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| Iraq-Jordan |
| Zarqawi in control of a new pocket stretching between Haditha and Qaim |
| 2005-08-23 |
| Despite repeated offensives US troops still do not control of parts of northwestern Iraq and militants all but govern some towns, dispensing summary justice with public executions, residents say. âThere are no US forces, no Iraqi army or police,â said an Iraqi reporter who works for Reuters in the region. He visited the town of Haditha some days after a US operation this month and did not want to be named for fear of reprisals. âThree days ago, three people were executed on Haqlaniya bridge after being accused of spies,â he said, citing residents of Haditha with whom he keeps in contact and referring to a bridge that connects the town with another across a river. The Euphrates Valley area, a conduit for small numbers of foreign radicals entering Iraq from Syria, is effectively closed to outside observers by threats of violence and local journalists also work in fear of intimidation and worse. However, a reporter for Reuters and other Iraqi correspondents in Anbar province, which covers much of western Iraq, provided accounts similar to a detailed report on conditions in Haditha in Britainâs Guardian newspaper yesterday by a journalist who spent time there. The US military, which has conducted several offensives against insurgents near Haditha, most recently Operation Quick Strike which ended on Augsut 10, said it was working with Iraqi security forces to try to bring stability to whole of Anbar. âAs the number of Iraqi army forces continues to grow, operations where we enter a city and assist them in establishing a permanent presence will be the norm versus the exception,â said Captain Jeffrey Pool of the US Marines, mentioning the success of such an operation in the town of Hit. He did not refer directly to the situation in Haditha or Qaim. Local people said substantial parts of a 120-km stretch between the towns of Haditha and Qaim on the Euphrates are now run by fighters loyal to Jordanian Al Qaeda figure Abu Musab Al Zarqawi and other groups fighting US forces. In Haditha, a town of about 90,000, and Qaim, a smaller town close to the Syrian border, forms of Islamic court have been set up and guerrillas mete out punishments such as execution or beating with cables, residents said. âSome people who are brought here we treat for torture wounds,â said a doctor at Hadithaâs hospital who spoke on condition of anonymity, fearing reprisals. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #6 Time for some pest control ... |
| Posted by: DMFD 2005-08-23 23:53 |
| #5 Executing hicks in the desert is alot safer than fighting Marines. Maybe if the residents told our troops about the insurgents they could do something. Oh, I forgot, can't rat on a fellow muslim. |
| Posted by: bigjim-ky 2005-08-23 19:34 |
| #4 Let the cockroaches proliferate, give two-day notice, and then carpet bomb |
| Posted by: Captain America 2005-08-23 18:49 |
| #3 actually if these towns can be cordoned off it is better to let the jihadis have their day; as noted, the jihadis tick off the locals; the jihadis will fight each other; finally, if the cordon is tight enough, the jihadis will not be able to escape the eventual coalition operation |
| Posted by: mhw 2005-08-23 13:51 |
| #2 "In Haditha, a town of about 90,000, and Qaim, a smaller town close to the Syrian border, forms of Islamic court have been set up and guerrillas mete out punishments such as execution or beating with cables, residents said. âSome people who are brought here we treat for torture wounds,â said a doctor at Hadithaâs hospital who spoke on condition of anonymity, fearing reprisals." Wait long enough and the locals will be begging for someone to kick the Jihadis out. |
| Posted by: DoDo 2005-08-23 12:11 |
| #1 This area is dotted with small towns that under normal circumstances would only need one or two policemen to manage. So the bad boyz play nice whenever the government comes to town, then quickly come out to threaten, harass and steal as soon as they leave. If police do arrive, if they are few, the thugs try to assassinate them. So, what must be done is larger groups of police and army have to enter some tiny town, *and* convince the locals that if they give up the bad boyz they won't get punished, *and* leave a larger than needed contingent in town for a long time. This is a time consuming and manpower expensive process. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2005-08-23 10:10 |