Middle East News
Al-Qaeda leaders escape before US offensive in Iraq (Roundup)
Jun 23, 2007, 16:55 GMT
Baghdad - Regional leaders of the al-Qaeda terror network apparently escaped before an ongoing US offensive began earlier this week in the central Iraqi province of Diyala, US military officials said Saturday.
Around 80 per cent of the terrorist network's leadership had spread out, the commander of the US corps in Iraq, General Ray Odierno, said in a video conference.
'They knew that this operation would come, they watched the news. They knew that we would raid,' he said.
Meanwhile, seven US soldiers were killed Saturday in bomb attacks on their patrols and vehicles in Iraq.
Around 10,000 US and Iraqi soldiers have been waging an offensive against insurgents and al-Qaeda cells in provinces north of Baghdad since last Tuesday.
Sunni insurgents and extremists could establish new strongholds in the ethnically mixed region, which is also characterized by different religions, after the US military concentrated all its forces in Baghdad in February thereby neglecting other parts of Iraq.
Iraqi media reported Saturday bitter resistance by al-Qaeda fighters in the provincial city of Baquba, 60 kilometres north of Baghdad.
US forces advancing towards the city's Chatun district came across torture chambers run by al-Qaeda elements, reports said. Knives, saws and blood stains attested to the torture carried out by the al-Qaeda.
The US troops also found 45 boilers filled with explosives in a house nearby, as well as other materials for manufacturing bombs and several computers.
Meanwhile, four US soldiers were killed Saturday during operations north-west of Baghdad when their vehicle drove over a mine planted by insurgents, the US military command said in Baghdad.
Two US soldiers were killed Saturday in Baghdad and one was also killed in Tikrit, 180 kilometres north of the capital, in similar attacks. A British soldier succumbed early Saturday to wounds sustained during a bomb attack on his patrol Friday.
Elsewhere in Iraq, unknown armed men disguised as police and operating a bogus checkpoint in the southern Iraqi province of Karbala province, killed six civilians Saturday including a member of the local administrative council, the independent Voices of Iraq news agency reported.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-AgenturCOMMENT
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BAGHDAD -- The U.S. general commanding troops battling to clear fighters serving with Al Qaeda from Baqouba said Friday that 80 percent of the organization's top leaders in the city fled before the American-led offensive began earlier this week, just as Al Qaeda leadership fled Fallujah ahead of the offensive that recaptured that city in 2004.
Many citizens of Diyala doubt very much that the US offensive in their region is serious at all. The Qaeda heads fled long time before the arrival of the troops. Moreover, the US seems to want to re-establish Baathist control proper. It is really ironic if not funny. Why did you go into the trouble of invading Iraq to remove the Saddam Baathist regime in the first place, only to re-install remnants of the same regime again four years later?
Same story in Baghdad can be heard in Baghdad Surge. Western neighborhoods starting from Mansour, Yarmouk, Dawoodi, Jamiaa, Adil, Ghazzaliya, and Amiriyah, have been handed by the US to Baathist and other insurgents as part of a covert agreement to divide Baghdad.
Thousands of families who have evicted by Baathist thugs from these areas say that they have given up reclaiming their homes anytime in the near future.
They say that the Maliki government has no real authority. Only the Americans have any clout and the Americans now are cooperating openly with the insurgents. The so called insurgents now are openly in control and rule West Baghdad.
The major achievement of the US is Iraq is to divide the country on sectarian and ethnic grounds.
To gauge the scale of the achievement it suffices to say that Baghdad has always been mixed since its establishment some 1300 years ago.
Just one reason after another why the U.S. needs to scale down and get out. They don't comprehend the Iraqi thinking and never will. It can't be changed!
America will not get out of Iraq before arming a strong Baathist contingency which will bid to regain power with the blessing of the Americans.
The blood of so far some 3500 Americans would have been all spilled in vain with the clock re-winded back to before March 2003.
Iraqi doubting the US Jun 23rd, 2007 - 18:56:42
'Many citizens of Diyala doubt very much that the US offensive in their region is serious at all.'
How is that oil bill coming? How is the Iraqi police force coming?
'The Qaeda heads fled long time before the arrival of the troops.'
They were probably warned by someone in your government.
'Moreover, the US seems to want to re-establish Baathist control proper.'
Since everyone else seems to be failing or whining on the internet the Iraqis are not leaving us with a lot of choice.
'It is really ironic if not funny. Why did you go into the trouble of invading Iraq to remove the Saddam Baathist regime in the first place, only to re-install remnants of the same regime again four years later'
What is ironic is that some Iraqis seem to be willing to fight as long as it is American blood being shed. They need to get off their ass and take advantage of this dwindling opportunity that is going away every day. It is compromise or have civil war. If that is the case the rest of the region is going to make sure Iran does not come out on top of the coming conflict.
'America will not get out of Iraq before arming a strong Baathist contingency which will bid to regain power with the blessing of the Americans.'
HOW IS THAT OIL BILL COMING? HOW IS THE POLICE FORCE COMING? WHY ARE YOU NOT HELPING TO GET POWER AND WATER TO ALL THE NEIGHBORHOODS IN BAGHDAD? WHY ARE YOU JUST WHINING ON THE INTERNET?
“Despite intelligence checks, there is concern that some of the Brigades men (Baathist insurgents”, or people close to them, tipped al-Qaida to the coming offense. Odierno said 80 percent of al-Qaida leaders managed to flee the city before American soldiers stormed into Baqouba before sunrise Tuesday.”
The above is from an article in your Washington Post today. So they were not warned by government officials as you claim.
There is no effective government in Iraq because the Americans chose a faulty political process based on sectarianism and ethnicity as everyone knows.
It will not help your moral argument, now that you have made a mess of a country that was no threat to you, to shift the moral responsibility of the disaster to some one else.
Tel me for God sake why are you cooperating with the very Baathist thugs that were few weeks ago killing your own soldiers? Or is it the case that American politics has no limits to how low it can get?
“What is ironic is that some Iraqis seem to be willing to fight as long as it is American blood being shed.”
Memory is so short for some people. The Iraqi army was dissolved by Bremmer. The new army to be built was exclusively under the control of the US. The new army whose supplies and weapons is under the exclusive control of the US has no heavy weaponry to speak of. In fact the insurgents are vastly better armed.
As everyone knows it is all politics.
The US it seems does does not trust the Shia Arabs despite them forming a majority in Iraq. In other words the Shia out witted the Americans in volunteering in large numbers in the new police and Army.
The Americans are reverting to their old policies without any remorse, forming alliances with the Baathists as in the days of Saddam. They are now openly cooperating with the insurgents so long as the latter do not attack the Americans. It is fine if they kill Shia civilians and uproot them from Sunni areas so long as they do not bother the Americans and so long as they do not cooperate with the Qaeda.
The Americans are fools if they do not realize that the Sunni tribes will not in due time turn their guns on the Americans. Perhaps they think they can leave before this happens? I doubt it so much.
The Americans will be double fools if they think that he Shia powerful clergy in Najaf will watch silently seeing rule being handed again to the Baathists. What will the Americans do if they have a mass violent Shia uprising at hand !?
The only ones who can stop the blood shead in Iraq is the Iraq people.
When will they stand up for their freedom as a united people and say enough is enough?
It is childish to split into all these dissatisfied groups and fight each other when they could be as one and strong.
What a great and powerful country this could be if they put aside the foolish pride of many fragmented groups and become united as one people.
It is easy to blame the United States when the going gets tough and Iraq has to do something on its own. Iraq needs to suck up and get it together, look beyond 'Now' and take care of itself.
I have a good idea of what could be done with all of those radical Muslims who oppose the USA in Iraq and Afghanistan. Perhaps America should enslave the people of Iraq and Afghanistan. Brutally work them to death for several generations. Under the threat of death, force them to renounce their religion and covert to Christianity. Treat them real bad. Rape and impregnate the girls and woman. Emasculate and dehumanize the men. Murder any who resist! Break up their families so as no child knows their parents, nor their familial and tribal histories. Erase any knowledge of their linage, culture and identity. Don’t let them speak their native languages, only English. Treat them real bad. Don’t allow them to learn to read or write for at least 100 years and when they are allowed in school, miseducate them. Change their names to Anglo/European names. Eventually set them free, but continue to treat them real bad, discriminate against them and compel them to live as second class citizens in poverty. Make them hate their ethnicity and desire to emulate their American oppressors and assimilate into U.S. culture. After 150-200 years or so the progeny of the Afghanis and the Iraqis will be good Americans, an imbecilic and docile people. This idea will work, look how good the Black people in America turned out!
Yes Iraq or Mesopotamia will survive this ordeal. Else how did it survive since Sumerian times? It is just that the current pain for some of us who have been hit so badly by the violence finds its way into strong expressions in words. My all mighty God help us.
Whitney : you do not need to do all this. Why do you need to do this when the vast majority of the Muslim World, 99.9999%, including Iraq, has no animosity whatsoever to Christians, America or the West. Christianity in Iraq is perhaps the oldest in the Middle East?? All these centuries no one bothered them ? Christians lived side by side with Muslims until recently without any qualms?
Where I lived in Baghdad, Muslims, Christians and Jews had no qualms whatsoever.
Believe you me I am telling you the truth. I come from Kerradah district in Baghdad. Among my best friends were Christians, and Jews who have left Iraq because of the events to do with the war of 1967.
Among Muslims there is no such thing as Sunni and Shia as we hear now.
Amidst the daily violence suffered by Iraqis, oil companies and the US and UK governments are planning to secure long-term control over Iraqi oil. Accounting for 10% of the world total and 95% of government revenue, the stakes for oil companies and the Iraqi people are incredibly high.
A Hydrocarbon Law which advocates a radical restructuring of Iraq's oil industry was approved by the Iraqi cabinet this February. It was crafted in secret over an 8 month period from July 2006, in consultation with 9 foreign oil companies, the US and UK governments and the IMF. Iraqi Parliamentarians saw it for the first time this February. Iraqi civil society has had no involvement in the process, despite lobbying for inclusion. For the past four years, contractual mechanisms such as Production Sharing Agreements (PSAs) and Exploration Risk Contracts have been promoted by oil companies and occupation-installed oil ministers and advisers. Once signed, they are virtually unchangeable and will control development of Iraq's oil for decades. They will cost the Iraqi state billions in lost revenue.
This law surrenders Iraq's sovereignty and economic future to foreign interests. It has been crafted in secret, and pushed forward through war and occupation. No law should be passed, let alone contracts signed, while Iraq is subjected to a military occupation and foreign interference.
'to whiteny Jun 24th, 2007 - 01:05:59
Whitney : you do not need to do all this. '
Whitney has a 45 IQ and he blames that on slavery, don't take him seriously.
'I am not wasting time when exposing the truth'
Look, I am sorry for your situation believe it or not. However there REALLY needs to be more evidence that Iraq is coming together behind democratic principals and fighting those who oppose them in order for us to keep losing our children over there. 25 this week.
'he above is from an article in your Washington Post today. So they were not warned by government officials as you claim. '
Regardless, it was Iraqis who warned them, that you can be sure of. This isn't a game. They are trying to destroy Iraq yet Iraqis hide them.
'There is no effective government in Iraq because the Americans chose a faulty political process based on sectarianism and ethnicity as everyone knows. '
It is what the Iraqis voted for.
'It will not help your moral argument, now that you have made a mess of a country that was no threat to you, to shift the moral responsibility of the disaster to some one else.'
It certainly wont help you to try to shift the Iraqis failure to govern themselves on us either. As a matter of fact, you will probably be swinging from a lamp post as a collaborator if this can't be FORCED to work at this point. I can't get any more clear then that. You will have a lot of company too.
'Tel me for God sake why are you cooperating with the very Baathist thugs that were few weeks ago killing your own soldiers?'
I already have. Because the current hapless government is incapable of doing anything. If you are not going to get serious and become a democracy, which means standing up and sincerely fighting for it and making it happen then we are going to have to settle for some sort of stability. The Kurds will be fine, they took the opportunity and ran with it.
'The Iraqi army was dissolved by Bremmer.'
Paul Bremmer was one of the worst things that ever happened to Iraq, but one of the reasons he made that idiotic mistake was to assure the Shiites that there wouldn't be a return to the old oppression from the Iraqi army.
'The US it seems does does not trust the Shia Arabs despite them forming a majority in Iraq. In other words the Shia out witted the Americans in volunteering in large numbers in the new police and Army..'
Look at the mess!
'They are now openly cooperating with the insurgents so long as the latter do not attack the Americans.'
The Shiites are openly cooperating with Iran to kill Americans and Sunnis.
'The Americans are fools if they do not realize that the Sunni tribes will not in due time turn their guns on the Americans.'
We are not arming the insurgents. If we had more help we wouldn't have had to resort to dealing with any unsavory characters. If we had had more help we would have been down to 30,000 troops.
' What will the Americans do if they have a mass violent Shia uprising at hand !?'
Stand back and watch Saudi Arabia/Jordon and the rest of the gulf states fight a proxy war against Iran in your neighborhood. Get it yet? Iraqis need to get serious about running Iraq.
It is a better score than mine, I assure you.
'Amidst the daily violence suffered by Iraqis, oil companies and the US and UK governments are planning to secure long-term control over Iraqi oil.'
That is just a lie. The oil leases are up for bid just like in every other country in the world.
That is just a cut and paste internet lie from uk indimedia, a leftist propaganda outlet. They are self described as 'anti-capitalism, anti-speciesism, anti-patriarchy, anti-globalization, anti-anti-anti.... and they admit that they are not an objective sourse of information: 'Indymedia UK does not attempt to take an objective and impartial standpoint: Indymedia UK clearly states its subjectivity.'
'Caroline Smith' simply selected the propaganda, cut and pasted it here under that name.
It is simply not true.
I am White and many of my friends are Black, pilots, doctors, bankers,teachers, etc. Not bad for living in the most sought out place to live in the world.
You do my friends a discredit to say look how they turned out in a negative context. They are good productive people.
The past is the past and this is a new world, you have to move on and forgive.
I have friends all around the world and to say that they are better or they are worse is archaic and barbaric.
As for religion, any religion that advocates violence is not a religion but just another sect and genocidal plague.
There is no reason that religious groups cannot stand up and say this is wrong. To say nothing to condemn these acts done in the name of Allah is the same as doing these acts yourself.
In case you are so narrow minded that you cannot see the ties, we are all tied together on this small planet. As someone who moves cargo and freight I see where your food, clothing, supplies come and go. Believe me we are not so different.
To allow women and children to be uneducated, beaten, and suppressed in the name of any religion is a sin.
You can fight what you want but if we don't come together and stop this madness, no one will win. Think about it.
90 Qaeda fighters slain
Published Date: June 24, 2007
BAQUBA: US and Iraqi forces say they have killed 90 Al-Qaeda fighters around Baghdad in the past five days during one of the biggest combined offensives against the Sunni Islamist group since the invasion of Iraq in 2003. US air strikes yesterday killed seven suspected Al-Qaeda fighters in Tikrit in Salahuddin province and near the city of Falluja, west of Baghdad, the US military said in a statement. Thousands of US and Iraqi soldiers are taking part in simultaneous offensives in provinces around Baghdad to deny Al-Qaeda militants sanctuary in farmlands and towns from where they launch car bomb attacks and other violence.
U.S. and Iraqi troops captured two senior al-Qaida militants and seven other operatives Saturday in Diyala province, an Iraqi commander said, as an offensive to clear the volatile area of insurgents entered its fifth day.
You can always tell when the US is trying to justify an increasing US death toll. They give us body counts. And, just as all dead Vietnamese became, in death, Vietcong, all Iraqi dead now become al-Qaeda. Did any of you see that one of the Sunni sheiks to whom we yielded control of Anbar Province made off with $75,000,000 we gave him. Who does he think he is? One of our Shia allies? Phrank
'You can always tell when the US is trying to justify an increasing US death toll. They give us body counts'
Dead al-Qaida is ALWAYS a good thing.
Freedom Rules makes some very good points, but stubborn radicals won't listen. They seem blind to anything but violence. A people who believe in blowing themselves up for their gods, bombing their own cities into rubble, acting like savages will never be understood by the Western world, and, therefore, will probably never be stopped. This way of life is their own and has been going on since the beginning of time.
if the Sunnis who are siding with the U.S. forces are sincere and won't be turncoats or maybe they already have!
“As a matter of fact, you will probably be swinging from a lamp post as a collaborator”
I escaped certain beheading last summer when kidnapped at the hands of the Islamic Army who accused me to be a collaborator, through the payment of a very very very large ransom collected by the extended family outside Iraq.
I lost my home, business, job and everything that I worked so hard and so honestly for in the last thirty years.
I feel bitter and I cannot be apologetic any more.
When I fell down in the hole no one has come to help me, spare a handful of friends, Americans among them I have to say.
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BEAUTIFUL WORK BY OUR FORCES...., SAVED OUR AGENTSJun 23rd, 2007 - 17:40:06
We cannot but commend our forces to save and arm our agents, under different pretexts, sometimes as sunnies, AT OTHER TIMES AL QAIDA, still at other times as Fatah al Islam in Lebanon, or Taaliban in Afghanistan.
We have been able to kill the shiites in hundereds of thousands, disarm them in Iraq and make them a food for the beastly friends we have in all these Muslim lands.
BUT CERTAINLY IT IS A SHAME TO CAUSE SO MUCH BLOODSHED IN THE NAME OF PEACE.
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