"This is not the United States versus Al Qaida"

Echoing the eerie Democratic mantra on Iraq, Senator Dodd said:

Again, this is a civil war going on in Iraq. This is not the United States versus Al Qaida. It's Shia versus Sunnis tearing each other apart.

A few days ago, I noted a very clear example of how this is obviously not the U.S. vs. al Qaeda:

Al-Qaida group claims killing of 9 GIs in Iraq

MSNBC News Services
Updated: 4:54 p.m. PT April 24, 2007

BAGHDAD - An al-Qaida-linked group posted a Web statement Tuesday claiming responsibility for a suicide car bombing that killed nine U.S. paratroopers and wounded 20 in the worst attack on American ground forces in Iraq in more than a year.

Today, we have yet another perfect example of how this is merely a civil war, not the U.S. vs. al Qaeda:

Insurgent group says it captured, killed U.S. troops

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- A terror group with links to al Qaeda in Iraq claimed responsibility Sunday for the weekend attack that sparked a manhunt for three missing U.S. soldiers, according to a statement on the Internet.
...
Five personnel were killed in the Saturday ambush south of Baghdad, including three U.S. soldiers and an Iraqi army interpreter, military spokesman Maj. Gen. William B. Caldwell said Sunday.
...
Islamic State of Iraq -- an umbrella insurgent group that includes al Qaeda in Iraq -- said in the statement that it fought Saturday with "Crusader" forces, killing some and taking others prisoner. It was unclear from the statement if the captured soldiers were alive.

Though the posting appeared on Web sites commonly used by the group -- and such statements in the past have rung true -- CNN is unable to verify the authenticity of the claim.

How long can the state of denial among the Democrats be maintained? I credit CNN for actually reporting this news, but the title of their story is preposterous. Al Qaeda is a terrorist group seeking to incite a civil war, not an insurgent group seeking to free Iraq from occupying forces. Congratulations to CBS News for using this more appropriate title for their story about this incident:

Terror Group: U.S. Soldiers Are Captives

CBS is right and CNN is wrong. This attack was carried out by a terrorist organization, not by an insurgent group. Al Qaeda is, of course, seeking to inflict on America the same humiliating defeat that the Democrats are trying to engineer with their troop withdrawal proposals in Congress, but al Qaeda's goal is most certainly not to liberate Iraq from "crusaders." Their goal is to chase out (and humiliate) the "cross worshippers" so they can get on with their plan to plunge Iraq into sectarian violence, which is a situation they can exploit to their advantage (namely, the forced imposition of Sharia law and the expansion of jihad to other states of the region). More than 90% of Iraqis oppose al Qaeda in Iraq.

It may be easy to assume that as the Iraqi people become more supportive of attacks on U.S.-led forces (see WPO main article), they may grow warmer toward al Qaeda—the probable source of a significant number of attacks on U.S. forces. However, this does not appear to be the case. Al Qaeda is exceedingly unpopular among the Iraqi people.

Overall 94 percent have an unfavorable view of al Qaeda, with 82 percent expressing a very unfavorable view.
...
Views of Osama bin Laden are only slightly less negative. Overall 93 percent have an unfavorable view, with 77 percent very unfavorable. Very unfavorable views are expressed by 87 percent of Kurds and 94 percent of Shias. Here again, the Sunnis are negative, but less unequivocally—71 percent have an unfavorable view (23% very), and 29 percent a favorable view (3% very).

If you think that what al Qaeda is doing amounts to liberating Iraq from imperialistic crusaders, then there is something very wrong with you, and I suggest that you have your head examined without delay. The Iraqi people know that al Qaeda is a terrorist group with a nihilistic vision of the future, not an insurgent group working to liberate them from imperialistic crusaders.

Here is more clear evidence that it's all just a big ol' civil war in Iraq now, having nothing at all to do with the war on terror and the fight against al Qaeda:

From The Sunday Times
May 13, 2007

Al-Qaeda planning militant Islamic state within Iraq

A RADICAL plan by Al-Qaeda to take over the Sunni heartland of Iraq and turn it into a militant Islamic state once American troops have withdrawn is causing alarm among US intelligence officials.

A power struggle has emerged between the self-styled Islamic State of Iraq, an organisation with ambitions to become a state which has been set up by Al-Qaeda, and more moderate Sunni groups. They are battling for the long-term control of central and western areas which they believe could break away from Kurdish and Shi’ite-dominated provinces once the coalition forces depart.
...
The Islamic State is spearheading the insurgency against US forces and troops loyal to Nouri al-Maliki, the prime minister. In recent months it has been responsible for chlorine gas bombs and numerous suicide attacks on civilian targets.

It is also behind the deadliest roadside bombs that have racked up American casualties this year, although US military sources are now confident that in recent weeks they have gained the upper hand with raids aimed at both the Islamic State’s leadership and its bomb-making factories.

But don't worry. Be happy! It's just a big ol' civil war based on ancient sectarian hostilities between Shiites and Sunnis, nothing more. After all, Senator Dodd says so. So do Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi and John Murtha and John Kerry and all other leading Democrats who have embraced either the eerie code of silence or the eerie code of denial about the role of al Qaeda in Iraq.

To conclude, I present below the suicide bombing attacks by al Qaeda (not by the Baathist insurgents, who do not use this method of attack) in just the first 12 days of May. Fortunately, they have not yet pulled off a mass-casualty attack (as they did several times in March and April), but it is not for lack of trying. Unfortunately, one of those spectacular attacks is likely to come soon. As you can see from these stories, in addition to killing American soldiers, al Qaeda is also effectively killing Iraqi civilians and Iraqi security forces. But don't worry, it's just a big ol' civil war having nothing at all to do with al Qaeda. Of that you can be sure. After all, that's what the leading figures in the Democratic party all say as they urge the President to pull our troops from Iraq. Surely they would not mislead anyone about this, right?

BAGHDAD - Suicide truck bombers struck Iraqi police checkpoints on two bridges in a Shi'ite area south of Baghdad, killing 22 people. [AP reports 11 police and 12 civilians — and wounded 57, police said]

ARBIL - A suicide truck bomber killed 14 people and wounded 87 when he blew up his payload near the Kurdish regional government's interior ministry in Arbil, north of Baghdad, local officials said.

Al-Bothyab - 12 citizens were and 25 wounded in a suicide car bomb explosion in Al-Bothyab village where Al-bu Risha tribe live (the tribe which leads the tribes’ coalition against Qaida in Anbar province south Iraq around 11.30 am.

KHANAQIN - A suicide bomber killed two policemen and wounded 23, including 10 civilians, when he targeted a police station in the town of Khanaqin, north of Baghdad, police said.

KUFA - At least 16 people were killed and 70 wounded when a suicide car bomb exploded at a crowded market in the Shi'ite city of Kufa

Baghdad - 8 policemen were killed and 12 were wounded when a suicide car bomb targeted a policeman check point in Al Salam district to west outskirt of Baghdad around 11,30 am .

SAMARRA - A suicide car bomber killed 12 police officers and wounded another 11 after detonating himself at a police headquarters in the city of Samarra, the U.S. military said.

BAGHDAD - A suicide car bomber killed one policeman and wounded five others when he rammed his vehicle into the Karkh police directorate in western Baghdad, one police source said.

Baghdad- 9 citizens were killed and 13 others wounded when two suicide car bombs tried to attack a recruiting center for the Iraqi army in Al Haswa area west Baghdad .

BAGHDAD - A suicide car bomber struck in the main Shiite district of the capital yesterday, killing at least nine people...Three policemen and six civilians were killed and 34 people were wounded, police said.

RAMADI (near) - suicide car bombings at a market and at a police checkpoint in Ramadi in Anbar province killed 13 people and wounded 35 others, police said. Authorities initially reported a higher number...