The US military has intensified its offensive against al-Qaida in Iraq, staging 38 more raids based on information uncovered during the hunt that led to the death of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in an air strike.The fresh raids came as al-Qaida issued urgent appeals for money and volunteers to fight American forces, after al-Zarqawi's death left it without a clearly recognised leader. The al-Qaida appeals suggested al-Zarqawi's network may be feeling the heat from the US raids, which have extended beyond Hibhib to include a series of locations in and around Baghdad.
In a video news conference relayed from Baghdad to the Pentagon, spokesman Major General William Caldwell displayed a suicide belt, explosives and Iraqi army uniforms uncovered in 17 raids conducted in the immediate aftermath of al-Zarqawi's death. The raids targeted people whom the US had been monitoring in the build-up to the strike, which was delayed until al-Zarqawi had been pinpointed because they were giving "indicators at different points in time as to where Zarqawi might be," he said.
In the next two days another 38 raids were conducted, some directly related to information obtained in the earlier raids, General Caldwell said.
Two official statements posted on the website used by al-Qaida urged Muslims to volunteer to fight in Iraq, saying al-Zarqawi's death should remind them of their "duty" to fight infidels. "Iraq is the front line of defence for Islam and Muslims. So, don't miss this opportunity to join the Mujahidin and the martyrs," said one signed by Abdullah Rasheed al-Baghdadi, who succeeded al-Zarqawi earlier this year as head of the Mujahidin Shura Council, the umbrella group that includes al-Qaida.
"This is a compulsory duty for all Muslims in these days," it said. Another statement in the name of Hamil al-Rashash (Holder of the Rifle) was desperate. "Help, help! Support, support!" it said. "Assistance, assistance! Where is your money? And where are your men? Wake up before it gets too late and before all the curses of Earth and heaven fall upon you."
The military has portrayed the strike against al-Zarqawi as the culmination of weeks of intelligence gathering from multiple sources, including an al-Qaida informant. General Caldwell said it was unlikely anyone would receive the $33 million reward offered for al-Zarqawi.
After action pics show the remnants of one of the bomb casings. Very thin metal, making the JDAMs concussion bombs. Z's insides had probably been turned into jelly.