Terrorist Haven?

The Bush administration has often mentioned how Iraq has become a terrorist haven. Members and supporters of the administration have framed their fight against Iraqi insurgents as a battle against foreign terrorists seeking to restore tyranny to Iraq in the post-war scenario. The Iraqis, it is said, welcome the American troops and want them to succeed; it is foreign terrorists and remaining Saddam loyalist who are perpetrating the attack against the liberators.

However, as the L.A. Times reports less than 5% insurgents captured are foreign freedom fighters. From a November 16^th article regarding the Falluja surge:

Of the more than 1,000 men between the ages of 15 and 55 who were captured in intense fighting in the center of the insurgency over the last week, just 15 are confirmed foreign fighters, Gen. George W. Casey, the top U.S. ground commander in Iraq, said Monday.

….

But despite an intense focus on the network of Jordanian-born militant Abu Musab Zarqawi by U.S. and Iraqi officials, who have insisted that most Iraqis support the country's interim government, American commanders said their best estimates of the proportion of foreigners among their enemies is about 5%.

The overwhelming majority of insurgents, several senior commanders said, are drawn from the tens of thousands of former government employees whose sympathies lie with the toppled regime of Saddam Hussein, unemployed "criminals" who find work laying roadside bombs for about $500 each and Iraqi religious extremists.

"Over time, it's the former regime elements that are the threat," said Gen. Richard B. Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who joined Casey for a visit to bases in Baghdad and outside Fallouja before meeting with interim Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi.

Before the battle, U.S. officials frequently stressed the role of foreign fighters in Fallouja. Last week, as the battle got underway, Myers told reporters that the city was "a major safe haven for former regime elements and foreign fighters, in particular Zarqawi and his folks."

I can see a potential counterargument in that maybe more Iraqis would have stayed behind to try to defend their hometown or homeland, whereas foreign insurgents would be more likely to flee the city, as they can attack American troops from another location in the country. However, I don’t see that as a compelling reason to see such a drop from the way the insurgency is often portrayed by Bush and co. to a number like 5%. If it wasn’t already, it’s becoming increasingly clear the insurgency is fuelled by unhappy Iraqis, not America-hating terrorists.