Lynn C. Woolsey: “Americans woke up yesterday morning to the news that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was killed in an air raid in Iraq. Even though…”

“Americans woke up yesterday morning to the news that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was killed in an air raid in Iraq. Even though he was a vicious man, who had contempt for every single thing America represents, I do not believe his death signals a particular turning point in the Iraq War. There have been other supposed watershed moments that were loudly trumpeted by enthusiasts for this war, but none of those turned out to have long-term significance, and I do not believe this to be any different. It will disrupt the operational capability of al-Zarqawi's organization, but most certainly will not end the civil strife that has engulfed Iraq. Although Zarqawi was the leader of a group called al Qaeda in Iraq, it is important to note that he was not closely allied to Osama bin Laden. In fact, the two men had something of a long-standing rivalry. Zarqawi's death is not in any way a blow to bin Laden and the al Qaeda that is responsible for 9/11. Mr. Speaker, the insurgency is a decentralized force that extends well beyond the influence of a single man. As foreign policy scholar Ivo Daalder points out, the anarchy that has taken hold in Iraq cannot be attributed to just one terrorist. Iraq has mushroomed into what Daalder calls a ``large-scale sectarian conflict'' and what I would call a full-blown civil war.…”