Military: Foreign fighters getting out of Iraq

[unhappycamper]

Military: Foreign fighters getting out of Iraq
By Jim Michaels - USA Today
Posted : Friday Mar 21, 2008 8:36:02 EDT

A growing number of foreign fighters are leaving or attempting to flee Iraq as U.S. and Iraqi forces have weakened al-Qaida and forced its members from former strongholds, U.S. military officials say.

The trend reflects a broad disenchantment among foreign fighters, particularly since al-Qaida has lost sanctuaries in parts of Baghdad and Anbar, a Sunni province west of the capital, U.S. military intelligence officials say.

“They’re being told in their countries of origin by facilitators that, ‘Hey, we’re basically winning the war against the apostates,’” said Army Brig. Gen. Michael Flynn, intelligence director for Central Command, which oversees U.S. forces in the Middle East. “They go there and find out it’s not quite the case.”

Foreign militants constitute about 10 percent of al-Qaida’s strength in Iraq, but Navy Rear Adm. Gregory Smith, a U.S. military spokesman in Iraq, said they make up about 90 percent of the suicide bombers.

The departure of some fighters doesn’t mean al-Qaida is quitting the fight, said Army Brig. Gen. Brian Keller, the chief intelligence officer for the U.S. command in Iraq.


Rest of article at: http://www.navytimes.com/news/2008/03/gns_foreignfighters_032008/

[izzie]

1. That is interesting but I wonder if it will clean up the country

As I see it and they had maps all over the internet at one time of what went on in that city. All 'like people' were put into the same places and then they were sort of walled off. That could be one big reason things got better. I hate to bring up this but that has been used all of history. Get the people who make trouble in one place so you can watch them and if everyone in one place are thinking just a like that helps. With a few million people that have left the country I think we have found the reason why some of the killing has stopped. My own ancestors left England because they were killing people who went to the church they went to. People figure out how to live and just do it. Bush has got to say it was his doing for his own job I think. Besides that I bet after all these years even the fighters are getting sick of this on both sides.