Stolen Oil Profits keep Iraq's 'Insurgency' running: NY Times

Stolen Oil Profits keep Iraq's 'Insurgency' running: NY Times

rawstory.com

Richard A. Oppel Jr. reports that "there are officers in the U.S. military who openly question how much a role jihadism plays in the minds of most people who carry out attacks. As the U.S. occupation has worn on and unemployment has remained high, these officers say the overwhelming motivation of insurgents is the need to earn a paycheck."

"Ninety percent of the guys out here who do attacks are just people who want to feed their families," Maj. Kelly Kendrick, operations officer for the 1st Brigade Combat Team of the 101st Airborne Division in Salahuddin, tells the Times.

Stolen oil profits are helping to keep the insurgency running, according to Sunday's report.

The Times notes, "The sea of oil under Iraq is supposed to rebuild the nation and then make it prosper. But at least one-third, and possibly much more, of the fuel from Iraq's largest refinery here is diverted to the black market, according to U.S. military officials.

(visit the link for the full news article)

Geez...What a mess. So there we have it---Much of the 'Insurgency' has little to do with 'terrorism' or Al Qaeda', but of everyday people beset by desperation of the state their country is in. It's a dual conondrum for our troops---Safeguarding the oil supplies to make sure they're not stolen and diverted away to funding something entirely different than rebuilding the nation they came from---And not being killed by the increasing number of desperate folks who are getting 'paid' to carry out the attacks. It's a giant web of volatility everywhere they turn.

rawstory.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

reply to post by DimensionalDetective


You find great stuff to post, DD!

I thought Haliburton & Blackwater got the most money!

Also, i remember hearing about millions of dollars being hauled away
from a rail car or dock or something...