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Length: 4:05
WOLF BLITZER: Does the
United States have a secret weapon against Al Qaeda
In Iraq? Our Michael Ware explains in this
extraordinary report from Baghdad.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
MICHAEL WARE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He
looks like an insurgent. He's actually a U.S. ally --
the new face of America's fight against al Qaeda.
"Al Qaeda slaughtered our sheikhs, our children," he
says, "and we will terminate them."
By "we," he means men like these in Iraq's western
Anbar Province, manning this checkpoint which, though
unofficial, is supported by the U.S. military.
The men, drawn from tribes or their umbrella network,
the Anbar Salvation Council. Police vehicles pass
through without question, for the tribes have split
their forces. Some to the police, who intone tribal
chants before operations, while others are kept as
private paramilitaries, hit squads, assault teams,
sanctioned by the Iraqi government, their loyalty
remaining with their tribal sheikhs, all of which
suits an America desperate to crush al Qaeda.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
BLITZER: And joining us now in Baghdad, Michael Ware.
Michael, there have been also some reports involving
the motivation of these guys, that there may be some
money exchanging hands.
What do you know about this?
WARE: Well, look, what everything is always about, by
and large, in this part of the war is money and
power. It's all very localized. It's local politics.
These guys want a stranglehold back on their own
domain, on their turf. But this has much broader
ramifications than just Iraq's western Anbar
Province, because these guys represent what America's
Arab allies like Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, so
desperately want to see: Sunni Iraqi Arabs
re-empowered, instead of seeing a government that
they see America has put together that is much closer
to Teheran than it is to Washington or Amman or
Riyadh.
BLITZER: I've heard, Michael, that some of the money,
maybe a lot of the money, if not all of it, is coming
from Saudi Arabia.
What are you hearing?
WARE: Well, certainly there's lots of Saudi interests
here, not only in Iraq, but particularly in these
western provinces. We're certainly hearing that there
are very discrete channels open. Narrowing down the
facts is extraordinarily difficult.
But what we do understand is that for now, there's a
very low level, very covert, very indirect form of
support for many of these Sunni communities,
particularly the tribal systems, from elements within
Saudi Arabia. And we believe, from what we're told,
that the U.S. for now is simply turning a blind eye.
BLITZER: It is possible these guys are potentially
going to turn against the United States almost as
quickly as they turned against al Qaeda?
WARE: Oh, absolutely. In fact, they warn of that in
our exclusive interviews with their leadership. They
say that, you know, "we're working on interests that
align with the U.S. for now. But at the end of the
day, once we've slaughtered al Qaeda, if you're still
here, then we're going to turn our weapons back on
you."
But underlying all of that is something much broader
-- there will be no need for them to turn their
weapons back on America, they say. Since 2003 they've
said, "we're on your side. We're against Iran. We're
against al Qaeda. Just empower us."
But the ideologues from Washington said the tribes
and the Baathists had no place in the new democratic
Iraq. Well, there's no democratic Iraq, yet the
tribes and the Baathists still remain -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Michael Ware reporting for us from Baghdad,
doing excellent reporting, as usual.
Michael, thanks.
WARE: Thank you, Wolf.