals only pick up the dead they know. The Chechnyians, the Iranians, Syrians, Pakistanis, Saudis, etc are left in the street. No one knows them, so there they lay til they are dragged off to the dump or whatever. There are many local, many Iraqis who support Saddam, the Baath Party or just want a poke at us to get paid. We are worth anywhere between $500-$1000 US for a confirmend kill via video footage for proof. So there is many reasons to the onslaught of activity against us as a whole. In general, we do good things here, but the media is only seeking contraversy. I dislike them very much.

In my view the civil war style of violence is on the up swing, and day 3 of ramadan has been rocked by too many bombings to count. We hear the crumps all the time, some really rock our world, literally with the blast (and they can be a distance too and the blast is still felt). Thats daily routine here as much as shaving for you back in Canada.

However the US and coalition still cop it, but its all shoot and scoot, IED VBIED SVBIED et-phucking-etc. It appears they are concentrating more so on each other now. We often see the medivacs coming in to 10 CSH, and thats sad, real sad. There is plenty of blood and guts to go around.

Daily the casualty figs are in the Stars and Stripes, one US lad was only 18, and here I am at 46. Just think of what he and others like him will never experience in their lives, many things of which we all take for granted. Heroic actions happen here every day. Remember that.

Anyways, I must have a shower and shave for my routine  ;D.

Cheers,

Wes