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Zarqawi Gains Ground

(CNN) Henry Schuster - Iraq is possibly headed to civil war, if not already there. Listen to Sheik Zeidan, once one of the most prominent tribal chieftains in Anbar province, now an exile across the border in Jordan. "If there was a gap between the Sunnis and Zarqawi before Samarra, this brought it together," he said. In Zeidan's view, Zarqawi - who is from the largest tribe in Jordan - has used his knowledge of tribal loyalties to bind him to the local population. He's also killed any sheiks who dare disagree. Ali Shukri, a retired Jordanian general and former adviser to the late King Hussein, agrees. "Those tribal leaders who are in Iraq are definitely living in fear," he said. Shukri says the Sunni tribes in western Iraq are key to ending strife in Iraq because their leaders could keep the peace there and end the insurgency. Now, he says, there is a power vacuum that is being filled by Zarqawi. "Historically, these people kept the peace in the western part of Iraq," Shukri said. "Now we see the tribes becoming indifferent. It has reached the point where some of my tribal friends say Zarqawi has become more important in the traditional tribal areas of western Iraq than the actual historical leaders. This is bad." Civil war in Iraq and Zarqawi's growing strength there have the Jordanians worried. "The more the situation continues in Iraq, the more [Zarqawi] will have a free hand. And it will come across us, not only across Jordan, but we are going to see worse things happening in Saudi Arabia," said Shukri, pointing to the recent failed al-Qaeda attack on an oil facility in Saudi Arabia.
2006-03-20 00:00:00
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