"U.S. Kills 75 Insurgents in Iraqi Offensive," from Fox News, with thanks to Jihad Watch News Editor Rebecca Bynum:
BAGHDAD, Iraq — American troops backed by helicopters and war planes have launched a major offensive against insurgents in a remote desert area near the Syrian border, and about 75 militants were killed in the first 24 hours, the U.S. military said.
Marines, sailors and soldiers from Regimental Combat Team 2, 2nd Marine Division, were conducting the offensive in an area north of the Euphrates River, in the al-Jazirah Desert, a known smuggling route and sanctuary for foreign insurgents, the military said....
The report, by a journalist embedded with the U.S. forces, said the offensive "was seeking to uproot a persistent insurgency in an area that American intelligence indicated has become a haven for foreign fighters flowing in from Syria."
Some U.S. forces were north of the Euphrates, but most were stuck south of the waterway as engineers tried to build a pontoon bridge there Sunday, the Tribune said.
The report quoted some Marines as saying residents of one riverside town had turned off all their lights at night, apparently to warn neighboring towns of the approaching U.S. troops...
Violence continued Monday with at least three Iraqis killed in a suicide car bombing at police checkpoint at a busy Baghdad intersection, said police Maj. Mousa Abdul Karim. The dead included two policemen and a civilian. Six other policemen and three civilians were wounded, he said...
The worst of the weekend fighting occurred in Haditha, when insurgents occupied a civilian hospital and used gunfire, RPGs, a suicide car bomb and a roadside bomb to kill three U.S. Marines and a sailor, the military said.
On Monday, the U.S. military accused insurgents of using patients as human shields during the four-hour battle in Haditha, 140 miles northwest of Baghdad, even after one of their bombs set fire to the hospital...
The counter terrorism strategy, in my opinion, seems to be working in terms of discovering those responsible for orchestrating extremist operations in certain theaters. The apprehension of Abu Faraj al-Libi and associates in Pakistan, and key facilitators and operatives within Abu Musab al-Zarqawi’s Tanzim Qa'idat al-Jihad fi Bilad al-Rafidayn (QJBR) in Iraq are prime examples. What is interesting is not counterterrorism effort’s ability to apprehend individuals but its effect among the followers of these highly influential leaders in the “jihad” against the West. I think it is becoming quite evident that there is a shift in sentiment within the hard line extremist community in Iraq and Afghanistan; we’re simply wearing them down.
In Iraq, a Sunni vs. Sunni policy, pitting Iraqi Sunni against Sunni foreign extremist, may perpetuate a virtual implosion within the anti-Coalition insurgency. We saw the attempt from Fallujah extremist to foster dialogue for cease-fire fail negotiations fail in late 2004, spurring OPERATION AL-FAJR, the Marines siege of the insurgent strong hold in Fallujah. This operation was a notable success not for its tactical victory in recapturing the city from insurgents but through testing the true faith of the insurgents themselves.
On April 28 2004 in a raid in Baghdad, Coalition forces discovered a letter written by a member of QJBR, addressed to “the Sheik.” The letter, dated April 27, 2005, is believed to be addressed to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi himself. The letter outlines the breakdown in discipline, incompetence in leadership and a feeling of abandonment from Zarqawi after the Fallujah operations. This contradicts the intent of the recent October 17 2004 merger between Usama Bin Laden and Zarqawi. Many speculated on the lethality of QJBR post merger. On the other hand, the merger itself may have been counterproductive. The issue: ideology clashes. Sunni Wahabism, Salafism and other extremist beliefs, coupled with the attempt to religiously justify positions and rankings, spells a recipe for dispute among the al-Qaida hierarchy. There was even talk in open source channels of UBL’s intent to instruct Zarqawi to possibly plan attacks against the United States, adding more to his plate and literally taking operational responsibility from another regional leader. This has all the signs of a dysfunctional “family” falling apart.
Let’s not forget the Waziristan front. There have been numerous counterterrorism successes in apprehending key al-Qaida leaders prior to the arrest of Abu Faraj al-Libi, the alleged Worldwide Operations Officer for al-Qaida, once held by Kalid Sheik Muhammed. Both men, al-Libi and Muhammed, had full knowledge of al-Qaida operations and direct connections to bin-Laden and Ayhman al-Zawahiri. The loss of experienced leadership and a need to quickly regroup could stem from strategic pressure within the extremist network and tactical pressures levied against this network from anti-terrorism operations worldwide. I assess that the al-Qaida organization at the grass roots level is coming apart due to low morale, broken promises and sheer disappointment. The senior front will eventually suffer from a lack of trust and differences in ideology. How can it sustain itself with so much infighting?
As a service member who served in Afghanistan and Iraq, I understand the dynamics and the attitudes of the locals who want change. The fighting has forced them to live a life of fear more so now than Afghanistan’s Taliban regime and Iraq’s Huessien dictatorship. I’ve learned that there is a serious distrust against foreigners in these countries, regardless of the country of origin. I noticed a desire for change with the least amount of foreign involvement as possible. We witness a gradual move to a state of “pseudo-autonomy” from U.S. assistance in security and government in Afghanistan. In Iraq, the desires to self-govern exist as well as the Coalition’s departure. The common factor in both countries is the cancerous insurgency.
The below link is a translation of the letter discovered coalition forces in Iraq. Your thoughts….
http://www.centcom.mil/CentcomNews/Reports/ZarqawiEnglishtranslation.doc
"The worst of the weekend fighting occurred in Haditha, when insurgents occupied a civilian hospital and used gunfire, RPGs, a suicide car bomb and a roadside bomb to kill three U.S. Marines and a sailor, the military said.
On Monday, the U.S. military accused insurgents of using patients as human shields during the four-hour battle in Haditha, 140 miles northwest of Baghdad, even after one of their bombs set fire to the hospital..."
These Islamist terrorists are scum.
More, and faster please.
The Bush honeypot doctrine is working.
HUZZAH!!!