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Friday, November 12, 2004 |
 AT. Interview with Hamid Gul on the topic of Iraq. He is the retired chief of Pakistan's ISI and was intimately involved in fueling the guerrilla war in Afghanistan against the Soviets:
Muslim youths will see their success in military struggles and I see an emergence of a "Muslim International" in which Iraq will be the center. I think 7,000 to 8,000 foreign fighters have already joined hands with the resistance. They are not alien to Iraqi culture. They are youths who share the same culture, speak the same language and wear the same dress. In the coming days, I believe thousands more will join.
8:20:17 PM 
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Chet Richards pens a review of Thomas Barnett's new book, "The Pentagon's New Map." He comes to the same conclusion I do. The systemic approach to global conflict is excellent, but the US strategy recommendations fall well short of compelling.
4:49:27 PM
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Darn, it is snowing hard outside. I haven't even had a chance to get all the leaves up yet. However, on the bright side, I did get a chance to powerwash the house (thanks Richard!).
12:23:11 PM
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WT. Before springing Marines, Army soldiers and Iraqi forces on enemy-held Fallujah, the command in Baghdad thought there were at least 2,000 insurgents, and perhaps as many as 5,000. But the coalition forces have failed to find large clusters and now think that there might have been less than 1,000, military sources said yesterday. The senior defense official said some generals now think there might have been 600 or fewer.
10:55:30 AM
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Cryptome. Ashcroft's goodbye message to Justice.
10:49:51 AM
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CSM. Fullujah. "There are sleeper cells all over the place," says Juarez. "They are either going to start coming out of their holes and attack us, or [they] will leave."
8:20:06 AM
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NYT. Lo-tech vs. hi-tech in Fallujah.
But these marines did see a black flag pop up all at once above a water tower about 100 yards away, then a second flag somewhere in the gloaming above a rooftop. And the shots began, in a wave this time, as men bobbed and weaved through alleyways and sprinted across the street. "He's in the road, he's in the road, shoot him!" Sergeant Brown shouted. "Black shirt!" someone else yelled. "Due south!" The flags are the insurgents' answer to two-way radios, their way of massing the troops and - in a tactic that goes back at least as far as Napoleon - concentrating fire on an enemy. Set against radio waves, the flags have one distinct advantage: they are terrifying.
6:49:26 AM
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I think it would be fun to "manage" a "Blogs and War" discussion at the next east coast Bloggercon.
6:34:00 AM
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© Copyright 2004 John Robb.
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