Saturday, September 23, 2006
Sunni insurgent leader captured
Security
The U.S. and Iraqi forces say they have captured a leader of the insurgent group known as Ansar al-Sunnah. Muntasir Hamoud Ileiwi al-Jubouri and two of his aides were arrested in Al-Taeyh, about 50 miles northeast of Baghdad, said Brig. Qassim al-Mussawi, spokesman for the General Command of the Armed Forces at the prime minister's military office. He did not say when the arrest was made. The group are believed to be behind the 2004 attack on a U.S. military mess hall that killed 22 people. They have claimed responsibility for numerous suicide attacks and executions. Ansar al-Sunna is part of the Mujahedeen Shura Council, an umbrella organisation of insurgent groups, including al-Qaeda in Iraq.
COMMENT: Ansar al-Sunnah (Followers of the Tradition) is an Iraqi Jihadist group, dedicated to the establishment of an Islamic state based on Shari’ah in Iraq, which they aim to achieve by the defeat of coalition forces and foreign occupation. They believe that jihad in Iraq has become obligatory for Muslims. The group’s membership is varied, and is comprised of operatives from the Kurdish terrorist organisation Ansar al-Islam, foreign al-Qaeda operatives, and Iraqi Sunnis. Targets have included coalition military personnel, members of the Iraqi National Guard, new Iraqi governmental institutions, and Kurdish political establishments. COMMENT ENDS.
