aired a taped of an alleged conversation between two members of the Syria-based Iraqi Ba'athist movement, Sattam Farhan and al-Ahmed, linking them with the August 2009 Baghdad bombings which claimed more than 100 lives. The Syrian foreign ministry denied Syrian involvement in the attack. On 25 August Iraq summoned its ambassador to return from Syria, the Syrian government issued a similar order to its ambassador within hours in retaliation. When the Iraqi government demanded in November 2009 that Syria extradite al-Ahmed, President al-Assad refused to do so, claiming that he had already been expelled from Syria. Despite this, Iraqi and American security forces had reported no signs of Baathists illegally crossing the border in the recent months and responsibility for the August bombings was later claimed by the Islamic State of Iraq. Ba'athist Rivalries Ahmed was first mentioned in a report in the Iraqi government-owned al-Sabah newspaper, which reported on 6 December 2004 that a captured insurgent, Moyayad Yaseen Ahmad, the leader of Jeish Muhammad, had claimed that Ahmed had recently been elected Secretary of the Iraqi Ba'ath Party at a conference held by a group of Ba'athist fugitives in Al-Hasakah, Syria. Ahmed made another attempt for the party leadership following the death of Saddam Hussein, leading to condemnation from supporters of al-Douri who ordered the expulsion of Ahmed and 150 other members of the party. Ahmed issued a counter-order ordering the expulsion of al-Douri from the party, leading to the creation of two separate wings of the Iraqi Ba'ath Party. Al-Douri issued a statement criticizing Syria and Younis for what al-Douri claimed was an American-supported attempt to undermine the Iraqi Ba'ath party, although this statement was later downplayed. Ahmed's wing of the party allegedly has contacts with former Republican Guard Commander Ra'ad al-Hamdani, and has also allegedly been in contact with Wafiq Al-Samarrai in an effort to legitimize the party. Ahmed, in his attempts to reunite the party, and built a close working relationship with the Syrian government, unlike al-Douri, who distrusts the Syrians due to their alliance with the Iranians. The Syrian government is quietly supporting Ahmed in order to gain more control over the Iraqi Ba'ath party. In March 2009 several members representing Younis approached Coalition Forces and the Provincial Reconstruction Team in Saladin Governorate. They met with representatives of the Coalition, instead of representatives of the Iraqi Government, because they claimed the Iraqi government was under