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So is the "King of Clubs" officially back ? I feel nostalgic
June 12, 2014 11:49 BST
The Sunni insurgency that is storming Iraq towards the capital Baghdad reportedly includes Baathist military officers from the era of Saddam Hussein's regime.
A former top military commander and vice president in the Hussein government, Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri, has joined forces with the jihadists of the Isis (The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant) with the aim of overthrowing the Shiite-majority government of prime minister Nouri al-Maliki.
A senior Baathist leader told the New York Times that the groups are "unified by the same goal, which is getting rid of this sectarian government, ending this corrupt army and negotiating to form a Sunni Region".
Al-Douri escaped capture from the US forces after the invasion that overthrew Hussein and gave the majority Shiite Muslims a prominent role in the new government. Over the last few years, he encouraged anti-government Sunni protesters to challenge the Maliki government and force him out.
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/iraq-crisis-saddam-husseins-generals-fighting-jihadist-isis-insurgency-1452365
The Sunni insurgency that is storming Iraq towards the capital Baghdad reportedly includes Baathist military officers from the era of Saddam Hussein's regime.
A former top military commander and vice president in the Hussein government, Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri, has joined forces with the jihadists of the Isis (The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant) with the aim of overthrowing the Shiite-majority government of prime minister Nouri al-Maliki.
A senior Baathist leader told the New York Times that the groups are "unified by the same goal, which is getting rid of this sectarian government, ending this corrupt army and negotiating to form a Sunni Region".
Al-Douri escaped capture from the US forces after the invasion that overthrew Hussein and gave the majority Shiite Muslims a prominent role in the new government. Over the last few years, he encouraged anti-government Sunni protesters to challenge the Maliki government and force him out.
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/iraq-crisis-saddam-husseins-generals-fighting-jihadist-isis-insurgency-1452365
18 May 2013
Now, after a decade as a fugitive, and believed by many to be dead, Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri - one of the late Iraqi dictator's most trusted acolytes - appears to have re-emerged as the spiritual figurehead of a resurgent movement dedicated to restoring Saddam Hussein's Ba'ath Party to power.
The 70 year-old, on whose head the US set a $10m bounty and who helped Saddam lead his 1968 coup, is thought to be leading a group of regime die-hards blamed for a major upsurge in violence across the country.
Last month, in some of the fiercest fighting since US troops left Iraq, gunmen attacked Iraqi army units in northern Iraq, set up their own checkpoints, and even briefly routed troops from a small town north of Baghdad, which they declared to be "Iraq's first liberated territory".
Overwhelmingly drawn from the Sunni Muslim minority, their stated goal is to topple the Shia-dominated government of President Nouri-al Maliki, which they believe has been left vulnerable since the departure of US troops from Iraq 18 months ago.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iraq/10065919/Izzat-Ibrahim-al-Douri-the-King-of-Clubs-is-back-and-he-may-yet-prove-to-be-Saddam-Husseins-trump-card.html
Now, after a decade as a fugitive, and believed by many to be dead, Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri - one of the late Iraqi dictator's most trusted acolytes - appears to have re-emerged as the spiritual figurehead of a resurgent movement dedicated to restoring Saddam Hussein's Ba'ath Party to power.
The 70 year-old, on whose head the US set a $10m bounty and who helped Saddam lead his 1968 coup, is thought to be leading a group of regime die-hards blamed for a major upsurge in violence across the country.
Last month, in some of the fiercest fighting since US troops left Iraq, gunmen attacked Iraqi army units in northern Iraq, set up their own checkpoints, and even briefly routed troops from a small town north of Baghdad, which they declared to be "Iraq's first liberated territory".
Overwhelmingly drawn from the Sunni Muslim minority, their stated goal is to topple the Shia-dominated government of President Nouri-al Maliki, which they believe has been left vulnerable since the departure of US troops from Iraq 18 months ago.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iraq/10065919/Izzat-Ibrahim-al-Douri-the-King-of-Clubs-is-back-and-he-may-yet-prove-to-be-Saddam-Husseins-trump-card.html
