Source Article HERE.
From 'AFP': Afghanistan is not in a security crisis, and disillusionment and recriminations about its situation should be avoided, a UN Security Council team said at the end of a three-day assessment tour. There were even reasons for "cautious optimism," the delegation told reporters before wrapping up a visit which comes as attacks linked to the insurgency led by the Islamic Taliban are at record levels. "There is undoubtedly a difficult security situation which is developing... but not a security crisis," said the head of the delegation, Italian ambassador Giulio Terzi.
"We should avoid any inclination to disillusionment and frustration or even worse to mutual recriminations between Afghanistan and its friends," he said. "Instead, this is the time for the Afghan people and for the international community to redouble efforts and to redouble the spirit of joint partnership in overcoming these difficulties."
In his meeting with the team on Tuesday, President Hamid Karzai demanded a "timeline" for the end of largely UN-mandated international military intervention in Afghanistan. The country is a key battleground for the US-led "war on terror" launched in 2001 with the invasion that toppled Afghanistan's Taliban regime for harbouring Al-Qaeda after the September 11 attacks on the United States. Terzi said there was an expectation among all involved that the international intervention would be as short as possible, but it would also have to be sustained as long as needed and requires an increased engagement.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
MNFI Press Release - Nov 30
ALLEGED AQI CAR BOMBER DETAINED
Coalition forces struck al-Qaeda in Iraq’s (AQI) Baghdad bombing networks during an operation on Saturday night, capturing a suspected car bomb operative. Forces were lead to a residence in the Karkh neighborhood after reports suggested the wanted man was there. The suspected terrorist, who is believed to have connections to a Baghdad-area AQI car bomb cell leader, was detained by ground forces without incident.
ISF CAPTURES 8 AQI SUSPECTS IN NORTH IRAQ
Iraqi Security Forces (ISF), with Coalition force advisors, captured eight suspected AQI terrorists during separate operations in northern Iraq on November 27th-28th. These operations demonstrate the commitment and capability of the Government of Iraq in their effort to reinforce the rule of law and bring stability to the region.
Third Iraqi Army elements conducted an operation on November 28th, capturing two AQI terrorists in Bulayj. One of the individuals is believed to be the Amir of a newly formed direct action cell operating in the area. The individuals are believed to be responsible for planning attacks against Coalition forces.
During an operation on November 27th, Baqubah Special Weapons and Tactics captured three suspected AQI terrorists operating within the district. These individuals are believed to facilitate AQI operatives and provide safe havens in the area. In a separate operation on November 27th, Iraqi Special Operations Forces arrested three suspected AQI cell members in East Mosul. These individuals are believed to be operating as an assassination cell and are suspected of killing local nationals and Iraqi Security Forces. Two of the individuals are allegedly responsible for facilitating the escape of insurgents from the Badush Prison in 2006.
IA SOLDIERS TAKE LEAD DURING JOINT PATROL
Iraqi Army (IA) and MultiNational Division – Baghdad (MND-B) Soldiers conducted a joint compliance neighborhood inspection patrol on November 26th in the town of Al Murtada in the Mahmudiyah Qada, south of Baghdad. IA soldiers from the 1st and 2nd Battalion, 25th Brigade, 17th Iraqi Army Division and MND-B Soldiers from Company D, 1st Battalion, 63rd Combined Arms Battalion, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, conducted the dismounted patrol visiting more than 30 houses.
The Iraqi Army uses compliance patrols to hold residents accountable for the safety and sanitation of their neighborhoods. Each household is asked to sign a form stating they will keep their walls clean of graffiti and will report any suspicious behavior to an Iraqi Army soldier. “This patrol is a great way for the Iraqi Army to make the locals take an active stance in their neighborhoods,” said 1st Lt. Cameron Mays, mortar platoon leader, Company D. “The best part about the patrol though is that the Iraqi Army was in the lead; we were purely in a supervisory role.”
The Soldiers provided security to Iraqi Army soldiers as they went door to door speaking to the residents. “The Coalition Soldiers have been great partners throughout my time with them,” said Iraqi Captain Salah, the Iraqi Army mission Commander. “It is good to be able to show them how much we’ve learned from them in their time here.”
Coalition forces struck al-Qaeda in Iraq’s (AQI) Baghdad bombing networks during an operation on Saturday night, capturing a suspected car bomb operative. Forces were lead to a residence in the Karkh neighborhood after reports suggested the wanted man was there. The suspected terrorist, who is believed to have connections to a Baghdad-area AQI car bomb cell leader, was detained by ground forces without incident.
ISF CAPTURES 8 AQI SUSPECTS IN NORTH IRAQ
Iraqi Security Forces (ISF), with Coalition force advisors, captured eight suspected AQI terrorists during separate operations in northern Iraq on November 27th-28th. These operations demonstrate the commitment and capability of the Government of Iraq in their effort to reinforce the rule of law and bring stability to the region.
Third Iraqi Army elements conducted an operation on November 28th, capturing two AQI terrorists in Bulayj. One of the individuals is believed to be the Amir of a newly formed direct action cell operating in the area. The individuals are believed to be responsible for planning attacks against Coalition forces.
During an operation on November 27th, Baqubah Special Weapons and Tactics captured three suspected AQI terrorists operating within the district. These individuals are believed to facilitate AQI operatives and provide safe havens in the area. In a separate operation on November 27th, Iraqi Special Operations Forces arrested three suspected AQI cell members in East Mosul. These individuals are believed to be operating as an assassination cell and are suspected of killing local nationals and Iraqi Security Forces. Two of the individuals are allegedly responsible for facilitating the escape of insurgents from the Badush Prison in 2006.
IA SOLDIERS TAKE LEAD DURING JOINT PATROL
Iraqi Army (IA) and MultiNational Division – Baghdad (MND-B) Soldiers conducted a joint compliance neighborhood inspection patrol on November 26th in the town of Al Murtada in the Mahmudiyah Qada, south of Baghdad. IA soldiers from the 1st and 2nd Battalion, 25th Brigade, 17th Iraqi Army Division and MND-B Soldiers from Company D, 1st Battalion, 63rd Combined Arms Battalion, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, conducted the dismounted patrol visiting more than 30 houses.
The Iraqi Army uses compliance patrols to hold residents accountable for the safety and sanitation of their neighborhoods. Each household is asked to sign a form stating they will keep their walls clean of graffiti and will report any suspicious behavior to an Iraqi Army soldier. “This patrol is a great way for the Iraqi Army to make the locals take an active stance in their neighborhoods,” said 1st Lt. Cameron Mays, mortar platoon leader, Company D. “The best part about the patrol though is that the Iraqi Army was in the lead; we were purely in a supervisory role.”
The Soldiers provided security to Iraqi Army soldiers as they went door to door speaking to the residents. “The Coalition Soldiers have been great partners throughout my time with them,” said Iraqi Captain Salah, the Iraqi Army mission Commander. “It is good to be able to show them how much we’ve learned from them in their time here.”
Friday, November 21, 2008
Arms Dealer Caught In Terror Sting Convicted
Source Article HERE.
From 'Associated Press': A wealthy arms dealer long suspected of aiding militants in some of the world's bloodiest conflicts was convicted on Thursday of conspiring to sell weapons to informants who posed as arms suppliers for terrorists willing to kill Americans. Syrian-born Monzer al-Kassar, 62, and a co-defendant, Luis Felipe Moreno Godoy, were convicted of conspiring over a four-month period last year to try to sell millions of dollars worth of heavy weaponry to Colombian militants. A federal jury in Manhattan convicted the men of conspiring to provide aid and equipment to a terrorist organization, conspiring to kill U.S. soldiers, conspiring to acquire and export anti-aircraft missiles and money laundering.
U.S. authorities said al-Kassar was willing to sell surface-to-air missile systems, rocket-propelled grenade launchers, thousands of machine guns and millions of rounds of ammunition to Colombian rebels. Prosecutors said al-Kassar believed undercover Drug Enforcement Administration agents were representing the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, a rebel army known as FARC that is classified in the United States as a terrorist group. The evidence included recorded phone calls, e-mails and meetings.
The agents struck a fictitious $8 million deal for al-Kassar to supply weaponry obtained in Romania and Bulgaria. No weapons were ever exchanged. Assistant U.S. Attorney Boyd Johnson said greed was the chief motivation. The men face up to life in prison when they are sentenced on February 18th. An indictment unsealed last year said al-Kassar had provided military equipment to violent factions in Nicaragua, Brazil, Cyprus, Bosnia, Croatia, Somalia, Iran and Iraq. It said his customers included known terrorist organizations determined to stage "attacks on United States interests and United States nationals."
Al-Kassar, long a target of U.S. investigators, was arrested on June 7th, 2007 after arriving at an airport in Madrid, Spain. Al-Kassar was acquitted in Spain of supplying assault rifles used by Palestinian militants in the 1985 hijacking of the Italian cruise ship Achille Lauro. The hijackers killed 69-year-old New Yorker Leon Klinghoffer, dumping his body and wheelchair overboard. Klinghoffer's daughters were in court for Thursday's conviction. "I wanted everyone there to know my father is in the courtroom in a spiritual way," said Lisa Klinghoffer, who wore a pin bearing his initials. As jurors stepped into an elevator to leave, Lisa Klinghoffer shouted: "Thank you! He provided the guns that killed my father. It's a long time coming."
From 'Associated Press': A wealthy arms dealer long suspected of aiding militants in some of the world's bloodiest conflicts was convicted on Thursday of conspiring to sell weapons to informants who posed as arms suppliers for terrorists willing to kill Americans. Syrian-born Monzer al-Kassar, 62, and a co-defendant, Luis Felipe Moreno Godoy, were convicted of conspiring over a four-month period last year to try to sell millions of dollars worth of heavy weaponry to Colombian militants. A federal jury in Manhattan convicted the men of conspiring to provide aid and equipment to a terrorist organization, conspiring to kill U.S. soldiers, conspiring to acquire and export anti-aircraft missiles and money laundering.
U.S. authorities said al-Kassar was willing to sell surface-to-air missile systems, rocket-propelled grenade launchers, thousands of machine guns and millions of rounds of ammunition to Colombian rebels. Prosecutors said al-Kassar believed undercover Drug Enforcement Administration agents were representing the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, a rebel army known as FARC that is classified in the United States as a terrorist group. The evidence included recorded phone calls, e-mails and meetings.
The agents struck a fictitious $8 million deal for al-Kassar to supply weaponry obtained in Romania and Bulgaria. No weapons were ever exchanged. Assistant U.S. Attorney Boyd Johnson said greed was the chief motivation. The men face up to life in prison when they are sentenced on February 18th. An indictment unsealed last year said al-Kassar had provided military equipment to violent factions in Nicaragua, Brazil, Cyprus, Bosnia, Croatia, Somalia, Iran and Iraq. It said his customers included known terrorist organizations determined to stage "attacks on United States interests and United States nationals."
Al-Kassar, long a target of U.S. investigators, was arrested on June 7th, 2007 after arriving at an airport in Madrid, Spain. Al-Kassar was acquitted in Spain of supplying assault rifles used by Palestinian militants in the 1985 hijacking of the Italian cruise ship Achille Lauro. The hijackers killed 69-year-old New Yorker Leon Klinghoffer, dumping his body and wheelchair overboard. Klinghoffer's daughters were in court for Thursday's conviction. "I wanted everyone there to know my father is in the courtroom in a spiritual way," said Lisa Klinghoffer, who wore a pin bearing his initials. As jurors stepped into an elevator to leave, Lisa Klinghoffer shouted: "Thank you! He provided the guns that killed my father. It's a long time coming."
US Forces Kill Senior Al Qaeda In Iraq Leader
Source Article HERE.
From 'Christian Science Monitor': An Al-Qaeda in Iraq leader believed by US officials to be responsible for one of the most notorious attacks on US soldiers was killed during American military operations earlier this month, military officials said Thursday. Hajji Hammadi, a regional Al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) leader, was shot dead by US forces in a raid in the upscale Mansour district of Baghdad on November 11th, according to US military spokesman Brigadier General David Perkins.
The killing, believed to have been a US special forces operation, is part of a series of American operations that have steadily eroded AQI’s command and control structure. The organization has also lost support from tens of thousands Iraqis who have turned against it and joined US forces in fighting AQI. But counterterrorism experts cautioned that while US operations have widely eroded AQI's ability to operate as a network, the organization was turning towards more targeted, high-profile attacks such as suicide bombings.
"Their ability to move resources around Iraq, to bring resources from outside the country, has been dramatically reduced," General Perkins told reporters. "They now have to operate in much smaller cells, much less capable cells, so it's much more difficult for them to mount large numbers of attacks, and attacks that create large amount of casualties," he said.
Hammadi, an Iraqi, was believed by US military officials to be responsible for the abduction and murder of US Army Staff Sgt. Matt Maupin in 2004. Sergeant Maupin, an Army reservist from Ohio, was captured after his fuel convoy came under attack near Baghdad's International Airport. He later appeared in a hostage video and was reported killed. Five civilians and two other US soldiers were also believed to have died in the ambush. Hammadi also planned and helped execute an attack in June in Anbar Province in which a suicide bomber dressed in an Iraqi police uniform detonated, killing three US Marines, two interpreters, and more than 20 Iraqi civilians, including a mayor and several tribal leaders, said Perkins.
"[Hammadi's] death removes a key AQI command and control node from the region," says US military spokesman Commander David Waterman. Two prominent counterterrorism analysts say they were unfamiliar with Hammadi or his level of influence in the organization, but agree that killings like this have steadily reduced AQI's operational capabilities. Meanwhile, AQI has lost support from Iraqis who have turned against it and joined US forces in fighting AQI.
"In late 2007 to 2008 we've really seen a decline in the effectiveness of AQI," said Brian Fishman, research director at West Point's Combating Terrorism Center in a telephone interview. The organization's ability to command and communicate has been curtailed by joint US forces and Iraqi military operations, said Mr. Fishman. At the same time he said, strategic errors by AQI, such as wide-scale attacks on civilians and claims to religious power, has also damaged the organization by turning a large number of Iraqis against it.
"I don't think Al Qaeda in Iraq is in charge of their own destiny. They used to be, but they screwed it up," said Fishman, who has recently observed AQI focusing more narrowly on military rather than civilian targets and on techniques such as suicide bombers disguised as soldiers. "They've lost the ability to do this across the board disruptive stuff so they're trying to be more creative and act like traditional terrorists rather than insurgents," said Fishman.
From 'Christian Science Monitor': An Al-Qaeda in Iraq leader believed by US officials to be responsible for one of the most notorious attacks on US soldiers was killed during American military operations earlier this month, military officials said Thursday. Hajji Hammadi, a regional Al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) leader, was shot dead by US forces in a raid in the upscale Mansour district of Baghdad on November 11th, according to US military spokesman Brigadier General David Perkins.
The killing, believed to have been a US special forces operation, is part of a series of American operations that have steadily eroded AQI’s command and control structure. The organization has also lost support from tens of thousands Iraqis who have turned against it and joined US forces in fighting AQI. But counterterrorism experts cautioned that while US operations have widely eroded AQI's ability to operate as a network, the organization was turning towards more targeted, high-profile attacks such as suicide bombings.
"Their ability to move resources around Iraq, to bring resources from outside the country, has been dramatically reduced," General Perkins told reporters. "They now have to operate in much smaller cells, much less capable cells, so it's much more difficult for them to mount large numbers of attacks, and attacks that create large amount of casualties," he said.
Hammadi, an Iraqi, was believed by US military officials to be responsible for the abduction and murder of US Army Staff Sgt. Matt Maupin in 2004. Sergeant Maupin, an Army reservist from Ohio, was captured after his fuel convoy came under attack near Baghdad's International Airport. He later appeared in a hostage video and was reported killed. Five civilians and two other US soldiers were also believed to have died in the ambush. Hammadi also planned and helped execute an attack in June in Anbar Province in which a suicide bomber dressed in an Iraqi police uniform detonated, killing three US Marines, two interpreters, and more than 20 Iraqi civilians, including a mayor and several tribal leaders, said Perkins.
"[Hammadi's] death removes a key AQI command and control node from the region," says US military spokesman Commander David Waterman. Two prominent counterterrorism analysts say they were unfamiliar with Hammadi or his level of influence in the organization, but agree that killings like this have steadily reduced AQI's operational capabilities. Meanwhile, AQI has lost support from Iraqis who have turned against it and joined US forces in fighting AQI.
"In late 2007 to 2008 we've really seen a decline in the effectiveness of AQI," said Brian Fishman, research director at West Point's Combating Terrorism Center in a telephone interview. The organization's ability to command and communicate has been curtailed by joint US forces and Iraqi military operations, said Mr. Fishman. At the same time he said, strategic errors by AQI, such as wide-scale attacks on civilians and claims to religious power, has also damaged the organization by turning a large number of Iraqis against it.
"I don't think Al Qaeda in Iraq is in charge of their own destiny. They used to be, but they screwed it up," said Fishman, who has recently observed AQI focusing more narrowly on military rather than civilian targets and on techniques such as suicide bombers disguised as soldiers. "They've lost the ability to do this across the board disruptive stuff so they're trying to be more creative and act like traditional terrorists rather than insurgents," said Fishman.
Afghanistan: Insurgents Killed, Civilians Saved
Source Article HERE.
From 'American Forces Press Service': Afghan army commandos and their coalition partners killed four militants while simultaneously protecting nearly 90 civilians in an early morning operation today in western Afghanistan, military officials reported. The combined forces were conducting a raid on a compound, targeting a Taliban commander in Farah province's Dowlatabad village when they received fire from several enemy fighting positions. The combined forces quickly returned fire and also established a security perimeter to protect the civilians, who included 30 children, officials said. The exchange of fire resulted in the deaths of four enemy fighters who local residents confirmed were Taliban militants.
During the search for more militants, commandos discovered a fully operational explosive device in a local mosque. Commandos removed the bomb and destroyed it. The detonation caused minor damage to the mosque's exterior wall, for which the commandos provided compensation to village elders. The operation also uncovered numerous small arms weapons and bomb-making materials. No Afghan, coalition or civilian casualties resulted from the operation, officials said.
In other news from Afghanistan, Afghan and coalition forces killed 10 militants near Highway 1 in the Nahr Surkh district of Helmand province yesterday. The forces were conducting a security patrol when they were attacked by militants with small-arms and machine-gun fire. They returned fire, killing the 10 militants. During the engagement, an Afghan soldier was shot in the back. He was treated on site and transported to a nearby Coalition medical facility. No other Afghan or coalition forces or civilians were injured during the engagement, officials said.
Also yesterday, Afghan and coalition forces killed four armed militants and detained eight others yesterday during an operation in Kapisa province in which an Afghan woman and child were injured when the insurgents used them as human shields, officials said. In the Tagab district, coalition forces provided medical care to the Afghan woman and child, whom the forces believe lived with the militants. The two were injured when one of the militants detonated a hand grenade. They are recovering at a military hospital, officials said.
The operation targeted the Hizb-e-Islami Gulbuddin terrorist network, which is known to plan and coordinate attacks against civilians and coalition forces, including an attack in August that killed 10 French soldiers, officials said. As the force attempted to search the compound, they received a large volume of small-arms fire and hand grenades from militants barricaded in a section of the compound. Coalition forces responded with small-arms fire and killed them. A search of the compound revealed multiple AK-47 assault rifles, hand grenades and other military equipment, which were destroyed to prevent future use. The force detained three suspected militants as a result of the operation.
In Khowst province, Afghan and coalition forces captured a targeted Haqqani terrorist network operative and five other suspects during a combined operation in the Mandozai district. The wanted man is a suspect in roadside and suicide bombings, officials said. Troops searched the compound without incident.
From 'American Forces Press Service': Afghan army commandos and their coalition partners killed four militants while simultaneously protecting nearly 90 civilians in an early morning operation today in western Afghanistan, military officials reported. The combined forces were conducting a raid on a compound, targeting a Taliban commander in Farah province's Dowlatabad village when they received fire from several enemy fighting positions. The combined forces quickly returned fire and also established a security perimeter to protect the civilians, who included 30 children, officials said. The exchange of fire resulted in the deaths of four enemy fighters who local residents confirmed were Taliban militants.
During the search for more militants, commandos discovered a fully operational explosive device in a local mosque. Commandos removed the bomb and destroyed it. The detonation caused minor damage to the mosque's exterior wall, for which the commandos provided compensation to village elders. The operation also uncovered numerous small arms weapons and bomb-making materials. No Afghan, coalition or civilian casualties resulted from the operation, officials said.
In other news from Afghanistan, Afghan and coalition forces killed 10 militants near Highway 1 in the Nahr Surkh district of Helmand province yesterday. The forces were conducting a security patrol when they were attacked by militants with small-arms and machine-gun fire. They returned fire, killing the 10 militants. During the engagement, an Afghan soldier was shot in the back. He was treated on site and transported to a nearby Coalition medical facility. No other Afghan or coalition forces or civilians were injured during the engagement, officials said.
Also yesterday, Afghan and coalition forces killed four armed militants and detained eight others yesterday during an operation in Kapisa province in which an Afghan woman and child were injured when the insurgents used them as human shields, officials said. In the Tagab district, coalition forces provided medical care to the Afghan woman and child, whom the forces believe lived with the militants. The two were injured when one of the militants detonated a hand grenade. They are recovering at a military hospital, officials said.
The operation targeted the Hizb-e-Islami Gulbuddin terrorist network, which is known to plan and coordinate attacks against civilians and coalition forces, including an attack in August that killed 10 French soldiers, officials said. As the force attempted to search the compound, they received a large volume of small-arms fire and hand grenades from militants barricaded in a section of the compound. Coalition forces responded with small-arms fire and killed them. A search of the compound revealed multiple AK-47 assault rifles, hand grenades and other military equipment, which were destroyed to prevent future use. The force detained three suspected militants as a result of the operation.
In Khowst province, Afghan and coalition forces captured a targeted Haqqani terrorist network operative and five other suspects during a combined operation in the Mandozai district. The wanted man is a suspect in roadside and suicide bombings, officials said. Troops searched the compound without incident.
MNFI Press Release - Nov 21
MND-B SOLDIERS DETAIN SUSPECTED CRIMINAL
MultiNational Division – Baghdad (MND-B) Soldiers detained a suspected criminal in central Baghdad’s Mansour district at approximately 2:30 a.m. on November 20th. Soldiers with the 5th Squadron, 4th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, detained a man suspected of illegal weapons possession and attacks on Coalition forces.
MND-B SOLDIERS DETAIN 3 SUSPECTED CRIMINALS
MND-B Soldiers detained three suspected criminals on November 20-21 in southern Baghdad’s Rashid district. Acting on an anonymous tip, Soldiers from Troop C, 7th Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, detained a suspected criminal at approximately 6:30 p.m. on November 20th in the Abu T’shir community. The individual is suspected of participating in roadside bomb attacks. The Soldiers discovered roadside bomb making materials at the suspect’s residence. An explosive ordnance disposal team responded to analyze the bomb materials. At approximately 3:15 a.m. on November 21st, Soldiers from Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st BCT, 4th ID, detained two suspected criminals during an operation in the Risalah community. The individuals were suspected of participating in roadside bomb attacks.
MND-B SOLDIERS FIND HIDDEN WEAPONS
MND-B Soldiers seized caches in Baghdad on November 19th and 20th. While conducting a dismounted patrol northwest of Baghdad, Soldiers from Company C, 1st Combined Arms Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, found a small cache hidden in a field at approximately 11:45 a.m. on November 19th. Their find consisted of (3) 122 mm high explosive rounds. An explosive ordnance detachment collected the rounds for disposal. MND-B Soldiers with Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 2nd Squadron, 14th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd SBCT, 25th ID, located a weapons cache containing (22) 57 mm rounds at approximately 9:30 a.m. on November 20th. Later that day, Troop C of the same cavalry squadron found another cache buried underground in Taji at approximately 1 p.m. This cache consisted of (9) grenades of various types, (50) linked 5.56 mm rounds and (100) linked 7.56 mm rounds.
IRAQIS SEND AID TO CALIFORNIA FIRE VICTIMS
A group of Iraqi Soldiers stepped up to help California residents victimized by recent wildfires raging throughout the state. Iraqi Army Colonel Abbas Fadhil, Besmaya Range Complex commander, and his team of "Abbas' Eagles" raised $500 for wildfire relief. "We want to send a message to the American president and the American people," Abbas said. "We feel that we are a family — one body. When one part of the body suffers, the other parts suffer, too." This is the fourth donation the Soldiers of Besmaya have sent to the American people recently. In September, they raised $1,500 for victims of hurricanes Gustav and Ike. The Eagles also donated $500 to the National September 11 Memorial.
MultiNational Division – Baghdad (MND-B) Soldiers detained a suspected criminal in central Baghdad’s Mansour district at approximately 2:30 a.m. on November 20th. Soldiers with the 5th Squadron, 4th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, detained a man suspected of illegal weapons possession and attacks on Coalition forces.
MND-B SOLDIERS DETAIN 3 SUSPECTED CRIMINALS
MND-B Soldiers detained three suspected criminals on November 20-21 in southern Baghdad’s Rashid district. Acting on an anonymous tip, Soldiers from Troop C, 7th Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, detained a suspected criminal at approximately 6:30 p.m. on November 20th in the Abu T’shir community. The individual is suspected of participating in roadside bomb attacks. The Soldiers discovered roadside bomb making materials at the suspect’s residence. An explosive ordnance disposal team responded to analyze the bomb materials. At approximately 3:15 a.m. on November 21st, Soldiers from Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st BCT, 4th ID, detained two suspected criminals during an operation in the Risalah community. The individuals were suspected of participating in roadside bomb attacks.
MND-B SOLDIERS FIND HIDDEN WEAPONS
MND-B Soldiers seized caches in Baghdad on November 19th and 20th. While conducting a dismounted patrol northwest of Baghdad, Soldiers from Company C, 1st Combined Arms Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, found a small cache hidden in a field at approximately 11:45 a.m. on November 19th. Their find consisted of (3) 122 mm high explosive rounds. An explosive ordnance detachment collected the rounds for disposal. MND-B Soldiers with Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 2nd Squadron, 14th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd SBCT, 25th ID, located a weapons cache containing (22) 57 mm rounds at approximately 9:30 a.m. on November 20th. Later that day, Troop C of the same cavalry squadron found another cache buried underground in Taji at approximately 1 p.m. This cache consisted of (9) grenades of various types, (50) linked 5.56 mm rounds and (100) linked 7.56 mm rounds.
IRAQIS SEND AID TO CALIFORNIA FIRE VICTIMS
A group of Iraqi Soldiers stepped up to help California residents victimized by recent wildfires raging throughout the state. Iraqi Army Colonel Abbas Fadhil, Besmaya Range Complex commander, and his team of "Abbas' Eagles" raised $500 for wildfire relief. "We want to send a message to the American president and the American people," Abbas said. "We feel that we are a family — one body. When one part of the body suffers, the other parts suffer, too." This is the fourth donation the Soldiers of Besmaya have sent to the American people recently. In September, they raised $1,500 for victims of hurricanes Gustav and Ike. The Eagles also donated $500 to the National September 11 Memorial.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Major Al-Qaeda Operative Killed
Source Article HERE.
From 'AFP': ISLAMABAD — A major Arab Al-Qaeda operative was among the six militants killed overnight in a suspected US missile strike in northwest Pakistan, a senior security official told AFP Wednesday. Security sources identified the militant as Abdullah Azam al-Saudi, a senior member of Osama bin Laden's terror network. They said US intelligence officials had identified him as the main link between Al-Qaeda's senior command and Taliban networks in the Pakistani border region with Afghanistan. "He was the man coordinating between Al-Qaeda and Taliban commanders on this side of the border, and also involved in recruiting and training fighters," an Islamabad-based senior security official told AFP.
U.S. Predator Drone
Sources in the Taliban said al-Saudi was also a member of the Taliban's supreme council, or Shura, under its fugitive leader Mullah Mohammad Omar when it moved from Afghanistan to the Pakistani side of the border about a year ago. "He was closely linked to Al-Qaeda number two Ayman al-Zawahiri," a Taliban source added. Following the strike, al-Zawahiri warned US president-elect Barack Obama against sending more troops to Afghanistan saying that US policy was "doomed to failure" in an Internet audio message.
A security official said the US missile strike was carried out on intelligence that al-Saudi was in a house belonging to a tribesman in the Bannu district, which borders restive North Waziristan. It was the first alleged US missile strike outside the tribal region which is described by the United States as home to Al-Qaeda's command and control structure. Terror network chief Osama bin Laden is also widely believed to be hiding in the rugged region, although there is no clear information about his whereabouts.
Al-Saudi is the second high-profile Al-Qaeda operative killed in recent apparent US missile strikes near Pakistan's border with Afghanistan. Egyptian Abu Jihad al-Masri, described by the US as the terror network's propaganda chief, was among several rebels killed in a November 1st missile strike in North Waziristan, a known hub of Al-Qaeda and Taliban rebels.
At least five Taliban militants were also killed when Pakistani artillery pounded their hideouts through the night in a restive tribal region near the Afghanistan border, local administration official Mohammad Jamil told AFP. The clashes took place in the Mamoon and Nawagai areas in Bajaur tribal region, where the military launched an operation against Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked militants in August. "Troops fired artillery on militant hideouts and underground bunkers Tuesday night, killing five rebels and wounding three others," Jamil said.
From 'AFP': ISLAMABAD — A major Arab Al-Qaeda operative was among the six militants killed overnight in a suspected US missile strike in northwest Pakistan, a senior security official told AFP Wednesday. Security sources identified the militant as Abdullah Azam al-Saudi, a senior member of Osama bin Laden's terror network. They said US intelligence officials had identified him as the main link between Al-Qaeda's senior command and Taliban networks in the Pakistani border region with Afghanistan. "He was the man coordinating between Al-Qaeda and Taliban commanders on this side of the border, and also involved in recruiting and training fighters," an Islamabad-based senior security official told AFP.
U.S. Predator Drone
Sources in the Taliban said al-Saudi was also a member of the Taliban's supreme council, or Shura, under its fugitive leader Mullah Mohammad Omar when it moved from Afghanistan to the Pakistani side of the border about a year ago. "He was closely linked to Al-Qaeda number two Ayman al-Zawahiri," a Taliban source added. Following the strike, al-Zawahiri warned US president-elect Barack Obama against sending more troops to Afghanistan saying that US policy was "doomed to failure" in an Internet audio message.
A security official said the US missile strike was carried out on intelligence that al-Saudi was in a house belonging to a tribesman in the Bannu district, which borders restive North Waziristan. It was the first alleged US missile strike outside the tribal region which is described by the United States as home to Al-Qaeda's command and control structure. Terror network chief Osama bin Laden is also widely believed to be hiding in the rugged region, although there is no clear information about his whereabouts.
Al-Saudi is the second high-profile Al-Qaeda operative killed in recent apparent US missile strikes near Pakistan's border with Afghanistan. Egyptian Abu Jihad al-Masri, described by the US as the terror network's propaganda chief, was among several rebels killed in a November 1st missile strike in North Waziristan, a known hub of Al-Qaeda and Taliban rebels.
At least five Taliban militants were also killed when Pakistani artillery pounded their hideouts through the night in a restive tribal region near the Afghanistan border, local administration official Mohammad Jamil told AFP. The clashes took place in the Mamoon and Nawagai areas in Bajaur tribal region, where the military launched an operation against Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked militants in August. "Troops fired artillery on militant hideouts and underground bunkers Tuesday night, killing five rebels and wounding three others," Jamil said.
U.S. Missiles Strike Deeper Into Pakistan
Source Article HERE.
From 'Associated Press': ISLAMABAD — A suspected American missile strike bombarded a village deep inside Pakistani territory Wednesday, officials said, marking what appears to be the first time the U.S. has struck beyond the tribal belt bordering Afghanistan. Six alleged militants were killed. Two missiles destroyed a house in Indi Khel village in Bannu district, Javed Marwat, a local government official, told The Associated Press. Two Pakistani intelligence officials said their agents reported that militants from Central Asia were among the six killed.
Site of missile strike: Indi Khel, Pakistan - Nov 19
The United States, which says Taliban and al-Qaida militants use pockets of northwest Pakistan to plan attacks on foreign troops in Afghanistan, has been blamed in about 20 cross-border missile strikes since August. The U.S. rarely confirms or denies the strikes, which are believed to be carried out mainly by the CIA. The attacks have killed scores of suspected al-Qaida and Taliban militants in the tribal regions that are a rumored hiding place of Osama bin Laden. The missiles are apparently fired from unmanned planes launched in Afghanistan, where some 32,000 U.S. troops are fighting the Taliban and other militants.
Pakistan has protested the strikes as violations of its sovereignty and international law but the attacks continue, leading analysts to speculate that the two nations may have a secret deal. General David Petraeus, the head of U.S. Central Command, has defended the missile strikes, saying at least three top extremist leaders, whom he did not identify, have been killed in recent months in the attacks. Until Wednesday, all the attacks since August were in North and South Waziristan, two tribal regions where the government has ceded much of its limited control to militants. U.S. officials say they want to help Pakistan regain sovereignty over such areas.
The Bannu district, which falls under the control of the regional government, begins roughly 18 miles away from the border with Afghanistan. Two other intelligence officials, both based in Bannu, said militants had begun moving farther away from the border, including to their district and other settled areas, in an apparent bid to avoid the missile strikes. All the intelligence officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to news media.
Even as the U.S. strikes have picked up, American officers in Afghanistan have stressed improved day-to-day Pakistani cooperation in squeezing militants nested along both sides of the lengthy, porous border. U.S. military officials said troops in Afghanistan coordinated with Pakistan on Sunday in shelling insurgents inside Pakistan who were launching rockets at the foreign troops. Pakistan's official statement on the matter referred only to militant activity in Afghanistan.
In the past month, NATO and Pakistan also have cooperated in so-called Operation Lion Heart — a series of complementary operations that involve Pakistani army and paramilitary troops, and NATO on the Afghan side, said Colonel John Spiszer, U.S. commander in northeast Afghanistan. "What we have done is worked very hard to refocus our ... intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance assets to do everything we can to identify transiting across the border," he told a Pentagon news conference in Washington via teleconference from Afghanistan on Tuesday.
Commanders hope pressure on both sides of the border will eventually mean militants will be "running out of options on places to go," Spiszer said. U.S. officials have praised Pakistani military offensives against militants in its border region, including an operation in the Bajur tribal area that the army says has killed some 1,500 alleged insurgents.
From 'Associated Press': ISLAMABAD — A suspected American missile strike bombarded a village deep inside Pakistani territory Wednesday, officials said, marking what appears to be the first time the U.S. has struck beyond the tribal belt bordering Afghanistan. Six alleged militants were killed. Two missiles destroyed a house in Indi Khel village in Bannu district, Javed Marwat, a local government official, told The Associated Press. Two Pakistani intelligence officials said their agents reported that militants from Central Asia were among the six killed.
Site of missile strike: Indi Khel, Pakistan - Nov 19
The United States, which says Taliban and al-Qaida militants use pockets of northwest Pakistan to plan attacks on foreign troops in Afghanistan, has been blamed in about 20 cross-border missile strikes since August. The U.S. rarely confirms or denies the strikes, which are believed to be carried out mainly by the CIA. The attacks have killed scores of suspected al-Qaida and Taliban militants in the tribal regions that are a rumored hiding place of Osama bin Laden. The missiles are apparently fired from unmanned planes launched in Afghanistan, where some 32,000 U.S. troops are fighting the Taliban and other militants.
Pakistan has protested the strikes as violations of its sovereignty and international law but the attacks continue, leading analysts to speculate that the two nations may have a secret deal. General David Petraeus, the head of U.S. Central Command, has defended the missile strikes, saying at least three top extremist leaders, whom he did not identify, have been killed in recent months in the attacks. Until Wednesday, all the attacks since August were in North and South Waziristan, two tribal regions where the government has ceded much of its limited control to militants. U.S. officials say they want to help Pakistan regain sovereignty over such areas.
The Bannu district, which falls under the control of the regional government, begins roughly 18 miles away from the border with Afghanistan. Two other intelligence officials, both based in Bannu, said militants had begun moving farther away from the border, including to their district and other settled areas, in an apparent bid to avoid the missile strikes. All the intelligence officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to news media.
Even as the U.S. strikes have picked up, American officers in Afghanistan have stressed improved day-to-day Pakistani cooperation in squeezing militants nested along both sides of the lengthy, porous border. U.S. military officials said troops in Afghanistan coordinated with Pakistan on Sunday in shelling insurgents inside Pakistan who were launching rockets at the foreign troops. Pakistan's official statement on the matter referred only to militant activity in Afghanistan.
In the past month, NATO and Pakistan also have cooperated in so-called Operation Lion Heart — a series of complementary operations that involve Pakistani army and paramilitary troops, and NATO on the Afghan side, said Colonel John Spiszer, U.S. commander in northeast Afghanistan. "What we have done is worked very hard to refocus our ... intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance assets to do everything we can to identify transiting across the border," he told a Pentagon news conference in Washington via teleconference from Afghanistan on Tuesday.
Commanders hope pressure on both sides of the border will eventually mean militants will be "running out of options on places to go," Spiszer said. U.S. officials have praised Pakistani military offensives against militants in its border region, including an operation in the Bajur tribal area that the army says has killed some 1,500 alleged insurgents.
MNFI Press Release - Nov 19
COMBINED OPERATION YIELDS RIFLE CACHE
MND-B Soldiers and Iraqi National Police (INP) confiscated a rifle cache on November 18th during a clearance operation in the Rashid district of southern Baghdad. During the morning op, Soldiers from 7th Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, MND-B, and INP from the 7th Brigade, 2nd National Police Division, seized (38) AK-47 assault rifles, (3) sniper rifles, and (14) AK-47 magazines in the Abu T’shir community.
MND-B SOLDIERS, ISF CONDUCT JOINT OP
To combat the threat in northern Adhamiyah, MND–B Soldiers and Iraqi Security Forces conducted a joint operation in Baghdad’s Istaqlal district on November 18th. Soldiers from MND-B’s 1st Combined Arms Battalion, 68th Armor Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, and 1st Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, partnered with the Iraqi Army’s 1st Battalion, 42nd Brigade, 11th Division, and the National Police’s 3rd Battalion, 4th Brigade, 1st Division and 2nd Brigade, 1st Division, for the maneuver. The early morning operation netted seven detainees and, hopefully, safer streets for the Iraqi people as well as Iraqi Security and Coalition forces.
A coalition of American and Iraqi soldiers participated in clearing and searching buildings, vehicles and nearby fields. Some of those Soldiers were inserted into the area via helicopter to provide quick access to areas that would take too long to reach via ground transportation. Shortly after the sun rose, the Soldiers had cleared their target areas and returned to their bases across northern Baghdad. “This mission truly showed the value of the Iraqi Security Forces in helping prevent a dangerous and deadly tool of the enemy from hurting the good people of Iraq as well as other members of the security forces in northern Baghdad,” said Maj. Michael Humphreys, who serves as the public affairs officer for 3rd BCT, 4th Inf. Div.
TROOPS DISRUPT AQI LEADERSHIP, NETWORKS
Coalition operations further dismantled AQI's terrorist leadership and bombing networks throughout Iraq on Monday and Tuesday, as forces captured four wanted men and detained 14 suspected terrorists, military officials reported.
Forces continued to strike terrorist leadership in Iraq Tuesday night. During an operation in Beiji, south of Mosul, forces detained a man believed to be associated with a terrorist leader in the city. Forces in Sadiyah, northeast of Baghdad, detained four men believed to have connections to a senior courier in the Diyala AQI network.
Two synchronized operations Tuesday in Tarmiyah, north of Baghdad, degraded AQI’s bombing networks in the Tigris River Valley. During one op, Coalition forces captured a wanted man believed to house suicide bombers and facilitate AQI meetings in his residence. He and three other suspects were detained. A concurrent operation in Tarmiyah netted a second wanted man believed to train AQI operatives on IED construction and employment. The suspected terrorist, who reports suggest was actively planning a car bomb attack in the Tarmiyah area, surrendered himself to Coalition forces, officials said. Four other men believed to be associates of the wanted man were detained for further questioning.
Terrorist bombing networks also were the target of a coalition operation in Beiji yesterday. There, a wanted man associated with IED facilitation networks in the Tigris River Valley was captured. He surrendered himself to Coalition forces without incident. Ground forces in Mosul captured a wanted man, believed to be an IED facilitator, along with two additional suspects. The wanted man also is believed to be an administrator and operations planner for a terrorist organization affiliated with AQI, officials said.
In other Iraq news, two terrorists were killed and four men were detained during intelligence-driven ops in Mosul on November 16th and 17th. On the 16th, Iraqi Police and U.S. Soldiers from 3rd Squadron, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, killed two enemy fighters during an operation in the Amel neighborhood. The Police officers also confiscated a 9 mm pistol and two fragmentary hand grenades. During Monday’s op, Iraqi Soldiers and Soldiers with the 1st Battalion, 8th Infantry Regiment, captured four suspected terrorists in the Tameen neighborhood.
MND-B Soldiers and Iraqi National Police (INP) confiscated a rifle cache on November 18th during a clearance operation in the Rashid district of southern Baghdad. During the morning op, Soldiers from 7th Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, MND-B, and INP from the 7th Brigade, 2nd National Police Division, seized (38) AK-47 assault rifles, (3) sniper rifles, and (14) AK-47 magazines in the Abu T’shir community.MND-B SOLDIERS, ISF CONDUCT JOINT OP
To combat the threat in northern Adhamiyah, MND–B Soldiers and Iraqi Security Forces conducted a joint operation in Baghdad’s Istaqlal district on November 18th. Soldiers from MND-B’s 1st Combined Arms Battalion, 68th Armor Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, and 1st Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, partnered with the Iraqi Army’s 1st Battalion, 42nd Brigade, 11th Division, and the National Police’s 3rd Battalion, 4th Brigade, 1st Division and 2nd Brigade, 1st Division, for the maneuver. The early morning operation netted seven detainees and, hopefully, safer streets for the Iraqi people as well as Iraqi Security and Coalition forces.
A coalition of American and Iraqi soldiers participated in clearing and searching buildings, vehicles and nearby fields. Some of those Soldiers were inserted into the area via helicopter to provide quick access to areas that would take too long to reach via ground transportation. Shortly after the sun rose, the Soldiers had cleared their target areas and returned to their bases across northern Baghdad. “This mission truly showed the value of the Iraqi Security Forces in helping prevent a dangerous and deadly tool of the enemy from hurting the good people of Iraq as well as other members of the security forces in northern Baghdad,” said Maj. Michael Humphreys, who serves as the public affairs officer for 3rd BCT, 4th Inf. Div.
TROOPS DISRUPT AQI LEADERSHIP, NETWORKS
Coalition operations further dismantled AQI's terrorist leadership and bombing networks throughout Iraq on Monday and Tuesday, as forces captured four wanted men and detained 14 suspected terrorists, military officials reported.
Forces continued to strike terrorist leadership in Iraq Tuesday night. During an operation in Beiji, south of Mosul, forces detained a man believed to be associated with a terrorist leader in the city. Forces in Sadiyah, northeast of Baghdad, detained four men believed to have connections to a senior courier in the Diyala AQI network.
Two synchronized operations Tuesday in Tarmiyah, north of Baghdad, degraded AQI’s bombing networks in the Tigris River Valley. During one op, Coalition forces captured a wanted man believed to house suicide bombers and facilitate AQI meetings in his residence. He and three other suspects were detained. A concurrent operation in Tarmiyah netted a second wanted man believed to train AQI operatives on IED construction and employment. The suspected terrorist, who reports suggest was actively planning a car bomb attack in the Tarmiyah area, surrendered himself to Coalition forces, officials said. Four other men believed to be associates of the wanted man were detained for further questioning.
Terrorist bombing networks also were the target of a coalition operation in Beiji yesterday. There, a wanted man associated with IED facilitation networks in the Tigris River Valley was captured. He surrendered himself to Coalition forces without incident. Ground forces in Mosul captured a wanted man, believed to be an IED facilitator, along with two additional suspects. The wanted man also is believed to be an administrator and operations planner for a terrorist organization affiliated with AQI, officials said.
In other Iraq news, two terrorists were killed and four men were detained during intelligence-driven ops in Mosul on November 16th and 17th. On the 16th, Iraqi Police and U.S. Soldiers from 3rd Squadron, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, killed two enemy fighters during an operation in the Amel neighborhood. The Police officers also confiscated a 9 mm pistol and two fragmentary hand grenades. During Monday’s op, Iraqi Soldiers and Soldiers with the 1st Battalion, 8th Infantry Regiment, captured four suspected terrorists in the Tameen neighborhood.
Iranian Detained In Iraq
Source Article HERE.
From 'New York Times': BAGHDAD — An Iranian described as a senior officer in the Quds Force of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards was detained on Tuesday by allied forces at Baghdad International Airport on suspicion of smuggling weapons into Iraq, the United States military said in a statement. The military said the man, who was trying to leave the country, worked for an organization within the Quds Force “involved in the construction and repair of religious sites in Iraq.” It said the man was also carrying cocaine.
From 'New York Times': BAGHDAD — An Iranian described as a senior officer in the Quds Force of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards was detained on Tuesday by allied forces at Baghdad International Airport on suspicion of smuggling weapons into Iraq, the United States military said in a statement. The military said the man, who was trying to leave the country, worked for an organization within the Quds Force “involved in the construction and repair of religious sites in Iraq.” It said the man was also carrying cocaine.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
NATO-ISAF Press Releases - Nov 17, 18
BRITISH FORCES SEE IMPROVEMENT IN KABUL
Source Article HERE. Members of ISAF’s Force Protection Company conducted a foot patrol in Kabul on November 16th in order to establish a presence in the area and meet with local civilians. The 4th Battalion, Yorkshire Regiment, of the British Territorial Army is in charge of force protection for the headquarters base. The battalion soldiers are trained in the tactics and operations necessary to provide perimeter security, in addition to conducting foot patrols around the city.
“Out of all the tasks we perform here in Kabul, getting out and patrolling is what we enjoy the most because that’s what we are, infantry soldiers,” said Delta Platoon’s Second in Command Sergeant Major Tony Archer, from Middlesbrough. The 4th Battalion Yorkshire Regiment is a reserve unit that was called to duty in May. The soldiers have been in Kabul for three months and have seen a variety of improvements in the city during their tour. “People are friendlier; they get to know our faces, know who we are,” Lance Corporal Kenny Wilson of Kingston Upon Hill said. “Throughout the city there is development everywhere; there are new buildings getting built left, right and centre. There are new road surfaces being laid. Traffic lights, street lights, electricity, running water and sewage systems have improved in certain areas. Community spirit is a lot better. You see more people out, and more women getting involved in daily activities.”
While performing foot patrols is tiring duty, many of the soldiers find it rewarding, especially when they interact with the children of the city. “The kids on the street are fantastic,” Wilson said. “They’ll run up to you and say hello, try to get sweets off you; they’re just kids like everywhere else. They’re just fantastic people.”
ISAF, PAKISTAN COORDINATE STRIKE ON INSURGENTS
Source Article HERE. Insurgents attacked an ISAF base in Paktika on November 16th leading to a coordinated artillery strike into Pakistan. The ISAF base received two separate rocket attacks from a location within Pakistan. Following the second attack, ISAF soldiers were able to identify the origin of the enemy rocket launches. Upon positive identification, ISAF coordinated with the Pakistan military and fired a total of 20 artillery rounds on the enemy location. The artillery fire caused a secondary explosion at the rocket launch site, which indicates additional munitions were in the location. ISAF and Pakistani soldiers observed all fired artillery rounds. The Pakistani soldiers assured ISAF that they would engage any insurgents attempting to flee deeper into Pakistan. There were no ISAF casualties.
ANSF, ISAF DEFEAT 2 INSURGENT ATTACKS
Source Article HERE. Afghan National Security Forces and ISAF defeated two insurgent attacks in eastern Afghanistan on November 16th. In Nangarhar, insurgents fired rocket-propelled grenades at the civilian-populated district center of Khogyani and a nearby ISAF base. Afghan National Army, Afghan National Police and ISAF forces returned fire by ground and air in defence of the area. A number of insurgents were killed, and one is in Afghan custody. No civilians or soldiers were injured. Insurgents also attempted to attack an ISAF base in Bermel district, Paktika. ISAF soldiers returned fired in self-defence and called in attack helicopters. A large number of insurgents were killed, while again no civilians or ISAF soldiers were injured. “We commend the Afghan National Army and the Afghan National Police for their outstanding defence of their fellow citizens. Their capabilities are improving, and ISAF will continue to support them in defeating these enemies of peace,” said Brigadier General Richard Blanchette, ISAF spokesperson.
Source Article HERE. Members of ISAF’s Force Protection Company conducted a foot patrol in Kabul on November 16th in order to establish a presence in the area and meet with local civilians. The 4th Battalion, Yorkshire Regiment, of the British Territorial Army is in charge of force protection for the headquarters base. The battalion soldiers are trained in the tactics and operations necessary to provide perimeter security, in addition to conducting foot patrols around the city. “Out of all the tasks we perform here in Kabul, getting out and patrolling is what we enjoy the most because that’s what we are, infantry soldiers,” said Delta Platoon’s Second in Command Sergeant Major Tony Archer, from Middlesbrough. The 4th Battalion Yorkshire Regiment is a reserve unit that was called to duty in May. The soldiers have been in Kabul for three months and have seen a variety of improvements in the city during their tour. “People are friendlier; they get to know our faces, know who we are,” Lance Corporal Kenny Wilson of Kingston Upon Hill said. “Throughout the city there is development everywhere; there are new buildings getting built left, right and centre. There are new road surfaces being laid. Traffic lights, street lights, electricity, running water and sewage systems have improved in certain areas. Community spirit is a lot better. You see more people out, and more women getting involved in daily activities.”
While performing foot patrols is tiring duty, many of the soldiers find it rewarding, especially when they interact with the children of the city. “The kids on the street are fantastic,” Wilson said. “They’ll run up to you and say hello, try to get sweets off you; they’re just kids like everywhere else. They’re just fantastic people.”
ISAF, PAKISTAN COORDINATE STRIKE ON INSURGENTS
Source Article HERE. Insurgents attacked an ISAF base in Paktika on November 16th leading to a coordinated artillery strike into Pakistan. The ISAF base received two separate rocket attacks from a location within Pakistan. Following the second attack, ISAF soldiers were able to identify the origin of the enemy rocket launches. Upon positive identification, ISAF coordinated with the Pakistan military and fired a total of 20 artillery rounds on the enemy location. The artillery fire caused a secondary explosion at the rocket launch site, which indicates additional munitions were in the location. ISAF and Pakistani soldiers observed all fired artillery rounds. The Pakistani soldiers assured ISAF that they would engage any insurgents attempting to flee deeper into Pakistan. There were no ISAF casualties.
ANSF, ISAF DEFEAT 2 INSURGENT ATTACKS
Source Article HERE. Afghan National Security Forces and ISAF defeated two insurgent attacks in eastern Afghanistan on November 16th. In Nangarhar, insurgents fired rocket-propelled grenades at the civilian-populated district center of Khogyani and a nearby ISAF base. Afghan National Army, Afghan National Police and ISAF forces returned fire by ground and air in defence of the area. A number of insurgents were killed, and one is in Afghan custody. No civilians or soldiers were injured. Insurgents also attempted to attack an ISAF base in Bermel district, Paktika. ISAF soldiers returned fired in self-defence and called in attack helicopters. A large number of insurgents were killed, while again no civilians or ISAF soldiers were injured. “We commend the Afghan National Army and the Afghan National Police for their outstanding defence of their fellow citizens. Their capabilities are improving, and ISAF will continue to support them in defeating these enemies of peace,” said Brigadier General Richard Blanchette, ISAF spokesperson.
5 Militants Killed, 14 Arrested In Afghanistan
Source Article HERE.
From 'Xinhua': KABUL -- US-led Coalition forces, during multiple operations, have killed 5 militants and detained 14 suspects in Afghanistan, said a Coalition statement. On Tuesday, Coalition forces tracked militants to a remote location about 75 kilometers northwest of Farah city in western Afghanistan where militants were observed loading weapons into a vehicle from a weapons cache, the statement said. Five militants were killed when Coalition forces called in air support with precision munitions. "There were no civilians or man-made structures in the vicinity of the operation."
During other operations on Monday, Coalition forces detained 14 militants in eastern Afghanistan, the statement said. Forces detained 6 suspected militants during an operation to disrupt attacks against Afghan and Coalition forces in the Tagab district of Kapisa province, it said. "The targeted militant is believed to be a Taliban commander who plans and conducts such nefarious activities." In another operation targeting a local Taliban commander believed to be in contact with senior Taliban commanders in the region, forces detained 4 insurgents following a search of a compound in Waghez district of Ghazni province. Four other suspected militants were captured in the Zurmat district of Paktya province during a Coalition operation targeting Al-Qaida and Taliban associated individuals suspected of coordinating and aiding the movement of foreign fighters to carry out attacks.
From 'Xinhua': KABUL -- US-led Coalition forces, during multiple operations, have killed 5 militants and detained 14 suspects in Afghanistan, said a Coalition statement. On Tuesday, Coalition forces tracked militants to a remote location about 75 kilometers northwest of Farah city in western Afghanistan where militants were observed loading weapons into a vehicle from a weapons cache, the statement said. Five militants were killed when Coalition forces called in air support with precision munitions. "There were no civilians or man-made structures in the vicinity of the operation."
During other operations on Monday, Coalition forces detained 14 militants in eastern Afghanistan, the statement said. Forces detained 6 suspected militants during an operation to disrupt attacks against Afghan and Coalition forces in the Tagab district of Kapisa province, it said. "The targeted militant is believed to be a Taliban commander who plans and conducts such nefarious activities." In another operation targeting a local Taliban commander believed to be in contact with senior Taliban commanders in the region, forces detained 4 insurgents following a search of a compound in Waghez district of Ghazni province. Four other suspected militants were captured in the Zurmat district of Paktya province during a Coalition operation targeting Al-Qaida and Taliban associated individuals suspected of coordinating and aiding the movement of foreign fighters to carry out attacks.
MNFI Press Release - Nov 18
MND-B HELPS INP TAKE WEAPONS OFF STREETS
A tip led Iraqi National Police (INP) and MultiNational Division – Baghdad (MND-B) Soldiers to secure and remove a large amount of weapons in eastern Baghdad on November 18th. INP with the 2nd Battalion, 8th Brigade of the 2nd Division, and a Platoon from Company A, 2nd Battalion of the 30th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, acted upon a tip giving the location of a weapons cache in a New Baghdad field at approximately 9:45 a.m. Inventoried in the cache were (2) land mines, (7) grenades, (2) grenade fuses, a one-pound bag of C-4, (7) bricks of C-4, (12) assorted RPG-7s, (1) 100 mm artillery round, (1) six-inch copper plate, (8) RPG boosters, (2) bags of TNT, and a one pound bag of explosive.
MND-B SOLDIERS DETAIN SUSPECTED TERRORIST
On November 17th, MND-B Soldiers detained a suspected terrorist in southern Baghdad’s Rashid district. During an operation at approximately 11 p.m. in the Risalah neighborhood, Soldiers from Company B, 4th Battalion, 64th Armor Regiment, attached to the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, MND-B, detained the individual, suspected of attacks against Coalition forces. “Capturing known criminals and getting them off the streets is part of the 1st ‘Raider’ Brigade’s primary mission to provide a safe and secure environment for the Iraqi people,” said Major Dave Olson, 1st BCT Spokesman, 4th ID, MND-B. He added however that, “The Iraqi Security Forces are continually taking on more responsibility by securing their country and the people of Iraq.”
A tip led Iraqi National Police (INP) and MultiNational Division – Baghdad (MND-B) Soldiers to secure and remove a large amount of weapons in eastern Baghdad on November 18th. INP with the 2nd Battalion, 8th Brigade of the 2nd Division, and a Platoon from Company A, 2nd Battalion of the 30th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, acted upon a tip giving the location of a weapons cache in a New Baghdad field at approximately 9:45 a.m. Inventoried in the cache were (2) land mines, (7) grenades, (2) grenade fuses, a one-pound bag of C-4, (7) bricks of C-4, (12) assorted RPG-7s, (1) 100 mm artillery round, (1) six-inch copper plate, (8) RPG boosters, (2) bags of TNT, and a one pound bag of explosive.
MND-B SOLDIERS DETAIN SUSPECTED TERRORIST
On November 17th, MND-B Soldiers detained a suspected terrorist in southern Baghdad’s Rashid district. During an operation at approximately 11 p.m. in the Risalah neighborhood, Soldiers from Company B, 4th Battalion, 64th Armor Regiment, attached to the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, MND-B, detained the individual, suspected of attacks against Coalition forces. “Capturing known criminals and getting them off the streets is part of the 1st ‘Raider’ Brigade’s primary mission to provide a safe and secure environment for the Iraqi people,” said Major Dave Olson, 1st BCT Spokesman, 4th ID, MND-B. He added however that, “The Iraqi Security Forces are continually taking on more responsibility by securing their country and the people of Iraq.”
NYPD Opens Hi-Tech Terror Threat Center
Source Article HERE.
From 'Newsday & AP': The New York City Police Department has quietly flipped the switch on a high-tech command center designed to protect lower Manhattan from terrorist threats. The center, located in a nondescript office tower, is part of an ambitious $100 million security initiative launched in response to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. Earlier this month, about 30 officers assigned to the command center for the first time began monitoring 150 closed-circuit cameras trained on Wall Street. Police say there will be 3,000 cameras in the financial district by 2011. The program was modeled in part after the "ring of steel" surveillance measures in London's financial district. But Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly says it will exceed that effort in scope and sophistication.
From 'Newsday & AP': The New York City Police Department has quietly flipped the switch on a high-tech command center designed to protect lower Manhattan from terrorist threats. The center, located in a nondescript office tower, is part of an ambitious $100 million security initiative launched in response to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. Earlier this month, about 30 officers assigned to the command center for the first time began monitoring 150 closed-circuit cameras trained on Wall Street. Police say there will be 3,000 cameras in the financial district by 2011. The program was modeled in part after the "ring of steel" surveillance measures in London's financial district. But Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly says it will exceed that effort in scope and sophistication.
Libya Compensates US Terror Victims
Source Article HERE.
From 'Robert's US Government Info Blog': Libya has paid its $1.5 billion obligation to compensate American victims of Libyan terrorist attacks, according to U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ). The funds were paid under terms of the Libyan Claims Resolution Act, sponsored by Lautenberg. Compensation was paid by Libya for: the 1988 Pan Am 103 bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland, which killed 279, including 38 Americans; the 1968 bombing of the Labelle discotheque in Berlin, Germany which killed 2 and injured approximately 90 Americans; and other U.S. deaths and injuries in still pending cases.
"American victims and their families have waited decades for Libya to pay for its deadly acts of violence -- and today they have received long-overdue justice," Sen. Lautenberg said in a press release. "I am pleased that our relentless pressure and support for terror victims has led to this historic moment." In 2004, President Bush lifted economic sanctions against Libya which had been in place since 1986, and in 2006, Bush removed Libya from the State Department’s list of state sponsors of terrorism. Both actions came before Libya had paid any compensation to American victims of its terror attacks.
From 'Robert's US Government Info Blog': Libya has paid its $1.5 billion obligation to compensate American victims of Libyan terrorist attacks, according to U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ). The funds were paid under terms of the Libyan Claims Resolution Act, sponsored by Lautenberg. Compensation was paid by Libya for: the 1988 Pan Am 103 bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland, which killed 279, including 38 Americans; the 1968 bombing of the Labelle discotheque in Berlin, Germany which killed 2 and injured approximately 90 Americans; and other U.S. deaths and injuries in still pending cases.
"American victims and their families have waited decades for Libya to pay for its deadly acts of violence -- and today they have received long-overdue justice," Sen. Lautenberg said in a press release. "I am pleased that our relentless pressure and support for terror victims has led to this historic moment." In 2004, President Bush lifted economic sanctions against Libya which had been in place since 1986, and in 2006, Bush removed Libya from the State Department’s list of state sponsors of terrorism. Both actions came before Libya had paid any compensation to American victims of its terror attacks.
Monday, November 17, 2008
Pakistan Kills 21 Militants In Bajaur
Source Article HERE.
From 'Press TV' (Iran): Pakistani military forces have killed 21 more Taliban militants during the ongoing offensive in the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan. Backed by helicopter gunships, military troops attacked militants' hideouts in the troubled Northwestern's Bajaur region on Sunday, a Press TV correspondent in Pakistan reported on Monday. Also, several militants were injured in the attack.
Northwestern Pakistan along the Afghanistan border has been the scene of insurgency since 2001 when Islamabad joined the US-led war on terror. More than 1,400 people have been killed over the past year as a result of violence in Pakistan's tribal regions.
And in a related story...
Five Taliban Militants Killed By Artillery
Source Article HERE.
From 'AFP': KHAR, Pakistan — At least five Taliban militants were killed overnight when Pakistani artillery pounded their hideouts in a restive tribal region near the Afghanistan border, an official said on Monday. The five were killed in Siprai village in Bajaur district, where Pakistani forces have been engaged in fierce clashes with Taliban and militants linked to Al-Qaeda for the past three months. "It was intense firing which continued until late Sunday night, killing five militants," local administration official Mohammad Jamil told AFP.
He said that the artillery fire resumed on Monday morning in several areas of Bajaur targeting underground bunkers and hideouts of militants. The Pakistani military said last month that around 1,500 rebels and 73 soldiers had died while hundreds more militants were captured since the military launched the operation in Bajaur in August. Pakistan's tribal belt became a safe haven for hundreds of extremists who fled Afghanistan after the US toppled the hardline Taliban regime in late 2001 and have since set up training camps.
Pakistan has been accused by the United States and Afghanistan of not doing enough to stop militants crossing the border to attack US and NATO troops in Afghanistan. But Islamabad says its operation in Bajaur is proof that it is committed to crushing insurgents.
From 'Press TV' (Iran): Pakistani military forces have killed 21 more Taliban militants during the ongoing offensive in the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan. Backed by helicopter gunships, military troops attacked militants' hideouts in the troubled Northwestern's Bajaur region on Sunday, a Press TV correspondent in Pakistan reported on Monday. Also, several militants were injured in the attack.Northwestern Pakistan along the Afghanistan border has been the scene of insurgency since 2001 when Islamabad joined the US-led war on terror. More than 1,400 people have been killed over the past year as a result of violence in Pakistan's tribal regions.
And in a related story...
Five Taliban Militants Killed By Artillery
Source Article HERE.
From 'AFP': KHAR, Pakistan — At least five Taliban militants were killed overnight when Pakistani artillery pounded their hideouts in a restive tribal region near the Afghanistan border, an official said on Monday. The five were killed in Siprai village in Bajaur district, where Pakistani forces have been engaged in fierce clashes with Taliban and militants linked to Al-Qaeda for the past three months. "It was intense firing which continued until late Sunday night, killing five militants," local administration official Mohammad Jamil told AFP.He said that the artillery fire resumed on Monday morning in several areas of Bajaur targeting underground bunkers and hideouts of militants. The Pakistani military said last month that around 1,500 rebels and 73 soldiers had died while hundreds more militants were captured since the military launched the operation in Bajaur in August. Pakistan's tribal belt became a safe haven for hundreds of extremists who fled Afghanistan after the US toppled the hardline Taliban regime in late 2001 and have since set up training camps.
Pakistan has been accused by the United States and Afghanistan of not doing enough to stop militants crossing the border to attack US and NATO troops in Afghanistan. But Islamabad says its operation in Bajaur is proof that it is committed to crushing insurgents.
Sri Lanka Army Takes Rebel Town
Source Article HERE.
From 'BBC': Sri Lankan troops have captured a strategically important town used by the Tamil Tigers as a key supply route to the island's north, the army says. Correspondents say it is the first time in recent fighting that the army has captured parts of the A9 highway leading to the Jaffna peninsula. Military spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara said that the army took control of Mankulam town on Monday. He said that in capturing the town the army had cut off rebel supply routes.
The town has been in rebel hands since 1999 and lies near the A9. The army says that the town was captured after several hours of heavy fighting and is important because it lies on a strategically important junction of the road, giving them control of the north, south and east. The A9 is the main way of travelling overland from the centre of the island to the north. But correspondents say that the rebels seldom used the route because they knew it would make their forces vulnerable to land and air attacks by the army.
"In addition to capturing Mankulam, we are holding Panichchankulam which is 10km (six miles) north," army commander Lieut Gen Sarath Fonseka said. "Although the Sri Lankan army had control over this area 10 years ago we could not hold onto it. In capturing the area we have killed a large number of Tigers and chased many away."
On Sunday the army said it had entered the Tamil Tiger stronghold of Pooneryn and now controls the entire western coast. Sri Lanka's military is on a major offensive to try to crush the Tigers and end their fight for an independent state for the ethnic Tamil minority. The Tamil Tigers have been fighting in the north and east since 1983 and about 70,000 people have been killed in the violence.
[Editor's Note: The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), commonly known as the 'Tamil Tigers', is a militant nationalist organization that has waged a violent secessionist campaign against the Sri Lankan government since the 1970s in order to create a sovereign socialist Tamil state in the north and east of Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon). The LTTE is currently proscribed as a terrorist organization by 31 countries, including the United States.]
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The town has been in rebel hands since 1999 and lies near the A9. The army says that the town was captured after several hours of heavy fighting and is important because it lies on a strategically important junction of the road, giving them control of the north, south and east. The A9 is the main way of travelling overland from the centre of the island to the north. But correspondents say that the rebels seldom used the route because they knew it would make their forces vulnerable to land and air attacks by the army.
"In addition to capturing Mankulam, we are holding Panichchankulam which is 10km (six miles) north," army commander Lieut Gen Sarath Fonseka said. "Although the Sri Lankan army had control over this area 10 years ago we could not hold onto it. In capturing the area we have killed a large number of Tigers and chased many away."
On Sunday the army said it had entered the Tamil Tiger stronghold of Pooneryn and now controls the entire western coast. Sri Lanka's military is on a major offensive to try to crush the Tigers and end their fight for an independent state for the ethnic Tamil minority. The Tamil Tigers have been fighting in the north and east since 1983 and about 70,000 people have been killed in the violence.
[Editor's Note: The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), commonly known as the 'Tamil Tigers', is a militant nationalist organization that has waged a violent secessionist campaign against the Sri Lankan government since the 1970s in order to create a sovereign socialist Tamil state in the north and east of Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon). The LTTE is currently proscribed as a terrorist organization by 31 countries, including the United States.]
Coalition Forces Kill 38 Militants
Source Article HERE.
From 'UPI': KABUL, Afghanistan -- Coalition Forces killed 38 militants in weekend clashes in Helmand province in southern Afghanistan, the U.S. military said. The fighting occurred in the Nahr Surkh district of the province, CNN reported, quoting a U.S. military statement. In another action in Paktia province near the border with Pakistan, coalition troops and the Afghan National Police killed five militants and took 18 others into custody, the U.S. military said. The operation had targeted al-Qaida militants in the area. Among those detained was a "significant al-Qaida associated militant," who had financed operations and helped the Taliban train and bring Arab and other foreign fighters into Afghanistan, CNN reported quoting the military.
From 'UPI': KABUL, Afghanistan -- Coalition Forces killed 38 militants in weekend clashes in Helmand province in southern Afghanistan, the U.S. military said. The fighting occurred in the Nahr Surkh district of the province, CNN reported, quoting a U.S. military statement. In another action in Paktia province near the border with Pakistan, coalition troops and the Afghan National Police killed five militants and took 18 others into custody, the U.S. military said. The operation had targeted al-Qaida militants in the area. Among those detained was a "significant al-Qaida associated militant," who had financed operations and helped the Taliban train and bring Arab and other foreign fighters into Afghanistan, CNN reported quoting the military.
MNFI Press Release - Nov 17
MND-B SOLDIERS DISCOVER MORTAR ROUNDS IN RASHID
MultiNational Division – Baghdad Soldiers discovered a weapons cache on November 16th in southern Baghdad’s Rashid district. At approximately 8:30 p.m. in the Jihad community, Soldiers from Company C, 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, MND-B, discovered (5) 82 mm mortar rounds and an undisclosed amount of detonation cord while on patrol. An explosive ordnance disposal unit arrived on the scene to properly dispose of the munitions. “Thanks to the improved security situation in the Rashid district, citizens are able to move back to normalcy in their daily lives,” said Major Dave Olson, 1st BCT Spokesman, 4th ID, MND-B. “The 1st ‘Raider’ Brigade continues to conduct full-spectrum operations working closely with the Iraqi Security Forces in southern Baghdad.”
RASHID SPECIAL GROUPS CRIMINAL CAPTURED
MultiNational Division – Baghdad Soldiers detained a special groups criminal in Baghdad’s Rashid District on November 16th. At approximately 12:45 a.m., a combat patrol from Company C, 4th Battalion, 64th Armor Regiment, attached to the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, MND-B, detained a special groups criminal in the Shurta community. The patrol returned to a combat outpost with the detainee for further questioning. “There’s no place for criminals operating in Rashid,” said Major Dave Olson, 1st BCT spokesman, 4th ID, MND-B. “Raider Soldiers patrol day and night to ensure a peaceful environment for Rashid’s 1.6 million citizens.”
MultiNational Division – Baghdad Soldiers discovered a weapons cache on November 16th in southern Baghdad’s Rashid district. At approximately 8:30 p.m. in the Jihad community, Soldiers from Company C, 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, MND-B, discovered (5) 82 mm mortar rounds and an undisclosed amount of detonation cord while on patrol. An explosive ordnance disposal unit arrived on the scene to properly dispose of the munitions. “Thanks to the improved security situation in the Rashid district, citizens are able to move back to normalcy in their daily lives,” said Major Dave Olson, 1st BCT Spokesman, 4th ID, MND-B. “The 1st ‘Raider’ Brigade continues to conduct full-spectrum operations working closely with the Iraqi Security Forces in southern Baghdad.”
RASHID SPECIAL GROUPS CRIMINAL CAPTURED
MultiNational Division – Baghdad Soldiers detained a special groups criminal in Baghdad’s Rashid District on November 16th. At approximately 12:45 a.m., a combat patrol from Company C, 4th Battalion, 64th Armor Regiment, attached to the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, MND-B, detained a special groups criminal in the Shurta community. The patrol returned to a combat outpost with the detainee for further questioning. “There’s no place for criminals operating in Rashid,” said Major Dave Olson, 1st BCT spokesman, 4th ID, MND-B. “Raider Soldiers patrol day and night to ensure a peaceful environment for Rashid’s 1.6 million citizens.”
France Arrests Basque Terror Leader
Source Article HERE.
From 'New York Times': The French police have arrested a leader of the Basque militant group ETA, the French and Spanish authorities said Monday. The leader, Garikoitz Aspiazu Rubina, also known as Txeroki (Cherokee), was detained in Cauterets, a town in the French Pyrenees near the Spanish border, a spokeswoman for the Spanish Interior Ministry said. A Spanish woman, also believed to be in ETA, was detained with him, said the spokeswoman, who spoke on condition of anonymity under government rules.
Prime Minister José Luis RodrÃguez Zapatero of Spain, at a televised news conference here, said the arrest was a “definitive operation in the fight against ETA.” He described Mr. Aspiazu as the head of ETA’s operations and said he was suspected in the fatal shooting of two Spanish policemen in the French coastal town of Capbreton last December 1st. Mr. Aspiazu is also believed to have ordered a car bomb attack in a parking lot at Madrid’s Barajas International Airport in December 2006, the Interior Ministry spokeswoman said. That bombing killed two people. “Nobody doubts that his detention will save lives,” Mr. Zapatero said.
Mr. Aspiazu’s arrest is the latest in a series of captures of suspected ETA operatives, and the highest-profile arrest since May, when the French and Spanish police arrested the organization’s top commander, Francisco Javier Lopez Peña, also known as Thierry, in the French city of Bordeaux. ETA, which is considered a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union, has killed more than 800 people in what it says is a struggle for an independent Basque homeland.
Mr. Aspiazu was born in 1973, according to Spanish press reports, and ascended to prominence in ETA from the militant Basque youth movement, which is behind spates of street violence and vandalism that plague many Basque towns. His age and apparent standing in ETA would be consistent with what Spanish security officials describe as a military structure increasingly composed of young militants.
The Associated Press quoted a French official as saying that guns, documents and computers had been confiscated from the house where Mr. Aspiazu was arrested. The French Interior Ministry said in a statement that the latest arrests brought the number of ETA suspects detained on French soil this year to 31.
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Prime Minister José Luis RodrÃguez Zapatero of Spain, at a televised news conference here, said the arrest was a “definitive operation in the fight against ETA.” He described Mr. Aspiazu as the head of ETA’s operations and said he was suspected in the fatal shooting of two Spanish policemen in the French coastal town of Capbreton last December 1st. Mr. Aspiazu is also believed to have ordered a car bomb attack in a parking lot at Madrid’s Barajas International Airport in December 2006, the Interior Ministry spokeswoman said. That bombing killed two people. “Nobody doubts that his detention will save lives,” Mr. Zapatero said.
Mr. Aspiazu’s arrest is the latest in a series of captures of suspected ETA operatives, and the highest-profile arrest since May, when the French and Spanish police arrested the organization’s top commander, Francisco Javier Lopez Peña, also known as Thierry, in the French city of Bordeaux. ETA, which is considered a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union, has killed more than 800 people in what it says is a struggle for an independent Basque homeland.
Mr. Aspiazu was born in 1973, according to Spanish press reports, and ascended to prominence in ETA from the militant Basque youth movement, which is behind spates of street violence and vandalism that plague many Basque towns. His age and apparent standing in ETA would be consistent with what Spanish security officials describe as a military structure increasingly composed of young militants.
The Associated Press quoted a French official as saying that guns, documents and computers had been confiscated from the house where Mr. Aspiazu was arrested. The French Interior Ministry said in a statement that the latest arrests brought the number of ETA suspects detained on French soil this year to 31.
Ramle Woman Arrested On Terror Suspicion
Source Article HERE.
From 'Haaretz': The Shin Bet security service and the Israel Police recently arrested Sumiya Abu Aanam, a young woman from Ramle suspected of planning to carry out a terror attack at the behest of militant Palestinian group - Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade. A gag order on the case was lifted Monday, revealing that Abu Aanam, a 21-year-old teacher's aide at a Ramle kindergarten, was arrested at the end of October. She was set to begin studying at an Israeli university this week.
The police investigation revealed that shortly before her arrest, Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade activists from Gaza contacted Abu Aanam and asked her to help them kidnap a Jewish Israeli. She apparently voiced willingness to assist. The young woman was also asked to help smuggle a female suicide bomber from Gaza into Israel and to take her to a busy area. Her arrest effectively foiled the attack. An indictment was filed against Abu Aanam at the Petah Tikva District Court. She has been charged with maintaining contact with a foreign agent.
From 'Haaretz': The Shin Bet security service and the Israel Police recently arrested Sumiya Abu Aanam, a young woman from Ramle suspected of planning to carry out a terror attack at the behest of militant Palestinian group - Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade. A gag order on the case was lifted Monday, revealing that Abu Aanam, a 21-year-old teacher's aide at a Ramle kindergarten, was arrested at the end of October. She was set to begin studying at an Israeli university this week.
The police investigation revealed that shortly before her arrest, Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade activists from Gaza contacted Abu Aanam and asked her to help them kidnap a Jewish Israeli. She apparently voiced willingness to assist. The young woman was also asked to help smuggle a female suicide bomber from Gaza into Israel and to take her to a busy area. Her arrest effectively foiled the attack. An indictment was filed against Abu Aanam at the Petah Tikva District Court. She has been charged with maintaining contact with a foreign agent.
Abdulla Admits He's A Terrorist
Source Article HERE.
From 'ITV.com': An NHS (National Health Service) doctor on trial for crashing into Glasgow Airport in a car laden with petrol and gas canisters has admitted he is a terrorist. Woolwich Crown Court heard that junior doctor Bilal Abdulla, 29, an Iraqi, told Scottish police just minutes after his arrest on June 30th last year that he was a terrorist. He has admitted trying to set fire to home-made "car bomb" devices in London's West End and said he wanted to give Britons a "taste of fear" for the country's participation in the Iraq war. He insisted he was not part of a conspiracy to kill or injure anyone.
Abdulla, who worked at Glasgow's Royal Alexandra Hospital, planned the attacks on June 29th last year with engineer friend Kafeel Ahmed, 28, who created the "bombs" using petrol can, gas cylinders, nails and home-built electrical circuits. But he said he had no idea that Ahmed, who was driving him to the airport so he could flee the UK via Turkey, would then career the Jeep Cherokee into the building and set himself on fire. Ahmed, who was Indian, died one month after the attack.
Abdulla is on trial with Mohammed Asha, 28, accused of conspiracy to murder and to cause explosions. The two men deny the offences. Asked if he told an officer he was a terrorist as he arrived at a Glasgow police station, Abdulla said: "I said something along those lines, but it was more like a question." He continued: "Everyone was saying you are a terrorist, you are arrested under the Terrorism Act and so forth. That is my case in a nutshell. I am told I am a terrorist, but is your Government not a terrorist, is your army not a terrorist?
"By the definition of the Act, according to English law, yes. That is my aim to change opinion using violence, using fire devices." Abdulla admitted he threw a petrol bomb and fought with bystanders as he got out of the burning vehicle after his friend accelerated into the building.
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Abdulla, who worked at Glasgow's Royal Alexandra Hospital, planned the attacks on June 29th last year with engineer friend Kafeel Ahmed, 28, who created the "bombs" using petrol can, gas cylinders, nails and home-built electrical circuits. But he said he had no idea that Ahmed, who was driving him to the airport so he could flee the UK via Turkey, would then career the Jeep Cherokee into the building and set himself on fire. Ahmed, who was Indian, died one month after the attack.
Abdulla is on trial with Mohammed Asha, 28, accused of conspiracy to murder and to cause explosions. The two men deny the offences. Asked if he told an officer he was a terrorist as he arrived at a Glasgow police station, Abdulla said: "I said something along those lines, but it was more like a question." He continued: "Everyone was saying you are a terrorist, you are arrested under the Terrorism Act and so forth. That is my case in a nutshell. I am told I am a terrorist, but is your Government not a terrorist, is your army not a terrorist?
"By the definition of the Act, according to English law, yes. That is my aim to change opinion using violence, using fire devices." Abdulla admitted he threw a petrol bomb and fought with bystanders as he got out of the burning vehicle after his friend accelerated into the building.
'Sons Of Iraq' Beg Obama To Keep U.S. Troops There
Source Article HERE.
From 'Bloomberg': Omar Jaffar spends his days helping keep the streets of his Baghdad neighborhood safe for his fellow Sunni Muslims. He has an urgent message for President-Elect Barack Obama: "Don't take American soldiers away just yet," Jaffar said in his home in the capital's Adhamiyah section. They are needed for "maybe five years. Who knows? We need them."
Jaffar, 19, belongs to the Sons of Iraq, a paramilitary group of about 100,000 once-hostile Sunni Muslims that the U.S. pays to help pacify Baghdad and other regions. Though allied with the American military, the Shiite-dominated government of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki views the group with suspicion, expressing fears that it may become a belligerent militia.
That leaves the Sons of Iraq suspended between competing agendas: an American one aimed at minimizing violence and an Iraqi government goal to marginalize potential internal enemies, said Terrence K. Kelly, a senior operations researcher for the Rand Corp. in Pittsburgh. "They would be exposed" if U.S. forces left, he said. "Iraqi security forces could come get them. That's their big worry."
Jaffar and about 1,800 fellow Sons of Iraq members in Adhamiyah help the U.S. hunt terrorists. The neighborhood once harbored members of Osama Bin Laden's al-Qaeda network. Before the Sunnis began joining forces with the U.S., it also was a bastion for Sunni Muslim insurgents who bedeviled American forces with ambushes and roadside bombs.
Read more HERE.
From 'Bloomberg': Omar Jaffar spends his days helping keep the streets of his Baghdad neighborhood safe for his fellow Sunni Muslims. He has an urgent message for President-Elect Barack Obama: "Don't take American soldiers away just yet," Jaffar said in his home in the capital's Adhamiyah section. They are needed for "maybe five years. Who knows? We need them."
Jaffar, 19, belongs to the Sons of Iraq, a paramilitary group of about 100,000 once-hostile Sunni Muslims that the U.S. pays to help pacify Baghdad and other regions. Though allied with the American military, the Shiite-dominated government of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki views the group with suspicion, expressing fears that it may become a belligerent militia.
That leaves the Sons of Iraq suspended between competing agendas: an American one aimed at minimizing violence and an Iraqi government goal to marginalize potential internal enemies, said Terrence K. Kelly, a senior operations researcher for the Rand Corp. in Pittsburgh. "They would be exposed" if U.S. forces left, he said. "Iraqi security forces could come get them. That's their big worry."
Jaffar and about 1,800 fellow Sons of Iraq members in Adhamiyah help the U.S. hunt terrorists. The neighborhood once harbored members of Osama Bin Laden's al-Qaeda network. Before the Sunnis began joining forces with the U.S., it also was a bastion for Sunni Muslim insurgents who bedeviled American forces with ambushes and roadside bombs.
Read more HERE.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Key Afghanistan Insurgent Leader Captured
Source Article HERE.
From 'FoxNews': KABUL, Afghanistan — Afghan and Coalition forces captured an insurgent leader in eastern Afghanistan, and in a separate operation 10 militants were killed in a firefight, the U.S. military said Saturday. U.S. forces said they grabbed a "key insurgent leader" in a joint raid with Afghan police Friday in a village in eastern Ghazni province. No shots were fired in the raid, the statement said. The captured man is responsible for the deaths of Afghan troops, bomb attacks on Coalition forces and the kidnapping of aid workers, according to the statement. A spokesman declined to give further information on the leader's identity while they search for his confederates.
Coalition forces also killed 10 militants in a strike against a bomb-making cell in the eastern Paktya province Friday, the U.S. military said. The troops were targeting several key figures in a network run by Jalaluddin Haqqani, a militant leader believed to operate out of Pakistan, the military statement said. The Coalition forces were attacked during the strike and returned fire, killing their assailants, it said. The U.S. military said those killed were Haqqani militants and foreign fighters known to have planned and conducted bomb attacks on civilians and Coalition forces, and to coordinate suicide bombings.
The military has not yet determined whether any of the targeted leaders were among those killed, said U.S. Army spokeswoman Master Sgt. Melissa Rolan. The United States once considered Jalaluddin Haqqani a "freedom fighter" against the former Soviet Union, but he and his son Sirajuddin are now seen as closely associated with the Taliban. Suicide attacks have been one of the Taliban's preferred tactics in their assaults against Afghan and foreign troops. Most of the victims of such attacks have been civilians.
Police thwarted a suicide attack in the eastern city of Khost on Saturday, officials said. Officers surrounded a suspect, who was on foot, and the man detonated the explosives on his body. The would-be attacker died, but no one else was injured, said health department director Gull Mohammedan Mohammadi. More than 5,400 people — mostly militants — have died in insurgency related violence this year in Afghanistan, according to a tally by The Associated Press of figures provided by Afghan and international officials.
From 'FoxNews': KABUL, Afghanistan — Afghan and Coalition forces captured an insurgent leader in eastern Afghanistan, and in a separate operation 10 militants were killed in a firefight, the U.S. military said Saturday. U.S. forces said they grabbed a "key insurgent leader" in a joint raid with Afghan police Friday in a village in eastern Ghazni province. No shots were fired in the raid, the statement said. The captured man is responsible for the deaths of Afghan troops, bomb attacks on Coalition forces and the kidnapping of aid workers, according to the statement. A spokesman declined to give further information on the leader's identity while they search for his confederates.
Coalition forces also killed 10 militants in a strike against a bomb-making cell in the eastern Paktya province Friday, the U.S. military said. The troops were targeting several key figures in a network run by Jalaluddin Haqqani, a militant leader believed to operate out of Pakistan, the military statement said. The Coalition forces were attacked during the strike and returned fire, killing their assailants, it said. The U.S. military said those killed were Haqqani militants and foreign fighters known to have planned and conducted bomb attacks on civilians and Coalition forces, and to coordinate suicide bombings.
The military has not yet determined whether any of the targeted leaders were among those killed, said U.S. Army spokeswoman Master Sgt. Melissa Rolan. The United States once considered Jalaluddin Haqqani a "freedom fighter" against the former Soviet Union, but he and his son Sirajuddin are now seen as closely associated with the Taliban. Suicide attacks have been one of the Taliban's preferred tactics in their assaults against Afghan and foreign troops. Most of the victims of such attacks have been civilians.
Police thwarted a suicide attack in the eastern city of Khost on Saturday, officials said. Officers surrounded a suspect, who was on foot, and the man detonated the explosives on his body. The would-be attacker died, but no one else was injured, said health department director Gull Mohammedan Mohammadi. More than 5,400 people — mostly militants — have died in insurgency related violence this year in Afghanistan, according to a tally by The Associated Press of figures provided by Afghan and international officials.
Friday, November 14, 2008
Joint ANSF, ISAF Op Disrupts Insurgents
Source Article HERE.
From 'NATO-ISAF': KABUL, Afghanistan - Afghan National Security Forces planned and conducted a joint operation on November 12th to disrupt an insurgent cell in Qalat district, Zabul. This cell was responsible for attacks on Qalat city and an ISAF base. Due to the nature of the information received, ANSF and ISAF only had one day to plan and execute an operation under the name “Iron Cage.” The Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police together with the ISAF seized several houses, which were suspected to be used by the insurgents.
In Sikhak village they discovered documents that proved the insurgents’ activity in the area. By the end of the operation, the ANP had detained nine people. Romanian Major Virgil Ovidiu Pop, ISAF’s battalion commander for the operation, explained, “During Iron Cage we showed our presence in the Qalat area and denied the insurgents’ activities. Close cooperation with our ANSF colleagues was key to the success of this operation.”
From 'NATO-ISAF': KABUL, Afghanistan - Afghan National Security Forces planned and conducted a joint operation on November 12th to disrupt an insurgent cell in Qalat district, Zabul. This cell was responsible for attacks on Qalat city and an ISAF base. Due to the nature of the information received, ANSF and ISAF only had one day to plan and execute an operation under the name “Iron Cage.” The Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police together with the ISAF seized several houses, which were suspected to be used by the insurgents.
In Sikhak village they discovered documents that proved the insurgents’ activity in the area. By the end of the operation, the ANP had detained nine people. Romanian Major Virgil Ovidiu Pop, ISAF’s battalion commander for the operation, explained, “During Iron Cage we showed our presence in the Qalat area and denied the insurgents’ activities. Close cooperation with our ANSF colleagues was key to the success of this operation.”
ISAF Defeats Insurgent Attack In Wardak
Source Article HERE.
From 'NATO-ISAF': KABUL, Afghanistan - ISAF defeated an insurgent attack on an Afghan contractor convoy in Sayed Abad district, Wardak, on November 13th. ISAF forces responded to the attack with a ground reaction force and also called for close air support to the location. Having identified more than 10 insurgents in the area an airstrike was called in. Three civilian contractors were wounded during the insurgents’ attack and were admitted to a local hospital. A further local national was also lightly wounded, however, after initial assistance, required no further treatment. No other injuries to ISAF forces or civilians were reported.
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Afghanistan: 4 Al-Qaeda Militants Killed
Source Article HERE.
From 'Voice of America': U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan say troops have killed four militants linked to al-Qaida in the country's eastern region. The U.S. military says the suspected militants were killed during a raid Thursday in the Zurmat district of Paktia Province, near the border with Pakistan. The statement says the operation was targeting a network of militants who, with the help of local Taliban leaders, were bringing Arab and other foreign fighters into Afghanistan.
From 'Voice of America': U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan say troops have killed four militants linked to al-Qaida in the country's eastern region. The U.S. military says the suspected militants were killed during a raid Thursday in the Zurmat district of Paktia Province, near the border with Pakistan. The statement says the operation was targeting a network of militants who, with the help of local Taliban leaders, were bringing Arab and other foreign fighters into Afghanistan.
Missiles Kill 12 In North-West Pakistan
Source Article HERE.
From 'Sydney Morning Herald': Suspected US missiles have killed 12 people in the al-Qaeda stronghold of north-west Pakistan. Several of the dead in the missile strike close to the Afghan border were foreign militants, intelligence officials said, but there was no immediate indication they were senior figures. The United States is suspected of having launched 19 missiles from unmanned drones based in Afghanistan since mid-August, killing scores of suspected extremists. The attacks are aimed at al-Qaeda and Taliban leaders sheltering in the region and blamed for rising violence in neighbouring Afghanistan. Some fear they could be planning terror attacks in the West.
Under fire from the missile strikes and a bloody Pakistan military offensive, the militants have hit back with suicide bombings, abductions and assassinations. About 20 km from Peshawar, army helicopters killed 20 alleged militants in several villages, said city police chief Mohammad Suleman. Interior Ministry chief Rehman Malik said he believed Pakistani Taliban fighters were behind the kidnappings. "Ultimately it leads to Tahreek-e-Taliban," Malik said, referring to the group by its Pakistani name.
The missile attack occurred in North Waziristan, a militant hotbed and the scene of most of the other suspected US strikes. Three Pakistani intelligence officials told AP at least two missiles hit a house in Ghari Wam, a village about 30 km from the border. Two officials put the death toll at 12 and said it included several suspected foreign militants. Taliban gunmen had cordoned the area and removed the bodies, one official said. Another official put the toll at 13 and said 10 were foreigners.
From 'Sydney Morning Herald': Suspected US missiles have killed 12 people in the al-Qaeda stronghold of north-west Pakistan. Several of the dead in the missile strike close to the Afghan border were foreign militants, intelligence officials said, but there was no immediate indication they were senior figures. The United States is suspected of having launched 19 missiles from unmanned drones based in Afghanistan since mid-August, killing scores of suspected extremists. The attacks are aimed at al-Qaeda and Taliban leaders sheltering in the region and blamed for rising violence in neighbouring Afghanistan. Some fear they could be planning terror attacks in the West.
Under fire from the missile strikes and a bloody Pakistan military offensive, the militants have hit back with suicide bombings, abductions and assassinations. About 20 km from Peshawar, army helicopters killed 20 alleged militants in several villages, said city police chief Mohammad Suleman. Interior Ministry chief Rehman Malik said he believed Pakistani Taliban fighters were behind the kidnappings. "Ultimately it leads to Tahreek-e-Taliban," Malik said, referring to the group by its Pakistani name.
The missile attack occurred in North Waziristan, a militant hotbed and the scene of most of the other suspected US strikes. Three Pakistani intelligence officials told AP at least two missiles hit a house in Ghari Wam, a village about 30 km from the border. Two officials put the death toll at 12 and said it included several suspected foreign militants. Taliban gunmen had cordoned the area and removed the bodies, one official said. Another official put the toll at 13 and said 10 were foreigners.
Joint Pakistan-US Operations
Source Article HERE.
From 'Daily Times (Pakistan)': US forces have begun working with Pakistan’s military to take on Taliban and Al Qaeda fighters along the Afghan border, a development US officials say reflects Islamabad’s new willingness to go after Taliban, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on Friday. The US and Pakistan are waging a co-ordinated military campaign known as Operation Lionheart, which involves US strikes on insurgent targets in the Kunar region of Afghanistan and a full-scale Pakistani campaign in the region of Bajaur, the report said.
According to the WSJ, US troops have recently conducted operations in Afghanistan in co-ordination with Pakistani forces across the border in Bajaur Agency. It quoted senior US official as saying they are sharing extensive real-time intelligence with their Pakistani counterparts. The two sides have also worked closely to seal the border and prevent insurgents from fleeing military operations in one country to havens in the other, the officials said.
In an interview in Kabul, Gen David McKiernan, the commander of US and NATO forces in Afghanistan, said the US-Pakistani relationship now appeared to “be moving cautiously in the right direction”. The report quoted ISPR spokesman Maj Gen Athar Abbas as saying support from NATO forces in sealing the Afghan side of the border helped stop the flow of Taliban fighters in Bajaur, where Pakistan says its forces have killed more than 1,500 Taliban since August. “The co-operation greatly helped our forces in combating the militants in the area,” Abbas said.
The report quoted US Ambassador to Afghanistan William Wood as saying Pakistan’s stance against the Taliban ‘has improved’ since a new government led by President Asif Ali Zardari took power. “What we’re talking about here is a new agreement or a new common understanding of what constitutes unacceptable behaviour and a new willingness to attack that unacceptable behaviour in a co-ordinated way,” Wood was quoted as saying. US Chief of Army Staff Gen George Casey said US commanders in Afghanistan have begun meeting their Pakistani counterparts once a week. “There’s good contact going on,” he said.
From 'Daily Times (Pakistan)': US forces have begun working with Pakistan’s military to take on Taliban and Al Qaeda fighters along the Afghan border, a development US officials say reflects Islamabad’s new willingness to go after Taliban, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on Friday. The US and Pakistan are waging a co-ordinated military campaign known as Operation Lionheart, which involves US strikes on insurgent targets in the Kunar region of Afghanistan and a full-scale Pakistani campaign in the region of Bajaur, the report said.
According to the WSJ, US troops have recently conducted operations in Afghanistan in co-ordination with Pakistani forces across the border in Bajaur Agency. It quoted senior US official as saying they are sharing extensive real-time intelligence with their Pakistani counterparts. The two sides have also worked closely to seal the border and prevent insurgents from fleeing military operations in one country to havens in the other, the officials said.
In an interview in Kabul, Gen David McKiernan, the commander of US and NATO forces in Afghanistan, said the US-Pakistani relationship now appeared to “be moving cautiously in the right direction”. The report quoted ISPR spokesman Maj Gen Athar Abbas as saying support from NATO forces in sealing the Afghan side of the border helped stop the flow of Taliban fighters in Bajaur, where Pakistan says its forces have killed more than 1,500 Taliban since August. “The co-operation greatly helped our forces in combating the militants in the area,” Abbas said.
The report quoted US Ambassador to Afghanistan William Wood as saying Pakistan’s stance against the Taliban ‘has improved’ since a new government led by President Asif Ali Zardari took power. “What we’re talking about here is a new agreement or a new common understanding of what constitutes unacceptable behaviour and a new willingness to attack that unacceptable behaviour in a co-ordinated way,” Wood was quoted as saying. US Chief of Army Staff Gen George Casey said US commanders in Afghanistan have begun meeting their Pakistani counterparts once a week. “There’s good contact going on,” he said.
MNFI Press Release - Nov 14
COALITION CAPTURES IED FACILITATOR
Coalition Forces captured a key Improvised Explosive Device (IED) facilitator in Mosul on November 14th. The intelligence-driven operation, which took place in the Al Rashidayah neighborhood around 8 a.m., was simultaneously conducted with another operation in the 30 Tamooz neighborhood, where another key terrorist was captured. “Maintaining a relentless approach to hunting down terrorists remains the focus of both Iraqi security and Coalition forces. We will continue to apply pressure where it is needed to reduce any threat to the population,” said Major Gary Dangerfield, Coalition Force spokesman, in Ninevah province.
MND-B SOLDIERS CAPTURE HOMEMADE ROCKET SYSTEMS
Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers seized an impromptu rocket launching system on November 13th in the Rashid district of southern Baghdad. At approximately 11:45 p.m., Soldiers of Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, MND-B, discovered and seized eight rocket rails with wires and an initiating device in an abandoned house in the Abu T’shir community of the Rashid district. “The Soldiers of the 1st ‘Raider’ Brigade continue to remove weapons and munitions from throughout the Rashid district of Baghdad,” said Major Dave Olson, spokesperson for the 1st BCT, 4th ID, MND-B.
SUCCESSFUL TRANSFER OF SOI TO GOI
More than half of the Baghdad province Sons of Iraq (SOI) have received their first paychecks from the Government of Iraq (GOI), with eight other provinces slated to follow suit by the summer of 2009. “October 1st was the first transfer of the SoI to the Government of Iraq in Baghdad province, with 51,135 SoI [now under GoI control], and then throughout the month of October was the validation of the pay rosters and getting the pay sites ready,” said Lt. Colonel Jeffrey D. Kulmayer, chief, reconciliation and engagement, Multi-National Corps – Iraq. “The October pay period was just paid this first week of November and it is a milestone in the history of the program because the GoI is now paying the SoI for providing critical infrastructure security.”
Diyala is the next province to transfer, said Kulmayer. “We will begin Diyala SoI registration on December 1st, and the transfer date will be on January 1st. Simultaneously will be the transfers of SoI payment responsibility to the Iraqi Government in the provinces of Babil, Wasit and Qadisiyah. “The southern provinces are already underway with their registration, and the transfer date will be January 1st as well,” Kulmayer added. Meanwhile, the GoI and Coalition forces are working to transition the SoI into meaningful jobs in the Iraqi Security Forces and civilian workforce.
“The successful payment portion of the SoI in Baghdad completes the transfer, but there is still a transition of these men into permanent employment, and that’s going to take a little longer,” Kulmayer said. “Some of them are already starting to move into the jobs; we’ve had 1,378 go into the Iraqi Police since the first of October, which is a significant breakthrough in the terms of integration. A very important part of the whole process is to get 20 percent of the SoI integrated into the ISF. The rest of the men will go into the ministries, municipalities, public works projects or private enterprise. Those jobs are going to take longer to develop, and that will happen in the weeks and months ahead. The coalition is assisting and working with the Iraqi government to develop those jobs.”
Part of the development in non-security jobs includes vocational training, which will give the SoI the skills necessary to take jobs such as carpentry, plumbing and electrical work as well as garnering employment in various municipalities and government jobs. And this transition seems to be going smoothly, Kulmayer said. “The government is doing the right thing,” Kulmayer said. “Baghdad has gone quite well and we expect that the rest of the provinces will do the same.” As of November 14th, the GoI has paid over half of the SoI in Baghdad.
Coalition Forces captured a key Improvised Explosive Device (IED) facilitator in Mosul on November 14th. The intelligence-driven operation, which took place in the Al Rashidayah neighborhood around 8 a.m., was simultaneously conducted with another operation in the 30 Tamooz neighborhood, where another key terrorist was captured. “Maintaining a relentless approach to hunting down terrorists remains the focus of both Iraqi security and Coalition forces. We will continue to apply pressure where it is needed to reduce any threat to the population,” said Major Gary Dangerfield, Coalition Force spokesman, in Ninevah province.
MND-B SOLDIERS CAPTURE HOMEMADE ROCKET SYSTEMS
Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers seized an impromptu rocket launching system on November 13th in the Rashid district of southern Baghdad. At approximately 11:45 p.m., Soldiers of Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, MND-B, discovered and seized eight rocket rails with wires and an initiating device in an abandoned house in the Abu T’shir community of the Rashid district. “The Soldiers of the 1st ‘Raider’ Brigade continue to remove weapons and munitions from throughout the Rashid district of Baghdad,” said Major Dave Olson, spokesperson for the 1st BCT, 4th ID, MND-B.
SUCCESSFUL TRANSFER OF SOI TO GOI
More than half of the Baghdad province Sons of Iraq (SOI) have received their first paychecks from the Government of Iraq (GOI), with eight other provinces slated to follow suit by the summer of 2009. “October 1st was the first transfer of the SoI to the Government of Iraq in Baghdad province, with 51,135 SoI [now under GoI control], and then throughout the month of October was the validation of the pay rosters and getting the pay sites ready,” said Lt. Colonel Jeffrey D. Kulmayer, chief, reconciliation and engagement, Multi-National Corps – Iraq. “The October pay period was just paid this first week of November and it is a milestone in the history of the program because the GoI is now paying the SoI for providing critical infrastructure security.”
Diyala is the next province to transfer, said Kulmayer. “We will begin Diyala SoI registration on December 1st, and the transfer date will be on January 1st. Simultaneously will be the transfers of SoI payment responsibility to the Iraqi Government in the provinces of Babil, Wasit and Qadisiyah. “The southern provinces are already underway with their registration, and the transfer date will be January 1st as well,” Kulmayer added. Meanwhile, the GoI and Coalition forces are working to transition the SoI into meaningful jobs in the Iraqi Security Forces and civilian workforce.
“The successful payment portion of the SoI in Baghdad completes the transfer, but there is still a transition of these men into permanent employment, and that’s going to take a little longer,” Kulmayer said. “Some of them are already starting to move into the jobs; we’ve had 1,378 go into the Iraqi Police since the first of October, which is a significant breakthrough in the terms of integration. A very important part of the whole process is to get 20 percent of the SoI integrated into the ISF. The rest of the men will go into the ministries, municipalities, public works projects or private enterprise. Those jobs are going to take longer to develop, and that will happen in the weeks and months ahead. The coalition is assisting and working with the Iraqi government to develop those jobs.”
Part of the development in non-security jobs includes vocational training, which will give the SoI the skills necessary to take jobs such as carpentry, plumbing and electrical work as well as garnering employment in various municipalities and government jobs. And this transition seems to be going smoothly, Kulmayer said. “The government is doing the right thing,” Kulmayer said. “Baghdad has gone quite well and we expect that the rest of the provinces will do the same.” As of November 14th, the GoI has paid over half of the SoI in Baghdad.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
CIA: Al-Qaeda Stung By US Pressure
Source Article HERE.
From 'Reuters': U.S. pressure on al Qaeda near Pakistan's border with Afghanistan has put the group "off balance," but the region remains the biggest terrorism threat to the United States, the CIA's chief said on Thursday. Agency Director Michael Hayden also told a Washington think tank he and the head of Pakistan's intelligence service, Lt.-General Ahmed Shujaa Pasha, shared in a meeting last month common views on how to contain the militant threat.
This was despite heated Pakistani protests over U.S. military strikes inside Pakistan aimed at stopping al Qaeda and Taliban cross-border attacks in Afghanistan. "There's a lot more commonality on how the threat should be dealt with than many people seem to assume," Hayden told the Atlantic Council of the United States. He said there may be Taliban elements the United States could talk with to fracture its alliance with al Qaeda -- a view also expressed by advisers to President-elect Barack Obama.
The United States in recent months has stepped up drone-carried missile strikes against militants inside Pakistan, and in September launched a commando ground attack across the border. Washington has shrugged off protests from Pakistan, but some experts fear the raid may have undermined Pakistan's fragile democracy and cooperation with the United States. Hayden, without acknowledging the strikes or the U.S. role in them, said several veteran al Qaeda fighters and commanders had died over the past year, "by violence or natural causes."
This has shaken al Qaeda's sense of security, he said. "When we and our allies take terrorists like this off the battlefield ... those that remain are feeling some heat. We force them to spend more time and resources on self-preservation. And that distracts them ... from laying the groundwork for the next attack. We keep al Qaeda off balance." Still, he said, the border region remained the base of al Qaeda's leadership, which had developed a more durable structure and a deep reserve of skilled operatives. "Al Qaeda operating from its safe haven in Pakistan's tribal areas remains the most clear and present danger to the safety of the United States," Hayden said.
The United States has been frustrated by Pakistan's inability to eliminate the militants, but Hayden said it deserved credit for a fierce campaign against them in the border area's Bajaur region. As the war with al Qaeda continued, veteran enemy fighters were leaving Iraq, where the group was "on the verge of strategic defeat," and heading for Afghanistan, Lebanon, the Arabian Peninsula and North Africa. Others have attempted to plot against the United States. Al Qaeda has gained strength in North Africa, Somalia and Yemen while suffering deep setbacks in Saudi Arabia and Southeast Asia as well as Iraq, Hayden said.
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This was despite heated Pakistani protests over U.S. military strikes inside Pakistan aimed at stopping al Qaeda and Taliban cross-border attacks in Afghanistan. "There's a lot more commonality on how the threat should be dealt with than many people seem to assume," Hayden told the Atlantic Council of the United States. He said there may be Taliban elements the United States could talk with to fracture its alliance with al Qaeda -- a view also expressed by advisers to President-elect Barack Obama.
The United States in recent months has stepped up drone-carried missile strikes against militants inside Pakistan, and in September launched a commando ground attack across the border. Washington has shrugged off protests from Pakistan, but some experts fear the raid may have undermined Pakistan's fragile democracy and cooperation with the United States. Hayden, without acknowledging the strikes or the U.S. role in them, said several veteran al Qaeda fighters and commanders had died over the past year, "by violence or natural causes."
This has shaken al Qaeda's sense of security, he said. "When we and our allies take terrorists like this off the battlefield ... those that remain are feeling some heat. We force them to spend more time and resources on self-preservation. And that distracts them ... from laying the groundwork for the next attack. We keep al Qaeda off balance." Still, he said, the border region remained the base of al Qaeda's leadership, which had developed a more durable structure and a deep reserve of skilled operatives. "Al Qaeda operating from its safe haven in Pakistan's tribal areas remains the most clear and present danger to the safety of the United States," Hayden said.
The United States has been frustrated by Pakistan's inability to eliminate the militants, but Hayden said it deserved credit for a fierce campaign against them in the border area's Bajaur region. As the war with al Qaeda continued, veteran enemy fighters were leaving Iraq, where the group was "on the verge of strategic defeat," and heading for Afghanistan, Lebanon, the Arabian Peninsula and North Africa. Others have attempted to plot against the United States. Al Qaeda has gained strength in North Africa, Somalia and Yemen while suffering deep setbacks in Saudi Arabia and Southeast Asia as well as Iraq, Hayden said.
Seven Years In Afghanistan
By: HAMID KARZAI
Source Article HERE.
From 'Mmegi Online': KABUL - We began a journey in Afghanistan seven years ago with the war that ousted the Taliban from power. Much has been accomplished along the way, for Afghanistan and for the world. In less than 45 days in 2001, we Afghans were freed from the menace of terrorism and the Taliban. Back then, Afghanistan's people held great hopes for an immediately wonderful future. Some of those hopes were fulfilled. Our children are back in school. Roughly 85 percent of Afghans now have access to some health care, up from 9 percent before 2001. Child mortality - among the worst in the world in 2001 - has dropped by 25 percent. Democracy, a free press, economic gains, and better livelihoods - all of that is there.
But, sadly, we are still fighting the Taliban and Al Qaeda. What is it that we have not done right that makes us - and the rest of the world - less secure? After the liberation in 2001, the international community concentrated on Afghanistan alone as the place to fight extremism and terrorism, while we Afghans argued that our country is not the right place to fight. The war on terrorism cannot be fought in Afghan villages. Instead, a regional approach was and is needed. It must be concentrated on the sanctuaries of those who train, equip, and motivate the extremists and send them out to hurt us all.
Read more HERE.
Source Article HERE.
From 'Mmegi Online': KABUL - We began a journey in Afghanistan seven years ago with the war that ousted the Taliban from power. Much has been accomplished along the way, for Afghanistan and for the world. In less than 45 days in 2001, we Afghans were freed from the menace of terrorism and the Taliban. Back then, Afghanistan's people held great hopes for an immediately wonderful future. Some of those hopes were fulfilled. Our children are back in school. Roughly 85 percent of Afghans now have access to some health care, up from 9 percent before 2001. Child mortality - among the worst in the world in 2001 - has dropped by 25 percent. Democracy, a free press, economic gains, and better livelihoods - all of that is there. But, sadly, we are still fighting the Taliban and Al Qaeda. What is it that we have not done right that makes us - and the rest of the world - less secure? After the liberation in 2001, the international community concentrated on Afghanistan alone as the place to fight extremism and terrorism, while we Afghans argued that our country is not the right place to fight. The war on terrorism cannot be fought in Afghan villages. Instead, a regional approach was and is needed. It must be concentrated on the sanctuaries of those who train, equip, and motivate the extremists and send them out to hurt us all.
Read more HERE.
MNFI Press Release - Nov 13
IP, SOI LEAD TO 25+ CACHES IN NOVEMBER
Iraqi Police (IP) and the Sons of Iraq (SOI) in the Salah Ad Din Province have found or provided information leading to the discovery of two large weapons caches on November 11th and 12th. Tikrit police found Al Qaeda propaganda, which led them to the location of a cache with more than 150 mortars, more than 30 rockets, and bomb making materials on November 11th. SoI provided information that led to the discovery of a cache containing 220 mortar rounds of various sizes, a rocket, and bomb making munitions southwest of Samarra on November 12th. Both caches were handed over to Coalition explosive ordnance disposal forces to destroy.
SoI and IP, who together have found more than 25 caches this month, are continuing to take dangerous weapons and bomb making materials off the street. “I love working with the Sons of Iraq. They have turned in many caches, and call us whenever something suspicious is happening. They have really helped bring security to this province”, said Major Sean Brown, brigade plans officer, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault). SoI, IP and local citizens provided information leading to the discovery of 47 caches in September and 24 caches in October, substantially contributing to the safety and security of Salah ad Din Province.
LITTLE CHANGE IN WASIT AFTER TURNOVER TO IRAQIS
For Iraqi Police in Wasit Province, the transition to full Provincial Iraqi Control (PIC) on October 29th was not a dramatic change, as they had taken the lead in security operations several months prior to the event. “After the problems in March, Iraqi Security Forces stepped up to take control of their destiny in [Wasit] province,” said Major General Abd al-Hanen Hammood Faisal, provincial director of police. “Since then, the primary role of Coalition Forces has been advising, training and providing information to the ISF.”
“I knew PIC was inevitable while I was here, so we wanted to put more and more responsibility on the ISF and less on CF,” said Colonel Richard Francey, 41st Fires Bde. commander and commander of CF in Wasit. “Day by day, we transferred security from CF to ISF, so when we got to PIC, day to day actions didn’t change much. From October 28th to October 30th, there should be very little apparent change.”
CF are still providing advice, training and support to Wasit’s ISF, said Captain Hayder Adnan Ali Al-Saedy, of the Iraqi Police. “They provide the training and advice we still need. We need to continue to build our skills. The Americans and the Iraqis are a team. As the Iraqi forces gain experience, the Coalition forces will have less of a presence.” One significant achievement for the Iraqi Police, with the increased security, has been the community’s increased confidence in the police’s ability to do their job, said Haneen. “They are happy to see their sons in the ISF doing joint missions, providing security to Wasit province.”
“We have a good relationship with the people of our district,” said Captain Al Fukar, commander of al Kut’s Falahea IP station. “That didn’t change with PIC. They want to help us. The people don’t want to go back to the militias. They want peace.” That relationship, and the assistance of the populace, is critical for continued stability in Wasit province, said Francey. “We are in a fragile time in the future of Iraq,” he said. “Day-to-day operations rely more and more on the Iraqi on the street to testify against bad people so those bad people may be put in jail and kept in jail.
“The days of an oppressive society are behind us, and we must protect against a return to those days while maintaining a secure and stable environment,” Francey added. “To do this, we need a strong security force and an honest and just judiciary, and the bridge between the two is an honest and brave populace who will step forward and speak against those who do wrong.”
Iraqi Police (IP) and the Sons of Iraq (SOI) in the Salah Ad Din Province have found or provided information leading to the discovery of two large weapons caches on November 11th and 12th. Tikrit police found Al Qaeda propaganda, which led them to the location of a cache with more than 150 mortars, more than 30 rockets, and bomb making materials on November 11th. SoI provided information that led to the discovery of a cache containing 220 mortar rounds of various sizes, a rocket, and bomb making munitions southwest of Samarra on November 12th. Both caches were handed over to Coalition explosive ordnance disposal forces to destroy.
SoI and IP, who together have found more than 25 caches this month, are continuing to take dangerous weapons and bomb making materials off the street. “I love working with the Sons of Iraq. They have turned in many caches, and call us whenever something suspicious is happening. They have really helped bring security to this province”, said Major Sean Brown, brigade plans officer, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault). SoI, IP and local citizens provided information leading to the discovery of 47 caches in September and 24 caches in October, substantially contributing to the safety and security of Salah ad Din Province.
LITTLE CHANGE IN WASIT AFTER TURNOVER TO IRAQIS
For Iraqi Police in Wasit Province, the transition to full Provincial Iraqi Control (PIC) on October 29th was not a dramatic change, as they had taken the lead in security operations several months prior to the event. “After the problems in March, Iraqi Security Forces stepped up to take control of their destiny in [Wasit] province,” said Major General Abd al-Hanen Hammood Faisal, provincial director of police. “Since then, the primary role of Coalition Forces has been advising, training and providing information to the ISF.”
“I knew PIC was inevitable while I was here, so we wanted to put more and more responsibility on the ISF and less on CF,” said Colonel Richard Francey, 41st Fires Bde. commander and commander of CF in Wasit. “Day by day, we transferred security from CF to ISF, so when we got to PIC, day to day actions didn’t change much. From October 28th to October 30th, there should be very little apparent change.”
CF are still providing advice, training and support to Wasit’s ISF, said Captain Hayder Adnan Ali Al-Saedy, of the Iraqi Police. “They provide the training and advice we still need. We need to continue to build our skills. The Americans and the Iraqis are a team. As the Iraqi forces gain experience, the Coalition forces will have less of a presence.” One significant achievement for the Iraqi Police, with the increased security, has been the community’s increased confidence in the police’s ability to do their job, said Haneen. “They are happy to see their sons in the ISF doing joint missions, providing security to Wasit province.”
“We have a good relationship with the people of our district,” said Captain Al Fukar, commander of al Kut’s Falahea IP station. “That didn’t change with PIC. They want to help us. The people don’t want to go back to the militias. They want peace.” That relationship, and the assistance of the populace, is critical for continued stability in Wasit province, said Francey. “We are in a fragile time in the future of Iraq,” he said. “Day-to-day operations rely more and more on the Iraqi on the street to testify against bad people so those bad people may be put in jail and kept in jail.
“The days of an oppressive society are behind us, and we must protect against a return to those days while maintaining a secure and stable environment,” Francey added. “To do this, we need a strong security force and an honest and just judiciary, and the bridge between the two is an honest and brave populace who will step forward and speak against those who do wrong.”
India Terror Arrests Shock Nation
Source Article HERE.
From 'TIME': Having suffered a dozen lethal terror attacks this year, Indians have almost stopped reacting to terror incidents with shock and horror. But recent news of the arrest of 10 people linked with two relatively small terror attacks earlier this year has created a national furor, and is likely to skew political parties' calculations ahead of next year's general elections.
The arrests by the Anti-Terrorist Squad of Maharashtra police have shocked India for two reasons. The nine accused are all Hindu right-wingers, confirming, for the first time, suspicions raised by political and security analysts that the Hindu extremist fringe has been organizing for terror attacks. Second, among the accused are a serving lieutenant colonel and a retired major of the army, an institution so far considered impervious to communal elements.
For years, Indian security and investigation agencies have had a trite, almost comically knee-jerk explanation for terror attacks — they have been blamed on Islamist fundamentalists aided by "foreign elements," meaning mostly Pakistan and China. Even where the majority of victims have been Muslims — such as the May 2007 blast at Mecca Masjid in Hyderabad, the attack on an Indo-Pak train in February 2007 and the April 2006 twin blasts at New Delhi's Jama Masjid — the first murmurs of suspicion have named Islamist groups. Investigation trails in these cases have led nowhere, yet no one has dared ask if non-Muslims, or more specifically, Hindu fundamentalists, could be responsible. The recent arrests point to either the security forces' inefficiency, or an implicit anti-Muslim bias, or both.
The 10 people arrested by the Maharashtra police have been charged with murder and conspiracy in a bomb blast during the month of Ramadan. The blast at a hotel near a mosque killed four people in Malegaon city near Mumbai. Among the accused is a Hindu nun with links to the right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party and its various sister organizations. The investigation is already uncovering a seemingly larger network of Hindu extremist activity in western India's urban centers of Nagpur, Indore and Pune that could help unravel unsolved terror strikes. "Let us not forget history," says political analyst Mahesh Rangarajan. "Mahatma Gandhi's assassin was a Hindu extremist."
Read more HERE.
From 'TIME': Having suffered a dozen lethal terror attacks this year, Indians have almost stopped reacting to terror incidents with shock and horror. But recent news of the arrest of 10 people linked with two relatively small terror attacks earlier this year has created a national furor, and is likely to skew political parties' calculations ahead of next year's general elections.
The arrests by the Anti-Terrorist Squad of Maharashtra police have shocked India for two reasons. The nine accused are all Hindu right-wingers, confirming, for the first time, suspicions raised by political and security analysts that the Hindu extremist fringe has been organizing for terror attacks. Second, among the accused are a serving lieutenant colonel and a retired major of the army, an institution so far considered impervious to communal elements.
For years, Indian security and investigation agencies have had a trite, almost comically knee-jerk explanation for terror attacks — they have been blamed on Islamist fundamentalists aided by "foreign elements," meaning mostly Pakistan and China. Even where the majority of victims have been Muslims — such as the May 2007 blast at Mecca Masjid in Hyderabad, the attack on an Indo-Pak train in February 2007 and the April 2006 twin blasts at New Delhi's Jama Masjid — the first murmurs of suspicion have named Islamist groups. Investigation trails in these cases have led nowhere, yet no one has dared ask if non-Muslims, or more specifically, Hindu fundamentalists, could be responsible. The recent arrests point to either the security forces' inefficiency, or an implicit anti-Muslim bias, or both.
The 10 people arrested by the Maharashtra police have been charged with murder and conspiracy in a bomb blast during the month of Ramadan. The blast at a hotel near a mosque killed four people in Malegaon city near Mumbai. Among the accused is a Hindu nun with links to the right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party and its various sister organizations. The investigation is already uncovering a seemingly larger network of Hindu extremist activity in western India's urban centers of Nagpur, Indore and Pune that could help unravel unsolved terror strikes. "Let us not forget history," says political analyst Mahesh Rangarajan. "Mahatma Gandhi's assassin was a Hindu extremist."
Read more HERE.
California Man Indicted In Anthrax Scare
Source Article HERE.
From 'Mercury News': SACRAMENTO — A federal grand jury indicted a Sacramento man Thursday on 13 charges related to a series of anthrax scares across the country that turned out to be hoaxes. Marc Keyser, 66, was indicted on 10 counts of hoax mailings and three counts of mailing threatening communications. He has yet to enter a plea and remains free on $25,000 bond. He was arrested on October 29th after several newspapers, other media outlets, businesses and a congressman received threatening packages in the mail.
Prosecutors say the packages contained a computer disk labeled "Anthrax Shock and Awe Terror" and a packet of a grainy substance with a biohazard symbol and the words "Anthrax sample." In many cases, newspapers reported that the substance turned out to be sugar. According to the federal complaint filed in the case, some of the packages had Keyser's return address and agents found 11 more packets when they searched his car. Reached Thursday at his home, Keyser said he believes the nation has become lax about the threat of terrorism and said the mailings were "an act of conscience."
Read more HERE.
From 'Mercury News': SACRAMENTO — A federal grand jury indicted a Sacramento man Thursday on 13 charges related to a series of anthrax scares across the country that turned out to be hoaxes. Marc Keyser, 66, was indicted on 10 counts of hoax mailings and three counts of mailing threatening communications. He has yet to enter a plea and remains free on $25,000 bond. He was arrested on October 29th after several newspapers, other media outlets, businesses and a congressman received threatening packages in the mail.
Prosecutors say the packages contained a computer disk labeled "Anthrax Shock and Awe Terror" and a packet of a grainy substance with a biohazard symbol and the words "Anthrax sample." In many cases, newspapers reported that the substance turned out to be sugar. According to the federal complaint filed in the case, some of the packages had Keyser's return address and agents found 11 more packets when they searched his car. Reached Thursday at his home, Keyser said he believes the nation has become lax about the threat of terrorism and said the mailings were "an act of conscience."
Read more HERE.
FBI Arrests Al Qaeda Blogger
Source Article HERE:
From 'The Weekly Standard Blog': The FBI has arrested Tarek Mehanna and charged him with lying in an affidavit about his relationship to Daniel J. Maldonado, "a former Methuen resident who was suspected of training at an Al Qaeda terrorist camp to overthrow the Somali government." Maldonado pled guilty to receiving training from a foreign terrorist organization and is currently serving time in a U.S. federal prison.
The FBI picked up Mehanna, a U.S. citizen, as he was boarding a plane to "start a new job overseas," the Boston Globe reported. Mehanna's family and lawyer claim he is innocent of the charges, but the FBI recorded Mehanna's phone call in which he admitted to lying to the FBI. Mehanna's lawyer, J.W. Carney Jr., dismissed Mehanna's activities as small-time. "If this is the FBI's idea of a terrorist, they are using a net that is designed to catch minnows instead of sharks," he told the Globe.
But Dr. Rusty Shackleford at the indispensible Jawa Report notes that Mehanna did more than lie to the FBI. Mehanna was in fact one of several bloggers who incites others to fight jihad overseas and recites the words of al Qaeda ideologues:
From 'The Weekly Standard Blog': The FBI has arrested Tarek Mehanna and charged him with lying in an affidavit about his relationship to Daniel J. Maldonado, "a former Methuen resident who was suspected of training at an Al Qaeda terrorist camp to overthrow the Somali government." Maldonado pled guilty to receiving training from a foreign terrorist organization and is currently serving time in a U.S. federal prison.
The FBI picked up Mehanna, a U.S. citizen, as he was boarding a plane to "start a new job overseas," the Boston Globe reported. Mehanna's family and lawyer claim he is innocent of the charges, but the FBI recorded Mehanna's phone call in which he admitted to lying to the FBI. Mehanna's lawyer, J.W. Carney Jr., dismissed Mehanna's activities as small-time. "If this is the FBI's idea of a terrorist, they are using a net that is designed to catch minnows instead of sharks," he told the Globe.
But Dr. Rusty Shackleford at the indispensible Jawa Report notes that Mehanna did more than lie to the FBI. Mehanna was in fact one of several bloggers who incites others to fight jihad overseas and recites the words of al Qaeda ideologues:
Mehanna goes by the online handle "Abu Sayaba" and runs the "Iskandari" website which is devoted to promoting the Salafi ideology.Mehanna is part of a network of online jihadis here in the United States and in Europe who support al Qaeda and other jihadi causes. Their activities are out there for all to see, yet little effort is made to detain them or shut down their sites. As Rusty notes, it will be interesting to see if Mehanna is charged with aiding and abetting al Qaeda by serving as a propaganda mouthpiece on the Internet.
For instance, Tarek "Abu Sayaba" Mehanna has, literally, dozens of posts recounting the words of Abdullah Azzam, the intellectual backbone of al Qaeda. Also among his favorite authors are Sayyid Qutb.
Iraq: Al-Qaeda's Beheading 'Emir' Captured
Source Article HERE:
From 'AKI': The Iraqi army arrested on Wednesday in volatile Diyala Province a militant who is allegedly responsible for many of the brutal beheadings carried out by Al-Qaeda, Arabic satellite TV channel Al-Arabiya reported on Wednesday. Ahmad Hasan al-Azzawi, known as 'the beheading emir' was arrested in a raid outside the provincial capital, Baquba, Al-Arabiya said. The raid reportedly took place early on Tuesday in the mountains north of the village of Khales, 15 kilometres from Baquba - an Al-Qaeda stronghold. Sunni tribesmen from the local United States-backed Awakening Council helped carry out the raid on a suspected militant hideout, according to Al-Arabiya.
From 'AKI': The Iraqi army arrested on Wednesday in volatile Diyala Province a militant who is allegedly responsible for many of the brutal beheadings carried out by Al-Qaeda, Arabic satellite TV channel Al-Arabiya reported on Wednesday. Ahmad Hasan al-Azzawi, known as 'the beheading emir' was arrested in a raid outside the provincial capital, Baquba, Al-Arabiya said. The raid reportedly took place early on Tuesday in the mountains north of the village of Khales, 15 kilometres from Baquba - an Al-Qaeda stronghold. Sunni tribesmen from the local United States-backed Awakening Council helped carry out the raid on a suspected militant hideout, according to Al-Arabiya.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Joint ISAF-ANA Op Disrupts Insurgents
Source Article HERE.
From 'NATO-ISAF': Kabul, Afghanistan - A joint operation by troops from the ISAF (International Security Assistance Force) and the ANA (Afghan National Army) was successfully completed on October 27th in the Zhari District. The operation was aimed at disrupting an insurgent cell responsible for planting IEDs and staging ambushes against ISAF and ANA forces. The two-day operation, known as Operation ARTASH was launched in the area around Howz-e-Medad. ISAF and ANA troops worked hand-in-hand, with the support of other coalition assets, to seize several compounds that were suspected to be used by insurgents as a staging ground for their activities.
Under cover of darkness, Canadian armoured vehicles from Mike Company began blazing a trail into the location while ANA and ISAF soldiers from November Company and the Operational Mentoring Liaison Team (OMLT) discretely approached from a different direction. At first light the ANA and ISAF soldiers seized the compounds without resistance and called upon military working dog teams and engineers to clear the compounds for any potential threats. Many items commonly used to make IEDs, small arms ammunition, medical supplies as well as a small quantity of uniforms and cash were discovered in the area.
Major Rob McBride, the Officer Commanding November Company explained, "The success of this operation is two-fold. Not only have we disrupted a specific group of insurgents responsible for making IEDs, we have also proven once again that we are able to work effectively side-by-side with the ANA to assert our presence in this area and deny the insurgents the freedom to carry out their activities."
Later that morning, Afghan and ISAF soldiers came under fire from several insurgents who had moved into the area. The exchange of gunfire, however, lasted only a few minutes. "I think the insurgents were surprised to see such a powerful response from our presence on the ground," said Major McBride. "That also goes a long way to reminding them that we will continue to conduct deliberate operations alongside the Afghan National Security Forces against any insurgents who are a threat to ISAF, the ANSF and the people of Afghanistan."
From 'NATO-ISAF': Kabul, Afghanistan - A joint operation by troops from the ISAF (International Security Assistance Force) and the ANA (Afghan National Army) was successfully completed on October 27th in the Zhari District. The operation was aimed at disrupting an insurgent cell responsible for planting IEDs and staging ambushes against ISAF and ANA forces. The two-day operation, known as Operation ARTASH was launched in the area around Howz-e-Medad. ISAF and ANA troops worked hand-in-hand, with the support of other coalition assets, to seize several compounds that were suspected to be used by insurgents as a staging ground for their activities.Under cover of darkness, Canadian armoured vehicles from Mike Company began blazing a trail into the location while ANA and ISAF soldiers from November Company and the Operational Mentoring Liaison Team (OMLT) discretely approached from a different direction. At first light the ANA and ISAF soldiers seized the compounds without resistance and called upon military working dog teams and engineers to clear the compounds for any potential threats. Many items commonly used to make IEDs, small arms ammunition, medical supplies as well as a small quantity of uniforms and cash were discovered in the area.
Major Rob McBride, the Officer Commanding November Company explained, "The success of this operation is two-fold. Not only have we disrupted a specific group of insurgents responsible for making IEDs, we have also proven once again that we are able to work effectively side-by-side with the ANA to assert our presence in this area and deny the insurgents the freedom to carry out their activities."
Later that morning, Afghan and ISAF soldiers came under fire from several insurgents who had moved into the area. The exchange of gunfire, however, lasted only a few minutes. "I think the insurgents were surprised to see such a powerful response from our presence on the ground," said Major McBride. "That also goes a long way to reminding them that we will continue to conduct deliberate operations alongside the Afghan National Security Forces against any insurgents who are a threat to ISAF, the ANSF and the people of Afghanistan."
Insurgent Leaders Arrested In Uruzgan
Source Article HERE.
From 'NATO-ISAF': Kabul, Afghanistan - ISAF forces arrested Haji Mullah Shahabudin and two of his sons, Andalib and Ishadullah in their compound near Kalah Kalah, close to Chora in Uruzgan province. Haji Mullah Shahabudin is known as a ‘judge and cleric’ insurgent and was still acting as a judge for the insurgents. He is suspected of offering material support to his sons, and of undermining the legal authority of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.
His son Ishadullah, also known as Mullah Rasheed, was previously detained for armed robbery of a bus at a check-point, and was subsequently incarcerated in the Tarin Kowt National Defence Service prison. Both the arrested sons are suspected of fighting against Afghan National Security Forces and Coalition Forces, under command of the third brother, Najibullah, a known insurgent commander in the Chora area. Najibullah fled the scene before ISAF troops were able to apprehend him. All three detainees have been transferred to Kabul and handed over to the NDS authorities. Currently they remain in NDS custody.
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His son Ishadullah, also known as Mullah Rasheed, was previously detained for armed robbery of a bus at a check-point, and was subsequently incarcerated in the Tarin Kowt National Defence Service prison. Both the arrested sons are suspected of fighting against Afghan National Security Forces and Coalition Forces, under command of the third brother, Najibullah, a known insurgent commander in the Chora area. Najibullah fled the scene before ISAF troops were able to apprehend him. All three detainees have been transferred to Kabul and handed over to the NDS authorities. Currently they remain in NDS custody.
MNFI Press Release - Nov 11
IA SEIZES WEAPONS CACHE IN AMARAH
Iraqi Army soldiers seized a weapons cache while on a combined patrol in the southeastern portion of Amarah on November 8th. The Iraqi soldiers from the 4th Battalion, 38th IA Brigade with Soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division found (100) 12.7 mm rounds, (250) 7.62 linked ammo, (13) RPGs with (1) launcher, (1) AK47, (12) AK47 magazines, (2) mortar tubes and an unknown number of mortar rounds. The 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment is partnering with the 38th IA Brigade in Amarah to rid the city of illegal weapons smuggling along the Iranian border.
Iraqi Army soldiers seized a weapons cache while on a combined patrol in the southeastern portion of Amarah on November 8th. The Iraqi soldiers from the 4th Battalion, 38th IA Brigade with Soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division found (100) 12.7 mm rounds, (250) 7.62 linked ammo, (13) RPGs with (1) launcher, (1) AK47, (12) AK47 magazines, (2) mortar tubes and an unknown number of mortar rounds. The 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment is partnering with the 38th IA Brigade in Amarah to rid the city of illegal weapons smuggling along the Iranian border.
The Money Trail: Finding, Following and Freezing Terrorist Finances
Source Article HERE:
By Matthew Levitt
From 'Counerterrorism Blog': U.S. and international efforts to combat terrorist financing are a little understood — and often unappreciated — aspect of the global counterterrorism campaign. With this in mind, soon after rejoining The Washington Institute after serving in the Treasury Department’s Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Mike Jacobson and I decided that it would be worthwhile to conduct a comprehensive study of this issue. The produce is our just released study, "The Money Trail: Finding, Following and Freezing Terrorist Finances."
Read more HERE.
For a PDF download of the complete report, go HERE, or click on the icon in the right column under 'Documents'.
By Matthew Levitt
From 'Counerterrorism Blog': U.S. and international efforts to combat terrorist financing are a little understood — and often unappreciated — aspect of the global counterterrorism campaign. With this in mind, soon after rejoining The Washington Institute after serving in the Treasury Department’s Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Mike Jacobson and I decided that it would be worthwhile to conduct a comprehensive study of this issue. The produce is our just released study, "The Money Trail: Finding, Following and Freezing Terrorist Finances."
Read more HERE.
For a PDF download of the complete report, go HERE, or click on the icon in the right column under 'Documents'.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Bin Laden Aide Planned Escape
Source Article HERE.
From 'Sky News': A radical cleric, once described as Osama bin Laden's right-hand man, is back behind bars in the UK after he allegedly planned to escape the country. Abu Qatada was allegedly planning to escape the UK for the Middle East, but he is now back in jail accused of breaching his bail conditions. He will appear before an immigration hearing and could be sent to prison permanently. UK Border Agency officials allegedly discovered the 47-year-old Jordanian was planning to flee to the Middle East despite having his passport taken away. A judge cancelled his bail and Qatada was arrested.
Back in June, courts ruled it would breach his human rights if he was deported back to Jordan. Ministers are appealing the decision but in the mean-time the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) said he should be released on bail. He is required to wear an electronic tag, stay for 22 hours a day in his west London home, and is barred from using the internet or mobile phones. He is also banned from associating with known terrorists, including bin Laden.
The Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) initially ruled Qatada should be deported as the UK had signed a "memorandum of understanding" with Amman guaranteeing he would not be tortured. But the Court of Appeal later overturned the ruling. Qatada was first arrested in 2001 by anti-terrorism police. He was carrying £170,000 in cash, including £805 in an envelope marked "For the mujahedin in Chechnya". He had been convicted in his absence in the Middle East of involvement with terror attacks in 1998 and of plotting to plant bombs for the Millennium.
From 'Sky News': A radical cleric, once described as Osama bin Laden's right-hand man, is back behind bars in the UK after he allegedly planned to escape the country. Abu Qatada was allegedly planning to escape the UK for the Middle East, but he is now back in jail accused of breaching his bail conditions. He will appear before an immigration hearing and could be sent to prison permanently. UK Border Agency officials allegedly discovered the 47-year-old Jordanian was planning to flee to the Middle East despite having his passport taken away. A judge cancelled his bail and Qatada was arrested.Back in June, courts ruled it would breach his human rights if he was deported back to Jordan. Ministers are appealing the decision but in the mean-time the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) said he should be released on bail. He is required to wear an electronic tag, stay for 22 hours a day in his west London home, and is barred from using the internet or mobile phones. He is also banned from associating with known terrorists, including bin Laden.
The Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) initially ruled Qatada should be deported as the UK had signed a "memorandum of understanding" with Amman guaranteeing he would not be tortured. But the Court of Appeal later overturned the ruling. Qatada was first arrested in 2001 by anti-terrorism police. He was carrying £170,000 in cash, including £805 in an envelope marked "For the mujahedin in Chechnya". He had been convicted in his absence in the Middle East of involvement with terror attacks in 1998 and of plotting to plant bombs for the Millennium.
Thousands Of Iraqis Return To Baghdad
Source Article HERE.
From 'MNFI': Iraqi officials recently announced 1,330 displaced Iraqi families have returned to three districts in Baghdad since leaving due to violence. The Ministry of Migration and Displaced Persons tracks the return of the citizens on a week-to-week basis. They released the figures, which reflect the number of families who have registered with the ministry since returning to their homes.
To reclaim their houses, these families must provide documentation to the ministry to prove the homes belong to them. Displaced families who register with the ministry are eligible for support from the government of Iraq. Families may receive grants for as much as one million dinar and also may use the money however they deem necessary. While not specifically created to assist displaced persons, the civil services district program is available to them for assistance in securing employment.
An increase in security and stability is primarily responsible for fostering an environment that permits displaced persons to safely return without fear of reprisals from extremist and militant criminals. “We welcome these good citizens as they return to their homes in eastern Baghdad,” said Major Joey Sullinger, a spokesperson for 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light), Multi-National Division – Baghdad. “We hope they fully embrace the Iraqi security forces responsible for the safety and security that allowed these residents to return to their neighborhoods.”
From 'MNFI': Iraqi officials recently announced 1,330 displaced Iraqi families have returned to three districts in Baghdad since leaving due to violence. The Ministry of Migration and Displaced Persons tracks the return of the citizens on a week-to-week basis. They released the figures, which reflect the number of families who have registered with the ministry since returning to their homes.
To reclaim their houses, these families must provide documentation to the ministry to prove the homes belong to them. Displaced families who register with the ministry are eligible for support from the government of Iraq. Families may receive grants for as much as one million dinar and also may use the money however they deem necessary. While not specifically created to assist displaced persons, the civil services district program is available to them for assistance in securing employment.
An increase in security and stability is primarily responsible for fostering an environment that permits displaced persons to safely return without fear of reprisals from extremist and militant criminals. “We welcome these good citizens as they return to their homes in eastern Baghdad,” said Major Joey Sullinger, a spokesperson for 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light), Multi-National Division – Baghdad. “We hope they fully embrace the Iraqi security forces responsible for the safety and security that allowed these residents to return to their neighborhoods.”
Sab Al Bour Iraq Emerges from Darkness
Source Article HERE.
From 'MNFI': Only a year ago, reliable electricity in Sab al Bour, Iraq was just a dream. The city, just north of Baghdad along the Grand Canal, was practically deserted, with only diehard residents and pockets of insurgents sticking around in the dark. As of November 8th, residents in this small agricultural city are literally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, according to sheik Nadeem Hatem al Tamimi, an influential leader in the area. Outside the city’s new electrical substation, the sheik spoke literally and metaphorically about the town’s emergence from darkness. “We had evil forces trying to kill Iraqis... and they destroyed all essential services,” he said, describing insurgent attempts to control the city and population. “Today, we are calling for unity between all people of Iraq.”
The top Coalition forces leader in the Taji area said he believes peace and stability starts with electricity, and was at the event to congratulate Sab al Bour on its achievement. “Reliable and sustainable access to power allows businesses to flourish, water to crops, schools to educate our children and light on the dark nights of the Iraqi winter” said Col. Todd McCaffrey, commander of 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team “Warrior,” 25th Infantry Division, Multi-National Division – Baghdad. “Sab al Bour is now postured to accept the return of its rightful residents.”
The rightful residents McCaffrey referred to is a large portion of Sab al Bour’s citizens that fled due to violence and lack of essential services. The internally displaced people are now returning at a rate of up to 50 families per week. If the substation opening only meant more electricity, it would be meaningful enough. But the impact of this substation doesn’t stop with keeping the lights on. It will have a direct and immediate positive effect on other essential services in the area. First, there’ll be more drinkable water. Purification stations of course rely on electricity to produce potable water.
Even more significantly, irrigation pumps in the area will work harder and longer. Soon, passing helicopters will notice large swaths of farmland turn from a dirty brown to lush green, all thanks to the substation, said Captain Mark Gillman, the engineer at Warrior Brigade in charge of electrical reconstruction. “The pump station, due to power improvements, will irrigate thousands of acres of farmland with little interruption from blackouts,” said Gillman, who provided oversight and expertise for the otherwise Iraqi-run project. Because the Sab al Bour area depends heavily on agriculture, the local economy should get a noticeable boost. Gillman, who is originally from Las Vegas, explained how all of the intertwined projects, which depend on electricity, are part of a “tailored network.”
“It started with the Ministry of Electricity, which brought up to 30 people in here at a time. They really set the pace for the other ministries,” Gillman said. “There was a lot of government of Iraq support for this small, mostly Sunni community.” Attendees marked the substation’s opening with a ribbon-cutting, tour and then singing and dancing. As they celebrated their victory and announced the lights were on to stay, they proclaimed they could move on to other goals. “Now we will ask for other things – forgiveness and unity,” said the last speaker at the event. “Let’s now bring together all Sunni and Shia in Iraq.”
From 'MNFI': Only a year ago, reliable electricity in Sab al Bour, Iraq was just a dream. The city, just north of Baghdad along the Grand Canal, was practically deserted, with only diehard residents and pockets of insurgents sticking around in the dark. As of November 8th, residents in this small agricultural city are literally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, according to sheik Nadeem Hatem al Tamimi, an influential leader in the area. Outside the city’s new electrical substation, the sheik spoke literally and metaphorically about the town’s emergence from darkness. “We had evil forces trying to kill Iraqis... and they destroyed all essential services,” he said, describing insurgent attempts to control the city and population. “Today, we are calling for unity between all people of Iraq.”
The top Coalition forces leader in the Taji area said he believes peace and stability starts with electricity, and was at the event to congratulate Sab al Bour on its achievement. “Reliable and sustainable access to power allows businesses to flourish, water to crops, schools to educate our children and light on the dark nights of the Iraqi winter” said Col. Todd McCaffrey, commander of 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team “Warrior,” 25th Infantry Division, Multi-National Division – Baghdad. “Sab al Bour is now postured to accept the return of its rightful residents.”
The rightful residents McCaffrey referred to is a large portion of Sab al Bour’s citizens that fled due to violence and lack of essential services. The internally displaced people are now returning at a rate of up to 50 families per week. If the substation opening only meant more electricity, it would be meaningful enough. But the impact of this substation doesn’t stop with keeping the lights on. It will have a direct and immediate positive effect on other essential services in the area. First, there’ll be more drinkable water. Purification stations of course rely on electricity to produce potable water.
Even more significantly, irrigation pumps in the area will work harder and longer. Soon, passing helicopters will notice large swaths of farmland turn from a dirty brown to lush green, all thanks to the substation, said Captain Mark Gillman, the engineer at Warrior Brigade in charge of electrical reconstruction. “The pump station, due to power improvements, will irrigate thousands of acres of farmland with little interruption from blackouts,” said Gillman, who provided oversight and expertise for the otherwise Iraqi-run project. Because the Sab al Bour area depends heavily on agriculture, the local economy should get a noticeable boost. Gillman, who is originally from Las Vegas, explained how all of the intertwined projects, which depend on electricity, are part of a “tailored network.”
“It started with the Ministry of Electricity, which brought up to 30 people in here at a time. They really set the pace for the other ministries,” Gillman said. “There was a lot of government of Iraq support for this small, mostly Sunni community.” Attendees marked the substation’s opening with a ribbon-cutting, tour and then singing and dancing. As they celebrated their victory and announced the lights were on to stay, they proclaimed they could move on to other goals. “Now we will ask for other things – forgiveness and unity,” said the last speaker at the event. “Let’s now bring together all Sunni and Shia in Iraq.”
Al-Qaeda Leader Dead
Source article HERE:
From 'ABC News': The al Qaeda figure believed to be organizing a new terror attack against the United States is dead, a senior U.S. official tells ABC News. The official says the U.S. now has evidence that Khalid Habib was killed in an unmanned air strike two weeks ago in the South Waziristan region of Pakistan. Until now, there had been no official confirmation of reports of Habib's death from local militants in the area. "He was the person responsible for planning and organizing attacks in the Pakistan and overseas, including the U.S.," the senior official said. "This was a really big deal that has not received much attention."
Considered the number four leader of al Qaeda, Habib was a long-time associate close to both Osama bin Laden and Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri. Habib had been reported killed by Pakistani officials several times over the last few years, only to re-emerge at the center of what U.S. official say is the al Qaeda operational command. The death of Habib is the most significant result of a controversial two-month long U.S. offensive in Pakistan employing CIA-controlled unmanned aircraft, known as Predators, equipped with powerful Hellfire missiles.
There have been more than a dozen Predator strikes in the last two months as the U.S. has sought to disrupt efforts by al Qaeda to organize new terror attacks from its safe haven locations inside Pakistan. U.S. officials have detected advanced efforts in the Waziristan area by Habib and others to send terror teams to the U.S. and Europe. A number of suspected European and American recruits have been spotted in the area, officials have reported.
The U.S. and CIA officials will not confirm the role of the Predator missiles in the Pakistan attacks but their role is an open secret in Pakistan, where senior officials publicly complain about the strikes but privately agree to their necessity. The Predators are based out of a secret location in the region but the final decision to pull the trigger is made at CIA headquarters by either CIA director General Michael Hayden or a top deputy, according to former CIA officials.
From 'ABC News': The al Qaeda figure believed to be organizing a new terror attack against the United States is dead, a senior U.S. official tells ABC News. The official says the U.S. now has evidence that Khalid Habib was killed in an unmanned air strike two weeks ago in the South Waziristan region of Pakistan. Until now, there had been no official confirmation of reports of Habib's death from local militants in the area. "He was the person responsible for planning and organizing attacks in the Pakistan and overseas, including the U.S.," the senior official said. "This was a really big deal that has not received much attention."
Considered the number four leader of al Qaeda, Habib was a long-time associate close to both Osama bin Laden and Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri. Habib had been reported killed by Pakistani officials several times over the last few years, only to re-emerge at the center of what U.S. official say is the al Qaeda operational command. The death of Habib is the most significant result of a controversial two-month long U.S. offensive in Pakistan employing CIA-controlled unmanned aircraft, known as Predators, equipped with powerful Hellfire missiles.
There have been more than a dozen Predator strikes in the last two months as the U.S. has sought to disrupt efforts by al Qaeda to organize new terror attacks from its safe haven locations inside Pakistan. U.S. officials have detected advanced efforts in the Waziristan area by Habib and others to send terror teams to the U.S. and Europe. A number of suspected European and American recruits have been spotted in the area, officials have reported.
The U.S. and CIA officials will not confirm the role of the Predator missiles in the Pakistan attacks but their role is an open secret in Pakistan, where senior officials publicly complain about the strikes but privately agree to their necessity. The Predators are based out of a secret location in the region but the final decision to pull the trigger is made at CIA headquarters by either CIA director General Michael Hayden or a top deputy, according to former CIA officials.
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