http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=1461468
Commander: al-Qaida Stymied in Iraq's West U.S. Commander Says Offensives Near Syrian Border Have 'Neutralized' al-Qaida in Western Iraq By KIM GAMEL Associated Press Writer The Associated Press AL ASAD, Iraq Jan 1, 2006 Recent offensives near the Iraqi border with Syria have dealt a significant blow to al-Qaida and cut off the group's ability to smuggle in foreigners through the volatile western area to join the insurgency, a U.S. commander said Sunday. Maj. Gen. Steve Johnson, commander of the Second Marine Expeditionary Force Forward, said the operations had "neutralized" the group's ability to use the vast Euphrates River valley to organize and attract followers. The fighting helped restore Iraqi control of the border with Syria to eliminate smuggling lines and paved the way for successful Sunni Arab regional participation in Dec. 15 parliamentary elections, he said in an interview with a small group of reporters at this dusty U.S. base in al Asad, in western Anbar province near the Syrian border. He said U.S. forces had "dealt the enemy a significant blow out here in the western Euphrates, knocked him off of his stride, took away his areas where he was congregating, made it difficult for him to organize, and cut into his rat lines that run through this particular part of the country." He also said the number of suicide bombings had gone down, without giving specific numbers. Brig. Gen. Boomer Milstead agreed. "There's been a significant decrease in the smuggling of fighters from Syria," he said. The expeditionary force leaders spoke on the sidelines of a visit by the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, Gen. Peter Pace, who is on a weeklong holiday tour with a group of entertainers to rally troops. The trip began Wednesday in Qatar, and included visits to Bahrain, Afghanistan and the east African nation of Djibouti. Johnson said a largely local insurgency persisted in western Iraq, although they sometimes worked with al-Qaida and other rogue elements. "I think there's a marriage of convenience between a number of them," he said, adding he did not believe al-Qaida was a dominant factor. "I believe we have neutralized his ability to do the things that he wanted to do out here. They've gone on to other places where it's easier to operate," he said, declining to elaborate on where those areas might be. -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: osint@yahoogroups.com Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. OSINT, as a part of The Intelligence Network, is making it available without profit to OSINT YahooGroups members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties, social justice and other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
