Iraq War Swells Al Qaeda's Ranks, Report Says

[zimv20]

link (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=3620323)


War in Iraq has swollen the ranks of al Qaeda and galvanized the Islamic militant group's will, the International Institute for Strategic Studies said on Wednesday in its annual report.

The 2003-2004 edition of the British-based think-tank's annual bible for defense analysts, The Military Balance, said Washington's assertions after the Iraq conflict that it had turned the corner in the war on terror were "over-confident."

The report, widely considered an authoritative text on the military capabilities of states and militant groups worldwide, could prove fodder for critics of the U.S.-British invasion and of the reconstruction effort that has followed in Iraq.


It said 18,000 veterans of al Qaeda's Afghan training camps were still probably operating worldwide "with recruitment continuing and probably increasing following the war in Iraq."


for those who've not been around since the start of the war, several of us submitted this very possibility. we were soundly shouted down by the overwhelmingly vitriolic pro-war posters.

[IJ Reilly]

Originally posted by zimv20
for those who've not been around since the start of the war, several of us submitted this very possibility. we were soundly shouted down by the overwhelmingly vitriolic pro-war posters.

Yes, I surely do remember that -- even when citing CIA forecasts as evidence.

[mactastic]

This was one major potential downside that was predicted by many of us opposed to the war that has come to pass. The other I fear greatly is that any actual weapons (which I doubt) or the knowledge to make them (which I don't doubt) has fallen into the hands of people who are even more likely to use them against the US than Saddam was. I pray this doesn't/hasn't occured

[yamabushi]

Didn't bush say that he will seek out Al Qaeda regardless of which country they were in just before invading afganistan? The efforts in afganistan appear to have taken a serious sideline and no real progress has been made in that region for some time. What about the members of Al Qaeda that are known to be in countries that we have friendly or neutral relations? Those countries, such as India and Pakistan, lack the financial and political resources to deal with Al Qaeda. The US is helping by trying to train them using Israeli antiterrorism methods, which is fine, but what about the money and political clout to put these methods into action? I would much rather that we had used our resources fighting terrorists than fighting a dubious war in Iraq. Now it seems we have made a difficult job even harder to accomplish.