Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Iraqi Cleric Ascends From Al-Qaida To U.S. Ally

U.S. Army Sgt. Robert Taylor and Spc. Bartholomew Sherwood of 16th Field Artillery Regiment, 4th Infantry Division, watch for unusual activity from atop the Iraqi Highway Police station in the city of Albo Abdullah in Babel Province, Iraq, on Dec. 23, 2008. DoD photo by Staff Sgt. Rasheen A. Douglas, U.S. Air Force. (Released)

From MSNBC:

New paths to power emerge following war and occupation.

THULUYAH, Iraq - Nadhim Khalil wears the clothes of the cleric he is. He bears the scars of the insurgent he was. And in a country where business these days is power, he talks the speech of the merchant he has become, plying his trade in a contest for authority.

Imbued with the swagger of youth, lording over this oasis-like town on a bend of the Tigris River, Khalil has power, the fruits of a singularly Iraqi odyssey that has taken this scion of a religious family from the leadership of the local branch of al-Qaeda in Iraq, responsible for a reign that saw residents executed in the streets, into the generous arms of the American military and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, his erstwhile foes.

Khalil's analysis is blunt: He used to be on the losing side.

Read more
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My Comment: This thug and murderer should be in jail or worse. If this is the new face of Iraq .... it will be doomed.

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