U.S., Iraqis launch raid on insurgent hotbed
Thursday, March 16, 2006 Posted: 2216 GMT (0616 HKT) : (Auf CNN sind die Bilder des „Starts“ zu sehen..als Videos..)
U.S., Iraqis launch raid on insurgent hotbed Thursday, March 16, 2006 Posted: 2216 GMT (0616 HKT) U.S. soldiers and aircraft get positioned Thursday in advance of Operation Swarmer near Salaheddin province.WATCH Browse/Search U.S. launches air assault (2:28) Iraqi official: Offensive targets insurgents (3:49) More U.S. troops heading to Iraq (1:37) Source: U.S. Department of Defense RELATED BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) — About 1,500 Iraqi and American forces stormed into a restive region north of the capital Thursday, searching for insurgents and terrorists, the U.S. military said. More than 50 aircraft and 200 tactical ground vehicles are involved in Operation Swarmer, a mission to find insurgents in rural areas of Salaheddin province northeast of Samarra. Commandos raided several structures in the area, a news release said. (Watch as choppers ferry troops to the insurgent area — 2:28) „We are conducting a real thorough search of the area, ensuring that we are very precise in determining who we detain,“ said Maj. Tom Bryant, a public affairs officer in Tikrit for the 101st Airborne Division. Bryant said there were no initial reports of injuries among the U.S.-led coalition and Iraqis. He said there were „a few more“ Iraqi troops than coalition soldiers. Many of them were ferried in by UH-60 Blackhawk and CH-47 Chinook helicopters, he said. The offensive is focusing on three villages in a largely Sunni area where fighters are believed to be based, Iraqi security sources said. The insurgents are suspected in lootings and killings, including the deaths of three Al-Arabiya journalists in Samarra. The reporters were killed while covering the aftermath of the February 22 bombing of a revered Shiite shrine in Samarra that escalated sectarian tensions and pushed Iraq to the brink of civil war. Samarra, about 75 miles (121 kilometers) north of Baghdad, is predominantly Sunni but has mixed Sunni-Shiite areas. Iraq Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said the operation „has been anticipated for some time.“ (Watch Iraq’s foreign minister describe the area as a hotbed of insurgents — 3:49) „It is very close to Baghdad … and really it has been the transit for many of these terrorist insurgents to send car bombs or to attack convoys in that part of the country,“ Zebari said. „The insurgents and the terrorists have been assembling themselves there trying to create another Falluja,“ he said, referring to an insurgent command center in that western Iraqi city that was scene of a bloody offensive in November 2004. The operation is expected to last several days as the military searches for insurgents and weapons stockpiles. Zebari said the Samarra push shows the „rising capabilities“ of Iraqi forces. „This is a good exercise and indicates that this strategy is working to build Iraqi troops to be sufficient,“ he said. Bryant said Iraqi and U.S. commanders planned the mission, acting on intelligence gained by Iraqi forces. Bodies found in Baghdad Since a string of car bombings in a poor Shiite neighborhood killed at least 46 people Sunday, police have reported finding the results of grisly execution-style slayings daily. The latest discoveries came during a vehicle curfew in the capital. More than 160 bodies have been recovered since Sunday. Many were shot to death, and some showed signs of torture. In northern Iraq, one person was killed and three injured in demonstrations marking the 18th anniversary of the gassing to death of thousands of Kurds in Halabja, police and hospital officials said. Diyala province, north of Baghdad, continued to be a hotbed of violence. In Khalis, a roadside bomb killed three girls and wounded five boys Thursday as students were leaving school, an official with Diyala’s Joint Coordination Center said. A roadside bomb in Muqtadya exploded near an Iraqi police patrol, wounding seven officers and one civilian, the official said. In the provincial capital of Baquba, a gunmen killed one civilian and wounded another. Parliament meets briefly The lawmakers were sworn in amid tight security, but they did little else. (Full story) The meeting begins the 60-day countdown during which time a president, two vice presidents and a prime minister will be selected. The process likely will be difficult. The nominee for prime minister, Ibrahim al-Jaafari, is controversial with many Sunni, Kurdish and secular Shiite lawmakers and their constituents. Al-Jaafari has been the transitional prime minister. _________________ Other developments An Iranian official said Thursday that his country is willing to hold talks with the United States — which has accused Iran of trying to influence violence in Iraq — the Islamic Republic News Agency reported. Iran has denied accusations of sending fighters into Iraq and of providing materials for bombs. Washington and Tehran have no diplomatic ties. (Full story) The death of a 24-year-old male detainee at Baghdad’s Abu Ghraib prison is under investigation. The prisoner died of apparent natural causes Wednesday, a U.S. military statement said. The prisoner was found unconscious and CPR efforts failed, the military said. A U.S.-led raid on a suspected terror site Wednesday killed 11 civilians, including five children, according to Iraqi police. The U.S. military claimed the death toll from the strike north of Balad was four. (Full story) The U.S. Congress unveiled Wednesday an independent panel to study the war in Iraq and to make policy recommendations to Capitol Hill and the White House. (Full story) CNN’s Arwa Damon, Nic Robertson and Barbara Starr and journalist Shirzad Bozorgmehr contributed to this report. |