Publisher's Synopsis
Media reports indicate that some of the rebels fighting against Muammar Qaddafi in the 2011 uprising may be al-Qaeda terrorists. This report from the U.S. Military Academy Combating Terrorism Center discloses records, called the Sinjar Records recovered in Iraq which reveal the country of origin of foreign fighters in the Iraq war. The report states: "Almost 19 percent of the fighters in the Sinjar Records came from Libya alone. Furthermore, Libya contributed far more fighters per capita than any other nationality in the Sinjar Records, including Saudi Arabia. The previous reports may have collectively understated the Libyan contribution to the fight in Iraq, but the relative synchronization of earlier analyses suggests that the pattern of immigration to Iraq has simply shifted over time. In an admittedly small sample, 76.9% (30) of the 39 Libyans that listed their arrival date in Iraq entered the country between May and July 2007, which may indicate a spring "surge" of Libyan recruits to Iraq. If the numbers cited by the Los Angeles Times in July 2007 are any indication, even the U.S. Army may have underestimated the Libyan contingent in Iraq. The apparent surge in Libyan recruits traveling to Iraq may be linked the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group's (LIFG) increasingly cooperative relationship with al Qa'ida, which culminated in the LIFG officially joining al Qa'ida on November 3, 2007." This is a privately authored news service and educational publication of Progressive Management.
