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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
| DEBKAfile: Zarqawi threatens a general assault on Jordan. |
| 2005-11-20 |
| DEBKAfile Exclusive: Zarqawi threatens a general assault on Jordan. Amman will become a second Baghdad – unless King Abdullah surrenders to his terms, including closure of the Israeli embassy November 19, 2005, 8:57 PM (GMT+02:00) Al Qaeda’s Iraq chief Abu Musab al Zarqawi is reported by DEBKAfile’s counter-terror sources to have confronted King Abdullah of Jordan with a five-point ultimatum to save his kingdom from a general offensive: 1. Jordan must expel forthwith all American and British military forces. DEBKAfile adds: several thousand US troops are based in the Hashemite kingdom, including special forces defending the Jordanian-Iraqi border from both sides. US air force personnel fly helicopter and fighter aircraft missions against terrorist targets in Iraq from Jordanian air bases. American troops in Iraq receive supplies from rear bases in the kingdom. US tankers regularly dock at Jordan’s Red Sea port of Aqaba with fuel supplies for the American army in Iraq. They are escorted by US warships. The British forces in Iraq are mostly Royal Air Force units. 2. Jordan must close the Israeli embassy in Amman. 3. The training of Iraqi police contingents in Jordan must cease. They are given courses at facilities especially set up in the kingdom. Jordanian instructors drill new Iraqi recruits. 4. Jordan must shut down prison facilities holding Iraqi inmates. 5. The Jordanian embassy in Baghdad must close and its staff withdrawn from Iraq. DEBKAfile’s sources add: In the ongoing investigation of al Qaeda’s triple hotel attacks in Amman Nov. 9, which left 57 dead, Jordanian security services have found three local terror groups which act as Zarqawi’s surrogates: Bayat al Imam: (The Imam’s Oath), an extremist group founded in 1994, many of whose members trained in Al Qaeda’s camps in Herat, W. Afghanistan. Jundi al-Shem: This Jordanian group of terrorists is associated with the violent Ansar al-Islam which operates in the Kurdish regions of Iraq. Brigades of Monotheists: Servants of the One God. Jordanian, American and Israeli intelligence take Zarqawi’s threats of an offensive against the Hashemite kingdom with the utmost seriousness. They have detected initial signs of preparedness for action among the the arch-terrorist's sympathizers in Jordan. |
| Posted by:3dc |
| #9 I guess it was all right to talk about the "umma" and the Caliphate as long as it didn't interfere with the "kingdoms" of the area. Turkey was ok as a target - it's a secular government. Iraq was ok as a target - it was a madman's government. Even Syria and Lebanon are acceptable targets - they're kind of a cross between Turkey and Iraq. Threatening the Hashemite Kingdom is obviously a no-no, and Zark-boy went too far. The death of Hariri stirred the pot, and things are not going well in Lebanon and Syria for the AQ crowd. Jordan is PISSED, and things are getting tight there, not only for AQ, but for Syria as well. Now we need to find some way to stir up trouble in Iran, and keep them so occupied they can't meddle in Iraq, Lebanon, and Syria. Personally, I'd like to see a pincher-movement from Afghanistan and Iraq on Tehran, with a blocking movement by Russia to the north and an amphibious assault on the south, but I don't think this administration has large enough gonads. If Zarq is indeed dead, look for things to get VERY muddy, very fast, everywhere. |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2005-11-20 16:37 |
| #8 Mr. Crawford, I like the way you think. That scenario is very intriguing. |
| Posted by: John Q. Citizen 2005-11-20 14:07 |
| #7 To expand on Glock's theory: Jordan moves equipment to Syrian border. Assad feels heat, knows he could find himself in a two-front war, possibly a three or four-front war, if Israel or Turkey join. So he hands Zarqawi's location over to Jordan, who hands it over to US and Iraq. |
| Posted by: Robert Crawford 2005-11-20 13:58 |
| #6 If the other threads are true, i.e. Zarquawi is a crispie critter, he can't very well launch any attacks anywhere. |
| Posted by: John Q. Citizen 2005-11-20 13:54 |
| #5 This is just so rich. Seems like the average Jordanian (Arab or Palestinean) is no longer so enamored of Zarq. Zarq's butt is being kicked all over the place in Iraq and all he can do is attack soft civilian targets. I think even Jihad Unspun is running thin on material. And then for him to pull this "Lion of Islam" charade...it is theater of the absurd. |
| Posted by: Remoteman 2005-11-20 12:05 |
| #4 Man, that crazy Zark! He don't get along with nobody. I'm starting to think that boy just ain't right. |
| Posted by: SteveS 2005-11-20 11:11 |
| #3 Way to go with that "winning hearts and minds" thing, Zark, old boy. Keep it up; at the rate you are burning through allies, in another couple of months you won't have a pot to piss in. |
| Posted by: Sgt. Mom 2005-11-20 09:40 |
| #2 If the Jordanians are moving equipment to the Syrian border, this may be the reason. It appears the Jordanians are going to cut right into Zarqawi's base of operation that Washington has tolerated in Syria. The Syrians can't cover all the other borders with sufficient force, something will pop and the rotten house will collapse. Its difficult the organize a 'general assault' when your rear areas are being overrun. King Abdullah doesn't have to worry about the Dems or MSM or an ineffectual UN. And he knows that GWB will not interfere. He knows where real power lies. The tail is about to wag the dog. |
| Posted by: Glock Thrang2756 2005-11-20 09:37 |
| #1 Based on remarks by Kerry and Murtha, Zarq appears to be announcing Mission Accomplished in Iraq. On to Hashemite and Saud! |
| Posted by: john 2005-11-20 07:18 |