Note: Photos included.
Note: The following text is a quote:
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=49242
U.S. Bomber Destroys Al Qaeda in Iraq Jail, Torture Facility
By Tech. Sgt. Joel Langton, USAF
Special to American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, March 11, 2008 – Three buildings that had served as an al Qaeda detention and torture facility were destroyed yesterday by a U.S. military bomber.
An al Qaeda in Iraq torture compound and prison in northern Zambraniyah, Iraq, is destroyed after being hit with six 500-pound precision-guided bombs dropped from a U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancer bomber March 10, 2008. Photo by Master Sgt. Andy Dunaway, USAF
(Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available.
A B-1B Lancer bomber used six 500-pound, global positioning system-guided bombs to level the compound located in Zambraniyah, a village south of Baghdad, according to officials.
“The precise targeting, synchronized employment and focused effects that eliminated these facilities demonstrate the outstanding capability our integrated ground and air team brings to this fight every day,” said U.S. Air Force Col. Robert Gass, commander of 379th Expeditionary Operations Group.
The targeted compound consisted of three main buildings along with several smaller shelters. It was apparent that terrorists had used the facility as a place to hold and torture captives, officials noted, citing a post-attack discovery of handcuffs attached to walls — several of which were blood-splattered — and bare wires plugged into nearby electrical outlets.
The villagers began standing up to al Qaeda terrorists a little more than a month ago, officials said.
The joint operation featured U.S. and Iraqi ground forces, as well as American military air assets, officials said. A concerned local citizens group also helped provide security during the operation.
U.S. soldiers found several interrogation manuals in the compound after the air strike.
“This (air strike) removes the last remnants of al Qaeda from this area,” said U.S. Army Lt. Col. Mark Solomon, 6th Squadron, 8th U.S. Cavalry, commander.
Aubid Abdalla was kidnapped and held for 15 days in the now-destroyed al Qaeda prison, but later escaped. He said he witnessed the deaths of a young boy and an old man during his captivity and that it was a new day for the village as he looked into the bomb’s craters.
“We all feel good,” Abdalla, a former Iraqi Army intelligence officer, said. “It’s a dark past that is gone.”
Air Force Senior Airman Joseph Aton said he was glad he played a role in the destruction of the al Qaeda jail and torture facility. “It was great to be part of this,” Aton, a controller who assisted in coordinating the path of the B-1’s precision-guided munitions, said. “You can tell the people were happy to have this place gone, and it was awesome to make a difference for them.”
The mission’s objective was twofold, explained Air Force Lt. Col. John Nichols, 37th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron director of operations and coordinator of the sortie. First, to destroy facilities used to illegally detain, falsely convict, and torture innocent Iraqi civilians; second, to bring closure to friends and families of the victims.
“Words can never replace the loss many Iraqi families suffered, but we’re honored to have been part of a mission to help rid Iraq of al Qaeda operatives,” Nichols said.
The successful mission also “strengthens and reminds the local leadership and Iraqi people that we are dedicated to the elimination of al Qaeda in Iraq,” the colonel added.
(Langton is assigned to U.S. Air Forces Central Public Affairs. Air Force 2nd Lt. Tania Bryan, also attached to AFCENT, contributed to this report.)
Note: The following text is a quote:
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=49243
Coalition Troops in Iraq Detain 11 Suspected Terrorists
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, March 11, 2008 – Coalition forces in Iraq detained 11 suspected terrorists today during operations to disrupt al Qaeda networks in central and northern Iraq, military officials said.
— In Mosul, coalition forces detained four suspects during two operations targeting foreign terrorists associated with al Qaeda in Iraq networks in the western and southeastern regions of the city.
— In Beiji, coalition forces detained two suspects while targeting an alleged associate of a senior-level foreign-terrorist facilitator and al Qaeda senior leaders operating inside and outside of Iraq.
— During operations west of Samarra and near Tikrit, coalition forces detained three suspected terrorists while targeting alleged associates of an al Qaeda leader involved in propaganda operations in Anbar province.
— Another two suspects were detained during an operation in Abu Ghraib targeting an alleged associate of the senior leader for the southern-belt network of al Qaeda in Iraq.
“We will not allow al Qaeda to interfere with the progress the Iraqi people and their elected government are making,” said Navy Capt. Vic Beck, a Multinational Force Iraq spokesman. “With the help of Iraqi citizens who reject al Qaeda’s targeting of innocent civilians and corrupt Taliban-like ideology, Iraqi and coalition forces will continue to find the terrorists, dismantle their networks and improve safety and security for the Iraqi people.”
In other news, Iraqi army and coalition forces killed two insurgents during a March 7-8 cordon-and-search operation in Lej, officials reported. The operation also resulted in discovery of four improvised explosive devices and one weapons cache. Two buildings used for storing enemy ammunition and explosives were destroyed.
“The importance of the mission was to push out any al Qaeda insurgents who were entrenched in al Lej,” said U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Jay Carey. “The mission was also to clear all weapons caches. This will allow the local populace to move back to the area and have a normal, stable life.”
Coalition soldiers have not had any presence in Lej for about five years, said U.S. Army Capt. Jimmy Hathaway, commander of Task Force Petro. Hathaway works closely with Georgian army Maj. David Sulkhanishvili, the commander of a detachment of Georgian soldiers who also work in the area.
Hathaway said the mission set the stage for the arrival of 1st Brigade, 9th Iraqi Army, which is slated to operate in the area.
When U.S., Georgian and Iraqi soldiers entered the villages, they found the majority of houses abandoned, Hathaway said. The Georgian troops and members of a local concerned citizens group set up 12 checkpoints throughout the area. Other soldiers secured a local water-pumping station.
“It was great to see the Georgian soldiers securing the objective and immediately being able to transition to helping the locals,” Hathaway said.
(Compiled from Multinational Force Iraq and Multinational Corps Iraq news releases.)