Sunday, June 29, 2003
Operation Sidewinder
KEEP YOUR HELMET ON!
U.S. Arrests 60 During New Iraq Operation
Sunday June 29, 2003 5:49 PM
By BORZOU DARAGAHI
Associated Press Writer
CAMP BOOM, Iraq (AP) - U.S. forces launched a massive operation early Sunday to crush insurgents and capture senior figures from Saddam Hussein's ousted regime, arresting more than 60 in a show of force designed to stem a wave of deadly attacks on U.S. troops.
Also Sunday, the U.S. civilian administrator of Iraq said American forces must kill or capture Saddam so he can no longer be a rallying point for the attackers.
``We'll get our hands on him, dead or alive,'' L. Paul Bremer told CNN's ``Inside Edition.''
The operation, dubbed ``Sidewinder,'' was taking place in a huge swath of central Iraq stretching from the Iranian border to the areas north of Baghdad, and was expected to last several days, military officials said.
More than 20 raids involving air and ground forces were carried out, military officials said. The region has become ``the nexus of paramilitary activity in central Iraq,'' the military said in a statement.
The military also announced the arrests of 15 suspects in Mosul in northern Iraq a day before the operation, confiscating Baath party documents and Republican Guard uniforms, as well as weapons.
There were no reports on U.S. casualties in Operation Sidewinder, nor was their any indication that any top fugitives had been captured or killed.
On a road leading to Baghdad International Airport, an Iraqi civilian was killed and two American troops were wounded in an attack on a U.S. military convoy, military officials said.
Among those arrested in the operation was a man in Khalis, 45 miles north of Baghdad, suspected of recruiting young men to launch attacks on Americans, military officials said.
In Dojima, an upscale town where Sunni Muslim residents recently cleaned the still-standing portrait of Saddam, police raided homes of alleged Saddam loyalists they suspected of hiding caches of arms, including rocket-propelled grenades - the weapon of choice in many recent ambushes.
The operation, named after a rattlesnake, began at about 2 a.m. Sunday, with officers simultaneously raiding as many sites as possible.
``We go in with such overwhelming combat power that they won't even think about shooting us,'' Lt. Col. Mark Young said earlier.
U.S. officials in Washington have said repeatedly that no centralized Iraqi resistance to American rule remains. But from the view on the ground, Young said, U.S. military personnel face ``an organized effort.''
``Somewhere in Diala province, something happens every night,'' said Capt. John Wrann, referring to the province northeast of Baghdad where much of the operation was taking place. ``It's got to be a coordinated thing.''
Insurgents have stepped up their attacks against U.S. troops in recent days, carrying out ambushes against military convoys, shooting soldiers in Baghdad, and lobbing grenades at patrols.
Bremer said holdout Baath Party members and perhaps terrorists from neighboring countries drew strength from Saddam's apparent survival.
``I think it is important that we either catch him or kill him,'' Bremer told the British Broadcasting Corp.
The attack on the road near Baghdad airport involved an improvised explosive device. Two vehicles were damaged. It was not clear if the explosive device was thrown at the convoy, or placed in the road, said Cpl. Todd Pruden, a military spokesman.
The wounded were evacuated to a military hospital and no arrests were made. The identity of the Iraqi civilian was not released, nor was it clear if the victim was a passer-by or had been traveling with the U.S. soldiers.
In other violence, insurgents using rocket propelled grenades ambushed a U.S. patrol west of Baghdad on Sunday.
One grenade struck a Bradley fighting vehicle patrolling near Khaldiyah, 35 miles west of Baghdad, but didn't cause any significant damage or injuries. U.S. troops returned fire with 25 mm cannon, but the attackers ran away.
At least 63 American troops have died in Iraq since major combat was declared over on May 1. The military has confirmed the identities of 138 soldiers killed before that date, for a total of 201 so far, while the names of several other casualties have not yet been made available. Some 42 British troops have died in the current conflict.
The American death toll was still far below the 382 U.S. troops killed in the 1991 Gulf War.
It is impossible to know how many Iraqi soldiers have died since the war started on March 20. An Associated Press investigation completed earlier this month found that at least 3,240 civilians died throughout the country.
In the BBC interview, Bremer said progress was being made in restoring basic services to the country and health care, water and power supplies were improving. He said 240 hospitals across the country and 95 percent of health clinics were now operating and Baghdad now had 18 to 20 hours of electricity a day.
He added that law and order had to be restored to ensure the country could be rebuilt.
``Am I satisfied? No,'' said Bremer, ``We will do our best and we will succeed. I do not know when that will be.''
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U.S. Arrests 60 During New Iraq Operation
Sunday June 29, 2003 5:49 PM
By BORZOU DARAGAHI
Associated Press Writer
CAMP BOOM, Iraq (AP) - U.S. forces launched a massive operation early Sunday to crush insurgents and capture senior figures from Saddam Hussein's ousted regime, arresting more than 60 in a show of force designed to stem a wave of deadly attacks on U.S. troops.
Also Sunday, the U.S. civilian administrator of Iraq said American forces must kill or capture Saddam so he can no longer be a rallying point for the attackers.
``We'll get our hands on him, dead or alive,'' L. Paul Bremer told CNN's ``Inside Edition.''
The operation, dubbed ``Sidewinder,'' was taking place in a huge swath of central Iraq stretching from the Iranian border to the areas north of Baghdad, and was expected to last several days, military officials said.
More than 20 raids involving air and ground forces were carried out, military officials said. The region has become ``the nexus of paramilitary activity in central Iraq,'' the military said in a statement.
The military also announced the arrests of 15 suspects in Mosul in northern Iraq a day before the operation, confiscating Baath party documents and Republican Guard uniforms, as well as weapons.
There were no reports on U.S. casualties in Operation Sidewinder, nor was their any indication that any top fugitives had been captured or killed.
On a road leading to Baghdad International Airport, an Iraqi civilian was killed and two American troops were wounded in an attack on a U.S. military convoy, military officials said.
Among those arrested in the operation was a man in Khalis, 45 miles north of Baghdad, suspected of recruiting young men to launch attacks on Americans, military officials said.
In Dojima, an upscale town where Sunni Muslim residents recently cleaned the still-standing portrait of Saddam, police raided homes of alleged Saddam loyalists they suspected of hiding caches of arms, including rocket-propelled grenades - the weapon of choice in many recent ambushes.
The operation, named after a rattlesnake, began at about 2 a.m. Sunday, with officers simultaneously raiding as many sites as possible.
``We go in with such overwhelming combat power that they won't even think about shooting us,'' Lt. Col. Mark Young said earlier.
U.S. officials in Washington have said repeatedly that no centralized Iraqi resistance to American rule remains. But from the view on the ground, Young said, U.S. military personnel face ``an organized effort.''
``Somewhere in Diala province, something happens every night,'' said Capt. John Wrann, referring to the province northeast of Baghdad where much of the operation was taking place. ``It's got to be a coordinated thing.''
Insurgents have stepped up their attacks against U.S. troops in recent days, carrying out ambushes against military convoys, shooting soldiers in Baghdad, and lobbing grenades at patrols.
Bremer said holdout Baath Party members and perhaps terrorists from neighboring countries drew strength from Saddam's apparent survival.
``I think it is important that we either catch him or kill him,'' Bremer told the British Broadcasting Corp.
The attack on the road near Baghdad airport involved an improvised explosive device. Two vehicles were damaged. It was not clear if the explosive device was thrown at the convoy, or placed in the road, said Cpl. Todd Pruden, a military spokesman.
The wounded were evacuated to a military hospital and no arrests were made. The identity of the Iraqi civilian was not released, nor was it clear if the victim was a passer-by or had been traveling with the U.S. soldiers.
In other violence, insurgents using rocket propelled grenades ambushed a U.S. patrol west of Baghdad on Sunday.
One grenade struck a Bradley fighting vehicle patrolling near Khaldiyah, 35 miles west of Baghdad, but didn't cause any significant damage or injuries. U.S. troops returned fire with 25 mm cannon, but the attackers ran away.
At least 63 American troops have died in Iraq since major combat was declared over on May 1. The military has confirmed the identities of 138 soldiers killed before that date, for a total of 201 so far, while the names of several other casualties have not yet been made available. Some 42 British troops have died in the current conflict.
The American death toll was still far below the 382 U.S. troops killed in the 1991 Gulf War.
It is impossible to know how many Iraqi soldiers have died since the war started on March 20. An Associated Press investigation completed earlier this month found that at least 3,240 civilians died throughout the country.
In the BBC interview, Bremer said progress was being made in restoring basic services to the country and health care, water and power supplies were improving. He said 240 hospitals across the country and 95 percent of health clinics were now operating and Baghdad now had 18 to 20 hours of electricity a day.
He added that law and order had to be restored to ensure the country could be rebuilt.
``Am I satisfied? No,'' said Bremer, ``We will do our best and we will succeed. I do not know when that will be.''
