Attackers United by Piety in Plot to Strike Troops

Cassettes of a Syrian cleric, whose violent words used to be outlawed under Saddam Hussein's secular regime, sell freely on the post-war streets, and - more frighteningly - there's a growing audience willing to listen. Islamic extremism, which is denounced by most religious leaders as against the peaceful precepts of true Islam, is becoming increasingly appealing to angry Iraqis who resent the continued presence of American soldiers. Now conservative towns are even starting to question the traditional spiritual leaders who counsel patience with the American forces. It is the martyrs, killing in the name of Islam, who are gaining respect at the expense of moderate leaders. Unless coalition forces can figure out a way to prove they are not a new colonial power, out to squash Islam and harm the Iraqis, Islamism is likely to explode in the once secular nation. - YaleGlobal