Tuesday, May 22, 2007
News Of The Killing Of The Three US Soldiers
Coalition
(Al Bayyna Newspaper AR.) - 20 MAY - Eyewitnesses in Yousifiya say that they believe that the three US soldiers have been killed by their kidnappers. A Nahrain network reporter stated, “Eyewitnesses confirmed to him that a group of citizens from the agricultural area in Yousifiya discovered two human heads in a creek in their area. According to these people, the features of the faces of the heads, which were slightly decomposed, appeared to be that of non-Iraqis. It is possible that these are the heads of two of the kidnapped US soldier’s heads.”
On the other side, an Iraqi Voices reporter confirmed that local citizens informed the US forces and the US forces quickly retrieved the heads from the river. The US forces also began to block the water flow and began to search for the head of the third soldier. Finally, 6,000 US soldiers, with the assistance of Iraqi forces, have been searching in Yousifiya and in the vicinity of the old Russian power station in the hopes of finding the three US soldiers who were kidnapped last Saturday. The two heads that were found confirm that two of the soldiers have been killed.
COMMENT: Al Bayyna is a pro-Shiite, anti-Coalition newspaper. Al Bayyna - “The Truth” - is published weekly in Baghdad. It is owned by Hezbollah in Iraq. COMMENT ENDS.
Labels: Missing U.S. troops, Youssifiyah
Monday, May 14, 2007
Islamic State in Iraq claims capture of U.S. soldiers
Security
UPDATE: (Reuters) - The U.S. military said on Monday it believed that three U.S. soldiers missing in Iraq were abducted by al Qaeda and the Islamist militant group demanded an end to a massive search as the only way to secure their safety.
"At this time, we believe they were abducted by terrorists belonging to al Qaeda or an affiliated group and this assessment is based on highly credible intelligence information," chief military spokesman Major-General William Caldwell said.
"Your soldiers are in our grip. If you want the safety of your soldiers then do not search for them," the Islamic State in Iraq said in a statement posted on a Web site. The group did not elaborate but its statement implied the soldiers were still alive. The posting did not carry pictures of the soldiers, make demands for their release or say what their fate would be.
In a statement recorded before al Qaeda's demand for an end to the search was posted, Caldwell said the American soldiers were classified as "whereabouts unknown". He said the U.S. military was "using every asset and resource available to the United States and our Iraqi allies in these efforts". "The operations to locate our soldiers are ongoing, and we would not want to do anything that would jeopardize these efforts," Caldwell said.
"At this time, we believe they were abducted by terrorists belonging to al Qaeda or an affiliated group and this assessment is based on highly credible intelligence information," chief military spokesman Major-General William Caldwell said.
"Your soldiers are in our grip. If you want the safety of your soldiers then do not search for them," the Islamic State in Iraq said in a statement posted on a Web site. The group did not elaborate but its statement implied the soldiers were still alive. The posting did not carry pictures of the soldiers, make demands for their release or say what their fate would be.
In a statement recorded before al Qaeda's demand for an end to the search was posted, Caldwell said the American soldiers were classified as "whereabouts unknown". He said the U.S. military was "using every asset and resource available to the United States and our Iraqi allies in these efforts". "The operations to locate our soldiers are ongoing, and we would not want to do anything that would jeopardize these efforts," Caldwell said.
(AP) - U.S. and Iraqi forces exchanged fire with suspected Sunni insurgents on Monday, killing two and wounding four of them during a massive search for three missing American soldiers in a volatile area south of Baghdad, the Iraqi army said. An al-Qaida front group, the Islamic State in Iraq, claimed Sunday that it had captured U.S soldiers in a deadly attack on a U.S. convoy the day before in Sunni area south of Baghdad that is known as the "triangle of death", a longtime al-Qaida stronghold.
Meanwhile, 4,000 U.S. troops backed by aircraft, intelligence units and Iraqi forces were scouring the farming area around Mahmoudiya and the nearby town of Youssifiyah for the third day, as the military promised to make every effort available to find the missing soldiers. Lt. Col. Christopher Garver, a U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad, said the military could not verify the claim by the Islamic State of Iraq but "it would not surprise me if ... al-Qaida in Iraq is involved in this because there are similarities to what they've done before."
He pointed out that the terror network also had claimed responsibility for killing two U.S. soldiers whose mutilated bodies were found after they went missing in the same area last year. The Islamic State in Iraq offered no proof for its claim on Internet that it was behind the attack Saturday in Mahmoudiya, about 20 miles south of Baghdad, that also killed four U.S. soldiers and an Iraqi translator. If the claim proves true, it would mark one of the most brazen attacks by the Islamic State of Iraq, a coalition of eight insurgent groups, including al-Qaida in Iraq.
Meanwhile, 4,000 U.S. troops backed by aircraft, intelligence units and Iraqi forces were scouring the farming area around Mahmoudiya and the nearby town of Youssifiyah for the third day, as the military promised to make every effort available to find the missing soldiers. Lt. Col. Christopher Garver, a U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad, said the military could not verify the claim by the Islamic State of Iraq but "it would not surprise me if ... al-Qaida in Iraq is involved in this because there are similarities to what they've done before."
He pointed out that the terror network also had claimed responsibility for killing two U.S. soldiers whose mutilated bodies were found after they went missing in the same area last year. The Islamic State in Iraq offered no proof for its claim on Internet that it was behind the attack Saturday in Mahmoudiya, about 20 miles south of Baghdad, that also killed four U.S. soldiers and an Iraqi translator. If the claim proves true, it would mark one of the most brazen attacks by the Islamic State of Iraq, a coalition of eight insurgent groups, including al-Qaida in Iraq.
Early Monday morning, U.S. and Iraqi forces exchanged fire with gunmen near Youssifiyah during the house-to-house search operation for the missing American soldiers, killing two suspected insurgents and injuring four others, a top Iraqi army officer in the area said. He said the fighting began at about 3:30 a.m. and lasted for about 30 minutes. The officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to security concerns, said the coalition's search operation in the region has detained more than 100 suspects. The U.S. military did not immediate comment on the report.
In Mahmoudiyah, residents complained on Monday that coalition forces had searched through their homes, and AP Television News footage showed on one apartment that appeared to have been ransacked in the search. One resident also said three residents in the area, including two guards at a local mosque, had been detained by coalition forces, but that could not be immediately confirmed.
In Mahmoudiyah, residents complained on Monday that coalition forces had searched through their homes, and AP Television News footage showed on one apartment that appeared to have been ransacked in the search. One resident also said three residents in the area, including two guards at a local mosque, had been detained by coalition forces, but that could not be immediately confirmed.
Labels: Al Qaeda in Iraq, Islamic State in Iraq, Lt. Col. Christopher Garver, Mahmoudiya, U.S. troops, Youssifiyah
Monday, March 05, 2007
Sunnis turn on each other as some support reconciliation with Shias
Security
(Al Jazeera) Six Sunni men, who received death threats for meeting with local Shias, have been killed in execution-style slayings in a rising wave of sectarian violence, Iraqi police and military said. The attack on Saturday near Youssifiyah, 20 km south of the capital Baghdad, comes a day after the claimed abduction and execution of at least 14 Shias.
But in this case, Iraqi authorities said they believed that Sunni gunmen had killed fellow Sunnis revealing a rift between those who support reconciliation with Shias and those who will kill to stop it. Also on Saturday, three US soldiers were killed by a roadside bomb that exploded while they were on patrol in central Baghdad, the military said.
An adviser to Iraq's defence ministry was kidnapped in western Baghdad, an aide to Adnan al-Dulaimi, the head of the largest Sunni bloc in parliament, said. Lieutenant General Thamir Sultan hails from Saddam Hussein's tribe and had been mentioned as a possible defense minister when the current government was organised last year. The aide spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to release the information.
Earlier, the US military said it killed "key terrorists" who were using anti-aircraft artillery to fire at American military helicopters near Taji, north of Baghdad.
The Iraqi men gunned down Saturday - all relatives from the Mashhada tribe - were killed after gunmen stormed the family's house at dawn, Haider Satar, an Iraqi policeman, said. The victims in Youssifiyah were separated from women and children and shot dead in their home, Satar said. Captain Ahmed al-Obeidi, from the Iraqi army, whose unit is stationed near the site of the attack, also confirmed the incident.
The bodies were transferred to a hospital morgue in the neighbouring town of Mahmoudiyah, where Associated Press Television footage showed them wrapped in blankets and lined up on the metal floor of a refrigeration chamber. At least two had their hands tied and bound behind their backs. The motive of the brutal attack could not be independently verified. But police, citing information from surviving relatives, said the victims had received threats from Sunni gunmen after participating in a reconciliation conference with Shias last month. The conference was held in Mahmoudiyah in late February.
But in this case, Iraqi authorities said they believed that Sunni gunmen had killed fellow Sunnis revealing a rift between those who support reconciliation with Shias and those who will kill to stop it. Also on Saturday, three US soldiers were killed by a roadside bomb that exploded while they were on patrol in central Baghdad, the military said.
An adviser to Iraq's defence ministry was kidnapped in western Baghdad, an aide to Adnan al-Dulaimi, the head of the largest Sunni bloc in parliament, said. Lieutenant General Thamir Sultan hails from Saddam Hussein's tribe and had been mentioned as a possible defense minister when the current government was organised last year. The aide spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to release the information.
Earlier, the US military said it killed "key terrorists" who were using anti-aircraft artillery to fire at American military helicopters near Taji, north of Baghdad.
The Iraqi men gunned down Saturday - all relatives from the Mashhada tribe - were killed after gunmen stormed the family's house at dawn, Haider Satar, an Iraqi policeman, said. The victims in Youssifiyah were separated from women and children and shot dead in their home, Satar said. Captain Ahmed al-Obeidi, from the Iraqi army, whose unit is stationed near the site of the attack, also confirmed the incident.
The bodies were transferred to a hospital morgue in the neighbouring town of Mahmoudiyah, where Associated Press Television footage showed them wrapped in blankets and lined up on the metal floor of a refrigeration chamber. At least two had their hands tied and bound behind their backs. The motive of the brutal attack could not be independently verified. But police, citing information from surviving relatives, said the victims had received threats from Sunni gunmen after participating in a reconciliation conference with Shias last month. The conference was held in Mahmoudiyah in late February.
Labels: execution, Lieutenant General Thamir Sultan, Mashhada tribe, reconciliation, Shias, Sunnis, Youssifiyah
