Things Were Looking Down Before the Bomb

Life was already bleak before the US sent Zarqawi off to claim his bowl of white raisins.

Al-Zarqawi's alleged playbook

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) -- Iraqi National Security Adviser Mowaffaq al-Rubaie provided this English translation of a document discovered in terror leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's hide-out:

The situation and conditions of the resistance in Iraq have reached a point that requires a review of the events and of the work being done inside Iraq.

Such a study is needed in order to show the best means to accomplish the required goals, especially that the forces of the National Guard have succeeded in forming an enormous shield protecting the American forces and have reduced substantially the losses that were solely suffered by the American forces.

This is in addition to the role, played by the Shiites (the leadership and masses) by supporting the occupation, working to defeat the resistance and by informing on its elements.

As an overall picture, time has been an element in affecting negatively the forces of the occupying countries, due to the losses they sustain economically in human lives, which are increasing with time.

However, here in Iraq, time is now beginning to be of service to the American forces and harmful to the resistance for the following reasons:

By allowing the American forces to form the forces of the National Guard, to reinforce them and enable them to undertake military operations against the resistance.
By undertaking massive arrest operations, invading regions that have an impact on the resistance, and hence causing the resistance to lose many of its elements.
By undertaking a media campaign against the resistance resulting in weakening its influence inside the country and presenting its work as harmful to the population rather than being beneficial to the population.
By tightening the resistance's financial outlets, restricting its moral options and by confiscating its ammunition and weapons.
By creating a big division among the ranks of the resistance and jeopardizing its attack operations, it has weakened its influence and internal support of its elements, thus resulting in a decline of the resistance's assaults.
By allowing an increase in the number of countries and elements supporting the occupation or at least allowing to become neutral in their stand toward us in contrast to their previous stand or refusal of the occupation.
By taking advantage of the resistance's mistakes and magnifying them in order to misinform.
'Create strife'
Based on the above points, it became necessary that these matters should be treated one by one:

To improve the image of the resistance in society, increase the number of supporters who are refusing occupation and show the clash of interest between society and the occupation and its collaborators. To use the media for spreading an effective and creative image of the resistance.
To assist some of the people of the resistance to infiltrate the ranks of the National Guard in order to spy on them for the purpose of weakening the ranks of the National Guard when necessary, and to be able to use their modern weapons.
To reorganize for recruiting new elements for the resistance.
To establish centers and factories to produce and manufacture and improve on weapons and to produce new ones.
To unify the ranks of the resistance, to prevent controversies and prejudice and to adhere to piety and follow the leadership.
To create division and strife between American and other countries and among the elements disagreeing with it.
To avoid mistakes that will blemish the image of the resistance and show it as the enemy of the nation.
In general and despite the current bleak situation, we think that the best suggestions in order to get out of this crisis is to entangle the American forces into another war against another country or with another of our enemy force, that is to try and inflame the situation between American and Iraq or between America and the Shiites in general.

Specifically the Sistani Shiites, since most of the support that the Americans are getting is from the Sistani Shiites, then, there is a possibility to instill differences between them and to weaken the support line between them; in addition to the losses we can inflict on both parties.

Consequently, to embroil America in another war against another enemy is the answer that we find to be the most appropriate, and to have a war through a delegate has the following benefits:

To occupy the Americans by another front will allow the resistance freedom of movement and alleviate the pressure imposed on it.
To dissolve the cohesion between the Americans and the Shiites will weaken and close this front.
To have a loss of trust between the Americans and the Shiites will cause the Americans to lose many of their spies.
To involve both parties, the Americans and the Shiites, in a war that will result in both parties being losers.
Thus, the Americans will be forced to ask the Sunni for help.
To take advantage of some of the Shiite elements that will allow the resistance to move among them.
To weaken the media's side which is presenting a tarnished image of the resistance, mainly conveyed by the Shiites.
To enlarge the geographical area of the resistance movement.
To provide popular support and cooperation by the people.
'Benefits'
The resistance fighters have learned from the result and the great benefits they reaped, when a struggle ensued between the Americans and the Army of Al-Mehdi.

However, we have to notice that this trouble or this delegated war that must be ignited can be accomplished through:

A war between the Shiites and the Americans.
A war between the Shiites and the secular population (such as Ayad Allawi and al-Jalabi.)
A war between the Shiites and the Kurds.
A war between Ahmad al-Halabi and his people and Ayad Allawi and his people.
A war between the group of al-Hakim and the group of al-Sadr.
A war between the Shiites of Iraq and the Sunnis of the Arab countries in the gulf.
A war between the Americans and Iraq.
'Best war'
We have noticed that the best of these wars to be ignited is the one between the Americans and Iran, because it will have many benefits in favor of the Sunni and the resistance, such as:

Freeing the Sunni people in Iraq, who are (30 percent) of the population and under the Shiite Rule.
Drowning the Americans in another war that will engage many of their forces.
The possibility of acquiring new weapons from the Iranian side, either after the fall of Iran or during the battles.
To entice Iran towards helping the resistance because of its need for its help.
Weakening the Shiite supply line.
The question remains, how to draw the Americans into fighting a war against Iran?

It is not known whether American is serious in its animosity towards Iraq, because of the big support Iran is offering to America in its war in Afghanistan and in Iraq.

Hence, it is necessary first to exaggerate the Iranian danger and to convince America and the west in general, of the real danger coming from Iran, and this would be done by the following:

By disseminating threatening messages against American interests and the American people and attribute them to a Shiite Iranian side.
By executing operations of kidnapping hostages and implicating the Shiite Iranian side.
By advertising that Iran has chemical and nuclear weapons and is threatening the west with these weapons.
By executing exploding operations in the west and accusing Iran by planting Iranian Shiite fingerprints and evidence.
By declaring the existence of a relationship between Iran and terrorist groups (as termed by the Americans).
By disseminating bogus messages about confessions showing that Iran is in possession of weapons of mass destruction or that there are attempts by the Iranian intelligence to undertake terrorist operations in America and the west and against western interests.
Let us hope for success and for God's help.