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http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Oct2005/20051002_2911.html

U.S., Iraqi Soldiers Bag Big Ammo, Weapons Caches

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Oct. 2, 2005 – American soldiers today discovered and seized a cache of munitions buried in a field near Balad, Iraq, Multinational Force Iraq officials said today.
The cache included roughly 650 28mm-caliber and more than 950 .50-caliber rounds. The cache was taken to a coalition forces' base for disposal, officials said.

And, Iraqi Army troops nabbed three insurgents Oct. 1 in Fallujah after the insurgents' improvised explosive device blew up prematurely.

Soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, 4th Brigade, 1st Iraqi Intervention Force responded to a report of an explosion by coalition forces. Upon arrival, troops found one terrorist dead and two others wounded, officials said.

The wounded insurgents were taken to a medical facility for treatment. Officials said the bomb's composition was undetermined.

In Baghdad, a 60-year-old male security detainee recently died at Forward Operating Base Abu Ghraib, officials said. The medical staff noticed that the detainee appeared to be ill and took him to the medical facility.

The medical staff determined that the detainee was hypoglycemic and provided medical care, officials said. Soon after, it was determined he was in renal failure, and surgery was then performed.

The detainee went into cardiac arrest while in the intensive care unit and died after all life-saving efforts failed to resuscitate him, officials said. He was pronounced dead by an attending physician.

The remains will be transferred to the family upon completion of an autopsy, in accordance with standard procedure, officials said.

In other developments, in north Baghdad, Iraqi Army and U.S. soldiers found five weapons caches on Sept. 30.

U.S. combat engineers from the 70th Engineer Battalion, 3rd Brigade, 1st Armored Division made the largest haul of enemy ordnance at a house in north Baghdad, officials said.

The Americans also captured two suspected terrorists. In just over two hours the engineers found three weapons caches yielding nine missiles, seven rocket launchers, 20 rockets, 69 mortar rounds, more than 300 rocket-propelled grenades and 119 hand grenades.

The engineers also seized an assortment of artillery rounds and bomb-making materials, including 53 detonators, 42 time fuses, three machine guns, several types of rifles, scopes, pistols and ammunition, officials reported.

The same day, Iraqi soldiers from 1st Battalion, 1st Brigade, 9th Iraqi Army Division (Mechanized) found a fourth weapons cache while patrolling in north Baghdad. Officials said the cache consisted of 20 mortar rounds and bomb-making materials, including five pounds of plastic explosives, one box of rocket fuses, cut lengths of wire, two remote-controlled detonation devices and an instruction book on how to build bombs.

Minutes later that day in a different area of north Baghdad, a U.S. patrol found the fifth cache, officials said. The cache contained five bombs consisting of mortar rounds already wired with detonation cord, three RPG launchers with 12 RPGs, plastic explosives, three AK-47 assault rifles, a pistol and ammunition.

Coalition forces also found two improvised explosive devices. One of the bombs was an anti-tank mine connected to a radio, and the other bomb was two artillery rounds attached to a telephone. In both cases, the soldiers cordoned off the area to keep people away while explosives experts were notified to dispose of the bombs safely.

(Compiled from Multi-National Security Transition Command-Iraq and Multinational Force-Iraq press releases.)

Related Site:
Multinational Force Iraq

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http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Oct2005/20051002_2913.html

'Iron Fist' Offensive Pummels Terrorists In Iraq

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Oct. 2, 2005 – The first day of Operation Kabda Bil Hadid, or "Iron Fist" in English, saw several successful engagements against al Qaeda in Iraq terrorists operating in and around Sadah, approximately 12 kilometers east of the Syrian border, Multinational Force Iraq officials reported Oct. 1.
The operation continues with a force of approximately 1,000 U.S. Marines, soldiers and sailors from Regimental Combat Team 2. Coalition forces, including helicopters from 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, engaged and killed eight armed terrorists in fighting early Oct. 1, officials said.

During another engagement, terrorists drove two vehicles near a U.S. Marine position, dismounted and attacked with small-arms fire, officials said. One of the vehicles was rigged with explosives. The gun battle left four terrorists dead, and the fifth surrendered to the Marines.

In the late morning, Marines discovered and destroyed a roadside bomb on the outskirts of Sadah, officials reported. Shortly afterward, an American M1A1 tank destroyed a vehicle car bomb with one round from its main gun southwest of the city.

North of Sadah, U.S. forces killed three al Qaeda terrorists after the group attacked their checkpoint with small-arms fire, officials said.

The eighth terrorist was killed when an AH-1W Super Cobra helicopter destroyed a vehicle after its driver fired on a Marine position with a rocket-propelled grenade, officials reported. Another vehicle traveling with the attacker was seen to be carrying additional RPGs and was destroyed by missile fire from the Cobra. The driver and passenger escaped the blast.

No U.S. Marine casualties have been reported.

Iron Fist's goal is to root out al Qaeda in Iraq terrorists operating in the region and disrupt terrorist support systems in and around Sadah, officials said.

The offensive is part of an overall operation called Sayaid, or "Hunter" in English, which is intended to deny al Qaeda terrorists in Iraq the ability to operate freely in the Euphrates River Valley. It also aims to prevent them from influencing the local population through murder and intimidation, officials said.

(Compiled from a Multinational Force Iraq press release.)

Related Site:
Multinational Force Iraq