The Men in the Shadows -- Hunting al-Zarqawi ~~ Task Force 145

ABC NEWS ^ | June 9, 2006 | HRIS CUOMO and EAMON MCNIFF, ABC News Law and Justice Unit

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Task Force 145 Is an Elite Special Ops Unit That Spent Years Tracking al-Zarqawi

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June 9, 2006 — They're relentless manhunters, often referred to ambiguously as the "coalition forces" in mission briefings and reports. Yet this shadowy group, Task Force 145, is a veritable all-star team of Special Forces. The Task Force has now been thrust into the spotlight after leading the way to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.

Reportedly, Task Force 145 was a Pentagon post-9/11 creation formed in the summer of 2003 when the military merged two existing special operations units assigned to locate Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan and Saddam Hussein and his sons in Iraq. TF 145 is composed of elite personnel from American Delta Force, Navy SEAL Team 6, Army Rangers and British Special Forces, as well as members of the FBI and CIA. According to a recent article in the Army Times, TF 145 is divided into four subordinate task forces in Iraq: Task Force West, Task Force Central, Task Force North, and Task Force Black, which is made up of the British Special Air Service "saber squadron" and the British Special Forces Support Group.

"Task Force 145 uses a process that they call the unblinking eye, which is essentially a very tight linkage between intelligence and operations, meaning that as soon as they have intelligence they want to act on it, rather than sit and dwell on it for days at a time," said Sean Naylor, who reported a piece on TF 145 for the Army Times.

The group is currently based out of a secret base in Balad, Iraq. After the capture of Saddam Hussein, TF 145 was assigned one main task: Capture or kill terrorist mastermind Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, and dismantle his al Qaeda network.

[ASA Vet]

Ping

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

From Security Watchtower:

Task Force 145 has taken out 200 Zarqawi associates

**************AN EXCERPT ********************

ABC News has an article discussing Task Force 145 and their activities in Iraq, much of which we've covered at Security Watchtower over the last six months. The primary piece of information I found interesting was the tally attributed to the unit in their fight against al Qaeda.

"...the group has been credited with capturing or killing roughly 200 al-Zarqawi associates and operatives since 2004."

The following is a list of identified associates of al Qaeda leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi who have been killed or captured over the last three years in Iraq. This list is not an attempt to document all of the al Qaeda operatives that have been removed from the battlefield in Iraq, but instead focuses on Zarqawi's senior leadership.

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See link for a nice formatted list.....

[NordP]

WE HAVE THE BEST SPECIAL OPS/MILITARY IN THE WORLD!!!!!!!!

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

See link just above for list of TF 145 achievements.....

[martin_fierro]

(not one of his better books)

[Izzy Dunne]

The Task Force has now been thrust into the spotlight

You know, ABC, I don't really want to know this.

I'm glad that they exist, but I would rather you not spend the effort it takes to research the whos and whats and wheres and whens.
Spend the time researching Soros, or SwiftBoaters or Kennedy money, or something that needs to be known.

[bannie]

If I were younger, I think I'd pack up and leave to join The Task Force 145 Groupies.

:-)

[NormsRevenge]

Excellent news!

--


You knew this was coming, btw.

Iraqi raises questions on al-Zarqawi death ^
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1646849/posts

[Eagles6]

Articles such as this are only meant to give support and info to the enemy. Treasonous.

[TomGuy]

"Task Force 145 uses a process that they call the unblinking eye, which is essentially a very tight linkage between intelligence and operations, meaning that as soon as they have intelligence they want to act on it, rather than sit and dwell on it for days at a time," said Sean Naylor, who reported a piece on TF 145 for the Army Times.

Military commentator (ret) on Fox and Friends this morning said that some 50 raids had already been conducted as a direct result of intel and info collected from the Zark safe house hard drives, etc.

Zark's network extended into Europe and north Africa. In all probability, raids are going on throughout those areas even now and in the near future.

[CaptRon]

The group is currently based out of a secret base in Balad, Iraq.

Well, it was secret.

[Gritty]

How long before the MSM zeroes in with "exposes" on Task Force 145 for egregious abuses, torture, and human rights violations and the Liberal chorus demands thorough investigations and immediate dismantling of this group?

I'll bet, not long!

[Recovering Ex-hippie]

Does the task force 145 Get an Ok from the UN security council and the congress before they strike ?

If not, this would be so shocking and would definitely need a Congressional Hearing. And furthermore, congress should publish exactly how the task force operates, just in case there are any panties or dogs involved!

(the insanity in this country is that the Left and Libs would actually go for this!)

[digger48]

I'd imagine that ABC would prefer this unit NOT be so effective in the future. Perhaps if they could just tell the world a little more about them and how they accomplish their assignments.....

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Media will now let us know about the grieving from Zarqawi's supporters,.....ignore the photo of the grieving woman,....she is there to represent grieving:

Insurgent groups mourn al-Zarqawi's death

[lewislynn]

Great article Ernest.

"While currently in the media spotlight in the United States, TF 145 is roaming in the shadows in Iraq and beyond once again."

I couldn't be more pleased.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Good news for Bush:

Bush Approval Ratings Up On Zarqawi's Death (44.2%)

[Chode]

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

I sleep better at night knowing that they are at work!