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Iraq
Senior Al Qaeda Muharib Abdul Latif killed by US troops
2007-05-03
Sweet
Senior al-Qaeda in Iraq leader Muharib Abdul Latif, implicated in the kidnapping of American journalist Jill Carroll and the death of peace activist Tom Fox, was killed by U.S. troops on Monday as part of a three-day strike against the insurgent group. that led to the death and capture of dozens of suspected terrorists.

The 72-hour Operation Rat Trap led to the death of 15 and the capture of 95 insurgents as coalition forces targeted al-Qaeda sites outside the city of Taji, north of Baghdad, U.S. military spokesperson Maj. Gen. William B. Caldwell said today. He characterized the operation as a significant blow to the organization.

Latif was identified as al-Qaeda in Iraq's senior information minister, responsible for crafting propaganda efforts and coordinating the flow of money and foreign fighters. He was also involved in the kidnapping of Carroll, who was released, and was said to be the last person who saw Fox before he was shot multiple times, Caldwell said. He was also linked to the kidnapping of two Germans in early 2006. "Picking up somebody with that kind of history, that is significant -- to be able to stop that kind of activity," Caldwell said. "Taking him off the street is a good thing."

The announcement of Latif's death clears up several days of confusion over the purported death of a top ranking insurgent leader. In recent days Iraqi officials and media reported first the death of al-Qaeda in Iraq leader Ayyub al-Masri, then today reported the death of reported Islamic State in Iraq leader Abu Omar al-Baghdadi. Caldwell said al-Masri had not been killed and that U.S. officials are not even sure who al-Baghdadi is.
I'm not at all sure about that last statement. If we know who he is, I'm sure the military does.
We know there is a person calling himself al-Baghdadi, but what his real name is has yet to be discovered. The interesting part is his statement that "al-Masri had not been killed". Did he mean we have no confirmation yet, or did he let something slip? As in, he's in custody spilling his guts, giving up al-Baghdadi and Abdul Latif.

Abu Omar al-Baghdadi
Muharib Abdul Latif

This just in: Interior Ministry spokesman Brigadier-General Abdul-Kareem Khalaf said Muharib Abdul Latif Jubouri was also Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, the leader of the self-styled Islamic State in Iraq, a Qaeda-led group which has claimed many major attacks in the country. Does he get double the virgins if he's killed under two names?
If so, he's shaved his moustache and put on weight.
Ah, that little dark line just above his mouth is his moustache, I think. He's so bloated the area above his moustache and below his nose is puffing out. He's ready to explode like a cheap balloon.
Posted by:mrp

#25  must have eaten somethin that didn't agree.
Posted by: RD   2007-05-03 23:58  

#24  lol ship
Posted by: sinse   2007-05-03 20:13  

#23  He's green Jim.
Posted by: Shipman   2007-05-03 19:45  

#22  The battlefield commanders WOULD be in the field. But all the propaganda pronouncements would carry a fictitious name. The rank and file would probably never hear these as most would be printed in English or posted on foreign websites.
Posted by: crosspatch   2007-05-03 17:59  

#21  crosspatch: It's still bad strategy, or a sign of weakness. A battlefield commander who isn't on the battlefield, especially with a long lag time in communications, can be worse than useless.

In fact, were they to set up a paper commander, the US could run circles around them by using him as an "Emmanuel Goldstein" character, issuing false orders in his name, leaving the "inner circle", the only ones who know he doesn't exist, twisting in the wind.
Posted by: Anonymoose   2007-05-03 17:44  

#20  i could never keep the names staright anyway just kill any of them trying too fight whether they are "commanders" or not. seems that would clear this subject up real fast.
Posted by: sinse   2007-05-03 16:37  

#19  Boby is my other, dumber, brother.
Posted by: Bobby   2007-05-03 14:41  

#18  So a "paper commander" - that'd be like bin Laden?
Posted by: Boby   2007-05-03 14:35  

#17  Have a look at this.
Posted by: crosspatch   2007-05-03 14:14  

#16  A "paper" commander can never be killed. Even if you get the real person in charge, you don't get a propaganda victory because you never get "the top guy". As for the rank and file, all they are really interested in is their immediate commander.

al Zarqawi wasn't really all that effective in that he managed to turn many people away with his tactics and had something of a reputation for running away from a fight. He caught a lot of flak over Fallujah.

The guy currently in charge has more military training. He is more likely to retreat and preserve his forces to fight another day.

But in any case, you can have a real effective commander and have a strawman in whose name all major statements are issued.
Posted by: crosspatch   2007-05-03 14:01  

#15  center mass poem Em.
Posted by: RD   2007-05-03 13:51  

#14  crosspatch: while that might sound good on paper, in practice it would be self-defeating.

Zarqwari was more effective, to a great extent because he was well-known to his subordinates, and kept clear lines of command and communication open with them. His failing in that was by not having a well-known number 2, who while known, would stay hidden as chief of planning. Then his other lieutenants would be in operations.

When Zarqwari was killed, his number 2 would step into his place and maintain continuity.

That being said, a "paper" commander means that operations are decentralized and independent, which also means they have to be smaller scale, limited range and uncoordinated. It also reduces the secure communications networks.

In essence, it downgrades operations to local rather than regional scope.
Posted by: Anonymoose   2007-05-03 13:05  

#13  Does he get double the virgins if he's killed under two names?

If so than that would explain the rampant use of multiple pseudonyms.
Posted by: Abu do you love   2007-05-03 13:00  

#12  okay, time to pass out the chocolate eggs...
Posted by: Querent   2007-05-03 12:50  

#11  Henceforth rat traps will be set every night and checked every morning. Bait like children, calfs, ewes, and goats will not be used until deemed necessary.
Posted by: wxjames   2007-05-03 12:14  

#10  "We know there is a person calling himself al-Baghdadi"

Do we? Or do we know that there has been a personna of al Baghdadi that has been created. By creating a strawman personna you might keep forces busy attempting to track down a non-existent entity.
Posted by: crosspatch   2007-05-03 11:55  

#9  We're monitoring the Baghdad Craigslist job listings, just in case.
Posted by: Seafarious   2007-05-03 11:32  

#8  my head is spinning.

Ok, so we know for sure Jabouri is food for worms. Centcom says so.

We THINK Jabouri IS al Baghdadi, cause Iraq says so, and that would explain the confusion, and is not inconsistent with what centcom said.

But we DONT think weve gotten al-Masri, that was just confusion with Jabouri/albaghdadi?
Posted by: liberalhawk   2007-05-03 11:18  

#7  BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The U.S. military said on Thursday it had killed a top al Qaeda operative in Iraq whom it accused of involvement in the kidnapping of American journalist Jill Carroll, peace activist Tom Fox and other foreigners. U.S. military spokesman Major-General William Caldwell said Muharib Abdul Latif al-Jubouri was the "senior minister of information" for al Qaeda in Iraq.

Interior Ministry spokesman Brigadier-General Abdul-Kareem Khalaf said Jubouri was also Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, the leader of the self-styled Islamic State in Iraq, a Qaeda-led group which has claimed many major attacks in the country.

Iraqi officials had said Baghdadi was killed by Iraqi and U.S. forces north of the capital. They have also said Abu Ayyub al-Masri, the leader of al Qaeda in Iraq, was killed in a battle between insurgents north of Baghdad, also this week. "This is the individual I think has caused some of the recent confusion as to who was the senior person in the al Qaeda network who had been killed," Caldwell said, referring to Jubouri, adding his body had been identified through DNA tests. Al Qaeda figures are often known by more than one name.

Iraqi state television earlier broadcast images of the body of a man it identified as Baghdadi. The body lay inside a wooden coffin in a truck, its head badly swollen and bruised.
Posted by: Steve   2007-05-03 11:04  

#6  "All information and intelligence reports confirm the death of Abu Ayyub Al Masri the leader of Qaeda in Iraq in Niba'e on Tuesday," said Brig. Gen. Abdul Karim Khalaf, a spokesman for the interior ministry. "We have received sure and confirming reports on that and there is no doubt that the man killed was Al Masri."

It seems that every time Brig. Gen. Abdul Karim "Bullshit" Khalaf makes an announcement, it turns out to be faulty. Must be related to Baghdad Bob. Give it a week and see if Masri turns up dead or if the story quietly dies. I hope he's right this time.
Posted by: KBK   2007-05-03 10:50  

#5  More splodydopes gone to meet their raisins.
Posted by: DarthVader   2007-05-03 10:24  

#4  Yesss....how sad. Latif's life could've been spared, if only the Democratic Congress had been able to work its' will on the President's failed policy a little sooner.

We feel responsible, in a way, for Latif's death. We shall renew our efforts to make the President accountable, by forcing an end to Bush's War Without End™
Posted by: Harry and Nancy, arm in arm   2007-05-03 10:12  

#3  Operation Rat Trap. Heh.

Love to eat them mousies
Mousie's what I love to eat.
Bite they little heads off
Nibble on they tiny feet.

-- B. Kliban
Posted by: Seafarious   2007-05-03 10:05  

#2  "...Latif was identified as al-Qaeda in Iraq's senior information minister, responsible for crafting propaganda efforts."

Well maybe AlQ can hire Murtha, Kos, Firedoglake, etc. to take his place.
Posted by: mhw   2007-05-03 08:54  

#1  OK, here's Caldwells full statement:

Caldwell said al-Baghdadi's death could not be confirmed. "If that person even exists, again, we have nobody in our possession or know of anybody that does, alive or dead, that is going through any kind of testing or analysis at this point with respect to those two individuals," he said.

On Tuesday, officials reported that al-Masri, the head of al-Qaida in Iraq, had been killed by rivals north of Baghdad, but the body had not been recovered. Regarding al-Masri, Caldwell said "we in fact do not have in our possession nor do we know of anybody that has anybody or person at this time that we think is him." "His overall status whether he is dead or alive is actually unknown to us at this point," he added.

That's more like a official, very carefully worded statement.
Posted by: Steve   2007-05-03 08:45  

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