Saddam Hussein's former right-hand man, and most wanted man in Iraq, Izzat al-Douri, recently relayed a number of messages to TIME magazine through intermediaries. Some of his responses, which TIME contends were verified through trusted sources, shed some light on leading terrorist in Iraq's postwar activities.

Although al-Douri rebuked many of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's tactics he renewed his praise of the deceased al Qaeda leaders "courage, the strength of his faith, and the sacrifices of his fighters" and admitted participating with Zarqawi and sharing his religious views.

Unless al Douri's religious views radically altered post-invasion (unlikely considering al Douri's history of extreme religious views and participation in Iraq's "Return to Faith Campaign"), this admission severely damages the argument that Saddam Hussein's regime was hostile to radical, militant Islam.

al-Douri went on to say that the military plan for the initial stages for the war had been a mistake and that Iraq's military would have been much more effective (at killing Americans and innocent Iraqis) if they had disbanded and used their entire force to fight in a guerilla war, as the remnants of the military had done. al-Douri also said that the military holdovers from the previous regime had been responsible for 95% of the attacks on coalition forces, indicating that the war against the previous regime continues to be the primary obstacle for peace in Iraq.