Killing Iraqi terrorist leader Abu
Musab al Zarqawi could be a defeat in the war on terror. On November
20th, a raid on a house in Mosul, Iraq, resulted in a number of
terrorists blowing themselves up rather than be captured. It was
thought that al Zarqawi was in the house. His death would be a mixed
blessing. While he?s certainly been an effective terrorist leader, able
to inspire the suicide-happy wackos to some spectacular atrocities,
he?s also been, in some ways a liability for al Qaeda, and the Sunni
Arab groups fighting their government. Attacks on women, children,
mosques, clerics, have been PR disasters. Operations like these appear
to have put al Zarqawi on the outs with at least part of al Qaedas more
senior leadership, including Osama bin Laden.

So, do we gain
more from his death because his organizational and leadership skills
are no longer directing the religious elements in the terrorist
organization, or do we lose because the al Qaeda leadership asserts
more control, and curbs the bloodier attacks on women, children,
mosques, etc?

As the old saying goes, ?choose your friends
carefully, and your enemies even more carefully.? Al Zarqawi's bloody
minded attitude towards Shia Arabs (because Islamic conservatives
consider Shia to be heretics), and Iraqi civilians in general, has made
him the most hated man in Iraq. Because of al Zarqawi?s tactics, al
Qaeda has seen its ?approval rating? plunge throughout the Arab world.
The recent bombing of a wedding in Jordan, which al Zarqawi took credit
for, turned many pro-al Qaeda Jordanians against the terrorists. Al
Zarqawi sensed his gaffe a few days later, and released a video of him
trying to explain what really happened, and that his suicide bomber
actually hit a secret meeting of Israeli and American secret agents.
That did not go over well with grieving, and very ticked off,
Jordanians. 

It?s only a matter of time before Arabs start
insisting that al Zarqawi is really an Israeli agent, working from the
inside to destroy al Qaeda. Meanwhile, let?s try and keep our guy ali,
er, on the run.