Thursday, June 08, 2006
Zarqawi, Da Head Chopper Deader Than A Slab of Bacon....
US air strike kills Qaeda's Zarqawi
By Mariam Karouny 45 minutes ago
U.S. warplanes killed Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the al Qaeda leader in Iraq blamed for bombings, beheadings and assassinations, in a strike which President George W. Bush said on Thursday had delivered justice.
In one of the most significant developments in Iraq since the capture of Saddam Hussein in 2003, Jordanian Zarqawi was killed in a bombing raid on Wednesday in a U-S.-Iraqi operation helped by tip-offs from Iraqis and Jordanian intelligence.
Vowing to fight on, al Qaeda in Iraq confirmed the death of Zarqawi, who beheaded several hostages himself and appeared in a recent video firing a machinegun in the desert.
U.S. forces displayed pictures to reporters of the corpse of the bearded Zarqawi with facial abrasions and his eyes closed. Wednesday's air strike was carried out by two F-16 planes with two 500 lb (227 kg) bombs hitting Zarqawi's "safe house."
Zarqawi, in his late 30s and whom Osama bin Laden called the prince of al Qaeda in Iraq, had symbolized the radical Islamist insurgency against U.S. occupation, and British Prime Minister Tony Blair said he now expected guerrillas to seek revenge.
"There will be fierce attempts ... with the death of Zarqawi to fight back," Blair said, adding the militant's death would not end the killing in Iraq but that it was significant.
A car bomb exploded in Baghdad on Thursday killing seven people just hours after Zarqawi's death was announced.
Bush said the death of Zarqawi, who had a $25 million bounty on his head, was "a severe blow to al Qaeda," a victory in the war on terrorism, and "an opportunity for Iraq's new government to turn the tide in this struggle."
GOVERNMENT BREAKTHROUGH
In a key political breakthrough, Iraq's parliament approved Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's candidates for new defense and interior ministers after intense wrangling among his coalition government partners.
Followers of Zarqawi, a Sunni Muslim who had declared war on Iraq's majority Shi'ites reinforcing fears he was out to ignite civil war, pledged to continue their fight.
"We tell our prince, Sheikh bin Laden, your soldiers in al Qaeda in Iraq will continue along the same path that you set out for Abu Musab al-Zarqawi," said a statement on an Islamist Web site. "The death of our leaders ... only makes us more determined to continue the jihad."
Maliki, who was desperately in need of success to bolster his authority, announced Zarqawi's death near the city of Baquba 65 km (40 miles) north of the capital.
Bush said U.S. special forces confirmed Zarqawi's location based on intelligence from Iraqis and "delivered justice to the most wanted terrorist in Iraq."
"It truly was a very long, painstaking, deliberate exploitation of intelligence, information gathering, human sources, electronics, signal intelligence," U.S. Major General William Caldwell said, adding the operation took many weeks.
U.S. forces were trailing Sheikh Abdul-Rahman, Zarqawi's spiritual adviser, and that led them to a small house in a palm grove area and Zarqawi.
Six people, including a woman and a child, were killed in the house but only Zarqawi and Abdul-Rahman have been identified. Zarqawi was identified by his fingerprints and tattoos. A further DNA test was being carried out on Zarqawi.
BAGHDAD RAIDS
Seventeen raids were launched on suspected hideouts for Zarqawi associates in the Baghdad area hours after he was killed. They produced a "treasure trove" of information, officials said.
Zarqawi's death had an impact on oil prices. Crude futures were down more than one dollar to $68.17 a barrel.
Zarqawi, who U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad called the "godfather of sectarian killing in Iraq" and who faced four death sentences in Jordan, one for his role in killing a U.S. diplomat, had inspired a flood of militants from across the Arab world to blow themselves up in suicide missions.
Taunting Bush during the video taped killing of a sobbing, blindfolded U.S. hostage, Zarqawi once boasted his al Qaeda fighters "love death just like you love life."
"Killing for the sake of God is their best wish," the insurgent leader said, drawing a knife to hack off the head of his kneeling victim.
Zarqawi's reputation for personal savagery stood out even in a country where brutal killings were routine, and sparked reports bin Laden and his deputy Ayman al-Zawahri were worried his homicidal zeal would undermine support for their network.
"His whole intent was to incite violence between Shi'ites and Sunnis. He wasn't interested in going after coalition forces," said Caldwell of the former street thug who had eluded repeated attempts to capture or kill him.
Some Arab citizens hailed Zarqawi as a hero for his role in the insurgency but others welcomed his death as a form of justice for a militant whose attacks killed far more Iraqi civilians than foreign troops.
Caldwell said an Egyptian militant trained in Afghanistan called Abu al-Masari, who established the first al Qaeda cell in Baghdad, may succeed Zarqawi as head of the group in Iraq.
My thanks To Our Us Military.... God Bless You.
# posted by Joyfulstill @ 10:58 PM 
