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[Reporting on Iraq by Buut Shikan, Idol Breaker.]
DAY 17: Understanding the Situation at Baghdad
Airport and the
U.S.
Raid into
Baghdad
Significance of Saddam Hussain in Public and his
TV Appearance
Martyrdom Operations:
One by
Women,
other at
Airport
American audiences are confused by the
plethora of "victory" reports
being circulated and repeated every 15 minutes by
CNN,
MSNBC
and
Fox News.
These reports are further buttressed by Central
Command, Defense Department
and White House briefings.
New Trend's analysis of these reports is as
follows:
1. U.S. troops are at Saddam International
Airport, 12 miles from Baghdad.
However, Iraqi forces are also at the airport and
heavy fighting is going on.
Thus both sides can claim that they are in
control of the airport. The Iraqis
are lightly armed and do not seem to have
weaponry which could penetrate
American tanks. However, the Iraqis, far from
surrendering are actually
charging the American troops head on with the
"soft" vehicles which they do
have, such as pick ups and motor cars. [One
picture of an Iraqi car crashing
through a U.S. tank column did get through CNN
censorship for a few seconds.]
Thus when the U.S.
media
say that U.S. forces
have the airport but the Iraqis
are shooting at them, they are admitting that the
Iraqis are at the airport
too and it is not in control of either side.
2. On April 5, an American tank column entered
Baghdad. This sensational news
was transmitted by CNN etc a hundred times.
Actually, it was simply a raid
into Baghdad which driven back by the Iraqis with
heavy U.S. casualties.
American troops have air cover and consist of
tank columns which can move
rapidly. Such a raid does not mean that Baghdad
or any part of Baghdad has
been captured. [Readers should have been paying
attention to the battle of
Basrah in the south where British tanks have
entered the city half-a-dozen
times only to be repulsed by stiff Iraqi
resistance.] Such raids will
continue as powerful and fast moving American
tank columns probe Baghdad's
defenses.
2a. By 9 AM [EST], CNN's reporting became more
subdued and bits and pieces of
news started coming out that when the tank column
went into Baghdad, it faced
still resistance and suffered "losses" [which
have not yet been revealed].
The Iraqis, we are told, lowered their anti
aircraft guns and used them
against the tanks. Infantry units repeatedly
attacked the tank column,
eventually forcing it to retreat. [Most Iraqi RPG
rounds cannot penetrate
American armor.]
SADDAM ALIVE, DEFIANT and SEEKING ALLAH'S
ACCEPTANCE
The Iraqis showed again on April 4 that
they will go down fighting
rather than surrender or run away, in spite of
ferocious American bombing,
including the use of B-52s WITHIN BAGHDAD.
President Saddam Hussain came on TV to
call the Muslim world and the
Iraqi people to Jihad. He seems to be prepared to
fight to the end and to
achieve martyrdom if necessary.
Then a bigger surprise for the U.S.: SADDAM
HUSSAIN CAME OUT IN PUBLIC to
the love and adulation of his people (as smoke
from U.S. bombing billowed on
the horizon). This great daring has sent a surge
of power throughout the
Muslim world. [By contrast,
Bush
has failed to
come out into the public even
in the peace and security of the United States
mainland.] Saddam picked up a
child, showed his fist, shook hands, hailed
people like his friends. There
were armed civilians in the crowd but he was not
afraid. [Imagine anyone
being allowed to carry weapons into a Bush
meeting! Unthinkable.]
During his TV appearance, Saddam referred to
the Apache helicopter
downed by a farmer and to the air assault on
Baghdad. There can be little
doubt that he is alive and in command of the
Jihad. However, U.S.
media,
trying to fulfill U.S. war needs, spent all day
speculating if that was a
real Saddam or a "double." [Other than rumor and
gossip, there is no evidence
that he has a double.]
SECOND AND THIRD MARTYRDOM OPERATION
On April 4, two Iraqi women carried out a
martyrdom attack at a dam to
the northwest of Baghdad where U.S. special
forces have landed. It is
reported that one of the women came screaming out
of a car which drove up to
the U.S. special forces check point. As U.S.
troops approached, the other
woman in the car blew up the car. Both women were
martyred. Three U.S.
Special Forces men were reported killed and three
injured.
[Al Jazeerah
has
shown pictures of the two women which were filmed
before they went off to
give their lives in defense of the Islamic
nation.]
On April 5, a martyrdom operation was
carried out against U.S. forces
on the perimeter of Saddam Hussain International
Airport. CNN first reported
the attack (7 and 8 AM EST) but then refused to
give details which could
indicate heavy U.S. casualties. The attack report
will probably be sanitized
before it is released.
REPORT ON DOWNING OF COBRA HELICOPTER SANITIZED
On April 5, 6 AM, U.S. media reported that
a U.S. Cobra helicopter had
been SHOT DOWN in Central Iraq. An hour later,
this was changed into a
"crash" whose cause is "not known." By 9 AM
(EST), the report had changed
into "cause unknown, to be investigated." In
other words, the military is
sanitizing the reports issued by journalists.
U.S. MARINE COLONEL DISMISSED FROM POSITION
DURING FIGHTING
CNN and other channels report that a U.S.
marine colonel, Col Dowdy,
has been dismissed while he was in command of his
troops in the field. Again,
information is being withheld. Our analysts sense
that this could be
indication of an important setback for U.S.
troops in the battlefield. The
Iraqis were putting up a real tough fight at
Al-Kut and the Colonel might
have abandoned his post and run. Probably the
U.S.
media
will issue a
thoroughly sanitized report.
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IRANIAN VERSION OF THE CONFLICT: Preparing to
cash in on Muslim Resentment
[Note: New Trend is not in ANY WAY endorsing or
supporting this khutba of a
pro-Iran Imam.]
Iran seems to be moving from stage one to
stage two of its strategy in
the context of the attack on Iraq. It had taken a
"neutral" stance in the
U.S. attack, claiming that it is neither on the
side of Saddam nor in favor
of the U.S. [Islamic scholars say that such
"neutrality" in the face of an
attack on a Muslim country is a form of kufr.]
Now it is openly coming out to
attack Saddam and to take advantage of Muslim
resentment against the U.S.
On April 4, a pro-Iran Imam gave a khutba
in Washington, DC at Freedom
Square (13th street and Pennsylvania) after
obtaining a police permit for the
event.
This khutba gives an indication of the
Iranian line. Here are the main
points:
1. 9.11
was done by the Americans themselves
('they did it' could be
Americans or
Jews).
2. American embassies in
Africa
were blown up by
them themselves. ('they did
it')
3. Osama bin Laden is working for America.
4. Taliban are no good and were involved in
killing Iran's supporters in
Afghanistan.
5. [Left out all resistance by Saddam Hussain.]
6. Ali Khamenei is our important Islamic leader.
7. Condemn Bush. Bush and bin Laden are working
together. (Referred to "Bush
Laden" as a play on Bin Laden.]
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ed. Note: This is not a Shia-Sunni issue. Many
Shias oppose Iran. Among them
are Iranian Shias in the MKO who took refuge in
Iraq. Most Iraqi Shias are
nationalists and support Saddam Hussain. It
appears that perhaps with
Iranian help, the U.S. has obtained a 'fatwa'
from Sistani, Shia religious
leader in Najaf, not to oppose American forces.
Now Iran has issued a statement, in a
veiled way, expressing sorrow at
the deaths of U.S. and British troops in Iraq.
Some see it as a feeler to the
Anglo-American regimes.
----------------------------------------------------------
[Independent news reports such as the following
do not get through to
American TV screens. Sent by Sis. Hamdiyeh in
South Carolina.)
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/04/03/1048962881242.html
US forces use schools for cover
By Russell Skelton in northern Iraq
April 4 2003
United States special forces have taken up
strategic positions in three
secondary schools located in a densely populated
residential area of a city
in northern Iraq.
The schools, which have been closed since the war
began, are located near a
prominent Christian church and within 200 metres
of a United Nations
complex.
The decision to locate the special forces in a
residential area appears to
run counter to
US policy.
The Defence Secretary,
Donald Rumsfeld, recently
criticised Iraq for placing key military units
and weaponry in and around
mosques, hospitals and schools in both Baghdad
and Basra.
The decision also appears to be a departure from
US policy in northern Iraq.
Thousands of paratroopers from the 173rd Airborne
Brigade have been
deliberately located well away from any
population centres.
For security reasons the name of the city will
not be published. But
yesterday I observed four Humvees equipped with
mortars, missiles and .50
calibre machine-guns unloading men and equipment
at a girls' secondary
school. Soldiers entered the school through a
side entrance.
The special forces had their faces covered and
appeared to be returning from
a mission. The vehicles were dusty and heavily
laden with weaponry.
When I attempted to approach the soldiers, local
security forces intervened,
saying that the street was off limits to the
media and that photography was
banned.
This week big cities were put on high security
alert after Iraq proclaimed
it had 4000 Arab volunteers ready to carry out
suicide bombings.
Kurdish residents, who confirmed the exact
location of special forces units,
are furious at the decision to locate them in
their midst but are afraid to
speak out. They believe the special forces will
be targeted by suicide
bombers and the Iraqi armed forces.
It is understood residents have been warned by
Kurdish Democratic Party
officials to say nothing and not to draw
attention to the special forces.
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WORDS OF FAITH FROM BR. SHOAIB, ENGLAND
Muslims seem to dismay at the awful firepower of
the
kuffaar. However, does military defeat, really
mean
defeat?
Not if it is done with the niya of jihaad. Then
there
is either earthly victory or shahaadat.
But what if the enemy occupies the land?
Well there are still 3 levels of resistance. The
Prophet said if you see something bad happening
try to
stop it with your hand. If you can't do it then
speak
against it. If you can't even do that, then hate
it in
your heart.
What's the implication of all this?
It's all about belief and good conduct.
They can occupy your land, but they can't occupy
your
mind/heart, you can always resist that.
So, what's the strategy?
Make sure we are on the moral high ground.
If you are really there no one can dislodge you.
The higher you are, the closer you are to Allah.
Then if He decides that it is His time to come,
there
is no power to match His Power.
...shoaib
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SAVE THE DATE:
Jamaat al-Muslimeen International Symposium
June 21, 2003
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2003-04-05 Sat 17:29ct