A senior Taliban commander who became a hero to Islamic militants for his role in shooting down a U.S. helicopter in 2005, killing all 16 special forces troops aboard, has been killed by Pakistani security forces, officials and Taliban militants tell CBS News.
Mullah Ismail, a notorious Taliban commander from the Afghan province of Kunar, was killed in a shootout with Pakistani police as he traveled with a kidnapped trader, a local police officer said Wednesday. He was apparently on his way into the lawless Northwest Frontier Province along the Afghan border.
Officer Mukarma Khan said Ismail, also known as Mullah Ahmad Shah, had kidnapped the trader from a camp for Afghan refugees in Pakistan and was trying to transport him back to the border when he failed to stop at the checkpoint. He apparently opened fire on the police and was killed in the following exchange of gunfire.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid confirmed the death of the key commander and said he was a prominent Taliban figure in the area.
Abdul Jalal Jalal, chief of police in Afghanistan's Kunar province, where Ismail was based, told CBS News that he was also aware about the militant's death in Pakistan. He described him as the "most wanted terrorist in Kunar province."
A Taliban sub-commander in Kunar province, who spoke on condition of anonymity, would not confirm the killing. But he told CBS News Ismail's death "would be a full-scale blow." He praised Ismail for the shooting down of the Chinook in 2005.
Ismail was also said to be a key facilitator of al Qaeda militants in the region - many of whom come from outside southeast Asia [sic] and do not speak the local languages. According to Taliban sources, Osama bin Laden personally honored Ismail's authority in the area after the Chinook attack in a letter sent through an intermediary.
Police chief Jalal said Ismail and the militants under his command were behind many attacks on NATO, U.S. and Afghan forces in the northeastern part of Afghanistan.
Ismail became a hero for al Qaeda and the Taliban after his group hit a U.S. Navy MH-47 Chinook helicopter in late June 2005, apparently with a shoulder-fired rocket. The helicopter was one of four aircraft ferrying special forces into the area on a reconnaissance mission.
It was considered a lucky shot from an inaccurate weapon; but it left eight Navy SEALs and eight Army air crew from the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment dead. Read report from June 30, 2005.
It was the deadliest single attack on U.S. troops in Afghanistan since the invasion to topple the Taliban in 2001.
The Chinook was shot down as it ferried troops into the region to search for four Navy SEALs who had gone missing in the area in late June. Three of the men were found dead, but one, who was wounded, managed to escape - read report from July 3, 2005 - to a local home, where he was hidden from the Taliban and eventually rescued by U.S. forces.
On Wednesday, Afghan shepherd Gulab Khan, who says he's the one who saved the life of the only surviving SEAL, told CBS News that Mullah Ismail attacked his village the day after the helicopter was shot down, searching for any survivors.
Khan said he protected the SEAL, but his actions brought death threats from Ismail and his militants, which prompted the shepherd to relocate his entire family to the provincial capital. He described Ismail as the most powerful militant in Kunar province.
(Xinhua) -- Some 25 members of the Egyptian opposition Muslim Brotherhood were sentenced on Tuesday by a military court to up to 10 years in jail, the Qatar-based the pan-Arab Al-Jazeera TV reported. Out of the 40 members of the outlawed Islamic group charged with belonging to a banned group and involvement in money laundering, 25 were ordered to be jailed for financing a banned organization, while the other 15 were acquitted, the report added.
Those who were sentenced to jail included the No. 3 of the Muslim Brotherhood Khayrat al-Shater, who got a seven-year jail sentence, while seven other members were given in absentia a 10-year imprison. Repeatedly delayed and issued by a military tribunal, the verdict came with no right for the convicted to appeal.
Officially banned in 1954 for its attempt to set up an Islamic government, the biggest Islamic opposition group in Egypt won 88 seats in 454-member lower house of parliament after its members ran as independents in the 2005 legislative elections. An Egyptian constitutional amendment adopted by a national referendum in late March 2007 prohibits the forming of any political party on a religious basis.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/16/2008 00:00 ||
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Egyptian security forces on Tuesday night were searching for a group of terrorists in Sinai who were planning to carry out a massive attack on one of the tourist resorts.
Terror alert declared in Sinai
The group is "armed and driving around in four pick-ups," AFP quoted a security official as saying. He added that security forces had bolstered checkpoints on roads in the north and south of the Sinai peninsula. "These people are suspected of planning terrorist attacks in the Sinai," the official said. Channel 10 said that a total of five terror cells were being searched for.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/16/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
'The group is "armed and driving around in four pick-ups," '
Why, he could just as easily be talking about any Pennsylvania good ol' boys on their way to church.
Yes, by all means, let's close Gitmo and bring them all here to stand trial.
After 12 difficult days of deliberations, a federal jury on Wednesday deadlocked in the second trial of a Miami group accused of plotting with al Qaeda to overthrow the United States an unprecedented outcome in the government's legal war on domestic terrorism since the Sept. 11 attacks.
''At this juncture it is clear to me this jury is unable to reach a verdict,'' U.S. District Judge Joan Lenard said in declaring a mistrial. The decision came after the jury's third note to the judge indicating the panel was unable to reach a verdict.
The judge set a status conference for April 23 for federal prosecutors to decide whether to try the six defendants for a third time.
''The United States will announce its position on this matter at that time,'' said Alicia Valle, special counsel to the U.S. attorney in Miami.
The mistrial came after the 12 jurors failed to reach a verdict on the four terror-related conspiracy charges against the six Liberty City defendants. The central charge was conspiring to provide ''material support'' to the global terrorist organization for plans to destroy Chicago's Sears Tower and federal government buildings.
The outcome, which was hinted at in the panel's first note issued Friday, was like the previous jury's verdict. In December, it deadlocked on the four charges against the six defendants and acquitted a seventh after nine days of deliberations.
On Wednesday morning, prosecutors urged the judge to make the jurors deliberate further. ''It just seems to me that it's a little premature to declare a mistrial,'' said Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacqueline Arango.
But defense lawyers, who moved for a mistrial, sharply disagreed. ''At this time, at this point, enough is enough,'' defense attorney Rod Vereen said, citing the jury's note saying it was deadlocked for the third time. ``I don't think it's going to be any clearer.''
Basra, Apr 16, (VOI)- Iraqi army forces on Wednesday arrested the tribes official at al-Sadrs office in Basra, and found dozens of bombs inside his house, an Iraqi army commander said.
Iraqi army forces waged a crackdown operation in al-Janena region in northern Basra in search for weapons and wanted men, the commander, who asked to be unnamed, told Aswat al-Iraq Voices of Iraq (VOI). A number of wanted men, including Muayad al-Abdi, tribes official at al-Sadrs office, were arrested after finding 51 bombs at his house, he added.
For his part, official at al-Sadrs office in Basra, Hareth al-Azari denied any connection between the tribes official and al-Mahdi army. Muayad al-Abdi, surnamed Abu Shaker, is not one of al-Mahdi army fighters but he is responsible for tribes affairs at al-Sadrs office, he explained.
Basra, Iraq's second largest city and oil hub, 590 km south of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, had witnessed immense security unrest a few hours after Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki announced Saulat al-Forsan (Knights Assault) to impose order in the province. Fierce battles occurred between security forces and armed groups believed to belong to Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi Army militias.
#3
Think these were those EFPs we hear so much about? Completed bombs seem to be an odd sort of stockpile to keep in your pad, unless they're actually some sort of *ordinance*.
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
04/16/2008 18:52 Comments ||
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#4
Point of information, for those of us who are ignorant: what is the difference nowadays between a bomb, an EFP and ordinance?
BASRA, Iraq (Reuters) - Iraq's government removed the top military and police commanders in Basra on Wednesday, weeks after a botched crackdown on militia fighters there triggered the country's worst fighting in months.
Iraqi army Lieutenant-General Mohan al-Furaiji and police Major-General Abdul-Jalil Khalaf were among the country's most senior commanders and were widely respected by U.S. and British military leaders.
Interior Ministry spokesman Major-General Abdul-Karim Khalaf, no relation to the Basra commander, said the two were recalled to senior staff positions in Baghdad as a "reward for their successful mission against the criminals in Basra".
U.S. military spokesman Major-General Kevin Bergner said he had seen reports that the men had been replaced but declined to comment further, saying: "The change in leadership is one that I would defer to the government of Iraq to further characterize."
The two commanders were dispatched to Basra last year and won enthusiastic praise from U.S. and British brass for battling militia and fighting infiltration of their forces. Both survived numerous assassination attempts.
But their fate was widely seen as sealed after the crackdown in March failed to dislodge militia fighters loyal to cleric Moqtada al-Sadr from the streets and triggered fighting that spread to other southern cities and Baghdad.
Last week Iraq fired 1,300 soldiers and police for failing to stand and fight during the crackdown. U.S. commander General David Petraeus told Congress the campaign's planning was "not satisfactory" and he had envisioned a more gradual operation.
The increase in violence and the crackdown's uncertain outcome have brought the war back to centre stage in the U.S. presidential election at a time when Washington is preparing to withdraw 20,000 troops over the next four months.
Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki personally oversaw the crackdown, and U.S. commanders say they were given just days notice. British press reports have said Mohan was one of those who had urged a slower approach like that sought by Petraeus.
RAIDS CONTINUE
Despite the failings of the initial operation, U.S. commanders have described the overall crackdown in Basra as a success, not least because Iraqi forces took the lead and rapidly dispatched 6,600 extra troops to the area.
"In Basra the Iraqi army forces in particular are finding improved support from the local citizens in terms of tips, in terms of their cooperation," Bergner said.
Iraqi forces have continued raids on suspected militiamen in Basra since the main fighting there ended, and scored a victory in the town on Monday, freeing a kidnapped British journalist when they stormed the house where he was being held.
U.S. or British forces also launched an air strike killing four militants who fired at Iraqi troops in Basra early on Wednesday, a British military spokesman said.
Major Tom Holloway said the aircraft fired a missile at a group of five gunmen carrying rocket-propelled grenades, killing four and wounding one. A second missile was fired at their vehicle, destroying it, he said.
He declined to identify the type of aircraft or say whether it was British or American. Both countries fly helicopters and fixed-wing planes in the area and have teams of spotters that can direct strikes from the ground.
Iraqi police said six people were killed and three wounded in the strike. Reuters television pictures from the scene showed a crater in the street and walls pock-marked with shrapnel.
"The message is clear. Those attacking the Iraqi Army and interfering with operations to bring security to the people of Basra will be targeted," Holloway said.
U.S. and British forces have launched air strikes in Basra several times over the past few weeks, usually in support of government troops or police.
#1
I know I'm no military man, but is firing those 2 high-ranking guys (of whom it sounds like the US/Brits think highly) a good idea? Especially when the whole thing was so poorly-planned in the first place. Doesn't seem like making a scapegoat out of competent commanders is a great idea, given their scarcity.
#2
Hmmm. Maybe the op went so poorly because they were holding back, and it was obvious? Maybe they didn't have the stomach for going up against their muzz brothers. That's a problem, because, if you can't shoot a bad guy just because he's a muzz, then you can't do anything about bad guys. Sort of defeats the purpose...
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
04/16/2008 14:04 Comments ||
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#3
I think the article is updated.
"But the Defence Ministry denied earlier comments that the top military commander in the southern city, Army Lieutenant-General Mohan al-Furaiji, had also been replaced.
"He is still in his job. He's leading the operations in Basra," Defence Ministry spokesman, Major-General Mohammed al-Askari, said of Furaiji."
#4
I heard that they had done a good job and so had been promoted from field commanders to general staff positions. The Iraqi Army would be short of command staff officers with combat experience. It looks like those two are on a fast-track for promotion to high ranks.
BAGHDAD A company of Iraqi soldiers abandoned their positions on Tuesday night in Sadr City, defying American soldiers who implored them to hold the line against Shiite militias. The retreat left a crucial stretch of road on the front lines undefended for hours and led to a tense series of exchanges between American soldiers and about 50 Iraqi troops who were fleeing.
Capt. Logan Veath, a company commander in the 25th Infantry Division, pleaded with the Iraqi major who was leading his troops away from the Sadr City fight, urging him to return to the front. If you turn around and go back up the street those soldiers will follow you, Captain Veath said. If you tuck tail and cowardly run away they will follow up that way, too.
Captain Veaths pleas failed, and senior American and Iraqi commanders mounted an urgent effort to regain the lost ground. An elite Iraqi unit was rushed in and with the support of the Americans began to fight its way north.
This episode was a blow to the American effort to push the Iraqis into the lead in the struggle to wrest control of parts of Sadr City from the Mahdi Army militia and what Americans and Iraqis say are Iranian-backed groups. That approach was intended to build up the Iraqi militarys fighting capacity and put an Iraqi face on the operation in Sadr City, which is occurring in a Baghdad bastion of support for Moktada al-Sadr, the anti-American cleric. Two weeks ago, more than 1,000 Iraqi soldiers deserted their posts during the fight against militias in Basra.
Tuesdays desertions in Sadr City, although involving a particularly hesitant Iraqi unit, left many of the Americans soldiers wondering about the tenacity of their Iraqi allies.
It bugs the hell out of me, said Sgt. George Lewis, Captain Veaths platoon sergeant in Company B, Third Platoon, First Battalion, 14th Infantry Regiment. We dont see any progress being made at all. We hear these guys in firefights. We know if we are not up there helping these guys out we are making very little progress.
Company B moved into Sadr City at the end of March as part of a broader effort to secure the southernmost portion of the densely populated Sadr City. That area has been used by militias to fire 107-millimeter rockets toward the Green Zone. The Americans mission is to stop the rocket firings and help the Iraqi government establish a modicum of control.
Some Iraqi soldiers have fought hard. American soldiers have been regularly coaching them on how to protect their patrol bases, conserve ammunition and evacuate their wounded.
One big problem is that the Iraqi troops have responded to militia gunfire with such intense fusillades that the soldiers have endangered civilians, American soldiers and even their own forces. The barrage of Iraqi Army fire has become such a regular occurrence that some American soldiers are worried that militia fighters have tried to insert themselves between nearby Iraqi units to induce the Iraqi soldiers to fire on one another.
In a recent visit to the Iraqi forward position, First Sgt. Martin Angulo of Company B sought to coach the Iraqis on how to use their newly acquired M-16s to direct precision fire at a militia sniper who had been tormenting the Iraqi forces from an alleyway.
The problem on Tuesday, however, was more serious: an Iraqi retreat that left a gaping hole in the most forward position on a critical thoroughfare in the Tharwa section of Sadr City.
The episode began when Major Sattar, the leader of an Iraqi company that had taken up positions 700 yards in front of the Americans, suddenly appeared at Company Bs field headquarters in the southern part of Sadr City. The majors company had replaced a more battle-hardened Iraqi unit just two days earlier, and he had been unhappy to find that he would be occupying a position to the front of the better trained and equipped Americans.
Every house in Sadr City probably has one of their sons in the Mahdi Army, he observed when American soldiers visited his position on Monday. So it is hard to convince people to believe in the Iraqi Army.
When he arrived at the Americans position on Tuesday, the Iraqi officer reported that many of his soldiers had taken off their uniforms and deserted after other Iraqi Army commanders failed to send reinforcements during a gun battle with militias that he said had lasted several hours.
Major Sattar calmly explained that he was leading the remainder of his 80-man company away from the fight. As if to underscore the point, a convoy of Iraqi vehicles piled high with furniture was parked in front of the American position. Abandoning the stronghold, however, would allow the militias to move in again and seed the road with roadside bombs. Other Iraqi units had stood their ground through several long firefights, and Captain Veath was surprised that the majors unit was leaving after holding off another militia attack.
You went through a whole battle and are now removing yourself? Captain Veath asked incredulously. Are any of your men dead?
Major Sattar acknowledged that his unit had several wounded but none killed. But he and other Iraqi soldiers insisted that they were poorly equipped to battle the militias. Iraqi forces, they said, were short of ammunition, had only a few armored vehicles and were up against militia fighters they said were equipped and trained by the Iranians.
We are not afraid, the major responded. He also complained that he had no means to communicate directly with the American troops.
That is an excuse, and you know it, Captain Veath shot back. He argued that one of the majors platoons was situated just 100 yards from some of the American Stryker vehicles and that the two sides had agreed that the Iraqis could send a runner over to the vehicles to ask for help if necessary.
The Iraqi commander returned to his convoy and Captain Veath followed, promising a Stryker escort if the Iraqi soldiers would only return to their positions.
Dozens of excited Iraqi soldiers began to join in the discussion. As tempers flared and voices rose, Sergeant Angulo ordered the companys soldiers to stay close to Captain Veath.
The Iraqi convoy drove off, and the Americans began to scramble to find a new Iraqi unit to plug the gap. Senior Iraqi commanders hurried to the scene and a special Iraqi reconnaissance unit was ordered to advance up the road. With the help of an American bomb-clearing unit, Stryker vehicles and attack helicopters, the Iraqis rumbled north, spraying rounds as they went. According to the last reports monitored by Company B, the Iraqis were stopped short by several roadside bombs, and planned to resume the push in daylight.
The furious Iraqi fire on their drive toward the abandoned base endangered the American soldiers who were bringing supplies to one of their platoons, and an American officer issued a plea over the tactical radio.
They are lighting up everything, he said. Tell them to knock it off.
#1
The episode began when Major Sattar, the leader of an Iraqi company that had taken up positions 700 yards in front of the Americans, suddenly appeared at Company Bs field headquarters in the southern part of Sadr City.
The majors company had replaced a more battle-hardened Iraqi unit just two days earlier, and he had been unhappy to find that he would be occupying a position to the front of the better trained and equipped Americans.
Every house in Sadr City probably has one of their sons in the Mahdi Army, he observed when American soldiers visited his position on Monday. So it is hard to convince people to believe in the Iraqi Army.
When he arrived at the Americans position on Tuesday, the Iraqi officer reported that many of his soldiers had taken off their uniforms and deserted after other Iraqi Army commanders failed to send reinforcements during a gun battle with militias that he said had lasted several hours.
Major Sattar calmly explained that he was leading the remainder of his 80-man company away from the fight. As if to underscore the point, a convoy of Iraqi vehicles piled high with furniture was parked in front of the American position.
The Sattar family is a very inportant family in Anbar. They took the point in the Anbar Awakening, and Sheik Sattar was murdered by al Qaeda just days after he shook hands with President Bush.
Now there may be many branches of Clan Sattar, but this may not bode well.
#2
Yes, this could be bad, but it could be just one more example of someone who is not an effective leader and should be relieved or retrained. The IA is not going to get better without hiccups. There are still significant weaknesses within it. These things are going to happen. It is the frequency of their occurrence and the response to the occurrences that matter. We shall see.
#5
Like Petraeus said, you can train up foot soldiers quickly, developing leaders isnt so fast - clearly there is still weakness in the mid level officers.
OTOH other Iraqi units involved in that incident seem to have performed better, even according to the NYT article itself.
#7
NYSlimes ONE Iraqi company led by a 'Major' putz, an Iraqi officer who never should have been promoted.
I wouldn't draw too much from this except for the FACT that the NYslimes has seldom praised the millions of shinning hours, units, Iraqi soldiers, American Marines, Soldiers, Navy Personal, Air Force personal, Coast guard Personal [all heros] or anything positive about the entire mission in Iraq.
wild speculation:
It's entirely possible that locally the line of command MAY NOT have gone thru a Combined Command and Control Chain, so that this Iraqi company wasn't directally under any American Officers control?
Or maybe Major Sattar was the Iraqi Chain element in the Combined Command and Control unit?
#8
There is also the possibility of the Posse Comitatus problem. That is, it is always easier to get an army to shoot at an invading enemy than it is to get them to shoot "at their own kind". This is true whether it is Iraq or Tennessee.
This is why it is a rule of thumb that if you have to send in the military, you send the military from some other part of the country.
IF the Sunni political Blocks, Kurdish political Blocks and the Shia political blocks can do the friggin CASH MATH and simutaniously do the friggin bad neighborhood DARWIN SURVIVAL MATH then perhaps for the sake of *LIVING & CASH UNITY* Iraqis can cut up the CASH together and SURVIVE together.
/oh damn it, there's that Western Logic getting in my way again! sheech...
#4
The captured guys are not POWs. They are irregular combatants that are not part of a recognized army, working for an independent actor inside of a sovereign nation. They are rightly called criminals. POW is a term that they do not deserve.
Posted by: Peter ||
04/16/2008 8:32 Comments ||
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#5
The problem with rushed jobs is the virgin quality isn't up to what mohammed promised.
Posted by: ed ||
04/16/2008 8:37 Comments ||
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#6
I think there were also a huge number of Mahdi forces which, in effect, left their Mahdi "units" and also left the field of battle.
Although the MSM concentrated on the non performing ISF forces, the non performing Mahdi forces were also, no doubt, significant (although I saw nothing in the WaPo or NYT about that.
Sadr and his political movement have become increasingly isolated since the fighting began in Basrah, Baghdad, and the South. The Iraqi government, with the support of the political parties, said the Sadrist political movement would not be able to participate in upcoming provincial elections if it failed to disband the Mahdi Army. On April 13, the cabinet approved legislation that prevents political parties with militias from contesting provincial elections this year. The bill will now be sent to parliament for approval. Grand Ayatollah Ali al Sistani, the senior most Shia cleric in Iraq, said the Mahdi Army was not above the law and should be disarmed.
#10
One of the best things about this is that it gave the Iraqi Army and Police a chance to let the Mahdi moles in their midst identify themselves and be purged. The fact that the unreliable elements of the police and army that did not fight has been basically ignored by the MSM, except for the mention that Sadr demanded they be rehired. Now he will have to pay them.
#13
Read Roggio's column in the Weekly Standard. That gives a much clearer overall view. If this keeps up, we're in very good position as far as "standing up" the Iraqi Army is concerned. According to Roggio (and Yon, and Totten) there has been a tremendous improvement in less than a year. That's damned good news. As for the car bombs and suicide bomber of yesterday, they're tragic. They also sound like the last throes of a dying snake. Look at what the OAS did in its last months in Algeria before the French pulled out. It's the same thing.
Posted by: Thaimble Scourge of the Pixies4707 ||
04/16/2008 17:09 Comments ||
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Car bombs and a suicide attacker struck crowded areas in Baghdad and former insurgent strongholds to the north and west of the capital Tuesday, killing nearly 60 people and breaking a recent lull in violence in the predominantly Sunni areas. The attacks were a deadly reminder of the threat posed by suspected Sunni insurgents even as clashes between Shiite militia fighters and U.S.-Iraqi forces continued elsewhere.
The U.S. military condemned the bombings and said they appeared to have been carried out by al-Qaida in Iraq.
The first blast occurred in Baqouba, 35 miles northeast of Baghdad, when a car parked in front of a restaurant exploded just before noon across the street from the central courthouse and other government offices.
One survivor described a huge fire that sent black smoke billowing into the sky and left charred bodies inside their cars. "I was on my way to the government office when a big explosion occurred nearby," said the witness, who would only identify himself by his nickname Abu Ali. "As I approached the site, I saw cars on fire, burned bodies and damaged shops damaged with shattered glass everywhere."
At least 40 people were killed and 70 wounded in the blast, according to hospital officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to release the information.
AP Television News footage showed many of the bodies covered in crisp white sheets in the main hospital's courtyard while the emergency room inside was overwhelmed with the wounded.
The U.S. military in northern Iraq gave a slightly lower toll, saying 35 Iraqi citizens were killed, including a policeman, and 66 wounded in the attack. It was the deadliest bombing in Iraq since March 6 when a twin bombing killed 68 people in a crowded shopping district in the central Baghdad district of Karradah.
A suicide attacker on a motorcycle later drove up to a kebab restaurant in Ramadi and detonated his explosives vest around 12:30 p.m., killing at least 13 people including three policemen and wounding 20 other people, police Capt. Abu Saif al-Anbari said. Hospital officials said two children were among the dead. Police initially thought a parked car had exploded in the industrial area but later determined it was a suicide attack, al-Anbari said.
Ahmed al-Dulaimi, a 27-year-old mechanic, was at the restaurant when the blast occurred but escaped injury because he was sitting at a back table. He said his cousin, who owned the restaurant, had been killed. "Pieces of flesh flew into the air and the roof fell over us. I saw the horrible sight of bodies without heads or without legs or hands," he said.
Ramadi, 70 miles west of Baghdad, is the capital of Anbar province and has largely been sealed off by checkpoints. Like Baqouba, the area has seen a sharp decline in violence in recent months as Sunni tribal leaders have joined forces with the Americans against al-Qaida in Iraq. The U.S. military said overall attacks in Diyala province have dropped more than 76 percent since June 2007.
"Although attacks such as today's event are tragic, it is not indicative of the overall security situation in Baqouba," Maj. Mike Garcia, a spokesman for U.S. forces in Diyala, said in a statement.
A parked car bomb also targeted a police patrol in central Baghdad, killing four civilians who were passing by and wounding 15 other people, police said.
Elsewhere in northern Iraq, a double car bombing in Mosul wounded three Iraqi policemen and 15 civilians, the U.S. military said. Mosul is considered one of the last urban strongholds for al-Qaida in Iraq and the American and Iraqi militaries have promised a security crackdown.
The relative calm in predominantly Sunni areas has coincided with clashes between Shiite militia fighters and U.S.-Iraqi forces in Baghdad and the oil-rich southern city of Basra. But while the Bush administration has begun citing what it calls Iranian-backed Shiite factions as the greatest threat to Iraq's stability, American commanders have consistently warned that al-Qaida-led insurgents continue to pose a serious danger.
In other violence Tuesday, U.S. soldiers backed by an airstrike killed six militants during clashes in the Sudayrah area near Baghdad's main Shiite militia stronghold of Sadr City, the military said. Iraqi police in the area claimed that two boys were among those killed in the airstrike, but the military said no civilian casualties were reported.
Lt. Col. Steve Stover said separately that American troops killed four militants who fired rocket-propelled grenades at a tank elsewhere in the area.
Clashes also broke out later Tuesday in Sadr City, leaving four militiamen killed and 15 others wounded, Iraqi police and hospital officials said.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/16/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
Nope...had to be the Mericans, or there evil Jew proxies. muslims don't kill muslims.
#2
It's a quagmire, I tellya. First the Sunnis hate us, then the Shiites, then al Qaeda - it a war without end!
Posted by: Moonbat Bobby ||
04/16/2008 6:42 Comments ||
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#3
Only if AQI can maintain a level of untargetted carnage like this for a week or more will they have a chance to re-cow the people of the neighborhoods. Tragic as this is, I suspect the populace will consider it as isolated events rather than a new trend at a couple of events per week.
#10
what I'm asking is if 9-11 (which killed so many thousands of our citizens) was a justifiable reason to invade Iraq and become responsible for so much carnage. We could've shut down our borders and denied access to Arabic states that sponsor terrorism (including Saudi Arabia). We had alternatives. Everybody here appears to sincerely believe we're doing the right thing in Iraq and that's fine but nobody seems to be challenging the idea that this might've been a really bad idea. When Japan bombed us it was different. They were a hostile soveriegn nation and they should've expected a response. But Atta and his people were criminals. They represented no nation. So we attack people who had nothing to do with 9-11? Think about it people. It's nothing you haven't heard or know personally about but the jokes I read and the general attitude on this website is one of total disregard for the American ideal of justice. We have not been just in this war and it's not going to affect us so much as our grandchildren as the United States will be marginalized and dismissed as another totalitarian and oppressive "has been" tough guy that gets smacked down by an up and coming people who really know what justice is. I don't know who those people are and I don't know when it's coming but I'm sure RD and Pappy's snappy comments will dry up and be replaced with tears.
#14
seriously though, I know some very dedicated Americans are on this website and I respect that but I'd like to exercise the freedom we have (and I fought for) to tell it like it is for a change.
#15
I don't know who those people are and I don't know when it's coming but I'm sure RD and Pappy's snappy comments will dry up and be replaced with tears.
If I cry Ebbuns, it won't be for you girl or your through and through ignorance.
#16
Ebbuns, and you'll have to earn some respect here at Rantburg before you can expect much conversation or exchange of ideas with myself and others here. toodles ima off for some chores...
#17
troll-boy, we chew at OUR convenience. I'm kinda busy, and have no time for minor illiterates in denial.
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/16/2008 20:53 Comments ||
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#18
Ebbuns the Galactic Hero6011 dear, given that we can't keep somewhere between twelve and twenty million illegal aliens from coming across our northern and southern borders, and legal visitors from overstaying their visas for decades, how were we to, as you put it, "shut down our borders and denied access to Arabic states that sponsor terrorism (including Saudi Arabia)"? We couldn't of course. The closest we were able to do was require male Muslim non-citizens to demonstrate they were in the country legally after 9/11, which resulted only in a large number of Pakistani families suddenly moving to Canada, doing nothing to stop the only-slightly reduced flow of Saudi lads coming here to get engineering degrees.
As for your other argument, about Mohammed Atta and his crew being non-state actors. The jihadi terror groups were and still are funded and trained by the rulers of Middle Eastern Muslim countries, plus Pakistan. Specifically, Afghanistan openly hosted the headquarters of Osama bin Laden's branch of Al Qaeda and was ruled by the Pakistan-trained and -funded Taliban. In 2003, Saddam Hussein's Iraq was the number one financier and trainer of Muslim and Arab terror groups, Iran was number two (now moved up to #1, and still hosting another branch of the Al Qaeda leadership, including Osama bin Laden's favourite son), Saudi Arabia was the number three funder (both several Saudi princes and private Saudi donors). Those who knowingly host and support such non-state actors must take responsibility for the fact that the actors do as they were trained. Thus it is entirely fair that we wage war against a country that hosted, trained and financially supported those who attacked or worked toward attacking our citizens, just as we were justified in waging war against Japan after they openly attacked at Pearl Harbor.
According to Pappy, you are a regular reader here. So you know that these particular questions are bloody nonsense, or if you don't it's because of a steadfast refusal to pay attention to events outside your skull. Do try to be a little less disingenuous next time you post. Especially that foolish bit about the truth -- something you seem a bit distant from at the moment.
#19
I don't know who those people are and I don't know when it's coming but I'm sure RD and Pappy's snappy comments will dry up and be replaced with tears.
I don't do 'snappy' comments. As for "tears": You have no clue who I am, what I've done, or what I do now. Do not presume anything - repeat, anything on my part. Do you understand?
I'd like to exercise the freedom we have (and I fought for) to tell it like it is for a change
That's what blogs are for. Especially if you start your own.
With the tack you've taken here, you've already lost any chance of having any kind of reasonable discussion, or contribute anything of value except that of a chew-toy.
No they aren't. They committed an act of war. There in lies th huge disconnect moonbats like you subscribe. End of story and relevance of your argument.
Ah. Ye Olde "Mysterious Circumstances"...
On Wednesday morning, 16 April 2008, Ahmed Mohammed Awadh, 18, an activist of the al-Quds Brigades (the armed wing of Islamic Jiahd), was killed by a gunshot in mysterious circumstances in Rafah. Uh-huh. Sounds like something right out of the X-Files I'm sure. Aliens came down and shot Ahmed in the chest. With his own rifle...
According to investigations conducted by PCHR, at approximately 01:30 on Wednesday, the body of Ahmed Mohammed Awadh was bought to Martyr Mohammed Yousef al-Najjar Hospital in Rafah. The body was transferred to the forensic medicine department at the Ministry of Health. According to medical sources, Awadh was hit by a gunshot to the chest. Circumstances of his death are still unknown. Geez, Quince. Think it might have something to do with that gunshot wound to the chest?
The al-Quds Brigades issued a statement mourning Awadh, who was killed during a Jihad mission in Rafah, according to the statement. How do ya wanna handle it, sarge?
Jihad mission. There's a box you can check off. Right there.
Palestinian police are exchanging gunfire with a group of escaped gunmen, chasing them through the streets of Nablus in the West Bank. Police are ordering residents to stay indoors. The group of 14 gunmen escaped from jail by breaking down the doors to their cells 10 days ago. They say they broke out because a promised amnesty from Israel didn't come through.
Four bystanders were seriously wounded in the exchanges of fire on Tuesday, hospital officials said.
Palestinian police said they deployed more than 100 officers to catch the fugitives. The escaped gunmen are members of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/16/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
Keystone Kops would be embarassed.
Posted by: steven ||
04/16/2008 0:50 Comments ||
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#2
Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades
You'd figure they'd live up to their name and shoot it out, instead of running.
Armed Palestinians on Tuesday blew a tunnel filled with explosives next to IDF troops operating in the Deir el-Balah refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip. No IDF soldiers were wounded.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/16/2008 00:00 ||
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The Islamic Jihad commander in northern Gaza was killed late Tuesday when an Israeli aircraft fired a missile at a motorcycle, Palestinians said. The group identified the dead man as Mohammed Ghausain. It said he was hit while delivering pizzas riding his motorcycle in the Jabalya refugee camp. The IDF confirmed it carried out the attack.
Earlier Tuesday, IDF troops came under heavy artillery fire from armed Palestinians in Gaza, during counter-terror operations. The Givati Brigade and Army Corps, who were operating since Tuesday morning in the Kissufim area, fired at a Kassam launching cell, identifying a hit, the IDF said. Palestinian gunmen responded by firing anti-tank missiles at the troops. The army said that IDF soldiers shot several armed Palestinians in the ensuing battle.
In addition, an Israeli home was hit as Kibbutz Ein Hashlosha, near the Gaza border came under heavy mortar fire. No one was wounded, but the roof sustained mild damage.
This article starring:
Mohammed Ghausain
Islamic Jihad
Posted by: Fred ||
04/16/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
Another islamic "leader" gets his 72 Virginians.
Two Muslim men have been shot dead in separate attacks by suspected terrorists rebels in Thailand's jihad insurgency-hit south, police said on Wednesday. A 60-year-old village chief was shot dead in a rubber plantation early Wednesday in Narathiwat province, police said, while his 48-year-old wife was seriously injured. In the same province late on Tuesday, a 42-year-old villager was killed in a drive-by shooting and his 14-year-old son was wounded.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
A senior Taliban commander who became a hero to Islamic militants for his role in shooting down a U.S. helicopter in 2005, killing all 16 special forces troops aboard, has been killed by Pakistani security forces, officials and Taliban militants tell CBS News.
(Xinhua) -- Some 25 members of the Egyptian opposition Muslim Brotherhood were sentenced on Tuesday by a military court to up to 10 years in jail, the Qatar-based the pan-Arab Al-Jazeera TV reported. Out of the 40 members of the outlawed Islamic group charged with belonging to a banned group and involvement in money laundering, 25 were ordered to be jailed for financing a banned organization, while the other 15 were acquitted, the report added. 
Basra, Apr 16, (VOI)- Iraqi army forces on Wednesday arrested the tribes official at al-Sadrs office in Basra, and found dozens of bombs inside his house, an Iraqi army commander said.
BASRA, Iraq (Reuters) - Iraq's government removed the top military and police commanders in Basra on Wednesday, weeks after a botched crackdown on militia fighters there triggered the country's worst fighting in months.
Car bombs and a suicide attacker struck crowded areas in Baghdad and former insurgent strongholds to the north and west of the capital Tuesday, killing nearly 60 people and breaking a recent lull in violence in the predominantly Sunni areas. The attacks were a deadly reminder of the threat posed by suspected Sunni insurgents even as clashes between Shiite militia fighters and U.S.-Iraqi forces continued elsewhere.
The Islamic Jihad commander in northern Gaza was killed late Tuesday when an Israeli aircraft fired a missile at a motorcycle, Palestinians said. The group identified the dead man as 
