Arabic News: Baathists and Awakening Groups

The Association of Muslim Scholars is a group of Sunni religious leaders who have generally supported the Sunni Baathist insurgency, whereas the Awakening is the newer, tribally-based political movement in al Anbar.  Thousands of former detainees have been released from U.S. prisons after being vetted or from Iraqi prisons under the Amnesty Law.  The reintegration of former detainees occasionally turns violent.  What follows is a translation of the complete text of a statement released by the Association of Muslim Scholars in Iraq. The translation was prepared by Nathaniel Rabkin.

Association of Muslim Scholars in Iraq Baghdad Headquarters Statement Number 547: Regarding the Crimes of Some Members of the “Awakening” Organizations.

Praise be to God, and blessing and peace be upon His prophet and upon his family, his companions, and those who support him. Certain areas of Iraq have been plagued by certain enterprises of the occupier. These enterprises carry out the occupier’s agenda, and they allow neither religion nor conscience to stand in their way.

Recently, some of the members of the enterprises known as “the Awakening” have undertaken a new program: the murder of those who have been recently released from the prisons of the occupation forces. In the last week in the city of Haditha and the neighboring areas, six recently released prisoners have been killed by the members of the so called “Awakening” organizations. Three more have been kidnapped, and their bodies have yet to be located. Amongst those prisoners who have been brutally killed and whose bodies have been displayed for two days are Omar Abed Jarrad al-Jouani, Sirmad al-Daheri, Mudar Jabir Ahmad, Mahmoud Jabir Ahmad, Yas Khodr, and Ali Mansour. Others have been targeted in recent weeks and their number remains unknown. This has led some prisoners to refuse to leave American prisons. Having heard what happened to some of those released, they prefer to remain in the custody of the occupation forces rather than be turned into corpses by the “Awakening.” One of the leaders of the “Awakening” threatened openly on a well known program of one of the Arab satellite TV channels to kill those released from Bucca and other American prisons. This suggests that there is a prior agreement between these organizations and the occupation forces to commit these heinous crimes. The Association of Muslim Scholars in Iraq has chosen to reveal this terrible organized criminal plot and to record its condemnation of the service these misguided souls provide to the foreign invader. The Association reminds them that the occupier will soon disappear, God willing. It also reminds them that the hour is nigh when the sons of Iraq will meet each other face to face, and at that time, no sinful aggressor will escape the vengeance of God and the anger of the people.

The General Directorate 27 Rabi al-Awwal, 1429 AH April 4, 2008 AD Source