5 killed after U.S. raid in Sadr City

AP via Yahoo ^ | 5/26/07 | sinan salheddin

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BAGHDAD - A day after radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr resurfaced to end nearly four months in hiding and demand U.S. troops leave Iraq, American forces raided his Sadr City stronghold and killed five suspected militia fighters in air strikes Saturday.

U.S. and Iraqi forces called in the air strikes after a raid in which they captured a "suspected terrorist cell leader," the U.S. military said in statement.

The statement claimed the captured man was "the suspected leader in a secret cell terrorist network known for facilitating the transport of weapons and explosively formed penetrators, or EFPs, from Iran to Iraq, as well as bringing militants from Iraq to Iran for terrorist training."

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Good work being done by our fine troops who are fighting terrorists.

[WildcatClan]

Those always do good work, they are the best in the world. All you need do is get rid of the politics and the “winning the hearts and minds” nonsense, and they can do the rest. You win by putting the bad actors on the express lane to getting their 72 raisins. :)

[Cowboy Bob]

When will the US get serious and kill Muqtada al-Sadr? The troop “surge” is just a waste of time, money and lives as long as that A-Hole is alive.

[BallyBill]

Hope this works out. I get the feeling he was allowed to return as long as he said what he did about stopping the violence so the “occupiers” had no reason to stay and would leave Iraq.

[Grimmy]

Good news.

I still remember Byrd and Kennedy trading quotes back and forth with Muktard the Satyr about how Iraq was the new Vietnamesque quagmire.

This was happening while our soldiers and Marines were cornering that filthy sack of nasty and taking his “militia” apart in Najaf.

Byrd and Kennedy gave the impression of being big fans of that particular lump of enemy.

[SkyPilot]

U.S. forces raid al-Sadr's stronghold

I bet you they found some porn.

[nikos1121]

Do they have orders to either shoot or detain this guy? Detaining him would only ignite revolt. They should kill him.

[tired&retired]

I recently watched an excellent documentary on the Military Channel called the “Alpha Company.” I was very surprised by the “rules of engagement” they had to follow. Especially when they explained that the clerics carried an ID card which US troops called a “Get Out of Jail Free” card. They were not allowed to detain a cleric without approval of a US General even when they find clear evidence of anti US activity in his possession.

War is hell.... While I’m sympathetic to both sides in any engagement, giving diplomatic immunity to your enemy every time you catch them is like using a hav-a-heart trap to catch the rodents in my barn so I can let them loose again. A catch & release program does not solve the problem!

[Chgogal]

“War is hell.... While I’m sympathetic to both sides in any engagement, giving diplomatic immunity to your enemy every time you catch them is like using a hav-a-heart trap to catch the rodents in my barn so I can let them loose again. A catch & release program does not solve the problem!”

Hmmmmm, I agree with you. There is “sympathetic”, then there is “stupid” and then there is “bloody hell stupid”. In my mind this particular ROE falls under the very last category. I wonder how many fake “Get Out of Jail Free Cards” are floating around Iraq? I wonder how many U.S. Generals are wondering around Iraq ready with a “Detain This Mullah Stamp” handy? I wonder who thought up this particular rule? I wonder if we would have given Hitler a “Get Out of Jail Free Card”? And why not if not?

[Valin]

“winning the hearts and minds” nonsense

Actually that "nonsense" is one of the reasons we are wining. Providing security is part of "Hearts & Minds, Nation Building".

[GOP_Party_Animal]

Wouldn’t it be nice if we saw this headline two years ago?

[ovrtaxt]

All you need do is get rid of the politics and the “winning the hearts and minds” nonsense, and they can do the rest.

Yes. Well said.

[M Kehoe]

I know I've been posting this since late 2003, but why is mookie al-sadr still breathing? For the life of me I can't understand it.

5.56mm

[GovernmentIsTheProblem]

We need to be putting some .223 rounds into the hearts and minds of al Sadr and his followers - THEN things will improve!

[ovrtaxt]

Yes- and it should have happened years ago. Iran should have gotten an early message in the summer of 03 that we weren’t going to tolerate any destabilization games.

The US Military should have made an example of Sadr and his merry band of dirtbags- as well as the scum in Fallujah.

[ChadGore]

U.S. forces raid al-Sadr's stronghold
Radical Shiite cleric TERRORIST Mookie de Durka Durka Durka delivers his sermon before 6,000 worshippers in holy Shiite city of Kufa 160 kilometers (100 miles) south of Baghdad, Iraq on Friday, May 25, 2007. Al-Sadr appeared in public for the first time in months on Friday, delivering a fiery anti-American sermon to thousands of followers and demanding U.S. troops leave Iraq. (AP Photo/Alaa al-Marjani)

ALL YOUR BASE ARE BELONG TO US

[ChadGore]

ALL

[ChadGore]

YOUR

[ChadGore]

BASE

[ChadGore]

ARE