U.S., Iraqi Forces Prevent Grenade Attack, Detain Suspected Criminals

American Forces Press Service

Feb. 17, 2009 - Iraqi and U.S. forces thwarted a convoy attack, detained suspected criminals and seized weapons over the past four days, military officials reported. Iraqi security forces and U.S. soldiers captured a suspected criminal as he was about to attack a convoy Feb. 15 in northwestern Baghdad's Mansour district.

U.S. soldiers engaged a suspected criminal approaching the convoy with small-arms fire. The individual was carrying two handheld, shaped-charge grenades. When wounded, the man dropped an already armed grenade, causing it to detonate.

Iraqi and U.S. forces apprehended the alleged criminal and safely recovered the other grenade, as well as a fragmentation grenade.

U.S. soldiers treated and transported the suspect to a coalition medical facility for numerous injuries suffered in the ensuing blast. No other injuries or damage were reported.

A day earlier, Iraqi security forces, aided by U.S. soldiers, detained suspected criminals while conducting operations in southern Baghdad's Rashid district.

The soldiers detained two suspects for terrorist activities using Baghdad Operations Center warrants in two different neighborhoods in the Shurta community. The patrol transported the suspects to a nearby joint security station for processing.

In the Saydiyah neighborhood later that evening, the joint forces confiscated 11 AK-47 assault rifles, one SKS assault rifle and two pistols while conducting neighborhood clearance operations.

In other Baghdad operations:

-- An Iraqi army patrol southwest of the capital city discovered a cache containing 4 tons of homemade explosives. U.S. soldiers assisted the Iraqi soldiers with securing the cache.

-- Iraqi security forces, assisted by U.S. soldiers, secured a weapons cache while conducting combat operations in the New Baghdad district yesterday. Acting on a tip, national police discovered 47 120 mm mortar rounds.

-- Iraqi and U.S. soldiers on a joint patrol discovered an improvised explosive device yesterday in the Mansour district. An explosive ordnance disposal team responded to the site and used an EOD robot to investigate the IED. EOD technicians determined the device a hazard to move, and they destroyed it on site.

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