Washington, June 17: A shadowy group of Saddam Hussein loyalists is allying with militants linked to al-Qaeda for an uprising against the US-led occupation in Iraq in mid-July, a former Iraqi Army officer has said. The group, al-Awda, meaning "the return," is forming an alliance with Islamist militants linked to al-Qaeda for a full-scale uprising on around July 17, marking the anniversary of the Ba'athist revolution in 1968, according to a former Brigadier-General of the Iraqi Army, an American newspaper reported today. A leaflet by Jaish-e-Mohammed, one of the two Islamist groups operating in Iraq, said it is willing to work with the Ba'athists despite Saddam's repression of Islamic fundamentalists. The leaflet makes a direct appeal to former intelligence officers, security personnel, “fidayeen” (suicide squad) members, republican guard troops and Ba'ath Party members to join forces.
"The first act," according to the Brigadier-General, "will be spectacular, possibly smashing an oil refinery near Baghdad." Bureau Report