Insurgents vs Insurgents

The indigenous militias are splintering and reconfiguring in Iraq:

As a response to rising tensions with the Islamic State of Iraq, three rival insurgent groups – the Islamic Army, the Ansar Al-Sunnah and the Mujahideen Army – merged to create the Jihad and Reform Front last month, announcing in their first communiqué that they would not target innocent Iraqi civilians – a jab at the Islamic State of Iraq. A fourth group, the Fatiheen Army, also recently joined the front.

Last week's clashes which raged on for two days between Al-Qaeda and the Islamic Army in Amiriya, western Baghdad, may forever end the shaky alliance that the two groups have so far maintained against U.S. troops and the Iraqi government.

In a recorded statement posted on the Internet yesterday, Islamic Army spokesman Dr. Ali Al-Ni’aimi strongly rebuked Al-Qaeda and blamed it for initiating the fighting in Amiriya. A barrage of insults against the Islamic Army from Al-Qaeda sympathizers on the Internet followed the posting.

(Hat tip: Danger Room.)