Soldiers unearth 15 caches near Kirkuk

ARNEWS ^ | Feb 21, 2006

[SandRat]

KIRKUK, Iraq (Army News Service, Feb. 21, 2006) ¡V Iraqi and U.S. Soldiers combined efforts Monday, capturing four known insurgents and unearthing a network of 15 weapons caches during a combined operation west of Kirkuk.

The operation began with an Iraqi-led cordon and search of a village known to be a safe haven for insurgent and terrorist cells responsible for attacks on oil pipelines and coalition convoys in the area.

With troops from the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division providing security outside the village and U.S. aircraft overhead, soldiers of the 2nd Iraqi Army Brigade moved in. Their door-to-door search quickly led to the capture of the four insurgents.

While the search was taking place on the ground, one of the pilots circling overhead noticed a large shiny object on the ground outside the town.

Once the sweep of the village was complete, 101st Airborne Soldiers took the lead in investigating the object which turned out to be a sheet of tin covering a weapons cache. Further investigations of the area revealed a network of 15 caches containing a variety of weapons systems and explosives, as well as a variety of materials used to make improvised explosive devices.

Materials uncovered included:

ƒ{ 1 complete surface to air missile system

ƒ{ 450 mortar rounds

ƒ{ 12 rockets

ƒ{ 11 complete mortar systems

ƒ{ 31 rocket propelled grenade (RPG) launchers

ƒ{ 70 rocket propelled grenades

ƒ{ 30 grenades

ƒ{ 14 machine guns

ƒ{ 16 sniper rifles

ƒ{ More than 190 fuses

ƒ{ Tens of thousands of rounds of small arms ammunition

ƒ{ Multiple weapons parts, including scopes

ƒ{ 75 pounds of propellant

ƒ{ Timers and parts used in making improvised explosive devices (IED¡¦s)

ƒ{ 1 gas mask

(Editor¡¦s note: Information provided by the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) at Forward Operating Base Warrior in Kirkuk, Iraq.)

[SandRat]

Collecting the Rubbish

[in hoc signo vinces]

Iraq, worlds largest ammo/arms dump.

[AirBorn]

You be Da' Man! when it comes to posts like this!

Heard Rush earlier too?

I myself am NOT "surprised" at the NON-excitement by the W.H. or President Bush over this--or any other GREAT new relevations of WMD'S found in Iraq!--he has other things to work on besides GLORY-SEEKING like a " clinton-oid" would have done already.

but for his PARTY'S sake--he really should say SOMETHING big about it!-other wise--you will remember come election time that it was the Republicans who want to SECURE AMERICA!!

[bnelson44]

good catch

[FARS]

This sounds to me like the Turkic stashes (not Arab insurgents' equipment) that Turkish intel and special ops have been bringing in to attack the Kurds and prevent an alliance between Talabani and Barzani with a longer term view of defeating the Kurdish master plan of a unified Kurdistan - including the Iranian Kurds.

I'm told a fairly detailed analysis of the Turkish efforts in the North will be posted on antimullah.com in the near future. With some parallel pattern indication of what the Mullahs are doing and trying to achieve in the South.

[E.G.C.]

BTTT