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Coalition Officials Fear Wahhabi Infiltration of Iraq

(Telegraph-UK) - Martin Bentham Saddam's taped call to arms, which was received with enthusiasm by diehard loyalists among Iraq's Sunni Muslims, has strengthened coalition officials' concerns. They fear that Wahhabis, members of the Saudi-based extremist orthodox Islamic sect that inspired Osama bin Laden and the Taliban, have infiltrated Iraq and are encouraging the deadly attacks on American forces. Senior military officers and Western diplomats said last week that money is being sent from Saudi Arabia to Iraqi mosques to fund Wahhabism. The influx of foreign preachers and funds is greatest in Baghdad, and in Sunni-dominated towns such as Ramadi and nearby Fallujah. Concern about the Wahhabis deepened after a recent raid by American forces in the northern city of Mosul on houses of suspected associates of Abu Ammash, a Wahhabi extremist group. Four Kalashnikovs, a pistol, a hand grenade, and an artillery round were also seized, as well as Baath party documents and a Republican Guard uniform, reinforcing fears that some Wahhabis may be forming an anti-American alliance with Saddam loyalists.
2003-07-07 00:00:00
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