The battle in Iraq, waged by thousands of al Qaeda and local Sunni Arab Islamic radicals, changed Arab attitudes towards Islamic radicals. As a result of the terrorists killing over 50,000 Iraqis, al Qaeda popularity, which peaked after September 11, 2001, plummeted. This not only brings in a flood of tips on suspected Islamic terrorists, but sometimes vigilante action as well. Recently, in Afghanistan, a suicide bomber was spotted, on his way to a target. Afghan civilians promptly attacked with stones and knives, killing the suicide bomber before he could detonate his explosive vest.
Al Qaeda long depended on popular support to protect their operations, and provide recruits and other contributions. No more. Al Qaeda has to assume that the Moslems they live among are more likely to be hostile, than supportive.
Yes, for a while the jihadis got recruits to flock to Iraq (but remember that the jihadis managed to get recruits to flock to Afghanistan prior to 9/11 without Bush or the Iraq War to aid recruiting--the battlefield was a flexible and shifting place for those who thought Allah would guide them to victory), but in the end the jihadi terrorism there and elsewhere that targetted Moslems (and the jihadis still think the Saudi government is "secular"!) just made them unpopular with the Moslem street.
