Snippets
- In the northern zone of operations yesterday coalition forces detained Ayed Hameed Nouri (ph), a known associate of Izzat Ibrahim al-Duri, at the Niewan (ph) Hotel in central Mosul. A human tip led the unit to this hotel where he was apprehended without incident. Two days ago coalition forces conducted seven offensive operations in Mosul. All the targets were members of an organization known as the al-Rawfa al-Watani (ph) movement. Seventeen individuals were detained as a result of these raids, including two targets.
- In the north central zone of operations, Iraqi Civil Defense Corps forces captured Shahab Al-Hawas. He is a suspected financier of coalition attacks and a cousin of Izzat Ibrahim al-Duri.
- Two days ago, coalition forces supported an Iraqi police special combat unit raid on Nasir Mashur, a suspected murderer, who was captured without incident.
- In the western zone of operations, coalition forces and Haswa police officers conducted a joint cordon-and-search to capture or kill members of a criminal gang that had been impersonating coalition forces while committing criminal activities. Eighteen enemy personnel, including the target individuals, were detained.
- On the evening of 19 February, coalition forces received small-arms fire from a house in the Al-Jazeera area of Habbaniya, approximately 90 kilometers west of Baghdad. Coalition forces returned fire, resulting in one enemy killed in action. Inside the house, the unit discovered a large quantity of bomb-making materials, explosives and electronic components, pro-Saddam literature, pictures of Abu Musaab al-Zarqawi. The enemy killed has been identified as Abu Muhammed Hamza, an explosives expert and believed to be one of Zarqawi’s lieutenants.
- Q: I was just wondering, there were some people captured in that raid as well. I was wondering what you could tell us about them.
Kimmitt: What I can tell you is that those personnel are providing information that are leading to further operations in the region.
- The report that we received was that this was a group of civil affairs soldiers that were in fact conducting a different mission, handing out leaflets and such. Came to the door, knocked on the door. Hamza, for whatever reason, felt himself in danger, started firing on the soldiers, the soldiers returned fire, and in the process, lost his life. And it was in the subsequent follow-up on who this guy was, why would he be firing at soldiers, so on and so forth, that we somewhat discovered who he was and his associations.
- Q: I’m Lee from MBC TV, Korea. Yesterday in Kirkuk a car bombing occurred. From early in April, the Korean troops will deploy there. What’s your perspective on Kirkuk situation? Isn’t it too dangerous for the Korean troops to manage?
Kimmitt: That will be a decision that has to be determined by the Korean military and by the Korean government in terms of what specific rules of engagement they are going to permit their soldiers to use and in what environment they’re prepared to commit their soldiers. At present we have coalition soldiers operating in Kirkuk, operating through Kirkuk. And while the situation throughout the country is relatively stable, there will be times when there are individual acts of terrorism. There will be individual attacks on coalition forces.
The Korean forces have a large and long history of working side by side with the coalition. And if that is the choice of the Korean military and the decision of the Korean government to operate in that environment, we anticipate that those soldiers will perform quite well.
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