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Iraq
U.S. Military Rescues 41 Iraqis From Al Qaeda Prison
2007-05-27
No panties on the head, just torture and broken bones? Andrew Sullivan would be so proud of AQ.
Funny how Andy has been rather quiet about AQ torture manuals and prisons.
U.S. forces rescued 41 Iraqi civilians Sunday from an Al Qaeda hide-out northeast of Baghdad, including some who showed signs of torture and broken bones, a senior U.S. official said.

Maj. Gen. William Caldwell, the top U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad, said it was the largest number of detained Iraqis ever found in a single Al Qaeda hide-out. Some among the 41 had been held as long as four months, he said.

Details were incomplete, but Caldwell said some of the freed Iraqis were being transported to medical facilities for treatment of their injuries. There were no indications that Americans had been held at the hide-out, he said. It was not immediately clear whether any Al Qaeda figures were captured.

The discovery was unrelated to a search south of Baghdad for two missing U.S. soldiers.

U.S. forces previously have found a number of houses used by Al Qaeda for detention, including some where prisoners showed signs of torture. But the hide-out raided Sunday in Diyala province was the largest, Caldwell said in a telephone interview. He declined to be more specific about the location, citing security reasons.

Caldwell said a tip to U.S. forces from Iraqis in Diyala led to the rescue operation. "The people in Diyala are speaking up against Al Qaeda," he said. Caldwell said U.S. troops have been engaging more directly with Iraqi civilians in Diyala in recent weeks since an additional 3,000 U.S. troops entered the province.
Posted by:Frank G

#4  Media outrage over AQ prisoner abuses in ‡, ‡ +1, ‡ +2, ‡ +3 ...
Posted by: Zenster   2007-05-27 20:11  

#3  I would think that they are hostages to ensure that a free family member performs some behavior or service on a continuing basis.
Posted by: Super Hose   2007-05-27 13:05  

#2  Could this be how they create some of their suicide bombers, through torture and coercion?

More likely, they were being held for ransom, or believed to have spoken out against Al-Qaeda, or they're thought to be cooperating with the Americans or the Iraqi government. There are still enough brainwashed idiots they can recruit to be suicide bombers.
Posted by: Old Patriot   2007-05-27 13:00  

#1  Any idea why these Iraqis are being held by AlQ?
Could this be how they create some of their suicide bombers, through torture and coercion?
Posted by: Robjack   2007-05-27 11:35  

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