The Myth That Al-Qaeda Was Present In Saddam-era Iraq Has Been Busted By Wikileaks' Iraq War Logs

[Turborama]

Files show al-Qaeda's grip on Iraq

Leaked documents show how al-Qaeda arrived in Iraq after the US military overthrew Saddam's government.

Andrew Wander and Gregg Carlstrom
Oct 25 2010

"If you're asking, are there al-Qaeda in Iraq, the answer is yes, there are. It's a fact, yes." Donald Rumsfeld, US Secretary of Defence, August 2002

It was one of the key American justifications for the Iraq war. But the theory that al-Qaeda was present in Saddam-era Iraq, much cited by the Bush adminsitration in the run-up to the invasion, has been undermined by the content of secret US military documents.

The files contain only half a dozen references to the group for the whole of 2004, the year records begin. But under the leadership of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian who had met Osama bin Laden while fighting the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, the classified reports show that al-Qaeda established itself as major player in the carnage as the conflict wore on.

The infrequency of al-Qaeda-related files early in the war suggest that US officials were wrong when they accused Iraq of harbouring the group's fighters in the years prior to the invasion. Instead, the narrative that emerges from the classified reports indicates that the US presence itself was what attracted them to the country.

Experts have always doubted the existence of a link between the secular Baathist government of Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda.

=snip=

In truth, the Wikileaks Iraq war files tell us little that we did not already know about al-Qaeda in Iraq. But they do serve to underline the great irony of the US war in Iraq; that the invasion, billed as part of the so-called "war on terror", did more to inspire al-Qaeda activity in Iraq than it did to undermine it.

It is an irony that has not been lost on former spymaster Manningham-Buller. "Arguably, we gave Osama bin Laden his Iraqi jihad," she said earlier this year.

The thousands of incidents detailed in the leaked documents show just how grateful al-Qaeda was.

Much more: http://english.aljazeera.net/secretiraqfiles/2010/10/20101024185141883364.html

Al Jazeera English are doing another 1 hour special about the files shortly, this one will be focusing specifically on this subject.

Part 1 of their series of hour long specials was posted http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x518301">here.

(There is no copyright notice on Al Jazeera Eglish's website)

The Logs: http://wikileaks.org/iraq/diarydig

Click on the banners for more disclosures from the logs...

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/iraq-war-logs">

http://english.aljazeera.net/secretiraqfiles/">

http://www.iraqwarlogs.com/">
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[bluestateguy]

1. We knew it was a myth long before these papers came out

There was one guy who got medical treatment in Baghdad. That was it.

[ixion]

2. It wasn't even a myth, just echo chamber non-sense

It was stated at the time that Saddam had no connections to al-Qaeda, primarily because Saddam was a secular ruler and al-Qaeda is a religious entity.

The ONLY reason it ever became a talking point is because of BushCo and the compliant MSM.

[Turborama]

3. I knew & know that, but it was really hard to fit all that into the subject line

There was no determinable basis of fact, hence it was a myth. ;-)

[ixion]

4. fair enough...

:toast:

[reggie the dog]

5. in the words of sheriff beauford t justice

well noooooo shit!

[Panaconda]

6. Though this is common knowledge

for those of us who have been paying attention over the years it is still uncommon knowledge for quite a few folks.

Ultimately there are no surprises in the Wiki documents only confirmation of what has been reported on through the years. Of course much of that reportage has been purposely hidden from view in the US media so these documents, especially as they are coming out in bulk supply, serve a valuable purpose.

Thanks for posting.

K&R

[Turborama]

8. Agreed. I'm not surprised by any of it

But, along with the confirmations, there are new details coming out that we didn't know about. Too many to go into now but the banners take you to websites with a lot of info. that has been dug up so far from this enormous document dump.

Another benefit of stories like the one in the OP popping up again is that it helps prevent them disappearing down the memory hole.

You're most welcome, thanks for the K&R. :fistbump:

[madrchsod]

7. anyone who followed the iraqi bloggers during those days...

knew the truth. well at least it`s official now.