Letters from the Front, Part Deux

A few days ago I posted a blog article about letters written to America by soldiers deployed to Iraq. Foolishly, I forgot that Americans aren't the only "fighters" writing letters, and today the Pentagon decided to help fill that gap.

The Pentagon has released portions of a letter written by Ayman al-Zawahiri to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. If you don't follow the war on terror, this would be approximately equivalent to Donald Rumsfeld, the Secretary of Defense, writing a letter to General Abazaid, the commander of US Forces in the Middle East -- and having our enemies obtain a copy of the letter. I'll break down some key points here:

• Zawahiri warns that things are not good in Afghanistan. He tells Zarqawi that they have been defeated, and are hiding to avoid capture. Their communications and funding have been cut off. Desperately, he pleas for Zarqawi to send money to him. Fewer than half of Americans think we can win this war, but our enemy's leadership seems to think we can.
  
• He warns Zarqawi that the violence he is causing, especially beheadings and other "terror" attacks, will ultimately serve to turn the population against him. Gruesome images like the one to the right only serve to make Iraqis realize that Al Qaeda is not "on their side." While I cannot find good evidence of this on CNN.com or Fox News, I will tell you that conversations with friends in Iraq back this statement up. The message from Iraqis to our soldiers: Help us get rid of this menace!
• Expressing optimism that somehow Al Qaeda could force America to abandon Iraq, Zawahiri implored Zarqawi to not end the fight there. Instead, he urges him to push out into other countries, expanding the war until it encompasses the entire world. While some may be deluded into thinking that pulling out means peace, it is clear that Al Qaeda's plan is "Iraq first, then the world." Appeasement didn't work with the Nazi's, and it won't work now.

Captain Ed and Discerning Texan both have good blog entries about this letter as well, kudos to 'em for beating me to the punch.

"And it is that the Mujaheddin must not have their mission end with the expulsion of the Americans from Iraq, and then lay down their weapons, and silence the fighting zeal. We will return to having the secularists and traitors holding sway over us."

Labels: afghanistan, iraq, media, terrorism

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