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Sunni Insurgent Leader Paints Iran as 'Real Enemy'
Lt. Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, left, talks with Brig. Gen. Mick Bednarek in Baqubah, where U.S. troops are battling Sunni extremists. An insurgent leader said U.S. forces would do better to free detainees, lift barriers and provide services.
(By Robert H. Reid -- Associated Press)
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"We must defeat al-Qaeda in Iraq," Bush said.
But Abu Sarhan described al-Qaeda in Iraq as one of "hundreds" of insurgent groups, some aligned and others in some degree of conflict, ranging from cells of about 10 people to groups with scores or hundreds of members.
"The American president insisting on fighting al-Qaeda, or saying that al-Qaeda is the problem in Iraq, is just like someone who is insisting on taking diabetes medicine while he has a cardiac problem," he said, describing it as an "intentional" misdiagnosis. "Any person in the position of the American president, who has drawn himself a certain path, would be very embarrassed to change that track and confess that he has been wrong. Unless he loves his people more than he loves himself. Only then could he confess his wrongdoing for the sake of his people."
Abu Sarhan estimated that about half the attacks against American forces come as reprisals for U.S. raids or arrests. He cited the U.S. offensive in Diyala province, Operation Arrowhead Ripper, as the type of effort that engenders more enemies than friends. "You can imagine how many families were hurt because of this military campaign," he said.
Still, he did not advocate an immediate U.S. withdrawal, but rather a gradual drawdown of troops to coincide with a reconciliation with Sunni insurgents.
"Lift the barriers. Move the checkpoints. Build a hospital. And release the detainees from the area. And you will witness very quickly a tangible difference. The hatred and the strikes against the Americans will be wiped out or greatly reduced," he said. "The solution is political, not military. And then the American soldiers will be able to walk down the streets without their protective vests."
But when the Americans do eventually leave, he said, "the future will be dim."
"There will be a fierce civil war, a grinding civil war, because Iran will always be there," he said. "But the Sunnis are ready for such a day."
Abu Sarhan stood up from the table. He shook hands with an iron grip, then put his right hand over his heart, a common gesture of friendship. He left the hotel, heading into the glare of a Baghdad summer day. His glasses darkened over his eyes as he walked away.
Special correspondents Salih Dehema and Saad al-Izzi in Baghdad and other Washington Post staff in Iraq contributed to this report.
