Human Rights Practices


 

  

keyword recent events source published
Iran Iran, Not al-Sadr, Leading Shi'a Attacks In Iraq -- As Shi’a militias and armed groups strike out at US and Iraqi targets from Baghdad to Basra, it is curious to note how many news reports attribute the attacks to Muqtada al-Sadr, either directly or indirectly. Rocket attacks on the U.S.-protected Green Zone may carry a message with implications across Iraq: rising anger within the Mahdi Army militia. The Shiite fighters led by anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr are reorganizing their ranks, taking delivery of new weapons from Iran and ramping up complaints about crackdowns by U.S. and Iraqi forces that could unravel the Mahdi Army’s self-declared cease-fire, according to militia commanders. But Muqtada al-Sadr was sidelined from any command by Iran weeks ago. There are no attributions of direct quotes, commands or comment from Muqtada since the Shi’a militia uprising began in earnest. And there is a very simple explanation for this: The puppet has had his strings cut. Iran is calling the shots. Link 3/25/2008
Al-Qaeda Foreign Fighters Leaving Iraq -- A growing number of foreign fighters are leaving or attempting to flee Iraq as U.S. and Iraqi forces have weakened al-Qaeda and forced its members from former strongholds, U.S. military officials say. The trend reflects a broad disenchantment among foreign fighters, particularly since al-Qaeda has lost sanctuaries in parts of Baghdad and Anbar, a Sunni province west of the capital, U.S. military intelligence officials say. Link 3/20/2008
Al-Qaeda Great News! 24 Al Qaeda Arrested Across Iraq In One Day! -- "We will continue to destroy and dismantle al-Qaida networks to ensure a more secure Iraq, free of the dangerous terrorists who threaten innocent lives," said spokesman Cmdr. Scott Rye. Link 3/18/2008
Jihad U.S. Forces Find Mass Grave With 100 Bodies In Iraq -- A mass grave containing about 100 bodies was discovered Saturday in a region north of Baghdad that has seen years of intense fighting between Shiites and Sunni extremist members of Al Qaeda in Iraq. The grisly discovery came as Iraq's Sunni parliament speaker called on the nation's Shiites and Kurds to work together with the minority he represents to pass an election law that would help reconcile Iraq's often warring sects and splinter groups. The grave, near Khalis in the Diyala province about 50 miles north of Baghdad, is still being investigated, but the U.S. military said the skeletal remains appear to have been there for a long time. Link 3/8/2008
Moqtada Al-Sadr Sadr Takes Break From Politics, Cites Failures -- Iraq's elusive Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr has decided to drop out of politics for the time being because his disillusionment with the political scene in Iraq has left him sick and anxious, he said in an unusually personal letter to his followers released Friday. In a written response to a query from a group of followers asking why he hadn't been seen in public for so long, Sadr said he had decided to devote himself to a period of study, reflection and prayer after failing in his core mission to rid Iraq of the U.S. occupation or to turn it into an Islamic society. He also cited the betrayal of some followers, whom he accused of falling prey to "materialistic" politics. Link 3/8/2008
Al-Qaeda Odierno: Progress In Iraq Approaches Point Of Irreversibility -- The former commander of Multinational Corps Iraq reflected today on vast improvements made during the past 15 months and said Iraq is approaching the point where no single incident or chain of events will be able to reverse those positive trends. Link 3/4/2008
Muqtada Al-Sadr Muqtada Al-Sadr Comatose In Iranian Hospital -- Shi'ite cleric and leader Muqtada Al-Sadr was secretly transferred a few days ago from Iraq to Iran for hospitalization as he was comatose. It was reported that his illness resulted from food poisoning. Al-Sadr is being treated by Iranian specialists, as well as by Russian doctors brought in to help the Iranian medical staff treat him. Link 3/3/2008
Al-Qaeda U.S. Military Kills Al Qaeda Leader in Iraq -- A U.S. military helicopter fired a guided missile to kill a wanted Al Qaeda in Iraq leader from Saudi Arabia who was responsible for the bombing deaths of five American soldiers, a spokesman said Sunday. U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Gregory Smith said Jar Allah, also known as Abu Yasir al-Saudi, and another Saudi known only as Hamdan, were both killed Wednesday in Mosul. Link 3/2/2008
Unknown Iraq Political "Surge" Uplifts U.S. Officials -- Politics has broken out in Baghdad. Long derided as dysfunctional, Iraq's parliament in recent weeks has passed a package of laws on the budget, elections and sectarian reconciliation that have given cautious hope to U.S. officials and private analysts that the gains from President Bush's military surge are finally being matched by a political surge as well. Link 3/1/2008
Al-Qaeda Al-Qaeda Killing Former Sunni Allies -- Captured documents show al-Qaeda (AQI) in Iraq is killing former allies thought to be disloyal. Following the tip of a local citizen, Coalition forces found an AQI torture and execution site in Samarra, Nov. 18. Coalition forces were engaged at the site by enemy forces, resulting in 10 AQI terrorists being killed. AQI had murdered Iraqi Security Forces, Coalition Force sympathizers, and ‘Sons of Iraq’ at this site. Link 2/18/2008
Jihad Attacks In Baghdad Fall 80 Percent -- Attacks by insurgents and rival sectarian militias have fallen up to 80 percent in Baghdad and concrete blast walls that divide the capital could soon be removed, a senior Iraqi military official said on Saturday. Link 2/16/2008
Al-Qaeda Al Qaeda Defeated In Baghdad: Iraqi PM -- Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki proclaimed on Friday that Al-Qaeda had been routed in Baghdad thanks to a security plan launched a year ago, and would soon be defeated throughout the country. Link 2/15/2008
Al-Qaeda Purported Al Qaeda Video Shows Prisoners Burned Alive -- Al Qaeda's latest display of terror has made its way onto the Internet, showing horrifying images of what appear to be prisoners in Iraq being doused with an inflammatory liquid and then burned alive. (Graphic images) Link 2/15/2008
NY Times Unconscionable Horror: U.S. Soldiers Blindfold Prisoners in Iraq, NY Times Editorial Board Wets Themselves -- What, exactly, did these men do to justify blindfolding them and forcing them to their knees on a concrete floor, their heads pressed against the wall? In the United States, kidnappers, rapists, and mass murderers are not treated this way. Timothy McVeigh was not treated this way. Link 2/15/2008
Moqtada Al-Sadr Becoming An Ayatollah -- The New Iraqi Politics of Moqtada al-Sadr Link 2/12/2008
Al-Qaeda Two CBS Journalists Reported Missing In Iraq -- CBS said all efforts were under way to find the journalists, who were not identified by the network. It requested "that others do not speculate on the identities of those involved" until more information was available. Iraqi police said the journalists were taken away Sunday after masked gunmen entered the Sultan Palace Hotel in central Basra. Link 2/12/2008
Al-Qaeda Baghdad Hospital Director Arrested In Down Syndrome Bombing -- The acting director of a Baghdad psychiatric hospital has been arrested on suspicion of supplying al-Qaeda in Iraq with the mentally impaired women that it used to blow up two crowded animal markets in the city on February 1, killing about 100 people. Link 2/11/2008
Al-Qaeda Al Qaeda Leader's Diary Reveals Organization's Decline -- U.S. troops found a diary belonging to an al Qaeda in Iraq leader that has Coalition forces believing the terrorist organization is “on its heels,” a senior military official in Baghdad said this morning. Soldiers of the 101st Airborne Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team on Nov. 3, 2007, captured a diary belonging to Abu Tariq, an al Qaeda emir in control of five battalions within two sectors. The 16-page diary contains records about man power, operations, weapons, and finances, and it shows that al Qaeda is hurting badly in the belts of Baghdad. "There were 600 al-Qaeda members in this sector, now there (are) 20 or less." Link 2/9/2008
Al-Qaeda Iraq Vows To "Crush Terrorists" After 99 Killed -- Iraq's prime minister vowed on Saturday that attacks by two female bombers which killed 99 people in Baghdad would not derail improved security, but angry residents demanded the government do more to protect them. The U.S. military said there were indications the women were mentally handicapped, and probably unaware they were being used as human bombs. Link 2/2/2008
Saddam Buried WMD Scoop -- The FBI interrogator says that, while Saddam said he no longer had active WMD programs in 2003, the dictator admitted that he intended to resume those programs as soon as he possibly could. Link 2/1/2008
Mainstream Media As U.S. Troops Succeed, Network News Retreats From Iraq War Story -- After months of improving security in Iraq, the big network morning shows on Friday cited one horrific suicide bombing as proof that “mayhem and misery are back in Baghdad,” as CBS correspondent Mark Strassmann put it. But over the last five months, the broadcast networks have consistently reduced their coverage of Iraq, as if the story of American success in Iraq is less worthy of attention than their old mantra of American failure in Iraq. Link 2/1/2008
Al-Qaeda Mentally Retarded Women Used In Bombings -- Two mentally retarded women strapped with remote-control explosives—and possibly used as unwitting suicide bombers—brought carnage Friday to two pet bazaars, killing at 73 people in the deadliest day since Washington flooded the capital with extra troops last spring. Link 2/1/2008
Suicide Bomber At Least 64 Dead In Baghdad Market Bombs -- A female suicide bomber blew herself up at the main pet market in central Baghdad, killing at least 46 people and wounding dozens in the deadliest bombing to strike the capital since 30,000 more American troops began flooding into central Iraq last spring, police said. About 20 minutes later, a second female suicide bomber struck another bird market in a predominantly Shiite area in southeastern Baghdad. That blast killed at least 18 people and wounded 25, police said. Link 2/1/2008
Al-Qaeda Iraq Ready For "Final" Battle With Al Qaeda -- Iraqi security forces have begun a "decisive" final offensive against al Qaeda in Iraq to push the Sunni Islamist militants out of their last major stronghold in the north, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said on Friday. Link 1/25/2008
Jihad Military: 75% Of Baghdad Areas Now Secure -- The military classifies 356 of Baghdad's 474 neighborhoods in the "control" or "retain" category of its four-tier security rating system, meaning enemy activity in those areas has been mostly eliminated and normal economic activity is resuming. Link 1/18/2008
Iran Petraeus: Iran Still Training Iraq Terrorists -- The commander of US forces in Iraq said during a tour of an Iraq-Iran border crossing Wednesday that Tehran was still training militants despite its pledge to cut support for the insurgency. Link 1/16/2008
Al-Qaeda Symposium: Crushing Al-Qaeda -- Iraq's interior ministry spokesman recently revealed that 75% of Al-Qaeda in Iraq's network has been destroyed. This announcement corresponded with myriad other reports that have indicated that Osama’s terror group is in serious trouble in Iraq. What accounts for this U.S. success and Al-Qaeda failure? To discuss this question, Frontpage Symposium has assembled a distinguished panel. Link 1/11/2008
Al-Qaeda U. S. Launches Airstrike South Of Baghdad -- U.S. bombers and jet fighters unleashed 40,000 pounds of explosives during a 10-minute airstrike Thursday, flattening what the military called safe havens for al-Qaida in Iraq on the southern outskirts of the capital. The strikes, carried out above approaching U.S. and Iraqi troops, was part of Operation Phantom Phoenix, a nationwide campaign launched Tuesday against al-Qaida in Iraq. Link 1/10/2008
Abu Ghraib Abu Ghraib Officer Cleared -- Army has thrown out the conviction of the only officer court-martialed in the Abu Ghraib scandal, bringing an end to the four-year investigation and drawing complaints from human rights activists of a Pentagon whitewash. Link 1/10/2008
Al-Qaeda Massive U. S. Air Attack South of Baghdad -- U.S. warplanes unleashed one of the most intense airstrikes of the Iraq war Thursday, dropping 40,000 pounds of explosives in a thunderous 10-minute onslaught on suspected al-Qaida in Iraq safe havens in Sunni farmlands south of Baghdad. The mighty barrage—recalling the Pentagon's "shock and awe" raids during the 2003 invasion—appeared to mark a significant escalation in a countrywide offensive launched this week to try to cripple remaining insurgent strongholds. Link 1/10/2008
Al-Qaeda Al-Qaida Uses Women As Suicide Attackers -- Three female suicide bombers blew themselves up within a few weeks late last year in Iraq, killing or wounding dozens _ a tactic that goes against religious taboos on involving women in fighting and could indicate insurgents are growing increasingly desperate. Link 1/4/2008
Iran Iran No Longer Aids Iraq Militants -- Iran's leaders are no longer supplying weapons or training to Islamic militants in Iraq, the spokesman for the top U.S. commander in Iraq told The Washington Times. Link 1/3/2008
David Petraeus Man Of The Year: General David Petraeus -- This year, one candidate distinguished himself beyond all others: General David Howell Petraeus. In commanding the U.S. Surge in Iraq, Petraeus has not merely arrested an explosive and deteriorating security situation but has reversed terrorist initiatives, driving al-Qaeda out of a province it once governed and denying it the ability to reconstitute a Salafist safe haven. No one has more significantly advanced the welfare of the United States and the cause of freedom in 2007 as Gen. Petraeus, and none has been as harassed as a result – not merely harassed unduly but harassed precisely because he aided liberty’s cause in a time when so many seek to benefit politically from its diminution. Link 1/2/2008
Al-Qaeda U. S. Military Says 51 Qaeda Leaders Killed Or Captured -- The US military said on Wednesday that 51 Al-Qaeda leaders were killed or captured by multinational forces in Iraq during December, as efforts to close down the Islamist extremist group intensified. Of those captured in December, "eight were regional, city or functional emirs, nine were cell leaders, six were involved in media and propaganda activities and five that were foreigner terrorist facilitators," Bergner said. He said the others were involved in bomb-making, or were spiritual advisers, financiers, intelligence gatherers or weapons traffickers. Link 1/2/2008
Al-Qaeda Al-Qaida Targets Sunni Tribal Groups -- Last week, Osama bin Laden warned Iraq's Sunni Arabs against joining the groups fighting al-Qaida or participating in any unity government. The overwhelmingly Sunni tribal groups, known as Awakening Councils or Concerned Local Citizens, have since been the targets of a series of deadly attacks. Link 1/2/2008
General Petraeus Man With A Message Of Hope -- The critics said it couldn't be done, but the vision and determination of General David Petraeus have brought greater security and cause for optimism to the people of Iraq. He is The Sunday Telegraph's Person of the Year. Link 12/31/2007
Al-Qaeda News Flash For Osama Bin Laden -- I have directly observed how more and more Iraqis have grown to hate al Qaeda as much as Americans do. Al Qaeda has lost all credibility there, both from a religious standpoint as well as strategically. Even Western media seems to be gradually awakening to the realization that al Qaeda press releases on the topic of Iraq are about as well-informed as the post-invasion rantings of Baghdad Bob. Link 12/29/2007
WMD Top Secret Iraqi Files: Saddam really did have weapons of mass destruction. (.pdf) Link 12/26/2007
Insurgents Iraqi Police Uncover Major Weapons Cache -- Iraqi Police (IP) uncovered a major weapons cache in Kirkuk province, Dec. 18. The discovery was made during a series of pre-dawn raids at suspected cache sites. The operation was led by the IP into the town of Ruwadah, approximately 25 miles west of Kirkuk city. Link 12/24/2007
Insurgents Progress In Iraq -- Remarkable progress has been made in Iraq since the "surge" and related tactical changes were implemented by General Petraeus. These charts, courtesy of the Multi-National Forces, show the improvement visually. (MUST READ). Link 12/23/2007
Insurgents 40,000 Troops May Be Home By July -- The Pentagon expects that more than 40,000 U.S. troops will be home by July if the situation in Iraq remains stable, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said yesterday. Link 12/22/2007
Islamofascism A Surge Of Their Own: Iraqis Take Back The Streets -- Attacks plummet as Shias join Sunnis in neighbourhood patrols to tackle militants and reunite communities Link 12/20/2007
Insurgents Normalcy Returns to Baghdad’s Outskirts as Attacks Decline -- The decrease in violence seen in Baghdad’s northern and western outskirts has created a sense of stability and fueled economic activity that Iraqis view as a presage to the return of normalcy, a U.S. commander posted in Iraq told Pentagon reporters today. "From a security perspective, there has been significant progress," said Army Col. Paul E. Funk, commander of the 1st Cavalry Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team Link 12/20/2007
Unknown After Action Report — General Barry R McCaffrey USA (Ret) -- This memo provides feedback on my strategic and operational assessment of current security operations in Iraq. Look forward to providing lectures to faculty and cadet national security seminars. Link 12/20/2007
Al-Qaeda Torture Chamber Found In Iraq -- Blood-splotches on walls, chains hanging from a ceiling and swords on the killing floor — the artifacts left a disturbing tale of brutalities inside a suspected al-Qaida in Iraq torture chamber. But there was yet another chilling fact outside the dirt-floor dungeon. Villagers say they knew about the torment but were too intimidated by extremists to tell authorities until now. Link 12/20/2007
Qods Force Iranian Qods Force still active in Iraq -- With a sharp reduction in the deadly landmine attacks used by the Iranian-backed Shia terrorists known as the Special Groups, a debate has raged over whether Iran has worked to reduce the number of attacks inside Iraq. Link 12/19/2007
Insurgents Iraq at Its Quietest Since 2003 -- Lt. Gen. Ray Odierno, the man responsible for the ground campaign in Iraq, said that the first six months of 2007 were probably the most violent period since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003. The past six months, however, had seen some of the lowest levels of violence since the conflict began, Odierno said, attributing the change to an increase in both American troops and better-trained Iraqi forces. Link 12/16/2007
Muqtada Al-Sadr Iraq's Sadr Uses Lull to Rebuild Army -- Moqtada al-Sadr's Shiite militia aims to return leaner, stronger. Link 12/11/2007
Mainstream Media Russert Concedes Fewer Deaths in Iraq Means Less Coverage -- Asked by NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt on Sunday evening about how a new MSNBC/Mason-Dixon poll found that Iraq is not "the dominating issue" as "the economy is immensely important to voters," Tim Russert suggested Hillary Clinton and Rudy Giuliani will have "to re-calibrate" for "a bread and butter election" since "with the surge in Iraq and the level of American deaths declining, it is off the front pages." Link 12/10/2007
Gordon Brown Happy Xmas, Your War Is Over! -- The PM was cheered as he praised UK troops and revealed combat operations in Basra will end “within two weeks”. Iraqi forces will take over as the 4,500-strong British force switches from front-line duties to a training role. By early next year, our contingent in Southern Iraq will be cut to 2,500 – and may be withdrawn completely in March. Link 12/10/2007
Associated Press AP'S Conflict of Interest -- There is one current story in Iraq that has attracted the full attention of the Associated Press, and that is the case of Bilal Hussein, an AP photographer and terrorism suspect. The AP report on Hussein's hearing yesterday leaves out the fact that Hussein was arrested with a known al Qaeda terrorist... one of but many troubling aspects of the news organization's decision to forego objective news reporting in favor of self-serving advocacy in a clear and pervasive conflict of interest. The Associated Press, as an involved party in this case, should recuse themselves from reporting on Hussein's trial. Link 12/10/2007
Islamofascism Mortar Rounds Hit Iraqi Prison; 5 Dead -- Mortar shells slammed into an Interior Ministry prison Monday, killing at least five inmates and wounding 25, the U.S. military and Iraqi officials said. Separately, a fire broke out at one of Iraq's main refineries, but the U.S. said it was an industrial accident _ not an attack, as Iraqi officials insisted. Link 12/10/2007
Insurgents 3,000 Undercover Cops to Track Down Dori, Ahmad Cells -- "The operatives of the so-called al-Awda (Return) Organization, which stemmed from the Baath Party and belong to Dori and Ahmad, will be hunted down by 3,000 policemen working undercover," Bulani said in a joint press conference with Iraqi Defense Minister Abdul-Qader al-Ubaidi on Sunday. Link 12/10/2007
Associated Press The trial of Bilal Hussein -- It’s Sunday morning in Iraq. Today is the day our military officials plan to submit evidence against Associated Press photographer Bilal Hussein to the Iraqi judiciary system. You’ll recall that the military stated last month that it "possesses convincing and irrefutable evidence that Bilal Hussein is a threat to security and stability as a link to insurgent activity." Link 12/9/2007
Sharia Law Vigilantes Kill 40 Women in Iraq's South -- Religious vigilantes have killed at least 40 women this year in the southern Iraqi city of Basra because of how they dressed, their mutilated bodies found with notes warning against "violating Islamic teachings." Link 12/9/2007
Iran Iranian Rockets Found, Turned Over to Coalition Forces -- A cache of Iranian manufactured rockets was turned over to Coalition forces based at Forward Operating Base Delta, Dec. 4. Iraqi civil defense personnel delivered 14 107 mm Iranian rockets and fuses to the Kazakhstani Soldiers, said 1st Lt. Almaz Mukashev, the Kazakhstani liaison officer. The rockets were manufactured in 2006. Link 12/8/2007
Al-Qaeda Coalition Forces Disrupts Al-Qaeda Networks; 12 Killed, 13 Detained -- During an operation south of Yusufiyah, Coalition forces targeted a suspected associate of an al-Qaeda leader involved in the network operating south of Bagdad. The network is believed to be involved in planning an attack against Coalition forces operating in the region. As Coalition forces approached the area, they observed several armed men emerge from the target building, maneuvering into military style positions into a nearby palm grove. Perceiving hostile intent, Coalition forces engaged. Link 12/8/2007
Al-Qaeda Al-Qaida Losing Out to Citizens -- Al-Qaida is lashing out at Iraqi civilians who have volunteered to protect their neighborhoods in an area southwest of Baghdad. "The people have forced them out, so they strike back, they want to show that they still have some level of control over the local populace, and they can’t," said Army Col. Terry Ferrell, commander of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division. Link 12/4/2007
Al-Qaeda Iraqi Troops Find Mass Grave with 12 Bodies -- Iraqi troops unearthed a mass grave with the remains of 12 people including a paramedic who disappeared more than a year ago, officials said yesterday, the latest grisly discovery in a former stronghold of Al Qaeda in Iraq. Link 12/4/2007
Al-Qaeda Al Qaeda Confession: Only 200 Foreign Terrorists are left in Iraq. -- In his speech released yesterday Abou Omar Al Baghdadi the supposed leader of the Islamic State in Iraq which is Al Qaeda in Iraq said that only two hundered Mohajeroon are left in Iraq. Mohajeroon which means immigrants in Arabic are the foreign terrorists who came to fight in Iraq. This is yet the most stunning admission by Al Qaeda in Iraq that they are totally destroyed and from the tens of thousands of foreign terrorists they had, almost all of them are killed and captured and only two hundreds are left. Link 12/4/2007
Al-Qaeda Coalition Forces Target Foreign Terrorist Facilitators, Car-Bombers, Propaganda Cells -- Coalition forces killed one terrorist and detained 17 suspects late Thursday and today, during operations targeting al-Qaeda networks in central and northern Iraq. During operations near Sharqat, Coalition forces captured a wanted individual believed to be a key member in al-Qaeda in Iraq’s media and propaganda network. Reports indicate the wanted individual may have been using the target area as a safe haven to re-establish the network after significant degradation by Coalition forces’ recent operations. Link 11/30/2007
Associated Press When Journalistic Ethics are Treason -- Is it ethical for an American company to encourage an employee to become “embedded” in the ranks of the enemies of the United States during an actual time of war? Related, is it ethical for that journalist to become embedded within forces that are intentionally breaking the Geneva Conventions by not wearing identifiable markings or uniforms? Intentionally targeting civilians? And murdering hostages? Link 11/29/2007
Al-Qaeda 6,000 Sunnis Join Pact With U.S. in Iraq -- Nearly 6,000 Sunni Arab residents joined a security pact with American forces Wednesday in what U.S. officers described as a critical step in plugging the remaining escape routes for extremists flushed from former strongholds. The new alliance, called the single largest single volunteer mobilization since the war began, covers the "last gateway" for groups such as al-Qaida in Iraq seeking new havens in northern Iraq, Link 11/28/2007
Al-Taqiyya Another Phony "Massacre" in Iraq -- The angry family of an Iraqi journalist went on local television on Wednesday to blast him for claiming they had been massacred three days ago by Shiite militiamen in Baghdad. "We are still alive. Thank God!" the sister of the journalist said, before bursting into tears. Link 11/28/2007
Al-Qaeda The Al Qaeda-Iran Axis Has Been Beaten in Iraq -- Now we learn that not only is terrorist violence vanishing in Sunni regions of AQI focus, but in Shia regions of Iranian focus. AP is reporting that Basra violence is down 90%. America's victory in Iraq means that both Al Qaeda and Iran have been defeated... simultaneously. Link 11/26/2007
Al-Qaeda Official: Bride, Groom Stopped in Iraq Actually Terror Suspects -- Soldiers manning a checkpoint near Baghdad stopped a wedding convoy to find that the purported bride and groom were wanted terror suspects, an Iraqi Defense Ministry official said Monday. The soldiers became suspicious of the convoy because its members -- save the "bride" -- were all male and because one of the cars in the convoy did not heed orders to stop, the official said. Link 11/26/2007
Al-Qaeda Dressed to Kill: Here Comes the Bride -- The Iraqi Defense Ministry released today this photograph of wanted terror suspects Abbas al-Dobbi (groom) and Haider al-Bahadli ("bride"). The two men were caught at a military checkpoint 12 miles north of Baghdad — posing as newlyweds. Link 11/26/2007
Al-Qaeda Ten killed, eight detained as Coalition forces target al-Qaeda senior leaders (Samarra) -- During three coordinated operations early Saturday, Coalition forces targeted senior al-Qaeda in Iraq leaders and associates, killing a wanted individual, believed to be associated with the Badush prison escape in March. Reports indicate that the wanted individual had previously been imprisoned for weapons smuggling. Link 11/25/2007
Al-Qaeda Iraqi School Guard and Wife Beheaded as Children Watch -- Three suspected al Qaeda militants, including two sisters, beheaded their uncle and his wife, forcing the couple's children to watch, Iraqi police said on Friday. The militants considered that school guard Youssef al-Hayali was an infidel because he did not pray and wore western-style trousers, they told police interrogators after being arrested in Diyala province northwest of Baghdad. Link 11/23/2007
Al-Qaeda 34 Killed as Al-Qaeda Fighters Attack Iraqi Villages -- At least 34 people were killed in fierce gun battles as suspected Al-Qaeda fighters - some dressed as Iraqi soldiers - attacked three villages, officials said on Thursday. Gunmen dressed in army uniforms launched an attack on Howr Rajab, a Sunni village south of Baghdad, killing three soldiers and wounding three, a security official said. They then commandeered a Humvee armoured vehicle and charged into the village where they assaulted the headquarters of the Howr Rajab Awakening Council, a local anti-Qaeda front made Link 11/23/2007
Al-Qaeda Iraqi, U.S. Forces Continue to Expand Area of Control -- Recent security gains have allowed coalition forces to decrease the number of temporary outposts in cities like Fallujah while reinforcing new structures for use by Iraqis in the future. Link 11/23/2007
Al-Qaeda The Anti-al Qaeda Insurgency -- The Chicago Tribune has an excellent report on a familiar story: the revolt of former Sunni insurgents against the murderous al Qaeda thugs who for a time dominated much of Sunni Iraq. The Tribune tells the story of Amariyah, a Baghdad neighborhood that was the scene of an al Qaeda reign of terror until a former insurgent leader named Abul Abed killed the local al Qaeda commander. Link 11/23/2007
Al-Qaeda 'Al Qaeda Rolodex' Found in Iraq -- As many as 60 percent of the foreign fighters who entered Iraq in the past year have come from Saudi Arabia and Libya, according to documents discovered in a raid in September near the Syrian border. The documents confiscated in that raid listed the identities of more than 700 foreign fighters in Iraq, whom the United States believes entered that country since August 2006. The official describes the documents as "an al Qaeda rolodex." Link 11/22/2007
Al-Qaeda Al Qaeda Attacks the Awakening; Senior Al Qaeda Leaders Killed, Captured -- Al Qaeda in Iraq may be down, but it is not out. While al Qaeda has suffered a major setback after US and Iraqi forces launched multiple offensives throughout Iraq, the terror group still retains some capacity to conduct attacks. Today, al Qaeda attacked the Awakening movement two villages north and south of Baghdad. The battles resulted in scores killed on both sides, including 10 al Qaeda fighters. Meanwhile, Iraqi and Coalition forces have killed or captured several senior al Qaeda leaders over the past week. Link 11/22/2007
Islamofascism Returnees Find a Capital Transformed -- Iraqis are returning to their homeland by the hundreds each day, by bus, car and plane, encouraged by weeks of decreased violence and increased security, or compelled by visa and residency restrictions in neighboring countries and the depletion of their savings. Link 11/22/2007
Al-Qaeda More News On al-Qaeda’s Woes In Iraq and Elsewhere -- The stories of al-Qaeda’s problems are starting to avalanche as Iraq turns the corner, causing a domino effect across the Muslim world in terms of al-Qaeda’s falling credibility and respect. The wave of good news is so strong I can only synopsize and link to the stories these days. (Many links) Link 11/21/2007
Iran Petition Condemns Iran for "Disorder" in S.Iraq -- More than 300,000 Iraqis including 600 Shi'ite tribal leaders have signed a petition accusing Iran of sowing "disorder" in southern Iraq, a group of sheikhs involved in the campaign said. Link 11/21/2007
Democrats Iraq: What Went Right -- THE situation in Iraq has im proved so rapidly that Democrats now shun the topic as thoroughly as they shun our troops when the cameras aren't around. Link 11/21/2007
NY Times Baghdad Starts to Exhale as Security Improves -- The security improvements in most neighborhoods are real. Days now pass without a car bomb, after a high of 44 in the city in February. The number of bodies appearing on Baghdad’s streets has plummeted to about 5 a day, from as many as 35 eight months ago, and suicide bombings across Iraq fell to 16 in October, half the number of last summer and down sharply from a recent peak of 59 in March, the American military says. Link 11/20/2007
Jihad 4,000 New Iraqi Troops Ready -- The first graduation of an Iraqi brigade as a fully trained and equipped unit marks a milestone. Link 11/19/2007
Associated Press U. S. Military Accuses AP Photographer of Being "Terrorist Media Operative" -- The US military has filed a formal complaint with an Iraqi criminal court accusing a detained, award-winning Associated Press photographer of being a "terrorist media operative," the Pentagon said Monday. Link 11/19/2007
Muqtada Al-Sadr U. S. - Iraqi Troops Crackdown on Sadr Militants -- US and Iraqi troops have arrested dozens of militants loyal to radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr in a massive crackdown in the central city of Diwaniyah, officials said Monday. Link 11/19/2007
Jihad Pioneering "Heat Wave" Gun May Be Used in Iraq -- American commanders in Iraq are urging Pentagon chiefs to authorise the deployment of newly-developed heat wave guns to disperse angry crowds or violent rioters. Link 11/19/2007
Muqtada Al-Sadr Sadrist leader dies of wounds -- A leader of the Sadrist movement, or Iraqis loyal to Shiite leader Moqtada al-Sadr, died of wounds sustained during his arrest by police forces in Diwaniya last month, a media source from al-Sadr's office in the province said on Saturday. Link 11/18/2007
Al-Qaeda F-16s Destroy Insurgent Mortar Team -- Two Air Force F-16s destroyed a mobile insurgent mortar team consisting of three al-Qaeda members, a mortar launcher and van Nov. 14 in Adwaniyah using Maverick laser-guided missiles. Link 11/17/2007
Al-Qaeda Basra Violence Down 90 Percent -- Attacks against British and Iraqi forces have plunged by 90 percent in southern Iraq since London withdrew its troops from the main city of Basra, the commander of British forces there said. Link 11/16/2007
Al-Qaeda Qaeda Chased from Last Baghdad Bastion -- An armed Sunni group has ended Al-Qaeda’s tight two-year grip on north Baghdad’s volatile Adhamiyah neighbourhood and is now in control, an AFP correspondent witnessed on Friday. A local militia calling itself the “revolutionaries of Adhamiyah” took over the Sunni district on the east bank of the Tigris on November 10 in a swift and audacious raid that sent Al-Qaeda fleeing from its last stronghold in Baghdad. Link 11/16/2007
Al-Qaeda U.S. Launches Assault on Iraqi Qaeda Stronghold -- About 600 U.S. troops launched a pre-dawn assault south of Baghdad on Friday against al Qaeda fighters linked to the kidnapping of two soldiers six months ago, the U.S. military said. Link 11/16/2007
Islamofascism Only CBS Notes Fewest Rocket and Mortar Attacks in Two Years -- Turning to Iraq now and another sign that violence there is decreasing. In October, insurgent rocket and mortar attacks fell to their lowest level in nearly two years. The U.S. military reported today there were 369 of those attacks last month. Rocket and mortar attacks peaked in June when there were more than a thousand. Link 11/13/2007
Iran U. S. military says finding more Iranian arms in Iraq -- The quantity of Iranian bomb-making components being found in Iraq is increasing despite a fall in attacks and 20 Iranian-trained agents are still operating south of Baghdad, a top U.S. general said on Sunday. Link 11/11/2007
Jihad Is Iraq Getting Better? -- Over the past three months, there has been a sharp and sustained drop in all forms of violence. The figures for dead and wounded, military and civilian, have also greatly improved. Link 11/11/2007
Al-Qaeda Sunni, Shia Sheiks Present United Front Against al-Qaeda -- A short-notice reconciliation meeting of regional sheiks with potential for impact throughout Iraq was held Nov. 8 in Al Bassam, an area approximately 16 kilometers west of Baghdad city center. Members of more than 30 tribes attended the conference; both Sunnis and Shias were represented. Their differences were set aside for the day as they publicly united with one voice and vowed to fight al-Qaeda and work toward a lasting peace for their region. Link 11/10/2007
Iraq Body Count Iraqi Casualties, Leftist Lies -- Iraqis were no longer dying from war, but from the efforts of Islamic terrorists, who showed increasing disregard for the future of the country and the welfare of its citizens. IBC had a decision to make. Would it count the victims of terror as victims of terror, or would it continue to call them “war” casualties of the original US-led operation when, in fact, Americans were spilling their own blood to protect Iraqis? IBC decided to blame Americans for the very sectarian violence that their soldiers are trying to stop, Link 11/8/2007
Al-Qaeda Iraqi Army Detains 81, Discovers Large Weapons Cache -- Soldiers of the 8th and 10th Iraqi Army Divisions, advised by U.S. Special Forces, discovered a large weapons cache during an operation to clear al Qaeda in Iraq activity near Suwayrah. Link 11/5/2007
Al-Qaeda Al-Qaeda is Defeated -- “Al Qaeda in Iraq is defeated,” according to Sheik Omar Jabouri, spokesman for the Iraqi Islamic Party and a member of the widespread and influential Jabouri Tribe. Speaking through an interpreter at a 31 October meeting at the Iraqi Islamic Party headquarters in downtown Baghdad, Sheik Omar said that al Qaeda had been “defeated mentally, and therefore is defeated physically.” Link 11/2/2007
IED Shock and Awe: Crazy IED Explosion -- Check out this close call from an IED that was either buried too deep or didn't have enough enough fire power. Link 10/31/2007
Mainstream Media Al Qaeda and Haditha bombshell -- What the MSM didn’t tell you. Link 10/29/2007
Osama Bin Laden Bin Laden Admits Defeat in Iraq -- Bin Laden Admits Defeat in Iraq Link 10/27/2007
Al-Qaeda Gasps from Al Qaeda -- The last days on Earth of Abu Osama al-Tunisi apparently were filled with anxiety: "We are desperate for your help," he said in a letter to al Qaeda chieftains. Link 10/23/2007
Al-Qaeda Al Qaeda, Islamic Army Clash South of Baghdad -- The divisions between al Qaeda and their erstwhile Sunni allies in the insurgency intensified over the weekend as the Islamic Army of Iraq and the terror group battled in Khannasa, just south of the city of Baghdad near Salman Pak. Over 60 were reported killed in the three-day battle after al Qaeda kidnapped a leader of the insurgent group. Link 10/22/2007
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