Voices of Dissent

According to the Scotsman, Al-Qaeda are on the defensive after their Amman attack:

After years of al-Qaeda terror attacks in which thousands have been killed, many of them Muslims – the people they wish to recruit – voices of dissent are starting to be heard in the Middle East.

As moderate Muslims dare to protest at daily death tolls, even the prospect of one of Osama bin Laden’s most feared cohorts, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, being handed over is being discussed.

Faced with the unprecedented outburst of fury among Muslims over its latest atrocity, al-Qaeda’s concern about reaction in the Middle East was evident last week when it came the closest yet to an apology.

It offered an “explanation” for one of worst attacks to hit Jordan in modern history, in which suicide bombers turned wedding parties into scenes of destruction, killing at least 60 people and injuring 96 at international hotels in Amman. […]

“They have clearly been stung by the reaction on the streets in Jordan,” said one diplomat with knowledge of the region.

“Until now they have been impervious to the deaths of ordinary Muslims. This time, the fact that they savaged two wedding parties was bad enough. But even worse is the fact that among the dead were Palestinians. Palestinians not only make up the majority of the population of Jordan, but they have iconic status in the Arab world, where they are seen as victims of Israel.”

An immediate result of the Jordan attacks may be a split between al-Qaeda and Palestinian militants, he said, adding that it was significant that Palestinians in Gaza had moved immediately to put daylight between themselves and al-Qaeda.