Who's behind the kidnaps? (of Jill Carroll and CPT)

[undeterred]

This is from a middle eastern site: http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2006/781/re201.htm
I don't know anything about the author or the site.

Who's behind the kidnaps? 9 - 15 February 2006 Issue No. 781
Could secret paramilitary groups be adding to the violence and lawlessness in Iraq? Firas Al-Atraqchi examines the possibilities:

In the fog of war, secret graves are filled, munitions are moved and unknown operatives remain -- unknown. In recent weeks, news of and from Iraq has been beset by high-profile kidnappings. One such kidnapping in late November was of four members of Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) -- a Virginia- based pacifist group -- by a previously unheard of armed group -- the Swords of Truth/Righteousness. The second high-profile kidnapping was of freelance journalist Jill Carroll on 7 January at the hands of yet another unknown group -- the Brigades of Vengeance. Since then, two Germans were also kidnapped in Iraq but received less international media coverage. Last week's kidnappings of two Iraqi journalists, including a 23-year-old woman working for the independent Sumariya channel, received almost no international coverage. No known armed group claimed responsibility.

Let us focus on the two most high profile of the kidnappings. Iraqi leaders said they had never heard of either of the armed groups purportedly behind the kidnappings: Association of Muslim Scholars (AMS) spokesman, Muthanna Harith Al-Dhari, said there was little his group could achieve to win Carroll's release "because the kidnappers are unknown". In addition to what seems like the rise of two new, yet unheard of groups, other similarities are also puzzling.

<snip>

In short, both the four CPT members and Carroll had been recognised by Iraqis -- and specifically Sunnis -- as performing work they viewed as beneficial to the Iraqi people and/or alleviating the plight of Sunnis in Western Iraq (CPT) and in detention centres (Carroll). It is worthy of mentioning that CPT had been operating in Iraq at least six months before the US invasion of 20 March 2003.
According to their published ethos, CPT members act as "an alternative voice to the reporters 'embedded' with Coalition forces. They also worked to "expose the injustice and deaths from the US-led economic sanctions". Furthermore, they worked to "launch the Adopt- a-Detainee Campaign asking churches to advocate on behalf of Iraqi detainees".

This is known by all Iraqis across the board since 2002. So who would kidnap them? Who stands to gain? Who stands to lose? Who would kidnap Ms Carroll? Who stands to gain? Who stands to lose? Perhaps the answer lies in a deeper understanding of an armed group which few know operates in Iraq. Ever heard of the Scorpions? According to a Washington Post report in 2005, the US intelligence community tried to conceal the existence of the group known as the Scorpions which was operating secretly in Iraq. The report says that the Scorpions were small teams of CIA-sponsored militia (paramilitary) outfits nicknamed Alligator and Cobra who were set up prior to the invasion to commit acts of subterfuge and incite violence against the Baathist regime. The Scorpions core received millions of dollars in funding -- exact figures remain unknown, training, support, military hardware and materiel.

http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2006/781/re201.htm

[undeterred]

1. kick!