Threat of Terrorist IED’s Growing, Expanding, General Says

By Jim Garamone

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Sept. 21, 2012 – The threat posed by crude homemade bombs known as improvised explosive devices is growing and spreading across the globe, and will be the terrorists’ weapon of choice for decades, the commander of the Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Organization said yesterday.

“We still need to do more,” Army Lt. Gen. Michael D. Barbero told the House Appropriations Committee’s defense subcommittee, adding that his organization is rapidly fielding critical counter IED capabilities. “But let me say up front that I believe the IED and the networks that use these asymmetric weapons will remain a threat to our forces and here at home for decades.”

These bombs, he said, will be the weapon of choice for terrorists because they are cheap and readily available. Bomb makers use off-the-shelf technology to make the deadly explosives.  IED’s were the number one killer of American troops during the war in Iraq.

“This trend is readily apparent in Afghanistan … where IED events continue to rise,” Barbero said. “In the past two years, IED events have increased 42 percent, from 9,300 events in 2009 to 16,000 events in 2011. And this year, we're on track, for 2012, to meet or exceed the historic number of IED events we saw last year.”

While the overall number of IED events is high, coalition casualties are down, the general said. This is because the coalition’s ability to find IEDs before they explode is steadily improving. This has reduced U.S. casualties by more than 40 percent this past year, he said.

The decrease in IED effectiveness is a result of an across-the-board effort against these devices, he said, noting that troops deploying to Afghanistan receive the latest counter-IED training and use the latest technology from airborne sensors to handheld devices.

“Commanders and troopers on the ground are continuously refining their tactics, techniques and procedures tailored to the threat they face in the region,” Barbero told the subcommittee.

Meanwhile, U.S. forces and civilian personnel “will remain the target of insurgent IED attacks and the IED will remain the weapon of choice,” Barbero said. “From our experience in Iraq, the reduction of U.S. forces must not equal a reduction in counter-IED or other critical capabilities.”

The general said that as the military footprint in Afghanistan gets smaller, troops there “will require flexibility to shift priorities rapidly, providing the requisite counter-IED capabilities, situational awareness and security and protection,” he said.

Barbero said the IED threat is growing and morphing to other areas of the world.

“Since 2007, IED incidents outside of Iraq and Afghanistan have increased to average more than 500 incidents per month around the globe,” the general said. “Since January 2011, there have been more than 10,000 global IED events occurring in 112 countries, executed by more than 40 regional and transnational threat networks. The extremist networks that employ the IEDs have proven to be resilient, interconnected and extremely violent.”

Wherever there is turmoil and insecurity, there will be IEDs, Barbero said.

“I believe U.S. forces will operate in an IED environment,” he said. “I believe it's a reality of 21st century warfare, and we must plan accordingly.”

Army Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Sgt. Louis R. Torres, 23, of Oberlin, Ohio, died Aug. 22, in San Antonio, Texas, of wounds suffered when he encountered an enemy improvised explosive device, Aug. 6, in Kandahar, Afghanistan. Torres was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash.

For more information pertaining to this release, media may contact the I Corps public affairs office at 253-477-3048 or 253-370-9861.

Iraqi National Pleads Guilty to 12-Count Terrorism Indictment in Kentucky

Defendant Attempted to Ship Weapons and Money from the United States to Iraqi Insurgents

LOUISVILLE, KY—Iraqi citizen Mohanad Shareef Hammadi pleaded guilty to federal terrorism charges today in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky before Senior Judge Thomas B. Russell, announced Lisa Monaco, Assistant Attorney General for National Security; David J. Hale, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky; and Perrye K. Turner, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Louisville Division.

Hammadi, 24, a former resident of Iraq, pleaded guilty to all counts of a 12-count superseding indictment. The superseding indictment charged him with five counts of attempting to provide material support to terrorists and four counts of attempting to provide material support to al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI), a designated foreign terrorist organization. The superseding indictment also charged him with one count of conspiracy to transfer, possess, and export Stinger missiles and with two counts of making false statements in immigration matters. Hammadi was first indicted on May 26, 2011 and was subsequently charged in a superseding indictment returned on Feb. 15, 2012 by a federal grand jury meeting in Bowling Green, Kentucky.

Hammadi faces a maximum sentence of life in prison under the sentencing guidelines and a mandatory minimum of 25 years in prison. Hammadi’s sentencing is scheduled for December 5, 2012, in U.S. District Court in Bowling Green before Senior Judge Russell at 11:30 a.m.

Hammadi’s co-defendant, Waad Ramadan Alwan, pleaded guilty to all counts of the 23-count indictment on December 16, 2011, before Senior Judge Russell in Bowling Green. Alwan was charged with conspiracy to kill U.S. nationals abroad; conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction (explosives) against U.S. nationals abroad; distributing information on the manufacture and use of improvised explosive devices (IEDs); attempting to provide material support to terrorists and to AQI; as well as conspiracy to transfer, possess, and export Stinger missiles.

Hammadi and Alwan were both arrested on May 25, 2011, in Bowling Green on criminal complaints. Both defendants were closely monitored by federal law enforcement authorities in the months leading up to their arrests. Neither was charged with plotting attacks within the United States.

“Today’s guilty plea is another testament to the effectiveness of the intelligence and law enforcement communities in bringing terrorists to justice and preventing them from harming the American people,” said Lisa Monaco, Assistant Attorney General for National Security. “I applaud all those responsible for this successful outcome.”

“In open court today, Mohanad Hammadi admitted to engaging in terrorist activities here in the United States. He admitted that he tried to send numerous weapons from Kentucky to Iraq to be used against American soldiers,” said U.S. Attorney Hale. “Bringing Hammadi to justice is the result of a comprehensive law enforcement effort. The FBI agents of the Louisville Division, along with the federal and local law enforcement members of the Joint Terrorism Task Forces here in Kentucky, including the Bowling Green Police Department, and our many other partners, are to be commended. Their collaborative law enforcement effort successfully thwarted the ongoing intentions of an experienced terrorist. The guilty plea today sends a strong message to anyone who would attempt similar crimes that they will face the same determined law enforcement and prosecution efforts.”

“Protecting the United States from terrorist attacks remains the FBI’s top priority,” said Perrye K. Turner, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Kentucky. “Using our growing suite of investigative and intelligence capabilities, FBI agents and analysts assigned to our Bowling Green office were able to neutralize a potential threat. Our local Joint Terrorism Task Force, comprised of FBI agents and other local, state, and federal agencies from across the commonwealth, remains committed to dismantling extremist networks and cutting off financing and other forms of support provided by terrorist sympathizers, whether they are operating in Kentucky or worldwide.”

According to the charging documents, Hammadi entered the United States in July 2009 and, after first residing in Las Vegas, moved to Bowling Green. Alwan entered the United States in April 2009 and has lived in Bowling Green since his arrival.

According to court documents in this case, the Bowling Green office of the FBI’s Louisville Division initiated an investigation of Waad Ramadan Alwan, which, beginning in 2010, utilized a confidential human source (CHS). The CHS met with Alwan and recorded their meetings and conversations beginning in August 2010. The CHS represented to Alwan that he was working with a group to ship money and weapons to Mujahadeen in Iraq. Mujahadeen generally refers to Muslim fighters or warriors engaged in jihad. From September 2010 to January 2011, Alwan participated in deliveries of weapons and money that he believed were destined for terrorists in Iraq.

In January 2011, Alwan recruited Hammadi, a fellow Iraqi national living in Bowling Green, to assist in these material support operations. Beginning in January 2011, and continuing until his arrest in late May 2011, Hammadi participated with Alwan in money and weapons deliveries that he believed were destined for terrorists in Iraq, including AQI. Hammadi also detailed to the CHS his prior activities as an insurgent in Iraq, including his prior participation in IED attacks against U.S. troops in Iraq. After his arrest on May 25, 2011, Hammadi admitted to his participation in the purported material support operations involving weapons and money that occurred between January and May, 2011. Hammadi also admitted his involvement in insurgent activities while living in Iraq, including his membership in an insurgent group and his participation in various attacks on U.S. troops in Iraq.

None of the weapons, including Stinger missiles, nor any of the money delivered by Alwan or Hammadi in connection with the CHS in the United States were provided to AQI, but instead were carefully controlled by law enforcement as part of the undercover operation.

This case is being investigated by the Louisville Division of the FBI. Assisting in the investigation were members of the Louisville and Lexington Joint Terrorism Task Forces, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, U.S. Marshals Service, U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, and the Bowling Green Police Department.

The prosecution is being handled by Trial Attorney Larry Schneider from the Counterterrorism Section of the Justice Department’s National Security Division, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Bennett and Bryan Calhoun from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Kentucky.

Navy Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a sailor who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Petty Officer 3rd Class Clayton R. Beauchamp, of Weatherford, Texas, died Aug. 7 when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device while conducting a dismounted patrol in the Shaban District, Helmand Province, Afghanistan.  He was assigned to 1st Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 6, 1st Marine Division (Forward), I Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward), Camp Pendleton, Calif.

For more information, media may contact the 1st Marine Division public affairs office at 760-725-8766.

Army Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Spc. Darrion T. Hicks, 21, of Raleigh, N.C., died July 19 in Ghazni, Afghanistan, from injuries sustained from an enemy improvised explosive device.  He was assigned to the 54th Engineer Battalion, 18th Engineer Brigade, 21st Theater Sustainment Command, Bamberg, Germany.

For more information, the media may contact the 21st Theater Sustainment Command public affairs office, Germany, at 011-49-631-413-7608.

Army Casualties

The Department of Defense announced today the death of two soldiers who were supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

They died July 18, in Ghazni City, Afghanistan, when their vehicle was struck by an enemy improvised explosive device.  The soldiers were assigned to the 548th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 10th Sustainment Brigade, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, N.Y.

Killed were:

Sgt. Daniel A. Rodriguez, 28, of Baltimore, Md., and

Sgt. Jose J. Reyes, 24, San Lorenzo, Puerto Rico.

For more information pertaining to this release, please contact the 10th Mountain Division public affairs at 315-772-8286.