Posted on 06/19/2005 4:45:33 PM PDT by SandRat
WASHINGTON - U.S. and Iraqi military forces in Iraq are capturing larger numbers of Saudis, Syrians and other foreign fighters, indicating that combatants from outside Iraq are playing a small but more prominent role in the increasingly violent insurgency, Army figures show.
Senior military officials say the foreigners play a disproportionately important role in the resistance, particularly in carrying out suicide bombings, which have sharply increased in the past two months.
The increase in captured foreign fighters underscores the shifting profile of insurgents taken into custody recently.
About 85 percent of the 3,500 new detainees in U.S.-operated prisons in Iraq since January have been deemed to pose a "high risk" or "extremely high-risk" to U.S. personnel, about twice the percentage from late last year, according to Maj. Gen. William H. Brandenburg.
"They're a little more violent and a little more committed," he said in telephone interview from Baghdad.
Brandenburg said the number of three-member military interrogation teams had increased from 10 in November to 26, and that much had been learned about the insurgency, including the origins of foreign fighters and their routes into Iraq. The leading countries of origin are Saudi Arabia, Syria, Egypt, Jordan and Sudan, he said.
The influx of detainees has swelled the population at major U.S.-run prisons to 114 percent of their ideal capacity, Brandenburg said.
For a longer-range solution, the military is expanding three prisons and planning to open a new one in northern Iraq.
Those projects will enable the United States to hold a total of 14,000 detainees.
U.S. officials estimate that the insurgency is made up of 12,000 to 20,000 Iraqi and non-Iraqi fighters.
Very interesting small piece.
Snort.
Senior military officials say the foreigners play a disproportionately important role in the resistance, particularly in carrying out suicide bombings, which have sharply increased in the past two months.
Islam is the common thread in all terrorism. I hope the USA wakes up, or we are just wasting time and we are having our young men killed off, because our government does not want to declare who the enemy is. As it is we are just wasting our time, and we are even allowing the enemy into our own country.
Then we could put the home countries of those terrorists on notice that after a certain number are captured (50), Iraq will declare war on that country and the U.S. will side with Iraq: your either with us or against us.
They're a little more violent and a little more committed," he said in telephone interview from Baghdad.If only there were an Arab-Iraqi Batman who could clean up Baghdad.
It is time to start targeting "insurgents" in Syria and Iran. SF can do this. And I mean big, very big to the ppoint od destabilizing their gov'ts
""U.S. and Iraqi military forces in Iraq are capturing larger numbers of Saudis, Syrians and other foreign fighters, indicating that combatants from outside Iraq are playing a small but more prominent role in the increasingly violent insurgency, Army figures show.""
Where is the proff that it is a SMALL role??? I read somewhere that of all the homocide bombings in Iraq, not a single one as heen comited by an Iraqi
Just the MSM wanting to create a picture of Iraqis fighting Americans in Iraq. Fact is it is mostly foreign fighters. Other Arab countries are encouraging extremists to go to Iraq and fight, so that they get killed and are not a threat to the regimes.
Foreign invaders should be seen as a common enemy to Iraqi Sunni,Shia, and Kurd alike. Working together to kill or repel this outside threat can strengthen the national unity of the people and their government.
Any internal insurgency can be condemned as aiding and abetting the enemy. The Coalition Forces will be welcomed Iraqi allies.
Good post Marine. Hope we have the common sense to construct gallows in these new prison facilities.
Heard a rumor that many of the captured insurgents are registered democrats in Florida and Ohio, and that even more of them are actual DU posters.
FYI: The gloves have been off for more than a month. The foreign Muslim community in Iraq is terrified given the increasing number of disappearances and deaths of Islamists. Iraqis are now ready to out the murderers, and the Americans are willing to play in that game. The recent capture of terrorist leaders in Mosul resulted from the capture of family members (including women) who snitched. Good intelligence led to the use of bombers along the Syrian border, but for unclear reasons the top brass are issuing conservative numbers for killed and captured. If it were possible to access the number of terrorist incidents in Baghdad over the last month one would find that the numbers are falling. Certainly, the terrorists have their successes, but anyone like Senator Hagel who would claim that the US is losing should have his/her head examined.
Being called a Marine is high praise indeed.
When Communist USSR was exercising its power it was Communism. The players are the same; only the banner was red and now it is green.
It is the same thing in the Philippines. The Alqaida or terrorists or whatever they call themselves there don't know square one about Islam, yet they claim to be Islamic. They are not Islamic, they are godless rebels fighting the same war they have been fighting for thousands of years. The war is tribal, local, agricultural. It is happening all over the planet, but it is all local and the locals join up for $200 and a pair of shoes. You know and believe more about Islam [not much, no doubt] than they do or ever will.
"Being called a Marine is high praise indeed."
And being I forgot you are an honorable soldier that served your country, sorry soldier. However.
I salute your service. Sorry. Hard to keep all those that serve, served in what branch straight in this old head.
And they are just not words to me. The salute goes deep.
One could call them other names, but I personally prefer "despicable terrorists", since they are despicably murdering mostly innocent Iraqis that are simply bent on getting on with their lives.
The MSM are distorting this picture in contemptible revenge for being on the losing side of this debate. One of their favorite techniques appears to be misusing terms to make the despicable terrorists appear to be something more than they are.
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