Fellow Sunni extremists who have been one-time allies with Al-Qaeda have been executed via a firing squad according to military analysts. One would ask why they are being executed by Al Qaeda for if they are against the government and the presence of the United States. Analysts have said that the Sunni extremists were not loyal enough towards Al-Qaeda which is why they were executed. This was from a video that was provided to CNN.
The video was of nine men with either blindfolds or hoods on their knees as they would be executed.
“Al Qaeda in Iraq, which is foreign led and foreign dominated here inside Iraq, is killing off other Sunni groups that are certainly not supportive of the government of Iraq, currently, or of the foreign occupation, but are not sharing the same ideology that al Qaeda in Iraq has,” explained Navy Rear Admiral Gregory Smith.
The video was found during a compound raid last year. This was one of the compounds that was used for both torture and killing. In the raid, they had found new evidence that suggests that Al-Qaeda operatives in Iraq have turned on their former allies.
Evidence gives the suggestion that this shows that the militant groups are split and that Al-Qaeda is making it worse. Analysts also add that the group does have a history of keeping record of actions that its operatives execute.
Al-Qaeda said that jihadist groups in Iraq were not following the “right” path according to another document that was discovered. So far, six Sunni groups that have splintered from the other Sunni groups are targeted by Al-Qaeda. The reason Al-Qaeda is targeting them is that these groups refuse to attack civilians. But, the groups did say they are against the United States presence in the area.
These documents reveal that Al-Qaeda is killing its own allies because they do not completely share the same ideals.
It is possible that Coalition forces can take advantage and build bridges with the various Sunni groups. So far, Sunni and some Shia groups have been paid by the United States to assist combating against Al-Qaeda.
At least $148 million had been paid out to these groups. So far, it looks as it has been working such as the forming of Awakening Councils. Perhaps, the newfound evidence could be a valuable tool to get more Sunnis on the side of the Coalition forces.
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