Coalition Forces Kill, Detain Terrorists; Iraqi Troops Find Weapons

American Forces Press Service

April 23, 2007 – Coalition forces killed 16 terrorists, detained 45 suspected terrorists and, along with Iraqi army troops, uncovered multiple weapons caches in operations throughout Iraq over the past three days, military officials reported. Coalition forces detained 19 suspected terrorists associated with facilitating foreign fighters, working with al Qaeda in Iraq and operating a car-bomb network today.

-- Coalition forces south of Karmah captured six suspected foreign-fighter facilitators connected to the al Qaeda in Iraq network.

-- Nine individuals suspected of working with al Qaeda in Iraq were detained in three separate coalition raids in Anbar province.

-- Coalition forces detained four suspected terrorists south of Taji for their alleged involvement in a network responsible for making and placing car bombs.

"The success of coalition operations continues to disrupt al Qaeda's operations in Iraq. These captures help restrict their freedom of movement and reduce the organization's manpower pool, diminishing their ability to attack innocent civilians as well as Iraqi and coalition forces," said Army Lt. Col. Christopher Garver, Multinational Force Iraq spokesman.

In other operations, coalition forces killed 15 terrorists and detained seven more individuals suspected of kidnapping, facilitating foreign fighters, and working with the al Qaeda in Iraq network yesterday.

Coalition forces conducted air strikes on a known al Qaeda meeting location south of Baghdad that killed 15 terrorists. Later in the operation, ground forces killed three terrorists loading a vehicle carrying an anti-aircraft weapon. The raid also uncovered several weapons caches and a second anti-aircraft machine gun.

Coalition forces northwest of Taji detained an individual suspected of ties to kidnapping operations and al Qaeda in Iraq.

Elsewhere, coalition forces killed one terrorist, detained 19 suspected terrorists and found caches of weapons and chemicals used to make improvised explosive devices during operations yesterday southeast of Fallujah. During that raid, coalition forces found large amounts of chemicals used to make IEDs, several weapons and bomb-making accessories, including more than 50 pressure plates and a suicide vest. A controlled detonation destroyed the materials on site. An air strike destroyed a vehicle found on the scene loaded with explosives.

In another operation, coalition forces and Iraqi army troops continued clearing operations in the Iraqi capital's Mansour security district, uncovering five weapons caches April 21 during Operation Arrowhead Strike 9.

The weapons and ammunition discovered included one submachine gun, five AK-47 assault rifles with eight full magazines, two pistols with four full magazines, one full can of blasting caps used for IEDs, two small two-way radios, and a sword. Iraqi army troops from 1st Battalion, 5th Brigade, 5th Iraqi Army Division, along with U.S. Army soldiers from the 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, participated in the clearing operation.

(Compiled from Multinational Corps Iraq and Multinational Force Iraq news releases.)

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