Two things that kill me…
1) People who still think Zarqawi is a fictional character dreamt up by the Mossad and the CIA in some hollywood basement in order to have an excuse for the US to remain in Iraq (as if they really needed one) despite his latest video
2) The media’s constant (or favorite prefix): “Jordanian terrorist”, “Jordanian born” and/or “Jordanian leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq”….Abu Musab al-Zarqawi
Give it a break will yah?
I want to strangle all the aforementioned parties.
But I find myself wondering why Zarqawi would choose to surface now of all times. Giving everyone an updated mug shot of himself perhaps?
My name is Sgt. Gehlen from the U.S. Central Command public affairs office. We have posted a transcript of the Zarqawi message on our website, http://www.centcom.mil , in the section titled “What Extremists Are Saying.”
Apparently, Al Zarqawi is addressing the new Iraqi government, and maybe giving his supporters a new reason to belive in him, that is “majles shoura el mojahedeen”, which is somehow a reaction to the way the government was formed, he’s like saying: we also have legitimate, democratical, and organized state. It’s silly refering to Zarqawi as if he is fictional, though, I do believe that the US took his issue into its own advantage, they gave the guy too much intentional focus.
As for calling him Jordanian, I think that it’s not intentional, at the end he is Jordanian and nobody is making a crime by calling him that. The fact that he carries the Jordanian nationality doesn’t hurt Jordan, every nation has the bad and the good.
I think it does hurt Jordan, at least in the eye of the American public, to keep reminding them that he is Jordanian. I think there are elements in the American media that are set to tarnish the Arab world whenever they can.
Some time back there was a mad man (African american) who used a sniper weapon to shoot people in the streets and parking lots in the D.C. area. He had his English name but also the name “Muhamman” because he was a Muslim convert. The media referred to him with his Muslim name 99% of the time when every they metioned his horrific actions.
Giving everyone an updated mug shot of himself perhaps?
Comparing his previous mugshot, he’s proven he clearly enjoys his baklava.
Nas: The Americans are intentionally inflating Zerqawi’s importance and emphasizing his nationality. I wrote about it here:
http://ajloun.blogspot.com/2006/04/demonizing-zerqawi-demonizing.html
Af course, the US military later tried to bury the story, but it’s out there.
Well, although the vast majority of Jordanian Muslims are tolerant and moderate (I’m a Jordanian Christian) yet we do have many young men, who are ready to lead Zarqawi’s way.
Though, it should be noted that those who carried out the UK’s underground bombings were actually born in Britain!
Islamists are taking power in the region ,by any means such as (democracy, riots,etc) and I think they will succed….Iraq is theirs, Egypt,Syria the moment the current regimes fall the alternative are Islamists!
It’s still hard to imagine that they can’t get this guy…
Al Qaeda News Network (aka. Al Jazeera) should not air the full thing!
Oh well, Zarqawi’s latest video is floating all over the ineternet (The Jihadi website)!
OmAr,
you don’t find it strange that no other terrorist has his nationality mentioned? i mean it’s one thing to say where they originally came from, where they were born or what citizenship they currently carry, in a description of the person…but it’s another thing with Zarqawi where Jordan is always attached to his name constantly. and it’s not just terrorists…ive never heard that done with anyone i can recall.
Nas maybe because he’s operating in Iraq
Yeah, then Bin Ladin should be called the Saudi terrorists…mmmh I don’t know!
I think Jordan is pretty much promoted as a modern state and Pro-Westren in American MSM.
Even Westerners with little awarness (aka. watch networks other than Fox news) would say so! Oh well , they’ll always think we are just another Middle Eastren country (Burqa women, can’t walk on the streets, pray 24/7 , camels,sands,goats,etc etc)!
Nas….who care? What’s more important is what people in Jordan are really like! And I have to say it: Extremists are gaining supporters more and more for many reasons : Poverty, injustice, lack of freedom, and so on!
Firas, I care. Mainly because there’s no cause for it, there’s no reason to keep mentioning his nationality when no other criminal gets the same thing. Arab media also refers to him as such so it’s not just western media. And as for the people, it doesnt matter if 99.99% of Jordanians are 180 degrees opposite of Zarqawi…one bad egg ruins the entire meal.
as for extremists gaining support, it’s hard to blame them. certain realities give birth to other realities. extremism is a reaction to everything else and the reasons you listed are just the tip of the iceberg.
I guess that you have a point, I didn’t hear any one of Al Qaeda members being called by his nationality but Al Zarqawi, though I believe it’s something has to do with the western media not the western governments, because Jordan’s maintaining good relationships with the west.