i find that interesting.

really?

i never really thought of when al qaeda in iraq officially popped up. according to wikipedia:

Al-Qaeda in Iraq also known as Al-Qaeda in the Land of Two Rivers, is the Mujahideen network of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian-born mujahid believed to have operated against United States-led coalition forces in Iraq. It was led by Zarqawi until he was killed during an American airstrike on June 7, 2006. Abu Hamza al-Muhajir was announced to be its new leader on June 12, 2006.

Before September 2004 the group was called Jama'at al-Tawhid wal-Jihad. The group's name, which is usually abbreviated as JTJ, purposely contrasts the strict monotheism of Islam with the "God in three persons" of the Christian Trinity, which it sees as polytheism. The name change is significant as it uses the archaic name of Iraq used in the Islamic Caliphate era. Al Jazeera renders the group's current name as al-Qaeda in the Land of Two Rivers [1].

i suppose by that you could say sept. 2004. however, the group is responsible for some attacks in 2003, and thought to be somehow behind the uss cole attacks.

and what about the weapons of mass destruction?