The Intelligence Summit: Intelligence News and Information, Terrorism, Maritime Security, Defense and Homeland Security

Session IN14:
Intelligence Gathering and Protection of Infrastructure
February 18, 14:00 - 14:45 Abstract:

What are the main terrorists groups in Iraq?

      1. The Brigades of the Revolution of 1920 (Kataeib Thawrat Al Ishreen Named after the Revolution of 1920 against the British) are almost the military wing of the Council of Sunni Clerics (Sheikh Hareth Al Dhari), and are currently the biggest insurgency group in Iraq. Although they appear to be Islamists, this group is fighting for the return of Sunni rule (i. e. Sunni political supremacy). Leading operators of the Brigades of the Revolution of 1920 include former Ba'athists, former IIS (Iraqi Intelligence Service) agents, and former regime elements. These terrorists are primarily based in the Anbar Province (Ramadi) and the western part of Iraq; they participated in the elections and the protection of elections centers in Western Iraq, and also intimidated their opponents in the voting process.
      2. The terrorist group Ansar Al Islam originally comes from Kurdistan. Now this group is centered mostly in the city of Mosul. Members of Ansar Al Islam are Islamists; like the Brigades of the Revolution of 1920, their leadership is composed of Baathists, former IIS and former regime elements.
      3. The Black Banners (Al Rayaat Al Sood) are smaller in size than the aforementioned groups and are notorious for their work for Izzat Ibrahim, a deputy of Saddam Hussein.
      4. The terrorist group Al Qaeda of Mesopotamia (Tantheem Al Qaeda fee Bilad Al Rafidain), and are also known to be followers of Zarqawi. Intelligence reports refer to them as relatively small in number, but they have copious amount of monies and are extremely lethal. They are responsible for most of the car bomb attacks against Iraqi civilians, especially the Shia. Reports refer to Zarqawi's continuous maneuvering between different locations to supply money, strategic planning and a continuous supply of young Arab volunteers who are to be suicide bombers. Suicide bombers are kept in hiding houses around the country (especially in Baghdad) on call waiting their turn. A high ranking terrorist leader (Ameer) when captured confessed of being a former high ranking Ba'athist (Branch Member), and he described making phone orders to get his daily requirements of suicide bombers from their hideouts in Baghdad.
      5. The Army of Mohammad (Jaysh Mohammed) are notorious and lethal. They are also very sophisticated and contain Special Security (Al Amn Al Khas), Republican Guards, the elite of the IIS and former regime elements. They were largely dismantled; either killed or captured due to the remarkable efforts of the Coalition forces and intelligence operations in Fallujah. The fact that the resistance was based primarily in Fallujah and many of them were prominent former regime elements was very helpful in dismantling and eliminating the Army of Mohammad.

Terrorists' Intelligence versus Our Intelligence

      The war in Iraq is not a war of fire power. It is a war that hinges upon accurate and concise intelligence. In order to be able to eliminate terrorist attacks on pipelines and other important infrastructure, we must have intelligence on terrorist attacks before they occur. The only solution to this dilemma is to establish a comprehensive intelligence operation for the new Iraq, both inside and outside of the country. The rebuilding of Iraqi security forces while fighting terrorism is a gradual process, while terrorists consisting of Ba'athists and former regime sympathizers have a history of experience in intelligence gathering and intelligence operations. These elements are notorious for their training and sophistication; they were well-trained in Europe and the former Soviet Union, and have practiced covert intelligence gathering for decades. Unfortunately, at this moment in time the terrorists' intelligence is a good deal more capable than ours. Signs of this sophisticated knowledge are witnessed everyday in critical attacks upon pipelines and other important infrastructure that are undertaken with the intent of paralyzing the Iraqi economy--a fact which requires extensive knowledge and understanding of the mechanisms and infrastructure of Iraq. In essence, Iraq needs to thoroughly comprehend the intelligence operations and networks established by Saddam's regime in order to effectively dismantle or perhaps even penetrate them to the advantage of the new Iraq.

Terrorists' Targets and Goals:

      1. Attacks on oil pipelines have a specific purpose, which is to cripple the Iraqi economy and paralyze the Iraqi government's capability to fund the military operations against terrorists. The most vulnerable oil pipeline is the Kirkuk-Turkey pipeline. The full capacity production of the Kirkuk pipeline exceeds 300,000 barrels per day, roughly amounting to more than $15M in revenue per day. The Iraqi military has increased protection of the pipeline and thus improved the pipeline's security, but it is imperative that we remember this is a daily battle with the enemy. It must be noted that Saddam has established a long term strategy to locate all sensitive installations such as pipelines and power plants in Iraqi territory and attempt to control them through tribes or communities (Ba'athist colonies) loyal to his regime. This strategy also extends to include the control of entrances and exits to the roads and highways located around towns and cities all over Iraq.
      2. In Southern Iraq, the problem is of a different nature. The dilemma in Southern Iraq stems from the illegal diversion of oil supplies and oil products smuggled to neighboring Iran. This is a very lucrative business, and it accounts for millions of dollars in illegal trade. The beneficiaries of this smuggling are Shia militias and criminal elements which consequently provide a large amount of funding to local militias. Iraq exports approximately 1.4 million barrels per day from Southern Iraq alone. The production of oil in Southern Iraq can be increased by 500,000 barrels per day if we are able to activate several hundreds of already excavated and capped wells. However, this would require hundreds of special explosive devices which would need very special handling, and this is naturally a major cause of concern for Coalition forces. The basic estimates tell us that if Iraq achieves a production of 3M barrels per day (Iraq's quota by OPEC), then Iraq may satisfy its financial needs to launch its reconstruction programs without foreign aid.

Ba'athists Role

      All of the terrorists organizations mentioned above are run by Ba'athists. Many of the former Ba'athists became the current Wahabist Islamists; recently, a Ba'athist dressed in green uniform and a typical Ba'athist mustache was seen growing a Salafi beard and wearing a short dishdasha posing as a genuine Wahabist. During my recent visit to Iraq, Defense Minister Dr. Sadoun Dulaimi informed me that it is more appropriate to change the name of the Arab Ba'ath Socialist party to the Ba'ath Islamic Party. Former Ba'athists are spearheading terrorist efforts--they establish organizations in Iraq and provide the logistical planning and the knowledge necessary to conduct terrorism operations to achieve specific political goals. They are masters in combining terrorism with the purpose of sending a political message.

The Clash between Insurgents

      Due to intensive efforts and successful political maneuvering by Iraqi politicians, the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad and the Iraqi Government, representatives of the Sunnis participated in the recent elections. Furthermore, local citizens and tribal leaders realized the need to participate in the elections after the painful lesson learned from boycotting the previous elections. In the province of Anbar, Sunni rejectionists agreed to enlist Sunni young men in the Iraqi police and military. However, a growing level of frustration mounted amongst the Sunnis as a direct result of intimidation by foreign fighters and extreme fanatic Islamo-Fascists in Sunni areas. The consequence of these conditions was a brutal clash between the local insurgency and the Zarqawis. A wave of assassinations of local tribal leaders and suicide bombings was unleashed by the Zarqawis against civilians and recruits to stop the political process.

Syria's Role

      Syria is providing sanctuary, logistical support, training camps and intelligence expertise to terrorists in Iraq. We can see clear signs of Syrian intervention in the Iraqi towns and territories close to the Syrian border. If we are to secure the Iraqi-Syrian border, we can almost eliminate car bomb attacks in Iraq. The Syrian Government provides the means for suicide bombers to enter Iraq from all over the Arab World. Additionally, the Syrian Government is directly implicated in the killing of U.S. soldiers and directing operations against Iraqi civilians, police, and the military. The time has come for Syria to face the consequences of its actions in Iraq.

U.S. Weapons

      The war against terrorism in Iraq is a proxy war. It is not only a regional war but also a global war. Therefore, there is absolutely no alternative but to win this war, and to do so, the Iraqi military and police must be able to take advantage of the most advanced and sophisticated weaponry to use against the enemy in Iraq. Unfortunately, the new Iraqi military weapons used to fight this fierce war seem doomed to be old Soviet era weapons brought to Iraq through shady deals with eastern European countries. I urge you to help us to get U.S. weapons in the hands of Iraqi soldiers.

Speakers & Organizers