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Large Weapons Cache Uncovered In AR Ramadi, 23 Detained
RAMADI, Iraq – Members of Task Force “All-American” conducted cordon and search missions in western Ramadi last night to capture anti-Coalition forces identified in previous interrogations. In addition to the 23 personnel detained in the operations, two weapons caches, which were the largest found to date in Al Anbar province, were also captured.
At the first site, Coalition Forces found: three SA-7 missiles, 105 rocket-propelled grenades, 125 RPG boosters, 16 RPG launchers, two RPG sights, two 14.5 mm anti-aircraft machine guns with 3,000 rounds, one Belgian 7.62 mm machine gun, one MG-42 World War II German crew-served weapon, ten 7.62 mm machine guns with 18,800 rounds, two 7.62 mm sniper rifles, three spare 7.62 mm barrels, three 7.62 mm bipods, one .50 caliber machine gun with 700 rounds, three Russian RPK machine guns, 20,000 .22 caliber rounds, 500 .30 caliber rounds, 200 9 mm rounds, 2,300 5.56 mm rounds, 40 60 mm mortar rounds with two mortar tubes and four tripods, 15 82 mm mortar rounds with four mortar tubes, six fuses and three tripods, one mortar baseplate and two fragmentation grenades.
After searching the second site, Task Force “All-American” soldiers found: one SA-7 missile, 95 RPG’s with 24 RPG launchers, 43 RPG motors and 7 RPG sites, 19 82 mm RPG adapters, one rifle-launched grenade, 152 60 mm mortar rounds with 16 tubes, two baseplates and two tripods, 145 82 mm mortar rounds with 149 fuses, 52 120 mm mortar rounds, 30 pounds of mortar zone charges, 46 37 mm projectiles, 29 57 mm rockets, 23 90 mm projectiles, three 107 mm Chinese rockets, two 100 mm artillery rounds, 17 155 mm artillery rounds, 12 anti-tank mines, 104 hand grenades, 24 hand grenade fuses, one flash grenade cartridge, one sniper rifle, four 7.62 mm machine guns, three AK-47’s, 1,400 loose and 500 linked 7.62 mm rounds, 200 14.5 mm rounds, three smoke generators, 125 pounds of TNT, 100 pounds of plastic explosives, 500 meters of detonation cord, 20 pounds of black powder, 71 blasting caps, 16 fuse igniters, six wick fuses, 25 pounds of propellant, five tank propellant charges, one flare gun with 20 flares, 20 white-star cluster flares, two pairs of binoculars, 10 radio-controlled transmitters and seven receivers.
The large caches were used by anti-Coalition forces to attack friendly soldiers and Iraqi people supporting the democratic changes. Since the capture of Saddam Hussein and Kahmis Sirhan the cooperation of those who feared the return of the old regime are now free to assist Coalition Forces by providing information on the location of cache sites and anti-Coalition forces. This increased cooperation has led to the successful capture of key anti-Coalition personnel and more caches.
The recent capture of these personnel and the confiscation of these weapons will aide the soldiers of Task Force “All-American” in their pursuit of peace in the Al Anbar province. Task Force “All-American” will continue its operations in the Al Anbar province to help increase the safety and security for the people of Iraq.
Release #040118a |