Posted on 09/05/2005 7:22:04 AM PDT by jmc1969
Abu Musab Zarqawi's foreign-led Al Qaeda in Iraq took open control of a key western town at the Syrian border, deploying its guerrilla fighters in the streets and flying Zarqawi's black banner from rooftops, witnesses, residents and others in the city and surrounding villages said.
A sign newly posted at the entrance of Qaim declared, "Welcome to the Islamic Kingdom of Qaim." A statement posted in mosques described Qaim as an "Islamic kingdom liberated from the occupation."
Zarqawi's fighters were killing officials and civilians seen as government-allied or anti-Islamic, witnesses, residents and others said. On Sunday, the bullet-riddled body of a woman lay in a street of Qaim. A sign left on her corpse declared, "A prostitute who was punished."
By the weekend, however, Zarqawi's forces had fought back and taken control of Qaim, residents said. Accounts from the town described a rare, prolonged overt presence of the foreign fighters.
The Albu Mahal tribe as of Sunday remained in control of its village outside the city. However, a car bomb placed by Zarqawi's fighters in front of the home of a tribal leader, Sheikh Dhyad Ahmed, killed the sheikh and his son on Sunday, resident Mijbil Saied said.
A Zarqawi fighter said any Marines and Iraqi forces had left Qaim, with "nothing left of their crosses."
Shops selling CDs, a movie theater and a women's beauty parlor were newly burned, apparently targeted by Zarqawi's group under its strict interpretation of Islamic law.
Zarqawi's fighters had taken control of the town's hospital, one of its medical workers, Dr. Muhammed Ismail, said. The hospital's director then ordered all patients to leave, fearing the presence of Zarqawi's fighters would draw air strikes on the clinic, Ismail said.
Zarqawi fighters manned checkpoints on the four entrances to the city.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
Bye bye Al-Qaim...
MOABS ready.
This won't last long.
Target-rich environment.
Let them all gather in one spot.
Turn it into a crater.
Do you think that's really going to happen?
I doubt we will MOAB anything over there.
Fight in a PC manner, and you get PC results.
Lance the boil.
"Zarqawi's black banner from rooftops"
Looks like it time to fly Nathan Bedford Forrest's black banner on our armor.
The operative question, indeed.
Pay no attention to that florescent red dot that just appeared on your forehead Akmed.
The sad thing is I think McCain was right, we didn't and don't have enough troops as we keep losing the same cities over and over again.
By next year we will have enough Iraqi troops to make up for the difference, but until then we are going to have these problems.
If true, it won't be for long.
Arc Light, calling Arc Light. Come in please.
Shouldn't be difficult to take these out.
what!? but MSM has been saying all along there is no Alqaeda link in Iraq! *gasp*
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