Sent To Hell On A Rapid-Response Rail: More On Zarqawi's "Adjourned" Meeting
Marcie has been trying to get this new information up since her FIRST post early this morning. Unfortunately, Blogger.com seems to have some "hiccups," and we have both lost these updates three times already. Blogger.com keeps informing us that we keep losing the connection to the site. So, we're going to try this one more time.
There are a few things that need to be brought up. First, FOX News is reporting that our forces in Iraq had help from within Zarqawi's network as to where he was, and when he'd be there:
The spiritual adviser and deputy to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi didn’t know it, but he led U.S. and Iraqi intelligence officials directly to the terror leader’s door during a visit he paid him at a safehouse.
That brought about the Wednesday night airstrike that killed both men.
The Zarqawi deputy, Abu Abdul-Rahman al-Iraqi, was identified by intelligence officials at least two weeks ago with the cooperation of "somebody inside the al-Zarqawi network," said U.S. military spokesman Maj. Gen. William Caldwell, speaking to reporters in Baghdad.
In addition to this comes a story from Yahoo News that the Jordanians also gave us a hand in finding him:
"This is a message for all those who embrace violence, killing and destruction to stop and to (retreat) before it's too late," he said. "It is an open battle with all those who incite sectarianism."
Al-Maliki said tips from area residents helped lead to the airstrike. A Jordanian official said the kingdom also gave the U.S. military information on tracking down al-Zarqawi, who claimed responsibility for the triple suicide bombing of hotels in Jordan's capital, which killed 60 people — mostly Sunni Muslims. The attack drew condemnation from the Arab world, including Islamic militants.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was addressing intelligence issues, said some of the information came from Jordan's sources inside Iraq and led the U.S. military to the Baqouba area.
And The New York Times notes that Iraqi Prime Minister al-Maliki has appointed Gen. Abdul Qadr Mohammed Jassim to be the new defense minister:
In line with an agreement reached several weeks ago between Sunni and Shiites groups, General Jassim, who has until recently been commander of land forces in the new American-trained Iraqi army, is a Sunni Arab, and Mr. Polani, the interior minister, is a Shiite. Both men stressed in remarks to the Parliament that they had no ties to any of the rival political parties in the government, a qualification that American officials had insisted on after the former government of Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari was virtually immobilized over allegations that the interior ministry was sheltering Shiite death squads targeting Sunnis.
Anyone find it a coincidence that al-Maliki appointed a Sunni to be the new defense minister? Gen. Jassim was imprisoned because he disagreed with Saddam Hussein's invasion of Kuwait. The Sunnis make up the bulk of the Iraqi military, and as they had a hand in helping us, I can see why al-Maliki chose this man.
This comes from US CENTCOM, which is the initial report and briefing early this morning:
"Ladies and Gentlemen, Coalition forces killed al-Qaida terrorist leader Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi and one of his key lieutenants, spiritual advisor Sheik Abd-Al-Rahman, yesterday, June 7, at 6:15 p.m. in an air strike against an identified, isolated safe house.
"Tips and intelligence from Iraqi senior leaders from his network led forces to al-Zarqawi and some of his associates who were conducting a meeting approximately eight kilometers north of Baqubah when the air strike was launched.
"Iraqi police were first on the scene after the air strike, and elements of Multi-National Division - North, arrived shortly thereafter. Coalition forces were able to identify al-Zarqawi by fingerprint verification, facial recognition and known scars.
Al-Zarqawi and al-Qaida in Iraq have conducted terrorist activities against the Iraqi people for years in attempts to undermine the Iraqi national government and Coalition efforts to rebuild and stabilize Iraq . He is known to be responsible for the deaths of thousands of Iraqis. Al-Zarqawi's death is a significant blow to al-Qaida and another step toward defeating terrorism in Iraq.
"Although the designated leader of al-Qaida in Iraq is now dead, the terrorist organization still poses a threat as its members will continue to try to terrorize the Iraqi people and destabilize their government as it moves toward stability and prosperity. Iraqi forces, supported by the Coalition, will continue to hunt terrorists that threaten the Iraqi people until terrorism is eradicated in Iraq ."
It's worth noting that the military is acknowledging that they did receive tips fromt he civilians about where Zarqawi was. In addition, the message still remains: This war is not done simply because we killed this man. It will continue until we have defeated our enemy there. We still have plenty of al Qaeda to deal with in Iraq, and we still have bin Laden on the loose. And as an aside, I'd like to address that point.
Both Marcie and I have received a number of e-mails, and personal criticism for hanging onto the "delusion" that bin Laden is still alive. Critics cite the enormous bombing campaigns carried out in the Tora Bora mountains early in this war, and state with certainty that he's dead. I challenge them to present us proof. They have none. They have as much proof that he is dead as we do that he is alive. Until we see a body, or confirmation from CENTCOM that Osama bin Laden is dead, we will continue to carry on as though he is alive. The military is doing exactly the same thing, and proceeding as though our enemy is still running around the Pakistan/Afghanistan regions. There is also a possibility that he is not even there. Rumors surfaced early last year that he may have been in Iran or North Africa. We don't know, but I do wish the critics would keep their opinions to themselves until they have proof to back up their assertions. Until then, they simply continue to show how foolish they really are. (And it might help if they did more research into the subject than talking heads on talk radio and the MSM.)
Another criticism we have received, especially today, is that our jovial attitude over the death of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi is "unChristian." Excuse me? I know that it's not right to gloat in an overbearing manner. And we haven't done that. However we are happy that this animal is dead. Evil assuming room temperature (or hotter if the bomb is the right type) should be celebrated. Those who can't even acknowledge that it's a good thing he's dead are morally ambiguous, at best; at worst, they act as de facto supporters of our enemies. Which reminds me of Jimbo's post today regarding a Che-like shirt on John Murtha, which is hilarious.
Michael Yon's newest dispatch, entitled "Death Finds Satan’s Second Most Favored Serpent," makes an important observation in relation to Zarqawi:
His death will not likely fracture the terror campaign in Iraq because of the disparity of the insurgency itself, comprised of many distinct and disjointed elements, not all of whom were following al-Zarqawi.
Nevertheless, this is an important victory in the GWOT showing that persistent effort can and will produce definitive results. But al-Zarqawi was largely a media-produced terror hero, now that he is gone, let us not produce another.
Omar at Iraq the Model also passes this on, as well:
In the first official confirmation, PM al-Maliki said that Jordan has provided intelligence that was used in the raid on Zaraqwi's hiding place but he also stressed that tips from locals were the primary lead to Zarqawi's exact location and these were the information according to which the missiles were guided.
Al-Maliki said that among the 7 killed with Zarqawi were two women who were responsible for collecting intelligence for the al-Qaeda HQ cell.
And, in conclusion, Charles Johnson takes note of a Christopher Hitchens piece today praising the efforts of our troops::
If we had withdrawn from Iraq already, as the "peace" movement has been demanding, then one of the most revolting criminals of all time would have been able to claim that he forced us to do it. That would have catapulted Iraq into Stone Age collapse and instated a psychopathic killer as the greatest Muslim soldier since Saladin. As it is, the man is ignominiously dead and his dirty connections a lot closer to being fully exposed. This seems like a good day’s work to me.
Charles weighs in on this observation:
The cut-and-run crowd has wasted no time mobilizing their spokesmen of negativity; I turned on CNN a little while ago and who did they pick to comment on Zarqawi’s death? The poster boy for cut-and-run, Rep. John Murtha (D-PA). And on the very day US forces targeted and killed Al Qaeda’s leader in Iraq, Murtha said to Wolf Blitzer, "I think we cannot win this."
I agree. This was all in a day's work, and typical for the US military when they're doing their job. I have no grief over sending this man to Hell. I have no qualms about anyone who was killed with him. And I have to agree with Charles's astute observation regarding John Murtha. While I watched FOX News at the station this morning, Barbara Boxer admitted that this was a "good thing" that happened. I also heard that Ted Kennedy agreed that the death of Zarqawi was good for our efforts in Iraq (thank God he was cut off before he could find his soapbox). John Murtha has deemed that we can't win after we just showed the world that our enemies can't run and hide. We will catch up to them eventually, and we will exhibit the same sort of mercy that they have shown all the innocents they have killed.
Publius II
Marcie has been trying to get this new information up since her FIRST post early this morning. Unfortunately, Blogger.com seems to have some "hiccups," and we have both lost these updates three times already. Blogger.com keeps informing us that we keep losing the connection to the site. So, we're going to try this one more time.
There are a few things that need to be brought up. First, FOX News is reporting that our forces in Iraq had help from within Zarqawi's network as to where he was, and when he'd be there:
The spiritual adviser and deputy to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi didn’t know it, but he led U.S. and Iraqi intelligence officials directly to the terror leader’s door during a visit he paid him at a safehouse.
That brought about the Wednesday night airstrike that killed both men.
The Zarqawi deputy, Abu Abdul-Rahman al-Iraqi, was identified by intelligence officials at least two weeks ago with the cooperation of "somebody inside the al-Zarqawi network," said U.S. military spokesman Maj. Gen. William Caldwell, speaking to reporters in Baghdad.
In addition to this comes a story from Yahoo News that the Jordanians also gave us a hand in finding him:
"This is a message for all those who embrace violence, killing and destruction to stop and to (retreat) before it's too late," he said. "It is an open battle with all those who incite sectarianism."
Al-Maliki said tips from area residents helped lead to the airstrike. A Jordanian official said the kingdom also gave the U.S. military information on tracking down al-Zarqawi, who claimed responsibility for the triple suicide bombing of hotels in Jordan's capital, which killed 60 people — mostly Sunni Muslims. The attack drew condemnation from the Arab world, including Islamic militants.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was addressing intelligence issues, said some of the information came from Jordan's sources inside Iraq and led the U.S. military to the Baqouba area.
And The New York Times notes that Iraqi Prime Minister al-Maliki has appointed Gen. Abdul Qadr Mohammed Jassim to be the new defense minister:
In line with an agreement reached several weeks ago between Sunni and Shiites groups, General Jassim, who has until recently been commander of land forces in the new American-trained Iraqi army, is a Sunni Arab, and Mr. Polani, the interior minister, is a Shiite. Both men stressed in remarks to the Parliament that they had no ties to any of the rival political parties in the government, a qualification that American officials had insisted on after the former government of Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari was virtually immobilized over allegations that the interior ministry was sheltering Shiite death squads targeting Sunnis.
Anyone find it a coincidence that al-Maliki appointed a Sunni to be the new defense minister? Gen. Jassim was imprisoned because he disagreed with Saddam Hussein's invasion of Kuwait. The Sunnis make up the bulk of the Iraqi military, and as they had a hand in helping us, I can see why al-Maliki chose this man.
This comes from US CENTCOM, which is the initial report and briefing early this morning:
"Ladies and Gentlemen, Coalition forces killed al-Qaida terrorist leader Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi and one of his key lieutenants, spiritual advisor Sheik Abd-Al-Rahman, yesterday, June 7, at 6:15 p.m. in an air strike against an identified, isolated safe house.
"Tips and intelligence from Iraqi senior leaders from his network led forces to al-Zarqawi and some of his associates who were conducting a meeting approximately eight kilometers north of Baqubah when the air strike was launched.
"Iraqi police were first on the scene after the air strike, and elements of Multi-National Division - North, arrived shortly thereafter. Coalition forces were able to identify al-Zarqawi by fingerprint verification, facial recognition and known scars.
Al-Zarqawi and al-Qaida in Iraq have conducted terrorist activities against the Iraqi people for years in attempts to undermine the Iraqi national government and Coalition efforts to rebuild and stabilize Iraq . He is known to be responsible for the deaths of thousands of Iraqis. Al-Zarqawi's death is a significant blow to al-Qaida and another step toward defeating terrorism in Iraq.
"Although the designated leader of al-Qaida in Iraq is now dead, the terrorist organization still poses a threat as its members will continue to try to terrorize the Iraqi people and destabilize their government as it moves toward stability and prosperity. Iraqi forces, supported by the Coalition, will continue to hunt terrorists that threaten the Iraqi people until terrorism is eradicated in Iraq ."
It's worth noting that the military is acknowledging that they did receive tips fromt he civilians about where Zarqawi was. In addition, the message still remains: This war is not done simply because we killed this man. It will continue until we have defeated our enemy there. We still have plenty of al Qaeda to deal with in Iraq, and we still have bin Laden on the loose. And as an aside, I'd like to address that point.
Both Marcie and I have received a number of e-mails, and personal criticism for hanging onto the "delusion" that bin Laden is still alive. Critics cite the enormous bombing campaigns carried out in the Tora Bora mountains early in this war, and state with certainty that he's dead. I challenge them to present us proof. They have none. They have as much proof that he is dead as we do that he is alive. Until we see a body, or confirmation from CENTCOM that Osama bin Laden is dead, we will continue to carry on as though he is alive. The military is doing exactly the same thing, and proceeding as though our enemy is still running around the Pakistan/Afghanistan regions. There is also a possibility that he is not even there. Rumors surfaced early last year that he may have been in Iran or North Africa. We don't know, but I do wish the critics would keep their opinions to themselves until they have proof to back up their assertions. Until then, they simply continue to show how foolish they really are. (And it might help if they did more research into the subject than talking heads on talk radio and the MSM.)
Another criticism we have received, especially today, is that our jovial attitude over the death of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi is "unChristian." Excuse me? I know that it's not right to gloat in an overbearing manner. And we haven't done that. However we are happy that this animal is dead. Evil assuming room temperature (or hotter if the bomb is the right type) should be celebrated. Those who can't even acknowledge that it's a good thing he's dead are morally ambiguous, at best; at worst, they act as de facto supporters of our enemies. Which reminds me of Jimbo's post today regarding a Che-like shirt on John Murtha, which is hilarious.
Michael Yon's newest dispatch, entitled "Death Finds Satan’s Second Most Favored Serpent," makes an important observation in relation to Zarqawi:
His death will not likely fracture the terror campaign in Iraq because of the disparity of the insurgency itself, comprised of many distinct and disjointed elements, not all of whom were following al-Zarqawi.
Nevertheless, this is an important victory in the GWOT showing that persistent effort can and will produce definitive results. But al-Zarqawi was largely a media-produced terror hero, now that he is gone, let us not produce another.
Omar at Iraq the Model also passes this on, as well:
In the first official confirmation, PM al-Maliki said that Jordan has provided intelligence that was used in the raid on Zaraqwi's hiding place but he also stressed that tips from locals were the primary lead to Zarqawi's exact location and these were the information according to which the missiles were guided.
Al-Maliki said that among the 7 killed with Zarqawi were two women who were responsible for collecting intelligence for the al-Qaeda HQ cell.
And, in conclusion, Charles Johnson takes note of a Christopher Hitchens piece today praising the efforts of our troops::
If we had withdrawn from Iraq already, as the "peace" movement has been demanding, then one of the most revolting criminals of all time would have been able to claim that he forced us to do it. That would have catapulted Iraq into Stone Age collapse and instated a psychopathic killer as the greatest Muslim soldier since Saladin. As it is, the man is ignominiously dead and his dirty connections a lot closer to being fully exposed. This seems like a good day’s work to me.
Charles weighs in on this observation:
The cut-and-run crowd has wasted no time mobilizing their spokesmen of negativity; I turned on CNN a little while ago and who did they pick to comment on Zarqawi’s death? The poster boy for cut-and-run, Rep. John Murtha (D-PA). And on the very day US forces targeted and killed Al Qaeda’s leader in Iraq, Murtha said to Wolf Blitzer, "I think we cannot win this."
I agree. This was all in a day's work, and typical for the US military when they're doing their job. I have no grief over sending this man to Hell. I have no qualms about anyone who was killed with him. And I have to agree with Charles's astute observation regarding John Murtha. While I watched FOX News at the station this morning, Barbara Boxer admitted that this was a "good thing" that happened. I also heard that Ted Kennedy agreed that the death of Zarqawi was good for our efforts in Iraq (thank God he was cut off before he could find his soapbox). John Murtha has deemed that we can't win after we just showed the world that our enemies can't run and hide. We will catch up to them eventually, and we will exhibit the same sort of mercy that they have shown all the innocents they have killed.
Publius II
posted by Syd And Vaughn | 3:02 PM
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