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http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Aug2005/20050813_2414.html

Helicopter Mishap Hurts 2 Soldiers; Iraqis Stop Syrian Terrorist

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Aug. 13, 2005 – Two U.S. soldiers were injured as a result of a helicopter accident that occurred near Kirkuk, Iraq, on Aug. 12.
The injured soldiers were evacuated to a coalition forces medical facility. The incident is under investigation.

Elsewhere in Iraq, police detained and later arrested a Syrian man in Samawah Aug. 12. After questioning, the Syrian admitted to traveling to Iraq to carry out a suicide attack during a planned demonstration on Aug. 14.

Also, Iraqi soldiers on patrol in Diwaniyah Aug. 12 discovered improvised explosive devices that had been placed near the Najaf Road.

Responding to a tip about a suspected IED in the area, the 8th Iraqi Army Division soldiers found six rockets near an abandoned bridge in the Nooria area. The unexploded ordnance was safely removed. No injuries or damages were reported.

And Iraqi Army and U.S. soldiers teamed up to nab five suspected insurgents during a combined operation in Habbaniyah Aug. 12. Iraqi troops with 3rd Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 1st Iraqi Intervention Force, and U.S. soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 110th Infantry Regiment, searched homes of suspected members in the area.

Coalition military advisers say the Iraqi soldiers performed well during the mission.

Also, Iraqi Army soldiers found a weapons cache in Rawah Aug. 11. Soldiers from 3rd Battalion, 1st Brigade, 1st Iraqi Intervention Force, discovered the cache under a vehicle.

The cache consisted of two light machine guns and 3,000 rounds of ammunition, nine AK-47 automatic rifles and 500 rounds of ammunition, one NATO machine gun and 200 rounds of ammunition, four concussion grenades, one fragmentary grenade without fuses, and other ammunition. The weapons were confiscated for later disposal.

And Iraqi Army soldiers detained 16 suspected insurgents during three Aug. 11 operations conducted in Khalis, Bayji and Khan Bani Saad.

Soldiers with 1st Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 5th Iraqi Army Division, conducted an early morning raid near Khalis resulting in nine suspects being detained. Three of them were on a targeted list.

In Khan Bani Saad, six suspects were detained following a raid designed to capture individuals believed to be involved in recent drive-by shootings. Task Force 2-34 and elements of the 4th Iraqi Army Division confiscated three AK-47s, two 9 mm pistols and one bus. The bus is suspected of being the vehicle used in the shootings.

And soldiers from the 1st Brigade, 4th Iraqi Army Division, in Bayji captured a possible escaped detainee the same day. The suspect was driving a dump truck at the time of his capture. This detainee is suspected of escaping from an Iraqi Army compound in Tikrit three months earlier.

Iraqi police and U.S. forces conducted a successful raid in Mosul Aug. 11. Iraqi police officers and soldiers with 1vst Battalion, 24th U.S. Infantry Regiment, found 12 rocket-propelled grenade rounds, six 60 mm mortar rounds and rifle shells during the raid. The munitions were turned over to an explosive ordnance disposal team. In another Mosul location that day, Iraqi police found another 16 RPG rounds and requested assistance for disposal.

Police officers in Baghdad are improving daily and responding to insurgent violence with more-focused investigations, keener planning and better-executed searches.

Iraqi Police Service officers in the New Baghdad District have recently conducted a variety of operations including raids involving over 450 officers. The raids were directed at 40 residences and resulted in the confiscation of 30 AK-47s, two handguns and one machine gun. Police arrested 30 suspected insurgents, three of whom were on police lists.

In addition, Baghdad police from the Al Khanssa Station captured a kidnapper involved in the abduction of a local physician whose family had paid a ransom to have the victim released. Following the arrest, police officers recovered the doctor's vehicle as well as the ransom money paid by his family.

No injuries or damages were reported during any of the Iraqi security force or U.S. military operations.

(From Multinational Force Iraq and Multinational Security Transition Command Iraq press releases.)

Related Sites:
Multinational Force Iraq
Multinational Security Transition Command Iraq

Note: The following text (minus all the photographs) is an exact quote:
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http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Aug2005/20050813_2415.html

Iraq Raid Yields Possible Chemical Production Facility

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Aug. 13, 2005 – Acting on detainee-provided tips, coalition forces found what's believed to be an insurgent chemical production facility and chemical storage locations during Aug. 9 raids in northern Iraq, officials in Iraq reported today.

Technical experts are analyzing this chemical production equipment believed to be part of a clandestine operation. Officials state so far that evidence was insufficient on what was being produced at the facility found during a U.S.-led raid Aug. 9.
The early morning raids, conducted by Task Force Freedom, uncovered what technical experts believe to be a "clandestine chemical production facility" and possibly related storage sites.

Military officials are careful to state that ongoing analysis of the chemical evidence collected from the sites is currently insufficient to determine what the insurgents had been producing.

"We are continuing to investigate the production and storage facilities to determine what type and quantities of chemicals were produced at the facility and the specific threat posed to our forces," said Col. Henry Franke, Multinational Corps' nuclear, biological and chemical defense officer.

"We don't want to speculate on any possibilities until our analysis is complete," he added.

But military officials believe they've disrupted a potentially serious threat to coalition forces and the Iraqi people.

Intelligence experts are conducting related investigations to determine which terrorist or insurgent group is responsible for the construction and operation of the secret facility.

(Based on a Multinational Force Iraq news release.)

Related Site:
Multinational Force Iraq

This chemical production equipment among items found during the Task Force Freedom raid on Aug. 9 in northern Iraq.
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Unidentified chemicals in 5-gallon containers stacked against a wall represented the more than 1,500 gallons of various chemicals were found in northern Iraq on Aug. 9.
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Stored leaking chemicals were found near the possible production facility uncovered in U.S.-led Aug. 9 raids in northern Iraq.
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These unidentified chemicals in 55-gallon drums were part of the more than 1,500 gallons of various chemicals were found in northern Iraq on Aug. 9.
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Updated: 13 Aug 2005