Al-Qaeda 'Overruns' Fallujah And Ramadi In Iraq (Video)

Over the past several days, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham, al Qaeda’s affiliate in Iraq, has taken control of large sections of two western Iraqi cities that were once bastions for the terror group.  ISIS fighters entered the cities of Fallujah and Ramadi, the provincial capital of Anbar, after the Iraqi military withdrew from them following clashes with tribes over a political standoff that resulted in the arrest of a Sunni member of parliament.

Officials from the Iraqi Interior Ministry acknowledged that parts of Fallujah and Ramadi are under al Qaeda control. ”Half of Fallujah is in the hands of ISIS (the Qaeda-linked Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham) group,” an anonymous interior ministry official told AFP.  ”In Ramadi, it is similar – some areas are controlled by ISIS,” the official continued. The other parts of the city are controlled by “tribesmen,” likely a reference to the Sahwa (“the Awakening”), the tribal militia that with US backing ejected al Qaeda from control of large areas of Anbar between 2006 and 2009.  

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This is big news. A strategic blow to Iraq by al-qaeda.  A very smart move.  At least in te near term.  They can claim victory which will help them recruit more menfor their cause.  It also makes Maliki look terrible.  Syria and Iraq are going to be dealing with for a long time.  In 2013 the number of deaths in Iraq hasnt been seen since 2008 and in Syria, 130,000 people have died since that started.  This is serious stuff.  If the west and shia aren’t careful, al-qaeda could become mainstream if they aren’t already secretly are.  Which I believe to be so.  I think al-qaeda is very popular with the common muslim.  Just my opinion though.  I still think racism is very common in the average american too, but they won’t admit that and Im sure muslims wouldn’t either.  -Mort