Saudis and Libyans make up most of foreign fighters in Iraq

NY Times:

Saudi Arabia and Libya, both considered allies by the United States in its fight against terrorism, were the source of about 60 percent of the foreign fighters who came to Iraq in the past year to serve as suicide bombers or to facilitate other attacks, according to senior American military officials.

The data come largely from a trove of documents and computers discovered in September, when American forces raided a tent camp in the desert near Sinjar, close to the Syrian border. The raid’s target was an insurgent cell believed to be responsible for smuggling the vast majority of foreign fighters into Iraq.

The most significant discovery was a collection of biographical sketches that listed hometowns and other details for more than 700 fighters brought into Iraq since August 2006.

The records also underscore how the insurgency in Iraq remains both overwhelmingly Iraqi and Sunni. American officials now estimate that the flow of foreign fighters was 80 to 110 per month during the first half of this year and about 60 per month during the summer. The numbers fell sharply in October to no more than 40, partly as a result of the Sinjar raid, the American officials say.

Saudis accounted for the largest number of fighters listed on the records by far — 305, or 41 percent — American intelligence officers found as they combed through documents and computers in the weeks after the raid. The data show that despite increased efforts by Saudi Arabia to clamp down on would-be terrorists since Sept. 11, 2001, when 15 of the 19 hijackers were Saudi, some Saudi fighters are still getting through.

Libyans accounted for 137 foreign fighters, or 18 percent of the total, the senior American military officials said. They discussed the raid with the stipulation that they not be named because of the delicate nature of the issue.

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In addition to $18,000 in cash and assorted weapons, troops found five terabytes of data that included detailed questionnaires filled out by incoming fighters. Background information on more than 900 fighters was found, or about 750 after eliminating duplicates and questionnaires that were mostly incomplete.

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I have argued for some time that the Anbar awakening had robbed al Qaeda of its main rat lines into Iraq and it appears this attack knocked off the headquarters for the northern ratlines that remained. These foreign fighters appear to be replacing others who have come to act as ordinance or have been killed in operations by US and Iraqi forces. Al Qaeda appears to have also recruited heavily among the Sunni population in Iraq before the tribal revolts. It was turning many of these men into mercenaries in their own country for al Qaeda's global objective of making Iraq the central front in its war against the US.

Taking out the Sinjar operation has no doubt contributed to the dramatic drop in attacks. Al Qaeda will be desperate to replace that operation and attack some key places such as Ramadi where it set off a car bomb on Wednesday. It was set off at a check point killing six. It was probably an Iraqi maned check point, since the Times and AP would have headlined six Americans being killed. The check point did it job in cutting off the enemy before he could attack a market place or other gathering of non combatants. The bomb was very likely set off because the guards at the check point spotted it.

The Saudis still have a large body of religious bigots that al Qaeda can draw on. The country also has a large number who are probably contributing to the financial support of al Qaeda's operation. As the current rift over the punishment of a gang rape victim indicates, the Saudi culture is a long way from being humane.

There is a sickness that pervades both the religious and legal system. It is killing a lot of Iraqis with war crimes by Saudis as well as killing some Americans too. The raid at Sinjar should give us a window into the recruiting process so we can walk back the cat. The Saudi government will find it in its interest to cooperate in that effort.