Good News From The War On Terror 10/11

Update:  Killed terrorists responsible for Imam’s assassination are positively identified

BAGHDAD, Iraq – Three of the al-Qaeda in Iraq members killed in a Coalition air strike Wednesday following their assassination of a local Imam have been identified as Abu Rami, Ammar Fadhil Kadhim and Fadil Salman, who is also known as Abu Ra’ad. Coalition forces killed the three terrorists and ten other criminals west of Baghdad while conducting operations in the area to further disrupt al-Qaeda in Iraq activities. Intelligence reports indicated that, on Wednesday morning, an assassination team, led by Ra’ad, attacked and killed Abu Bilal. Bilal was an Imam who had been preaching anti-al-Qaeda messages in the local mosque. Intelligence revealed that the assassination team emplaced four improvised explosive devices in and around Abu Bilal’s house. One of the IEDs detonated awakening neighbors sleeping on the roof of the adjacent building. The terrorists also engaged the neighbors by firing a rocket propelled grenade at their house. The attackers then entered Bilal’s house, executed him and wounded his wife. Bilal’s nephew was also present and was able to engage and kill two of the terrorists before they fled the scene.  Following the attack, Coalition surveillance elements positively identified the attackers as they gathered in a field in the vicinity of the attack. Supporting aircraft engaged the armed men, killing 10 terrorists. As the ground force secured the area, they discovered three additional armed men. Supporting aircraft engaged, killing the three terrorists, one of whom was wearing a suicide vest. All three identified terrorists were known and feared by the locals in the area. Kadhim was a senior al-Qaeda figure in the Abu Ghuraiyb district and is known to have killed both women and children. Numerous weapons and a suicide belt were found among the group of dead terrorists following the air strike.

 

Multiple caches in western Nineveh

TAL’AFAR, Iraq – Soldiers from the 3rd Iraqi Army Division discovered several weapons caches and detained six suspected enemy fighters, Oct. 8, while conducting multiple missions near Tal’Afar and Sinjar. “The 3rd Iraqi Army Division has proven itself very capable in controlling a very large battlespace that encompasses the Tal’Afar and Sinjar regionsof western Nineveh province,” said Maj. Roderick Cunningham, spokesperson for the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division. “They are effectively capturing and killing the enemy and removing their weapons caches, making it harder for the enemy to operate in the sector.” 3rd Brigade, 3rd IA Division, working closely with the Sinjar Special Weapons and Tactics police (SWAT) made the first discovery during a morning raid near the insurgent-heavy Marzoogah Al Tar area, where they captured six suspected improvised explosive device-makers. They seized over 1,000 14.3 mm anti-aircraft rounds of ammunition, a PKC machine gun, 10 anti-tank mines, 1,000 feet of electrical wire, a 2,000-foot spool of copper wire, multiple blasting caps and assorted IED-making components to include a 3-gallon sized bag of Magnesium turnings during the operation. Several artillery rounds were also found that were being made into IEDs. 2nd Brigade Soldiers from 3rd IA Division made the second discovery during the evening in an abandoned house, north of Alo village near Tal’Afar. The same area had been the site of several cache discoveries in the past few weeks. A fully-functional IED was found as well as over three dozen 60mm mortar rounds with a launcher, several AK-47 assault rifles with 55 magazines and four rocketpropelled grenade launchers with rockets. An assortment of Jihadist propaganda material was also discovered. Iraqi explosive ordnance disposal specialists destroyed all of the accumulated munitions from both caches. The house where the second cache was discovered was to be destroyed to prevent further use by enemy fighters. The cache of anti-aircraft rounds and anti-tank mines, discovered by the 3rd Brigade, 3rd Iraqi Army Division soldiers, working with the Sinjar SWAT team, and discovered during a morning raid near the insurgent-heavy Marzoogah Al Tar area Oct. 8, is counted during an inventory. Some of the over 40 mortar rounds, discovered by 2nd Brigade, 3rd Iraqi Army Division soldiers in an abandoned house, north of Alo village near Tal’Afar Oct. 8, are prepared for demolition.

 

Concerned citizens detain insurgents

FORWARD OPERATING BASE KALSU, Iraq – Concerned citizens brought three insurgents to Coalition Forces conducting operations in Arab Jabour Oct 9. The concerned citizens identified the detainees as members of al-Qaeda involved in terrorist activities. Soldiers of Company D, 1st Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, were conducting a picket line - stationary security vehicles used to provide over-watch on roads used by Coalition Forces – when the concerned citizens approached them. The three detainees were taken by the Soldiers for questioning.

 

Operation nets 10, destroys two boobytrapped houses

FORWARD OPERATING BASE KALSU, Iraq – Two booby-trapped houses were destroyed and 10 suspected insurgents were detained during an operation in Adwaniyah Oct. 9. Once the area was cleared of civilians, the homes were destroyed with two Hellfire missiles and two Excalibur rounds fired from attack helicopters. Scenes show all four rounds impacting both houses.