Coalition Forces Meet With Successes, Capture Insurgents, Weapons
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 24, 2005
Coalition forces in Iraq met with several successes Aug. 23, capturing a known al Qaeda member, several suspected terrorists and weapons, and destroying a terrorist hideout, according to U. S. military officials in Baghdad.
Acting on tips from local Iraqis, coalition forces raided a hideout near Asad and confirmed terrorists were using the location to facilitate operations.
No details were available on the capture of the al Qaeda member. But after coalition forces captured the individual, he told officials about related terrorist activity in the area, which led to the capture of two suspected terrorists. Coalition forces near Asad also captured and destroyed a car bomb and two weapons caches consisting of mortars, rockets and rocket-propelled grenades.
In other news, Iraqi army soldiers captured 15 insurgents in two operations Aug. 23. Iraqi soldiers with the 4th Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 4th Iraqi Army Division, captured five insurgents believed to be involved in improvised-explosive-device attacks in Dujayl. In nearby Tikrit and Balad, combined operations led to the capture of 10 insurgents suspected of mounting indirect-fire attacks and other attacks against Iraqi security forces.
Elsewhere, Iraqi army soldiers and coalition forces conducting a joint dismounted search of residences in the Hit area Aug. 23 captured suspected five insurgents and improvised explosive device-making materials and equipment.
Iraqi soldiers with 2nd Battalion, 1st Brigade, 1st Iraqi Intervention Force, joined U. S. Marines from 3rd Battalion, 25th Marines, 4th Marine Division, to search an area on the east side of the Euphrates River that earlier was the site of an engagement with insurgents.
In a building from which previous small-arms fire originated, the troops detained five men and found anti-coalition propaganda, cell phones, photos of men carrying weapons, infantry gear, and materials commonly used to make IEDs, including washing machine timers, motorcycle batteries, and wires.
The five detainees tested positive for gunpowder residue and were escorted to Camp Hit for processing and questioning, officials said.
Iraqi security forces and multinational forces from Task Force Freedom detained 27 suspected terrorists in northern Iraq Aug. 23 and today.
Iraqi army soldiers from 3rd Battalion, 3rd Brigade, 2nd Division, detained three individuals at a checkpoint in Makuk today.
U. S. soldiers from 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, detained four individuals suspected of terrorist activity during a raid in southern Mosul today.
Soldiers from 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, detained an individual suspected of terrorist activity in northern Mosul.
Soldiers from 1st Battalion, 24th Infantry Regiment, detained an individual suspected of terrorist activity in central Mosul today. Weapons were confiscated for future destruction.
Soldiers from 2nd Squadron, 14th Cavalry Regiment detained two individuals suspected of terrorist activity in Rawah today.
U. S. soldiers from 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment, detained 12 individuals suspected of terrorist activity in southern and eastern Mosul Aug. 23 and today.
Soldiers from the same unit also wounded three suspected terrorists and seized a weapon from their vehicle while responding to small-arms fire in Mosul Aug. 23. The wounded suspected terrorists were transported to a combat support hospital, and one uninjured suspected terrorist was detained. "The toll on terror continues to climb as (Iraqi security forces) and (multinational forces) show resolve in tracking down terrorists responsible for attacks against innocent Iraqi citizens," officials from Task Force Freedom said in a release.
In other action, terrorists detonated three car bombs in central Baghdad starting at 3:15 p. m. today, killing and wounding several Iraqi police and civilians. Task Force Baghdad soldiers came under small-arms fire when they tried to help the Iraqi police with security operations after the first explosion. No U. S. deaths or injuries were reported in the three attacks.
In other Iraq news, coalition forces turned over Camp Zulu, in Suwayrah, to the Iraqi army Aug. 21, officials reported today.
This is the first coalition forces camp within the Multinational Division Central South area of responsibility to be turned over to the Iraqi army's 8th Division. The division's 3rd Battalion, 3rd Brigade, will be permanently housed in the camp, which is located about 35 miles southeast of Baghdad.
In the air war over Iraq, coalition aircraft flew more than 50 close-air-support and armed-reconnaissance sorties Aug. 23 in support of coalition troops, infrastructure protection, reconstruction activities, and operations to deter and disrupt terrorist activities, according to U. S. Central Command Air Forces Forward Public Affairs officials.
Coalition aircraft also supported Iraqi and coalition ground operations in creating a secure environment for ongoing Transitional National Assembly meetings.
U. S. Navy F/A-18 Hornets and a U. S. Air Force RQ-1 Predator aircraft provided close air support to coalition troops in the vicinities of Ramadi and Tuz Khurmatu, which is about 110 miles north of Baghdad. Ramadi is about 70 miles west of Baghdad on the Euphrates River.
The Predator aircraft's capabilities include providing intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance information to battlefield commanders.
Ten Air Force and Navy intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft flew missions in support of operations in Iraq. U. S. Air Force and British Royal Air Force fighter aircraft also performed in a non-traditional role with their electro-optical and infrared sensors.
(Compiled from news releases provided by Multinational Force Iraq, Task Force Baghdad, Task Force Freedom, Multinational Security Transition Command Iraq, and U. S. Central Command Air Forces.)
AubreyJ says: Want see any of this on TV tonight-- Oh yeah... maybe the car bombings that killed people and a shootout- that we won by the way...
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