THE MAN WHO CALLS HIMSELF Mullah Krekar and claims to be an Iraqi Kurd is not quite a star of the global jihad, but he is worthy of attention nonetheless. Krekar is the emir, or chief, of Ansar al-Islam, a Sunni extremist network that has distinguished itself with murderous attacks all over Iraq. (In October of this year, 11 of Krekar’s rank-and-file were executed in Iraqi Kurdistan.)
Krekar was also a key link between al Qaeda and Saddam Hussein’s regime. The association with Saddam was based on necessity: Saddam knew that because of his atrocities in Kurdistan and the U.S. protective role in that area, he could not reestablish the Baath party there. So he enabled Saudi-financed humanitarian and religious outreach charities to introduce Wahhabism into Kurdistan.
