Radio War Nerd EP #622 — Iraqi Insurgency, Pt. 3: Early 2006, feat. Rob Ashlar
Guest: Rob Ashlar
Recorded: July 18, 2026
Researcher Rob Ashlar resumes his RWN series on the Iraqi insurgency, now moving into the eventful year 2006.
Subscribe to Rob Ashlar's substack. Follow Rob on Twitter here.
Read Rob Ashlar's article "Monotheism and Struggle: The Story of Iraqi Insurgency, 2003-04" in Cosmonaut.
Further listening:
-RWN #458 — Iraqi Insurgency, Pt 1: 2003-4
-RWN #459 — Iraq Insurgency ,Pt 2: 2005
*Map of Anbar
*Key Acronyms & Names for this episode:
-Abu Musab al-Zarqawi ("Zarqawi"): leader of JTJ (Jama'at al-Tawhid wa-l Jihad), then Al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI)
-ISI: Islamic State in Iraq, formed in 2006 rooted in Zarqawi's AQI. First of the Islamic State (IS, ISIS, IS-KP etc) groups
-AQI: Al Qaeda in Iraq, formed in 2004 by Zarqawi, folded into Islamic State in Iraq after Zarqawi's death
-MSC - Mujahdeen Shura Council, political umbrella including Zarqawi's org, transition group to Islamic State
-1920 Revolution Brigades - Moderate Islamist insurgent group
Total time: 1:51:17
Direct link to this episode's mp3 here
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Buy & review John Dolan's new book, They Should Have Been Hanged: War Nerd Essays on the U.S. Civil War
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Sound production by Telescope Audio
Comments (18)
Whenever I read about the Iraqi resistance it just makes me wish they had killed more Yankees
Beware the Golden Chain…
What’s the link to the article Rob mentions in the first half of the episode?
I’m new to radio war nerd, why does the rwn live a nomadic life? It seems not to bring him joy.
Inquiring minds desire to know
"Yazid" as a self-designation is completely insane. The Sunni scholarly tradition unanimously remembers Yazid as a wine-bibbing, monkey-fondling degenerate whose accession marked the end of a proper caliphate in favor of a "Mulk" infidel kingship. Even for an ultra-sectarian Sunni group he's a ludicrous figure to appropriate. You might as well call yourself "Takfiri-squad." If Rob ever has time I'd be curious to hear him talk the inside theological baseball. These guys were (and are) completely obsessive about their use of an early Islamic lexicon but the way they use it is so nihilistic and decontextualized it reads like an 8kun thread. I guess that's because their psycho-sexual substrate is drawn from the same Type of Guy but it still gives me a sense of vertigo to read it.
If the Iranians strike General Brecher….
Wheres part 1 and 2?
Linked in the show notes 458 and 459
US tactic is go wherever it is and move around and steal something, until theres fighting. Meanwhile they are trying to do the reason they want to be there, some form of looting. Then they leave, also a victory for some reason. Theres 4 shots at the goal, and the mess is not considered.
"Al Qaeda is much bigger in africa" I'm sure David Petraeus has absolutely nothing to do with that, hardy har
It's extremely important to remember that when American soldiers hide in Dubai hotels, they're literally just doing what they learned to do in Ukraine. Israel loves accusing Palestinians of doing similar "human shield" tactics but accusing your enemy of your crimes is just classic European brainrot
Did Christopher Nolan time the release of The Odyssey so he could coast off the hype of The War Nerd actually going on his personal Odyssey this summer?
Great episode. The segment about the “Salafist international” was fascinating
Timely for what’s coming.
The goat returns
Hell yeah!
love me some Rob Daeshlar