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"So the solution, and only God knows, is that we need to bring
the Shia into the battle," the writer of the document said. "It is
the only way to prolong the duration of the fight between the
infidels and us. If we succeed in dragging them into a sectarian
war, this will awaken the sleepy Sunnis who are fearful of
destruction and death at the hands" of Shiites.
The author offers his services and those of his followers to the
recipients of the letter, who American officials contend are Al
Qaeda's leaders.
"You noble brothers, leaders of the jihad, we do not consider
ourselves people who compete against you, nor would we ever aim to
achieve glory for ourselves like you did," the writer says. "So if
you agree with it, and are convinced of the idea of killing the
perverse sects, we stand ready as an army for you to work under your
guidance and yield to your command."
In the period before the war, Bush administration officials
argued that Mr. Zarqawi constituted the main link between Al Qaeda
and Mr. Hussein's government. Last February at the United Nations,
Secretary of State Colin L. Powell said, "Iraq today harbors a
deadly terrorist network, headed by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, an
associate and collaborator of Osama bin Laden and his Al Qaeda
lieutenants."
Around that time, the Americans believed that Mr. Zarqawi was
holed up in the mountains at the Iranian border with Ansar al Islam,
a group linked to Al Qaeda that is suspected of mounting attacks
against American forces in Iraq.
Since the war ended, little evidence has emerged to support the
allegation of a prewar Qaeda connection in Iraq. Last month, Mr.
Powell conceded that the American government had found "no smoking
gun" linking Mr. Hussein's government with Al Qaeda.
In the document, the writer indicated that he had directed about
25 suicide bombings inside Iraq. That conforms with an American view
that suicide bombings were more likely to be carried out by Iraqi
religious extremists and foreigners than by Hussein allies.
"We were involved in all the martyrdom operations — in terms of
overseeing, preparing and planning — that took place in this
country," the writer of the document says. "Praise be to Allah, I
have completed 25 of these operations, some of them against the Shia
and their leaders, the Americans and their military, and the police,
the military and the coalition forces."
But the writer details the difficulties that he and his comrades
have been experiencing, both in combating American forces and in
enlisting supporters. The Americans are an easy target, according to
the author, who nonetheless claims to be impressed by the Americans'
resolve. After significant losses, he writes, "America, however, has
no intention of leaving, no matter how many wounded nor how bloody
it becomes."
The Iraqis themselves, the writer says, have not been receptive
to taking holy warriors into their homes.
"Many Iraqis would honor you as a guest and give you refuge, for
you are a Muslim brother," according to the document. "However, they
will not allow you to make their home a base for operations or a
safe house."
The writer contends that the American efforts to set up Iraqi
security services have succeeded in depriving the insurgents of
allies, particularly in a country where kinship networks are
extensive.
"The problem is you end up having an army and police connected by
lineage, blood and appearance," the document says. "When the
Americans withdraw, and they have already started doing that, they
get replaced by these agents who are intimately linked to the people
of this region."
With some exasperation, the author writes: "We can pack up and
leave and look for another land, just like what has happened in so
many lands of jihad. Our enemy is growing stronger day after day,
and its intelligence information increases.
"By God, this is suffocation!" the writer says.
But there is still time to mount a war against the Shiites,
thereby to set off a wider war, he writes, if attacks are well under
way before the turnover of sovereignty in June. After that, the
writer suggests, any attacks on Shiites will be viewed as
Iraqi-on-Iraqi violence that will find little support among the
people.
"We have to get to the zero hour in order to openly begin
controlling the land by night, and after that by day, God willing,"
the writer says. "The zero hour needs to be at least four months
before the new government gets in place."
That is the timetable, the author concludes, because, after that,
"How can we kill their cousins and sons?"
"The Americans will continue to control from their bases, but the
sons of this land will be the authority," the letter states. "This
is the democracy. We will have no pretexts."
Douglas Jehl contributed reporting from Washington for this
article.
