Al Qaeda got the reality-show treatment this week when The Associated Press published a secret letter revealing a messy catfight in its North African branch.
The letter was an acid-laced performance review of Moktar Belmoktar from his bosses at Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, who complained their man:
* Skipped important meetings.
* Refused to take their phone calls.
* Wouldn’t file his expense reports.
* Engaged in name-calling.
As amusing as this is, Belmoktar is a deadly serious man. Which is why we were distressed to hear President Obama shrug him off in his speech last week as one of those “localized threats” who will hit “soft targets.”
Obama did so in his reference to January’s attack on the BP oil facility in Algeria — which Belmoktar planned and carried out. The raid killed nearly 40 people, including one American. And just last week, Belmoktar’s men delivered strikes on a uranium mine and a military barracks in Niger.
The point is that when “localized threats” like Belmoktar take over land, these regions can become hosts to extremists that threaten us abroad and at home. As for “soft targets,” even with his split from al Qaeda, Belmoktar now has the ability to attack important targets in his area, which will likely mean more dead Americans if he’s not stopped.
And that’s no joke.