The Washington Post is reporting that insurgents in Iraq are becoming more interested in profit making than in political ideology.

U.S. military commanders say that insurgents across the country are increasingly motivated more by money than ideology and that a growing number of insurgent cells, struggling to pay recruits, are turning to gangster-style racketeering operations.

U.S. military officials have responded by launching a major campaign to disrupt al-Qaeda in Iraq’s financial networks and spread propaganda that portrays its leaders as greedy thugs, an effort the officials describe as a key factor in their recent success beating down the insurgency.

Insurgents are able to gain revenue through activities such as Kidnapping and Ransom, where holding a person for ransom can gain the insurgents up to $50,000.