Militants in Iraq Come From Allies; 41% From Saudi Arabia

As if you needed any more proof that you shouldn't believe much of anything the U.S. government says about Iran, there now appears to be evidence that the suspected insurgents in Iraq actually come from 'strategic' allies in the region, and not from Iran. As the pro-war establishment here continues to spread lies in their rhetoric for a strike on Iran, the American media chooses to ignore these kind of findings, because in this case the findings make Iran look quite good compared to what they would like you to think.

Around 60% of all foreign militants who entered Iraq to fight over the past year came from Saudi Arabia and Libya, according to files seized by American forces at a desert camp.

The files listed the nationalities and biographical details of more than 700 fighters who crossed into Iraq from August last year, around half of whom came to the country to be suicide bombers, the New York Times reported today.

In all, 305, or 41%, of the fighters listed were from Saudi Arabia. Another 137, or 18%, came from Libya. Both countries are officially US allies in anti-terrorism efforts.

In contrast, 56 Syrians were listed and no Lebanese. Previously, US officials estimated that around a fifth of all foreign fighters in Iraq came from these two countries.

US officials have also long complained about Iranian interference in the affairs of its neighbour, accusing Tehran of shipping weapons for militants over the border. However, any assistance does not appear to extend to people, the paper said, reporting that, of around 25,000 suspected militants in US custody in Iraq, 11 were Iranian. No Iranians were listed among the fighters whose details were found.

Bush Admin Pushes Towards Saudi Arms Sales

In a rather obvious attempt to destabilize the region and benefit U.S. arms dealers, it appears the Bush administration is finally ready to move ahead with the long since planned arms sales to Saudi Arabia and other smaller, even more unstable states in the gulf region. That plan also involved Israel, which are getting well over a billion in missiles, fighter jets, and aid. Israel was even convinced into agreeing with the Saudi deal, or at least pretended to believe in the reason of building a force against Iran and Syria by aiding such an unstable and questionable ally. Of course they're only thinking of their own national interests, while our government is thinking of anyone but ours. Americans get the big screw as usual. The $10+ billion package for the Saudis includes everything from ships to special smart bombs. The argument that the selling of arms will somehow more stabilize the Middle East is completely bogus. Since when has the region stopped their racing for the biggest and best weaponry possible? This is of complete disregard and contradiction to our current national security and will only create even more hostility for the U.S. in the region. The neocons and their supporters are certainly at a race against time, and the Democrats undoubtedly won't do anything about it. It is just one dictatorship of suppression rewarding another.

The deals could be worth a combined total of $20 billion over the years, Pentagon officials have told Congress, which has 30 days to vote to block a proposed sale from the formal notification date, but rarely does so.

The pre-notification clock that started on Tuesday lasts 20 days, meaning the formal process could start as soon as December 4 or so -- leaving Congress little time to debate the issues before it recesses for the year.

The State Department and the Defense Department jointly laid out the rationale for the build-up at the end of July. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the package would help "bolster forces of moderation and support a broader strategy to counter the negative influences of al Qaeda, Hezbollah, Syria and Iran."

Rep. Mark Kirk, an Illinois Republican, said some 150 Democratic and Republican members of Congress out of 535 had signed a letter he wrote voicing concern about JDAMs for Saudi Arabia, which remains in a formal state of war with Israel.

"The administration would be wise to listen to the voices of several prominent committee chairs, as well as ranking Republicans," Kirk said in a telephone interview on Thursday.

Israel and the Bush administration have agreed to disagree on the wisdom of selling JDAMs to Saudi Arabia, said Peter Rodman, who worked on the issue before retiring as an assistant secretary of defense earlier this year.

"But they're not going to fight against the administration" over the JDAMs, Rodman, now at the private Brookings Institution, said in a telephone interview.

"All of us are conscious of the growing strategic threat from Iran," he said of Israel, the United States and the Gulf Arab states.