Local police are holding four Iraqis accused of plotting to kidnap two U.S. officials inside the Green Zone, a heavily fortified area that houses the U.S. Embassy. The previously undisclosed arrests early this month, investigated by Baghdad's Major Crimes Unit, are the first plot uncovered to kidnap U.S. officials inside the Green Zone, say Baghdad police and Steven Casteel, the senior U.S. adviser to the Interior Ministry. The case raises concerns about militant capabilities to penetrate U.S. and allied government facilities."The objective of the operation was to show how mujahedin (insurgents) ... are able to strike deep inside the Green Zone," said police 1st Lt. Khalid Abbas, a counterterrorism officer.
The plan was hatched by Iraqis inside the Green Zone, including an Iraqi translator who worked closely with a U.S. security official, one of the two kidnapping targets, according to investigative reports and interviews this week with police. The other target was the official's female assistant. Two other suspects were employed by a Western company with offices in the Green Zone. A fourth suspect was recruited because of his links to Fallujah, an insurgent stronghold west of Baghdad. At least one other suspect is being sought, police said.