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<p>Your thought, picture, analysis, and corrections are appreciated by all FReepers.</p> <p>Will these pictures be on the MSM tonight, positively showing the Surge?</p>

WASHINGTON, June 4, 2007 – Local Iraqis were instrumental in helping coalition and Iraqi forces liberate 42 men from al Qaeda custody in Iraq’s Diyala province, the coalition commander in the area said. Amy Lt. Col. Morris Goins, the commander of the 1st Battalion, 12th Cavalry, said local Iraqis are getting tired of al Qaeda intimidation and threats and are cooperating more with Iraqi and coalition forces. The operation, south of Baquba on May 27, liberated 42 men, most of whom worked with the Iraqi government. Al Qaeda kidnapped the men and held them in the area. “The men were...

CBNNews.com - WASHINGTON - The U.S. military has developed battle plans designed to clear al-Qaeda out of Iraq. High level military intelligence sources have told CBN News the offensive would target the Iraqi province of Diyala. The province is located just northeast of Baghdad, along the Iranian border. Many of al-Qaeda's forces in Baghdad moved there when the new troop surge was announced in January. Diyala is now a major launching pad for al-Qaeda suicide bombing attacks. Is Diyala a risk worth taking? How is this offensive different from other offensives carried out in Iraq? Watch Erick Stakelbeck's full report...

WASHINGTON, March 16, 2007 – Tribal leaders are cooperating with U.S. and Iraqi security forces to reduce terrorist-staged violence in Diyala province, senior U.S. and Iraqi military officials said today. U.S. and Iraqi officials have urged prominent sheikhs in Diyala province “to work with their people to become part of the security process and part of the political process (to) drive a wedge (between) the terrorists and any auxiliary support or direct support that they may receive from the people,” Army Col. David W. Sutherland, commander of the 1st Cavalry Division’s 3rd Brigade Combat Team, said from his headquarters...

The past 24 hours has seen some interesting developments in Iraq. Diyala has flared up as U.S. troops deployed to the region. Additional U.S. forces will be requested to support operations. Further, al Qaeda conducted some successful operations inside Baghdad, the Iraqi general leading the Baghdad operation was relieved of command and the U.S. is negotiating to dismantle elements of Sadr's Mahdi Army. As we noted in February, Diyala has become a focal point of combat operations as the Baghdad Security Plan is implemented. The U.S. Strykers from the 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment--about 700 soldiers and 100 of their...

BAQOUBA, Iraq — Dozens of U.S. Stryker combat vehicles roared into Baqouba at sunrise. The enemy was ready. As the dawn call-to-prayer fell silent, the streets blazed with insurgent fire. Within minutes of the start of their first mission in Diyala province Wednesday a voice crackled across the radio: "Catastrophic kill, with casualties." Inside the rear of one Stryker, soldiers shushed one another and leaned closer to the radio. They all knew what it meant. A U.S. vehicle had been lost to hostile fire. Nearly 100 Strykers, armored troop carriers with 50-caliber machine guns, were called north from Baghdad into...

Iraqi National Guard Soldiers stack up prior to entering a house during a cordon and search operation. Photo by U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Mike Buytas. BAQUBAH -- Inside the room sat one representative each from the Iraqi Police, Iraqi Army and Coalition Force, surrounded by maps and the busy sounds of radios chirping and voices issuing reports. The three men conversed about problems Diyala province faces and how each of their forces could help. This joint operations center is the hub for the three forces to coordinate and combine efforts to combat the insurgency and bring peace to the...

BAQUBA, Iraq • Iraqi military forces have defeated what they called an attempt to create a breakaway Sunni religious territory in Iraq's eastern Diyala province, an army spokesman said yesterday. "We foiled an attempt to establish an emirate in Diyala," said Brigadier General Shakr Al Kaabi of the Iraqi Army's Fifth Division on the second day of a wide-ranging operation sweeping through the provincial seat of Baquba. He added that according to their intelligence, this "emirate" – a term which can mean an independent state under a religious leader – was to have been announced at the end of Ramadan....

Built by local construction companies and over-watched for quality assurance by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, nine substations provide power to newly constructed areas, neighborhoods, businesses and industry in Diyala. Two of the nine are 400 kV substations and considered to be important components of the national electrical system, having a significant impact on the stability of the national grid. (GRN File Photo) DIYALA -- Thanks to the Army Corps of Engineers, lights are on and air conditioners are humming reliably for 63,000 people in Diyala. At the cost of $51.6M, the Army Corps of Engineers used local construction...

The Iraqi Army’s 5th Division officially took charge of military operations in northern Iraq’s Diyala Province from Coalition Forces during a ceremony held here today. The division’s colors were unveiled and presented to its commander, Maj. Gen. Ahmed Klepos Awad Majhool al-Kozaee by British Maj. Gen. Peter Everson, who serves as deputy commanding general, Multi-National Corps-Iraq. The division earned its colors after being validated as a viable fighting force by the 101st Airborne Division. "I’d like to say that this division will be successful because it is composed of the full spectrum of Iraqi people," Ahmed said. "It represents the...

BAQUBAH, Iraq, May 12, 2006 – Sending the Iraqi army forth to take care of security operations is the key to the safety of the Iraqi people and the groundwork for the establishment of a free government, many senior military officials have said. Iraqi army soldiers of the 3rd Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 5th Iraqi Army Division, are independently conducting operations in their area of Diyala province. They are performing gathering their own intelligence, patrolling their streets and hunting for insurgents and terrorists. A brigade-sized operation conducted recently throughout the village of Tahrir yielded a handful of suspected insurgents who were...

U.S. Army Maj. Rhonda A. Keisman (second from right) checks the progress of Iraq's Muqdadiyah Technical School. U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Cassandra Groce Iraq's Diyala Province Schools Get a Makeover A U.S. Army civil affairs team and Iraqi engineers monitor reconstruction work on three schools, ensuring the contractors meet the necessary requirements. By U.S. Army Pfc. Cassandra Groce 133rd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment MUQDADIYAH, Iraq, Feb. 27, 2006 — Through the efforts of Iraqi locals and coalition forces, the schools in Iraq's Diyala Province are getting a makeover. "The goal is to turn the projects over to the...

BAQUBA, Iraq (Reuters) - A suicide bomber killed about 30 people and wounded dozens during a Shi'ite Muslim funeral at Miqdadiya, 100 km (60 miles) northeast of Baghdad, on Wednesday, an Iraqi security official said. Mourners took cover in the cemetery, under fire from mortars and automatic weapons. Then a bomber wearing an explosive vest blew up among them, the official said. The death toll was provisional. If confirmed it would be the bloodiest attack since a largely peaceful election on December 15. The funeral was for a victim or victims of an assassination attempt on Tuesday on a...

FOB WARRIOR, Iraq (Army News Service, Aug. 29, 2005) — Governors from the Iraqi provinces of Kirkuk, Sulaymaniyah, Diyala and Saladin met Aug. 24 at the Iraqi Army’s K-1 military installation near Kirkuk to discuss issues affecting north-central Iraq. Top coalition leaders from the region were also present at the event, including 42nd Infantry Division Commander Maj. Gen. Joseph Taluto and 116th Brigade Combat Team Commander Brig. Gen. Alan Gayhart, as well as the commanders of sister units in the 42nd division. Governors Mustafa Abdulrahman of Kirkuk, Dana Ahmed Majid of Sulaymaniyah, Raad Rashid Mullah Jowad of Diyala and Deputy...

FOB WARRIOR, Iraq— Governors from the Iraqi provinces of Kirkuk, Sulaymaniyah, Diyala and Saladin met August 24 at the Iraqi Army’s K-1 military installation near Kirkuk to discuss issues affecting north-central Iraq. Governors Mustafa Abdulrahman of Kirkuk, Dana Ahmed Majid of Sulaymaniyah, Raad Rashid Mullah Jowad of Diyala and Deputy Governor Abdulla Hasan Jobara of Saladin represented their provinces at the meeting. Top coalition leaders from the region were also present at the event, including 42nd Infantry Division Commander Maj. Gen. Joseph Taluto and 116th Brigade Combat Team Commander Brig. Gen. Alan Gayhart, as well as the commanders of sister...

A CAR bomb exploded north-east of the Iraqi capital today, killing at least seven police officers in an apparent attempt to assassinate the deputy governor of Diyala province, officials said. Citing police reports, US military spokesman Major Neal O'Brien said seven Iraqi policemen were killed in the bombing in Balad Ruz, 70km north-east of Baghdad. Qaiser Hamid, a hospital official in the area, said 14 people were injured in the attack, including the deputy governor of Diyala province, Aqil Hamid al-Adili. Mr Hamid described Mr al-Adili's wounds as light. He said his hospital had received two of the dead....

A series of truces agreed on last month, encompassing Mr Sadr's stronghold in al-Thoura, Baghdad's eastern slum, as well as the Shia holy cities and other towns further south, are still holding. His own home turf in the capital has been more peaceful than it has been for months. Former fighters are now being paid to collect rubbish, plant trees, direct traffic and help the Iraqi police. The new government has promised to pay for a new sewage system so that the slum detritus will no longer flow past Baghdad's grimmest tenements. Outside the city, the clergy behind Mr...

Thursday, August 28, 2003 The Promise and the Threat The Myth: Iraqis, prior to occupation, lived in little beige tents set up on the sides of little dirt roads all over Baghdad. The men and boys would ride to school on their camels, donkeys and goats. These schools were larger versions of the home units and for every 100 students, there was one turban-wearing teacher who taught the boys rudimentary math (to count the flock) and reading. Girls and women sat at home, in black burkas, making bread and taking care of 10-12 children. The Truth: Iraqis lived in houses...