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| Axis of Evil |
| Saddam's inner circle is defecting, say Iraqi exiles |
| 2002-10-07 |
| Saddam Hussein's power base is coming under extreme pressure, with members of his inner circle defecting to the opposition or making discreet offers of peace in the hope of being spared retribution if the Baghdad dictator is toppled, according to Iraqi exiles. Ayad al-Awi, the head of the opposition Iraqi National Accord, said his group in recent weeks had received senior defectors from the Iraqi security services, which form the regime's nerve centre. If a true report, that's a very good sign, assuming it's more than one or two low-level fellows... At the same time Kurdish groups said they had received secret approaches from military commanders offering to turn their weapons on Saddam when the war began. That's an even better sign. But I'd imagine, knowing something of the Bad Guy mentality, that they'll be waiting for the tide to actually turn before they overtly throw in with our side... They said members of the al-Majid clan, the pillar of Saddam's tribal power base, had made contact to seek assurances about their fate. The al-Majids are Sammy's blood family — his father was Hussein al-Majid. The "Tikrit Mafia" is made up of the al-Majids, Hassans, and Husseins. Ali Hassan al-Majid was leader of the People's Army (aka Cannon Fodder) up to Gulf War I, and he was governor of Kuwait after the invasion... These signs of fragmentation indicate for the first time that Saddam's senior lieutenants believe that the United States and Britain are serious about toppling him. The reports will raise the hopes of British officials who have long maintained that a credible threat of overwhelming force to bring down Saddam's regime could destroy his reign of fear and prompt senior lieutenants to seize power and avert a devastating war. If the al-Majids are bailing, then Sammy's in deep trouble. If they're not bailing, then this is a good leak to sow a bit of dissension in the senior Ba'ath ranks... |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |
| #1 Psych-ops have not even begun in earnest. These operations will focus on convincing the op-targets that the Saddam regime is not worth either fighting or dying for. And there is lots of material that would be useful to that task. When the morale dominoes fall, the will to fight goes with it. All-the-king's-men has never been an effective fighting force. Get ready for the Mother of All Surrenders II. |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2002-10-07 17:34:30 |