BBC: US soldiers' bodies found in Iraq ~ Bodies Booby Trapped,...Zarqawi successor killed....

BBC ^ | Tuesday, 20 June 2006, 19:13 GMT 20:13 UK | BBC Staff

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

US soldiers' bodies found in Iraq

Kristian Menchaca and flags raised at Thomas Tucker's Oregon home

Two US soldiers missing in Iraq since Friday have been found dead south of Baghdad, the US military has said.

The bodies were found in the Yusifiya area on Monday. An Iraqi defence ministry spokesman said the bodies had shown signs of torture.

An insurgent group linked to al-Qaeda in Iraq, which claimed it abducted the men, has now said that it killed them.

The missing men have been named as Kristian Menchaca and Thomas Tucker, both from the 101st Airborne Division.

Another US soldier, David Babineau, was killed in the attack on the checkpoint.

Relatives' anger

US military spokesman in Iraq, Maj Gen William Caldwell, said the bodies were found late on Monday by US troops.

"We have recovered what we believe are the remains of our two missing soldiers. They will be taken back to the United States for positive verification."

He said the cause of death was "undeterminable at this point".

But Iraqi defence ministry spokesman Gen Abdul Aziz Mohammed said: "We found they had been tortured in a barbaric fashion."

A US statement said that the bodies had been booby-trapped.

It said 8,000 coalition and Iraqi forces had been carrying out a massive search for the missing men, and that one US soldier died and another 12 were injured in clashes during the search.

At least three people were killed in one bomb blast in Baghdad

Relatives of the men have already reacted with grief and anger.

Ken MacKenzie, uncle of Kristian Menchaca, said on US television: "Because the US government did not have a plan in place, my nephew has paid for it with his life."

An internet statement posted by the Mujahideen Shura Council - a grouping of insurgents that includes al-Qaeda in Iraq - said it had abducted the men and slit their throats.

The posting, which cannot be independently confirmed, said the new leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq - Abu Hamza al-Muhajir - had been "favoured by God" in being allowed to carry out a Sharia law tribunal death sentence.

The former leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, was killed in a US air strike near Baquba on 7 June.

Market bombs

Gen Caldwell said on Tuesday US forces had killed Zarqawi's "right-hand man" in a raid in Yusifiya on Friday, near where the US troops were abducted.

The general said Iraqi Mansur Suleiman al-Mashhadani was "a key leader in al-Qaeda" and could have succeeded Zarqawi.

The US also said it had killed 15 "terrorists" in an "extremely long firefight" in Bushahin, north of Baquba.

The US military said its forces came under attack from gunmen on a roof and around nearby buildings. After the firefight, it said, various weapons and explosives were found.

However, angry local people said the dead were all innocent poultry workers.

Meanwhile, violence continued around Iraq despite Zarqawi's death and a new security clampdown involving tens of thousands of Iraqi and US troops in Baghdad:

• At least three people are killed in a car bomb in a market in Sadr City, eastern Baghdad

• Two more people are killed and 28 hurt in an explosion at a clothes market in central Baghdad

• Elsewhere, at least one elderly woman was killed along with a suicide bomber who blew himself up inside a home for the elderly in the southern city of Basra.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

A US statement said that the bodies had been booby-trapped.

[Toddsterpatriot]

However, angry local people said the dead were all innocent poultry workers.

I know lots of innocent poultry workers who fire AK-47s at US troops.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

From CQ:

June 20, 2006
AQI Top 5 Terrorist Killed (Update: Confirmed, Perhaps Plus Another AQI Leader Captured)

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

UPDATE: The BBC has an addendum to the story on the discovery of the two bodies that reports up to 15 insurgents killed while hunting a "senior member of al-Qaeda in Iraq," but does not identify Sheikh Mansur despite the specifics in the briefing.

UPDATE II: The Commissar asks if I may have mistranscribed the name from al-Masri or al-Mohajer. I took the name from the placard at the briefing, but it still might be the same person, as terrorists have been known to adopt multiple identities. I'm waiting for better reporting to come from the morning briefing, and find it disappointing that the story has not made its own way onto the wires thus far. Still scanning ...

UPDATE III: CENTCOM now has a release stating that they have detained a senior AQI leader and three of his lieutenants near Baghdad. CENTCOM has not named the terrorists detained as yet.

UPDATE IV: Thanks to CQ reader Brendan F, we see that the BBC has updated their report:

Gen Caldwell said on Tuesday US forces had killed Zarqawi's "right-hand man" in a raid in Yusifiya on Friday, near where the US troops were abducted.

The general said Iraqi Mansur Suleiman al-Mashhadani was "a key leader in al-Qaeda" and could have succeeded Zarqawi.

So now we have mainstream media confirmation on the kill -- and it appears we also have another senior AQI leader detained. It may take some time to get the information clear about the later CENTCOM release.

Posted by Captain Ed at June 20, 2006 08:12 AM

[Jazzman1]

PLEASE dont post anything by the bbc here. The story is rife with leftist blather. Makes me sick to my stomach anytime I read something from them or the nyslimes!

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

fyi

[conservativewasp]

The angry local people who say these things are clearly in collusion with the enemy. They should be arrested and shown the inside of Abu Garab.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

We need to see what they are putting out,....

[American Quilter]

Ken MacKenzie, uncle of Kristian Menchaca, said on US television: "Because the US government did not have a plan in place, my nephew has paid for it with his life."

How unfortunate that this man used the publication of his nephew's death to attack the President, especially with such a foolish accusation. The two slain soldiers deserve better. May angels welcome them into heaven, and may God comfort their grieving families.

[RightWhale]

angry local people said the dead were all innocent poultry workers

Those weren't avian flu infected carcasses they were tossing off the roof.

[Wuli]

"Ken MacKenzie, uncle of Kristian Menchaca, said on US television: "Because the US government did not have a plan in place, my nephew has paid for it with his life." "

1. What are we supposed to take this to mean?

2. Has the left found its next Cindy Sheehan?

[boxerblues]

This man did not know his nephew very well, other family memebers have already come and said he was proud of his service

[headstamp]

"1. What are we supposed to take this to mean?"

The "Uncle" already has an agenda.

"2. Has the left found its next Cindy Sheehan?"

Probably, at least for the liberal talk show circuit.

[UnbelievingScumOnTheOtherSide]

However, angry local people said the dead were all innocent poultry workers.

Yeah? Well they all died of bird flu!

[mpackard]

Are they sure that it wasn't a wedding party????????

[American Quilter]

This man did not know his nephew very well, other family memebers have already come and said he was proud of his service

I'm glad to read that. I hope the family shuns the uncle for his disgusting act.

[massgopguy]

If Kristan's mother publicy states that Uncle Ken does not speak for the family and asks his to cease and desist, will the MSM respect her wishes?

[txflake]

Huh. I took 'zarqaui successor killed' to mean 'zarqaui successor killed'.

[mark502inf]

How unfortunate that this man used the publication of his nephew's death to attack the President, especially with such a foolish accusation. The two slain soldiers deserve better. May angels welcome them into heaven, and may God comfort their grieving families.

Well said.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

From the AP,...another biased MSM source:

Today: June 20, 2006 at 11:36:8 PDT
Key Figure in al-Qaida in Iraq Killed

*************************************************

By KIM GAMEL
ASSOCIATED PRESS

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - A key al-Qaida in Iraq leader described as the group's "religious emir" was killed in a U.S. airstrike hours before two American soldiers went missing and in the same area, the military said Tuesday.

Mansour Suleiman Mansour Khalifi al-Mashhadani, or Sheik Mansour, and two foreign fighters were killed as they tried to flee in a vehicle near the town of Youssifiyah, in the so-called Sunni "Triangle of Death."

U.S. coalition forces had been tracking al-Mashhadani for some time, American military spokesman William Caldwell said in announcing his death. He said al-Mashhadani was an Iraqi, 35 to 37 years old, and that one of the men killed with him was an al-Qaida cell leader identified as Abu Tariq.

The three men were killed just hours before an insurgent attack on a traffic checkpoint near Youssifiyah, by a Euphrates River canal. One U.S. soldier was killed in the attack and two were reported missing afterward.

Two bodies believed to be those of the missing men - Pfc. Kristian Menchaca, 23, of Houston, and Pfc. Thomas L. Tucker, 25, of Madras, Ore., were recovered in the same area.

Caldwell said the Iraqi militant played a key religious and recruiting role in the group. The spokesman said Mansour was linked to the senior leadership, including Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who was killed in a June 7 U.S. airstrike, and Abu Ayyub al-Masri, the man the U.S. military has identified as al-Zarqawi's replacement.

Mansour "reportedly served as a right-hand man of Zarqawi's, and also served as a liaison between al-Qaida in Iraq and the various tribes in the Youssifiyah area, as well as playing a key role in their media operations," Caldwell said.

Citing intelligence sources, Caldwell also said Mansour was responsible for the shooting down of a coalition aircraft this spring.

The U.S. military captured Mansour in July 2004 because of his ties to the militant groups Ansar al-Islam and Ansar al-Sunna, but released him because he was not deemed an important terror figure at the time, the spokesman said.

The militant joined al-Qaida in Iraq sometime in the fall of 2004, Caldwell said. He displayed photos that purportedly showed Mansour with a mustache before his death and with a battered face and one eye closed after he was killed. Another photo identified Mansour as a masked figure sitting on the floor with al-Zarqawi.

A document seized from an al-Qaida hideout and released by National Security Adviser Mouwafak al-Rubaie that portrayed the Iraqi insurgency as being in "bleak" shape was directly linked to Mansour, Caldwell said.

--

[D-Chivas]

Ken MacKenzie

The media's next Michael Berg, Cindy Sheehan, and 911 Widows...

[MikeA]

Relatives of the men have already reacted with grief and anger.

RelativeS? Sorry, I've heard of ONE dumba** expressing anger at the government, (amazing these leftist relatives never have any bile to spew at the terrorists who kill their loved ones) some uncle who'd never have been thought worthy of media attention if he expressed pride at the mission and what his nephew was doing, but since he's a rank partisan in the Michael Berg mode he's suddenly given a national stage to vent the left wing extremist views he's undoubtedly always held.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

will the MSM respect her wishes?

Not likel;y,....the MSM has an Agenda...

[robowombat]

You couldn't make this stuff up:

the Mujahideen Shura Council - a grouping of insurgents that includes al-Qaeda in Iraq - said it had abducted the men and slit their throats. The posting, ….., said the new leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq - Abu Hamza al-Muhajir - had been "favoured by God" in being allowed to carry out a Sharia law tribunal death sentence.

The US also said it had killed 15 "terrorists" in an "extremely long firefight" in Bushahin, north of Baquba.
The US military said its forces came under attack from gunmen on a roof and around nearby buildings. After the firefight, it said, various weapons and explosives were found. However, angry local people said the dead were all innocent poultry workers

Elsewhere, at least one elderly woman was killed along with a suicide bomber who blew himself up inside a home for the elderly in the southern city of Basra.

[AppyPappy]

The media can always find the one person who blames Bush

[DCPatriot]

The posting, which cannot be independently confirmed, said the new leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq - Abu Hamza al-Muhajir - had been "favoured by God" in being allowed to carry out a Sharia law tribunal death sentence.

This is probably fabricated...possibly by either side.

The notariety creates a sub human quality or a fearless insurgent.

[Brilliant]

"Because the US government did not have a plan in place, my nephew has paid for it with his life."




People get killed in wars, no matter how you plan. It's the nature of the beast.

[LoudRepublicangirl]

I know lots of innocent poultry workers who fire AK-47s at US troops.


Yeah, they're the same ones that attend weddings at 3:00 A.M. on a Tuesday morning.....

[Bringbackthedraft]

"However, angry local people said the dead were all innocent poultry workers."

That was their sideline job, their full time job was jihadists.

[toddlintown]

"Has the left found its next Cindy Sheehan?"

And if this goes any further with the press or the dems, it will only prove Ann Coulter right again.

[LoudRepublicangirl]

I saw the other Uncle of Pfc Manchuca, whose name is Mario Vasquez. He says that whoever did it needs to be punished immediately instead of dragging it out, putting them into prison and spending millions of dollars-I agree whole heartedly with him.

[AmericaUnited]

I'd believe the Soviet era version of Pravda before I would believe the BBC.

[LoudRepublicangirl]

This man did not know his nephew very well, other family memebers have already come and said he was proud of his service



And not that this really makes a difference but it appears that Kristian was Hispanic. I am wondering if this uncle is even a blood relative or just related by marriage and already had a anti-war mentality.

[shield]

Interesting...thanks for the post...of course bbc's not the best information source...so we'll see if this can be confirmed from more reliable sources. ;o)

[MikeA]

Good for him. But this is the uncle who will get next to no media attention, while the loud mouthed leftist will become an instant media star who will all but live on the Chris Matthews and Keith Unter-mann shows.

[TET1968]

"Elsewhere, at least one elderly woman was killed along with a suicide bomber who blew himself up inside a home for the elderly in the southern city of Basra"

Not sure if that falls under "Act of terrorism or War against terrorism.

[sgtbono2002]

And may their killers live in eternal damnation and die a horrible death. Soon.

[badbass]

The "Uncle" already has an agenda.

Bingo. This "we don't have a plan" business is lifted right from recent Democratic talking points.

[Billthedrill]

The US military said its forces came under attack from gunmen on a roof and around nearby buildings. After the firefight, it said, various weapons and explosives were found... However, angry local people said the dead were all innocent poultry workers.

Except for the weapons and explosives and the hours-long firefight, of course...

[reagan_fanatic]

However, angry local people said the dead were all innocent poultry workers

I'm really getting tired of this 'but they were innocent (fill in the blank)' sh*t. It's getting old, and 9 times out of 10 it is nothing but a propaganda attempt by hostiles designed to demoralize the enemy - us.

Enough is enough.

[Candor7]

You can't blame MacKenzie, he is simply a liberal socialist foil, having been fooled by the propaganda put out continuously by the Dems. He is simply acting as he has been programmed.

Of course there is a plan, and IF people don't know about it, it is because we let the MSM driveby media get away with their spin lying.

The time is coming when the MSM needs semi-violent protestors outside every MSM office, every time they pull such a lie.

All I can say to MacKenzie is: " Smarten Up! Do you think your nephew would have wanted you to act this way?"

Or maybe he is already on the DNC payroll like Sheethang.

[LoudRepublicangirl]

I think I saw his Uncle Mario on CNN Headline News. I was impressed by him. He obviously believes in swift vengeance instead of giving the terrorists a chance to escape or laugh at us because we do treat them humanely.

[Recovering Hermit]

...will the MSM respect her wishes?

[cschroe]

"Because the US government did not have a plan in place, my nephew has paid for it with his life."

Yeah, how moronic. We had plans for taking Normandy and Iwo Jima, and those plans assumed our soldiers would die. And an awful lot of the did.

Sometimes, they even get killed just in the planning and practicing the plan. Like the 2000+ men that died PRACTICING the D-Day invasion.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

More detail on the booby trapping:

June 20, 2006 - 7:36 PM,br> Two US soldiers missing in Iraq found dead

********************************************************

By Mussab Al-Khairalla

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Two U.S. soldiers missing in Iraq for three days have been found dead, their bodies showing signs of "barbaric" torture, an Iraqi general said on Tuesday, after an intensive hunt involving thousands of troops.

"Coalition forces have recovered what we believe are the remains of the soldiers," U.S. military spokesman Major General William Caldwell said, declining to comment on how they died.

An Internet statement said the new leader of al Qaeda in Iraq "slit the throats" of the two men but its authenticity seemed questionable. The same group had said in a statement on Monday to be holding the men, but Caldwell dismissed that.

"God Almighty has graced the leader Abu Hamza al-Muhajir ... with the implementation of the sentence," said a statement from the Mujahideen Shura Council. Al Qaeda's former leader in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, died in a U.S. air strike two weeks ago.

Caldwell said a joint U.S.-Iraqi force found the bodies of Privates First Class Thomas Lowell Tucker, 25, and Kristian Menchaca, 23, on Monday night dumped at an electrical plant.

The recovery of the bodies was delayed by having to defuse bombs planted nearby, the U.S. military said in a statement.

"Coalition forces had to carefully manoeuver their way through numerous improvised explosive devices leading up to and around the site. Insurgents attempting to inflict additional casualties had placed IEDs around the bodies," it said.

While the U.S. military in Baghdad appeared to clearly believe the bodies were those of the missing soldiers, Washington officials said DNA tests must be carried out.

White House National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley told reporters on Air Force One travelling with President George W. Bush to Vienna for meeting with European Union leaders that the bodies were being shipped home for positive identification.

"I think it's a reminder that this is a brutal enemy that does not follow any of the rules. It attacks civilians for political gain. It provokes sectarian violence and it really follows no rules of warfare," Hadley said.

Iraqi Defence Ministry official Major General Abdul Aziz Mohammed told Reuters earlier that the bodies showed signs of "barbaric torture". He did not elaborate.

The U.S. military launched a massive search for the soldiers involving aircraft and 8,000 U.S troops and Iraqi security forces after vowing not to leave them "out there".

The discovery came as more bomb blasts shook Baghdad, killing nine people despite a security clampdown. The U.S. military also said troops hunting insurgents linked to al Qaeda had killed 15 gunmen in raids north of the capital.

FLEEING VEHICLE

Caldwell said a U.S. air strike on a fleeing vehicle killed a senior al Qaeda in Iraq leader on Friday in the same area where the two American soldiers went missing a few hours later.

U.S. forces had been on the trail of Mansur al-Mashhadani, identified as the top al Qaeda religious leader in the country, before he was killed in the Yusufiya area just south of Baghdad.

Tucker and Menchaca went missing at dusk on Friday after an ambush at a checkpoint in Yusufiya, a town in an area south of Baghdad some Iraqis call the "Triangle of Death", which is an al Qaeda stronghold. Another soldier was killed in the attack.

Their deaths dealt a blow to the U.S. military after it killed Zarqawi on June 7 near Baquba, northeast of Baghdad.

U.S. forces hunting insurgents linked to a suspected senior al Qaeda member launched simultaneous pre-dawn raids near Baquba on Tuesday, the U.S military said.

U.S. soldiers were fired on from the roof of a house in the village of Qaduri Ali al Shahin, 13 km (8 miles) north of Baquba as the operation got under way. Troops and supporting aircraft returned fire, killing 11 gunmen.

U.S. troops said they found 10 AK-47 assault rifles and explosives in the raids, but residents said the victims were innocent employees of a nearby poultry farm.

Caldwell said no civilians had been killed in what he described as an "extremely long firefight".

U.S. forces have stepped up their hunt for al Qaeda insurgents following Zarqawi's death and the government announced a security clampdown in the capital to try to thwart the car bombings that exact a deadly daily toll on civilians.

Japan's Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said on Tuesday Japan would withdraw its 550 soldiers, engaged in reconstruction and humanitarian work in Iraq.

(Additional reporting by Aseel Kami, Ibon Villelabeitia, Michael Georgy, in Baghdad and Ahmed Abbas in Qaduri Ali al Shahin)

Reuters (IDS)

[BossLady]

Agreed! My uncle has no clue what I do in my every day life and how I feel about things. If he got on TV and started talking out of his @$$ in regards to me, my father would put an end to that right away!!!

The media is going to interview the family member that most bolsters their own agenda.

Meanwhile, the real story of these 2 brave American men is lost....

Sick Sad World!

[daviscupper]

Doesn't Foster Farms slaughter chickens with AK-47's?

Yeah, you are right. Our soldiers, marines, airmen, delta etc. show remarkable restraint. After a long fire fight it must take incredible discipline not to shoot people when the locals claim you have been murdering innocent civilians. I am beginning to think there are no innocent civilians in many areas of the sunni triangle.

[pissant]

Killed 15 terror scum in a firefight and another AQ leader. Excellent news.

[GaltMeister]

I know lots of innocent poultry workers who fire AK-47s at US troops.

Well, I'm just glad it wasn't another 'Baby Milk Factory'.

[American Quilter]

You can't blame MacKenzie, he is simply a liberal socialist foil, having been fooled by the propaganda put out continuously by the Dems.

I do blame him. He's responsible for what he says. However ignorant he may be, he's still in control of his mind--and his mouth.

And now that I've written that, I realize you were probably being sarcastic!

[magslinger]

Elsewhere, at least one elderly woman was killed along with a suicide bomber who blew himself up inside a home for the elderly in the southern city of Basra.

This little snippet caught my eye. Now I am against blowing up any noncombatant, children and senior citizens in particular, but this strikes me as pretty good news.

First the choice of target shows that the terrorists are not taking on increasingly difficult operations. There might be a couple of old folks homes in Texas that could get a little tricky, but overall, blowing up Shady Acres Rest Home is not the acme of military prowess and skill. The terrorists' capability is fading.

Second, blowing up grandma just doesn't strike me as a heart and mind winner. This can't help but help alienate the terrorists from main street Iraq.