In case there was any doubt that that the Madrid bombings, if carried out by Islamist thugs, was specifically designed to generate the electoral result that deluded Spanish voters delivered last weekend, this story identifies a web message from an al Qaeda-linked website last year:
The upcoming Spanish general elections “must be exploited in the extreme,” the posting noted. “We think the Spanish government will not stand more than two blows or three at the most before it will be forced to withdraw [from Iraq] because of public pressure.”
????The tract, prepared by the Centre for Services to the Mujahideen, added: “If [Spanish] forces remain after these blows, the victory of the Socialist party will be almost guaranteed, and the withdrawal of Spanish forces will be on its campaign manifesto. Lastly, we assert that the withdrawal of Spanish or Italian forces from Iraq will create tremendous pressure on the British presence which Tony Blair may not be able to bear.
????”So the dominos will fall quickly ? but the basic problem remains, how to bring down the first one.”
Will the dominoes fall? We shall soon see. The point here is that even for opponents of the campaign in Iraq, surely the astute ones will recognize that playing along with al Qaeda?s strategy here will create a dangerous precedent for the future.
